Emma wants to be a doctor. I want to be a shepherd.

She is gone to the hospital with daddy, which is their special thing to do every Saturday morning.  They go on rounds "to see the sick people".  She loves it.

Here is a picture of her listening to daddy's heart.  I am pretty sure she thinks that the heart is in the big toe area but never mind...

As for Daniel, I was planning on taking some fabulous pictures today, but the light is not very good (it is cloudy and drizzly outside), so will have to postpone the great photography until tomorrow.  Here is something that I got so far, just of him in the swing.  I find that for most newborn photography to look good, I need my husband to entertain him somehow so that he opens his eyes:

Life is really good.  I am preparing for the triathlon, and have shaved off one minute from my 1 km time, which is really good.  I am still the slowest on the morning training team, but so what, I am the only one that just had a baby there, and by next year perhaps I will be able to keep up more consistently.  I have started running as well, and found that actually running 5 km is really not that hard, especially when I don't have to push a double BOB loaded with my kids and the neighbours' kids at the same time (for some reason I thought that was a great idea, don't ask!).

I do a lot of art and Romanian lessons with Emma in the mornings.   We keep it fun and light, and at 10:30 we wrap up all activities and go outside to play at the park.  She is learning how to cut with scissors, and enjoys cutting both paper and play dough.  The play dough part is very messy, so I am starting to get her involved in the cleanup on a more consistent basis.  So far, I would clean up her messes and make it fun for her to help if she wanted to.  Lately it still fun, but it is becoming compulsory.

I have started reading the book on Love and Logic parenting recommended by blogger friend Lara, and it is a great, great book.  I have realized that up to now I was focusing more on being a friend to Emma, and not as much a parent.  And it was the right, age appropriate thing to do.  However, she is growing up, and she needs to start integrating into society.  That involves doing her share of work in the family (which is her little society at home) and learning to interact with the outside world (her friends, the neighbours, people we meet at the grocery store).  She is doing really well, except for the sudden bursts of wanting to make a mess (she even says "mommy, I want to make a mess"), and then I know I need to send her to her room, because if it happens in daddy's office, it involves taking all the paper out of the shredder and spreading it joyfully all across the house, including in the flower pots.

She also needs to work on respecting the cat.  Our cat is very kind and gentle, and would never hurt my kids, but since the neighbour's kids play in our house, the whole gang thinks it is great fun chasing the cat and throwing pillows at her, which we (the parents) disapprove of. (Even though I think it is hilarious to see the cat challenged a bit, since all she does is sleep and shed hair, but ahem, don't tell Emma I said so).  Here is the cat, trying on some baby clothes.  That was my idea.  I was making baby clothes by hand before Emma's arrival, and was trying them over the cat's head to make sure that they were wearable.  (They were not wearable, by the way).

Anyway, life is smooth and wonderful.  I am baking bread tonight, so I took out the sourdough starter and am feeding it some flour.  Soon I will be milling the grains.  I should move in the prairies and get some goats.  Here in town I am quite sure that one cannot keep goats.  I am craving some fresh, unprocessed milk, lots of it, to drink and to make fresh cheese from.  Mmmmm...