Pony Ride

We had Josh all to ourselves on Saturday- I think he later regretted not going into school, but I loved it! We had to decide between two activities that both looked interesting, and in the end thought that maybe we should have chosen the other, but oh well. Nora got to ride a pony. It was the quickest ride ever, but she loved it. I think she may turn out to be a horse lover like I was. Of course I never got to do anything with it (except read the saddle club books), but horses were my passion for several years of my childhood. The pony that Nora rode was so cute and little. I wish I could remember its name. Nora would remember because she has this amazing memory, but she's out with Josh so I'll have to leave it at that.

Firehouse

We toured a firehouse on Friday. Nora was not as thrilled with the opportunity as I had hoped. I guess it just wasn't her thing. She did like the coloring book and crayons that they passed out though.

More Party Pics

I know I already posted pictures from the Victorian birthday tea party, but I stole these from my photographer friend, Liz, and they're gorgeous! I absolutely love when she photographs my kids. She always captures the photos that I tried to get, but couldn't.

Sunshiny afternoon

Amidst five straight days of rain, Saturday afternoon was sunny. It was fun to get outside, work on our garden, and enjoy the sun. I never want to forget how fun it has been to have two kids- ages 3 and almost 1. These two have become quite a team, just like I hoped they would. Here is the real reason to have kids close in age!

Garden

We have been talking about planting a garden for YEARS. Yesterday, we finally did it. It all started with a trip to our local garden center. $40 later, we were headed home with strawberry, tomato, broccoli, beans, and pepper starts and cantaloupe and pumpkin seeds. Josh had made our garden boxes with scrap wood from the deck that was removed to build our addition and filled them with garden soil that he got for free from a craigslist post. Talk about resourceful! We spent most of the afternoon positioning the boxes and planting, then watering the plants. It's a little late in the season, but we're excited to see what happens in our garden over the next few months!

In other news... Shrinky Dinks!

I have fond memories of making these as a child. Now I get to share the magic with my own! Nora and I had great fun today with shrinky dinks- who knew these were still around? My favorite was the little self portrait that she did in blue. We strung the shapes on a necklace when they were done baking and my little princess wore it for about 1 minute. She's not much into jewelry yet- but loves crafts!

Dapper Wells

Fancy Nora

Tea Party

Yesterday Nora's friend had a birthday tea party that involved dressing up to the hilt. All I can say about that is "How Cute!" All the little girls (and little boys, for that matter) looked so fancy and adorable out on the sunny porch of their new house. I got so many cute pictures of the kids that I'm going to devote one blog post to each of them (remember my blog doesn't allow for more than 4 pictures per post.) It has been so fun watching Nora's friends grow from babies into perfectly delightful little boys and girls.

Playing

My kids continue to play together in adorable ways (most of the time...) One of Wells' new favorite activities is pushing Nora around in his wagon. It's great because the added weight of her insures that the wagon will not roll too fast or fall on him when he goes over backwards. He is getting surer on his feet and has also learned to get himself down from the precarious positions that he gets himself into. As a result, we have had far fewer accidents, screaming, tears and blood in the past couple of weeks!

Welcome Summer

I am looking forward to this summer. Our addition is finally done, I have two great kids and am not (not even a little bit) pregnant (as you can tell, I'm still recovering from a very hot pregnant summer last year...), I finally discovered a great town pool that is down the street from my house (hidden by shrubs on all sides, which is why I never noticed it before), and lots of great friends around. What more could a girl ask for?

Ten Months Already?

Check out this little fella. He's 26 pounds of pure joy (and endless energy).

p.s. that shirt was clean when I put it on him...

Happy Memorial Day!

We've been loving meeting friends in our new ward. It's fun to have a set of great kids Nora's age- even if they do get into a little mischief together...

(practically) FINISHED!

Okay, aside from a light switch plate here, a set of blinds there... our addition is finally done. We've had some setbacks along the way, but in the end I am very happy with the results. We moved our furniture, and the toys in, and everyone has been enjoying the new space since Saturday when we finally pulled it together. I could tell right away that the addition was the right move for our family as soon as the kids started playing in there (and out from under my feet while I worked in the kitchen!) Here is a sneak preview, but for the real deal, you'll have to come visit!

Like Father Like Son

The boys looked cute all matchy for church today. It wasn't even planned. I just dressed the baby and then walked into our room to find Josh wearing the same thing. I had him take off his tie for the pictures, since Wells didn't have one. And the argyle vest, well, despite the MIT, and the Ph.d. factors, even Josh isn't that nerdy. But Wells is, apparently.

On a serious note, I was sad to hear that one of our church buildings in Cambridge burned down today. It took place during a meeting, but all in attendance were able to escape unharmed. It seems that the fire was started by an electrical mishap.

The Zoo

The weather has been beautiful. We made it to the zoo a few times in the last couple of weeks although I was only successful in bringing the camera and actually taking pictures once. Here they are! I was a little dissappointed by our zoo when I first took Nora about three years ago. It is small, and a little run down. I think growing up near the Philadelphia zoo, which is more of a theme park, spoiled me in some ways.

As time has gone on, however, I have grown to like the Stone zoo more and more.

Because it's small, Nora runs around and has the place memorized. Also, it feels more safe and intimate. We can see the whole zoo in a couple of hours (or one hour, for that matter), but if we want to spend longer, that is always an option because there is a great sandbox, petting zoo and playground. They have nice picnic areas, and even new or updated exhibits now and again. Really, it is a great zoo for little kids and is only about five minutes from home which for me, is the best part of all!

Busy

To help explain the lack of posts (and unreturned phone calls, etc..) over the past couple of weeks, here are some sneak peeks of what's been keeping us so busy. Between sick kids, school, and trips we may have bitten off a little more than we can chew with this project, but we are super excited about our new space.

It's certainly been a long road and thank goodness this road is about to end! More about the addition to come...

Happy Mother's Day!

Guess Who's Been Sick Again?

Don't worry, he's on the mend. This picture cracks me up because he gets like this every day when he's tired and finishing breakfast- but worst of all when he's not feeling well. The funny part is that it's only two hours since he woke up from an 11 hour snooze. Oh the exhaustion!