a break from the rain

The rain finally stiopped here so the boys and I headed outside for a bit this afternoon for some fun....



Tim had fun splashing in puddles while Nick had fun avoiding the camera :)

Pool party

We spent our first day by the pool on Friday, lounging and swimming over at Amanda and Soren's house. We were also joined by Renee, Cooper and Callie. The kids had some fun playing in the game room before and after our swims


Tim and Soren made a few important phone calls:


Nick and his new friend Cooper helped Uncle Kevin pick strawberries:



And all of the kids had fun playing in Soren's new sand and water table:


With luck, this is just the first day of many to be spent poolside this summer!

Seattle Story

This is kind of cheating, but since I dropped (and finally broke) our little camera last Friday (it had previously survived 4 drops, including one on the driveway and one on the bricks, but it was the bamboo floors that did it in - that and being dropped on the lens while open...oops), I'm going to do it anyhow! There was a fabulous account of Greg's recent trip back to Seattle and visit with the St. Alonzos posted here. Check it out!

ps. the replacement camera should arrive today so stay tuned for updates soon!

photoshoot

While Nick and Greg were out kayaking with Grandma on Sunday morning, Tim and I stayed back and took the opportunity for a riverside photoshoot. The location was fabulous, the subject was super cute but kind of cranky and the photographer was not too skilled. As a result, the pictures didn't come out nearly as well as I'd have hoped, but I'm going to have to remember the location for the future....




Tim saying "all done" with this photo thing mommy!

look at those chompers!



A few of Nick pre-boatride:

What is with the face, dude?



ps. Happy birthday Les! and, happy anniversary Amanda and Kevin!

water sports

Greg and I joined a few friends on Saturday for my first whitewater rafting experience. We went out on the Penobscot up past Millinocket and yikes! Class V rapids - it was pretty intense but fun. Special thanks to Grandma who got to our house at the ungodly hour of 5:15am to stay with the boys for the day! :)

After hearing about mommy and daddy having fun on a boat, Nick decided that he wanted to try. So, we headed over to Grandma and Papa's on Sunday morning for a spin out in the kayaks.

Nick got all suited up (in his special "Cars" trunks and rashguard)

and went out with Greg.


I expected them to be back in a minute or two with Nick trying to scramble out of the boat, but they actually went out for a good half hour and toured around the upper Stillwater River area.

today

Today, Tim learned to "pretend eat", sign "Thank-you" (from mom) and to pick his nose (from his brother)....

imagination

fun on the slide

brotherly love

strawberry fields

Our lawn is not exactly made up of grass these days between the local japanese beetle infestation, our abhorrence of nasty lawn chemicals and our satisfaction with anything green that doesn't hurt to walk on. Much to the boys' delight, wild strawberries have gone nuts here and make up big portions of our green space. We regularly have a late afternoon snack out on the lawn these days! :)

milestones

So Tim is in the midst of a developmental spurt right now. We're passing milestones left and right! Here are some of the latest within the last week or so:

• walking: He lets go and takes a bunch of steps now


• talking: latest words include duck, bath, book, milk, more, out, bye bye, dog, draw, bike


• signing: please, more, help

He's also starting to give up some of his fears (thankfully!) and is far less bothered by loud noises, sudden movements, etc. He is even really interested in dogs (he had been terribly afraid of them for a while) and will move toward them on his own, and allow them to sniff and lick him. Our baby is growing up!

Road trip! part 3: Day on the Cape

Jess had a fabulous idea to escape the heat with a trip to the beach! We loaded the kids in their new tricked out minivan (with AC that works instantaneously!) and hit the road! After about an hour, we joined Jess' s friends Elizabeth and Laurel at a fabulous little beach on the Cape. There was a breeze, the temps were much more bearable and the water was even warm enough to go in (novel idea for someone from Maine!). After slathering the kids up with sunscreen, the kids all had a snack

and then started exploring. There were lots of shells to examine, rocks to collect, hermit crabs to watch, etc.



The kids all had a great time and all went in the water!

Road trip! part 2: Heat wave

We were visiting the Kettells during the record heat last week. The kids didn't seem too bothered by the temperatures and had a great time playing together inside and out.



Nick loved Mason's excavator:


Tim and Mason had some great conversations:



The boys helped introduce a whole new level of chaos to the Kettell household:


Nick, Mason and Mason's friend Laurel cooled off in Mason's shaded and bugfree backyard pool while Tim snoozed inside:


And then hopped out for a little playing, even though it was about 98degrees out:


Chilling out a little:


Enjoying a meal together:


Nick even got a ride on Uncle John's tractor:


Despite the heat, we had a great time visiting with the Kettells :)