Noa 2 days old

I'm guessing that the hat was made by Great Aunt Edie.

2nd Annual WRJ Picnic

Grown ups schmoozing.



Roasting marshmallows.



Playing in the hammock (Alana and Benjamin).



Alana and Adam at the wishing well.

Cazenovia Kite Festival

It was windy!



Alana coloring her kite.




Matt.

Jamesville Beach

We went for the Celiac Walk (to benefit the UMd research center), but after sampling tons of GF goodies (Matt is carrying a bag full of treats), we wandered off to walk by the lake and play in the playground.

Noa Chana Chottiner - 1 day old

Dirty dog

Right before we left the park, Roxy rolled in something that smelled really bad.

Caleb's class trip

Larry is a chaperone. They started at the Downtown Library, went to the Everson Museum of Art and finished at the MOST.

Trying to be a squeaky wheel

I called the township recreation department to find out if the foot bridges are going to be replaced in the park. They said the bridges were on state land and the Dept of Environmental Conservation was responsible for the removing the bridges. So I called several offices of the DEP and finally spoke to the biologist who supervises the Clay Marsh. He explained that the bridges were becoming a hazard and are too expensive to maintain, so they removed them and will let the foot paths go back to nature. He asserted that the park gets little use and so the impact of this decision was minimal. I pointed out that the park IS used - I'm one of the users! But he was completely uninterested. I called my state rep's office and plan to call again. I was as much annoyed by the biologist dismissing me when I had taken the trouble to inquire.

Beth and Lee - one week til baby

Friendly's

On the way home, we stopped at Friendly's in Clark's Summit (I had a coupon but of course couldn't find it until I unloaded the car at home). Both kids got build-your-own-sundaes.

Memorial Day

Our friends Sharon and Len hosted a lovely picnic at their apt bldg at Alden Park. Caleb swam for over an hour in the gorgeous pool with Erez (above) and Matthew (below).


Alana and Devra swam for awhile and then took a break to sun bathe

At Ply-Mar swim club

My friend Catherine and her lovely daughters took us to the swim club near their new house off Ridge Pike. The water was very cold, so the kids swam just a little and then played on the adjacent playground. Here's Alana on the castle.


Caleb playing tetherball with Talene



Caleb playing basketball (his opponent, a boy about is age, is not in the picture)

Tooth fairy time

Yet again, Alana RIPPED out a loose tooth.

Airbrush tattoos

The kids got gorgeous airbrush tattoos in Keyport, NJ (Alana's is a pink dolphin, Caleb's is a dragon).

No, that's not me doing the tattooing!

First day of the holiday weekend

We had a very full Memorial Day weekend, with the first stop in New Jersey to see Larry's parents. Here we're having lunch at a diner near their house. Alana and grandma.


Caleb and mommy.

Alana and friends

Alana playing with stuffed animals in grandpa's recliner.

Motorcycle ride

Caleb also took a ride around the block, but they left and got back before I thought to take a photo.

Landmark project

Caleb selected The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Cool cloud

Another weird cloud moving across the sky in a straight line. Plus the pretty Clay Marsh (this is where Caleb and his friend Jake fell through the ice).

Caleb's summer haircut

We wanted to get his hair cut before the summer starts in earnest, this way, as his hair grows out, it can get all blond and streaky, and we don't have to get it cut again until the end of the summer.

Komen Race for the Cure

They enjoyed themselves a lot more than it looks like from this photo. We joined over 9000 people who raised a record $750,000 despite threatening weather. Totally inspiring.

BD party

Alana went to a very nice party at the MOST for her friend Nolen's BD. Here she's eating cake with her friend Abby.

Family day

The kids had a half day at school and Larry was off. They picked me up at work and we went to play mini golf in the absolutely gorgeous weather.





Larry and Caleb took a turn in the batting cages.




The kids as monkeys!

Beauty in the park

Pretty fungus growing on a tree stump in the park.

Let's go fly a kite

Alana was very persistent in her first kite-flying this year. Matt took this photo.

Ga-ga tournament at Sunday school

Ga-ga is popular Israeli "folk sport" - a ball game, a little like dodgeball (though not as violent!) Caleb had a great time (in the red shorts) and was very proud that his 3rd grade team beat the 7th graders.

Alana didn't play, but she enjoyed the indoor picnic after the game (with her friends Chloe and Sara).

Gardening

Matt and Larry both got the gardening bug, so we took advantage of the nice weather and did some planting. We went over to Gravina's to choose some plants, but we were seduced by the flowers (instead of shrubs or bushes, as originally intended).

National Pancake Day

We heard that today was National Pancake Day, though an internet search shows that it's celebrated on Fat Tuesday - back in February. Despite this error, we decided to have pancakes for dinner. Caleb isn't in the photo because he and Phillip are playing outside.

Matt in his new car

Happy Mother's Day

My friend Nadine took this photo of me and Alana at the during the Mother's Day celebration at Allen Rd Elementary School.

First the kids sang 2 songs.

Then they each served their mom some cookies.

Caleb graduates to Webelos!

Tonight Caleb graduated from the Bears to the Webelos with his fellow cub scouts. They call it "crossing over" which I think is kinda creepy because it makes me think of dying. Webelos stands for "We'll Be Loyal Scouts."


Here he contemplates his new handbook; his new scarf (the plaid one) is draped around his neck.