The weather here keeps oscillating from warm and bright days to damp, cold and windy days.  Those dips down into freezing or almost freezing temperatures have helped keep the bug population at bay for the most part, somehow without hurting the wildflowers and new leaves on the trees.  Fewer bugs…

Mr. Trouble on Feet has just recently really started to draw shapes that represent certain things, and even resemble the object they are representing.  I love watching this process and observing the things he decides would be good to draw.  The other day, for example, he drew a monkey, a…

  Sunday was cold and windy.  It was even colder and windier at the beach.  At the top of the hill it was barely 45 degrees, and at the bottom it was even colder.  I’m sure with the strong winds off the lake that the wind chill was in the…

  Mr. SP, YaYa and Dr. Peds were all signed up to run the 5K race at the Cougar Chase this year.  YaYa has been running long distances in track all spring, but she was not feeling well the morning of the cougar chase and stayed home.  Mr. SP was…

One of the best ways to start learning the arm motion for cello vibrato is by sliding a tennis ball up and down on the string while the other hand runs the bow.  My kids think it sounds like a bizarre bumble bee and looks crazy too.   I learned…

  Last Thursday morning all of the kids at our elementary school were encouraged to walk or bike to school.  Anyone who arrived on foot got a free T-shirt.  Despite the fact that at our house walking to school is usually the consequence of missing the school bus, and despite…

Choir rehearsals are finished for the season, and summer weather is here.  To the beach we went last Sunday Night!  Heading to a stretch of beach each Sunday night of the summer has become a family tradition over the past few years.  It’s one of my favorite parts of summer.…

Ever since Mr. Sneaky Pants got glasses, Mr. Trouble on Feet has been insisting that he cannot see well.  He asked for glasses for his birthday.  Dr. Peds was out and about a couple of days ago, and came across some fake glasses.  He brought them home, to the delight…

  Our neighbor halfway down the street turned eight!  To celebrate, an inflatable bouncy house was rented.  You can only imagine what a magnet this was for kids in the neighborhood all weekend.  It was first inflated Friday night.  The birthday party took place Saturday morning.  All Friday evening and…

This is Mr. SP deep in thought.  This is the look I get when Mr. SP wants to strike up a bargain.  This is Mr. SP, filled with quiet optimism that we might turn around and start walking home again.  We didn’t.  I didn’t think to take a picture of…