The Author, Part 2

In this scene, Adam goes camping.  Chaos ensues, but then peace is restored.

"Once I went camping in my backyard."

"We went to the tent.  It was dark.  I could hear the cricits.  I did not know"

"Ashley got scared so she went inside."

"Tate would not let me sleep.  I told Daddy. Daddy got mad at Tate!"  Read the caption in the drawing.... "Tate!  You're going inside!" (Daddy);  "Good grief" (Adam); "waaa!" (Tate)

Daddy said "Tate you're going inside."  I said "good grief!"

I went back to the tent.  I was tired.

The next morning it was sunny.  I could see the lake.  I could see the tent.  I could see the oak tree.

The Author, Part 1

Recently Adam's teacher sent home samples of his creative writing.  The writing is on par with what I'd expect from a boy his age... but the drawings!  Wow!  Look at this cruise ship!  And the parked cars with open trunks!  This is one observant guy....

"Once I went on a cruise ship"

"We got on the ship and had lunch."

"Then we went..."  (for the record, this is what the staterooms did look like!)

And we did see the Statue of Liberty from our balcony window when we cruised out of the NJ port.  Very accurate!

Zamples

Tate's favorite part of going to Costco?  Asking for "zamples", of course.  Here we were on the way out of the store.  He's a big boy and prefers balancing on the box to sitting in his seat:

Hey, paparazzi Mommy!  Willya turn off the camera?

To Mahoney's We Go

Every few months we hit up Mahoney's to see what's new and exciting in the world of horticulture.  This time 'round Tate got to experience cactii up close and personal (thank you Daddy for this one).

Eeeh!  Prickly lookin' thing, ain't it?

Wonder if it smells nice?  Like flowers?

Nope.  Not going there.

Jr. Celtics Clinic

 The kids were thrilled this fall: I enrolled them in a basketball clinic at the Y!  So imagine their excitement level when I told them that the next class was called Jr Celtics Clinic.  Here we are at the draft meeting someone from the Celtics back office:

Gathering 'round to get a pep talk.

Even Daddy and Tate enjoyed the pep talk!

Modeling our new Celtics jerseys

Best part of all?  Snapping a photo with a real team trophy!

  

Artist on Fire

For a kid who couldn't be bothered to put pen (or brush) to paper in preschool, this explosion of drawing talent is taking us all by surprise.

Here's Adam's latest piece:  race car with detailed paint job:

A Dinner in the Life... of my Family

Boy -- who taught these kids how to unlock my phone?  I'm not sure.

Ashley decided to take advantage of the situation by documenting what I like to call: A Dinner in the Life... of my Family.

The Daily Dispatch

We receive a weekly email from the thoughtful teachers at preschool outlining the wonderful educational experience our children have had along with a few snapshots for good measure. 

Since the technology to do this is so very new, I can only wonder how my parents were notified of my every move and experience when I was this age.  I guess they took it on faith and were simply happy that there weren't any disciplinary calls to the house?

Guest Photographer

Here are some snapshots captured by Laura this fall.  We should designate her as the official family photographer!

At Carlson Orchards

At Museum of Science

At Carlson Orchards

At McCue's Garden Center / Corn Maze

Happy Halloween!

Continuing the proud tradition, Tate decided to be a race car driver this year.

Fitness on the Homefront

When there's no time to run to the gym, MLD gets creative about fitting in his daily workouts:

What a good example to set for his children.

Pogo to Go-Go

Here's Tate opening and then trying out some of his new swag.  You'll note he's a tech-savvy guy who has jumped on the "unboxing" YouTube phenomenon :)

Big Boy Bed!

Oh wow!  A big boy bed of his very own!!!

Another Pregnant Person

Two pregnant people in the house at once is quite a bit:

Birthday Boy

Thank you, loyal readers, for not pointing out how belated this birthday post actually is.  For those of you who know our family, you'll know things are more than busy on the homefront.  Perhaps one day our birthday boy will forgive me?

We bounced and tumbled and sang with our friends.  What a fun day it was!  Both sets of grandparents and one imported cousin celebrated with us too.  A very special day indeed.