Happy Birthday Shannon!

Shannon's birthday was our number one priority today, right after school, work, crew practice, and formal Seated Meal. We got the party going as the sun went down, and there's Shan in the background helping the son go down for the night. Cassidy was very helpful in decorating mom's cake.

"I have no idea what this present is! What could it BE?"

Why we don't like coming home from Vacation....

Yeah, that's a big ol' hole in our kitchen ceiling. This morning the girls went down to start the breakfast process. It isn't unusual for them to spill something. So, when I joined them in the kitchen and stepped in a puddle, I wasn't surprised. But, it wasn't them and I concluded that it was the result of a hastily made sippy cup that night. I wiped it up, and walked away for a bit. Only to go back into the kitchen and step in a new puddle. I assumed I had missed a spot and bent down to clean it up only to be rewarded by a drip on my head. I looked up and was rewarded with another little drip on my head and my first glimps of what promises to become one big problem. When I left for work this morning it looked like a baseball sized blister on the ceiling. I came home to the huge hole...and this isn't the only one. In order to locate the source of the drip, our helpful maintenance men also cut a Brogan sized hole in his bedroom wall (it is located just above the kitchen). Turns out that our plumbing is fine...the sprinkler system on the other hand, NOT SO MUCH. At this point, we don't know how extensive the damage is, but it's all good. They are sending over another group of guys tomorrow to fix things. Brogan is intensely interested in all the cool tools, ladders and interesting noises that have suddenly come into our lives. As far as disasters go, we know this isn't a big one. But, it's new and blog worthy. We'll keep you posted.

Why we love campus...

Grandpa reads us stories (Snow White and Robin Hood)


Lori helps with homework


Legos!!

"I drink alone, yeah with nobody else!"

Brogan here: Father has been ill and mother has her hands full with Thing 1 and Thing 2. Tonight's bedtime preparations just took forever, so I took matters into my own hands. After ascending the steps solo (it's no big deal, I do it all the time now) I took my blanky and bottle to the rocking chair and decided I would put myself to sleep. Honestly, it's hard to find good help these days.

Spring?

Spring in our neck of the woods comes with snow banks that are still 5 feet tall. But, it was warm (51) on Saturday, so we spent time outside


Sadly, Brog didn't appreciate what a big deal the warmth was and he was determined to put his hands in the snow, step in every mud puddle he could locate and even made an effort to color the snow with the chalk.

Cass and KK made their first hop scotch of the year. I'm sure there will be many more to come.

What a crock!

We are pretending it is spring here. Of course, the official day is March 20th, but we are all eager to see the snow melt and the wearing of these shoes appropriate. It will certainly not happen by the 20th, there will still be snow covering the ground, but it is starting to warm up. This weekend it was in the 50's! The girls declared it the beginning of Summer. So hopeful.

It was bound to happen....

For whatever reason every little brother with older sisters will some day find themselves in the position of having their hair styled by enthusiastic siblings. At least I can say that the girls thought ahead enough to just use black clippies and avoided adorning Brog with bows, butterfly barrettes, and an over abundance of ribbon or pink. I suppose this is the manly approach to playing hair salon. And, to Brog's credit, he did put up quite a fight. There was a lot of ruckus in the bathroom before I could reach them and make this discovery. Even with clippies in his hair he is one cute boy.

Cassidy Snowboards

I pulled Cassidy out of school early today and we drove to Pat's Peak, our tiny (think Whaleback) local ski mountain. Their smallest boots and board were a perfect fit for her and she did a terrific job. There were lots of positive comments directed toward her by kids and adults older than her who were struggling to learn to snowboard. 

Oh, and some high school girls tried to hit on me: "Are you new here? I know all the instructors..."

 

Half-Birthday Girl!

Kayla's school celebrates "half-birthdays" so those of us with summer time birthdays aren't snubbed. As the celebratory 4.5 year-old, Kayla was the official (note the crown) patron of snack time for the day: "Powdered donuts and cider for all my friends!"

 

Spring Break!

Brian is on spring break for the next three weeks; lots of things to do and work on, so we got started right away.

Wear Vader mask while watching Spongebob Squarepants on couch: check!

Lack of Representation

Okay, so I figure I author this blog often enough but don't really end up in a lot of the pictures. I admit, part of that is my fault. I tend to hide from the camera. But, I sort of love the new hair and figured it deserved representation. Besides, I am holding one very cute little boy in my arms. So, I guess this works on many levels.

Raku Firing

Safety First!


Then you add a 1888 degree fresh from the kiln sculpture to a trash can full of sawdust and newspaper


Watch out! There will be flames. Some of 'em quite big!


Where there's smoke...there's fire!


The final step, you take the still flaming bit of pottery and dunk it in a bucket of cold water, while the other person quickly puts a lid on the garbage can that is nesting another piece fresh from the kiln.


And this is the final product. There is an "oxidized" look to the items that you don't get from a regular firing. Pretty Hot!

KK..nature lover

KK is all about being outside right now. It was a warm 50 degrees today. Kayla didn't want to wear a coat and decided we should walk everywhere. We stopped to watch Bzr do another Raku experience (there are other pictures of this on here too).

Cassidy the artist

Cassidy has been asking to go to an art class for a while now. So, for her February Break we signed her up for a class that met every day from 9-12. Today was her very first art show. We are SOOO proud of her. She seemed to stick with a winter theme. Lots of cute penguins, snow boarding drawing, leafless trees, etc.


This is her Igloo. Note the eskimo holding the fishing pole!




This is an "asian" inspired ink drawing that you then wash a bit with a paintbrush and water to give it the blurry smudge look.




And my very favorite was a color drawing she called "Flu Season" which included a colorful collection of items that you might find on a bedside table of someone who had the flu. A Kleenex box, cough drops, a small vase with flowers, a glass of orange juice, a card, cough syrup,etc.



She had so much fun and has decided that her favorite part was the sculpting.

3 in the bed and the little one said....

"ROLL OVER!" Seriously tired little ones. Seriously happy mommy.

Astronaut wanna-be

In school Cass has been studying space. She has declared that she wants to go to space and is very interested in being an astronaut. She has checked out books about space from the library, videos, and anything else she can get her hands on. The girl is ALL about planets, stars, etc. So today for a special treat Bzr took her to the planetarium. Ours is actually very small, but for some reason Brian thought it was quite a bit bigger. It was also VERY crowded. They were only gone an hour, but Cass loved it. She got to simulate flying and landing a plane and at the end of her efforts the computer declared, "That is the best landing so far today." Everyone in the crowd was rather impressed. It may have been small, but she really got a kick out of it. Brian has decided that it is time to take her to THE BIG ONE in Boston. I agree. So does Cass.

How you doin?

And so it begins. The boy is workin the camera already. He has had an eventful week. Last week he kindly cut 4 molars at a time. This week his top 2 canines have broke through. He's been a bit congested (compliments of Bzr's cold from last week) and was tortured by the doctor yesterday (well child visit). Not surprising the BIG BOY is sticking to his predictable growth: he's 5% for weight (only a whopping 20 lbs at 15 months) but he is in the 50% for height (32 inches). However, this light weight isn't daunted. He won his first physical altercation with Cass this week when he successfully pushed her over (much to her surprise). This week Brog also started shouting "HI" and "BYE" and waving to everyone. He does this with enthusiasm. He is adjusting to having a babysitter. I have him split 2 days with one lady and 2 days with another. At one house there is a cat. He was completely enthralled by the small furry creature (somehow I had completely forgotten that he hadn't spent any time around a cat yet). The other house he goes to is more like a 3 hour play date on Monday and Friday. There is another little boy, just a touch older then B. He LOVES the house full of only little boys toys and since KK and Cass are both in school during this time, it is just him and the other little boy having fun. So, really, he's having a pretty darn good time, with exception to the "Goodbye" part of the day. Anyway, he's growing and growing and (sigh) becoming a little man.
By-the-way, I had SUCH a difficult time deciding on the title for this one. It was nearly, "Look into my eyes.." or "You know you want me". Tough decision.

New Family Do's

It was time for haircuts all the way around. Everyone went quite a bit shorter. KK wanted to take her's all the way up to her ears. I held firm on the chin. Cass went with the short "V" cut again. You can't tell by the picture, but the back is super short and sort of "steps". Brog got his shaped and thinned. He cried the whole cut, but we chalk it up to the fact that he is having some severe reactions to other adults. Since I started working again 2 weeks ago he has struggled to adjust to having a babysitter for 3 hours a day (except Wednesday). Top it off with a trip to the doctor (2 shots) yesterday and you can maybe appreciate his leery tearful behavior. Every adult that walks into the room he is suddenly quite suspicious of. It's a bit sad. But, he'll adjust. He's tough. And, he gets a 3 week break when Brian is home in March. Now...back to the hair detail: Brain also went short again. He seems to gravitate to some sort of military cut. I don't understand it. My hair is also shorter. It brushes my collar in back but swings forward past my shoulders. It got a little "pick me up" in the color department as well. Cassidy is now asking for streaks in her hair. Sorry there aren't pics of Bzr and I. Maybe I can get Cass to take one and I'll post it later.

Valentines Day Surprises

I'm a spoiled mommy! This morning Brogan was up early around 5:15. When he gets up this early I take him downstairs so he doesn't wake anyone else up and give him a bottle. Sometimes, if I'm lucky, he snuggles up next to me and we sleep on the couch for a bit. This morning I was SO groggy that I somehow successfully managed to carry him downstairs, get him a bottle and snuggle him on the couch without noticing the big beautiful vase of flowers and cards that somehow managed to appear over night on the kitchen counter. I wasn't *so* groggy that I didn't notice the smell but I thought it was from another set of flowers I had purchased last weekend just for some fresh pretty reminders of spring. When Cass and KK came down this morning they were so excited. They asked me if I loved my surprise. I was still snuggled on the couch though and hadn't seen the flowers yet. They were thrilled that they were able to surprise me. Apparently I am not very observant at 5am. The flowers are beautiful and Brian put them in a vase that he made. The cards were a perfect touch and I'm glad I have them to add to my collection of tangible memories. Thank you to my sweet little family. You are the best! Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Big day for KK

KK went to a birthday party today at Boutwells Bowling...which specializes in candle pin bowling. For those of you unfamiliar with this New England classic, it still involves 10 pins, but the pins are a cylindrical (no "bulge" at the bottom), the balls are about the size of a grapefruit and you get to throw 3 balls per turn. The sweeper doesn't sweep until the end of your turn, so strategy involves using some of the pins you've already knocked over. KK LOVED it. All the little kids did. In fact, it seems to be quite a kid friendly activity and we will be doing it more often in the future.