Dinner with Friends

Dinner with the Marcus and Wiprut families is always a good time. Although the volume from 5 boys running around can get pretty high... wine makes it all good (as Kristin demonstrates below).



Popsicles in the patio for the boys.

From Left to Right: Aaron, Ben (back), Jacob, Murdoch, and Lucas

Getting Bigger

Aaron took his next step in becoming a "big boy" (as he puts it)
today. He's outgrown his car seat so I converted it into a booster
seat. Now he uses a seat belt just like Mommy and Daddy.

Our Easter tree

Last year, Martha Stewart Living has an article about constructing ornaments for Easter out of felt, pompom balls, etc. I made bunnies, chicks, baskets, carrots, and eggs and found a tree to hang them all on. This year I snapped a few photos for posterity (some of the ornaments are pretty delicate and may not last more than a few years).

My First Q&A

A few questions have surfaced which I thought I'd answer here for everyone's benefit. Its nice to see that our little site has an audience.

Q: How can I get a family blog?
A: There are many services that automate the blogging process but I chose Blogger.com because it was a Google service I'm already familiar with. If you have a gmail address you already have access. If not, just visit the site, register and they'll walk you though the process.

Q: What camera do you use for photos?
A: Because I want the blog to be candid, quick and informal I've chosen to simply use my iPhone's camera for all my blog photos. It's incredibly convenient and I always have it with me. My regular photography work will be available soon in a Flickr account I'm currently creating.

Q: Can I be notified of updates or posts?
A: Yes. But not by me directly. If you use an RSS reader (I recommend Google Reader) you can subscribe to this blog and receive any new updates directly to your reader. I've done away with traditional family updates or mailing lists because I could never keep up with them.

Thanks again for all the kind comments!

Kite Flying with the Marcus Family

After a long weekend of gardening we joined the Marcus Family at the park for some relaxing kite flying.



Jon's "Dragon" kite was the only one that could handle the wind and flew perfectly!

Starting the Garden (Day 2)

Our second gardening day went faster than the first but was more tiring. Aaron had his first hammering lesson and did surprising well with several nails.



Aaron has his own gardening tools now which made helping us much easier for him. With two garden boxes done... the planting can begin!



We also had our first garden "visit" by Jayne and Jacob who live nearby. We're hoping they get a plot too.

Starting the Garden

Today was our first day building the garden. We are all so sore! But it was a lot of fun. The first step is clearing the lot and digging the first hole for our 6 boxes.



The second step was building the wood frames for the raised garden boxes. Gophers are a problem so we lined the bottom with chicken wire.



After a quick lunch break Aaron posed with the bamboo frame for what is going to be his Sun Flower Tee-Pee.



After all that work, one raised garden box is built, placed and filled and a second is prepped for tomorrow. Whew!

Leprechaun Trap

Aaron's preschool class built a Leprechaun Trap to catch that pesky little critter for St. Patrick's Day. The trap has been placed at the end of their classroom rainbow and ready for action!



With the trap in place, all the kids went home for the weekend and are anxious to come back in on Monday morning (St. Patrick's Day) to see if it worked.

Homework

Aaron's homework for tonight is to color the letter "I" and find
things that start with that letter.

Community Garden

Creating a family garden at our local community garden is our newest family project. Bridget picked out our garden space today and we'll break ground next weekend.



Check back often to watch our garden grow.

One Last Cold

Let's hope this is the last cold of the season. Daddy is sick too.