It is vacation week and we are trying to make it jam packed.  We've been to a hockey game.  We have gone to the zoo and we have now gone to the aquarium also.  The weather is more like spring than midwinter, so we have also had lots of time outside and on the playground.  The boys are not quite wearing me out, but I am definitely tired at the end of the day.

Robert and Harry are both talkers and so there have been many interesting talks this week.  Harry and I went on a "date" to see The Big Miracle about how an Alaskan village and a Russian ice breaker worked together during the cold war to save some whales who were stranded under the ice.  It was fun to do alone with Harry and interesting to discuss the movie on the way home.  I was worried that the (spoiler alert) death of the baby whale would be very upsetting to him, but although we discussed it he didn't seem overly disturbed, kind of took it as the way life goes sometimes.  Harry has grown up a great deal in the past year.  At the zoo we began to get into the discussion of why these animals are kept in cages and is this fair to them.  It was only a beginning, but one that may be interesting as time goes along.  I have to admit, I have some issues along those lines too, but our zoo does have things about conservation and the animals seem to be in decent spaces for the most part.  I am sure we will talk about this more.

Robert also is a hoot and a half these days.  He can be incredibly stubborn and frustrating, but he is still my lovable little guy.  He will still cuddle up on the couch sometimes although most days he is much too busy for much cuddle time.  Today he was asking when he could have a pocket knife like Harry and I said not until he is 8 like Harry (and has passed his whittling chip or something similar in cub scouts).  He accepted that and then talked about the things he'll do as he grows.  When he is five he'll go to kindergarten and when he "leaves seven" he will have a knife like Harry.  Robert is currently in the imagining stage and likes to play Star Wars and take on a character and we also are supposed to be characters too - usually he is Darth Vader (a child after his mother's heart) or Luke.  I am usually Padme Amidala or Darth Mommy and Kevin is either Captain Fanaka (the head of Padme's soldiers - no joke - he knows whose in charge at home) or Darth Daddy.

So now, here are some pictures from the week so far.

Beluga whale at the Aquarium

The boys with the whales

At lunch - ice cream for everybody - note the hair - it is baseball cap weather
and this was just after the cap came off in the restaurant

Still a favored spot for Robert - not on the ottoman but in the ottoman

Ah, nutella toast :-)

It has been so warm this winter, some of my (outdoor) parsley is still green 

Captain Fanaka and Luke

in motion

slide stunts - ended with a somersault and leap