Morning Snack

Num num.

Num.

Oops!

Thank you, Mommy.

5-second rule!

NY Trip: Party at Grandma Marge's!

We were given a warm welcome and a party at Grandma Marge's on the first day of Spring. Anthony got to meet lots of his relatives and friends for the first time!

In contrast to Mommy, who has about 50 cousins, Anthony has exactly one. It's a good thing she's so awesome! Alex and Anthony had fun getting to know each other:

Hey cuz!!!

Check out my spoon! Isn't it neat?

Anthony also finally met his Aunt Maureen (Alex's mommy). I remember when Alex was that little!

And Uncle John, Grandpa Mike's brother. These two had a special bond-- Anthony would have stayed in Uncle John's arms all day if he had his way.

Aunt Betty got a turn, too, though.

With 11 kids and by now about one thousand grandchildren, these two know something about babies!

Here's Anthony with Uncle Tom (another of Grandpa Mike's brothers) and Aunt Frances

With his second cousin (or first cousin once removed???), Michaela

Michaela and her mother, Joan. Look at their pretty matching eyes!

Along with relatives, Anthony got to meet some of Mommy's friends from the old 'hood, and their amazing kids.

Mommy and Mary have known each other since high school!

Here are Mary's kids- Kyle, Connor, and Mary Kate, all grown up. The last time I saw Connor he was about 5 years old. He asked my advice about a girl in his class who had a crush on him. He was very concerned because although she loved him, he only liked her and didn't love her. I'm afraid I wasn't very helpful, but I'm sure they worked it out in the end.

Here's Mary sharing some embarrassing pictures of us in our younger days- eek!!!

This is Anthony with Mommy's friend Elaine. We met at Queens College many, many moons ago.

Elaine's beautiful kids are Trent and Maurene. They are naturals with babies, as you can see from these photos:

We had a wonderful trip. Thank you everyone- we love you!!! Now it's everyone else's turn to come see us in Oregon!*

Anthony and Arnold are waiting for you!

*But attention, New Yorkers: You have to say it right if you're gonna come. It's ORYGUN, not ORE-GONE.

It's Earth Day!

"You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this."
-Henry David Thoreau

Blog Neglect

It's been a hectic few weeks- first the car (Doris) broke down, then Mommy broke down with a fever all last week, and then Grandma Jeanne wound up in the hospital! Happily, everyone is doing much better now. Poor Daddy had to take care of everyone-- including Arnold, one VERY high-maintenance senior cat-- while Mommy stayed in bed all week like a frail Victorian lady with the vapors.

Anthony is doing great as usual- he plugs along in his unique crawling style, spreading joy wherever he goes!

I promise I will finish posting pictures of our NY trip- including Anthony's NY birthday party at Grandma Marge's! In the meantime, here's a link to a blog that I've been meaning to mention here. Kelle Hampton was surprised by her daughter's diagnosis of Down syndrome shortly after she was born. Her blog has become sort of famous for her beautiful photos and writing about her family's everyday life. She was featured on CNN and has tons of readers. Start with the story of Nella Cordelia's birth, and enjoy!
http://www.kellehampton.com/2010/01/nella-cordelia-birth-story.html

NY Trip Day 3: Continued...! Old Fossils Reunite!

After a quick ride on the subway, we reunited with our dear, dear old friends, Jasmine and Cordell -- and their deliriously amazing son Parker!

How one nine-year-old can have read this many books, be this articulate and this funny...well, he's either a very short adult in the witness protection program...or he has Jasmine and Cordell as parents. It's the only other explanation.

His knowledge of comic book lore is already humbling to behold. This was everyone's first chance to meet Anthony, which was pretty wonderful and amazing...
So what kind of outing do a bunch of old relics who haven't seen each other in ages embark on? Where else?! The unrivaled epic mysteries of the Museum of Natural History!
It had long been a dream of Daddy's to show Anthony one of the most amazing rooms in all of New York City...
The amazing home of the great leviathan, the mighty Blue Whale, largest creature to ever inhabit the Earth! Anthony was very impressed!
This is one of Daddy's favorite places in the whole world! The museum is full of strange and eerie sights that inspire the imagination...
So much to see! Parker was our guide, and already knows the labyrinth of hallways and exhibits like the back of his hand ("Hey, what's that mole?")...
Where will we end up next?!
With Parker blazing the trail, anything is possible...!
We crossed over to Central Park, and stopped by Strawberry Fields to pay our respects...
It was a wonderful day in a magical world...now we need to go find Mommy -- we miss Mommy! That's better! There's a story about this chair...but that's a story for another day...