Back to the Park

It seems like forever since we've done what we used to spend all our time doing......hit up the park.  Lately, I'm not sure where our time goes, but it feels like the days pass so quickly and we're so busy with school.  We've scaled back our after-school activities, and we've all been enjoying some serious playtime in the afternoons.  On a lovely afternoon, we decided to take a bike ride to the park.  It was awesome.  Our day went from blah to great in no time flat.  The kids were so excited to break out their bikes and I put Catherine on the back of my bike and we were off.  There's just nothing like riding a bike together.  It's so freeing, so fun, so liberating.  We rode to the park, played all around, enjoyed the swings and the play structure, and just had fun.  I felt, well, like me.  The me that loves to be outside, watching the kids playing, joining in their games and fun.  It was so great to break out of the monotony of school work and chores and to just enjoy being outside together.  What a great reminder to take more time for bike rides and parks!

And.....

......she's off!  It's amazing to watch......truly, it never gets old........little by little, inch by inch, babies put it all together and they figure it out.  They learn how to go from total immobility to off and running.  It's miraculous, when you stop and think about it.  Catherine has been cruising for quite some time, and walking pretty steadily holding our hands.  We would see her take a step or two here and there, and then she'd sink down and start crawling around.  Well, now it's all clicked.  She's mastered that amazing combination of confidence and skill and she's walking all around.  I love this stage!  I love, love, love, seeing babies toddle around, checking their balance, smiling at their new-found skill, so happy to see the world from a new point of view.  Those first few steps are so precious, because they're not slow and  cautious for long.  Before we know it, those steps will turn into running, and then we'll really be busy.

Leaf Pile Fun

We had probably our best Fall walk the other day.  It was one of those afternoons I just didn't want to end because the kids were so happy and we were all having so much fun.  We went for an afternoon walk, as we often do, and we were admiring and looking for fall leaves to decorate our home.  That's a pretty easy task as there are so many breathtaking leaves around.  Truly, I just love all the bright colors and unique shapes.  Some of these trees stop me in my tracks because they are just so beautiful, like a colorful painting waiting to be admired.  We saw Trevor and Connor playing outside, so they joined us on our walk.  We decided to swing by the "leaf pile."  The "leaf pile" is, quite literally, a giant leaf pile that one of our neighbors leaves in his front yard all during the fall.  He has an enormous tree that drops thousands of leaves, and all the kids love raking and then jumping in the enormous leaf pile.  On this particular day, the kids just couldn't get enough.  They rolled around in the leaves, buried themselves, jumped in them, and piled them as high as they could.  There was tons of laughter and silliness, and it felt like one of those magical afternoons we'll all remember for a long time.

A Wonderful View

If I look down these days, this is my view........a tiny, adorable little body walking next to me, pointing, waving, and enjoying the world.  It's pretty awesome.  Catherine is taking more and more steps these days, but most of them are while holding onto my hand, which is just perfect with me.  I love her slow, careful, pace, and the wonderful way she happily takes it all in.  I know very soon she won't have to hold my hand all the time, so for now, I'll cherish each step we take together.

Halloween

Halloween..........it was one of those storybook days that I'll remember for a long time.  It was so lovely, so fun, so dreamy, so weird how it went off without a hitch.  It was just a great day packed full of fun times with our kids and wonderful friends.  We started off early.  We picked up Grandma at the train station and raced over to Lizzy's school for her special snack.  Grandma loved walking Catherine all around, and Lizzy loved getting to zoom around in her butterfly costume.  Next, we went to Peter's school for his parade.  Miraculously, Catherine fell asleep for a short nap, so we were able to focus on Peter and his darling classmates as they paraded around school and sung Halloween songs.  Next, we zipped over to the mall for a quick lunch and then headed to Lizzy's school for her parade.  Lizzy was in heaven walking around with her eighth grade buddy, Lizzy.  We ran Grandma back to the train station, then, miracle of all miracles, all three kids took a nap!  I told you, this day was incredible.  We woke up just in time to head over to a neighbor's house for a super fun pizza party, meet up with our friends, and then hit the town for some trick-or-treating.  Whew!  What a day!  Every minute was busy, but boy were the kids having fun.  I was amazed at how well everyone hung in there, and what a special, magical day it was.  Happy Halloween, indeed!

The Sweetest Walk

Catherine loves to walk and walk all around now.  The catch is that she'll only walk if she's holding your hand.  Otherwise, it's back to crawling for her- a far speedier and more efficient way of getting around.  Because Pat and I have been around the block a few times with this parenting thing, we know how sweet this is, and how fleeting, and we don't mind holding her hand one bit.  In fact, we treasure it.    There's nothing more lovely than strolling along with your baby, hand in tiny little hand.

Halloween Parade

The Saturday before Halloween, our neighborhood always has a parade.  Let's use the term "parade" very loosely here, for really it's a rag-tag band of kids dressed up in their Halloween finest, straggling around the neighborhood with big smiles and happy hearts.  For all it's humble, simple design, the parade is chalk full of good-old-fashioned family fun.  We all meet early for donuts and conversation.  The kids are so excited, buzzing all around, high on the thrill of the morning.  Lizzy's cute friend Tatum got to join us, and she loved playing with Catherine.  Lizzy and Tatum especially loved holding Catherine's hands as she toddled around, and I think you can tell Catherine liked that a lot too.  The parade is always the perfect way to put everyone in the Halloween mood.

Big Boy Writing

Peter loved this picture he drew the other day.  He ran over to show me, very proud of his drawing of himself, and of his name.  Then, as if a light went on, he erased it and decided to write his name the "real" way, using a "big" P and "little" letters.  The result was a pretty perfect rendition of "Peter."  Wow!  And now, just like that, it's how he always writes his name, in that very careful, very neat, very correct way.  Whenever I see it, I smile.  Of course, I'm thrilled that letter awareness and literacy are blossoming within him, and it's exciting to see how much he's learning, but it's a little bittersweet too.  Everyday, he steps further and further away from being a little boy in preschool, and morphs more and more into this tall, (usually) mature, capable, curious, and determined big boy, getting ready for school. It's a delight to see, but a constant reminder of how fleeting this all is.  Breathe, enjoy, and hold on tight, because this ride is going fast!

Baby's Got Some New Shoes

My, oh my!  Look who's getting really good at standing!  Catherine is getting to be such a big, big girl now!  More and more, we'll find her standing on her own, and she's cruising all over the place.  Her old shoes were getting worn out in the toes from all that crawling, so we decided it was time for some "real" shoes.  Isn't it amazing how big they make her look?  Pretty soon, she'll be on the move!

Splish Splash Fun

Our weather can never decide which way to go.  It's hot, it's cold, it's rainy, it's dry...... who knows?  Mostly, it's pretty pleasant, and were very lucky.  To be honest, any sort of "weather" is pretty exotic for us, and the kids get very excited about it.  After a rainy day, they were eager to go on a puddle walk.  By now, we all know how this goes.  They start out tentatively, then get progressively bolder, until everyone is soaked.  Oh well, such is life on a puddle walk.  We ran into our good buddies Trevor and Connor, who joined us on our walk.  Those are always the best times for me- spending time with friends, playing around outside, exploring and enjoying the moment.  Those are the days I feel especially thankful for this precious time of life.

Pumpkin Patch Day Off

Peter had the day off of school, so a group of his classmates organized a trip to a local pumpkin patch.  I was very sad that Lizzy was at school and couldn't join us, but it was very fun to get to have some special time with the "little" kids.  Peter loved getting to spend a morning playing around with his buddy, Evan.  We combed through all sorts of pumpkins, spent time in a bouncy house, and the boys rode around on a train.  Afterwards, we all went out to lunch, which is one of Peter's favorite things to do.  What a great way to spend a morning with some special friends.

Soccer Star

Lizzy's not the only one who loves soccer around here.  Peter is quite a soccer star himself.  Sure, he may seem mild-mannered, but get him out on the field and he's ready to go.  First of all, can we discuss Peter's shoes?  He went right to these bright blue and neon orange babies and I thought, "If those are the ones you want, you got it!"  Peter loves his soccer class.  He loves all of the fun games his coaches come up with, but he really loves when everyone gets to play a "real" soccer game at the end of class.  It's so fun to watch him run all over the field, working so hard and doing a great job.  He's a really great little player, and we're so proud of him, and so thrilled he's enjoying himself so completely.