Cheerio

I know the hype has died down, but I never had a chance to post about the Royal Wedding party. Thanks to the miracle of TIVO, we were able to record the festivities and watch later that night.

Ironically, my parents were cleaning out their basement and had just given me my wedding dress and veil that had been hanging down there for 8 years. I didn’t dare try on the dress (out of fear that I wouldn’t be able to get it past my ankles) but the veil fit like a glove.


Many glasses of wine later, we settled in to watch. Despite the fact that I was continuously yelling “PIPPA!” in a drunken British accent, I’d say it was a jolly good time. Hopefully Harry gets hitched soon so we can do it again.

PIPPA!

Everybody Loves Dean

Dean always rides in the front of the double stroller. He's quite the chick magnet, and people are always stopping us to comment on his smile or his cute little teeth.

The other day we were walking in town, and a random woman started to talk with him. As she was leaving, she said, "Oh he was just put on this earth to bring joy to people, wasn't he?"

Based off how much everyone loves my little Deanbo, I'd say she was right.

It turns out he's also the new reigning decision maker in the family - just another party trick to keep Mom entertained. This video is dark because it was shot in the car last night, but you'll still get the point.

Next time you're looking to get out of something, just call me up and I'll get Dean to tell you no.

Warming Up

It's not easy to survive the Northeast winters. Forget the snow and ice - the worst of it is being trapped inside with 4 energetic boys.

Now that the sun is shining and the weather is warming up, we get out and about whenever we can.

Thankfully there's a park just a few blocks from our house. Around this time the trees are all in bloom and it's absolutely beautiful. Just like Phil and me.

Here's a pic from Ry when he was one and also from a few weeks ago. As you can see, not much has changed.

Another advantage of getting outside - so many interesting options for Time Out. Here Charlie takes it like a man (even with his thumb in his mouth). Ah, sweet springtime.

Sunshine On My Shoulders Makes Me Happy

Today was Mother's Day and it was filled with it's share of ups and downs.

Down: Phil had to work.

Up: He didn't start until 10 am so he got to hang out this morning. Before he left he took this pic of my boys on the front porch with the flowering bush in full bloom. Happiness.


Down: He called about 5 minutes after he left to let me know that his car died, it needed to get towed, and I'd have to drive him to work. In the city. With 4 antsy kids. And the potential thought of having to buy a new car.


Up: We picked Phil up from work and had dinner at Ruby's Diner. On the way home we stopped at the Brandywine Battlefield to watch the sunset. Wrapped up in a blanket with my boys on a bench watching the sun go down...a spontaneous moment remembered for a lifetime.

Caution: Toilet Humor Ahead

What started out as the terrible twos soon spiraled into the even-more-terrible threes. So when Cole's 4th birthday rolled around, we celebrated with a vengeance.

The day of his party was double-booked. We had another shindig for his buddy at the firehouse, and Cole got to ride on the truck and shoot off the hose.


While we were at the party, I texted Phil to see what they were up to. He sent me back this picture - you go Ry!

After a long morning we finally got to kick off Cole's party in classic style. He asked for a bowling party, so we found the only joint in town that allowed us to bring beer in coolers. Classy.

Cole LOVES to hear the story of his birth. He'll go up to strangers on the street to tell them, "When I was born my mommy's water broke over the toilet." Even more classy.

But that's just part of the unmistakable Cole charm. It's taken 4 years, but he's growing into a hysterical, sweet, loveable, energetic little man. He keeps us on our toes, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Love you Coley.

L'Chaim

This Tuesday we hosted our third annual seder at the house. Everyone was a great sport, despite some technical difficulties (imagine 5 adults attempting to run a service for 9 kids). Thank goodness for matzah ice cream cake.

Our friends gave us some Passover goodies, including masks for each of the 10 plagues. After intense negotiations ("I'll trade you hail for boils") we were off and running.

Here's to many more years around the seder table.

Love You-Ou

Our fantastic friends came down from upstate New York for a weekend of fun. Friday night we walked into town for pizza and the boys talked us into shoulder rides. Luckily there was a nice flowery backdrop to take my mind off the sharp pains shooting down my shoulders.

We came home for a group bath. No words needed, just take it all in.

The next morning was Cole's first day of T-Ball. The kid's got a great arm, unfortunately he sometimes wears his glove on the wrong hand. Give him time.

While Phil took Cole to his game, the rest of the gang went to the library. Jim found this puppet and chaos ensued.

Last stop on our adventure was The Please Touch Museum. By this time, Graham had totally gotten the hang of the Kerper boys and dove right in.

Charlie stopped to take in the sights...

...and we found this adorable little baby in the faux Children's Hospital.

Everyone passed out on the ride home - three cheers for a job well done. We miss our buds already.

Down By The River

One of our favorite things to do is going to the Brandywine River to throw rocks into the water. It keeps the boys entertained for hours at a time, plus it's free. Score.

Me And My Teddy Bear...Have No Worries Have No Cares

We went to a birthday party this weekend for our niece Maya. Ironically, we don't have any pictures of Maya, but trust me, she was cute.




Charlie plopped himself into the biggest bag he could find and was perfectly content in there for almost 10 minutes. I immediately ran out and bought a neverending supply of big party bags.


We went to the park after the party to shake out any excess energy. Dean was so happy to be on the swings...doesn't he look totally grown up?


On the walk home Ry and Cole kept running ahead. They would fall down at the intersection and hold each other while Ry pet Cole's head. He later explained that he liked the feel of Cole's hair (he had gotten a haircut that morning) and was pretending he was his teddy bear.

I know I've said this before...you just can't make this stuff up.

The Kerpers Hit The Zoo

When the weather shows any sign of warming up, we get out of the house. STAT. One of our first adventures of the season was to the Philadelphia Zoo. My hands down favorite animal of all time is the orangutan, and this was the first time I got to see her new little baby named Batu. You. Must. Go. See. This. Baby. Cutest thing ever.

Every time Cole saw an animal statue he hopped on and yelled "CHEESE!" Nice to see we've got him conditioned already.

We must have been to this zoo about 50 million times, but we've never seen the sea otters. They were a huge hit with the boys - they were eating their fish right in front of Ry and he got a kick out of watching "the guts flying everywhere."

We tried to get a group shot. Then we tried, and tried again. Although I wouldn't say we succeeded, I'd say we're starting to see the light. Give us a year and I think we may be in good shape.