chess master

In his ever-expanding quest for new games to play, Logan has discovered chess and now wants to play it every chance he gets. He learned the names of the pieces and how they move very quickly and is already improving on visualizing what my next move may be. We'll have to buy a book or go online for lessons as I am a very rudimentary player and don't really know any of the classic opening moves, etc.

from our home to yours

bundled boys

Big snow storms require serious shovelers so we called in the professionals.

gingerbread gallery

Logan's classroom decorated gingerbread houses one afternoon. I was able to take a late lunch and participate as a parent helper. Afterward, the masterpieces were put on display in the school lobby.



The little house was so much fun we assembled and decorated a larger one at home. The boys laugh while Dad mixes the frosting.



Applying the "mortar".



The all-important decorating of the peak.



Owen's finished product.



Logan's finished product.

logan's holiday program

Logan's school had their annual holiday program today. Mom, Dad, and Owen were all able to attend the afternoon show. During a song about ice skating, Logan was excited to be one of the selected children to leave the riser and "skate" in front of the stage. He always particpates fully and we're very proud of him.






Backstage photo following the performance.

o christmas tree

After having an undecorated tree for nearly a week, we finally strung the lights and placed the ornaments. Every morning the boys have been checking for new packages that may have appeared while they were sleeping.

snow day

School was cancelled today following the big storm--with 10" of new snow, we really wanted to play outside, but windchill temps of -20 kept us hunkered down inside.

It wasn't such a bad view, though:

a time to play

Owen and I spend a lot of time together during the day, just playing. Sometimes it is initiated by this mama, but often it is directed by Owen himself and I become more of an observer. He is a delight to be with and can carry on quite the conversation. Here's a snippet from a recent animal encounter on my desk.

Owen: Want to play, mama? Want to play right now?

Mama: Okay.

Owen: Okay, you get this one and this one. These guys come from the ocean, these are dinosaurs, and this one is a gecko.





Owen: Boom, boom, boom! (they all pile up) Look, he's taking him on a ride into the desert. Want to play, mama?

Mama: What should I do?

Owen: I'll play too. Come play with me. (Speaking as the monkey) I want some 'nanas! Yummy! Bruce (the shark) ate some, kinda... Yum! now they all ate. Now they are all not hungry. Now they are eating one more batch. Now they have to go to bed, in my own bed.

Owen pushes all of the animals through the crib slats.

Mama: Goodnight animals.

Owen: I'll go to bed too. The kid will go to bed too.

Owen climbs into his crib and continues to play with the animals for 45 minutes, entertaining himself and amusing the mama. Active imagination is a good thing; you won't find us cancelling curiosity in this house (as King Friday did in the Neighborhood of Make-Believe--episode 1, season 30, Mister Rogers).

mother's little helper

Tracy and Owen decided to make yogurt cereal bars as a surprise treat. Both boys really enjoy helping in the kitchen.

Owen mixes the wet ingredients...



...and measures the dry ingredients.

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

The mornings are crisp, our breath frosty, and everything outside is covered in a white blanket. Winter's beauty is here, and we are ready...

last of the fall harvest

We made our way through the last of the pumpkins from our CSA and
co-op last week: scooping, scraping and baking, then simmering with spices for hours. The house smelled like cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger for days.



Owen poses with his private stock of pumpkin butter.

i wanna be your kingpin

Logan received some free bowling games from his gym teacher so we packed up the van and headed down the hill for a game. Tracy looked on while the boys stormed the lanes.

cap collection

For a few years now, I have tried to create and donate something handmade to warm up my local (or not so local) community: blankets for Project Linus and knitted squares for Afghans for Afghans.



This week, I've happily sent off my first package of mama-to-mama handmade love: fifteen newborn caps, cut from repurposed t-shirts and all sewn up for the Caps to Cap-Haitien project. I'm proud to share my time and creativity knowing that these caps will warm the heads of sweet babies and help to give them a safer and healthier start to their lives.

duluth tooth

Well....it finally happened. Logan and I were playing a game of cottage rummy when the long awaited moment occurred. One of his two very loose and extremely wiggly front teeth fell out right in the middle of our game.

The aforementioned tooth is currently residing in a small container on Logan's dresser where it can be admired on a daily basis. At school, Logan was very excited to have his name added to the missing tooth list. I suspect he will be added to the list again within a week as the neighboring tooth is just about ready.

game time

With a visiting grandma, grandpa, and great-grandma in the house, the boys had extra people to play with all weekend. Many books were read and many games were played.

Owen plays sequence with grandpa.



Logan plays king's corners with Grandma.



Logan creates his own deck of cards.

when the snow flies

The first snow fell this weekend so the boys spent time outside shoveling, building with snow blocks, and making snow angels. Grandpa supervised the building of a two-walled structure but the afternoon sun caused a premature collapse.

day of thanks

Today we are grateful for our family and friends, near and far.



Logan created this centerpiece for our table--a cornucopia of color. May your bellies be full of delicious food and your hearts full of love. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

sunday morning

While mom toiled away at the book store, the boys goofed around at home. Most of our morning involved only two activities.

1) A role playing game involving janitors chasing each other around with brooms.

2) The creation of a museum in Logan's room complete with multiple display cases full of shells, brass, rocks, etc. There are also stations for game playing, drawing, and reading. Both workers wore special door access cards on lanyards around their necks and were very knowledgable.

Janitor Mike McGorsky stands next to one of the shell exhibits.



Owen the museum worker takes a coffee break.

scrabble anyone?

Tracy recently taught Logan how to play Scrabble. Over the course of several nights they completed their first game together. Logan also just discovered klondike solitaire and has been playing that in addition to our usual king's corners, crazy eights, etc. Owen enjoys using his own deck of cards when he is not busy playing Sequence and Dinosaur Bingo.

at the ymca

Logan is currently taking Polliwog swim lessons at the YMCA. He looks forward to the class every week and has become much more comfortable and adept in the water.

Logan swims to the deep end to practice jumping in.



Welcome to SplashFest 2008.

we've got the beat

Michael loaned me his electronic drum set after our last band practice so I could try it out. I've played it a little bit but Logan has spent hours drumming during the past two weeks. We even wrote a song called "I guess it's over" for Logan and Owen's band, Etyak and the Bullheads.

100 posts

Welcome one and all to blog post #100. If you've just joined us, here's a recap of the celebratory events that took place earlier today in honor of this momentous occasion.

11:00 am - The ticket tape parade went relatively smoothly in spite of the freezing rain. There was a brief moment of panic when the tether to the 200-foot long Blogger balloon broke loose, but order was quickly restored.

1:00 pm - Over 2000 people attended the picnic in Leif Erickson park. Special thanks to the Whole Foods Co-Op for providing the food and drink. We also thank the band, House of Lemurs, for providing live music.

3:00 pm - During an honorary ceremony at City Hall, the Mayor presented our family with the "Keyboard to the City". This solid gold, ergonomically designed keyboard is an amazing honor, and will ensure injury-free blogs for years to come.

5:00 pm - Much deserved family time (all of which will be documented here soon).

Editorial Note: In the spirit of full disclosure, some of these events may have been exaggerated for dramatic effect.

yes we can

get out the vote

Did you?

tricks or treats

Logan and Owen enjoy handing out halloween candy as much as receiving it. They put on their costumes and wait anxiously at the door. During dinner, frequent checks are made to scan for potential trick-or-treaters and loud announcements are made whenever one is sighted.



Part of the fun of wandering around the neighborhood is the chance to see all the spooky decorations lit up in the dark.