Birthdays

I am way behind on uploading blog pictures. July zoomed by and now August is halfway over and school starts next week! So without any more ado...

I took us out for frozen yogurt after work on my birthday (Tuesday, July 8). I felt like I was coming down with a cold but battled it out for the rest of the week.

Grandma and Grandpa Gunn sent Gabriel birthday gifts in the mail (with a present for E too). That was a treat! Here's Ephraim with his bunnies lined up ready to bounce off in a race.

 

So many cool things to make with the new Lego set.

We had a Lego-themed birthday party for Gabriel on his birthday (Saturday, July 12). We invited family and friends from church and school. It was great having a mix of ages and associations.

Pin the Head on the Lego Dude was awesome, if I do say so myself!

Grandpa McMillan made a Lego cake to go with our Lego cupcakes. 

 Everyone wants a piece.

Grandma and Grandpa McMillan gave him a Ninjago Lego alarm clock. He uses it every day and feels so grown up.

Grandma and Grandpa Cook sent him more Legos too. This set even comes with R2D2. He couldn't be happier!

 

 Ephraim got into building things too.

Steve and Kate Piersanti from church gave the boys each a set.

Gabriel helped Ephraim with his set.

 

Vacation - Part 2

Since camping outside didn't work out, the next night, Tuesday, we stayed up late watching a movie ("The Croods")  on tv and we all spent the night in the living room. The kids loved it!

On Wednesday, July 2, we went to Children's Fairyland in Oakland. The kid-sized ferris wheel was great.

 

I think the whole park was a little young for Gabriel but with plenty of kids there (and some his age) he had a great time interacting with them all. His favorite part (we spent the most time there and went back a second time) was a "wild west" structure. There were four child-sized buildings with two sets of staircases that went up to a second floor that connected all buildings. Some buildings had balconies, all had multiple windows and doors.There was even a slide down. The highlight was the jail!

We rode the little train.

And they enjoyed the miniature carousel. 

The theater stage had fun cut outs. My little flying monkey!

They enjoyed the pirate ship and Ephraim climbed up the posts on "shore."

My two happy boys!! 

On Thursday, July 3, we went to Marina Bay Park in Richmond. There were a few bounce houses (way over priced, but once the kids see them...).

Then we sat on the lawn and ate our picnic dinner (homemade chicken nuggets, breaded zucchini, and fresh strawberries). It was extremely windy and cold, even with sweaters and jackets and hats, so...

 ... after Ephraim's second potty break and defrosting in the van for a few minutes, the boys sat on top of the van and had a perfect view of the fireworks!

 

Staying up that late to see the fireworks was too much. The kids and I enjoyed sleeping in! I think the cats liked snuggling with us too. These two are such buddies.

On Friday, July 4, we went to Burlingame to visit my Uncle Dan and Auntie Margaret. We had a fun BBQ lunch in their beautiful backyard. Sadly Uncle Dan had to leave for work but Margaret took us to the Coyote Point museum. There were lots of interactive learning stations. This "factory" one was the best. The kids could have worked it all day, moving balls along the conveyor belt, raising them in the hand-cranked elevator, moving the level to make them go down the ramp, etc.

Ephraim put his foam creation up the wind tube.

We saw lots of animals there too, but I didn't take pictures of them. The two rescued golden eagles were majestic. The otters were our favorites, so playful!

Vacation - Part 1

I took a week off of work to spend time with the kids during summer. At first I said it was so I could save $200 for that week of summer camp for Gabriel. I'm sure I spent that much on all the fun stuff we did, but it was worth it!! I had a wonderful week!

Sunday, June 29, we spent time in the backyard enjoying our garden and the outdoors. Here is picture of a crate full of lemons, yellow zucchini, pepper plant getting bigger, and lots of flowers. Not seen are our row of sunflowers not yet in bloom, four huge tomato plants, two huge yellow zucchini plants producing quite a lot, and another row of string beans just starting.)

And my darling Ephraim is growing quite well too!

So Sunday night was "camping" night. We roasted marshmallows on sticks from our yard and put up a tent. The kids wouldn't settle down enough to sleep in it, but they had fun playing.

On Monday, June 30, we went to Muir Woods with my friend Vincent. The forest was beautiful! Sadly, we didn't see much life other than trees and ferns (no ladybugs or spiders or birds). This cool bridge was a tree cut in half (Vincent held the boys' hands so I could take the picture without having a heart attack).

 

 

 

 

 

Then it was a short drive down to Muir Beach. Gabriel was running for the first hour we got there. Ephraim ran with his brother for about the first 10 minutes but was quickly more interested in the feel of the sand and what he could do with it. Meanwhile, Gabriel chased the waves and ran along the beach. So beautiful to see him so free!

 

Later he laid down and contemplated life for a long while. 

On Tuesday, July 1, we went to the park down the street and tried out the new whiffle balls I bought to go with our tee and bat. It was so fun even the other kids at the park left the play structure and stood in line for a turn (a little 2 year old boy and a 5 year old girl). It was a huge hit! pun intended! Ephraim got really good at it. I think I see a baseball player in our future. 

Gabriel liked to whack it as hard as he could, usually aiming for the tee to watch it go tumbling.

In the afternoon we glued together sailboats from a kit. Then they painted them.

 

Gabriel was getting bored so he asked if I would teach him cursive. (Kid, learn to write print better first! But his mind craves learning new things!) So we got out his journal that he had started in school. I wrote a line and he copied it. We were both proud of him and I think he did a great job.

Summer Time!

School is out! Yay! No more homework! Well, not officially anyway. I'm determined to keep up with math and reading this summer. Gabriel started summer camp at the YMCA and it's been a great first three days. Here are the kids on the last day of school:

My sweet little boy!

I wonder where he learns those faces!

 Oh yeah, vegging out in any position.

Two little monkeys playing in a bed of leaves.

Gabriel has really been enjoying the mini Legos I got him. He built this amazing cyborg (and spelled it on the base).

 

Our lemon tree is full. We squeezed maybe a third of the ones we picked and got three cups of juice. Two cups will be saved for later and the other cup was used to make lemon bars for dessert and to bring to work tomorrow. Yes, those are two yellow zucchini you see on the counter too. Those are our third and fourth ones from the same plant.