It's been a while...

Memories of Evan's cold-nose kisses puppy brought me to the old blog today. As I was scrolling through years worth of memories I saw the value in this mundane place.

It's been a full year since the last post. Miles is in 5th grade now - 5th! I remember 5th grade so clearly. It feels like the age of crossing over from being a kid to being a tween. Luckily, Miles is transitioning to this stage well. He wants nothing to do with anything little kid-like, but he continues to be the sweet responsible person he's always been. Evan is in 2nd grade. He had the most amazing 1st grade teacher, so I was worried about how he would do with a new teacher this year. He's doing well, and his best friend is in his class.

In March/April 2013 we went to Hawaii during Spring break. We went to Oahu and spent most of our time at lots of different beaches. Poor Evan had heat exhaustion the second day we were there, but other than that we had a great time. I could really get used to the Hawaiian lifestyle. We stayed with our friends, who were so gracious to let us overtake their Laie home.

Over the summer we went to Mesa Verde National Park. I had a few work trips to Pennsylvania and Seattle, and the kids did some running with me. Despite all of our activities and trips, the kids are happiest to spend most of their summer days playing with their friends.

And with that, maybe I'll try to update the old blog more than once a year.

Evan Turns 6

One of the many fun things about Evan is he doesn't mind if I take his picture. So I took him to the dock to do a photo shoot for his sixth birthday. Okay, he probably wouldn't have been as willing to do it if it wasn't for the chance to throw rocks in the lake, but he humors me well. For the "Big Day" Evan went with his best buddy Cooper to a kid's paradise complete with a 4-story playground, croquet, and arcade games. Not much you can add to that for a little boy. Evan anticipates his birthday for months, and this one definitely didn't disappoint. He got a razor scooter and he hardly walks anymore, just scoots everywhere. He is growing up and I just don't know what we'd do without his fun, sweet personality in our house. We love you, Evan.

Miles' Surprise 9th Birthday

This year we decided to keep the birthdays low-key since we had big parties last year. Because of this Miles wasn't expecting to do anything major for his birthday. It was the perfect set-up for a little surprise party. Mark told Miles they'd be going on a "daddy-son" day to the Planetarium the Saturday before his birthday. Then when he got to the Planetarium a group of his friends was there to surprise him with a banner and balloons. I accidentally grabbed a banner that said, "Happy 30th Birthday" in my hurry to leave the house. Miles was completely shocked. It took him a minute to realize what was going on. He loved it. The whole party he had a huge smile on his face. The boys went to a 3D movie called, "Born to Be Wild," and they had popcorn instead of birthday cake. His friends told me they hope they get a surprise party for their next birthday. Miles is such a joy to us. We feel so lucky to have him in our family.

You Two

Today I was driving the boys around and we started talking about jobs. I told them someday I might have a full time job. I said, "For now, my most important job is you two."

Evan piped right up and said, "WHAT? Your most important job is You Tube? That's just a bunch of videos!"

Funny kid.

Evan Funnies

A bunch of the boys in the neighborhood were having a sword fight in the park behind our house today. Evan's weapon of choice was a purse, or a "bag of destruction," as he calls it.

Oh, I love this boy.

A Great Place to Take Pictures

The Natural History Museum is great for lots of reasons. The hands-on displays for kids, the variety of exhibits - dinosaurs, weather, geography, geology, history, biology, living animals, dead animals. But the thing I was most impressed with was the building itself. It is a piece of art. I loved spending time here with the kids, and I loved taking pictures here.

Christmas 2011

The thing I'll remember most about this Christmas is having a quintessentially us celebration. Thai food for Christmas Eve dinner, Santa masks, Yeti as the sheep in our nativity, Evan got his very first drum set, and Miles got his very first skateboard. The kids' excitement about Christmas is the best. Any ounce of work, effort, planning, money, gift-hiding; it's all worth it for that  joyful feeling that peaks Christmas morning.