For the Love of Nature

Today, Lauren brought home a lovely teal colored 8.5 x 11 piece of construction paper, adorned with cicada exoskeletons (and a few drawings). Apparently she (and Cole, and maybe others) have been plucking these little molted shells off the tree bark at school - and I've heard she's amassed quite a pile. She asked if I'd like one for my project life journal, but I said I'd settle for a picture :)

Soccer Time

Cole and Lauren are both trying soccer this summer, through the indoor league at the YCMA. Cole and I kicked around the ball last night in the back yard, he was in heaven.

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?"

Play Day

Had the day off today, and after some morning chores and errands, and a nice lunch, got right to crafting with my mom.

Had seen a friend post a similar bracelet she'd made, so checked out a few tutorials, then we gave it a shot. These are inspired by the trendy Chan Luu leather wrap bracelets. Need some leather cord, beading thread, beading needle, beads of choice, a button or bead to use as a toggle, and possibly some jewely/beading glue to secure the knots. One tip is to use a binder clip or clipboard to secure the two ends of the leather cord while adding the beads.

They were pretty fun to make, and not bad for a few hours of work. Looking forward to making another :)

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...

Happy Easter

Waiting patiently for the egg 'hunt' to begin. There was a 5 egg limit, but neither Cole nor Lauren managed to gather that many at first, since there were so many kids. But they scavanged up a few more when another child exceeded the limit, and had to place some eggs back in play :)

Pizzeria Bianco

After several years of reading/hearing about the nationally acclaimed Pizzeria Bianco, we finally had the opportunity (and time) to visit. It was a Saturday, we arrived at 5pm, and began our 2 hour wait. We walked around Heritage Square for a bit, then ordered a glass of wine and goat cheese crostini at the adjacent Bar Bianco, which we enjoyed at a table just outside the restaurant. With good company and tolerable evening temps, it is actually a very pleasant wait :)

We were eventually seated just after 7pm, and we had a very polite and attentive server. We ordered a glass of wine each, the antipasto plate, which was delicious, and 2 pizzas: the Sonny Boy and the Wiseguy... They were both very good, but my fave was the antipasto plate (and the goat cheese crostini app).

I would go back again, but definitely not in the heat of the summer. Next time, we might actually try Nobuo at Teeter House, just across the brick path. The menu looked really good, and it didn't appear to have any wait :)

A Long Day

Day 2 of my vacation week started out well - a good mix of productivity and fun: eye doctor appt, Starbuck's coffee stop, grocery shopping, lunch with Stew at the newly opened My Big Fat Greek Restaurant, and off to see a matinee of The Hunger Games. But not 2 (!) minutes into the movie, I got a phone call from Cole's teacher saying that he'd woken up from his nap, and had thrown up - and needed to be picked up. And the (not so) funny thing, was that Stew had taken off the afternoon so we could go see a movie. So we left.

Poor timing, and poor Cole... He's definitely got some stomach bug or something because he's got a fever, and there were a few more vomiting episodes, including one in Stew's car (Stew is really glad he decided to take the afternoon 'off'). After a bath for Cole, and following me around the house for a short while, he told me he wanted to do a [hula-hoop] contest, and next thing I know he's asleep in the middle of the purple hula-hoop. Poor Cole :(

Alas, lunch was tasty (assuming I didn't ruin that for you with my talk above) - they have a $5 lunch special, with your choice of pita (I had chicken souvlaki), and fries or salad. Will definitely be back, hopefully on a less eventful day.

The Debate

Cole entertains us with a few pages from 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'. But is it a cocoon or a chrysalis? :)

The Name Game

Casual after-dinner conversation...
 
Mommy: "Cole, what's grandma's name?"
   Cole: "Pennie."
Mommy: "What's grandpa's name?"
   Cole: "Chuck."
Mommy: "What's my name?"
   Cole: "Kwisty."
Mommy: "What's daddy's name?"
   Cole: "Honey."