Ten on Ten: August 2011

I’ve been mourning a bit the lack of kid posts here on this blog, the one that started as their electronic baby book. But until I have a new blog to debut (this fall–we had to take a breather during wedding season!), I’ve been posting client work here, and today it feels great to return to my roots and post a series of personal photos.

The inspiration for this came from a great group of women photographers. One of them—who takes the most heartstoppingly gorgeous photos of her brood—suggested this project and I am so grateful to her!

So here’s the plan: one day a month, I document life around me by taking ten photos, one roughly every hour.

On the tenth day of the month, each of us posts our ten photos, and you can follow around the circle of eight of us if you like.

Today I’m linking to Carrie of Carrie Hill Photography, and you will absolutely adore the soulful moments she captured.

So, without further buildup, my Ten on Ten for August 2011.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

On the date I chose for my ten on ten, we had the boys’ best girlfriends over for a sleepover the night before.

I came downstairs on a rainy Sunday morning to find the four of them quietly giggling, drawing and reading. We all needed a rainy day to take a break on this beautiful summer!

The dreaded Augmentin. Will showed me his finger one day last week saying, “Mom, I think I sprained my wrist.” A small, swollen cut, oozing with pus at the tip of his finger was enhanced by a faint red line trailing up into his arm.

A quick trip to the pediatrician resulted in powerful and awful-tasting doses of this goop. He’s almost done. (Culture revealed strep group A infection. Thank goodness for modern medicine!)

Sorry the photo is so small, but it features “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” playing on my MacBook. Will, Henry, and their overnight guests Olivia and Gabby are all gaga for Harry. You wouldn’t believe how quiet four children can be when they are listening to Harry Potter audio book reader Jim Dale.

“Mom! Watch! I am blowing air into my ears!”

The rain still falling, this crew took every toy in the house, spread them out on blankets, couches and chairs in the living room, and had a sale.

Books were “20:50” each, camping gear was $1.50 a piece or $30 for all five pieces and the game of Perfection was $80. Legos and Playmobil had their own price points, and some, of course, were spesl.

Henry has had enough of the rain by now.

Finally! The rain stops. Naturally, my two and their neighbor decide to wash rocks to celebrate.

An hour later I found them over at the neighbor’s house, washing their bikes and singing one stanza from Katy Perry’s “Fireworks” OVER AND OVER.

Hydrangeas in bloom.

Pool time! Made extra special to have a swim with visiting cousin Justin, pictured on right.

After staying up til nearly 10 on the sleepover, these toes and the five-year-old body attached to it were out cold. Good night!

Happy birthday, Will!

Will, July 2004

Will, September 2005

Will, December 2005  (Photo by Steven Taylor)

Will, June 2006

Will, July 2006

Will, November 2006

Will, July 2007

Will, May 2008

Will, March 2009

Will, September 2009

Will (and Elias), April 2010

Will, July 2011 (Long Pond)

Somehow my first born baby boy has turned into a seven-year-old boy today. I had to poke through these photos tonight—I don’t know if any parent can ever stop looking for the baby and toddler and small child that came before–I know I can barely picture that little one when I see my seven-year old swim out to the dock tonight!

The day started EARLY (this kid cannot WAIT for presents) and with Legos on the scene, all was good. (Also, tetherball, new watercolors and a few other goodies were all well received). Waffles, fresh raspberries picked yesterday and whipped cream for breakfast, Legos all morning, art camp in the afternoon and a picnic dinner at the beach with pizza, crabbing, boogie boarding and swimming to the dock made for a picture perfect day.

Will, we love your enthusiasm and spirit, your zest and energy, your artistic and athetic sides, your love of words, your long lashes and those deep brown eyes, among so many other things. We love you, baby boy–happy birthday!

 

Lego Love

In case I EVER forget what it is like to have two Lego-loving boys in the house. You know, in 1,000 years when the last one is finally picked up and not embedded in the bottom of my feet.

Remind me about this photo and how this is just a scene from everyday life.

Seaweed never goes out of style

Goofballs.

Cape Cod, Sept., 2010

Not possible

Will, age 13 months, August 2005

Seems like a big yellow school bus is coming down our street tomorrow morning with plans to pick up this little fella for the first time ever.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.

I say not possible.

And pass the tissues.

For those of you that know him, look how clean and new his thisy is!

Still sleeping with it right now, though it lacks a certain freshness these days.

All photos by Nicki Pardo.

Cape Cod Cuties

More Shay and Matt coming, I promise! But as a brief intermission, we hit the beach(es) of Cape Cod last month with a quick visit with Maria, Tommy and Grace, and later on with Suey, Lulu and family. Grace turned seven months when we were there, and Tommy got his first silly bands, so it seemed like a fine reason to take out the camera.

(Click on any image to see it larger!)

We interrupt your summer to post…

A little adventure on Cape Cod last week resulted in more iphone photos than real photos, but I just loved this one.

More to come.

Hope you are also going crabbing barefoot on a regular basis. Safely.

Six years ago today

At the kindergarten concert.

After the concert (not a metamorphosis, just really good face paint.)

Dear Will,

I was almost willing to believe it when you turned five, with those long lanky legs barely fitting on my lap.  But it certainly doesn’t seem that another year could have gone by so quickly, meaning that you are six today.

So here we are—you a first grader to be, and me a mama for six years, as of 11:39 this morning. Recently I’ve been aghast to discover that between you and Henry, we really and truly are out of the baby stage at our house, with nary a diaper or a sippy cup to be found anywhere. But then I’ve been realizing how much fun it is becoming, and how much more fun we have ahead. We draw together, read side by side, laugh at jokes (real ones, unlike your brother who thinks potty talk is hilarious) and discuss the natural world and its processes. I marvel at your athletic prowess, get stumped by your intricate questions and figure out, along with you,  just how many gummy sharks one person can really eat. You build and create endless displays in Playmobil and Lego, you draw and sketch, you swim, you run, you race,  you write, you sing and you show no sign of ever giving up that beloved faded, once-green “thisy” or the thumb that goes with it.

You spent your kindergarten year in a gentle new school, beautifully growing and bridging the space between our beloved nursery school and the wilds of elementary school. But just like you suddenly seemed much too loud and boisterous for your nursery school at the end of last year, you have, seemingly overnight, outgrown the petite size of the Montessori school classroom materials.  I think, whether I am ready or not, you are clamoring for the start of your elementary school experience.

So off you will go this fall on a big yellow bus, you with the long lanky legs and deep brown eyes and the eyelashes that just won’t quit. You’ll carry your blue backpack and wave goodbye, ready as always for a new day and a new adventure. But despite being six today, there is no possible way you will ever be anything but my big brown-eyed baby boy.

Love,

Mama

Photos from Montessori School “round the sun” ceremony.

Super boys

Kids around here (like Will and his visiting friend) can jump pretty high….

higher than a HOUSE, even.

This kept them occupied FOREVER!  They just love the instant gratification of digital cameras. They kept checking their progress to see how high they could fly.

Then they enjoyed the soft green grass, you know, when you get tired of jumping.

All except for my little Icarus, Henry, who was too busy building.  He spent the better part of the afternoon constructing a “flying machine” out of a plastic costume belt, a wooden toy road sign, a piece of our new wood flooring and nearly all of my Scotch tape.

Then he took it for one glorious test spin before it fell apart.

And then we welcomed our long-gone neighbors home from their ash-cloud-extended visit to England. Fresh off the plane, jumping off the rock seemed like a fine idea.

All in all, a very good spring day.

What the world needs now

More half-birthday celebrations.

Because six months is much too long to wait for more cake and candles.

Happy New Year!

This year finally seemed to slow down around December 30, and we’ve been enjoying lots of (rare!) snow, hot cocoa, fires, home projects (also rare this year!), more fires, visitors and, of course, good food.

Our New Year’s Eve was all the brighter with my college roommate in town, a culinary professional who brought with her a good bottle of wine and the fixings for this delicious dish, a simple pasta carbonara with fresh homemade pasta and mushrooms. We added our delicious Cobb Hill bacon. YUM.

For dessert we continued working our way through the delicious gift of Grater’s ice cream from a lovely family of clients and friends. Hard work, but someone’s got to do it.

The new year is starting fast and furious for us next week (you too?) but we got another weekend snowstorm on a day when we had nowhere in particular to go, and it will be a nice lazy memory to sustain us in the weeks to come.

Happy new year! Welcome 2010!

Happy holiday week

We’re having a great week–hope you are, too!