a helping hand

people ask me how Ivy likes her sisters, and I think the expected response is either 'oh she hates them' or at best 'oh she doesn't mind them', but Ivy geniunly adores her sisters. You catch her sometimes just doing amazingly sweet things unpromted, like noticing Briars feet are cold so going to fetch socks, or just casualy putting a hand on willows back to help her sit up. Willows been making a 'ma ma' sound, so I was trying to teach her that I could be called 'mama'- Ivy has decided that a far better thing for willow to learn to say is 'big sister' and keeps tapping her chest and saying 'Bi-g si-ster bi-g si-ster' to Willow and Briar. 

Ivy and I made fireworks this morning. I drew some silver star bursts on black card, and ivy coloured them in with crayon. Then she added some stickers, and we tried to add paint with a straw before deciding that didn't work and using a fork instead. they were finished with liberal doses of glitter, before ivy decided who each picture was for and we signed them.

I gave up trying to teach Briar to sit today- she just refuses to bend in the middle. I have discovered that she can stand up though, and rather enjoys it. So whilst Willow practised sitting like a normal baby, Briar stood up beside her looking pleased with herself. Briar even attemtped a step whilst holding ivys hand- she manages to make Ivy look tall!