old

Today is a day for being old.  Reasons:
1. I clearly have big kids (who are getting older by the moment).  This is very evident after spending the morning sewing costumes for a school play.  A school play!  I wonder how many times I will sew costumes for a school play in my career as a mother?
2. As of today I am officially full-fledged mid-thirties.  What. The. What.  35.  Old.  Ahem.

{A cheetah and a dingo, in case you couldn't decipher my liberal use of creative license!}  

{Wally is the lead in a preschool play called 'Wombat Stew'.  Fritz is just jealous, so in the name of equity he got to choose a costume for playing at home.  I hereby recuse myself from costume sewing in October.}

baby shower

Can hardly wait to meet this new nephew and watch my sweet sister become a mama.  Love.  

family afternoon at Tumalo Creek

the life and times...

Here is what has been going on in our life according to my iPhone:

 Face plant!  Can't keep this boy out of the trees.

Portrait by Wally.

An inquisitive patient.

Completely amazing Coldplay concert. 

 Auntie Lisa comes to visit in Sunriver!

 Why not slice your thumb open, drive yourself to urgent care and get six stitches the first day of moving? For a bonus get your tetanus and pertussis shot, no chance of whooping cough here!

 The strangest rainbow out my window, flat and wispy like the Northern Lights.

 A weekend in Gig Harbor to celebrate our soon to be new cousin!

 Talented Gramma's quilt for baby.

 Auntie Bridget with cute baby belly. 

 Steamers and muffins @ Strictly Organic.

 Legos.  Always.

 Sticky dessert.

 Critters in the pantry beware... Current body count: 2.  Yuck.

 My post barre3 ritual.  Kindle and a cup of tea @ Backporch.  

 Another glorious day.  Ready to wear out Grandaddy's legs!

 Goofing on Bond Street.  

 Lovely walk at Shevlin Park with Gramma and Grandaddy.

It's been a pretty busy month.  Definitely a great one!  

bath buddies

Our evening routine has made a necessary shift in the past month.  Most often these two come in from afternoons outside so filthy that they must be striped at the back door and carried to a pre-dinner bath.  When they climb into the tub, streams of mud follow them down the sides of the bath.  Even after a good long soak and lots of bubbles they still have dirty little boy toenails.  Which to be honest DRIVES me CRAZY!  I've always (judgmental pre-boys me) thought it was so strange that parents would let their kids  be seen with dirty fingernails and toenails.  (Who is getting the picture that I'm slightly OCD?)  Oh the irony.  I need to buy a stiff nail brush.  

PS.  I am not exaggerating when I tell you that I have to pin them to the ground with my entire body in order to q-tip their ears.  It seems cruel (there is a lot of ridiculous screaming!) and is exhausting so it doesn't happen often.  But good heavens you should see what comes out!  I've taken to calling them my 'dirty birds', which does at least make them laugh.     

creations

Recently we were in need of some wrapping paper.  So the boys got their creative juices flowing and made some very unique stuff to wrap up that gift.  Stories about these drawings included:  It is a golf course.  It is a fire station with lots of ladders and an American flag.  It is a giant bug with legs. 

It makes me so excited to see them grow in their ability to communicate ideas through representational drawings and writing.  Look closely...there is an N for Nolan (gift recipient) and and F for Fritz (gift giver).  And I love the collaboration with these brothers.  They did the whole thing together, each boy's drawings integrated with the other's.  This is just the beginning...  

bambi in the backyard

vocabulary

Funny words for the day:

Ginantic.  As in "That's a ginantic cookie!"  ~Fritz

Sesemary.  As in "I don't really like Sesamary Street."  ~Wally