Love Ya Mean It!

This weekend was a true test in basic math:

(1) Post-surgery baby +
(1) Pregnant mom who pathetically waddles around after 3 kids +
(1) Husband working a total of 24 hours between Saturday & Sunday +
(2) Big brothers who just want to play +
(Lots of) Wonderful people who helped me out over the last few days =
A HUGE THANKS FROM ME!!

So to sum it all up, you guys rock! For everyone that fed us, invited the boys for playdates, came over so I could have 5 minutes to shower, and helped in other countless ways, I'm truly appreciative.

I wanted to share some pics of the patient after he got his "silly juice" in the pre-op room. He went from happy to loopy in t-minus 5 minutes - by the time they took him back he was like a little blob of mush getting carried away from us.

Here's to a speedy recovery...will continue to keep you posted.

They Rocked In The Treetops All Day Long

The boy's school hosted their Spring Gala on Friday. It was held outside - the bright sun and clear skies were a perfect backdrop for showing off Charlie's baby blues.

After Cryfest 2010 (aka Cole's performance at his school's Winter Gala in January), he had a chance to redeem himself. Seasons change...people change...this time instead of hysterically screaming through the entire song, he chose to just gnaw on his hand.

Ry's class performed a killer rendition of Rockin' Robin. It was completely uneventful but still cute, mostly due to the bird masks and wings (aka hands on hips).

Oh what joys await us with the Summer Gala? Please stay tuned and place your bets...

This Post Is Boring, Pics Are Cute

Last year we attempted to take the kids to a cool park in Lansdale, only to get all the way out there and find out it was closed.

Phil took them back last week, and luckily it was open for business. It was hard to get much information about their adventures - when I asked Ry his favorite part he said, "Going to that park." Cole threw in, "Going down the slide."

So I apologize for the lack of scoop - I just wanted to post this because I thought Phil got some good pictures of the kids. Will try to hone my investigative reporting skills before their next trip.

Green Monster

In the good old days, kid's t-ball teams were sponsored by the local hardware store or the pizza place on the corner. In the new millenium, I guess we choose not to bow to the pressures of corporate sponsorship (Ry's league is divided up by Major League teams).

Imagine Phil's heartache when he learned that his firstborn would be part of the Red Sox. I think it pains him to see Ry wearing a Boston hat, but he fights through it for the good of the team.

Go Sox!

The Many Faces Of Cole

Those of us who know and love Cole are well aware that he inherited his mother's flair for drama. He was hamming it up this morning until he got totally distracted by a bird. He snapped out of it long enough to hit me with me a sweet lil' smile. Love that kid.

We Are The World, We Are The Children

Today in their free art time at school, Ry decided to draw some of his favorite flags. He said, "Libya is my favorite because you just have to color it all green. Djibouti is trickier because it has a star, and they're hard to draw."

I'm not going to lie - I had to google search "Djibouti" because (a) I'd never heard of it before and wasn't convinced it was really a country, and (b) I had no idea how to spell it.

Next I had to search "Libya flag" and lo and behold, it really is all green. How boring!

The fun continued after dinner and he asked for help painting flags for The United Kingdom and Vatican City (I had to help with that one and let me tell you, it's complicated. I seriously don't know what parents did before google, but thankfully it's saved me quite a few times today).

As we were wrapping up I turned to help Cole clean up, only to find him drinking the paint water. I guess artistic vision can be found in many different forms.

Allah Yissalimak! (Goodbye in Arabic, the language of Djibouti).

Deep Thoughts...By Cole

Cole: Let's play I Spy. I'll go first. I Spy with your little eye...
Me: No, you say "I Spy with my little eye"
Cole: Okay. I spy with your little eye...
Me: No, my little eye
Cole: Your little eye

I guess it does make sense from his perspective...just repeat 1 million times and it about sums up our conversation.

Cha-Cha-Chillin'

Now that the weather is getting nicer, the boys are more than happy to stretch their legs outside in the sunshine. Luckily Charlie is a great travel companion - this comes in handy when we're forced to multi-task (i.e. Feed him in a bottle with one hand and push Cole on the swing with the other).

For now he's totally content to just plop in the grass and watch his brothers stir up trouble...until he starts crawling...then the true multi-tasking begins!

Sunshine, Waterfalls, and Bugs

The boys went for a hike at Valley Green in Fairmount Park last week. Ry's favorite part: "Eating lunch with Daddy by the water." Cole's favorite part: "Carrying my sandwich inside my backpack."

Despite the two ticks that we pulled off of Phil, it seems that the trip was a success (although if he ends up getting Lyme Disease I'll likely take the opposite stance).

Cheese

A tranquil lake and ivy-covered rock proved to be the perfect setting for the boy's school pictures. Luckily these were all completely fake, otherwise the outcome would have been much different (i.e. Charlie sitting nicely in the foreground with Ry and Cole doing cannonballs into the water).

Thank goodness for props.