Shocking Events

Jack willingly took a dose of Motrin this evening! The boy NEVER takes medicine. Ever. He actually asked for it too, after he saw Annabelle take hers... But still!

Second shocker- Jack put on his coat without a fight! Twice.

Third shocking thing- Jack ate carrots. Sure they were only tiny slivers in his soup, but still, Jack ate them... AND he said he liked them.

He MUST be sick.

Davis Farmland

Last week, we all piled into my friend Donna's minivan and drove out to Davis Farmland. It was a small trek, about 50 miles, but well worth it; the kids had a blast! (They especially enjoyed getting to ride in the same car with their friends, Grace and Jackson.)

At the farm, they made a bunch of new friends:

They even got to brush a bunny and some of the goats; including a couple of day old babies, (but not including the flying goat.) Jack really enjoyed chasing petting the goats. At one point, he actually picked up one of the babies and tossed gently placed it back into its house.

Jackson, Jack, Annabelle, and Grace, all waited patiently for a ride on the pony. Until they got to the front of the line... and argued about who would go first, second, third, and fourth. Luckily, everyone got a chance to be first in line!

This was Jack's first pony ride!

Before heading home, we stopped across the way at the apple orchard and did some apple picking. It was late in the day, about an hour before closing, and the orchard was completely empty!

"Say, APPLE!"

On The Farm

The Sheep Whisperer

First Day Of School

Today was Jack's first day, ever... And he absolutely loved it!!

Here he is with his teacher.

Below, I'm trying to get a decent shot of both of them-HA!

I can't tell if Annabelle was trying to hug Jack, or strangle him.

One last try?

Nah, we're not even going to look at you.

Back To School

Today was the unofficial first day of school. The kids met their teachers and other classmates while the parents hung out and drank bad coffee. All in all, I think it was a success... Except for the coffee.

Jack jumped right in there and made himself at home, quickly finding a bin of cars and dumping it all over the floor. He seemed pretty comfortable- he's used to going to the school from last year when we took Annabelle, he also already knows the teacher and a handful of the kids in his class. So no separation anxiety there... He didn't even notice when Nick and I left the room! His teacher said that he did great- she told us that he built an impressive block tower, which Jack claims was knocked over by "a fresh boy called, Chris." I don't remember a Chris in his class, but I will be sure to pay attention next time. As we were leaving, Jack grabbed my hand and said, "I had a good time at school."

Annabelle, of course, walked in like she owned the place. Nick brought her to her classroom and was supposed to stay with her for a bit, but he appeared in Jack's classroom after only two minutes. I guess Annabelle waved him off... She was so very busy catching up with her friends and just too cool for parents!

The real first day is on Wednesday... Maybe I can get a better picture of the two of them together then.

A Beachy Day

As summer is drawing to a close here in the North East we are making the most of what little sunshine we have left; the warm days are few and far between. Today was a perfect day at the beach!

Early in the AM I loaded the Monkeys, armed with shovels and pails, into the car and we headed off to Cape Cod to meet our friends, Grace and Jackson (and their mum too). We made it there in record time (1 hr. 10 minutes), as there was no traffic whatsoever. I'm guessing that after Labor Day the majority of the population has gone back to work/school, which is great for me because my preschoolers don't start back for another week.

As an added bonus, the beach was pretty much empty for most of the day. It wasn't until late afternoon when it started to get slightly crowded, filling up with the after school crowd and early work ditchers. But, by then it was time to head home...

*there are more beachy photos over there in the side bar--->

Annabelle's Sunflower

On her last day of school, back in May, Annabelle brought home a tiny sunflower plant in a paper cup. Not expecting it to survive at all, I transplanted it into a small pot and stuck it on the window sill by the kitchen sink. Within a few weeks the stem had grown to be about 8 inches tall, definitely too big for the small pot, so we planted it outside.

A couple of months later...

VOILA!!!