Super Readers

Micah signed up for the summer Super Reader program today and then spent the next 3 hours with his nose in a book.

I'm cool with it.

We ventured to the downtown library which is just gorgeous (we're talking take your breath away type of beautiful) and the kids settled in to enjoy the children's section.

Saoirse spent no less than 10 minutes sitting in this exact spot reading to herself and somewhere at about the 8 minute mark she giggled very softly and murmured to herself. Stopped looking serious for a moment and shared with us the joke she had discovered within the pages of her carefully selected Dora paperback. It was priceless.

And then she resumed her studies. Studying is not to be taken lightly at the library, oh no siree.

The twins on the other hand were the rabble rousers of the group and opted for the train table instead which naturally lead to the click clacking of wooden engines and the handful of squabbles over who was the true train yard master. Saoirse would peer over her should from time to time with a disapproving look as if to shush them.

Nuala decided to let Oscar have control of the rails in the long run.

And here in the land of a million books, in a marble palace of delight and splendor.....

She dove right into the classics. A million choices and yet somehow I wound up reading (and let's use the loosest definition here shall we, because I could barely bring myself to paraphrase this awful First Reader) Scooby Dooby Doo. The horror.

We had a great adventure though and I was reminded that we need to get to the library more often.

Which shouldn't be a problem with all these little Super Readers running about.

Remember when I told you that Nuala is a bug girl?

This morning I dressed her up for a bit of a "staged" photo session, as staged as they get around here anyways (meaning I did her hair, choose a specific outfit, threw in a necklace just for fun and even wiped any left over breakfast from her cheeks) and we hit the back deck for some great morning light.

Within 2 minutes she spotted a beetle cruising along below her bare toes and of course the "session" came to a complete stop.

Which truth be told was perfectly fine with the both of us. I much prefer capturing a story anyways.

And this little bug collector has lots of stories to share.

Today's story ended in tragedy when the beetle decided that he'd had enough and summoned all his strength to half jump half fly right over the patio ledge. As you can see, Nuala had some fairly strong feelings about his hasty departure.

Not even the idea of watermelon could cheer her up.

*Totally random moment here: Dear Ruari, your plants are thriving. We miss you. Come home soon!*

AND what about the boys you ask?

Oscar sure is happy to have one of his brothers home.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that perhaps he did miss Micah just a little bit after all. Sisters are wonderful but there is something special about brothers I tell you.

We're heading to a nearby beach again tomorrow morning and I still have to pack our bags. Hopefully I'll take a picture or two of what the day has in store for us....

Home

Maija and Micah are home and once again my heart is nearly full.

Beach Bums

There's this beautiful beach fairly close to our house. We go there every summer to swim and get sandy. I don't really feel like talking about it but I assure you we had fun.

*Michaele and Nico came with us. They are adorable.*

Making Peace

Oscar turned 75 a few days ago. Oscar the custard stand. We were all more than happy to celebrate the special day with dripping cones. Happy Birthday old friend.

This whole melting custard all over the place thing is so totally outside of my comfort zone, I'm usually all about neat little scoops in plastic dishes with bright red spoons, but for whatever reason I decided to go with the flow. I'm sure that the scene was quite comical as I tried to help all three of them with their cascading cones. There was just no way to get even just one lick ahead of the mess and we were covered in custard in no time, but it was nothing that a little bubble bath action couldn't handle (plus I had to wipe them down from head to toe before we could even get back in the car) and I learned that perhaps going with the flow isn't as hard as it seems sometimes.

We made our inaugural trek to Cool Waters. Now that the new water park near our house has been reopened we haven't felt the need to trek it all the way out here, but the babies loved it.

And really? What's not to love?

Oscar has really surprised me this summer with his love for the water. He can be rather particular at times about certain.....hmmmm how would I say this.....tactile? experiences. Last summer he was more than nervous about the water but this year he is turning out to be quite the little water beetle.

*Have I ever told you about how very serious this Skittle can be?*

Nuala on the other hand has always been a fish in the water, not to mention a thrill seeker. She went down this slide at least 23 times and every single time she would spring from the water with a wild grin on her face and proclaim to the every one in the shallow end, "I LOVE THIS SLIDE!!!" Every. Single. Time. And she really meant it from the bottom of her sweet little fish heart.

Fish are gross sometimes.

But man alive I could just gobble her up. Her and I are in a groove right now, our relationship is sort of stretching out it's wings and getting a better feel for the expanse of it's true width. It's really extraordinary when you think about it, this whole parenting thing. This realization that we will be stretching out into this relationship for many years to come. The idea that our wingspan will grow wider, taller, stronger for as long as it can.

*Poor baby has had some adventures this summer and has the skinned knees to prove it.*

Last night we went out to our favorite little pizzeria. I was nursing a bit of a broken heart and needed a little time away with my Mr.

Remember that marathon I've been dreaming about for the better part of the last year? The one that is taking place in SanFrancisco in 4 weeks? Yeah, about that.....

A few weeks ago as I was coming in from a mild 4 mile run I pulled something in my thigh and it has only gotten progressively worse since then. I could bombard you with all the boring mumbo jumbo, the runner's lingo, the PT's advice, the course of therapy I am struggling through, but let's just cut to the chase.....it appears that this injury will prevent me from running anywhere in the near future. Again, I will spare you the long version and just say that I am sort of a little bit devastated about this. I have not made the official call yet and am popping Ibuprofen like crazy, making nice with the torture roller and even gritting my teeth through deep tissue massage (holy freaking PAIN) in an effort to heal magically overnight, but in my heart I know that we might have to move to Plan B which is a marathon in Madison this fall. I'm not sure I'm ready to trade yet. I had such high hopes for what I was going to accomplish in the Bay, way more than 26 miles, and the idea of giving that up is really difficult to process right now. Not to mention the fact that I've spent the last 9 weeks training my butt off for nothing (except maybe a cute butt of course) and even if I can heal in time for the next marathon it means that I will have to start all over again and let me just tell you these last 9 weeks haven't exactly been a walk in the park!

Lucky for me I have the best support team around. I will count my blessings. I will reorganize my plans. I will hold positive vibrant intentions and I will RUN A MARATHON just as I told you I would. I will make peace with this eventually. One way or another, we WILL walk where the road meets the sun. I promise.

And on the bright side, look at what my trainer just whipped up for dinner tonight? What did I tell ya about my support team? What did I say about having the best partner on the planet?