Happy Halloween!!

And here's a sneak peek of the kids costumes. T took the kids to San Carlos for the Goblin Walk again this year. It was super busy and they didn't get quite enough candy loot to share with Mom and Dad, but they still had a lot of fun.

September Recap

September was mostly spent adjusting to our new schedule. B went back to ballet at the Menlo Park Academy of Dance. She also started an art class one afternoon a week, which she loves and would go to every day if possible. C started a fall soccer class and moved up a level at gymnastics.

We went to our first "Back to School" night at B's school and we joined the PTA. C decided to cut his hair short for the first time, we found out later it was because of his newest interest in becoming a drummer in a rock and roll band (Adrian Young from No Doubt is his inspiration at the moment). T helped him look up haircuts on-line the night before his appointment and he picked a picture of Zac Efron. Its been a bit tricky for T to figure out how to style it so it stays "spikey and not floppy" all day, but we love that he has a distinct flair.

September also means football season so we get to spend all our weekends rooting for our Ducks! Our neighbors threw a backyard warming/Go Ducks party to kick off the season and J invented a new drink especially for it: the Duck Pond. Inspired by the Willamette River, and reverse engineered by T (because J announced the name and concept before doing any real planning...), it turned out to be surprisingly tasty.

J and our friend Eric ran in a local fundraiser 5K for the Burlingame school district and both of them PR'd. Running has rapidly become a serious hobby for J after his half marathon in the spring. T got back into crocheting, something she used to do as a child with her Grandma Bessy. And we finally built our second garden box and replanted the old one with some new greens.

B's self portrait from her first day of school

her "All About Me" poster

C's stylish new haircut

picture day

we opted to do all greens in the box this year: arugula, kale, chard, lettuces

C requested a "Go Ducks car blanket"

still some very hot days even though its fall

J and Eric after the Spirit Run

we're a Duck loving family

having fun at a friend's superhero party

August Recap

We kept August pretty mellow, enjoying our last days of lazy summer. B started kindergarten! School five days a week, an extended day too; she loves it but T and C miss her during the day. C went back to Stella Piccolo Preschool, three mornings a week this time and he has totally come into his own; he's having a blast and the teachers are loving seeing the "real" him.

final days of sprinkler fun for the year

we did much better with our strawberries this year

Movie in the Park night

Pizza My Heart with our movie

stylish kids on the way to the Renegade Fair

from Ork Posters

our pool lost two inflatable sections to air leaks so we make our own water park with the shallow pool

taking full advantage of our last "pajama days"

T & B on the first day of kindergarten

excited for his big sister's new adventure

the kindergartener

J & B on the first day of kindergarten

T & C on his first day of school

so happy to go back to Stella Piccolo for another year

school kids

J & C on his first day of school

C's Fourth Birthday

Our beautiful baby boy is now four years old. Every year on his birthday B asks us to tell the story of C's birth (she asks to hear her birth story on her birthday too), and every year, in the telling of his story, we are reminded at just how lucky we are to have such a happy, healthy, intelligent little man. In the past several months T is constantly reminding us both that C is "only three;" because he seems so much older in so many ways. Maybe its from being so close in age to his sister, maybe its his personality. Whatever the reason, he is a delightful mix of old soul and little boy and we love seeing him grow into himself and discover the world.

a CD he specifically asked for after seeing them preform on Jimmy Fallon (DVR'd)

happy sister (C picked that gift for her)

we love these Haba Master Builder architecture blocks

We spent C's birthday morning riding his new Strider bike around in the yard and playing with his new blocks. He wanted to go out to Chinese for lunch, one of his favorites and one of B's least favorites...so lunch while she was at school was perfect. When B got out of school we all headed up to the Bay Area Discovery Museum, where we met our friends Rhiannon, Rhys and baby Mari-Elin.

C's birthday party was last Saturday and we had a wonderful turnout, filling our backyard to capacity! After a week alternating between rain and heat wave, we weren't sure what to expect but we actually had autumnal weather (chilly, windy, but dry). It was a robot themed party, which was very cute. We built robots out of cardboard boxes that we had saved for months leading up to his party. We never get many pictures of our parties, too busy hosting and having fun we guess. You'll just have to take our word for it when we say a great time was had by all.