On Your Mark!

Spring swim meets have started. The first one was a little chilly, but Lauren was a trooper and gave a great swim in all four events! She's the one in the dark swim cap :) And the sunset was breathtaking.

Grow little garden, grow.

ALS Awareness and a little ice

Earlier this week, I was nominated by my brother for the ALS ice bucket challenge, and I made a donation to alsa.org in memory of our grandmother. However, the kids were disappointed to learn that I did not partake in the whole ice bucket thing :) So they were promptly nominated, and here we go.

First Day of School

Kindergarten and Second Grade, bring it on!

Right Now | Jul 2014

Lauren (age 7): Has a wiggly tooth. Is working on the breaststroke. Can't stop reading. Takes lunch orders as her evening chore. Has a new interest in drawing. Is collecting yogurt containers to build a castle. Enjoys singing.

Cole (age 5): Can count to 100 by twos. Loves to bake. Has discovered potty humor. Is enjoying his first season of basketball. Is quite the jokester - always saying 'tricked ya'. Practicing cursive. Always says 'thank-you' when receiving a compliment.

Acting Debut

Lauren's class put on an impressive performance of James and the Giant Peach last week. We scored front row seats, thanks to the early arrivals of Grandma and Grandpa. Lauren played the role of the ladybug, and only had a minor costume mishap - an accidental tear to the wings when the peach rolled down the hill.

In the Garden and Around the Yard

Prepping and planting of the seeds for a fall/winter garden.

Lauren cutting some burlap to protect our cactus from the blazing sun.

Oops, too late. And yes, a cactus can actually die.

But never fear, a replacement has arrived.

One of our garden visitors, a tomato hornworm.

And a visitor in waiting - look closely.

Right Now | Aug 2013

Lauren (age 6): Prefers cartwheels over walking. Is a tad feisty. Earned a yellow belt in Karate. Loves a long shower. Is addicted to reading. Likes avocados, and apples.

Cole (age 4): Loves to swim. Can tie his shoelace. Enjoys singing 'God Bless the USA'. Is learning to read. Always asks "Where's Lauren?" Still loves cars, trucks, and trains....

Bookworm

Lauren can't stop reading these days. Thanks for the Nancy Clancy book, Emily & Amy! We just checked out a fresh batch of books at the library. And Lauren has one book 'in progress' in each of our cars, for reading during the 5-minute trip to/from school :)

Nature Walk

We've been taking a few evening 'nature walks', while the weather is still cool enough. Lauren likes to look for interesting items to pick up - flower petals, seeds, etc. Cole wants to walk up everyone's driveway....

Sunday Fun

The kids have been asking to go swimming at the YCMA, and we finally went. It was a little chilly (83F) but no matter. They had a blast tossing and diving for the assortment of diving sticks, rings, and toy boats.

In the afternoon we redeemed the kids' free bowling game coupons that we received at Lauren's party. The cashier even waived the fee for Stew and my shoe rentals :)

'You're It!'

The cousins (and Stew) starting up a game of freeze tag, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Santa Visit

We still don't know what's up with Cole's pouty face... he was pretty set on not smiling I guess. Ah, it will make for humorous memories one day. Otherwise, we had lots of fun time at the annual Winter Wonderland at work.

Cole really enjoyed the trains.

Lauren's favorite activity was icing (and eating) a sugar cookie.

Contentment

Cole could literally sit and watch the Frosty Train circle the tree for hours.... Also note the sole ornament hung thus far - Lauren's newly acquired 'Rapunzel' which she purchased with her Disney Store gift card.

Mid-Sabbatical Crisis

Only 4 weeks left, and I'm actually starting to feel a bit of panic set in. So much to do, so little time. Our biggest projects - remodeling our backyard, and decorating our master bedroom - are still in the early stages, but we've been doing a lot of research. In any case, here's a look back at our 6 weeks so far. We've....

Traveled.

Explored.

And explored some more.

Indulged.

Nursed a sick cat back to health.

Tried new recipes.

And modified some of the kids' favorites.

Shopped.

Played.

Exercised.

Baked.

Encouraged.

And relaxed.

Catching Raindrops

Happy 4th! We had a lot of fun at the annual 4th Celebration at a neighborhood park, although this year it rained - but no one seemed to mind :) Water slides, snow cones, hot dogs, hula hoop contest, and more; maybe next year we'll even decorate bikes and join the parade!

Right Now | May 2012

Lauren (age 5): Reads her own bed-time stories. Enjoys jumping rope. Loves to hug. Is learning freestyle. Offers Cole some of her snack when he has finished his.

Cole (age 3): Loves to throw anything. Sleeps without covers. Is obsessed with sun butter. Can name over 10 types of trucks. Always asks "what are we going to do next?"

School Pics

School photos are back. They crack me up, every time.... 2011 pictures are on the left for reference.

Two years in a row? I had to purchase at least one sheet, because how can you pass up that face? :)

Lauren's turned out pretty good, I was pleasantly surprised.

But this is actually how I sent her to school. Notice the new hairdo in the school pic - a ponytail mysteriously sprouted...

Writing Lesson

Lauren has been working on her penmanship - which seems even a bit better than Stew's!

Merry Christmas!