New Pictures

I pulled out the exer-saucer a couple of weeks ago and quickly discovered that I'd need a second. Fortunately one of my neighbors had one in the garage sale pile.

The boys are almost 5 months old already!!! I can't believe how big they are - both around 16 pounds. They sleep 12 straight hours at night, roll from front to back and back to front and started solid foods the first of May. They are about the sweetest boys ever. They smile, laugh and are pretty much happy all the time (except when they're hungry). Drew is wearing green and Dane is wearing the gray. I realized that since their birth I have taken their blog pictures in the matching farm chairs. It's cool to see how much they've grown just by how they fill the chairs.

A favorite...

My favorite news personality is far and away Anderson Cooper on CNN so I check his blog regularly. Most of the posts are news stories, but one featured journalist is a guy named Tom Foreman. This guy has written a letter to the President every day of this president's term. What I love about Mr. Foreman is his ability to address current events without shoving his political views down one's throat. I also really appreciate a good writer and this guy has a way with words - cracks me up almost every day. Check out today's letter:

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/28/dear-president-obama-464-let-them-eat-derivatives/

Lucky Ladd Farm

In celebration of Claire's birthday we went to Lucky Ladd Farm. It was a really cool place with a petting zoo, baby animals (in the Spring), hay rides, a really cool playground and other farmy things (in the fall they do the pumpkin patch, etc).

I had read on the website that a professional photographer was on hand to take pictures of the kids holding a baby bunny, goat, or chicks. I dressed Claire up (as much as she'll allow) and even had a bow in her hair. She was all excited to hold the animal - she picked the bunny, but unfortunately the photographer took too long trying to get her to look at the camera and smile. The bunny got restless, scratched Claire, Claire threw the bunny on the floor and gone were my hopes of a cute 2 year old picture. I have a really cute picture of Caden though...

After eating lunch and seeing the baby animals in the barn the kids watched a guy do science experiments. Claire was selected to help squeeze some "super science juice."

Next we walked around and fed the animals. The goats had a catwalk type thing they climbed on which ended up at the "goatercoaster." This was a conveyor belt rigged that carried food from the kids on the ground to the goat perched above.

Finally, the kids enjoyed the huge playground. They took a barrel ride, played on swings and playgrounds, roped pretend cattle and played in a sandbox filled with corn. The most exciting attraction was the monster slide. One side was a huge pipe and the other side was flat, open, and lined with hay. Who was the first one down? - you guessed it, Claire. She climbed up the hill, up the ladder, and before I could find someone to help her she was at the bottom ready to go again. That girl is a mess.

We will definitely visit again in the fall.

Soccer Superstar

It's the middle of our 3rd season of exciting YMCA soccer. I think it will be the last - soccer just isn't Caden's sport. He has fun, which is the point, but this year he's on the 4/5 year old team and the kids are just plain bigger than he is. Surprisingly Caden is not very aggressive when it comes to getting into the game. He runs with the kids but doesn't fight for the ball. We'll hold out for baseball and football in a year or so.

Happy Birthday Claire

Saturday, Easter Eve, 6 pm

Caden: "Mom, is the Easter Bunny going to leave eggs filled with candy outside for us to find?"

Mom: "What?!?, I don't know, why do you ask?"

Caden: "Last year the Easter Bunny left eggs for us to find."

Mom: (crap) "Wow, Caden, you're right. The E.B. sure did."

Caden: "So will the E.B. leave eggs?"

Mom: "Don't know, we'll just have to see."

Mom, loudly: "Hey Bill...can you run to CVS for me?"

5 minutes later...

Caden: "I can't wait for the clothes the E.B. is going to leave in my basket."

Mom: (again, crap) "What clothes are those?"

Caden: "You know, the E.B. will put whatever I want in my basket and I want clothes, toys and candy."

Mom: "Well, we'll just have to see what the E.B. can fit in your basket."

(I guess 2 out of 3 isn't bad...)

Our Garden

One of the perks of living in the pseudo country is lots of open space. We really have the best of both worlds...a fun neighborhood with good friends nearby and the opportunity to take advantage of resources such as the community garden. Today we went with some of our neighbors to attempt cultivating our plot of land. We planted tons of seeds - the only criteria was whether or not we enjoy eating it...ignored were proper seasons, soil conditions, and the like. We have no idea what we're doing, but it sure will be fun. And, who knows...maybe we'll get lucky and something will pop up.