memorable memorial day weekend

Our Memorial Day weekend was made much more memorable thanks to a visit from Grandma Lipsey and Aunt Katherine. Here we are catching up on our essential annual requirement of Grandma hugs and kisses.


We also celebrated Aunt Marjorie's birthday Saturday night with an especially delicious chocolate cake (or was it lemon meringue?).


Here's Wyn contemplating whether he wants chocolate or vanilla ice cream with his cake. The conclusion he reached, inevitably and decisively, was...both.


On Sunday, Sam demonstrated the art of balloon-based recreation for a captive audience. Notice the amazement on Katherine's face.


Later Sam let me test out his very cool Big Wheel tricycle while Wyn showed Grandma and KT how to ride a LikeABike.


The concept of pedal propulsion threw me off a bit, but I managed to make it work anyway. (Notice my abundant knee scabs, which are of course the first sign that summer has truly arrived.)


This game of Three-Way Mail Slot Tag didn't end so well (smashed finger), but it sure was fun while it lasted!


There are two activities we've come to expect from Memorial Day: a parade and a private train ride. This year did not disappoint on either count.


Bring on the parade!


KT: So, what do you think so far?
Wyn: Needs more tractors.


Grandma wasn't sure about all the firetruck sirens in the parade...oh wait, that was me.


We can't believe how fast the parade went by, not to mention the entire weekend. Thank you for visiting Grandma and Aunt Katherine! We love you and we can't wait to see you again soon.

aunt moosow asked for a pic of mom's new haircut, so here it is

rock 'n roll weekend

Saturday we visited Lindberg Park, which IOHO is the best place to ride bikes. We continue to make parental-hair-raising progress every time we ride, coasting longer, more confidently and even gracefully. The difference in our personalities really shows up when we fall: I get mad and stomp off (often yelling "THANK YOU!!!!" for some reason), while Wynston shrugs, dusts himself off and declares "Wow. That was strange!" before jumping right back on. Wyn's helmet positioning could use a little work though.


Lindberg also has fun Mount Everest-like rocks to climb. Here I am declaring "I did it!" after reaching the highest peak.


Wynston pretends he's at Sears Portrait Studio, circa 1987...


...while I try to one-up my brother for best book jacket photo.



Wow! We can see all the way to River Forest from here...

Hope your weekend was as exciting and adventurous as ours was!

sunflowers in a can: part 2: the sprouting

jackson pollock was a hack

Sure, he showed creative merit by doing some new stuff in the previously under-appreciated scribbling genre, but ultimately it was just so … derivative. As the heroine of one of our favorite books put it: “I could do that in about five minutes.”

If J.P. had really stretched the boundaries of creative expression he might have experimented in a new medium, such as the Mother’s Day banner. And if he were truly revolutionary, he might have explored cross-purposing his work as a play mat for toy trucks. But alas, his vision was simply too limited.

More importantly, we want to give a special Mother’s Day shout-out to, you guessed it, our Mom. Not only is she a true creative genius, but she’s also a world-class Mother to a couple of mischievous three year olds. Her handling of all this can only be described as pure artistry.

problem

solution

sunflowers in a can: part 1: the sowing

look ma, no pedals

We've been tearing up the sidewalk the last few days with our LikeABikes. In fact, to tell you the truth, it's all we want to do now. We're all, "Bicycles! Bicycles! Bicycles!" from the moment we wake up.


We love our helmets, too. Safety first people!


It's important to stop every few miles to put gas in your bicycle, as Wynston demonstrates here. It would be so embarrassing to run out...