More...

I've been meaning to do more editing work (such as removing the trees sticking out of heads in the pics above, which are otherwise very nice images), but I just don't spend very much time on the computer these days. It's much more pleasant to be outside. So, you're getting these pics from Grandma and Papa's visit edit-free. Better than me not posting at all, I guess!

The above two and this one below are from Point-no-Point beach.
Silas slices some carrots as Papa looks on:
Goofing around on the deck:
Look, Silas got a new bike! It's a balance bike (no pedals) and he loves it, but he still has some growing to do before he can use it properly. I think within a few months, he'll be a pro! He loves his helmet too and likes to wear it around the house! Safety first! I'm glad this bike arrived while my parents were here so they could see him ride it for the first time.
Finally, there's the three of them eating lunch on the deck. We generally eat lunch and dinner outside now (it's still a bit chilly at breakfast time).

I'll have a few more of Grandma, Papa, and Silas doing a bit of gardening, plus a gardening update, when time permits.

More from the zoo

The day we spent at the zoo really was lovely.
You could not tear that little boy away from that drum! We really could have spent all day right there and he would have been perfectly happy.

He did, however, really like the bears as well. Funny story time: Drew has let Silas watch a short video of Choying Dolma, a Tibetan nun, chanting. One day he brought his brown bear (looks like Eric Carle's brown bear) to Drew and announced that she was Choying Dolma. That has been her name ever since. When we got to the bear exibit, I said, "Look Silas, what's that?" He saw the bear and shouted "That's Choying Dolma!" Here she (actually, it's a he) is:

So many!

I've got a bunch of pictures to post from my parents' visit. There's a lot to sort through, so I'll probably just post a few every day or two. Here's a couple taken last Friday at the zoo, to get us started. More soon...

Joker

My mom saw this picture on our computer and wanted me to post it, so here it is!
We're having lots of fun with them while they're visiting from Wisconsin this week. Today, we went to the zoo! I'll post more pictures later on...

Summer's here, and a garden update

Here's Silas, ready to go to the park this morning (third day in a row, lucky boy!). He's holding onto his "saw," which he uses to cut wood. I was overjoyed when he choose something as benign as a foam gardening knee pad as a pretend saw. He can pretty much saw whatever he likes without us having to worry he'll do harm to himself or others.

In front of Shannon and Patrick's house. The clematis is in full bloom!

And here's your garden update: So far so good! All the seeds have sprouted and we'll have to thin them out very soon. The peas are flowering already!

Next two pictures are of the front of the house. We cleared an invasive plant, periwinkle, and have been transplanting mostly native plants. Looks so much better!

We'll be building a trellis here soon for the kiwi vines I planted a while back:
We're looking forward to Grandma and Papa seeing our garden in person. They arrive on Tuesday!

You know you live in the Pacific NW when...

...your two year-old already knows the difference between moss and lichen. He gets it right about 80 % of the time, which isn't bad considering he has a 50/50 chance :)

I found the above two pictures on my camera one day. Clearly, Drew took them, and not me. First one is of the oak outside our front door, sporting a thick layer of moss. Second, the remnants of a prayer flag, slowly disintegrating, as prayer flags are wont (and meant) to do.

Below is a stick Silas picked up on a walk we took back in April. "Lichen. Moss." Indeed.

Happy Mothers Day!

"Silas try it!"

Often when Silas sees us eating something that looks interesting to him, he will say "Silas try it!"

A few days ago, he was playing with the ergo baby carrier (he likes to clasp and unclasp everything), and he brought it to me with the request that "Silas try it." I put it on him, cinched everything up and put his doll in the pouch. Silas was so proud!

May 09 Book of the Month

Announcing Planet Silas' May 09 Book of the Month:

Duck by Randy Cecil.

This may very well be my favorite picture book (though it might be tied with The Gardener by Sarah Stewart). I have such a strong sentimental attachment to this title, that I fear a short little write-up can't possibly do it justice. Moms, this is the perfect book for you to read to your little ones on Mother's Day (as I will surely be doing). The companion book to my April botm, Gator, Duck is the story of a carousel animal (Gator's dear friend) who dreams of flying even though she cannot possibly hope to do so with her heavy wooden wings.

One day, a fuzzy yellow duckling wanders into the amusement park and Duck adopts him. They do everything together and Duck teaches Duckling how to do all of the typical duck-like activities--with one big exception: Despite her efforts, Duck cannot teach Duckling to fly. The day comes when Duck must take her little one to meet a flock of "real" ducks. That is also the day she must watch as Duckling finally flies...away...

The intense joys and sorrows of parenthood are so carefully and beautifully rendered in this book. It is the sentiment that we must eventually let our children go when the time is right for them that particularly gets to me. Every single time I read this, I envision dropping Silas off at college for the first time. I just can't help it.

Watching Duckling fly away isn't the end of Duck's story, nor of the relation between this mother and her son. If we've given our children the love and closeness they need as they grow, they won't forget that. Duckling doesn't.

I won't give away the ending. It will be much better if you read it for yourselves.

Happy Mother's Day, mamas :)

Our latest family photo

Drew just commented that he couldn't find a very recent photo of the three of us. I said that in fact I had just inadvertently taken one while trying to get pics of the sweater I just finished. Hehe! Sometimes it's the un-posed images that are the most telling of what life is really like.

I still haven't written my book of the month entry. The gardening bug has been keeping me off of the computer this weekend. But, I'll try to get that post written in a day or two...