• Bright Spot in the Dark

    Last night Dr. Peds, Mr. TOF and I went to a concert that combined choirs and orchestras from multiple schools and a college across the city. They were performing Vivaldi’s Gloria, and The Banana was in the orchestra. As we drove onto the college campus where the concert was taking…

  • Magnatiles in the Evening

    For some reason, right after he eats seems to be his favorite time for focused, intent playing. Sometimes it is cars, sometimes it is blocks, and on this particular night, it was magnatiles. I love the way light comes in through the dining room window at this time of year…

  • Swim Meet

    On Saturday Mr. TOF and I saw The Banana swim for the last time in a high school meet in our city (that we will be able to attend). It is hard to believe that! It’s also crazy to think that when The Banana started on the high school swim…

  • 2024 Sunday Night at the Beach: Edition 15

    Pretty much all of September felt like summer, so when Sunday night came rolling around, some of us still headed to the beach! On this particular day Peanut Maximus and I dropped off Mr. TOF for trombone ensemble rehearsal followed by choir rehearsal, and then went for a long stroller…

  • Five Minutes with Peanut Maximus

    This busy, busy boy has had a language explosion since his birthday, and it is so fun to get a new window to see how that little brain is spinning! It is especially fun to start to see glimpses of the way events are correlated inside his head, and what…

  • Watching

    Our street is torn up and being rebuilt. It has been in terrible shape for literally decades. Two years ago the street had so many potholes it looked like a war zone, and they filled so many holes they practically covered the whole street with cold mix asphalt. The repairs…

  • Eighteen

    Last spring The Banana had an idea of having a real genuine birthday party to celebrate turning eighteen, since she had never really had a true birthday party with all the trappings, including party favor bags. I said, “Sure! Great! You plan it!” Henceforth, to celebrate turning 18 she invited…