homestead

Homestead is always a fun visit even when it is literally swarming with people.  I'd never seen it quite as crowded, but we caught it right at the end of the day when the crowds were already thinning out.  We replaced Keaton with over 150 lbs of apples (most of which our friends use to make huge batches of apple butter) in that big cart.

fire stations

Once a year, all the fire stations in the county invite kids to come visit. The boys love spraying the firehose at the little house with wooden block "fires" in the windows.  They toured the vehicles and greeted the friendly firefighters.  I think Keaton wanted to break into their lounge full of giant recliners. 

firefighters

We took Cam to PB Jacks!  It was fun to see our old buddies and it made me miss hanging out at that place - we hadn't been since the springtime?!  But Keaton reunited with his favorite playtime friends and was asking to go back the next day.  

tidbits

So much fun for these foxy friends playing in the backyard and plenty of chillaxin time.  The Halloween spider guy that responds to loud noises came out to play!  Check out Liz's new Pumpkin Spice Forever apron - #pumpkinpointers!

bounce

We bounced over to the pumpkin patch right across from our neighborhood on a nice afternoon.  It was right before school let out so all the buses were pulling out making Cameron's day.  They both made it to the top of the climbing truck, even Lizzie made it part of the way through that tiny tunnel ;). It's pretty fun to have a bounce house to ourselves.

cuz band

We were so excited to have the band all together for some cousin rock. These cousin buddies are really busting out some VA blues.

good list

The good list is pretty random lately... The rainy day field trip to the Green Springs Garden with Keaton's class turned out ok, thanks to lotsa fun inside at the touch table and smart nature center hosts who pretend that we are seeking out butterflies by looking for photographs in the glass house.  The kids even enjoyed some time walking in the misty rain to look at the gardens.

We've been hosting and attending lotsa playdates after school now that most friends don't take afternoon naps (which Keaton stopped ages ago).  The kids are able to keep up with games on their own now which is fun to watch.

Aiden is learning to cook a bit.  His specialty right now is the perfect skillet chicken.  Tong skills ;)

Aiden is super duper into drawing books (thanks to one particular book in his classroom that he seeks out during discovery time) and I recently told him to look on YouTube for some drawing videos.  He was so excited to find the incredible treasure trove of drawing instructional videos on there.  Below is Keaton as Captain America and Aiden's look-a-like Frankie Pickle and his pal Argyle the dog.

I have actually made it out for a few girl's nights in the last few, but by far my favorite was meeting up with some old college friends for lunch the other day.  It's fun when people come to town and you can share some Ted's milk shakes ;)

This pic of the ungrouted tile in our new ensuite bath shower is just a preview of the full remodel that should be done soon!  We had a cracked tub and we decided to go for it with a big update instead of just replacing it... It's been fun to pick out all the details.

school

Here are some shots from "Me Week" at Keaton's school where they traced their bodies, recorded their weight and height, and talked about all their favorites. Then it was time for a teddy bear's picnic at school.  Keaton picked his new favorite cuddle guy, Wokie, who is just the right size to cuddle up with at night and dance with at school ;)

interview with KC

This month was a pretty big one for you but you kept up with everything.  The start of school was super smooth and you were so excited to see old friends and make new. You love the housekeeping area at school - "Hey mom, we're playing mom and kid!" as I help you clean up your toys here at home. You still wake up way too early and when I asked you why, you said, "I wake up with plans in my mouth, or I mean in my head!"  You always have plans.

One word to describe you would be:
Baby

Why do you like being a kid?
Because it's fun because I get to play imaginext and games!

If you could be any animal, which one would you be and why?
A baby lion because I could pounce and pounce and pounce

Tell about a funny time in your life.
That time when we got large popcorn and daddy said, "oh, did you want some, this is all for me!"

What is your favorite thing to do? Why?
Plaaaaay, because it's fun to get to play, and play, and it's really really fun!

What do you love most about your sibling?
Because he plays with me!

What was the nicest thing you did for someone?
Clean up my room

What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now?
Capturing robbers!

What is the grossest thing you can think of?
Aiden eating dog poo (Aiden wants to be sure everyone knows he doesn't do that!)

What is your happiest memory?
When Aiden plays with me!

interview with AB

Aiden heard me interviewing Keaton and wanted to answer the same questions for good ol times sake:

One word to describe you would be:
Clever

Why do you like being a kid?
I don't, nevermind I do - ha!

If you could be any animal, which one would you be and why?
I would be an octopus because then I could jump on mommy's arm and freak her out

Tell about a funny time in your life.
When I ran around in the Target costume section and saw a gorilla costume that I thought was a real gorilla

What is your favorite thing to do? Why?
My favorite is Go Noodle because I like to dance.

What do you love most about your sibling?
He's a good Go Noodle partner.

What was the nicest thing you did for someone?
I did my piano when mommy asked me to.

What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now?
Dating possibly?!

What is the grossest thing you can think of?
Looking at Keaton squat on the toilet, no really.

What is your happiest memory?
When I learned to ride my bike and I really thought I couldn't do it, but then I could!

art

A few random art pieces.  That shark was the result of an art class exercise where they are given a green scrap of paper that they needed to use to create something, in this case a shark!  The start of school marks a new core values book with stick figure illustrations.  This guy loves drawing dragons and knights, especially with his bright gel pens.

Keaton's class all made a painting to hang up on the first day of school.  His was a "blue crystal with a pink one inside."  This funny plate self portrait makes me laugh - monkey boy?  This splatter air painting is one of Keaton's favorites.

week 2 violin

peanutize

The promo campaign for the new Peanuts movie includes this fun create your character game at peanutizeme.com.  Check out Keaton and Aiden's creations!

Keaton:

Aiden:

Daddy:

 Mommy:

 Gran Gran:

PopPop:

nature fest

We made our way to the Nature Fest just as a few leaves are changing and fall was in the air.  They had butterflies and their caterpillars and bees and their queen.  Some fun kid crafts and face paints were fun in between animal meet n greets. The biggest surprises were the up close with a skunk (that doesn't spray) and the owl named Banshee because his screeched sounds so spooky.

good list

The supermoon eclipse was in prime time minus the cloudy day. We still were lucky enough for the clouds to break for the first part of the cycle between 9:30-10pm, and I was so excited I ran to dig out my big camera and the big, bad image stabilized prime lens. I ramped up the ISO and used that glass up to 300mm and got a few semi decent shots and I swept in with the professional editing to make them prettier.  

Keaton is all about the lacing cards now and loves to tell me he's ready to sew for me ;)

Keaton decided that a tiny hole in his sleeve would transform his shirt into some schnazzy activewear. Now he wants all his long sleeves to have thumb holes.

We added some schnazzy wheels to our Magformers set.

In the spirit of adventurous eating, J and Keaton came home with this fancy fruit called kiwano. It's has bright green jello like stuff with crunchy pumpkin seed like bits suspended inside. A tiny bit tangy, but mostly just a textural experience. Keaton munched on a bit of it, but wasn't impressed.

Lotsa afternoon play dates spent bouncing around on our friend's trampoline.

Aiden has been crafting lotsa puppets at school, most of which are animal superheroes.

run for rocky

Aiden's school hosted the Run for Rocky fundraiser a bit earlier this year.  The laps were longer and the kids were pumped to try to break the 40 laps mark.  Most of the kids in K-2 got closer to 30 and they were all tuckered out!  I was lucky to get a great shot of Aiden's whole class at the end of the run. Go Rocky!

(Aiden is 4th from the right)

stomp

This green footed monster loves to stomp and laugh!

good list

My friend planned the best belated birthday treat - tea at the Ritz!  It was a leisurely afternoon full of treats and smiles... and cream, lotsa cream!

The boys are super jazzed with the Zhu Zhu pet Kung Zhu arena they earned as fun back to school treats. They even begged G&P to bring some of their old zhu zhu pet stuff out of storage and bring in down here with them. So now there is a boat dock and a pizza shop hooked to the ends of the arena.

Keaton loves these long weeds and this one in particular that he found when we went to the corn maze has been hanging out in his car seat pocket.  He can make anything into a cuddle toy.

Some origami sabers and throwing stars go well with a robe belt for some ninja action!

This creature creator set is a favorite everytime it gets pulled out.  The creature lineup is pretty creative ;)

The bath station at Buildabear is a must visit spot for Keaton especially.  It digitally allows you to create suds, push ducks and bubbles around, and then drains automatically when bath time is up.

Many rockstar moments jamming just like his brother!

treats

I have two treats that arrive every week. One is the Tuesday folder full of goodies from Aiden's school. Usually I only get a sliver of what goes on from it and he tells me much more, but it's still a tiny window to see what the school sends home every week.  The other treat is the long juicy teacher email documenting every activity and book highlighted in Keaton's class every day complete with a big set of pictures. It's awesome and I will miss it next year!  It's fun to get a full glimpse into his week. Here are some photos from his first week:

swim

We are a few weeks into swim class season at the Rec Center. I managed to get their classes at the same time. Aiden loves his gentle drill sergeant type instructor. We tried a new spot this time and the PeeWee 3 class is held in the over 4 feet area!? So Keaton is still getting used to not reaching the bottom.  Only one out of the 7 kids actually manages to get the rings off the bottom of the pool, but the teacher has high hopes... we will see!

Gran and Pop even had a chance to come with us when they were in town and hang out in the viewing spot ;) How many kids can fit with G on the chair?!

wacky wed

It's spirit week at school - so that means it is Wacky Wednesday!

rest

The rest position song starring the three day old violinist and his tiny violin!

"Rest position, feet in line, scroll in front, that's mighty fine. Check your bridge, cause it should be, peeking out at you and me. Now we learn to take a bow, one, two, three and pop! is how!"

pep

I made it into Aiden's school to catch the pep rally full of superheroes ready for the Run for Rocky (the school's raccoon mascot).  Aiden was hoisted in the air by Robin!  He had the biggest smile that reminded me of Howdy Doody because his jaw looked separate from his face ;)

His composure in front of all his classmates and so much about him reminds me that he's such a big kid now.  I am especially reminded when he enjoys quiet moments with us after Keaton is tucked into bed where he reads voraciously.

iBot

I think of the Children's Sci Cen Lab as our new P B Jacks - a new place to hang out and explore.  We headed there for a special afternoon presentation from a lego robotics team.  I turned out it was a group of kids pretty close to Aiden's age so both the boys gave them all their attention, even Keaton had good questions about how they make the lego robot move.  Aiden was excited to answer their questions to the audience on how they might solve a programming issue.

violin

Keaton and the tiniest violin I've ever seen started a group music class yesterday. He learned how to hold it and pluck out a tune to learn the names of the strings. Now I catch him singing, "Each, each, each and every Ant, ant, ant digging in the Dirt, dirt, dirt all the way to Greece, greece, greece..."  She highlights a different composer each week and this week it's Bach. He colored his face completely blue ;)

fair

The county fairs around here are very popular! This one had tons of vendors selling some fun stuff. The boys were immediately drawn to the wooden toys and these adorable marionettes. Aiden took his Rocky the Raccoon in to share with his classmates, since his school mascot is the raccoon. Keaton wanted to take his in to share during his sharing time too. I had forgotten how fun marionettes can be.

At the fair, we were greeted by some pretty serious celebrities in this house, Olaf and a minion. The boys made it in the Flying Dragon ride. They were the little daredevils with their hands in the air as they swung way up and back.