Koivuns in Boston

It had been three and a half long years since we saw the Koivuns. How excited we were for a visit from our friends, George, Meghan and Jackson. We were thrilled to have an evening out in Boston with drinks at the top of the Pru and a yummy french meal at Bistro Petit Robert.
Jackson was barely a toddler when we moved from California. Now he is a darling boy, sweet, kind and playful who fit right in with our clan. He and Theo really hit it off.

We did the Boston Common with the swan boats.

And the Make Way for Ducklings sculpture.

A cool off romp at the Frog Pond playground. Meghan and I deemed the wading pool too disgusting to attempt a wade.

Explorers at the DeCordova Sculpture Park.

Matching girls

To the Children's Museum, observing the lobster traps.

What a wonderful visit! There's nothing like old friends.

Our Baby is Two!

Cannot believe that Gabriel is two! It seems just yesterday we welcomed him into our family. We couldn't wait to celebrate our little guy with a trip the Ecotarium, a museum we hadn't been to before. Science, animals, and a train - perfect for our little guy.

Daddy's boy through and through

Happy 2nd Birthday to our joyous loving boy. We adore the tight hugs, I wuv yous, and kisses. We love watching you play with your brother and sissy. You complete our family!

Nana's Visit

Each summer we get one week with Nana. It's wonderful to show her our life and share some memories.
Maddie was finishing up vacation bible school so we took the boys into Boston on a spectacular day to ride the swan boats.

Of course, we needed to stop at the Make Way for Ducklings sculptures.

We had a pizza and bowling night at the Windsor Club. Gabriel wasn't too keen on the noise from the bowling balls.
We had high hopes for an adventure to Martha's Vineyard. But, it was 4th of July weekend. We battled traffic and decided that braving a ferry ride would not be in our best interests. So we drove up the Cape Cod coast and had a yummy seafood lunch. Having promised the kids some beach time, we entered a little harbor. Nathan and I just don't get the Cape. It has this allure that we haven't been able to grasp. Maybe after you've experienced California beaches, you get jaded.

Can't get enough of this cute face!

4th of July loves

The best 4th of July gift! We got to see Nathan race. Such a treat to have his mom cheering him on. And he had his best race yet, taking two primes AND winning the whole race! He's the proud recipient of two muffins (one eaten by his cheering section) and a bike pump. It was terribly exciting.

Go Daddy Go!

Let's just say I have new compassion for the cycling girls who present the professional cyclists with flowers and a kiss. Whew - stinky. And Nathan's not Euro!

A celebratory meal at Casa Portugal.

We ended our 4th with Newton fireworks. A very nice display that Maddie and Theo loved. It was Theo's first firework display.

Busy chefs in the kitchen making pasta.

Our Little Chef

What a fantastic treat! Maddie loves to pull meals together for the family. This was a bit of a sad time for our refrigerator with not many options, but, Maddie did so much with so little. A lettuce roll sandwich, artfully cut watermelon with raspberries, and a salad with pinenuts even. Note the shapes and layout on the plates. Quite the artistic eye!

Goodbye Mrs Brody

Farewell to 1st Grade! It was a great year with Maddie learning a ton and having a lot of fun. The years are, unfortunately, flying by. She's so big and grown up all of a sudden. We couldn't be prouder.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to a fantastic Daddy! We wanted to do a fun Daddy adventure so into Boston we went. We took a ferry over to one of the Boston Harbor Islands. It was a great cool ride (after standing on a hot muggy dock). Theo loved being in front, feeling the spray on his face and riding the waves. We arrived a Georges Island, which was once a fort during Civil War times. Fun followed as we explored the murky, dark rooms and climbed winding stone stairways. Flashlights were needed!

We found a perfect picnic spot with views of Boston.

And a tree to climb! There are no climbing trees in our yard so at every opportunity, the kids scamper up the climbable ones.

And best of all, a stone beach. The boys could have stayed here for hours. Nathan took a siesta with the nice ocean breeze blowing his hair (some of that sentence is true). He had biked the Harpoon Brewery to Brewery Tour yesterday (143 miles) so was a bit spent.

Our girl added to her sea glass collection.

A chilly ride back to Boston.

And a nap the second he was strapped into the car.

Monkey see..

What a perfect day to honor the man who gives our family so much - love, integrity, kindness, aspirations, and dedication.

Lands Sake Strawberry Picking

While Nathan was doing the Brewery to Brewery ride (143 miles from Boston to Vermont), we decided to go strawberry picking. A local organic farm was having a strawberry festival with games, music, food and of course, strawberries. It was a warm day and a complete zoo. I was worried the berries would be picked over but we found enough good ones for our two baskets.

Maddie was quite the strawberry picker. She didn't snack and prided herself on finding the reddest, ripest strawberries!Guess who ate quite a few?

There's nothing like a tree swing with super long ropes.

Old fashioned games - the egg race fell apart with tears (Theo) as did the sack race. We decided it was time for lunch and some treats in the shade.

I needed to push Theo in the stroller so Maddie piggy backed Gabriel to our car. Such a helper!