Birthday #2

Annika's birthday was next, and (as Sofia has come to realize) being homeschooled does have some awesome perks - being allowed to take the day off of school on your birthday, for example.

Me: So, Annika, do you want to go to the zoo today?
Annika: (with much excited jumping about)Yea! Zoo!
James: Oh, boy! (That's his new happy phrase...and it's adorable...mainly because he says it with such enthusiasm.)
Me: (thinking to myself) Awesome - because my next offer was going to be Chuck E. Cheese.

As it turned out, in addition all of the lovely vitamin D we were able to enjoy, the kids got a healthy dose of education too. The zoo keepers were out in force, and we seemed to hit every feeding/zoo keeper chat they had. The walruses were most impressive and entertaining (to everyone but Cozy, who thought they were horrific).


We watched them match shapes/colors, make all of their vocalizations, roll over, and do all sorts of things for a few little squids and fishes. ...and the walrus keepers answered all of Annika's questions. (...since the surrounding toddlers didn't have any.)

Q. Why don't these walruses have tusks?
A. They had dental issues and eventually had to have them removed.

Q. Don't they need them to haul out?
A. Only on slippery ice - here they don't have any problem.

Q. Why are their eyes so red?
A. They keep their eyes open when the swim thru the cold water, so they have a lot of exta blood vessels in their eyes, which makes them look red and bloodshot.

Q. Can I give him a command?
A. No, it's confusing for them if people start shouting commands from the audience, especially since you don't have a fish to give him.

(I made that last one up. What really happened, was that Annika gave the walrus a command...and then got the explanation from the zookeeper. The lady was pretty nice about it too. Ah, the joys of parenting.)


The kids, playing with "Dub Dub", the fake seal.


Cozy, jumping out and "scaring us". She saw Jonny do it once and just had to try it. Don't tell her, but it would probably work better if she hid somewhere other than behind her tiny hands.


Boo, doing his mandatory reindeer impression. (He appears to think reindeer are pretty goofy...) As soon as we see the reindeer, he starts looking for sticks.


...and the birthday girl, blowing out the candles on her (as per requested) Costco tuxedo mousse cake. Happy Birthday, Sweety!

Tear down this wall!

The kids have moved beyond pillow forts.

Cozy's Two!

Tony and I got back from the house-hunting trip midnightish on Monday, so I only had a couple days home before Cozy's big day. ...so we kept it pretty simple, out of necessity.

We blew up some balloons.


Coze even shared them. (Boo spent a lot of the morning looking for something light enough to be carried away by a small bunch of balloons.)


She put on her party shoes...


...they almost match.


I managed some "kitty cat" cupcakes, in spite of having packed away my cupcake book. (They're a little creepy-looking, I know!) We chose cats because Cozy just loves them, but when I showed them to her, she said, "Bunny!"


By the end of "Happy Birthday", Cozy was using her stern voice and pointing at Sof, telling her to stop singing! (I think it's funny, because Boo has always hated my singing. Poor Sof - I feel her pain.)


Last of all, trying out the Doramobile.


I was sad I didn't get to make Cozy anything. Lucky for me, she doesn't care. :) We have three more birthdays coming in the next 3-4 weeks...and I don't anticipate any of them being more fancy/involved than this one. Cake. Present. Happy Birthday.

On a different note: We accepted the counter-offer. In two months, we will have two mortgages. I'm adding that to the list of crazy things that I said I would never do...and then did.

Casa Azul

After looking at well over 50 homes in two different counties, we found one house that we liked. If they don't accept our offer (or at least make us a decent counter), I don't know what we'll do. ...cry, I suppose.

Isn't she a cute little house!


...and not as small as she seems - six bedrooms (NONE of them in the basement!) and a kitchen addition in the back. Yes, it is 1,000 square feet smaller than what we're in, with neither garage nor driveway, but that's pretty standard for Montgomery Co.

Most people buy a starter home and then work their way up. Not us. This will be our third home...and they've gotten progressively more humble. But, while I'm not terribly excited about the size, I am looking forward to a home with built-in character and charm. Check it out.

What should we call her? ...the Blue Cottage? ....Casa Azul? ...any ideas?

Livin' The Good Life

It's a good thing we had that lovely vacay, because things have been crazy ever since. Tony has been travelling every week. (I'm about to join him in Maryland to look at houses.)

Kids have been keeping me busy with their various obligations, exaggerated maladies (thank goodness for good health care coverage), and other miscellaneous dramas (haircuts). I'm trying to be properly sympathetic, because I remember my preteen years as being the most tear-filled of my life. Turning into an adult is hard work (...physically - evil hormones!)

We have been taking mandatory "tootie" breaks...Cozy insists. She mainly likes to crumble the actual cookies, but I think she would eat nothing but cookie dough...if she was bigger...and had her own apartment.


Here she is, about to double-fist it after taking my spoon away. (...and for the record - I was just making cookies with that spoon! Not eating.)


I just love how she can't say her "C"s just yet!...calls herself "Tozy"!

I have been working on a quilt. Someone made this quilt for our violin teacher, but didn't finish it properly (no batting, not quilted, not bound). I'm putting it back together - but it's huge...at least queen-sized...which is pretty big for my little machine.


I'll have to take some closer pictures - a lot of the fabrics are very whimsical and cute - vintage. I'm just eager to get back to some of my own projects. ...and with that huge roll of fabric to be quilted (and my little distracticons)...it feels like it's going to be a very long time!

My Souvenirs

I bought myself a souvenir....didn't bargain at all...I liked it too much!


I can tell my kids like it too, because I find it all over my house. ...on various window sils...the stairs...full of silly bands....


...and I brought home pictures of these beautiful quilts, which I would love to recreate sometime.



I never thought I'd be so taken by quilts made entirely out of solid colors.

Playa de Akumal

Jonny, Annika, and I have been studying Marine Zoology this year. Right before our vacation, we were reading about "aquatic herps", specifically sea turtles. The kids were so excited when they learned that at least two different kinds of sea turtles could be found in Mexico. They were sure that meant we'd be seeing lots of sea turtles while on vacation. I just winked and went along with it, thinking that the odds were not good. (If only I understood Mayan, I might have known better.)

As it turns out, sea turtles like to eat the sea grasses that grow in the bay at Akumal. I saw five. Two of them were at least as big as me! It was amazing. It took Tony two tries to get Annika to see a turtle, but they did it!


The Akumal beach was a mile or so away, but you could snorkel, swim, play in the surf, or just run after the seagulls. Something for everyone.


Jonny was thrilled to be life-vest-free for once. Anthony was constantly embattled in sand fights with his cousins and sisters.


BooBoo put a lot of time into his "surfing".


It took Cozy a while to warm up to the whole beach thing. During the first visit, she was ok with playing in the sand....chasing birds and dogs.


After some forced interaction with the surf, she decided that running in and out of the water wasn't too scary.

By our last visit, she wanted to walk into the water and play where she could barely keep her chin above water - me hovering over her, to pick her up when she went under...or the waves went over. (Scary.)


Cozy also picked up a new phrase, to go with our new swimming lifestyle. "I want a tow-el. I want a tow-el. I want a tow-el." It means, "Wrap me in a towel, so that I can cuddle up, get warm (it must be hard to having minimal body fat), and take a nap!"

I'm worried that this trip has ruined me for all future vacations.