When Mamma Plays Barbies ...

... Midge gets a little "saucy" ...

... the Kens get in touch with their feminine sides ...

... Midge trys out her stripper routine ...

... and Barbie drinks more than she can handle.

Barbie & Friends Gone Wild! Hey, if you are going to be pressured into playing Barbies for the umpteenth time ... ya may as well find a way to enjoy it :)

Enjoy the weekend ...

Love,

Jodi

P.S. We leave for Disney World this Sunday --- so no posts for a week. See you the following Monday!

P.P.S. Mitzi pointed out that the following Barbie was not on my blog ... after she discovered it on Flickr. It is her fave, so I thought it was worthy of posting here too. I call it Barbie Fro & Bling:

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Imitating Snow.

One recent night, Halis and I were treated to some time alone. We chose to use that time to "play" with one another ... something I always beg for ... time alone to create, laugh, and share with one another ... like children do. So, I grabbed paper, scissors, and my favorite snowflake making book: Grandma's Magic Scissors. We sat at the kitchen table ... chatting and laughing ... creating snowflake after snowflake ... totally enjoying ourselves and eachother. These are my favorite times together ... when we play.

We did our best to imitate the beauty of natural snowflakes. Okay - not really. Well, maybe some of mine could pass for authentic, naturally made snowflake designs. But Halis - well, he made the frog snowflake shown above (if that were a real snowflake, I could freeze it and sell it on Ebay for thousands).

We even got so good at cutting Grandma's Magic designs that we ventured into cutting some of our own designs ... freehand...

Halis made this tree snowflake without a pattern. It is a favorite around here.

So - moral of this post: get out the scissors and papers, grab a loved one, and start cutting. Laughter, inspiration, awe, and loving compliments will follow. Good times on the cheap. And fabulously rewarding. Play is good.

Enjoy your day.

Love,

Jodi

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Rockstar.

Daddy brought home a complete set of drums. No one here actually really knows how to play the drums. But we think we do.

We now have an electric guitar, an acoustic guitar, a set of drums and a keyboard. And no one knows how to play any of them so that the music is actually recognizable. I guess the Partridge Family won't get any competition from us :)

Love,

Jodi

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Play - often and outside.

A lovely and talented friend of mine "from across the pond" tells me that August 6th, 2008 is National PlayDay in England. Playful events will take place throughout the country on that day. Many events are organized by England's National Children's Bureau whose motto is: "Letting children go out to play is one of the best things that parents can do for their children's health."

I SO agree. In fact, not so long ago I created a Flickr group called No Child Left Inside in order to bring parents and caretakers together to share photos and exchange information about exploring the wonder and beauty of the outdoors with our children. The group currently has over 150 members ... and some amazing photos. Please check it out.

Then ... get off the computer and get outside to play ;)

Love,

Jodi

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