The Zoe and Silas Show

9/15/14: Hunkered down to read a stack of books with Mommy before bed. #nomoretvonschoolnights

8/19/14: Reading a spanish book from the library with Ta-ta.

6/11/14: Reading books while I got ready for work on Wednesday morning.

6/4/14: Derek has been figuring out a new weekday schedule for the summer now that the kids are out of school. On Wednesday's they started going to Little Bookworms storytime again. Last week was face painting!

5/27/14: Silas takes after Derek and is very slow to wake up most mornings. Now that school is out he has time to sit and read a book before getting ready to face the world (and his sister) at the breakfast table...

5/23/14: On Friday morning we had a craft table disaster to tackle. I enlisted the kids' help and before we knew it there was a clear space on which to "create".  We went to the Y mid-morning. When I went to the Child Watch room to pick them up I found Silas "reading" a book to two other little boys :) This was the first Friday of S&Z not being in school, so we commemorated with a Mommy lunch ! It's never too young to start teaching clean eating!

4/18/14:  Silas started off the day reading more library books. We had our 4-1/2 year old Project Play  home visit on Friday morning. It is amazing to see how much more imaginative and creative S&Z's play has become since the last visit 6 months ago! Research rules!!!

4/17/14: Reading some new library books before bed.

3/23/14: On Sunday we took it easy. In the morning Stephanie and I went to the gym and then did a little shopping before Derek went to work. Before dinner Silas' favorite electronica radio show, Jet Set Radio , came on. Of course we had to have a little dance party! S&Z enjoyed a final storytime with Auntie and Uncle on their last night in Boston.

3/21/14: S&Z were very excited to have Auntie Stephanie & Uncle Jim here to visit last weekend! They made a puppet theatre with Auntie in the afternoon, and then had some downtime with Uncle Jim while Stephanie and I did a little shopping. Best of all is having other people around to read bedtime stories!

3/5/14: A very serious Silas reading books at the library with Ta-ta. I did manage to get a picture of Derek brushing Silas' hair before school on Wednesday morning. He usually has pretty bad bedhead and this is Daddy's daily domain.

3/1/14: Our books were due on Saturday so we made another trip to the library to pick up a few kids movies and a pile of new books. The Brookline library has an amazing science section for kids - last month we got books about jellyfish, storms, and colorful animals. This month we picked up books about hurricanes and volcanoes! We are also finding some chapter book series that we like, so Zoe was excited to check out two new Cowgirl Kate & Cocoa books. In other news, can you tell what this spells?

2/12/14: Julia has been taking the kids to the library at least one afternoon per week. She sends me pictures which make me so happy! Derek was off tonight. When I got home we played our first ever family game of Uno! The kids were totally into it - as were we!

2/4/14: Another trip to the library , this time with Ta-ta.

2/2/14: Is there is a game on today or something? Derek is working so things feel pretty normal around here. The kids and I went to the Y this morning and I started my new strength training routine. I'm going to be very sore tomorrow! I told S&Z that I lifted weights and Zoe walked around the rest of the day lifting a pretend bar bell. Love that kid! Derek had already worked out 4 days this week, so he stayed home and made hummus and cauliflower rice  (my new obsession!). At the library yesterday we got a book about storms. Derek was very happy when they picked it as their before-nap book. I love this picture because it reminds me of  this one  when they were watching a real storm on the back deck, also from the safety of Daddy's lap. Per usual, Silas busted out of quiet time this afternoon, over and over, until he finally said: "But I'm not tired. My brain says it's not time to sleep because I'M NOT TIRED!". Okay, you win. Or depending on ...

2/1/14: Today is the first day of February and it is a turning point in the mental battle against winter. I find myself dreaming of winter getaways and hope to actually take one next year. For now we will settle on finding a New England resort hotel to stay in with the kids for a night during school vacation week which is later this month. I worked today and when I got home Mr. No Napper was ready to bust out of quiet time and help me start on dinner. He helped clean the mushrooms for Skinnytaste Tuna Casserole . Zoe helped us finish dinner prep after her nap and then we headed out to check out a new library. The branch is located in Brookline, so I needed to get a new library card because it is not part of the Boston Public Library system. I am so happy I asked how old kids need to be in order to get their own card, because the answer was 3 years old! Once I told S&Z they were getting their own library cards they separated the books each of them had picked into tw...

1/15/14: Reading bedtime books with Auntie Kristin.

12/30/13: Selecting a couple of new books that Grandma brought for bedtime stories.

12/22/13: My parents were scheduled to arrive last Sunday late in the afternoon. It was going to be a long day of waiting for S&Z, so we headed to the Y. After two mini-snowstorms 2 weeks ago, we've had some rain and warmer weather. And you know what rain means for a couple of 4-year-olds? Rain boots and puddle jumping! I am so grateful for how much fun the kids have playing in the Child Watch room at the Y. I can exercise and shower without feeling guilty. When I picked them up they had made a huge feast! After a long afternoon of waiting my parents finally arrived at 5pm. After dinner Grandma & Grandpa read bedtime stories. I am so grateful to have them visit for another Christmas in MA!

12/4/13: Julia had really bad sciatic nerve pain on Wednesday. Before she left S&Z went into our bedroom and got my heating pad, telling Julia that she could borrow it if she needed to. Sooooo sweet. Joanne was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday afternoon so our schedules resumed a bit of normalcy. We've been reading "The Wizard of Oz" for the last week - here is Zoe trying to find where we left off.