With all the good weather we’ve been having lately we’ve been spending some quality time with our buddies Ella and Nolan (not related) and their nanny Kate. Last week we went to the stone zoo with them and looked around for the morning. They all have a good time together and it’s great to have some adult company.

For the first time we got a tremendous look at the snow leopard. It was like it was waiting for us in the morning, sitting directly at the bottom in front of the fence. We’ve been lucky to catch a glimpse of the cat’s tail before if anything. If you’re headed there, make sure to go there first. Here’s a little video, the cat was pacing and playing.

Nolan was very interested in the nature, the rocks and dirt. For the first time we also got to pet the goats and sheep in the petting area, they’d never been open before. They all loved the old rusted train cart, at least compared to the lazy sleeping cats. Guess we can see that at home.

Two of our mom’s group families (one of which is our neighbor) are moving away this summer sadly. We had a goodbye party with almost everyone in attendance and I played photographer. We’ll miss them dearly but new job opportunities have called them away. Here’s some of my favorite photos from the day.

Monday of memorial day weekend we hopped into the car and drove out to Kimball Farm. We met up with a few other families to play in the sand (volleyball court), eat, ride the pony and eat again. It was a nice way to spend the morning with a nap included on the ride home.

Last year at the Feast Of The East here in Arlington (which is this upcoming weekend this year) we tried to get Josie to ride on a pony but she insisted otherwise. This time she was itching to get on and have a ride. Jordi walked around with her and she did well.

We spent sometime just playing in the sand, looking at the people playing golf and the big hot air balloon.

Finally, we got ice cream the size of our head. They have a crazy ‘special’ ice cream with three flavors, all the sauces and toppings in one giant mess of a heap for only about $6. Much cheaper than buying even two small ice creams! Strawberry for Josie, vanilla for Jordi and mint cookie for me. We dug in and made it almost halfway through with three of us. Had to make sure Josie wasn’t looking when I tossed that in the trash! Not the healthiest day ever given lunch was mostly french fries, but we made up for it at dinner.

A few weekends ago we had Josie’s ‘big’ birthday party with all her (and our) friends. We crashed my parents house and turned the backyard into a kids playground with various slides, climbing structures, food and of course the bounce house. It was very popular with most all the kids from age 4.5 to 1.

Josie had a good time. She was a little intimidated by all the people to start with though. She spent a bit of time in the house watching before she was ready to come out and join the party. She bounced, she rolled, she climbed, she swung and she said hi to her friends as she ran by. Here’s some photos and videos of the chaos.

We also got these big huge beach balls (42″) which were a big hit with kids and adults alike. They were a blast to throw around and catch because they moved so slowly.

The beach balls combined with the bounce house were another big hit.

Some of the kids had to be dragged away from the bouncing practically kicking and screaming, but thankfully it’s our bounce house so we’ll be able to bounce again another day. Also with much thanks, everyone kept their food down while bouncing!

We had a few peaceful moments but otherwise just food and fun for an afternoon. Josie liked her (second) caterpillar cake, this one courtesy of costco. She was able to blow out her candles this year, one at a time!

In early May we had one hot weekend and hit the beach with our neighbors Christina, Chanh, Ethan and Zach. We went to Crane’s beach. Josie was excited to go, but decidedly unsure about the experience and was asking to leave after about half an hour. The water was still obviously very cold and the big kids were running around splashing. But we got her back into it with some snacks and playtime in the sand and tide pools. The boys were more excited to dig holes (although Ethan, taking a cue from Josie, delegated the task to his mom while he ate). Here’s Zach and Josie digging.

It was great having some more adults and kids around to be able to switch up who was watching who and who was around to talk to. It was a beautiful day and a real nice break from the norm, at least for those under 4 ft tall.

Later in the day, the tide came in and the beach was very narrow. There was a small amount of beach left between the open ocean and a tide pool, by the time we left, crossing it was a little dicey.

My mom’s group from the Calvary chuch friday morning support group is still going strong after about two years now, we hang out at least once a week with some people, more like once a month with those who went back to work. We gathered at Justine’s house a few weeks ago on a gorgeous afternoon to socialize and let the kids play. Josie is getting more into digging in dirt and rocks and such. She has a great companion with this endeavor with her buddy Nolan. He is a big fan of getting dirty. Lucy likes to get in on it too, but she’s a few months younger and still doesn’t quite remember yet that dirt and rocks do not go in the mouth.

Exploring the dirt, and then the rocks.

Josie and Lucy also love to share snacks. Josie is good at sharing but equally good at begging and Lucy often has some good things to share! Lucy is almost six months younger than Josie and likes to follow her and watch a lot, which makes Josie’s day to have a companion.

Finally, as with most group outings, we end by stacking the kids in a pile for a big picture!

One of my latest photography class assignments was to take photos from different perspectives to get more interesting photos. I should really share the other photos I took, we’ll get there one day! This is again at the Children’s museum in Boston, one showing most everyone under the exhibit and then one shot from underneath. These were the first things we looked at in the museum and were a big hit.

To celebrate Jordi’s birthday (and Chanh’s) we packed up this weekend and went back to the Cape Codder Resort with our neighbors and friends Christina, Chanh, Zach and Ethan.

Jordi, Josie and I drove up early Friday afternoon and Jordi crashed for some much needed sleep after burning the midnight oil several days in a row. I took Josie to the wave pool which she loved just like last year. Each time we went she was more and more ready to get into the pool immediately. She liked to kick and hit the waves.

Later in the afternoon Christina and family joined us. Our two families had connecting rooms and the kids were crazy just running back and forth and all around. It worked out really well to have the extra space to move and playmates to have fun with.

Our rooms were also really well located just upstairs from the wave pool, as demonstrated by the photo from our room!

We had cupcakes, which made me Ethan and Zach’s best friend for a few minutes. It was tough keeping their hands out of the cup cakes while trying to light them on fire though! I slightly surprised Christina by getting her name on a cup cake too since her birthday was only the weekend before!

We did a tiny bit of sight seeing around Hyannis, but mostly everything is closed this time of year except for restaurants. Jordi was especially disappointed in all the closed ice cream shops. Looking at this picture of the beach I took you almost can’t even tell it’s winter, it looks downright inviting if I couldn’t still imagine the freezing winter beach breeze while I took it!

Three months ago in the beginning of summer:

Now, a lot less baby-faced:

Now on Wednesdays I not only have Josie, but I also take care of her best friend Zach while his mom works. Zach is two weeks younger and about 6 pounds heavier and they have a blast together. It’s going really well to have him around and we both like having a day just full of fun because there’s no way I can manage to do any chores with two one year olds around. Here’s a lunch video of them sharing, if only they could skip out on sharing those germs!