Shades of Life: Aren't Grandkids Great?!

What Grandma wouldn't melt when being greeted with this cute smile by her two year old grandson? Jasper was holding a plastic snake, so I knew right away that the gift I brought him was going to be a hit.

So, what fun things did we do while I was in New Mexico?? Hmm, there were so many . . .

WE "PLAYED BUGS": Jasper's Uncle Christopher loved playing with plastic bugs when he was little. Although I was taught that "bugs" should be called "insects", I like the word "bugs" better. Christopher had a collection of many kinds of bugs and other creepy crawling things, including grasshoppers, praying mantises, snakes, beetles, frogs, scorpions and even a ladybug or two. Since Christopher just turned 17 and long ago outgrew this fun bug collection, we decided it would be a perfect gift. Jasper was in bug heaven!

Jasper played with the bugs most every day I was there. The first morning, I devised a hide and seek bug game on the spur of the moment and he then asked me to "play bugs" with him every morning thereafter. He kept asking me the name of every bug, and I only knew about 50%, so we got a bunch of books from the library. I told Jasper he was my bug, because he is "cute as a bug", and asked him what kind of bug he wanted to be, and he decided on a "grasshopper bug". Since his special bugs needed a new home, I bought a large plastic Ziploc see through container and labeled it colorfully with "Jasper's Bugs" so he keep track of them and put them to bed at night without losing anyone.

Ever the good little brother, Jasper was more than happy to share his new collection with his big sister. Maya loved playing with him too, so I named her "ladybug".

This seemed appropriate, especially as one of her favorite books she was reading when I arrived in NM was about the ladybug girl! And I read it to them at least six more times before returning it to the library! : )

WE WALKED TO THE NEARBY PARK AND PLAYED: Brittany and John are blessed with a park right behind their house. Literally. You just walk down a dirt easement and voila, there it is! It couldn't be much closer or more convenient. It was fun to watch the kids run and jump, pick up sticks and rocks and just be the happy and exuberant kids they are! Oh, and Grandma Nita enjoyed the beautiful weather with sunny skies and birds everywhere!

And, what kid doesn't love playing on a big swingset or play structure in the park?

WE COOKED - AND WE ATE -AND THEN WE COOKED SOME MORE:
As is important with any family gathering, there must be plenty of food. I taught Maya how to make my world famous chocolate drop cookies.

And any good cook knows that tasting is the best part!

Both Maya and Jasper helped me many nights as I made dinner. One or both of them was usually on the counter next to me. They helped me measure, stir and pour. It made the cooking experience much more fun for us all.

Jasper always loved to eat, and he ate the dinner we cooked with gusto!

But I think he may have eaten too much!

WE SHOPPED UNTIL WE ABOUT DROPPED:
As they live in the tiny town of White Rock, NM, which features one or two stop lights in the entire town of 6,000 people, shopping in the big city of Santa Fe about 45 minutes away is a big deal. So after picking me up at the airport, we all headed to one of our favorite spots, Target, where Maya and Jasper worked together to push the shopping cart down the very long aisles to find their favorite section.

What is their favorite department? Toys, of course! We had a blast as we explored every aisle a minimum of three times.

And they really loved looking at all the games (a good gift idea!):

Funny true story . . . As we stopped in the little girl clothes department, Jasper picked up this cute yellow dress for Maya for Easter. After telling him thanks, but not this time, we put it back, only to have him grab it back two or three more times! He really loved this dress for his big sister!

"Hmm, I think size 5 is just about right!"

WE READ BOOKS LIKE CRAZY! Nothing could've made me any happier than seeing how much they both LOVE to read. We read books many times during the day, then again before bed. And John reads to them and plays with them constantly. They sit still and listen intently and love their reading time.

This was my favorite book! Lizards for Lunch!

WE HAD ONE-ON-ONE DATES: I took Jasper to the library's exercise/singing time followed by reading time. We got to do many fun things, like singing head-shoulders-knees and toes, jumping, following the leader in a circle, making music with instruments and much more. Boy, did we get up and down off that very hard wooden floor many, many times!

Jasper is the cutie pie in the middle sitting alone temporarily
since Grandma Nita had to capture this picture moment!

Jasper knew all the answers during story time.

I was so proud of him!

My special time with Maya was taking her to her weekly ballet class. She looked like a doll!

Always the camera enthusiast, while also being equipped with a new Canon camera, I took at least 100 pictures of Maya as she danced. It was fun to be able to capture both the front and back as well as her profile in the mirror while she practiced.

Maya was very patient after class as I kept trying to capture the perfect picture, but the truth of the matter is that with Maya as the subject, they were all absolutely adorable! (not that I'm prejudiced or anything)!

Doesn't she look like she knows something we don't?
Either that or she is up to something!

"Okay, Grandma, I have smiled and posed so many times
I think I am going cross-eyed!"

"This is the last one? Great!"

WE BRAIDED MAYA'S HAIR: I haven't been able to play with a little girl's hair since Brittany was young and had long hair. I really loved braiding Maya's hair, which is long and thick, just like her Mom's. I was able to get it even more kinky with ten braids by the end of my stay!