Before the Last Leaf Falls

Every year, when the leaves begin their color change, we head off to Caesar's Creek Lake for a hike through woods. Thank god. At this time of year it's about the only thing for which we slow down. It's always therapeutic. I've got dozens of pictures I've wanted to post for the last two months, but these were my top priority. Looking back at them again is a small dose of much needed medicine.

"I'm free to roam? Really?"

"I'm an old pro."

"Maybe Mom will walk faster if I shove a leaf in her ear."

Sprouted acorns. I don't think I had ever seen one before.

Sprouted acorn. Again. For effect.

All orangey and stuff.

Leaf hunters.

Group shot.

"Thanks for including me in the group shot. Dicks."

Definitely a fall girl.

Teaching? Protecting? Threatening?

Our fearless leader.

And now back to your regularly scheduled madness...

Passing of the Torch

So we all got up early this morning, had a big breakfast and piled into the minivan to take Jameson to school for his first day of first grade -- his first day of being in school for the whole day. It's a big day in a young man's life. The household excitement (which led to a "first day of school" dance in our bedroom at the crack of dawn) is amplified by the fact that Truman and Amelia are also joining Jameson for the first time as they join the pre-kindergarten program at the same school. Even Darwin is excited as he finally gets to "pick all the shows" while his older siblings are out of the house. And Eliana is excited, too, but that's just because that's how she rolls.

Julie did the honors of taking Jameson into school and escorting him to his classroom (with nary a tear shed). He was the first student in his room and Julie said he sat quietly at his new desk while he examined the room and sized up his new teacher. (For the record, Julie has already stated that the combination of a young and cute teacher and Jameson's romantic heart will guarantee a crush this year.)  Sitting quietly at a desk is not Jameson's usual modus operandi -- this is a side of him that only surfaces under certain circumstances like the first day of school in a new classroom with a new teacher. It's not really a nervous or anxious response -- his confidence is still there, but you can tell he's doing a full mental assessment of the environment and the situation. Unfortunately for his new teacher, the quiet and reserved Jameson will be short lived. I'd love to have a webcam broadcasting from his classroom so I could watch the transformation unfold.

Truman and Amelia don't start school until after lunch, so we headed home to start our new daily routine sans Jameson. The significance of today's milestone was not lost on Truman. He ran into the house, calling over his shoulder, "C'mon, Darwin! I'm going to teach you to play video games!"

Weekend in Pictures - Birthday Edition

My nephew celebrated his 5th birthday this weekend and my sister threw a killer party for him, complete with pizza, puppies and pie fights.

Baseball themed. Natch.

If there's one thing all pregnant women love, it's being poked in the belly.

Yay! Cute puppies!

Yay! Cute babies!

Ready! FIGHT!!!

Director of activities.

How did we never play this game in college?

Dignity is overrated.

Cheetos perms gone bad.

You have no idea what just happened, but trust me, you won.

Dear god when will these fools stop.

Ewwwww, a piece of grass in my hair.

I could get used to this look.

The aftermath.

Darwin Hearts Musicals

Darwin's current musical obsession is The Muppets. It's on heavy rotation right now. He is keenly focused on learning all the musical numbers AND the choreography.

World Famous Delicious Lemonade

This weekend we crashed my sister-in-law's garage sale to hawk some of our own junk. The kids took the opportunity to set up a lemonade/cookie stand and make a few bucks themselves.

A few notes from our first garage sale:

• I forgot to bring my camera. Doh.
• Garage sales seem to be as much a social event as anything.
• I'm not good at garage selling. I accept any and all offers. I'm just amazed that someone wants my crap.
• Given the above, many people missed out on deals. I told a little boy that a toy gun was $1.00. His mom said "we're not paying $1.00 for a toy gun" and they walked away. I told another boy that the same toy gun was a $1.00 and he said, "I'll give you fifty cents." Sold.
• There are two types of people in this world: Those who can't say no to little kids selling lemonade. And jerks.
• Each of my kids have their own selling style. Jameson is very straightforward - here are our products, here are our prices, here is the deal. Truman assumes the sale - he brings the lemonade to you, puts it in your hand and then waits for you to pay up. Amelia is all about enthusiasm - announcing to the world how great her product is... with exuberance. Darwin plays the cute card - in a quiet voice he says, "lemonade" and then lays on the puppy dog eyes, big time.
• It's best not to sell previously received gifts at a garage sale where the people that gave you said gifts will be in attendance.

We squeezed lots and lots and lots of lemons.

When you weigh less than fifty pounds, lemon squeezing is no small feat.

Juicy.

Lemon juicing. From above.

Rotate!

As usual, Eliana was of no help. Though she certainly seemed amused by our efforts.

Lemon juice squirting accident waiting to happen.

Never trust a toothless lemonade salesman in a worn out old hat.

Oh What a Weekend - Part I

I don't know how many more Father's Days I can survive. I'm exhausted. Totally wiped out. This year's extravaganza lasted three days. Continuing the tradition from last year, I spent time with each of the kids in a one-on-one activity. This year, though, it took two days to squeeze it all in. (Julie, being the awesome wife that she is, took the day off of work on Friday to help make this all possible.) In addition to the kids activities, I played nine holes of golf on Friday morning, we checked out the community restaurant showcase for dinner one night, made it halfway through a tee ball game before getting rained out and went to my sister's house for a final Father's Day cookout.

The individual time with the kids was, as expected, awesome. In a house with five kids, big blocks of one-on-one time can be hard to come by. I do little things with each of the kids all the time, but I like the idea of dedicating a couple hours of Father's Day to each one of them. It let's us slow down and connect on a different level. Their individual personalities come shining through. It gives me a chance to bask in my fatherliness. Also, during that individual time I'm always sadly reminded of how old they're getting -- which adds all the more value to our Father's Day outings.

First up again this year: Darwin. I suggested some activities that I thought were surefire fun times for two-year olds, but I was repeatedly shot down. There was only one thing Darwin wanted to do and that was go to the grocery store. Seriously. His mind was made up. We go to the grocery store every week, so I was surprised that this was his dad activity of choice. With a little digging, though, his plans made more sense. What he really wanted to do was to go to the grocery store and push one of the kid sized grocery carts.  Duh! This is an activity he's seen his older siblings enjoy on countless occasions but one that he's been denied when we shop as a family. With grocery list in hand, we headed off on his big boy trip to the store.

When Jameson was little, I would make him little visually aided grocery lists.
I think this is the first time I ever did it for Darwin. He loved it.

When we got in the car, Darwin modified our plans and suggested we stop for coffee first.
Sounded good to me.

While we were there, we met a girl who was cross-stitching a painting of a Paris landmark.
She said it was going to take FOUR YEARS to complete. That's dedication.

I added another detour and insisted on stopping for lunch before grocery shopping.
We made an inaugural visit to the 'Boro Bistro. It turns out it's owned by someone who played soccer with my sister-in-law.
And it also turns out they make the best chipotle chicken sandwich I have EVER eaten.

I think this may have been the greatest moment of Darwin's life up until now.

Darwin received many compliments on his shopping skills. And his curls.

I guess even grocery shopping is an adventure to a two-year old.

The next event of the weekend was daddy-daughter swimming with Amelia. She was, um, a little excited. She couldn't stop running around the house before we left. And she could barely speak when we got to the pool. And, as fate would have it, we were THE ONLY people at the children's pool. With the pool to ourselves, I was even brave enough to swim with my camera.

Surveying the undisturbed children's area.

This was definitely the appropriate activity choice for Amelia.

NOT TOO CLOSE TO MY CAMERA!!!

As with everything else, Amelia is fearless in the water.

We finished off Friday with a "Taste of" celebration in our town.
That was a hectic trip. But the food was delicious. And ice cream never hurts.

The Darwin-fro never quits.

Julieta

As with nearly every aspect of her life, Julie made Mother's Day more about her children than about herself. I guess that's kind of the mother's calling -- putting their children first. It starts when they give up their body just to grow that little creature inside of them and I doubt that the giving ever really ends.

When we are out with all of the kids, it's not uncommon for people to compliment Julie on how wonderful her children are and how great of a mother she is. Those people have no idea just how great.