Sesame Place

We have thoroughly enjoyed our season passes to Sesame Place this year.  We recently went on 2 trips, 4 weeks apart- the first to get in our last day on the water attractions, and the second for their Halloween themed weekend, complete with costumes and trick-or-treat.  Here are some of our photos-
September:

Benjamin is not asleep, merely zen

Summer clothes, fall decor 

The following pictures are at the Count's Splash Castle, which we have mixed feelings about. Benjamin and Charlotte (and mommy) don't like the splashing and spraying, but Asher loves it. And the water slides are pretty fun if you can get past the spraying.

 I texted this picture to my sister:

and said, "Look! Ran into Mom at Sesame Place!" Which got a laugh out of her.

We picked up a useful hint from our friends- go to one of the live shows during lunch time so that no time is wasted. We eat lunch while watching the show.  The kids love the show, and I find myself clapping along and dancing, too. (I am such a dork. Having kids makes me think it is ok to behave like my inner 4 year-old in public.)

Over the course of the summer the boys got increasingly brave, and would ride this tube ride without me, repeatedly.

Charlotte refused to ride it and instead went into the little kid splash pool. I won't post a picture, but her favorite thing to do is to sit on top of a water jet.  Smart girl.

I bribed them with Elmo face-shaped soft pretzels

 October:

We almost didn't make it, because we had plans on Sunday to see a friend, but he had to cancel due to illness. So, kind mommy that I am, I packed everyone up and drove them to Sesame Place.  It was COLD- in the 40s or low 50s and I definitely felt very begrudging in my mind.  But the kids had fun.  I only hope that I didn't negate their enjoyment by later getting exhausted and slightly snappish in frustration- but there is only so much Sesame Place I can take.

Asher is a banana, Charlotte is a princess or ballerina, and Benjamin is a panda

I love Asher's little boy profile. In the back is the dried up Count's Splash Castle

Benjamin doesn't like costumed characters and sat this one out on a bench.  

The next day I had to meet with Asher's teacher before school to plan the Halloween party for his class (in a moment of idiocy, I volunteered to be a room parent, hahaha!).  We got our first frost overnight, and I couldn't help but notice how beautiful the fallen leaves were.  Despite my best attempts at denial, fall is certainly here.

Tales from School

So far, it's been a great year.  The boys love kindergarten and their "enrichment" program that they attend 3 afternoons a week.  Eric said that they are learning to play chess!  I also signed them up for an art class where they have learned about cubism, pointilism, and possibly dada-ism.

Benjamin seems to have gravitated toward making friends who are girls.  In addition, he told us he has a "girlfriend"!  Her name is Lexie, and he cries on the days I pick him up at lunch time because he won't get to play with her at Explorers (their enrichment program).  He has asked that I not put any nut products in his lunch because Lexie is allergic and he wants to eat with her.  So sweet.

I, in a moment of delusional optimism, signed up to be a homeroom parent in Asher's room.  I am now responsible, along with another mom, for planning the Halloween party 2 weeks from now. Why did I take on another responsibility?  Now the pressure is on to plan an amazing party. Thank goodness for Pinterest.

Asher has taken to dressing himself very stylishly- he wears a lot of button-down shirts and chino-type pants. He looks quite handsome in his grown up clothes, and I swear he has grown so much.

Both boys have started to notice classmates with differences- not cultural or ethnic differences, but behavioral and size differences.  Benjamin told me one of his classmates was "fat," which I HATE that word (having had it applied to me many times in elementary and middle school in addition to just not liking any derogatory language like that), and that there were other strange aspects to his appearance.  Asher told me about a classmate who has a special behavior chart and possibly an aide with him- and that this boy often chooses to roll on the carpet rather than participate in the activity the rest of the class is doing.  I have tried to treat these conversations with empathy- I told Benjamin that it must be hard for his classmate to look so different from everyone else; and I told Asher that it was great his friend had someone to help him make good choices.  But who really knows what I'm supposed to say or what is really going on there.

Charlotte also loves school and cries when her brothers go and she doesn't (she is only in school 3 days a week).  For some reason she seems to have a block against her head teacher's name and calls her teachers "Miss Jen and the other one. What's her name?" She comes home with all kind of interesting tidbits and they will come out at random times- like, "stop drop and roll!" for fire safety month.

She's also enjoying her dance class, which Meema takes her to on Wednesdays while I work.  Meema reports that she participates and follows instructions.  She also runs around the house yelling, "sauté! Plié! Point your toe!"  I have always dreaded watching the videos people post of their kids in dance recital, but I can't wait to see my girl in hers at the end of the year.

Trip to Virginia

Two weeks ago, we took a weekend trip to Northern Virginia to visit our friends.  We were scared out of town due to all the hype around the pope, and how many roads would be closed, in addition to expected crowds and who knows what else.  So rather than find ourselves trapped in the house with nowhere to go for a weekend, we got out of town.

We drove down on Friday afternoon, and made great time til we hit the beltway outside of DC. It took 1 hour for us to go the last 30 or so miles of our trip- rush hour on Friday!  We had a nice dinner on Friday night, then managed to get the kids down to bed and the grown ups had time to play games- trivia and Pictionary-style games that you play through your phone.

On Saturday we got ourselves together and went out to Cox's farms, which was like a fall festival wonderland.  There were animals, slides, hay rides, kettle corn, apples and apple cider, pumpkins...  Eric said he felt like he had 4 kids, because I was always off and running to find the next thing to do.  There was a big slide that we went down on a burlap sack that I loved more than the kids did!

My 3 and my friend's oldest on the hay bales

Hay ride

Mommy and Benjamin on the hay ride

our Christmas card?

Charlotte posing with a goat...

Who loved her very much!

Baby girl with a baby goat

It was the start of fall weather- for which I am unprepared and in denial.  But it was cool and gray, and the leaves were starting to change.

Saturday afternoon we attempted to get the kids to nap, and totally failed.  So we ended up with the husbands taking the big kids to the playground, and my friend and I went on a long walk around the neighborhood with her baby.  Then we cooked dinner and ate at our friends' house- they had suggested eating out but I worried what kind of behavior we would get from the kids after no naps.

On Sunday, we went out to breakfast, which was a disaster!  Charlotte asked for eggs and then refused to eat them and threw a tantrum on the floor.  I ordered oatmeal, which came with sliced bananas, and Asher (who was 2 people away from me at the table) pulled his "My tummy doesn't feel so good!" nonsense and stood by the table gagging because he saw the bananas.

Fortunately for my sanity, my sister and I coordinated a run in Arlington, VA, and DC- we met in Arlington, but ran back and forth over the bridges into DC and back again.  Over the course of our run, it turned into a beautiful day.  We did a little loop on Roosevelt Island, which is hard to believe is mere feet from the Capitol.

Roosevelt Island

We then got in the car and drove home, with no problems at all.  It turned out that things had been quiet and pleasant in our neighborhood while we were gone- so no real reason to flee, but we had a wonderful weekend away as a family.  It's rare that we get to spend a weekend together, since Eric and I are always engaged in individual tasks on the weekends.  We were together, and we had a great time- we hadn't seen our friends in ages, and they had just bought a beautiful new home with plenty of room for all of us.  It was relaxing just to be away from our house and all the chores we always do, and we enjoyed the ease of being in the company of old friends.

Benjamin & Asher: 5.5

Last weekend the boys turned 5.5; now they are closer to 6 than to 5. Then we went shopping for a whole new fall wardrobe, because I discovered, as the weather turned cool, that they are way too tall for 75% of the clothing they currently owned.  I keep getting surprised when I see them and register just how big they've gotten!

Tired boys and their half-birthday cakes

posing at Old Navy

 Benjamin at 5.5- He is becoming more mysterious to me.  While he is still easy-going almost all the time, he occasionally shows strong emotion. The transition to kindergarten hasn't been completely easy, and he has burst into tears and said he "just feels sad."  At the same time, he seems to love his new teacher, who does seem very sweet, and he doesn't seem to have trouble going to school in the morning.

Blankie as cape, Angry Birds pajamas, and rain boots. Totally doing his own thing.

He's made some new friends, most of whom appear to be girls (Carolyn, Irene). His teacher said she loves that he's not afraid to do his own thing- which included wearing a purple stick-on mustache to school last Thursday. He's also a big goofball, with dancing and singing whenever he feels like it.

With his purple mustache

Our main struggle with Benjamin is listening- when he gets tired, his ears shut off completely. I find myself yelling at him, "Benjamin... Benjamin... BENJAMIN!" I hate raising my voice but I don't know any other way to get his attention. Other than tuning us out, he is generally a pleasure to be around. He's very perceptive and will often ask questions that I'm surprised he is thinking about.

Benjamin selfie

Asher pimpin' in his faux-fur vest

Asher still likes to be the boss, and be in charge. He likes to be the center of attention, and doesn't always make good choices as he tries to get attention. He's been complaining about going to school, but seems to have a good time when he's there and comes home happy.  We haven't had any reports of bad behavior (not that I expect any!) and his classmates generally seem happy to see him when he shows up in the morning.

Asher is definitely a manipulator- when we went shopping he started acting sad "because he wanted to be with Daddy," which I quickly figured out was a ploy to get a treat. I called him out on it he dropped the act pretty quickly.  I don't like that I suspect my child of anything other good motives- but I don't always trust him!  I just hope that we can teach him that even though he might WANT something, doesn't mean it is ok to do it or get it. Eric lost $10 in the house the other morning, and I'm still not sure that Asher didn't take it, even though he has proclaimed his innocence.

Our biggest problem with Asher is his pickiness around food.  He's still focused on carbs and begins making choking/gagging sounds whenever fruit is in the same room.  I have totally lost my patience for it and always point out that he's not pulling that nonsense when his classmate eats a piece of fruit in class.

He is also still a wonderful snuggler, loving and affectionate. He watches out for Charlotte- and I trust him to do it; to keep an eye on her if I run in the house to use the bathroom.  He's big and strong- he seems to have had a growth spurt over the summer!

Snuggling over the summer

I love that even though my boys are big kindergartners now, they still want me to love them and hug them.  I love their sweet and delicious faces and strong, growing bodies.  I know I say this every time we pass any sort of milestone- but I can't believe how fast time flies and how quickly my loves are growing!

Cape Cod 2015

I skipped our vacation post in lieu of back-to-school- but here are a few photos from our week at the Cape.  I can't believe we were there less than 2 weeks ago; it feels like it never happened! I love the pace of those lazy vacation days, and all that time with my sweet-faced babies.

We drove up on Saturday, and I finally got Eric to agree to stop for lunch in Providence- we have managed to skip Providence for the past 3 years, and Charlotte's never been!  We went to my favorite falafel place and the guy working there asked if I used to go to Brown.  Eric was very impressed! I swear I didn't eat that much falafel... I must just have a memorable face.

Asher and Charlotte with my freshman dorm in the far background

On Sunday my cousins' cousin and his wife came to visit with their 4 year-old.  The kids had a great time playing together (except Asher, who couldn't hold it together and had to go home and nap while Benjamin and Charlotte stayed up and played). After dinner, we went out for ice cream on the bay and the kids were total goofballs.

Goofballs on the pier

The rest of the week blurs together- we spent most mornings at Great Pond where the kids swam and played in the sand. They made friends with a girl from New York named Iris, and everything was more fun with her there.  Last year, the kids just stayed at the edge of the water and played in the sand and shallow water... This year, the boys knew how to swim and kept going out in the water. It was a little more scary for me. And Charlotte thinks she knows how to swim even though she doesn't! She is more brave than her abilities warrant.

This was funny- I commented on this headline in the Globe (to say, "Is it really such a surprise that foster children are mistreated?):

And Asher's comment was, "I am going to call the police on you, Mommy. You only gave me HALF a donut this morning."  Yes, Asher, call the police about that one.

We had another bonfire on the beach and made smores.

Goofing around before the fire got started

My footsteps next to Benjamin's. His baby feet are getting so big!

Our roaring fire

Sunny beach morning

Stripe selfie

We had our lobster dinner by the water and got 4 lobsters instead of 3!  Then we went out for dessert at Ben & Jerry's- we hadn't been in YEARS and my sister and I wanted to share a sundae. We reminisced about our many late nights there as teenagers trying to flirt with the employees.  I am pretty sure that Eric was embarrassed on my behalf.

Sweet boys and a beautiful sunset

I convinced Benjamin to get the phish food ice cream- another teenage favorite of mine.

My girl posing in one of my favorite flavors

We came home on the Sunday of labor day weekend, and had one day before school started.  I took the kids to the pool (it was hot!).  This is how the boys handle Aqua Zumba- Asher lay out his towel to get a close up of the woman "dancing," and Benjamin stood back and followed along.  Such different boys, but both so funny.

I hate how quickly vacation flies by when I spend all year looking forward to it.  I love the pine trees, the sandy streets, and coffee on the balcony each morning.  I hate that it's another 12 months until we get back there, to everyone's favorite place.  It was only 2 weeks ago that we were there, but already it feels like forever!  Now I am hoping for a happy and healthy year of school for the kids and work for Eric and me.

First Days of School

This week all 3 kids had their first days of school- Charlotte went back to the JCC and is in the "younger 3's" class with some of her old classmates, and the boys started KINDERGARTEN!  It has been very disjointed- orientations for the boys on Tuesday, then nothing til a full day Thursday; regular school hours for Charlotte Tuesday through Thursday... Plus we are inundated with paperwork from the various schools and programs, so that I am sure I have missed something of the utmost importance and just hope that someone catches my error before there are any serious consequences...

Here are the kids on Tuesday before orientation and school:

Asher and Charles Broccoli

Benjamin and Pandy

Charlotte Eve in the dress her Memere bought her

 I took the boys first to their "Explorers" orientation- this is a half-day enrichment program since kindergarten only goes until 11:50. The Enrichment teacher is very friendly and energetic. She had a bowl full of snack- cheerios, raisins, and marshmallows- that Asher couldn't keep his eyes off of.

Coloring self-portraits

Asher's portrait and getting-to-know-you. He drew himself "as a mailbox"

Then we had another 45 minute orientation at the elementary school. The boys went into their classrooms and the parents to the "cafetorium" where we learned no new or helpful information.

Benjamin on the way to orientation

Wednesday the boys were home with their babysitter while I worked and Charlotte went to school and her first dance class.  Meema took her to dance but said she had a great time there and was cooperative and enthusiastic.

In her special tutu

Thursday was finally the boys' first day.  I thought I would cry, but we were so busy getting bags packed and 3 kids to 2 different places plus me to work, that next thing I knew, the boys were at school and I was alone in the car headed to the office.

Asher & Benjamin headed to their first real day of school

The boys seem to be doing ok- Asher is more quiet and reserved in his opinions. He says he can't remember anyone from his class's name, and is hazy on what he did during the day- I know he knows all of this, because he knows everything about everyone, so I assume he just doesn't want to talk about it yet.  Benjamin said he already has a new friend, Charlie, who he invited over to play after school some day.  Their teachers both seem friendly and we have heard good things about them from other families.  I am hoping that we are soon in the swing of things and I don't feel so disoriented around what I am supposed to be doing as a parent, too. It isn't made easier by the fact that after 2 days of school, the kids only have school a maximum of 3 days a week until October.  I guess we're starting slow!

The End of the Summer

It's the final washing of the swimsuits and towels, faded from their many hours in the sun.  Placing them in the bag with the forgotten sunscreen and beach sand still in the bottom.  Knowing how many months it will be until they're needed again.

It's picking out back-to-school clothes- clean, no holes.  Thinking of sweaters and corduroys but needing shorts and t-shirts.

It's the surprise of the Jewish holidays and the traditions so familiar and so intertwined with all of fall.  Apples and honey; sweet, round challahs; dressy clothes, and days off from school just as the routines begin.

It's tucking my loves into bed when the sun has already gone down, instead of arguing about why it's time to sleep while the sun is still out.

It's the crickets singing us to sleep at night and the soft, yellow slant of light in the morning.  Cool evenings and even cooler mornings broken by hot summer heat at midday.

It's the end of crowds at the pool, the beach, the ice cream store.  

It's the last meal eaten outside while the kids play on their swingset.

It's the first night with the heavy quilt; the first morning with a sweatshirt.

It's watching the leaves start to fall; noticing that bit of brown at the edges. 

It's the return to the routine and structure of school and work; the end of our freedom of unscheduled days and car trip adventures.

It's no more late nights with faces sticky from ice cream and hair stiff from the pool.

Another summer gone by.