May 20 - Kid hike at Welchester Park

This was a beautiful little park tucked away next to an older subdivision in Golden. We had to nurse in the car when we first arrived, so Isaac "drove" the car and waited patiently. But once on the trail, as we approached Ollie and Jack, Isaac took off running and giggling down the hill to meet them. We walked on the trail, stopped to watch the creek from a little footbridge, and then hung out in the trees, so lush and green in May that I felt like we could have been back in the east.











Before leaving for lunch, the boys were distracted by the lush grass. The other boys left for lunch, but we decided to hang out barefoot for a few minutes first and feel the luxury of soft grass between our toes. Isaac's idea; he loves going barefoot.


Thanks Megan for this picture and Leanne for all the others.

Jonah - a few more pics

Here, Jonah and Tiger are giving each other kisses. Isaac was mildly interested in the animals as a baby, but Jonah has been crazy over them since he was just a few months old. As a five-month-old, he would see one walk into the room and squeal with delight. Now he tries to leap out of my arms to grab handfuls of fur and give them big kisses (which I try to discourage).

Tiger mostly runs and hides when he sees Isaac coming (with good reason), but he seems to think Jonah is okay so far.



Walking with Jonah to our local, Colorado-grown, organic market, In Season...Jonah cries every time we set foot in that place. I don't know why. So when he started crying pre-emptively as we approached it, I took him out of the stroller to play in the grass. Smiles.

A few more forgotten pics from April

April 12 (above) - When we got to the playground, Isaac ran straight to the map, jumped exactly on Colorado, and said "We live here!"
I was amazed, although he had pointed out our location on a world map in a book before even turning two. Of course, 10 minutes later, here in the playground, he had us living in northern Wyoming, so maybe he's just had two lucky guesses.

April 20 (below) - I love this picture of Jonah on his first ride in a toy car. Our neighbors kindly let Isaac borrow it overnight, and Jonah and I returned it the next morning. I thought he'd be too little, but he loved it.



April 21 - Isaac and friends at a playgroup by Sloans Lake. All the kids in the picture are with our group. Lots of fun except that poor Jonah cried himself to sleep while I walked around and around on that sidewalk.



April 27 - Jonah working on sitting up.




Isaac made this house for me (he said), and I thought it was really cool. And he worked that puzzle behind it by himself (thanks Tobey). He loves puzzles now.

Walking to the river - a few forgotten shots

With two kids, it's hard to find time to exercise. The easiest way is to take them with me, and they do add some good resistance to my workout. Soon after Jonah was born, I began walking everywhere I could - specifically, everywhere within 12 blocks or 20 minutes. Our neighborhood is on a hill overlooking downtown, and it's about 15 minutes downhill to get to the river, a beautiful, rushing stream through this sometimes-parched city.

We almost always walk to the grocery store, but throughout the winter, on days when we didn't need any groceries, we liked to head down to the river. I got my exercise, especially on the trip back up, and Isaac loves the water so much. He stands on one side of the footbridge and stares down, runs to the other side and stares down, repeat, repeat. I don't think it's ever been his idea to leave; he could stay there all day. Meanwhile, little Jonah would take his morning nap in the stroller, still riding in the infant carrier and the cover all closed up to keep out the wind.




Isaac could really stay here all day, I think...



These pictures are from Feb 11 2010 (sorry - a little late). It wasn't a particularly warm day, but you can see that Isaac doesn't feel the cold. At least it was warm enough for the sun to melt the ice.

May 21 - Jonah at Isaac's preschool party

Isaac's preschools are both over for the summer now. On the last day, Isaac's Friday class met at his teacher's house for a potluck party. You'd think I would have photos of Isaac, the party, etc.; however, the camera battery died after just 4 shots. But here's a glimpse of Jonah, sitting up in the sunroom while Isaac played in the backyard with some friends.

May 5 - Hanging out in the Hammock

Thanks Leanne for the photos!

Mother's Day

JONAH! 7 months old, playing with his favorite toy

Mother's Day is so much more fun once you have kids. Seems obvious, but I guess I never knew what all the fuss was about (sorry Mom!) until I learned just how hard this job really is.

Actually, I didn't think we'd be celebrating unless I planned it myself. But Adam surprised me by indeed knowing which day Mother's Day was and wanting to treat me to a meal out (place to be determined), a family outing (also to be determined), and time to paint. All our plans were last-minute, but it was a fun day and one of the first really beautiful, warm days we've had in a long while.

We did spend 1.5 hours waiting for a table at Snooze (last-minute decision to go to brunch on Mother's Day = no reservations = very long wait). They'd told us 45 minutes, and it was starting to seem decidedly not worth the wait (is the food really that good??), but then the food and drinks really were incredibly good: sparkling wine mixed with peach puree, Snooze's signature pineapple pancake with creme anglaise poured over the top, and, for me, a shaved ham and egg sandwich on French toast with hollandaise and maple syrup for dipping. I wouldn't do that wait again, but at least we were well-rewarded once we sat down.

Then we were off to a park by the river. Adam and Isaac (in the trailer) biked down, and Jonah (in the stroller) and I ran / walked. Jonah screamed the whole 15 minutes and fell asleep at the park as soon as I picked him up. After I struggled to push the Bob one-armed up the steep hill to where Adam and Isaac had parked, while holding my sleeping baby in the other arm, he woke up after all and got happy again.

Isaac was thrilled to "help" Adam fly the kite he'd bought 3 years ago for our new baby, so they ran around in the field below while I played with Jonah. Our littlest guy is finally sitting up for longer and longer periods, and with his favorite ball and favorite book, he was a happy boy for a long time.



















My favorite:


After a while, Isaac took over the kite and started running up and down the hill with it.


Isaac loved the kite. When his tongue wasn't sticking out in concentration (the only shots I could manage to get), he had a radiant smile. Just take my word for it.








Mama and boys