It’s 57 degrees and rainy here, so what better activity for an otherwise boring afternoon than making lemon sorbet? Finn had never seen the ice cream maker in action, and he was floored by how cool it is. (Ezra, on the other hand, is an old pro since we used to do this a lot the summer before last.) Their favorite part, of course, was the tasting session they got once I’d scooped out the majority of the sorbet to freeze for later.
I took the boys to Descanso Gardens this morning, and braved the cold (Eek! 58 degrees!). We had walked up to see the ducks in their usual hang-out, but none were there. As we walked back along the road, we discovered a goose and two ducks wandering around. Then they formed a line — the goose first, then the ducks. Ezra and Finn couldn’t help but join in, and soon they were in line behind the animals, flapping their arms, Ezra shouting “Quack, quack!” and Finn shouting, “Cack, cack!” I only had my iPhone camera with me so I wasn’t quite fast enough to capture the best moment, but these pictures will have to suffice.
The boys decided they wanted to do a little “cleaning” today, so after fighting over the Swiffer WetJet for a while, they finally settled on scrubbing the kitchen counter. It started off fairly tame — despite Finn yelling constantly for me to turn the water on higher — but by the end the soap usage was off the charts and there were suds everywhere. I’m certain that portion of the counter has never been cleaner.
This week has been weird as far as weather goes. Monday morning it poured; yesterday it was sunny and mid-80s. The boys were delighted with the rain and dressed in all their rain gear Monday for our outing to one of the local indoor playgrounds. Ezra ran straight to the car, but Finn lingered to fully utilize his umbrella under the area where the roof comes together and creates quite a stream of water. I just can’t get over how cute he looks in his rain gear.
Like father, like sons.
We had the Heffs over for a play date yesterday and decided to do some egg dyeing. Ezra had done this at school on Wednesday, but this was Finn’s first time. He was, as expected, not the most patient egg-dyer. His eggs came out very light colored, and instead of using the little wand to retrieve them, he just stuck his whole hand in the cup. It was pretty comical — and messy — and a good time was had by all.
Finn goes fishing while Charlie patiently waits
Ezra only wanted to do blue ones
Ezra shows off the bounty
Finn peeling his egg:
This week’s gymnastics class had a big finish — the kids got to swing out over the pit on a big rope, while, theoretically, other kids threw big foam blocks at them. Fun ensued.
I was working on a video yesterday in iMovie and I came across this old video (from February 2008) in my archives. Ezra is almost 3 and Finn is almost 1. I love how intently Finn watches Ezra during parts of it. I also love how Finn just can’t quite get the blocks into the box.
A couple of weeks ago, Ezra and I were at Target and he picked out a new pool for us — the squirting giraffe pool. It was in the mid-80s this weekend so we pumped it up, filled it up, and let the kids loose. Ezra decided the pool had to face the playhouse because the dragon he made (“Dragony”) is there. We also have the added bonus of the zip line this year:
As a note, even though Finn is yelling that it’s his turn next, he refused to go. A little while later, he finally agreed, but only when Bruce was holding him.
Before the swimming could take place, Finn had to have a chat with the giraffe to let him know what was going to happen. I couldn’t hear him very clearly from my vantage point, but I believe he told the giraffe that he and Ezra were going to take a bath in him.
Bruce and the boys planted our summer garden over the weekend. After last year’s failed attempt (for which I take full credit, having caused the late June/early July drought while Bruce was in Korea), I’m eager to see results from the planting. I’m also quite thrilled that Bruce has no plans to travel this summer.
We got three pieces of good news today: 1) escrow closed on Hastings Ranch; 2) Finn officially will be in the Oak Tree class next year; and 3) Ezra got these in the mail …
Flaming Converse!
So, goodbye, old house. It was a difficult transaction, and it’s certainly bittersweet to be done with this house.
We decided to spend a few hours at the Huntington this morning and invited some friends (the Heffernans) to join us. The kids had a great time running around in the gardens, and we actually went into one of the galleries (much to the chagrin of the museum attendants). We also hit the Children’s Garden and the kids had a grand time getting soaked in the fountains.
We did actually get out of the house today — to take Ezra to his gymnastics class. Finn put up quite a fight when he heard he wouldn’t be able to go to his class, but he finally got used to the idea. Ezra had a great time at class; this week they put a huge rope over the pit area so the kids could swing out and fall into the pit. Sadly, I was outside with Finn and couldn’t take any pictures.
I also shooed them both out to the backyard for a couple of hours this afternoon just so they could get some fresh air. They had a grand time painting the playhouse, again. Purple, pink, white, and yellow this time.
And finally, here’s a sweet picture of Finn just starting to wake up from his nap. He always looks like such an angel when he sleeps.
