Max and Esme

I have ordered a new camera, so hopefully will have photos to post of Christmas! In the meantime here's a short list of what we've been up to: We had last weekend off so we finally started on our library project - we've built bookshelves and a reading bench on the front porch. Looks great so far - Peter has done a terrific carpentry job! Trim work this weekend and then lots and lots of painting to do. One of Max's goldfish died last week after being with us for over two years (apparently a long time for a goldfish.)  He was quite matter-of-fact about it, but was really saddened. Mommy got some extra snuggle time that night. Esme has a holiday party at school today and the kids have a concert next Tuesday. Both have been bringing home art projects daily, most of which leave glitter behind. Monday is my last day of work until January 4th - hooray!  The Brophy's are visiting next week, the Girard grandparents are coming for Christmas, and then a trip north to v...

I played the role of Super Mom this weekend, with some important help from Super Dad.  On Saturday Max and I went to a Young People's Concert at Lincoln Center with a friend. We listened to and learned about Baroque Music, had hotdogs and pretzels from a street vendor before hand, and drinks and sweets from a bookstore cafe afterwards.  In the meantime Dad and Esme cleaned out the boat for the season and washed the car. On Saturday evening we decorated our Christmas tree and made cookie dough. On Sunday morning I baked over 100 cut out cookies and that afternoon we were joined by 8 little girls for a cookie decorating party.  The girls had eight colors of frosting and various sprinkles to decorate their cookies with, and also decorated boxes to store their cookies in to take home.  Of course their interest in frosting cookies ran out before the cookies did so we have a couple of tins of undecorated cookies left to play with next wee...

Max did all the reeling on this one - I just helped support the rod so he didn't get pulled overboard!  The striper made a lovely dinner panfried in butter and breadcrumbs.  The kids both ate their whole portion.

In what's become an annual tradition, we spent our Halloween with friends on the next block where the extended neighborhood turns out for a parade and the next-door neighbors put a keg on the lawn.  Max went as a devil, and Esme as a black cat. With special guest Grandma Sissy along the kids filled their pumpkins with treats that mommy is going to try very hard not to eat!  Here's a shot of the family heading over for the parade, and one of Esme with her friend Katherine.

During our family trip in October we participated in two iconic fall activities - the cranberry harvest and scalloping. While not actively involved in the first we attended a harvest festival and got to watch them flood and collect a bog's worth of floating red gems.  Peter took us on a scallop hunt one morning and we (mostly he) collected a large bag of shellfish.  After several hours spent shucking the scallops we enjoyed a very tasty ceviche with our dinner that evening. 

Soccer season started last week, with Esme making her kindergarten debut on Team White  and Max making a strong showing for Team Brazil.  The rain we've had this week may postpone tomorrow's games, but if not we're ready to go with our fashionable pink shin guards and matching ball!

As one of her birthday presents this year, Esme got a butterfly house from Grandma and Grandpa.  I'm happy (and relieved) to report that we manged to hatch and release 5 out of 5 butterflies successfully.  They only took a few days to go from caterpillar stage to building a crysalis, and another week to hatch from there. We kept them in the house for a few days to watch them and set them free in the backyard on Saturday.  Proof in the attached pictures.

Esme happily greeted Mrs. Blumenfeld on Tuesday morning and walked into her kindergarten classroom without a backwards glance.  I picked her up at 12 and we walked home with a couple of other girls from her class.  She lamented that she hadn't yet made a new best friend, but I cautioned that it would be good to get to know everyone first!   When we got home she promptly sat down to make her teacher a card. She dictated the note to me which went something along the lines of "I had a really nice time at school. I can't wait to come again. I think I will make some new best friends. I am happy. I hope you had fun too. Good bye." and she signed it Thank You, Esme.  She reported to me that she had learned something about Mrs. Blumenfeld, that "she is a very pleasant person."  I think Esme had a good day.

Esme started kindergarten yesterday and Max entered the third grade.  Both seemed to have a terrific first day.  I'll write some more detail soon, but wanted to get a picture up first!

On Sunday, Max spent several hours working on a project in secrecy.  The result was a miniature aquarium for his sister which he presented to her with a card and wrapped in a bow.  The aquarium has two levels, incorporating a variety of exhibits, learning centers and games.  There's even a ticket counter and a poster for an IMAX movie. Esme was suitably pleased with her gift and her dollhouse people have been enjoying visiting the aquarium for several days now. 

The picture that greeted me on my blackberry when I landed at JFK on Friday night.

Is (1) the name of Hiccup's pet firebreather in the How to Train Your Dragon series, (2) how Max's mouth is beginning to look, (3) makes the tooth fairy grumpy, (4) all of the above. I'm in London this week, but my morning update included this note from Peter: Max lost a tooth, literally, having pulled it out and left it somewhere at the Khoos'. He left the Tooth Fairy an explanation, and also a questionnaire, which she completed tersely, even submitting a self-portrait. (Apparently she's familiar with Aquinas.) He did receive two of the four state quarters he requested. No telling how long it took to find those.

OK, it's officially time for a new camera. I'm posting this blurry slide show as proof of my inability to take decent photographs. Any suggestions from the peanut gallery for a small, easy to use and affordable camera option? Max turned 8 on August 12th.  He was very pleased with his gifts - a new big bike from us and a baseball bat from Esme.  On Friday I brought both kids to work with me in the morning and we spent the afternoon at the American Museum of Natural History, Max's favorite place in NYC.  We toured through the African Mammals exhibit along with the Reptiles and Amphibians room where Max taught Esme about endangered species.  For the rest of the weekend the kids worked on projects involving endangered animals - creating a diarama, playing zoo, planning a lemondade stand to raise money to protect habitats.  Esme woke up the next morning announcing that she no longer wanted to be a princess when she grows up, but will work to save the animals. ...

Esme celebrated her fifth birthday on Nantucket in the company of Grandma Sissy & Grandpere as well as Caroline and her family.  Here's a picture of our princess enjoying her special day.

After school finished on June 25th we spent a lovely week on Nantucket with some friends.  Lots of beach time and a nature walk. Here's a picture of Esme modeling some clothes from the 19th century during our visit to the Whaling Museum, and a picture of the boys with their new books.

The kids organized a special morning for Dad on Father's Day.  Max had found instructions for a Valentine's Day breakfast-in-bed event in his Kid's Almanac and we adapted it for the occasion.  Peter was brought his coffee in bed, but joined his family at the dining room table for heart shaped pancakes with blueberries.  An early morning arts & crafts project resulted in a secret scroll containing a special message for Dad. And Max had framed an original dinosaur painting for Dad and one of a rabbit for me. Since the boys went to the Yankee game, Esme and I embraced our gender roles and went to the mall.  She insisted on changing into one of her new dresses as soon as we got home, and accessorized it with a neckace, bracelets and a headband. Then she told me I had to change into a dress to look beautiful when Daddy got home.

Peter and Max had an unexpected father's day treat - tickets to the Yankees vs. Mets subway series game.  They had a great view of the grand slam homerun that resulted in the Yankees 4 Mets 0 score.

At one of the coolest birthday parties we've attended recently Max got to do some serious rock climbing. He's the one in the red shirt.  This picture doesn't give you the best sense of scale, but this wall was about 60 feet high and included an angled section to get past as you see here.  Max was amazing.  I was really impressed!

After two kids and four years we bid a fond farewell to Ridge Street Country School. There was an end-of-school party for the oldest preschool class on Wednesday evening. Parents only invited, so Max had an extended playdate with a friend. The three classes came together and did a round-up performance of seasonal songs they had learned throughout the year. And each class had a special song they sang on their own - Esme's was It's a Wonderful World. Here are some pictures of our beautiful daughter.

I was lucky enough to chaparone Max's class field trip yesterday aboard a Schooner.  The floating classroom sailed around Long Island Sound for a couple of hours while the kids learned about the ship and the ecology of the area.  We dropped a trawl net and the kids helped haul the rope. They raised the sails, learned about plankton, salt marshes, water pollution and got to discuss the animals in the touch tank. No need to tell you that Max had a great time!

We spent a great weekend at the Swenson's lake house for their annual Carp Diem. The kids were in the water about eight hours out of the day. The crowd caught lots of small sunfish and bass, but no carp. Plenty of food and beer and good company. We all enjoyed ourselves. Here's a quick pic of a happy mommy and daughter.

The fish have arrived.  We're following a catch and release program so far this year.  Despite the look on his face in this picture, Max actually gets quite excited about catching fish.  This one was a team effort: Peter hooked the fish, Max reeled it in, and I netted it.  Esme touched the tail and then entreated us to let it go.

(the original is typed and has images of a T-Rex and a Sordes at the top) Dinosaurs They walked on the earth millions of years ago. They were the dinosaurs, and they were big and small. Some were long, and some were short. Some had spikes, and some had plates. There was T.rex who ate whoever he wanted. He was king of the dinosaurs. Apatosaurus had a very L O N G N E C K and a whip-like tail. Plesiosaurus swam beneath the waves. Pteronadon was king of the sky. You might have thought that they all had died, but little aves and birds survived. Stegosaurus had thirty inch plates and forty inch spikes. Then there is Triceratops. He had mighty long horns. They were very long and very sharp. Achecoelis's neck was very long and very high. Velociraptor was a ferocious predator. Sordes was cute and cuddly but he could probably bite off your finger. Liopleuradon who was almost 50 ft long. They are the dinosaurs and they are really fantastic. They walked on ...

Week 3 of baseball saw Max with a home run!  Aided by the fact that he can run really fast and the kids don't really throw and catch well yet... but it still counts!

Esme showing off her party dress and face/arm painting after her friend Cashel's 4th birthday tea party.  She's got the pose down, doesn't she?

On Wednesday the second graders put on a performance called "Under the Sea."  Each of the four classes had a theme - Tidal Pool, Kelp Forest, Deep Ocean, and Barrier Reef.  During the past month they've been working on activities around their specific assignments (Max's was the Great Barrier Reef), including written reports, art projects, and costumes.  The final performance included songs, interpretive dance, and the sharing of several many about the ocean and the animals that live in it.  Here's Max back at the classroom in his Great Barrier Reef crown and one of his many items of artwork. Esme was thrilled to be able to attend the play with me on Wednesday morning. Luckily for her she had a stomach bug on Tuesday night so was unable to go to school.  She's fine - it passed very quickly. She made a point of telling some of my friends that "It's ok. I promise not to throw up on your kids!"  I'm sure hearing that was a big relief!

Kim and I had a very good time together this weekend, trying out couches and watching Cirque de Soleil in NY on Saturday.  We had a girls day out on Sunday, taking Esme with us out to lunch and then to a large antiques and architectural salvage store. Esme was most interested in the garden statues, but paused for a while to watch Zoltar.  For 50 cents she had her fortune told, but we were already feeling our good fortune to have since nice friends and family.

As part of their ongoing unit on community, the second grade had an assignment to take pictures of themselves at their five favorite "hot spots" in Rye.  We had a trip to the beach last weekend, and stopped at the library yesterday.  This evening we visited Marshlands Conservancy (and saw a field full of deer), followed up by dinner from our neighborhood pizza place and an icecream in town. Here are Max's five "hot spots"  (along with a couple pictures of his trusty sidekick Esme.)

Peter and Max are taking a break from the basement today to enjoy the warm sunshine. But even that comes with a waxing cloth in hand - time to get the boat ready!  Welcome spring!

The kids are on spring break this week and enjoying a combination of playdates and extra time with Daddy.  Max is working on creating an encyclopedia of feathered dinosaurs and is trying to master the newest island on Poptropica.  Esme has been a voracious reader - not on her own -but she now wants to listen to multiple chapters of the Magic Tree House books every night before settling down to sleep.  She can now identify the words Jack and Annie without prompting. It's been a while since I posted last. Peter and I enjoyed our trip to London. The kids had a great time with their grandparents, and even had a bonus visit from Grandpere and Grandma Sissy during that week.  I'm assuming my dad took lots of pictures, but I haven't seen them yet... hint, hint.

Peter chaparoned Max's class trip to the aquarium today. Most of the second grade went home after a couple of hours, but my boys stayed for the full day...

On Saturday we took the kids to get their hair cut together.  Max has always gone to the barber shop in town where one of several very old men cuts his curls.  Esme decided that she wanted to get her hair cut there too.  Previously she insisted that the barber shop wasn't for girls. This time she set out to charm the place, happily chatting with the man with the scissors. She has a nice neat head of curls to show for it, and a lolly pop.

We took advantage of our remaining snow yesterday and spent a few hours at the park working on our winter olympic skills.  Max and Esme took turns on the little cross-country skis. Esme seems to be a natural at Nordic, while Max much preferred riding downhill on the back of Peter's skis. Alpine may be in his future.  The sledding hill had been modified by other groups of kids to include some bumps and jumps which the kids thought were great fun.  Perhaps we have mogul or snowcross athletes in our mix.   Olympic dreams aside, we had a great day in the sunshine playing in the snow with a beautiful view of Long Island Sound. It doesn't get much better than that.

We enjoyed our snow day yesterday.  Max went to a friend's for snow ball fights and Peter and Esme went sledding while I took a phone meeting.  At least my office had conveniently closed (announcing it on Tuesday so we could all sleep in).  We made a nice chicken soup for dinner and had the neighbors over to share.  About 12 inches where we live, but wet heavy snow, so it's settled some already.  No school for Esme today, but Max is back in the classroom after a 1-hour delay.  As for me, back to NYC.

It was E week at pre-school, so Esme was in charge of bringing in the Friday snack - something that starts with the letter of the week.  Figuring that a class of 4 year olds is not going to think eggs, eggplant, or edamame equal good snack food, Peter got creative.  He and Esme baked Elephant Ears together (phyllo dough layered with cinnamon and sugar and rolled to be the right shape).  They were a big hit at school today! 

Today I watched a movie called The Lightning Thief. It was a good movie. I think you should watch it. (This depends on who is  reading this  letter.) I think the Hydra was the best monster in the movie. I also liked Medusa. The snakes in her hair were very cool. Thank you to Uncle Rob for taking Max and I to the press screening. While Max wasn't particularly verbose in his movie review (like any seven year old he equated the exercise to doing homework - egads!) he enjoyed the experience immensely. Especially the skipping school part.

The kids had a day off for MLK, so we went with some friends to the museum. Here's a quick candid from the bb, just to tide you over until I manage to upload some actual photos taken with a camera.  I'm in London this week, so it will be a few more days...