Rock

 I love that Emily has gravitated towards the exact spot that I would have as a kid.  There's a little strip of woods along the side of our yard that is technically common to the neighborhood, but it feels like ours.  This rock is right on the corner, looking out at the street but sort of hidden.

Visitors

My cousin Rob and his fiancee Katy (Alasdair will be helping perform their wedding in a few months) came up to visit us a few Saturday's ago.  We went on a hike around Boston Lot Lake and played with the kids.  Fun. :)

The same night, we got a super short visit from Andy, who was in the (general) area touring colleges with Collin.  

Spring in MA

Alasdair spoke at a church in MA this week, so the girls and I tagged along to play at Mimi & Papa's.  Alasdair & I also got to visit Becky & Brian in Boston all alone. :)  Yummy dinner, fun conversation, and a drive by the castle where they are getting married in the fall!

The next day when I got Adara up from her nap, she immediately said, "Papa.  Mimi.  Home...  Seat."  I asked her if she meant that she wanted to go in her [car]seat and go to Mimi & Papa's house... "Yes!"

April odds & ends

playing with friends on the swingset

snuggling in Emily's bed

picnic with friends at the Montshire

smelling the flowers on Main Street in Hanover

(after a Boloco picnic on the Green with with the Powlisons)

trying on sunglasses

(More pictures & video - click on the links to the right.)

Montshire

During one of our last cold mornings last week, we took a trip to one of our favorite places, the Montshire museum. 

Engineer working on the gears.  (Video here)

Crazy girl jumping off the exhibits.

Willeman

I took this picture a couple of months ago but forgot to post it until now.  Emily is enamored with our pastor's wife, who is sort of the pied piper of the preschool set around here.  She runs a little storytime/playtime once a week at our library called "Romp & Stomp" and it's one of Emily's favorite things.  Having not mastered the "Mrs." concept yet, Emily calls her by her last name, "Willeman."

A Day in the Life

Today was a fairly normal day (after an early start with an 18 month old who wanted breakfast at 5 am).  I dropped Alasdair off at work, brought the girls to music class at a friend's house, played & lunched with other friends, painted trim in my office while Adara napped and Emily did quiet time.  I walked into the kitchen to find Emily sticking tiny pieces of styrofoam into her ears.  After some experimenting, decided I couldn't stick the tweezers far enough into her ear to remove it all without potentially causing damage.  Called the doctor and made an appointment to bring her in at 5.  Emailed Alasdair to let him know not to expect dinner made.  For the hour and a half my mothers helper was here, I caught up on work and raced through another coat of paint.  Let the girls play out front while I packed up some food for dinner.  Comforted Adara who was crying because Emily wouldn't let her walk near the road, and wrangled the girls into the car.

At 4:45 I found myself driving to the doctor, feeding the girls PB&J sandwiches in the car since we'd be there during dinnertime, alternately helping Emily sound out words in her Dora book and singing Old McDonald had a farm with Adara, listening to voicemails for work, and debating whether I had time to stop for gas.  (I decided the gas light had only been on for 10 miles, so it wasn't critical.)  

It was one of those moments that are so typical of this phase of life.  I realized that on another day I could have been frazzled and stressed, but for some reason (probably because the sun was shining and at 58* it was warm enough to have the car windows cracked open!), today it just made me smile.   Our life is busy and full, and so blessed!

[End of the story for the record: the doctor couldn't get the styrofoam out with his fancy tweezers - which made me feel less dumb for bringing her in! - and irrigated her ears. The girls had fun.  We got gas on the way home, only 20 miles after the empty light had come on.:)  Played on the swings & watched A shoot baskets in the driveway. Finished dinner and rushed to get the kids to bed & kitchen clean before A's men's group arrived.  Made a mental note to deal with the ants in the dining room.  Spent the evening painting trim and listening to the Red Sox on the radio.]