Woodland Tree Fort

Eleanor has been bugging her parents for a Woodland Tree Fort like this one that she found in a toy catalogue. Unfortunately, this one has a pretty hefty price tag associated with it.

So, Rob and Carrie suggested I try to make one instead. Always up for something new to try building, I rustled up a number of tree branches to use for the supports and other parts. I turned quite a few of the parts on my lathe so that I could get flat parallel ends on these pieces. The various levels were cut from pine.

I added some benches/tables/seats, a couple of different stairs (one made from tiered pieces of the tree branch), a rope ladder, a swing, and a couple of lookout platforms. Finally, I added some fake green foliage to the various miniature tree trunks.

Eleanor was surprised when I showed up with it, wanting to know how I knew she wanted one. She immediately pulled out a number of her small action figures and began to decorate it further. She seemed to be happy with the results. I'll be interested to see how the wood holds up, since some of the tree pieces were still somewhat green. I hope they don't crack too much as they dry out.

Sisters

The sisters pictured below, I would swear, do often exhibit the exact same expressions. These pictures are as close as I can get to proving this. While I've personally experienced these "exact same expressions", I've not been able to capture the moments on camera at precisely the same moment. You'll have to trust me, I guess.

Penny Poses

We are helping Rob and Carrie with child care this week. Penny is here all day, and when her school day is over, Eleanor joins us.

When Henry was a baby, Great Aunt Paula made a farm set for me so that I could get him properly introduced to his heritage. Several grandchildren later, the set continues to get lots of attention. Penny knows all of the different animals, and she likes to have them properly penned up.

Penny is sitting on my lap as I write this, and she likes clicking on the trackpad, so I'm not sure what kind of formatting or other features may end up being a part of this posting. This expression pretty much sums up her current little dickens attitude.

Grandpa has a goofy smile, and Penny likes her fingers better than her thumb.

Yesterday, Kathie arranged for some Facetime with Jessica and Maia so that the cousins could interact. Eleanor was doing the "disgusting bowl dance" for Maia.

This morning, we got out the roller coaster. We still need to work on keeping the feet on the foot rests and the hands tight on the handlebar.