Growing Up Lolli

Yesterday, my mom told me that I was going to grow up to be old.
JUST LIKE HER.

::shudders::

Then she tells me I can have all kinds of jobs once I am grown.
I asked her what her job is.

 

She rolled her eyes and said something about safety, keeping things alive, blah blah blah.

I am guessing she isn't a public speaker.

 Everywhere we go, Mom says,
"See that fire fighter? She helps people and fights fires!"
 or

Don't you like Mr. Doctor? His job is making kids feel better!"

or

"Boo Boo Kiss has a job loving children and teaching them things."

And then my dad wants me to be a pro surfer.
But I think we both know he just wishes he was a pro surfer.

Mom says I can be ANYTHING I WANT.

But I think I know what I want to be when it is MY turn to get a job.

 A funky fresh famous freaky POPSTAR!

I really love to play my keyboard.
Mom says one day I can have a big piano!
I wonder if it will be pink.

I prefer pink pianos.
Pink pianos play perfect preludes.
Perfect for POPSTARS!

 A Song for Things That Start with P

P is PERFECT for making lots of PUH sounds
P is PUH- PUNCHY it makes me go PUH PUH PUH PUH

P is for PINK. For PINK and PURPLE PEONIES.
P is for PONY
And who wouldn't want a PONY!


P. P. P.
I love P.
P loves you and P loves me.
Without it I couldn't be so haPPy!
P. P. P. so haPPy! 

P is for PUPPET. A PUPPET can be PRETTY.
P is for PECAN. You can PUT those in PIE!

P is for PRESIDENT and PEDRO.
VOTE FOR PEDRO!
Does anybody like POPSICLES?

P. P. P.
I love P.
P loves you and P loves me.
Without it I couldn't be so haPPy!
P. P. P. so haPPy!

 What is YOUR favorite word that starts with P?

A Mermaid Story

Some days all I can think about is cupcakes.
And stars.
And the moon.
I think about the moon A LOT.
And Peeps.
I do love him so.

Some kids love trains, and some kids love to play kitchen.
Some love chalk and some love games.
And even though I do (I really do) like all of those things, (who wouldn't?)
I am always in for a puppet show.

Do YOU like puppet shows?

Puppets are just so funny with their flappy little heads. 

If I don't have a puppet of something, I just make one.

In fact right now I am working on a mermaid puppet.

Would you like to hear the story that goes along with her?

OKAY WELL IF YOU INSIST.

Once upon a time there was a mermaid.

No, SISTERS.

They were mermaid sisters.

And their names were Beatrice and Emily.

No, wait.
That doesn't sound right.
Finley and Jordan.
Yes, That sounds more mermaid-y.
There names were Finley and Jordan.

Anyhoo, Finley and Jordan weren't just mermaid sisters.
They were the best of friends.

One day when Finley was out swimming in the ocean, she came across a shoe.
She thought, "I am going to give this TREASURE to Jordan! She will LOVE IT!"

And as she swam back to their little mermaid house, she wondered what this treasure even was.

See, mermaids have fins, not feet, so they don't even wear shoes.
Since Finley had never even seen FEET before, she was at a loss.
She thought maybe it was a fish trap, or a sea horse bed, or a DINNER.
But it really didn't seem (or taste) like any of those things. (ptooey)

So Finley decided maybe Jordan could tell her.

Turns out, Jordan had NO CLUE what the treasure was either.

They decided to call it a Beeboobobber.

They stuck a plant right in the foot hole of the Beeboobobber and were easily the envy of Beeboobobber-less mermaids everywhere.

The sisters decided that they would spend their lives collecting Beeboobobbers and reselling them to their mermaid friends.

And indeed, they opened the very first underwater Beeboobobber store and made piles of shells.
I mean, so many shells they opened 3 more Beeboobobber stores.
Who knew Beeboobobbers were going to be all the rage in a mermaid world?
What luck to be able to really crest a trend like that!

And I wish I could tell you that THAT was the end, but seriously, I just ran into Finley the other day and they really have a hard time keeping up with all the business and are looking to expand again...

Rainy Day

Some days all it does is rain.
Some times for DAYS.
RAIN. ONLY RAIN.

It can drive a guy stir crazy.
But not a guy like Tag.

What can I say?
Tag knows how to party.


Who needs boots and a raincoat when they have swim trunks and Divey Man?

And PUDDLES!

Rainy days are great for building forts.
Reading books.
Drawing pictures of monsters and aliens.

Rainy days are good for making cookies.
Hiding and seeking the cat.
Playing super one man band show.
When Tag grows up he's going to play guitar for the President!

Tag loves music.
He could spend all day (rain or shine) practicing his awesome stage moves.
He can kick and thrash and play VERY LOUD!.
He can play softly.
But he usually plays somewhere in between.

Do YOU like music?
Do you have a favorite song?
Do you like to sing along?
Do you like to play with instruments?
Do you like to play LOUD or softly?

Here is a song that Tag wrote:

Play in mud and play in sand.

On your shirt.

All over your hands.

Mom says clean up.

Time to run.

Mom loves chasing me in the sun.

Dirty running: it makes her so mad.

Dirty running: how could it be bad?

Dirty running: If I stop I'm going to be so sad...

Dirty running: This kind of stuff always cracks up my dad.

Paint on my fingers.

Paint on my toes.

Paint just everywhere paint could go.

Paint on the floor and

Paint in my hair.

When my mom comes in this should give her a scare!

Dirty running: it makes her so mad.

Dirty running: how could it be bad?

Dirty running: If I stop I'm going to be so sad...

Dirty running: This kind of stuff always cracks up my dad.

Music and making up songs is SUPER way to pass some time on a RAINY day!
Thanks for playing along.

Howdy!

Howdy there, kids!
It's ME!
Cowgirl Lolli!
I'm the sharpest shooter in the West!

I love to take pretty pictures.
Pretty pictures help me remember the things I have done!
Sometimes my mommy puts all the pictures I take in a week into a photo album.
Then I have my own little book!

 Do you like to take pictures?
Do you like to DRAW pictures?
A lot of times I draw a picture of something I want to remember.
And then my mommy puts it on the refrigerator.
And then I remember every time I walk by it.
And then I tell my dad all about it.
And he says, "Oh yes what is THIS PART, Lolli." and "Lolli what are THESE guys doing here?"

And then we laugh and LAUGH and laugh because I almost always draw funny things.

Draw a picture of ME!
Don't forget my RED hair and GREEN eyes!
And certainly don't forget my Cowgirl hat!
Yeehaw!

Have a great weekend!

Lolli and Monkey Bear

This is Lolli.
And this is Lolli's room.
Lolli LOVES her room.
Sometimes she disappears in there playing for hours.

She will get caught up reading picture books and playing with her Monkey Bear.

She and Monkey Bear love to make up their own stories and act all the parts out.
They especially like stories about BEST FRIENDS.
And animal friends.
And faraway-pen-pal-exotic friends.
Made up friends.
Real friends.
Friends of friends.
Those friends' friends.

You know.
I think they just like friends.

Sometimes Lolli tells Monkey Bear the story of how they met.

"Once upon a time, there was a faraway playground.
A fancy, swirly-sweet playground made from ice cream.
And candy.
And one day, a little girl found the playground.
And it was empty.
Except for one little Monkey Bear swinging by himself.

And the little girl walked up to the little Monkey Bear.
She held out her hand and said the bravest thing a little girl could ever say.
She said, "Want to be my friend?"

And she waited.
She waited for Monkey Bear to say anything.
And Monkey Bear blinked.

And the little girl said just a little bit louder, and even braver,
"Hey YOU Monkey Bear! I said, do you want to be my friend?!"

And the Monkey Bear said "OH YES!"
"I'm sorry! I couldn't hear you! I was pretty close to the speakers at that ELMO LIVE concert last night!"
And the little girl said,"OOOH! I wanted to go SO BAD but I had to go visit my Grandmama, TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT!!"

And Monkey Bear did.
He told her every single thing and even sang the songs for her.
And they munched on the ice cream playground and finished off most of the candy.
Then he made her a playlist of some of his other favorite songs.
And put it on her iPod.

And to this very day the little girl has that playlist on repeat.
And they are the BEST-est of friends.
No "The End".
Because friend ship shouldn't have to have an ending."

And Monkey Bear always asks, What's a friend ship?
And Lolli tells him she isn't exactly sure but maybe it is an old wooden ship...

Cholly Likes Stuff

I am Cholly.

I like stuff.

Don't you?

What is your favorite color?
My favorite color is blue.

The ocean is blue.
The sky is blue.
And that is why one of my eyes is blue.

Because I love the water and the air.

 I love sea turtles and dolphins and fish.
And manta rays and sharks and crabs.
And manatees.
And whales.
And jellies.

I love to make noise.
Can YOU make some noise?
I can make noise on my drums.
I can DRUM DRUM DRUM really LOUD LOUD LOUD.

My drumming hand is STRONG.

(whispers) I can also drum very soft.

Soft soft soft so my mom doesn't even know I am drumming at all.

Things I like to do:
paint
draw stuff
play drums
laugh
surf
eat cake
laugh harder...

When I grow up I want a farm.
On the ocean.

This is my chicken.
I call her "Funky Chicken".
This is my cow.
Her name is Holy Mooly.

They are very fun friends.

Do you have any animal friends?
What are their names?
Do your animal friends like music?

Funky Chicken can appreciate some sweet beats.

Sometimes Mr. Piggles joins in the fun.
He keeps pretty good time.
And our band sure likes a good time.
In fact we should all go have a good time NOW!

Play ya LATER!

Good Morning Kiki!

Good morning Kiki!
Did you sleep well last night?
Sometimes Kiki doesn't sleep so soundly.
But she always gets up in the morning with a smile and ready for FUN!

 

Kiki loves to travel.
She has been many places.
She has collected many things.
She loves maps.

And daydreaming about far away places.

She loves to tappa tap tap on her typewriter.
She likes to sleep in her shoes.

She is Lolli's very best friend.
She tells really good stories.

What's that Kiki?
You have a story to tell?
We are ALL EARS!

 Once Upon a time, in a far away land there was a cat.

He lived at the beach and held the reigning title of "SEA KITTY".

He was the most awesome kitty in the world.

 What made the kitty a SEA KITTY?

He had a tiny boat and an eye patch, and the other kitties called him

CAPTAIN FISHBEARD.

 One day Captain Fishbeard sailed off into the sunset.

He sailed and he sailed on the open sea for days.

Eventually, his boat found land again.

IN CHINA.

 The first thing Captain Fishbeard found was a fish market.

He ordered up some eel and octopus and 5 kinds of fish to eat.

And when he was finished eating, his beard REALLY DID smell like fish.

And so did his fur.

AND SO DID HIS EYE PATCH.

And he lived happily until a mid life crisis.

Whereby he traded his boat in for a motorcycle and toured AFRICA.

Which is a story for a different day.

The End.

Why thank you Kiki!

We hope you have an awesome day!

Can you draw a picture of Captain Fishbeard?
We would love to see what you come up with!