Turtleback Zoo!

While Andy spent his last day (for a while) in Germany, I took the kids to Turtleback Zoo in West Orange, NJ for the first time ever - what a great day! We have a regular Friday playdate with Ryan and Addie, and being with them (and their mom, Carol, of course!) made it even more fun. We've taken the kids to the Bronx Zoo several times, but Turtleback is only 25 or 30 minutes away, and very sweet - it even has a fantastic little train ride that goes along a nature preserve and a lovely lake and is - miraculously - included in the cost of admission.

Ollie took his very first ride ever on a horse... he really liked it! He shared a "seed stick" with Ryan in the "birdhouse," where zillions of birds swoop around and land right on your stick to eat the seeds - Maddie and Addie were transfixed! The only real mishap of the day (besides nearly losing Oliver a couple of times, and almost letting Maddie roll down a hill in her stroller) was when Ollie fell on the pavement (tripped in his new crocs, I think) and scraped his knee badly. He spent the next hour holding up his shorts so they wouldn't rub against his ouchy knee (see last photo). Poor little guy!

They both slept all the way home, which was a much longer "way" than usual, as we hit pretty bad Friday afternoon westbound traffic... I didn't mind, though, it just meant they both got decent naps. We look forward to visiting Turtleback often!

Germdiddy

Andy's in Germany *again* - or "Germdiddy," as Oliver says, but he was home for the weekend and we all had such a good time. On Saturday, we went to Horseshoe Lake to fly a new kite that Andy brought back from China (didn't fly hight, but at least it stayed in the air!) - Ollie just laughs and laughs when the kite starts to fly. Maddie is still practicing her crawling, and hasn't even stood up yet on two feet really, even though she's nearly 14 months old!! But seriously, look at that crinkley-nosed smile, could she be any cuter?? Pretty much impossible. She's going to be a silly one, I can tell that already.

Now, before I forget them all, and speaking of "Germdiddy," I would write down some of our favorite "Ollie-isms" -- Maddie of course will have her own list in a year or two. Here are a few to get us started, and I'll be sure to add more as they come!

Bunny Easter
I wuv yis.
Get away from our direction! (to a truck going slowly in front of us)
Maddie, chill down!
(Ollie, do you want a raincoat?) No, I'm otay.
In a potit (pocket)
Oojoos (juice)
Kepit (ketchup)
Ay-pot (airport)
Nunu (vacuum)
Dama and Dandaddy

Tub Fun

A live-action shot for Daddy - doesn't get any more "live" than this, as I have the laptop in the bathroom and the kids are still in the tub!!!!! A rainy day bath... both are having a grand old time. Maddie will take a nap after this, and Ollie and I will carry on with the packing. Back to NJ tomorrow, then Daddy's home on Friday, yay!!!!

Fast and Slow

So, only a few more days and we head home to NJ; Andy's home on Friday, so now there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Partly it feels like eons that we've been apart, but coming to Maine makes the time go so much faster, so I'm also surprised that we only have 2 more full days here till we drive home.

I haven't posted new photos recently for Andy, so here are a few; I'll add some news in a bit, but it's nearly bedtime now and I just want to get the photos up!! From a few days ago at a fun playground in Rockland. :-)

Perfect May Day

Except for missing Daddy, it’s a beautiful day here today. Sunny, crisp, around 60 degrees, and so many pretty flowers in bloom. After breakfast, we took our favorite little stroll down to the harbor, with Maddie in the Bjorn and Ollie on his trike. He was very careful going down the little hill, so he wouldn’t go too fast, and then at the end he took off, ending up at the flower garden in front of the East Wind, where I took this first picture. When we got to the benches by the rocks, there was a couple there that we’d waved hello to yesterday, when they’d been sitting on the porch of the East Wind. I started chatting with them today, and found out that they were staying at the inn, visiting from Minneapolis, Minnesota. When I asked them what brought them to this spot, they said that they had honeymooned here 25 years ago, and were revisiting the spot as a gift from their four kids! I thought that was so lovely, and we had a great chat, talking about some of the great spots they could visit that they may not have heard of, and what little things had changed here in the 25 years since their last visit. So here’s to Beth and Todd, who just made my day – Happy Anniversary!!!

Mother's Day Minus One

Happy Mother’s Day! I fully realize that I’m one of the luckiest women in the world, with two beautiful, fantastic kids and a husband I cherish. In case you ever wonder, I don’t take it for granted in even the tiniest way. Today was really lovely, even though Andy (my “minus one”) was away; he didn’t miss his chance to send me flowers, a really pretty plant of miniature roses! We had a few nice chats on the phone, in the morning from England and the evening from Germany. He had a good weekend back home between meetings in Germany, and managed (besides lots of time with family and friends) to fit in three of his favorite things: a full English breakfast, a good hot curry, and fish & chips! Can’t beat that. I’m glad he doesn’t miss many holidays; nothing’s ever just right without him, or as sweet, or as fun.

That aside, it *was* a sweet and fun Mother’s Day! The best part was going to Chloe’s house for brunch this morning, even though my dad decided to stay home as he wasn’t feeling great. Chloe’s mom was there, and another friend as well, and Chloe made THE most killer Eggs Benedict I’ve probably ever had. Yum! And kumquat tart for dessert. It was so nice to see her and her mom and chat about things and reminisce. Maddie decided not to fall asleep on the drive there, even though it was naptime, so she was really cranky and loud the whole time, which was frustrating. Oliver, conversely, amused himself a lot, playing inside and out, so he won in the “easier to manage” contest this morning - an unusual accomplishment for him!
On the drive home, we stopped and gawked at our old house in Union, which is now well over 200 years old and is undergoing MAMMOTH renovations, including the demolition and partial rebuild of the house and workshops that once connected the main house to the barn. This is pretty much painful for us to see. My parents owned the house for 30 years, and I lived there from when I was two years old, so it’s very much a part of us all. I guess it’s good that it’s getting love and attention, but I’d prefer that it get love and attention and always remain exactly as we left it!! :-) I love that house.
Then we came home, by way of Rockland and a couple of errands (Maddie slept the whole time, and Oliver napped as well). By the time we got back to mom and dad’s house, dad was just finishing mowing the lawn, and he and Oliver decided to fly a kite, and promptly got it stuck in a tree. We all took some nice photos together, then played inside for a bit. After Maddie’s afternoon nap, we went for dinner at our favorite local restaurant, the Happy Clam, which specializes in German food and has (pork) Jaeger Schnitzel that is to die for. I can never order anything else, it’s that good. I don’t remember the last time that I was in Maine for Mother’s Day – it was so nice to be able to share the day with my wonderful mom!!
I won’t be able to post this for another day or so, as Crappoint – oops I mean Fairpoint - has failed again at setting up our services here in Maine when they said they would. Not that I expected them to. Heading up to bed now on Mother’s Day 2010. I am blessed to be the mom of my beautiful lambs, who make me laugh every day and are just the best things ever. Let me note just a few of the things I especially love about them, my 3 ½ and 1 year olds: I love that Ollie is so playful with his sister, and laughs when she’s silly, and is gentle with her, and gives her kisses. I love that Maddie fans her fingers over her lips and makes the most endearing “bubababa” sound, and that she forges her own way through the world, currently with a wonderful “s-crawl,” and that she points and smiles and says “Da-da” now when she sees Andy on our computer during a Skype call. I love that Ollie dances by slightly bending his knees, and that he’s super happy if you give him an umbrella or a flashlight or binoculars. That Maddie doesn’t just love to clap her hands, she loves to clap your hands. That Ollie is so full of love and enthusiasm (“Wow, Mommy, I loooooove going to the dump!” “I just looooove my dinosaur underwear!”). There is no end to the things I love about you both, my sweet babies.

Mr. Roboto

A little post for Daddy, so he can have a peek at our morning shenanigans. :-) Bit cloudy out there today, but that's fine as I have to pack for Maine and clean the house all day. We're just sitting around having our Cheerios now.... Maddie is still practicing her *extraordinarily* loud squawking skills, for no apparent reason except that she CAN. I need a cup of coffee.

Making tracks

Each in his or her own way... here's Maddie, showing off her new(ish) crawling skills (it's made my life a lot easier, since she's taken her time in crawling and walking!) - she's definitely getting around now, keeping us all on our toes. Sometimes she still tucks one leg beside her and one leg in front of her and plunks them along in little jumps; other times she crawls in the "traditional" fashion. Both ways are super cute.

Meanwhile, one of Ollie's favorite pastimes is still mowing the lawn with Daddy on the big tractor. He's careful to bend down and avoid the low hanging branches at the side of the yard (see first photo), and even gets to steer some of the time. Both boys pretty much love it to bits (see second photo).

Bowling Boys

Had a great day out a few weeks ago with Ollie's friend Ryan, sister Addie, and mom Carol -- we went bowling, Ollie's first time ever! They had a really good time - it's lucky that they put up special bumpers over the gutters, or these guys would never knock over one pin!!! In one photo, they're lying down, mainly because it takes sooooo long for the ball to get all the way down to the pins, you could take a nap while waiting!!

A glance back...

Time to step up the blog production again, now that Daddy's away and missing his lambs!! I have a big "April" folder of photos on my computer, but have posted very few of them, so I'm going to start there. Let's see... I'll start with a couple of "artistic shots" of Ollie playing with his new favorite toy - Magnatiles!! Our wonderful friends Cindy and Eric Middleton visited us last month on their way home to Ann Arbor from a trip to the Big Apple, and they brought Ollie the tiles as a gift... I have never seen him so taken with a toy, ever! He's constantly finding new ways to build them into creative constructions... a super long runway, an ice cream cone, a city of tents, a high tower, a spaceship... those are some of his favorites. Here are photos of one of the early houses we made together - so pretty with the light shining through!

It was SO fun to see Cindy and Eric again, after all these years (we figured it might be as many as ten). There are a few people you meet in your life that are just so lovely, you want to hold them in your pocket. I guess the best you can do is hold them in your heart, and get together whenever the opportunity comes!