February in MN?

Sorry about the bizarre formatting of this video.  I took it with my phone.  This is from a couple weeks ago when it was 40 degrees and sunny so we went for a walk and Charlotte played in the grass.  Crazy.   She was soooo happy to play outside.

A Wind in the Willows

Treebeard

Charlotte loves leaves.  She and Pancho have an affinity for sticks.  Whenever we pass a tree she reaches out to touch the trunk and will smile and laugh as she pats the bark and soaks up its texture.  At our nearby park she will roll onto her back and look up the leaves against the sky and smile, babble, and laugh as the trees sway in the wind.  Next to Charlotte's changing table, Emily put some decals up of a giant tree with birds and flowers.  Charlotte stares, laughs, points, and babbles at the decals.  She will even happily say "birdie" every now and then when we point and look at the bird decals together.  Trees just might be her favorite thing.

And to top it off, she is tree-like herself.  She is not exactly overly-mobile. Plus she is a giant, in the 95th percentile for height and weight, despite being born six weeks early.

 I have come to realize she is an ent.  And there are worse things to be. 

Ents are by far my favorite of all the critters, creatures, and characters from the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  It's been awhile since I've seen or read The Two Towers.  But if I recall correctly ents...

• contemplate and deliberate before making a decision
• are cautious
• observe
• are as natural as nature can get
• prefer peace over war but will stick up for themselves
• look out for one another
• are fierce warriors when called to action (still waters run deep.)
• are strong, sturdy, and stable, with a tough exterior, and are not easily rattled
• are verbally intelligent and enjoy a good debate
• yet are quiet and unassuming and do not seek attention or the limelight 
• are humble.

These are all values that I respect.  Charlotte may or may not acquire these values, be it with or regardless of any influence we have as parents. But based on this one picture, it looks like she is well on her ent way.

Merry Merry

Our $20 free range organic Christmas tree from Mother Earth Gardens.  If you want to see the harvesting of free range organic Christmas trees in Northern Minnesota, here is a cute video complete with Vince Gauraldi music.