Ru in kindergarten; Viv in grade 2

Well, it's official. School finally started. It was a much anticipated event for the girls. I was so excited for them, although I wasn't thrilled to loose Ruby to all-day kindergarten. Oh well. She is so happy! I have been stressed out about how to get back into a smooth routine. Who is a genius at this? Any ideas? 

Below Olivia is holding up two fingers to represent grade 2, and Ru is showing a K for kindergarten in sign language.

 This is Mrs. Rohr, Ruby's teacher, reading to the class on the first day (open-house).

 Sonoma was feeling jealous about the whole school thing. She insisted on wearing Ru's backpack for a while.

 Here are Viv and Ru in the "climbing tree" by the side of our house. The love climbing that tree.

 Viv, Ru, and our 10 year old neighbor Gunnar are playing on the tramp. I love the woods in the background.

 Gunnar has a pool with a zip line that we like to use from time to time. They are such nice neighbors!

 We were invited to hang out with our friends, the Bonatos (Lorenzo, Marabella, and Franchesca).

 Below are Viv and Ru on the tires at the local YMCA.

 Now that school is in session, Sonoma and I have a lot of time together. I quickly became aware of how much I depended on the older girls to entertain her during the day. Now it is all on me. Here are a few pics of our golden time together. I'll never get enough of her insane cuteness!

Adam? Adam who? ...Poor Adam has sort of been MIA for the past month or so. He is in the depths of a work hole that will hopefully spit him out at some point so that he can return to the world of normal family life and regular working hours (what are those???).

"Funny Uncle Wade" and the Mystic Aquarium

My girls have it in their heads that all of their uncles are funny. When we told them that Uncle Wade was coming out to visit (for work), they were soooooo excited to see "Funny Uncle Wade"! I told him about his reputation at our house, and he did a great job living up to the name. He didn't have them in stitches with his relentless funniness, but he did have fun with his nieces, and they soaked it up! Here he is playing a rousing game of "Clue" with them.

 This is Wade, telling the girls a bedtime story... but mostly, it's Ru smiling at the camera :)

 Viv got facepaints from Grandma and Grandpa Morse. They painted each others faces for hours and days...

On the one Saturday that Wade was with us, we headed two hours away to the Mystic Aquarium. It was a great experience for all of us. Wade helped the girls get a canary on a stick to hold. They loved it!

 Jellyfish are always my favorite animals to see. They are so beautiful and dangerous. I love them.

 Here are my couch monkeys. Hilarious, as always. Sonoma has since defiled this couch after finding a permanent marker. Good thing it was a free couch from the local recycling center. Easy come easy go. I just wish I could say the same thing about the wood paneled, custom made walls that she defiled. Somehow I don't thing our landlords will find her artistic expression to be acceptably placed.

Anyone have any ideas about how to fix the wall? Yeah... we are in trouble. All markers are heretofore off limits at our house.

"Dangie" in Meredith, New Hampshire

Just before the start of the school year, I had the opportunity to put the girls in the car and make the five hour drive up to a little - seriously little - town called Meredith, New Hampshire to visit my cousin Angie and her husband, Dan (hence "Dangie"). It was wonderful to reconnect with Angie! It had been so long since we had seen or even really spoken to each other. Turns out, she's still awesome. It also turns out that Meredith is a gorgeous resort town. It reminded me a little bit of Bear Lake. It is on Lake Winnipesaukee (you may remember it from the film, "What about Bob?"). We were only there for a few days, but it was lovely! Here are a few pics:

 We went to the beach and the first thing that Ruby did was hug the sand. Towels are for wimps!

 A perfect stranger came and asked to take a picture of cute Noma in her hat. Can say that I blame her.

 Angie and Ruby swimming together in Lake Winnipesaukee.

 Here are the girls, Angie, and her sweet little dog Mona. Noma was mostly scared of the dog, but tried to be cool about it all. Careful examination of this photo will reveal that Sonoma has strategically put Olivia between herself and the dog, and wouldn't take her eyes off of her for the picture... but for all you know, she is cool with the situation. Well played, Sonoma.

 Meredith, NH is also home to the largest arcade in the world. Yes, that is correct. It is called Funspot (the spot for fun). It has all of the old school arcades that you can imagine from Frogger to Packman, Donkey Kong to Ghostbusters, Tron to Stargate, and thousands more. It is Ca - Razy! I highly recommend it as one of the best places on Earth to "people watch" - seriously fascinating. If you haven't seen the movie, "King of Kong", you should, to get an idea of what I'm talking about. It was filmed here (in part) during one of the "Annual International Classic Video Game Tournaments" that they host.

 Funspot doesn't stop at arcade games. They have something for everyone. My kids loved the bumper cars, and other awesome games they had available for wee ones.

 What is this ride? Don't know, but it goes in a slow circle, and it lights up. Golden.

 Adam said this photo would be perfect for an album cover. Any takers?

 Here is Noma on the beach after we got ice cream on our last day in Meredith.

Thanks for letting us come invade your home, Angie! We love you!