Block City

A friend gave us an enormous box of wooden blocks to add to our little collection. It came in a huge plastic bin. It's so many blocks we became a bit overwhelmed. There has been much building of intricate structures (not shown). I also love the leaves through the windows. There's a few days each year where our street is blazing yellow. Our new neighbors just cut down one of their sidewalk trees which affected me so intensely I still can't look out the window without moaning. I even care for trees that I didn't know. Like the huge oak that used to be in our front side yard saddling our neighbors yard. It was gone long before me and yet I still mourn it. (I don't even know what it looked like - that's called crazy.)

Hair Raising

We went a long time between boys' haircuts this time. Theo loves it when his hair touches his eyebrows and wanted a picture to remember it by (really it does touch just when he raises his brows). We go see John at Salvi's Barber. After many terrible haircuts and a husband who hasn't a clue of where to go, I finally decided, eureka!, take them to an actual barber. So I headed to the Italian section of Newton and found John. Gabriel screamed for the first year of his cuts and had to sit on my lap. Now he pops up without a peep. Gabriel also loudly said that the man reflected in the mirror sitting in the barber seat  resembled a monster. I think he resembles a mafia boss of some sort. I quickly quieted Gabriel down. (And no, there are no rumblings of mafia in Newton, and no, I wouldn't take my sons to a barber where the mafia might frequent, no matter how good.)

How to Work a Party

The Brownies earned their Manners try it badge. It was a fun exercise on learning how to act in different situations. They really cracked up at the "how to greet people from different countries" portion of the badge. One of the tasks we did was to host a party for the library volunteers. The girls planned the party including invitations, menu, guests, decor and appropriate party talk. I was so impressed with questions they came up with for mingling: "When you aren't at the library, what do you like to do?" "What are some of your favorite books?" "What did you like to do as a child?" I told them if they continue to think up thoughtful interesting questions, they will be quite the desired hostesses or guests.

Nature Lesson

Gabriel watching the hawk on the left side of the roof. 

Coming home from Bowen, we start to turn left into our driveway when all of a sudden a large red tail hawk swoops down in front of our car with a morning snack in his claws. Startled, he drops his snack in our front yard and flies up to our neighbor's roof. Picking our jaws up, we hurry inside to watch the hawk. The hawk patiently waits for about an hour and half before determining that the snack is in too dangerous a position to fetch. She flies away leaving a large headless rabbit to be disposed of - gross.

Kicking Back

Gabriel has taken to resting wherever and whenever he pleases. The baseball diamond during Maddie's soccer game, fine. While we are walking to school in the middle of the sidewalk, not fine.

Happy Halloween!

The force was with us this year! Nathan immersed the boys into Star Wars. I've stood firm and not allowed them to watch the movies yet. But, it is a relentless pursuit to make me change my mind. Maddie refused Princess Lea and opted for a Native American.

It was a busy day of classroom Halloween parties. The kindergartners were thrilled to see us and so good! We had story time, freeze dance, snack and then four stations of crafts and games. They loved it! 

I wore my purple hair and hat. And the kids were just not sure if it was real or what. There was a lot of talk about a magic wand and special hair on Halloween. Of course, I'd conveniently forgotten my magic wand at home. I loved their confusion and innocence. Four days later, the kids are still coming up to me wondering about my hair! 

Now the 3rd graders, on the other hand, hardly gave me a glance. Maddie's in a class with 14 boys! It's, to say the least, intense. I feel for the teacher. We had one craft and an outdoor scavenger hunt for bones. Enthusiasm just not the unbridled joy of the five/six year olds. Sniff. (Can you believe the snow on the ground?)

Party time continued at the Woolberts for chili and fun before trick or treating. It was a fantastic way to end the day. Bijan and Theo were both Darth Vader, Maddie and Avery were Native Americans. And Maddie steeled herself to walk through the haunted house (the one where the man in the gorilla suit chased her down the street when she was in kindergarten). She was so proud to make it this year! We spent time trick or treating on their side of Beacon before getting a police escort across Beacon (by chance) to our side. The kids were thrilled - lights, sirens, the whole shebang!

Theo wasn't pleased that Gabriel put his arm around Davis. He said, "That's not his brother."

The candy tally

The Sanders' Pumps

(Maddie, Theo, Erin, Gabriel and Nathan)

Can you see the "code" in Nathan's pumpkin? 

Hint: There is an E, M, T and G

Hmmm, does he look like me? 

Happy Halloween!

(I was quite exhausted on November 1!)

Brings Tears to My Eyes

My sweet Theo performing a song he wrote - both the words and the music.

Success!

With grapes in cheeks, acting like a chipmunk

To say Gabriel has had a challenging time adjusting to preschool is an understatement. The tears, the monkey hold on me, the hands entwined in my hair, the teacher peeling him off of me as he sobs and I turn my back and leave the classroom. Not. Fun. In fact, quite awful.

I was very impressed with his ability to articulate what he was feeling. We refer to it as 3 year old cussing. As we'd walk up to the red doors, he'd say under his breath: "Stupid school, I hate this. Poop" And yes, I realize a three year old with command of the words stupid and hate says quite a bit, I can only say he is the third and try as I might, those words come out of certain childrens' mouths (poop is popular no matter the birth order)

I had a bit of solace when I'd pick him up and he would be happily playing on the playground (though he always spotted my car and by the time I walked up the hill, he'd be waiting at the gate for me). He'd even admit that he had fun. But, on his days off, he behaved like a perfect angel and often said how he just wants to be with me - sigh.

I realized that he had developed a habit at drop off of tensing up and getting upset. The reports from the teachers and friends said that he's engaged and happy during school.  So last week at coffee with some old friends from Bowen, Denise, who is always quite creative and positive in her solutions suggested bribery. But, in a positive way mixed with role playing. And by golly, it worked. Maddie and I role played and discussed how a smooth drop off would go over the weekend. I mentioned that there might be a special treat if he transitioned to school seamlessly. And voila, he staunchly marched into class not looking back (brave boy). I picked him up and he was so proud of his success. He said, "I didn't cwry, Mama." We jumped up and down, and he slyly grinned and said, "I get a tweat." I told him to chose ice cream, donuts or cookies and he chose donuts. I thought he'd want a large frosted sprinkled one but he decided he wanted the little balls. So I ordered four munchkins and we sat at the bar stools to celebrate. He popped one out of the bag and offered me one as well. We did cheers with our munchkins and enjoyed Gabriel's victory.

Goodbye to Ms. Bunny

We entered phase one of orthodontia today. Maddie has a very small palate and no room for any permanent teeth. She's already had 8 baby teeth pulled (she loves to tell people she's only "lost" 2 teeth!). The two teeth on either side of her top front teeth came in behind her baby teeth and were affecting her bite. So enter phase one of braces!

The pre-smile

One last look at the bunny teeth (Theo thinks they are hysterical!).

I really like Dr. Sonis, the orthodontist. He's funny and kind. We had to pick out Maddie's back to school outfit before her appointment so she could chose the bands that would match - pink and silver. She actually has all of her bands picked out through December! What a fun treat at each appointment. They didn't have that option when I was in braces.

Hooray! She made it. She was so very brave.

She had a lot of pain the first two days. And no wonder...

Look at how her teeth were before braces.

And two days later - the movement of the side and front teeth!

He's Our Underwear Guy!

It's such a big deal to say goodbye to diapers. After five successful days, we decided to have an special party for Gabriel. How lucky to celebrate this milestone with Nana. Gabriel was very tickled to be the center of attention.

A few thoughts -

• I cannot believe we are at this stage already. Though when I think about 8 1/2 years of diapers, I can believe it.
• Gabriel has done an amazing job with potty training - very few accidents. Of course, one was about an hour after his party...
• He just loves all of his special underwear and is so good at running to the potty or giving me a bit of notice when he needs to go. Hooray!!!

International Cliff Divers

Nana's here and it means adventure. Aside from the usual museum, shopping and beach trip (even a date with Nathan!), we took advantage of the International Cliff Diving event and headed into Boston, where there are no cliffs.

It was a spectacular day! And if you know me, you understand that I was a bit concerned about the crowds - how to get into town, find parking, deal with all the people, etc. But, our adventure went off without a hitch. Parking - check, crowds - manageable, cliff diving - amazing.

The "cliff" was a platform extended off the top of the Institute of Contemporary Art. So the divers plummeted into Boston Harbor. It was truly amazing. We had a great view and oohed and ahed at these athletes. Nathan and I had seen cliff divers on our honeymoon in Acapulco (how sad that we wouldn't even consider going to Acapulco today with the crime in Mexico). Interestingly, diving off of this building was more difficult for the divers than a cliff because they use the contours of the cliff to judge the distance to the water (the building juts out over the harbor so you lose your visual about 1/3 of the way down).

We loved our Nana time and wish it were more frequent!

From China with Love

Our dear friends the Roths sent these darling PJs to the kids. In China they are special dress up clothes. The kids love them. And to see both boys running around in their navy outfits - just darling!

A Very Local Farm

I was just thrilled this year to have a spot to plant a vegetable garden. I knew it would be a bit of a challenge as we have a fairly shady backyard and let's face it, a very short growing season. I made a few critical errors in the beginning - not watering with enough frequency and not fertilizing. That said we had some successes - greens and well, greens. Nathan deemed it a fantastic salad! Our beets and carrots didn't take off. I do need to give credit to our tomatoes and they may fall into the success category if I can get another batch to ripen, though our plants weren't dripping with toms like they should be. The kids loved tending the garden and we're already making big plans for next year!

He's Three!

Our little angel! A boy who loves balls, sports, music, kiss attacks, his sister and brother and playing outside. He's not too fond of chickens or getting in trouble (he'll moan "I'm tired" when he's been reprimanded). His memory is astounding and his little sense of humor tickles us. We are so blessed to have our Gabey in our life.

His birthday was low key after our crazy weekend. Family dinner and presents were just what he needed. Maddie and Theo spent the afternoon wrapping about 40 items for him. To quote Theo, "Well, it was just a bunch of stuff I didn't want." That said, I know that some special treasures that Theo did like were added into the mix. Tough guy.

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!

Birfday Weekend

Unbelievable how quickly time flies! Here we are three years later celebrating Gabriel's birthday. We needed to be in New Hampshire for a race for Nathan so we decided to make a special weekend of it.

Here's Gabriel opening his card that showed pictures of us watching Daddy bike up a mountain, our special cottage at Christmas Farm Inn and time at Storyland!

First up Mt Washington. You know the signs you see at restaurants - world's best burger - it's obviously an exaggeration. Well, this sign at the top of Mount Washington was true - unfortunately. Two years ago, we went to the top to watch Nathan and the weather was crisp but beautiful. This time not so much. Dare I say frigid? It was also described as horrendous. I tried to keep a smile on as I wasn't the one biking up the mountain but boy was it hard. With the windchill it was 33.

No playing on the rocks this time. We waited in the lodge until it was time to cheer the cyclists to the finish line.

And they emerge from the fog!

And now to brag - he took 20 minutes off his time and placed 3rd in his division (any other year, he would have won his division). He had a much easier recovery this time around too. And he naturally, hit his goal. Very exciting!

A fun but exhausting weekend for our little guy. Two nights up until 9:30 and then we arrived home on Sunday at 11:30. He'd rubbed his eyes so much he had little scabs under them. Yikes... I love the sleeping baby picture (can I still say baby? Probably not.). Maddie and Theo shared a bed for the first time and there wasn't too much kicking!

We have a favorite pizza place but with an hour wait we wandered over to a climbing store. Gabriel was so proud to get to the top. I fear Nathan may have had his interest peaked for a new hobby - ice climbing.

And then Storyland. Such a darling amusement park.

My three little bears.

Gabriel was just 36 inches allowing him to go on all the rides. The Polar Coaster was a one time ride for him. Maddie loved it so much she'd hop on it alone.

The shoes were Gabriel's favorite.

Cooling down with Hawaiian ice

While Nathan and Maddie went on the water ride, I took the boys to the ball tent. They could have spent all day here. It was a pretty impressive two level ball shooting, dropping, flinging wonderland for boys.

We had a great time celebrating Gabriel. I even had time for a lovely run, hike and sit by the river to refresh. We all agree that Jackson, New Hampshire is a perfect playground for our family!

First Piano Lesson

We told him learning piano will help for when he's big enough for guitar! He did great with Lisette.

The 4th Weekend

What a beautiful Fourth of July we had! I truly love this holiday. It's pure celebration and patriotism (naturally). This weekend we did it up with a bang. Nathan had Friday off so we had an all day date. It was fantastic. We played tennis or rather hit the ball or rather tried to hit the ball (me). Still enjoyable though. Then drove in to Boston to see the Chihuly exhibit at the MFA which Nathan proclaimed the best special exhibit ever. A very leisurely lunch at Pasta Beach - including wine and two lunches by Nathan. Then we ran out of time to look at some art galleries so stopped to have ice cream before heading home. Just what we needed! Though I did forget to mention that he tweaked his back on his morning ride. So maybe the enjoyment of the date was tempered by his prescription drugs (or perhaps that's enhanced).

Saturday we drove up to York, Maine to see our friends, the Atris, new house. A view of the craggy Maine coast is amazing and relaxing, especially so if you are on painkillers. Nathan in his dark wrap around sunglasses shared with me that he dozed off a few times during conversation on the deck in the comfy chairs! The kids loved exploring the rocks and swimming in the frigid water. I swear my kids are going to be sturdy little swimmers being exposed to this cold water in pools and the ocean. We had dinner in town before driving home, a short hour and a half. I don't know why I didn't take pictures.

Sunday it was off to Beverly on the North Shore to the Brownes' house. Unfortunately, Nathan overdid it on Saturday so it was just me and the kids. We had a blast. Goodbye craggy Maine coast, hello soft sand. I was even able to sit and tuck my toes into the sand as Gabriel stayed close by. He had an amazing time playing with Josh, who was so patient and such a good teacher to him. They threw balls, batted balls, dug themselves into the sand, all good boy activities.

Maddie, Ashley and Rachel - We tried to get the girls to put on a play. It was tough with three directors.

I was very sorry that Nathan couldn't join us. The dads played bocce on the beach and would have loved another guy. I did discover a new favorite drink - The Dark and Stormy. Yummy gingerness.

Still prone, it was Mama and kids on the 4th. We went over to Needham for a parade. Over 2 hours later, we finished. It was quite impressive. I think they had every emergency vehicle from every town within 20 miles in the parade.

I'd read about Mr. Muzi and was intrigued to finally see him in action. Since the 50s, he's painted himself red, pulled on his loin cloth and patriotic headdress, hopped on his horse and rode in the parade saying "how." No joke. You can imagine the response.

Everyone napped (fireworks are such a good bribe) so we went to swim at the Windsor Club before my somewhat pathetic attempt at a bbq (indoor made). Nathan was able to join us and we ate outside and did a 4th of July ceremony that my dad had found to help the kids understand what we were celebrating. And then, the excitement! My mom had mailed sparklers, which we thought were illegal to send through the mail but they aren't. The kids LOVED them. Really, who doesn't love sparklers?

And then it was in to Boston for 10:30 fireworks! Nathan's office has a perfect view of the fireworks and they are moving in the fall so we had to see them this year. Now I love fireworks and this was one of the most amazing displays that I've seen. They were exploding right at eye level. The kids were in awe. It was such a fantastic end to an amazing weekend (of course it would have been perfect with Nathan feeling better). Happy 4th!