Selfies and Sweet Girls

*Note:  If you subscribe to this blog, you received this post by accident the other day with no words.  I sent it on accident.  Sorry.

People here LOVE, LOVE, LOVE taking selfies.  

In restaurants, in taxis, in the market, in the grocery store...wherever you can think of.

They also love taking pictures of and guffawing over cute kids.

Whenever we are out, Keira either gets her cheeks pinched, her face kissed, her photo taken (by herself or with a stranger), candy given to her, or any combination of the four.

Every Saturday, after her ballet class, a gentleman at a sandwich shop we dine in, goes to the grocery store next door and buys her something chocolate.  And the cook and waiter in that restaurant have both taken selfies with her.

I'm telling you, she has been a Trooper, with a capital "T."

I went to the mall two weeks ago to do some grocery shopping (because the big grocery stores are in the malls), and I had to run her quickly to a restroom.  As we crossed the center of the mall, she spied a Cinderella-ish carriage decorated for Valentine's Day.  I told her we could take a picture in the carriage on our way back.

When we returned, a young lady was having her picture made with the bear inside, so we waited.

However, when she was done, the young lady wanted to take a picture again,,,with Keira.  

We complied.

Then, she finally got her turn....with the one-eyed bear.

Of course, the pictures Keira doesn't mind taking are with her "big me" (I'm guessing that's the opposite of a "mini-me").

 She likes looking like Kylie.

Since I'm talking about my girls, let me share something the oldest two did for Doug and me for Chrismtas.  Kylie and Karis spent a lot of time and effort to make these decorations for our room.

They found cardboard, used an exacto knife, and covered the letters with scrapbook paper.

I think they are beautiful, and I love them in our room,

It surely helps beautify our cinderblock walls.

No shiplap here.

Kids' Creativity and Hard Work

If you are a parent, I'm sure you have experienced those moments where your kids really impressed you with something they did without any prompting or help from you.

I remember in Africa, thinking how cool it was that the kids wanted to play X-Men, and without any actual toys, they just made their own action figures out of paper.

In one house we lived in while in America, the kids put together a "meal" for Doug and I out of leaves, berries, and sticks, and it was very beautiful.
 

And, granted, these aren't the only times I've been impressed, but I actually have a picture-record of these.

On Mother's Day, this year, the kids impressed me again.

Since we were limited on space of things to bring here, the kids were missing their "Clue" game, so they decided to make one for me for Mother's Day.

ALL of it!

Caleb even sacrificed some of his legos to re-create some people that looked like the suspects.

They used cardboard that came wrapped around the corners of their twin beds.

Karis spent days making all of these record sheets.

 And the back of every card was covered with painters' tape.

I was blown away!

Happy Mother's Day to me!

And I commissioned the game by winning the first time we played.