I think he likes it.

Henry has been in Preschool for about a month now and from the pictures above and the feedback we're getting from his teachers, I'm pretty sure he likes it.  Como Park preschool is just a few blocks walk from our house and it has an arts and language focus so we are bombarded with dozens of art projects that he brings home each week.  He is also reading, writing letters and doing simple math problems already.  Did I mention that he'll be just three years old at the end of this month? 

Siri at 15 Months

The Stats
Height: 32 1/8 inches - 95th percentile - she's a tall one!
Weight: 24 lbs 9 ounces - 75th percentile
Head: 18 3/4 inches - 77th percentile
*I regret that these photos are not of better quality.

A fan of yogurt and eggs

Off to class, to learn, perchance to dream

Darling

Displaying her coy attitude

How's my hair, Ma?

State Fair

Living only four blocks away, the State Fair is an unavoidable must for us every year.  This year we had chicken-fried bacon with maple dipping sauce for breakfast and Henry was tall enough to go down the giant slide with Daddy.  Both kids love the DNR fish pond as do their parents.

Here they come!

Immediately ready to go again

 

LOOK! FISH!

Getting the farm experience

 

Just born calf.  I mean JUST born.

Our favorite crop art of the year.

Henry's Starts Preschool

Henry was all fired up and ready to head down the block to our new neighborhood preschool with his lunch bag and Thomas backpack.  He's going full days, three days per week.  So far, he LOVES it.  He runs in the door when we arrive and I have to beg him to come back and give me a kiss goodbye.  He is also downright mad when its time to leave.  I was worried that he wasn't ready for full days as he's only ever been home with Momma and gone to a couple hours of ECFE per week.  At the same time, he is so active and smart that I was unable to provide him with the activity and stimulation he needs.  Well, no worries here.  Hank is doing just fine.

Big Changes

We took it slow and let it happen naturally.  Despite Siri's stubbornness, she is finally weaned.  This makes me wistful.  A bit melancholy, a bit reflective.  Sad and happy at the same time.  On the one hand, I get to have my body to myself after four years of pregnancy and nursing.  On the other hand, I'm not going to have any more babies! 

Siri is very much a toddler now and Henry is a willful soon-to-be preschooler.  He started potty training in earnest on August 14th and has done great.  He rarely has accidents, but is still working on mastering the finer points. 

How did they go from this...

to this, so fast?!

The Kitchen Refresh Project

It's not like we aren't busy.  We are.  But when we found a bit of rotten wood in the kitchen earlier in the summer, that snowballed into a much bigger project.  We aren't able to remodel right now, so I am doing what I can to give our kitchen a much needed face lift with just some stripper, poly and paint.  All of the cabinets and doors were painted with a single layer of cheap white paint that, over the last decade, had started to chip and flake off.  I stripped one door and we found what we had long suspected: the solid oak cabinets are beautiful and the previous owner had just slapped white paint on them prior to selling the house.  The good news is that the paint is coming off easily.  The bad news is that that means I'm stripping, sanding and refinishing 43 doors and drawers!  The effort already looks to be paying off as we're starting to paint he cabinets a retro 50s blue to match the exisiting 50s flooring.  Next, I have to figure out how to remove wallpaper from plaster.  This project is what I call "clandestine home improvement" as I have to work on it a little at a time during the children's naptime and after they go to bed at night.  At this rate, it may not be done for several months.  Wish me luck.  Or, come over and help.  Or both!

Children's Museum

Siri listening to the wolves in the Habitot

Henry's a kitty!  Meow!