Max and Esme

The first fish of the season were caught by Max and Liam on Sunday. They were very very proud of themselves. We had a lovely visit with the Quinn-Rodewald family this weekend. The kids had a great time together and the rain held off so we were able to enjoy lots of outside time. Jim was the official photographer on the fishing expedition - enjoy the show!

Class 1T has started a unit on insects. Right up Max's alley of course. As part of their studies the students drew insect names from hat - each was to research and report on their particular bug. Max was originally assigned the katydid. But a girl in his class didn't like her bug and noone else wanted to trade with her, so of course Max, being Max, offered. Max is now an earwig. I have learned that earwigs live in dark damp places. And the idea that they crawl into people's ears and eat their brains is merely an old wives tale - or as Max put it, "a crazy story made up by an old woman to scare people."

Annual shot of the kids enjoying the boat.

Max's class performed the Three Piggy Opera on the Friday before Mother's Day. Max was one of the two narrators and did a terrific job. He spoke loud and clear and was just as charming on stage as he is usually. The kids worked really hard on their performance - they made the sets, the costumes, learned songs and choreography. It was great fun. And Max was particularly pleased that Grandma Sissy and Grandpere were here to watch as well. Here are some photos of our young star.

The local birds are showing the signs of spring. Three goslings have been regular visitors to our backyard during the last week. During our canoe ride up the creek this afternoon we passed a pair of swans and a goose nesting in the reeds. Max took the pictures from the canoe.

Grandma Sissy and Grandpere were visiting this weekend which meant lots of extra story time for the kids and and evening out for us on Friday. Thank you! Saturday included the usual combination of ballet, boat and soccer. Mother's Day was clear and warm - the first sunny day we've had in over a week. We enjoyed a family boat ride, planted some tomatoes and some herbs, and generally played outdoors in the sun all afternoon. Max, Esme and the neighbor girls even got out the sprinkler for a while before dinner. It was a lovely day for everyone.

A couple of weeks ago Peter was mending a tear in one of Max's stuffed animals. I made a comment about how nice it was of Dad to fix it and how lucky for Max since I didn't know how to sew. Max promptly advised me that "You should really learn how to sew Mom, it's a very useful skill." I responded that "Ah, but I don't need to because Dad knows how, and now you can learn too!" Be careful of the advice you offer your parents...

Saturday afternoon we visited the South Mountain Reservation for Greta's 4th birthday party. The birthday girl was a gracious hostess and took her friends (and their parents) on a hike to see the waterfall before their picnic dinner. Max had a great time running through the woods and exploring the stream. Esme was still tired from being sick all week, but thought the Little Mermaid birthday cake was fantastic!

Esme's been suffering from a seasonal cold this week. Pete and I each had to take a day off to keep her at home when she had a fever. We're down to a head full of phlegm and a good cough now. Here's hoping the weekend is more fun for all of us.