Artists Houses at the Arboretum

I took Lena and Hazel to the Arboretum to see the Artists' Houses they built for the Spring. This is the Monet House, complete with bridge and water. Lena was too small to stand on the bridge by herself, but Hazel was just the right size.

Next, the girls checked out the Van Gogh house, with lots of sunflowers outside.

 Aside from the reproduction of Starry Night, the room felt eerily accurate.

Lena among the cypresses outside the Van Gogh house.

Then, to Picasso! The house was deconstructed with lots of angles and openings. Do you see Hazel in the doorway?

Lena on the go.

The final house was for Georges Seurat and felt very French.

Apparently, Lena can climb up a chair. I'd never seen her do that before.

Hazel then showed that she could also sit in this chair.

After visiting all of the houses, we had a picnic with snacks.

 Hazel rolled down the hill repeatedly on the soft grass.

They had just started installing the Chihuly show at the Arboretum. We saw preparators putting together large glass sculptures and saw several glass boulders in the water, like these. We were there April 24. The Chihuly installation opens May 5. I'm sure we'll be back to see the rest of it.

By the Window

I moved Lena's dollhouse to the window sill in her room. She really seems to like it there. She can really get into the first floor rooms better. She also likes being silly and hamming it up.

Wee Table and Chair

Look! A perfectly Lena-sized table and chair. She still needs help getting up into the chair, but we think she'll grow into it nicely.

Pink Babies

It's almost summer time here. We bought some new shorts for Lena, like this pair of linen coral shorts, here with a light cotton top. She had a growth spurt after her first birthday. She's now 31 inches and almost 25 pounds.

 She is becoming more attached to her baby dolls and stuffed animals. She likes to move them around or point and "ask" for them. Here are her three pink baby dolls lined up in a row. Also, check out Lena's new sandals! Perfect for sweaty little feet.

Afternoon Fun

Hazel holding her kitten doll.

Hazel came to play last Thursday. We made a kitten doll. She drew it on the fabric. I cut it out. She stitched it together. I machine stitched over that. She drew out the face and placed the eyes. I sewed the eyes on and embroidered the nose and mouth. I added the arms and legs. I can't wait to make things like this with Lena!

It was hot out but we played at the water table outside before and after walking to the playground and the frozen yogurt shop.

Farmer Lena in her denim romper. 

Dance, kitten doll!

Shabby Chic Lena

Oh my! Has it been that long since I've updated the blog?! I'm so sorry. Here is the start of a flood of new photos. The Etsy Dallas event I've been working on was this past weekend, so I'll finally have more time to devote here, starting with my favorite new photos by YLK photography done as a product photoshoot with Lena as the model.

The shoot was at a vintage store in downtown Grapevine. This was taken in an outdoor shed with the door open for natural light.

This is the photo I have as my screensaver on my phone right now.

This is the photo that was run in the Dallas Observer this weekend. A reporter choose it as the product shot to promote the Spring Bash!

This is probably my favorite image. I love how her eyes look.

Hopefully these photos were worth waiting for. More to come!