One morning last week Hannah was sitting perfectly still. I should stop right there for a second, because that is an event in itself.
It was a good combination of her being a bit sleepy, a fresh bowl of Cheerios to snack on, and a silly show that Jayce was watching. She planted herself on a pillow and was still. She was so still that I stuck a clip in her hair and she didn't even notice.
I seized the opportunity to get a few photos of one of her most defining characteristics at the moment, aside from the sass, her soft, flipp-y little curls.
Straight out of the bathtub, they are tight little ringlets, but just at the bottom. After a night of sleeping on them, they are soft and delicate. It is impossible to be sitting near her and not reach over, twist the curls around your fingers, comb them back and forth, try to pull them into little pony tails and then brush them back down exactly as they were. 
Eventually she spotted me,
but I was no match for whatever show was on at the time.
Then I put away my camera and stopped resisting her. I pulled her into my lap and sat down on the rocker, so we could rock and snuggle, and I had complete access to her to her plump cheeks. And those flips.
There is a wonderful park very near our flat and just next to Jayce's school called St John's park. We all headed over a few weeks ago one afternoon when it was still warm and I brought along my camera.
There are a few playground staples in London that we didn't have in Illinois and this is one of Jayce's favorites. It's a huge flat swing. On a busy park afternoon there are typically groups of 3-6 kids on swinging back and forth. But if you are at the park for the rare occasion that you get it all to yourself, it is the supreme accomplishment. However, on this day, not only did Jayce have it all to himself, he had Chris along to push him. 
Eventually we loaded Hannah on as well, and she was screaming at the first push. Happily. She loved it. 
My kids were actually playing happily together! Well, kind of. They were happy alongside of one another, and that counts for something.
After a few minutes Hannah was ready to get down and run around again, and eventually settled sleepily back into her stroller, snuggling her "bear."
Which is exactly where Jayce wanted her. Because just look at how much higher he could go without her. He was cracking up the whole time.
It was a happy little park trip. 
This little rascal is so full of sass. She has so much personality: when she's loving you, she loves big, and when she's driving you crazy, she'll drive you almost all the way there. Her likes and dislikes change every day, so we never really know which toy will be The One to keep her happy on a trip, or which snacks will keep her pacified in a restaurant so that we can eat in peace.
My birthday fell on a Saturday this year, so we hopped on the train into the city for the day. The Tate's Museum was having a free family event, Tiny Tates, so we went there first. 
There were various activities set up around the museum, encouraging the kids to use their senses...or something. I don't know, do the activities need to have a purpose? Regardless, it was free and indoors on a cold day. The kids loved it and it made me happy.
Jayce really liked the different stations, and Hannah just liked being able to run around in a room full of people. (It seems like I'm saying that a lot these days, it was also her main activity for 
Jayce and his tower, when we were able to keep Hannah away long enough for it to not be immediately knocked down.
We then went for a chilly walk around the city. We were looking for a particular restaurant, and in the absence of my iphone or a phone that could connect to the internet, we just wandered with our fingers crossed.
Eventually, we had a winner. We wandered over towards Picadilly Circus and past Benihana, and that was it. It was perfect. Warm, not crowded, a bit entertaining, nicer than somewhere we would normally go for lunch, and food that all four of us would eat.
And Chris even took a few pictures. I picked the ones that were the most in focus, bless him. :)
We did a little shopping, grabbed some Krispie Kremes for the train ride home, and even Starbucks was in on my birthday festivities, choosing that day to start serving their seasonal drinks. It was a yummy ride home.
Our church was having a Halloween party on Halloween evening, and though I wasn't initially sure if we were going to go or not, Jayce saw the fliers posted around church, and how it was superhero themed, and that was that. We had to go. Also, we'd rolled our clocks back the week before so it was pitch black by 5 pm, and cold, so a few hours of indoor activities was right up our alley.
The main building had been cleared of all chairs and filled with various little game stations, run by super heroes, with sweets for prizes and participation. Jayce was like a kid in a candy store. Or like a kid in a church filled with lots of games and free candy.
Jayce had his face painted like a cat. He was very proud of it and even Hannah approved.
This is one of the rare photos that I have of them together, or where Hannah was standing still for just a split second. 
Jayce was serious about bobbing for apples, and was eventually rewarded for his persistence, even though it was detrimental for the lower half of his painted face.
Success!!
Hannah was also successful, and this is how she looked all night. On the run, with an apple. 
Her method of bobbing for apples left something to be desired. But they kept letting her play, and win. (I think it was her tiny chef persuasive powers.) 
And if Jayce was like a kid in a candy shop, you can imagine what Hannah was like. We'll just let go of the metaphors here: She was like a baby who was unleashed in a large room, full of friendly people, half of them kids, in fun costumes, standing by brightly colored games, with big tubs of sweets that they let her dip into time and time again. With an apple to bite on. 
Trying to get a photo of the kids together and looking in my general direction wasn't happening, so these had to do.
We left the party and headed home, letting Jayce stop at the houses on our street that we passed along the way. There weren't many, maybe 5 or 6, but they each gave him a handful of candy. And the next morning he asked me, "Mom, when I'm done with this candy, can I lay down because my belly hurts?" 
