One week ago

One week ago, I was sitting in my office and heard someone across the hall say "Oh my God.  Have you heard about what happened in Boston?"  We got together and read the little bits of news coming from the Boston Marathon.  I had two good friends down there - I checked on Facebook and saw that they confirmed they were safe.  Their kids (one is Noah's best buddy Ben) had been on the Cape with relatives while Lauri and Jen were at the race. Relief. 

Here is their story: http://www.wabi.tv/news/39308/boston-marathon-runner-finish-line-volunteer-from-old-town-speak-out









The rest of the week I watched my friends in the Boston area through Facebook as the story unfolded.  Katie, a former student, lives in Watertown and took photos out the window while she spent her day inside during the lock down.  Mark and Lisa had tickets to the Bruins game on Friday evening.  It was cancelled and they returned on Saturday to a safer Boston - but a changed Boston.  She took a bunch of great photos and they tell their story on Facebook.

I am still working through my feelings - most of them have to do with how very fragile this life is.  What we love can be taken away in a second.  Usually my head always goes back to how important it is to live in each moment: not spend too much time thinking about stuff that has already happened, or wishing about things that haven't happened.  I need to focus on how truly wonderful each of my regular, routine days are.  I get to see things through two new sets of 6 year old and 2 year old eyes.  I get to work with college students as they figure out how to be a student and adult in an environment away from what has been familiar for 18 years.  It's good work. 

On Saturday, Noah, Eli and I went on campus to "run" in the Healthy High 5K.  It was a wonderful day - gave us a chance to see friends and gather with other people in a way to have a race experience that was filled with joy, life and celebration.  It felt good.  Here I am with the little red wagon crew (I stood out like a sore thumb - the woman walking/running a 5K pulling a red wagon behind her with 4 little boys).  You see now why I put run in quotations! 

Noah, Ben, Jeremy and Eli in the wagon

Noah loved it!  I was holding him back, so he went on ahead with Ben.  They finished with a great time - Ben's Mom Lauri was at the finish line and got them snack and Gatorade while I finished the race with the wagon.  Half way through, Eli wanted to "run" the race, too!

 

Noah showing off his race shirt and medal.  What a big boy!

Eli checks under these turtles in the garden for worms and bugs every day.  He calls them "wumms."

So we celebrated.  Saturday evening we played outside too late when we should have been in the bathtub.  We had big, messy ice cream cones along with our cucumbers and dip.  We got into bed and snuggled and I felt so blessed - so lucky - to be safe and warm and have my two little boys right here with me.
My heart aches for little Martin Richard and his family.

I'll leave you with Eli the hockey golfer.  He enjoys the wider surface of a mini hockey stick to get the balls where they need to go!  Super cute. 

 

Wasn't it just January?

Well, spring is sneaking its way into Orono, ME.  True, the calendar says that it's spring but it's a much more subtle than that.  We get a few brave crocuses that pop out of the ground on a sunny day, and then the next we can get something like this:

It looks so pretty, but really, by March, we are so darned sick of the snow we can't even enjoy it.  Well, I can't.  The boys had fun. 

I'll pop in a few more photos that still have snow in them and then I promise things start to look a little less like the North Pole. 

Noah and I are having so much fun discovering the trails within the Orono Land Trust that surround our house.  There's a great video segment about the trails here, too. 

There's an entrance to the trail right across the house.  We can go right and hike up hills, left to see the porcupine poop tree.  I'll have to get a photo of that one next time.

Noah by the Big Old Tree.  The Big Old Tree is a symbol of the OLT

I can't wait for warmer days and playing outside without boots.  

Eli is quite a conversationalist these days.  I am in love with "I lubbu"  I lub bu.  It's sweet and we've all started saying "I lubbu" to each other instead of the much longer and over used "I love you." 

He's started going into an empty room and closing the door when he needs to poop in his diaper.  I think that this is a clear signal that it's about time to talk potty training!  I don't work during June or July this year (something new and foreign to me!  No more 16 hour days with UB students!) so I will have some time for spring projects (aka hanging out with my favorite boys).

Fell asleep in the car last weekend.  I put him in the livingroom and he slept for 2 hours.  Sweet little guy!

My hiking buddy.

Easter was a beautiful day.  We all went to church in the morning (Auntie Lisa and Uncle Mark, too) and then Auntie Denise, Uncle Ernie and Curtis joined us for Easter dinner.  We had a baked stuffed haddock recipe that is a keeper, along with salad, asparagus, rice and of course - dessert!  Auntie Lisa made yummy carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting. 

An Easter Egg Hunt in Maine.  Colorful eggs on brown, muddy grass. 

What is it with boys and sticks?  Even on Easter Sunday????

Noah is reading like crazy.  It's so much fun - of course he is finding words EVERYWHERE and feels like he is unlocking one mystery after another. I love that he's reading some of Eli's books to Eli at bedtime. 

Noah also continues to love his art class with Valerie. We've got him signed up for a spring soccer league that he's looking forward to: the Easter bunny even brought him some shin guards! 

We are crossing our fingers and toes that the house at 10 Old Mill Road sells this spring.  You can imagine that paying an extra mortgage and oil bill each month isn't comfortable....so if you have a "sell this house" dance that you do, keep us in mind.  We love our new home, but boy!  Won't it be nice to only have ONE mortgage payment. 

Auntie Lisa and Uncle Mark gave Noah bean a new bike for his birthday!  Last weekend he was able to take it for a spin.  It has something that he has been dreaming about: hand brakes.  "Eat your broccoli so that you can grow big and strong and ride a bike with hand brakes some day."  Check out how big he looks!

 And other photos....

Lots of light sabre duels in this house.  Boys crazy about Star Wars!  All the boys :)

Eli and Mark read

Snuggles with Auntie and Fluff