Photo 365 #229

March 24, 20158 Comments

2015-03-22 14.09.16 We play cards in our family. Like, a lot. It’s kind of our family pastime. And we start ’em young.

Well, not that young, really – I think both Miss Tadpole and Bubbles were in school before we taught them any card games. But when Grandpa and Grandma were up over the weekend, Cricket and Thumper wanted in on the action, too.

They hate being left out.

It started off with Cricket teaming up with his aunt. That went okay, until Thumper decided that he wanted to play, too. He teamed up with Grandpa, but wasn’t satisfied with letting Grandpa hold the cards. We gave him a couple cards of his own to hold, but that actually made matters worse. I finally managed to decipher the sobbing squeals – he wanted all the cards.

At that point, we decided it was naptime. That really set him off.

But someday, they won’t be too little to play cards. Someday, they’ll learn how to play Up and Down the River with us, and then it’ll get really interesting (Miss Tadpole and Bubbles make it interesting already). It’ll be nice when, someday, family game night includes our entire family.

And maybe by that point, I’ll have figured out how to win. 😉

Do you have any family pastimes or traditions like family game night? What are they? Shout ’em out in the comments!

Photo 365 #228

March 23, 2015Leave a comment

Yesterday was a great day. I hung out with family, I ate great food, I watched Buffy, I wrote. A lot. Well, more than I have been lately, at any rate.

And then last night, after suffering through the UNI defeat vicariously through Seymour, I was rudely awakened about 2:30 a.m. by the crash of thunder. Jagged streaks of lightning ripped apart the sky outside my window as the wind howled in agony. Something clicked and clacked against the window, and I groaned.

2015-03-23 08.11.02

When I awoke this morning, these pretty little pellets were all over the place. School delayed two hours to give the road crews a chance to clear the highways. But I still had to venture out on time this morning, braving the ice-slicked roads to get to work.

Luckily, the road we live on was the worst. Once I hit the east-west road that takes me the majority of the way to work, the roads were much less slick. I’m grateful that we haven’t had more ice this year, and I hope we won’t have any more storms like the one we had last night until it’s warm enough that the rain stays liquid.

Photo 365 #227

March 22, 2015Leave a comment

It’s hard work being a little guy. Eat and sleep, play and eat.

But sometimes, there’s cake. And everyone loves cake, especially little guys like Thumper. It’s even better when it’s birthday cake and Grandpa and Grandma are here to share it.

Today is my father-in-law’s birthday, and the kids are beyond excited to spend the day with Grandpa and Grandma. I hope your Sunday will be as nice as ours!

Photo 365 #226

March 21, 2015March 22, 20152 Comments

Cricket recently acquired a new set of Superman jammies, and he adores them:

“Superman to the recksyou!”

Cutest. Superman. Ever. 🙂

He loves them so much that I have a feeling he’s going to try to convince me to let him wear them to daycare come Monday. That’s going to be a hard argument to win, because he’s so darn cute in them. 🙂

Photo 365 #225

March 20, 2015March 19, 20158 Comments

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll have seen the beautiful blue sky we had the other morning. If not, scroll down the page a ways and look for it in the sidebar.

Go on – I’ll wait. 🙂

I took that picture on my way to work. I’d stopped to get gas and while I was filling up, I happened to notice the sky. But the beauty didn’t stop there:

I took these on my way to lunch that very same noon. I love how the clouds just feathered out at the ends, almost as if they were oil and the sky water. Except I suppose oil really doesn’t do that in water, does it? Well then, it’s almost like the clouds are smoke that’s just fading away…

Okay, that’s not a very good comparison, either. But I’m still recovering from strep, so, uh…And it’s Friday…

Anyway, I just love how these pictures turned out. The colors are spectacular, the clouds are gorgeous, and I could stare at them all day long. 🙂

Photo Friday: The door throwback

March 20, 2015March 20, 20157 Comments

I don’t know why, but I just love pictures of kids and doors:

“I wonder what’s in here…”

“I’m goin’ in, Mom…”

Maybe it’s because my sons love to explore (particularly where and when they shouldn’t). Maybe it’s because it’s a fantastic reminder that to a child, everything is new and different and somehow magical, which is something that adults often seem to forget. Maybe it’s because it reminds me of the magic I used to see in the world, and that the magic still exists if I’d just take the time to look for it.

I don’t know about you, but I could use a little magic at the moment.

What reminds you to seek the magic in your own life?

Have a great weekend, everybody, and don’t forget to check out Charnele’s throwback post!

Photo 365 #222: Human

March 17, 2015March 16, 20158 Comments

2015-03-03 17.59.19 I love the beauty
Of a warm spring day, but I
Loathe the allergies

That always come with
It. I feel like death warmed o’er,
And I look the same.

‘Tis such a pity
That all I want to do this
Glorious day is

Curl up under
The covers and sleep till I
Feel human again.

Photo 365 #221

March 16, 20158 Comments

We had a tiny handyman at our house this weekend:

mr. fixit

Here he is trying to fix a picture before hanging it on the living room wall. He also fixed our steps. He’s quite the handy little Cricket.

Do your kids ever fix up your house like this? What do they do?

Photo 365 #220

March 15, 2015March 13, 20154 Comments

I captured this stunner of a sunset on my way to pick Bubbles up from church the other night.

2015-03-11 19.41.13

If I hadn’t had to pick him up, I could’ve happily sat on the side of the road photographing the sky till the sun went down. I know I’ve said it before (about a million times, probably), but I love our sunsets here.

What do you love about where you live?

Photo 365 #219

March 14, 2015March 13, 20152 Comments

It was another foggy morning yesterday:

foggyroad

And this is the good fog – about a mile north of our house, I drove into a foggy wall, and I didn’t come out of it till I got to work. I actually drove past the county line without realizing it till five miles later when suddenly the road curved to the right. It was crazy.

I wish I could have stayed home and enjoyed the fog through the window, pencil and paper in hand. What do you think of the fog?