"Little Mermaiding"

My brother Josh is currently working in Asia. He recently made a request.

Well Josh, the people have answered.

In a show of support, your incredibly dorky cool and agile family did some "Little Mermaiding" just for you....

Micah took a break from bagging leaves.....

Then we all went to the park, and that's when the fun really began.



Mother mermaid.....



I risked life and limb to achieve the greatest heights the playground could offer.



And we may have thrown in a few extra poses.

I bring you, The Dead Cockroach.....



Micah was by far the most eager mermaid. He got really into it.....

Ooops, that would be a plank, not a mermaid....



And still another plank (I told you he got really into it)....

And now for the littlest mermaid.....

The end.

Pomtastic.

Last week we were in the grocery store cruising through the produce section to pick up some lettuce really quickly (ha!), when Skylar yelled in her very loudest of loud voices (the one she saves for life's most exciting occasions)......

"POMEGRANATES!!!!!! MOM, THERE ARE POMEGRANATES. CAN WE GET SOME? THEY'RE BACK MOM. THEY CAME BACK! POMEGRANATES ARE BACK! CAN I HAVE ONE? MOM! MOM! MOM! MOM! MOM! MOM!"

You get the idea.

Because what is more amazing then princesses, sparkles, puppies, ponies AND rainbows combined?

The pomegranate. It's the great love of Skylar's life.

She's cried bitter tears the last TWO years when we've gone to buy one in January only to discover they've gone out of season again. Gone just like that. Not to be found anywhere, because believe me I called every store in town. I even looked on Amazon. I kid you not. (I almost blogged about it last year).

This year I will remember and prep her in advance to ease the good-bye.

I really don't get the attraction. I grew up eating them. They aren't THAT great.

So anyway, back to the awkward grocery store reunion.....

I nodded and smiled at my gawking fellow shoppers who no doubt were headed straight to the pharmacy to get some aspirin after our encounter, and grabbed a bunch of pomegranates.

Skylar wanted to sit in the back of the cart with them.

She held them....clutched them to her heart.....out of the corner of my eye I saw her give one a little kiss. And in my head I'm thinking......really??? My child is sooooo wierd. Is she going to fit in at school? What if the kids see her kissing pomegranates at lunch?

Meanwhile Skylar is still yelling to anyone who will listen.....LOOK I HAVE POMEGRANATES. MY MOM IS GETTING ME THESE. DO YOU LIKE THEM? THEY HAVE MORE. THEY ARE SOOOO JUICY. I LOVE POMEGRANATES.

I am trying to concentrate on my task at hand as I barrel race calmly maneuver through the crowded aisles, trying not to squash her excitement by saying "guess what? nobody cares!!! so please STOP!" But my blood pressure is rising. I just want to get out of the store. Why, oh why, didn't God install an off switch?

It continues through the register. She shows everyone in line. Tells the cashier how much she loves pomegranates. They smile politely, but I can see the confusion in their eyes....because nobody in the history of the world has ever been this excited about Disney World, let alone a fruit.

She requests her pomegranates be put in a "baby bag" so she can carry them herself.

She feels the need to tell the Wal-mart greeter. Then the Salvation Army bell ringer.

Then, sweet mercy, we make it to our car.

She doesn't understand why she has to wait until she gets home to eat it. Tears. Drama. Tears.

We get home.

I crack that sucker open and it's just Skylar and the pomegranate. And finally....silence. For like 30 seconds.

She had no interest in getting her picture taken, but I had to show you what happens to her face.
I get to clean up pomegranate stained faces and clothes until January.

And then there are those teething biscuits that slime everything. So appetizing.

He like pomegranates too. But not as much as sister. Not yet anyway.

Time to throw them in the leaves.

Oh how I love to take the annual leaf pictures.

Someday I'm going to look back on these pictures and cry. And eat chocolate. And cry.

Anyway....

Skylar loves the leaves like she loves the sand.

She does not, however, like raking.

Raking was fun last year. This year apparently she realized it's work. She must be growing up.

Little man was very, very serious. Not sure what to think.

Then again, his sister was screaming and dumping leaves on his head.

I would have been a little scared too.

And he was not happy to be wearing his puffy vest.

He hates his puffy vest.

But a puffy baby in a puffy vest makes me laugh, so too bad for him.

'Til next year.

Kiwi berries.

Have you tried the latest genetically modified fruit?

Baby kiwis.

No fuzz on the skin, so you can just eat the whole thing. They're a big hit in our house.

The beach in the fall.

The day after we got home from Niagara, we hit the road again....this time for Myrtle Beach. It was a spontaneous trip with the Lathrops planned less than a week out. We decided to take our time getting down there and make a road trip of it. The trip down was a breeze.

And when we got there.....sunshine, waves, perfect weather, meeting baby Cora, and time to relax......

Isn't little Cora Bella Ballerina the cutest with her concerned little eyebrows?

And speaking of concerned, should we be?

We took Skylar to the aquarium where she unfortunately saw pictures and heard about "finning" and has been stressing about it ever since. As in EVERY DAY she brings it up. She's really worried about the sharks who die and if they are going to heaven. Oh dear.

It was fun taking Finley to the beach this time. He loved the sand and kept trying to get it to his mouth, but it would slip through his fingers (thankfully) before he got his hands up there.

He couldn't figure out why it was in his hand one second and gone the next. He thought maybe yelling at it would help.

The tide pools are perfect for little ones....warmer than the ocean and nice and shallow.

Love the sand in my toes. (Just not in my bathing suit!)

The tide pools were great, but the real ocean was a bit too much for Finley. He was not a fan.

Skylar playing with daddy and Uncle Andy while Aunt Kristy photographed her and mommy watched the babies....a pretty perfect scenario in her little mind.

Micah was like a kid again playing in the waves and rolling in the sand. Way more fun than me.

I thought it was funny that Kristy and Cora matched (inadvertently of course).

Andy playing in the waves....

And gettin' his Kindle on.....

Great beach memories with my girl....

Um.....not sure about this one....found it on the camera......

We went to a restaurant where they shoved a hat on everyone's head. Cora looks a little embarrassed by her parents head gear.....

This picture was taken at dinner our last night at the beach, and we are smiling because we have no idea of the road trip horrors that await us the next day. Awful, terrible, very bad things happened on the way home. (Poo, vomit, the mafia, leaving an important bag sitting on the curb at a rest stop.....just to name a few). But we made it to my parent's place safely, and didn't lose our children even if we did lose our minds, so I guess that's all that matters.



I'm now convinced that October is the best month for the beach. It feels like we somehow cheated the cold weather here in the North Country and stole some extra summer. I'm all for stealing me some summer;)

A whole lotta water.

We got home from our Virginia trip (with a stop off in Hershey, PA for a Chocolate World tour) and repacked and left the next day for Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Our hotel room was on the 35th floor overlooking the falls. This is the view from the bathroom, there was an open wall so you could sit in the tub and look at the view.

The view from the window:

Next to the falls, the giant jacuzzi tub was the main attraction. I personally used it five times. The whole family piled in after we went swimming. It was our personal hot tub.

We hiked over to catch a boat tour. Love that ergo (thanks sibs!)...

The falls are even more amazing from water level....

Micah was loving the spray....

Skylar wasn't so sure. She ate applesauce. Finley fussed. I got a little seasick.

The seagulls were nutso....

We were even treated to a rainbow at the end. Amazing. Definitely worth going to see at some point in your lifetime. It's also the honeymoon capital of the world. I had a very awkward newlywed elevator encounter. I'll spare you the details.

Check one more thing off the bucket list:)