3 and 5/6

George is 3 years and 10 months today!

Playing in our little dusting of snow

We read "The Snowy Day", bundled up and went for a walk to Waitrose

Leeds City Museum

We finally filled up our bottle of 20p coins, so we had a bagging up party to cash them in (they use bags instead of paper rolls here) and George loved playing with the coins!

George loves music--he asks me to play music on my phone for him, and he has his own little transistor radio that he plays and dances along to

We've been taking full advantage of our National Trust Membership (thanks, Kelly!)--our first visit was to East Riddlesden Hall on their opening day of the year back in February

It's a lot like Oakwell Hall, as they're both from the same time period

Their kids' play area was fantastic--they have a "mud kitchen", a nature trail and this cute little Hobbit house!

Saltaire

Shipley Glen Tramway

George stole my lunch--even though we were eating the same thing, he preferred to eat off of my plate (it was baked sweet potato with Mexican beans and cheese, tomatoes & avocado)

Such "three-nager" attitude! He goes from 0 to 100 and back again very quickly--this face could be followed by a fit of giggles and cuddles!

He still enjoys playing with his trains--he acts out little "rescues" with Belle and Flynn, the fire engines

Another big milestone moment: his first "body art"! George got hold of a permanent marker at nursery and scribbled on his tummy--the staff was worried I would be upset but I thought it was funny!

He went all shy and embarrassed about it!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I made our favourite Nigella chocolate cake and the prosciutto-wrapped salmon with herby lentils from Jamie Oliver. So good!

For World Book Day, George dressed up as Postman Pat

They said at nursery that he kept the outfit on all day, including the glasses

He got a prize for best costume--a book!

Beningbrough Hall, near York, was another lovely National Trust site we'd never visited before

They have a partnership with the National Portrait Gallery, and this dress-up exhibit lets you recreate your own oil-painting-style portrait

George got into character as a little Lord of the Manor

They also had this fun sculpture exhibit, where you use clay to make a nose on this statue of Captain Cook

On St. Patrick's Day weekend, we went on a narrow boat trip on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal

George had a great time with his pirate gear

I love these old distance markers!

George below deck--we gave him pirate-themed sticker books and "Friends on a Boat" Kinder chocolates for the occasion!

I don't take enough pictures of Biscuit these days, but she's still fluffy and lovely

Biscuit's favourite spot on the sofa

Richard spent the day with George while I was at a work event--it was the first lovely sunny day of the season and they had a picnic at Roundhay Park!

In the nature trail at Nostell Priory

In the background, just right of George, there was a pheasant that got very close to us!

Nostell Priory is another National Trust site, near Wakefield

George loves playing "Shop"--we took turns exchanging sticks and rocks

George and I went down to London to meet up with Aunt Kelly, Uncle Jason and William & Charlie! We had a brilliant time on the Harry Potter studio tour. It was so cool to see the real cupboard under the stairs!

Being 3, George had no idea what was going on and found some parts of it too dark/scary, but he was a good sport, overall. 

He would not, however, smile for selfies in the Great Hall

The Golden Snitch!

The boys' dormitory

Gryffindor Common Room

Dumbledore's office

Hagrid's hut

The Burrow, the Weasley's home

The Black family tree tapestry

Finally some smiles, thanks to the Knight Bus (George called it a "Vintage Bus!" because of all the vintage bus events we've taken him to--and he's not wrong!)

Running around with Charlie on the bridge

In the Weasleys' Ford Anglia

We got in on a sneak preview of Gringotts--it was supposed to open a few days after we visited

George was super-weirded out by the goblins

Bellatrix Lestrange's vault--the treasures were made of foam, so the actors wouldn't get hurt when they start multiplying and burying them

George was a bit happier on Diagon Alley (and I was thrilled!)

He liked the Owl Emporium

Model of Hogwarts Castle

The last time George went to that playground, in Sept 2017

The Tower of London

Up close with the Raven

I love the carved graffiti in the prison walls

On the Thames bus

Roald Dahl's reconstructed writing hut

I love this replica hut where you can sit in his chair!

And George played with the replica stuff on his table

Portraiture at Temple Newsam House

Farm babies at Temple Newsam

We had a weekend away in the Lake District over Palm Sunday

Cruise on Lake Windermere

Roman fort near Ambleside (another National Trust site!)

 

We did the ferry across Windermere to get to Hill Top and Hawkshead

I love that sign!

Inside Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's home

I loved these trophies for her prize-winning sheep!

Each room had a copy of one of her books, with a bookmark to indicate some kind of reference to something in the room

Beatrix Potter's doll house

A very tired little tourist

Early sketches--she used her actual pet hedgehogs for the artwork in Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle 

The Beatrix Potter Gallery, in her husband's former office in Hawkshead

Hawkshead Grammar School--Wordsworth went here!

Sunset in Bowness-on-Windermere

We came across this amazing portable coop near Sizergh Castle--the happiest, healthiest looking chickens I've ever seen!

They've won National Trust awards for their egg quality

Sizergh Castle was gorgeous--lovely gardens, and the family still live in one section of it

They're restoring and conserving these tapestries--so beautiful!

I love daffodil season! They had some really unusual color combos in the garden

This garden kitty doesn't look very happy, but it was friendly

The gorgeous inlaid wooden panels in this master bedroom were actually sold off to the V&A museum, but the National Trust managed to restore them to the house

Fountains Abbey

On Easter morning, we decorated this cake before church

George's Gruffalo Easter egg

George playing "shop" in the castle at Roundhay Park's new playground--I think our National Trust visits have convinced him that all castles have gift shops

Treasurer's House in York

 

We've had a busy three months! George has been very independent lately, which has its pros and cons. On the plus side, he impresses us with new abilities all the time--he dresses himself now with little or no help, he's totally potty trained, and he sings and dances so well! Unfortunately, his independence also means a lot of "No, I do it myself!" moments, which can be difficult to handle sometimes. On the whole, though, we know it's ultimately a good thing--he starts Reception class at school this September, so he needs to be independent!

Recent firsts:
First visit to the Tower of London and the Harry Potter studio tour
First trip to the Lake District
First earned prize (Best Costume at nursery on World Book Day!)
First time fully dressing himself (when we were in London)
First "body art" permanent marker scribbles
First time on a canal boat