Bike Riding

We had to go helmet shopping because Ava outgrew the one she had for the past two years. Ava was happy to get back on her bike.
She is very determined to learn to ride her bike without training wheels. I wouldn't be surprised if she is by the end of the summer. When she is determined to do something, she usually doesn't give up. Last fall she was determined to tie her own shoes so she practiced for days until she figured it out. It was the same with hanging upside down on the monkey bars, floating in the pool and doing forward flips. The only thing that she hasn't been able to do that she has been trying for quite awhile, is whistling. She'll figure it out.

Some Pictures to Share

Ava.
Ava next to the tree.
Brendan.

It's okay Brendan, maybe next year you'll be able to reach the steering wheel.

Monument

Yesterday during the parade the marchers stopped at this monument in the center of town to give a speech and play the star spangled banner. Craig Handley is Paul's 2nd cousin. He died in the Vietnam War. We'll make sure that Ava and Brendan always remember that they had a relative that died in this war and made this ultimate sacrafice. The monument lists all of the names of all the people from our town who have died while in duty.

Our Memorial Day Morning

This morning Ava and Paul watched the parade in front of the legion with friends and then they went out to lunch together. This left time for Brendan and I to play just the two of us. ( and the dog) First we did some swinging.....
and then we did some sliding.
We watched Sara play baseball.
Nice hit!
And then we sat in the grass waiting for the parade.

Like all small towns across the country ours held a hometown parade. Brendan and I watched the parade from our front yard.
There is nothing like high school bands, firetrucks, and the smell of BBQ to unofficially kick off the summer.

CIRCUS!

For the past two years we took Ava to the circus, and so when we saw that it was in town this weekend, we decided to keep up the tradition. Saturday was rainy so it was a good day to go see a circus. Brendan loved it for the first half. He was yelling and clapping his hands. It was so cute. By the second half, he was a bit worn out, but we had a good time. As you can see Ava got a pony ride during intermission. I was glad to see that there were no elephants this year. Last year there was an elephant act and elephant rides. As much as it is cool to see them, I hope that those elephants are in a elephant sanctuary being "elephants!"

Here is Brendan when we got home. He loves his light up toy! Brendan is officially saying "mama" now. I have been hearing him say it since four months, but now he is saying it consistently and directing it at me! He turned 7 months old on the 17th and he is just cutting his first tooth!

Ava and Brendan

What a Face!

The DEC Fish Aquarium is Open For the Season!

We look forward to the aquarium opening every year. It is fun seeing the fish that come out of the lake and river. We walked down yesterday and today when we went for a walk after Ava's kindergarten screening, Ava asked to go back, so we did.Here is a Lake Sturgeon. Sturgeon are prehistoric fish and they can grow to 80 lbs!
We got to see bass, long nose gar, bow fins, and bullhead to name a few.

Brendan loves watching the fish swim around but he really likes watching the bubbles from the filter.
Here is Ava in front of the DEC's research boat. I don't know why it looks like she is dancing. I'm not sure what she was doing.

Happy Mothers Day

MOTHERS

Mothers are the gardeners who plant the seeds,

The water that nurse the buds,

The hands that pull the weeds

Which stand in their seedlings way.

Mothers are the bright golden sun

Shining on the seeds all her love

So that someday their babies will bloom

With the help from God above

But, even if their seeds don't bloom right away

Mothers don't give up on their little heirs

They become the shelter from the wind

They give up all their cares

Someday, with the help from their mothers,

The seeds become flowers

For all the world to enjoy

The works of a mother's special powers.

When the time comes where

The mother could use some support in her life

She will realize that all the tilling and hoeing

Was worth all the strife.

It is at this time that the flowers bloom

most strong,Giving her love and joy

To last her whole life long

Singing to her a rose colored song.

I was cleaning out my desk a while ago and I found this poem in one of my old notebooks. I wrote this a long time ago, way before I even had my own kids. I thought that it would be nice to post it on Mother's Day.

A Sleepover!

Ava had a friend over last night to have a sleepover. We had fun making crafts and cupcakes and watching movies while eating ice cream floats. We even let our volcano erupt. (Sorry I didn't get a photo.) Up above is Brendan getting in on some of the fun.

Something is funny!

One thing that I'm sure every mother with girls knows or will know in the future is that little girls at sleepovers sure giggle ALOT and they do this very late into the night!

More Crazy Hair

Sometimes Brendan's hair has a mind of its own. Its really thin and fuzzy and sometimes it will pop back up when I comb it down.
Future Baseball Player?

CRAZY HAIR

Kid Concoctions

Ava picked out a book at the library a couple weeks ago called KID CONCOCTIONS and CONTRAPTIONS by, John E. and Danita Thomas, so for the past two weeks we have been making things like a Balloon Hovercraft, Wacky Window Paint, Rain Paint, Tasty Taffy, Indoor Hot Air Balloon, Bubblin Brew Finger Paints, and a Pistol Popper to name some, however the one thing that she really wanted to make was a volcano. I had been putting it off since I knew that it would be messy and time consuming, but since the book is due back tommorow, (thank goodness) I gave in and today we started on the volcano.

First we made paper mache paste out of flour and water and started covering a plastic water bottle with newspaper strips dipped in the paste.
This is what it looks like now. As soon as it dries we will paint it and then watch it explode with vinegar and baking soda. How Fun! We'll show you pictures when it is finished.
I added one photo of Ava on the jungle gym. She sure is a little monkey!

Contratulations Jenny!

Today was my sister Jenny's last day of her term and now she is done with her B.A. in English! Conratulations! And she did it with three kids! She plans to start right up working towards a Masters Degree in Education. Hopefully she will get a little bit of a break in between!!