Rainy Friday

Friday was rainy and gloomy here. The boys spent most of the morning in their jammies and discovered stacking Kleenex boxes provided much more entertainment then their toys!

Brian took a break from working at lunch time and agreed to be the horsey to two young cowboys.

Then, after dinner, the skies parted and the sun came out. We took a trip to a nearby burger joint for some delicious frozen custard. (It was really good, but not as wonderful as Bob Joe's Frozen Custard in Detroit).

The boys love getting custard and squealed the entire way there!

We stopped by a little park on the way home. Benjamin learned what an island is -- there was a bridge to a little island. And, Ethan heard a bunch of ducks quacking and he quacked back!

We were glad to see the weather for the rest of the weekend -- sunny and hot!

Farmer's Market

Last Saturday, we took a trip ITP again. This time we went to the a few farmer's markets. Brian was out of town and the boys wanted to see Papaw and Uncle Evan. So, ITP we went and Papaw came along for our adventure.

This is Ethan wanting Uncle Evan to give him some of the goodies we purchased at the markets.

Ethan and Papaw awaiting samples of the organic breads, fresh figs, and heirloom tomatoes we got.
After the markets, Evan gave us a tour of the The Highlands. We found a general store and leave it to the boys to discover the candy. As it turns out, the boys love chocolate covered raisins!

Waiting for some action in the parking lot below!

The boys love going ITP; there are so many different things to see. Look for more trip to see Uncle Evan!

Ikea

Last weekend, we took a road trip -- we went downtown to Ikea. The boys had never been and it has been a while since Brian and I were there. We took advantage of the restaurant and ate dinner there. It just happened to be "kids eat free" day. We fed the whole family for $12 -- including dessert! Swedish meat balls and great Swedish desserts make for a great day!

The boys love riding on any elevator -- this was a really big one!

Ikea is so big that we had to stop and have a snack.

Benjamin testing out the merchandise.

Going ITP

For those of you who are not from Atlanta or live in the area but stay out in the suburbs, you may not know what "ITP" stands for. It means "Inside the Perimeter." Interstate 285 is our "Perimeter" and inside the perimeter is in town (aka: cool, trendy, hip and very different then the burbs). We live OTP -- "Outside the Perimeter." Uncle Evan lives ITP (yep, "Inside the Perimeter").

The boys and I took a trip ITP recently and the excitement began at Evan's condo -- we saw a garbage truck emptying a dumpster. Here are the boys checking out the garbage truck.

We then took a walk through Piedmont Park. Of course we had to stop at the playground and test everything out!

Then a trip to Trader Joe's rounded out our journey ITP. The boys love going into the city -- they get to see big trucks, tall buildings and lots of people walking their dogs. Thanks Evan for a fun time!

My Sous Chef

Ethan was a little under the weather at the beginning of the week and so he took an extra long nap yesterday. Benjamin woke up early and wanted to help me make dinner. Benjamin is an excellent assistant -- the Cheeseburger Pie was great. Benjamin did eat a good bit of the cheese though. Now, if only I could get him to load the dishwasher!

And, yes, for those of you wondering, Benjamin is not wearing any shorts. He has his big boy underwear on and loves to just wear his big boy underwear.

Field Trip

This weekend we had very few plans. We wanted to be able to spend some great quality time with the boys after their first full week at the new school. The boys' fascination with things that move continues (we have a Publix being built near our house and the boys are so enthralled by the dump trips and big diggers). So, we took them to Peachtree - Dekalb Airport on Saturday afternoon. They loved it. There are no pictures of planes though. They have a neat airplane themed playground and an observation deck. As you can see in a few of the pictures, it was very hot! We did not stay long, but are planning to go back in the fall.
Ethan still adjusting to one nap a day -- a little tired.

Benjamin was a little scared by the planes when they were preparing to take off.


The rest of the weekend was spent inside. Brian was trying to give the boys a golf lesson. They were all "watching" golf on TV. I use the word "watch" very loosely!

The boys are loving their new school. Benjamin was upset that he could not see his teacher over the weekend (wait until he realizes that he has to wait another week to see her!). Benjamin seems to like the food as well. No more packing lunches! Ethan loves the puzzles in his classroom and has already made me a finger painting project.

New School

This has been a week of changes. The boys started a new school this week and we have all been so excited. I am not going to fib you, they boys were very tearful on their first day, but things have gotten much better. Benjamin and Ethan spent some time at the school last week to get eased into the transition. And after only two days, Benjamin is naming body parts in Spanish and going to the potty by himself. Ethan has made several friends and can say "hola" -- he can't even say hello yet! The boys are in separate classes but get to see each other on the playground!

In addition to all of these changes, Ethan climbed an entire flight of stairs holding onto a handrail and is now only taking one nap a day. All theses changes, make for lots of excitement at our house!