Mattress Flops and Chicken Soup

I think when you put a mattress directly on the ground, you are basically inviting this sort of behavior. It's kind like what happens when you mix lots of beer and a muddy hillside with drunken college girls.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owACoEZNHbs

And just a cutie pie:


Later I made chicken soup which was surprisingly a hit!

Like father like son

We all know kids learn from watching their parents. But seriously, when Pip asked for a magazine before he could go to the bathroom it was too much. I'll probably pay for taking this picture later.

Sleepover

Soon after the wild birthday party we were back on the horse again. This time to Matt and Tracey's for a pizza night sleepover. We were hoping to go out for dinner but we couldn't get sitters so it was a night in. Probably a good thing because after playing themselves silly ...



... they were too exhausted to sleep. It took many trips back and forth and eventually an outpost outside there room to get them to sleep. Then we drug the chiminea that they are storing in their shed for us and we enjoyed a brisk fall evening chatting but the fire. Nice night!

Jameson & Camerson's birthdays

This weekend Jameson and Cam celebrated their birthday at Jump On In. Pip and Vivie were very excited to celebrate with them. Here they are lined up to go in. Pip pretty much snagged Jameson at the outset and refused to let him interact with any of his other friends the whole party! Ok, well not nearly that possesive, but they were inseparable.



Here they are at the bottom of a wild slide. You won't see any pics of Vivie doing this ... she was adamantly opposed to the slides. Phil convinced her to go down one once with him and this she did not enjoy. She did eventually have some fun in the bouncy houses playing her version of "bounce, bounce, bounce, BUM!". This involved jumping three times and then on the fourth jump landing on her butt. This rarely got old, especially if I stood there chanting "bounce, bounce, bounce, BUM!" over and over again.


They got tatoos in their goodie bags ... which I am not entirely convinced were temporary. I am behind in the writing of this blog ... and it is currently October 5th (party was Sept 18th) and Vivie's are still there!

Dinner Antics

What a silly dinner tonight!

Phil made some fabulous cheese sandwiches, peas, and fries. Pip and Vivie showed off their dinner-induced muscles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0uLPRoOQ9A

And then got a little wild.



Here they are playing rodeo ... and yes, that laundry is there intentially for padding. ;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UeZBLITKVE

Apple Picking

Word on the street is the apples this season are nice and big already because of the early rain we got this spring. So we hopped out to Connor's Farm Monday with Mom's Group to do some picking.

Of course, we first had to stop at the corn box. And the sand box. And the hay bale maze.


And the hayride.


And have a little apple cider donut.


And the massive hay bale pyramid (of death -- had the Mom's a bit worried, but no injuries were sustained).

And the water pumps (Vivie was soaked and required a new shirt)

And finally, finally ... apple picking.

Afterwards we took a stab at the 7 acre mega-corn maze. This started well ... I think we had 10 kids and 5 moms slugging our way through the labyrinth. Half way through Pip and Viv had a melt down because I insisted Pip stop yanking on the corn ... and soon they both wanted to be carried. Ugh-oh. We sat, literally, at an impasse for a long time until Mommy Janel came to our rescue with the double Bob stroller and whisked Vivie up for me. I was able to carry Pip from there. I think we made it about half way through and saw an out through the stalks. Ok, it was illegal, but it needed to be done. Maybe we'll try it again another day with Daddy!

Sand Castle Pajamy

Pip never ceases to amaze us with his churning mind. He's always going somewhere unexpected. Here he shows you can make a beach pretty much anywhere.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCiqPrMPXTU

Canobie!

It was the annual Raytheon picnic at Canobie Lake park and we were very excited. Pip slowly warmed up to the rides, starting out the with the old-standbys in the kiddie section. Vivie was having none of it. And didn't change her mind. With the exception of the big train that we rode as a family around the park, she refused every single ride!


We decided to hit the water park since the weather was warm. Both Pip and Vivie stayed cautiously along the edge ... careful not to get splashed by any of the falling water. Don't even think about climbing into the towers or going down a slide. This was rather disappointing news to Phil who was looking forward to the big slides.


I didn't have a suit -- or the energy at this point in the day -- to brave the water section so I attempted to rest a bit. I got this warm hug reception from Pip as we were finishing up there.


On our way over to the bumper cars we found these hangman props ... Pip was all concerned for me when I stuck my head in. Until he realized it was just for silly.

No longer afraid, he showed off his own naughty villain face in lock-down!

Finally we found the bumper cars and Pip was a riding champ.

The day went on and we were all exhausted by 7. Phil and I were hoping to change them into their pj's in the car before leaving so we could put them right into bed when we got home. But of course, they passed out in the car and woke up on the mile-long trek up to the apartment. Backfire! We need a house!

Family

Pip is becoming quite the artist and writer. He drew this picture of our family and then labeled each of us by himself. I wrote "FAMILY" on the top and he had a blast write that one himself. Seems like he's making lots of progress and getting more and more confident with his letters.

Hitting the park

Pip and Vivie love to go to one of our local parks after school. If the weather is even borderline nice (and I'm not starving) we usually head over. I think this time I snacked on their left-over lunches to tide myself over!

They had fun on the slide and Vivie made me do the super-big one over and over with her.

Here they rode down the toddler slide. Front ways ...



And tummy-ways!



Vivie even helped Pip climb up!

Hide and Seek

Who would have thought that 1000 square feet could produce such a competitive game of hide and seek? We had a couple great rounds before the kids decided that they much preferred seeking to hiding. As usual, the best stuff never gets caught on camera, but here's a taste of what was going on....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d64OogW3lYc

Ogunquit

After a night in "our tiny house", as Pip called the hotel, we were back at the beach. And not a minute too soon. Pip was bursting at the seems to get his toes into that sand!

Here's a volcano before ...


And after the eruption!


We tried a little kite action ... and this was a good idea at first.


Until Pip decided he liked it better on the ground and began crying hysterically. Uh-oh. Five minutes of kite flying ... check. Maybe next time.

York Beach

We decided to pick up and take a little vacation since it was Labor Day and all. We drove up to York beach Sunday morning and went crazy. First we hit the beach. Here are Pip and Phil working on their volcanoes.


Note Phil not bending his right leg ... rugby.


Vivie was not excited about the breeze and wanted to cuddle up with me under the towels. Always tired, I was happy to comply.


After a bit she warmed up and found her hat which, when worn low as she prefers, fixed the problem.


After a congested drive around the town we found a place for lunch and then went to Brown's for ice cream. I just have to say, we got kiddie sizes and had more ice cream on our hands (literally) than ever in my life.

With bulging waistlines, we push onward to the Zoo and Carnival. The zoo was actually much nicer than expected. Afterwards Pip rode a few rides and Vivie did too. They highlight was when they bravely entered the glass house, where you can't see which was to go. It was lots of fun watching them navigate. Left the camera in the car!!

Double birthday

It was the twin's first birthday and we were very excited to celebrate with them. Hurricane Karl threatened to force everyone indoors, but ended up weakening significantly and petering out over Friday night. Saturday was absolutely beautiful.


Phil attempted to teach Pip how to throw a Frisbee and actually Pip accepted his instruction this time (a possible first in the sporting arena). I wish I got a pics of Pip throwing, but here's a near miss on the catch side.



As usual we way overstayed our welcome and were the only ones left, not counting grandparents, who got to see the birthday wagon in all it's glory. I think the big kids enjoyed riding it as much as Alex and Chase.


Vivie loved the swing set and tried her tummy at the belly swing. She went in once with too much vigor and flipped head-over-belly into the dirt. After a hug from Mommy, a kiss from Daddy, an ice application, and some time she was right back at it. Here she is successful!


Proving the wagon seats 4 "comfortably".

Custer's Last Stand

Pip and Vivie love reading The Last Stand, Daddy's book about Custer. It has some pictures scattered throughout and they flip through until they find them, then narrate. Pip has a sequence about a man who finds a child and holds him up, then finds a farm. Phil tried to capture it here but unfortunately Pip couldn't locate the pictures he likes. The video ends up being rather boring, but I get a kick out of watching Vivie try to be patient.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLi5lG8RjNs

Here they are "reading".