Memorial Day

At Memorial Day Parade

Memorial Day weekend has come and gone, so I guess it is officially summer season on the island here.  This year we are celebrating St. Matthew's 175th anniversary so we walked as a church group in the parade.  It was fun and, I think, my first time in a parade.  Harry walked with the cub scouts.  It is strange to have a child with his own interests that supersede those of the rest of the family.  We gave him the choice and he chose cub scouts and he did a great job and looked cute in his uniform too (although he would be annoyed with the description.

Even though summer season is upon us, it isn't overly warm yet.  We've had a few nice days and school isn't out until June 22nd or so.  Robert will continue with his toddler program 2 days a week into the summer and in the fall he will begin preschool at the same school as Harry.  Harry has various camps to attend this summer and will do his first scout camp for a week.  Even though it often seems long in coming, I enjoy the spring time here.  It is wet and cold and we northerners joke that we go from winter to summer in about a week, but the truth is it comes slowly.  Right now the iris are blooming.  We have gone through daffodils (which lasted much longer than usual this year because of the cold, damp spring) to tulips, to hyacinths, the early laurel bushes and then the lilacs, now the rhododendron are slowly giving out and soon the peonies will be blooming.  The flowers we'll see now will be the summer ones - hydrangea which I love, roses and lilies will all make their appearance here as we move into the summer.

For the first time ever we are planting a garden.  We hope to grow tomatoes, squash, some herbs and some bell peppers.  I don't know how successful we will be, but hopefully we'll learn something to bring into next year's garden.  We have set up a raised bed and mixed some fresh soil in with the island soil and we can only hope for the best.  Our next step is to set up a little fencing around the garden to keep out the pests (this unfortunately includes some of the smaller household members who think it is fun to climb in and walk around the plants).  I am looking forward to the challenge of the garden.  In the past I've planted vegetables, but never a bunch together and always just sort of in the ground without much care.  This year I am trying to be careful.

I have also put in some johnny jump ups and some begonias - these in my usual style.  I happened to pick them up at Easter and had extras from a teacher gift I was putting together.  Some the begonias went in around the tree in the back (after the deer ate a bunch) and the johnny jump ups went where I have tried various vegetables over the years (to middling success).  Hopefully they will do okay.  It is nice to have flowers around.  Since my main occupation these days is planting ideas and manners and trying to help little minds and souls to grow, it is nice to have something that I can measure.  I love being a Mom (which is now what both boys call me) and I enjoy the challenges, but I don't often see any results.  The garden of a child's body and soul takes much longer time to see change and grow and that is both the joy and frustration many days.  It is nice to plant a garden that I will be able to watch and measure over a few short weeks.

Just playing around

Robert playing with his doctor kit.

Robert hauled all the stuff from his crib and some of his books onto his boat (the rug) and then went on a journey

Not really sure - some kind of superhero - Captain Underpants on the Head?

Watching the digger over lunch

Diggers are fun for the whole family

My favorite part is the seat that spins to face the digging/carrying arm or the big bulldozing bucket

A side angle

Home library

I have 2 very active boys, but they are also lovers of books.  In the past couple of months Harry's ability to read has caught up with what he would like to read. So now we sometimes need to go up and make sure that the lights out order was followed.  There have been a few nights when he has been found deep into a book and although he had meant to turn the light out, finishing that chapter turned into another and another.

Robert also loves to read books and at the moment he is especially interested in bugs.  We have read some very dry books about bugs hundreds of times (I may not be exaggerating).  A great treat in the house is to go to the library.  Some weeks we are there two or three times.  I love that the boys love books.  When Harry was younger he used to always want to get a video too, but those days are gone for now.  His preferred television is a program about science or history and we tend to tape programs he's asked about or that look like they would interest him.  Robert has recently discovered videos at the library, but again we often take them out and then don't watch them. 

A few weeks ago the boys set up their own library in the living room.  Kevin and I were the patrons and so we took out the books that would interest us.  We were also expected to read and return them.  In Robert's case it was a quick turn around.  It is also an activity that the boys just naturally started and played together.  They had their own space, but they were definitely building upon each others' ideas.  I love when they play together without any interference from us.  It is a fun thing to observe and in this case be a part of.

Robert and Willa take a break from running around and watch a program together

Robert's library

Harry's library

Spring shots with our lovely rhododendron

Size comparison

getting ready for the shot

All ready and smiling

Dad and the boys

Mom and the boys

Nice shot of the rectory

One of R's bugs - his constant newest fascination :-)

Changes

Our House May 2006

Our house May 2011

Our house is getting something of a makeover this spring/summer.  It is well deserved, I think and not the first work that has been done on the house, but some projects that have been waiting in the wings.  These 2 pictures show the house the first spring we lived here and this spring.  We've had such grey damp weather over the past week, that I really haven't been able to get a good picture of the rhododendron which are beautiful this time of year. 

Can you note the differences that have occurred in the past 5 years?  The first thing that happened you can see in the roof line.  It is a dormer which is the room that was finished the winter before Robert appeared.  It is a very cool room with lots of sloping windows.  The dormer window is pretty big and we put a chair there and it is like you are sitting among the trees.  I am looking forward to the days when I actually have time to sit there and read, in the meantime, I enjoy my moments in our office/guest room which are usually when I am there to do some work or to clean up.  Harry moved to the 3rd floor when the room was finished and he has the biggest room in the house - we sometimes call it the penthouse suite.

The other difference is of course the color.  When we first saw the rectory in the broschure about the church, it looked like it was blue.  It turned out to really be grey.  However, the idea was set in my mind and so when the house needed painting, we asked if we could have it painted blue with white rather than cream trim.  It is so lovely this way, I think it was the right decision. 

So the changes to come?  Well our pebble driveway has suffered much over the many years it has been here and it had become more like a wave, with rocks being lost each year as we shoveled and/or they were redistributed as the land settled.  So we asked that the driveway be graded and if possible, and not too expensive, paved.  That is going to happen in just a few short days!  I am so excited - I have visions of easier shoveling in the winter and a place for the boys to draw with chalk and ride vehicles on.

There have also been some garden changes - trees/branches down.  I am going to plant a raised bed with some vegetables this year.  We are also hoping to add a fort to the backyard for the boys.  We've also finally gotten some of the vines and bushes down that were just next to the driveway.  Spring time this year is bringing exciting changes.  Hopefully the house will be even more beautiful as we move into summer.

Sleeping boy

It has been a crazy few weeks here and I can't really say why.  I just came on to put one thing on the blog, but noticed that I had never posted this.  Poor Robert was sick for about a week, on and off, about 2 weeks ago!  One of the things that clinched that he was sick and not just entering a phase of pickiness or the like, was that he kept falling asleep in the afternoons.  Naps have been a think of the past for quite some time now.  I finally decided it was easier to just chill together in the afternoons than put him in his room and hope he wouldn't get into trouble and might even fall asleep.  The week he was sick he fell asleep on the couch.  On "his" chair (probably our only piece of very nice furniture), on the floor and in our new big comfy chair.  He also fell asleep in my arms and in Kevin's arms.  You would think we would have put him to a nap, but whenever we suggested the idea he would really object, it just seemed easier to let him sleep when and where he was ready

Easter Week Pictures

Chilling on the deck - Easter afternoon

Grampy and Louise at the beach

Throwing rocks

Family picture 4 -24- 2011

Family picture - Newport bridge, Rose lighthouse & a container ship in background

Nana's visit