Pete in the Mud

Our backyard dirt pile has turned into the backyard mud pit after a couple days of rain. Peter has been out there playing in it for about two hours now. I can't imagine why he likes the mud??? Patrick already had his fair share of splashing in mud puddles earlier today. It's not really that cold; the google hat is just for cool points.

Hooray for Peter!

Peter and I practiced riding his bike today while everyone else was taking a nap, and he finally got the hang of it. 

Videos

I finally got around to uploading some videos - enjoy!

For those of you who don't understand 2-year-old talk, Patrick says "I make gassy gassy!"

Still Working on the Yard

One of MANY truckloads of dirt we've hauled off so far.

The finished sidewalk

Future home of good dirt and grass...

A few of my flowers have survived the construction

Billie the Beast

Doggie Pedicure

I wish he would give me a pedicure! (Maybe not with dog clippers though)

Big Day for Peter

Pete helped me take the training wheels off his bike today, after I got a little encouragement from another mom down the street. Pete's a little timid with the bike, but he's getting the hang of it pretty well. I, on the other hand, am REALLY timid about letting go of that seat! One more thing to mark my baby growing up and becoming more independent. So of course there aren't any pictures, because the family photographer was running beside the bike (with a death grip on Peter). And by the time we finished dinner and Mat took him out tonight, it was too dark. I think Mat runs faster and holds on tighter than I do! I'm sure we'll practice some more tomorrow before the rain comes again.

Dirty Boys, Happy Boys

We had Sunday dinner (PB&J) at a park / playground this afternoon, then came home for Mom and Mathew to take a nap while the boys dug in the dirt in the backyard. We sure are enjoying the warm sunshine!

Mathew and I came out for dinner - two picnics in one day!

Future home of our rain garden. Currently it's 3 feet deep and 15 feet long, and a great place to jump and hide.

Mathew really wants to go play in the dirt too, but he eats too much of it.

Easter Dinner

We had a pretty low-key Easter. Burritos for lunch and popcorn for dinner. Peter played with his K'Nex that he got for his birthday, and we all took a nap. I tried to take a picture of the boys all dressed up for church, but it just wasn't happening.

Concrete!

We undertook the next major step of our ongoing underdrain-yard-landscaping project on Saturday by putting in the sidewalk and filling a patch of concrete in the back.

Here are the forms, ready to be poured.

Here's the truck. We have over two dozen pictures of the truck. Patrick was scared of it and immediately started crying and ran away.

Patrick was much happier to stay in the back yard with a gun.

The photographer for the day (he took all of these pictures).

The photographer's footprint. Oops!

Patrick found a huge worm to keep him occupied.

Joseph (and his daddy) showed up just as we got it leveled out, and the rain started.

Mat had to put the finishing touches on under a tarp. It's been raining ever since, even sleeting today. I'll go take another picture when (if!) the rain stops and we get the forms off.

Moment of Silence

I've forgotten what it's like to have a crawling little explorer in the house.  I suddenly realized this afternoon that the house was strangely quiet.  When I rushed to investigate, this is what I found.  I sure am glad the toilet seat was closed!

Portland Zoo with Uncle Pawl

For some reason it was a really big deal to go see the giraffe first.

The baby elephant was really cute. He laid down right under his mom and went to sleep.

Of course, the boys had to ride and climb on everything.

The forestry center across the parking lot from the zoo had a steam engine.