Continuing the trend of late blog posts, here's what we did last week.
A co-worker of mine gave us a basketball hoop that his kids have outgrown. It's perfect for Bennett as he's still using it on the lowest height. He does ask frequently to go play basketball, but I think mostly it's Chris and I shooting baskets.
The theme for the week at school was "Beach Week" so one day they made boogie boards. Here's Bennett using it as a surfboard.
One night Kelly texted me a photo of her kids working on their Derby cars. Bennett asked to see it, and then he wanted to show me his "phone" with pictures of DJ, Davis, and Lydia. And then we FaceTimed with Kelly and he got to see some of the kids.
We got Curious George Flies a Kite from the library. (Why it's 3 times as long as the other books, I have no idea!) As I was reading it one night I noticed the license plate on the car in one of the pictures. Hmm, was this the 5th CG book that they wrote? Why yes, yes it was.
And speaking of Curious George, apparently it's very important for George to sit with you while you watch Curious George on TV.
And now for our weekend.
For those keeping track, we've now been to Sturbridge for 8 weeks in a row. Looking at their schedule for the coming weeks, they have events that we might want to go to every week except for two until November 9th. So we could potentially end up going 21 consecutive weeks. That would ultimately put our cost at less than $2 per visit. And the per person would be less than $1 per visit. Yup, that membership was definitely worth it!
Daddy got in on the cutout photo fun.
Bennett tried out the stilts. He needs practice still. Maybe he needs his own set?
On Sunday we were on our way to Nana and Grandpa's house. We had a bit of extra time so we decided to run an errand. I mentioned to Bennett that we were stopping at the store so that I could get something for his birthday party and he got very excited. And truth be told, Chris and I are getting pretty excited about his party as well. Hopefully all of our ideas turn out the way we are envisioning. The invitations are about 2/3 done and I hope to get those wrapped up this week. When do people normally mail children's birthday party invitations? This coming weekend would be a little over a month before the party. Too soon? Just right?
This post is a little late, but better late than never, right?
The Sticker Monster attacked one evening. Good thing we have so many of these stickers! They're "reward" stickers that we got a while back and haven't really used much.
Bennett then removed them from his face, threw them away, and asked for more, some of which went back on his face.
As previously mentioned, Bennett's school had race car week. So here he is in his car that he made.
"Reading" the paper one night consisted of him strewing newspaper all over the floor in a couple of different rooms. Messy, but he sure was happy!
Anyone need a cucumber? I have more plants than normal because I wanted to try making pickles, but this is way more than I can handle! Bennett and I can only eat so many of them. I did make some pickles (I'll know in a week or so if they're any good) and then I ended up giving a bunch away. And then I went back in the garden a day or so later and there were more to pick. I think I'm growing 3 different types which is why they are all different sizes.
And speaking of cucumbers, here's Bennett "peeling"a knit cucumber that I made. He doesn't play with them all that much, but I have a basket of knit vegetables that he brought outside one night.
On Saturday and Sunday Sturbridge had an event called Redcoats and Rebels. We told Bennett that there would be lots of people there in costumes. He asked if there would be a parade. Since there was a procession to the battlefield on the schedule we said that yes, there would be a parade.
So when we got there and saw these musicians at entrance, he asked if they were in the parade. Nope, but he definitely enjoyed watching them and listening to them.
Here he is clapping after a song.
We arrived shortly before opening, so we stood in line to get in. Once we got in, many of the reenactors seemed to still be getting settled. Here were a bunch of redcoats practicing marching.
We watched this group for a while as they were being inspected. Just before they were dismissed, they were told to "mill about smartly".
Bennett a bit confused by everything. Chris told him, "This is the weekend where Mummy and I are conflicted." Being Anglophiles we would normally support the British, but when we wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for the Colonists we wonder if maybe we should be supporting them instead.
There were numerous cannon demonstrations throughout the day.
And more fife and drums as well. Here's Bennett watching the performers.
Uncle Andrew joined us a little later in the day. Here he is holding Bennett as Bennett plays his own "fife". We're trying to decide if we're crazy enough to get him a real one for his birthday.
After lunch it was time for the battle. We didn't stick around too long. It's hard to understand what's going on, and it was pretty boring for Bennett. Not to mention it was long past nap time.
Plus our day was going to get even busier as we had a party to get to! There was a pool which we avoided for a while (it was slightly chilly) but Bennett really wanted to go in. Luckily Kelly was willing to go in with him. Of course shortly after he got in the water it started to rain.
And here's a blurry picture of him jumping in, just before they got out due to the rain.
And then on Sunday we just relaxed at home- mowed the lawn, vacuumed out the car (lots of raisins, cheerios, etc), took a long nap, watched some Curious George, and then a quick trip to Target.
This summer is whizzing by! How is it the end of July already? At the beginning of the summer I made a list of various potential things to do and I have a feeling we're not going to be able to do many of them.
Our garden has been doing mediocre this year. I think I got my peas in too late because we didn't have that many of them. The beans are now ready for picking, but the ones I've sampled have been pretty yucky- rather mealy. We got a number of zucchini (more than I can eat on my own and Chris doesn't like them) and now we have a whole bunch of cucumbers ripening. And again I'm faced with the issue of Chris not liking them. I think I'm going to try making some pickles.
But what makes me really happy are the carrots! After years and years of trying to grow carrots and having less than stellar results, I actually have some decent carrots this year. And there are more in the ground, so hopefully they'll get even bigger. I keep meaning to plant a second crop of them, so we'll see if that happens.
On Wednesday this past week was Derby Day at Bennett's school/daycare. They had a racecar theme for the week so we asked if they wanted to have a Derby. They were game, so we bought some car kits and Chris shaped them into simple wedges. Then on Monday the kids painted them and Wednesday was the race.
Here's Bennett's car on the red lane. He was one of the slower cars. We hadn't worried about weights for any of them, but Chris had to add some weight to Bennett's car just so that he would be able to cross the finish line. Oh well. All of the kids had fun, as did the various staff members who would walk by to watch, reminisce, or in the case of the maintenance team, race cars when they had a few spare moments.
Continuing the trend (since June 22nd) of weekly trips to OSV, we went on Saturday. The weather was perfect weather. We got a chance to do some things we don't normally do- went on a riverboat ride, saw a demonstration at the sawmill, and visited the printer.
Since we don't know the names of most of the employees we've made up nicknames for some of them. We do know some names if they have been featured in the member's magazine, videos online, etc. But instead they get names like "good farm woman" (Victoria), "other good farm woman" (Ryan), "good blacksmith" (Derek), "good tinsmith" (Phil), "head animal guy" (Rhys), and "thru-hiker guy".
So of course thru-hiker guy was working at the print shop when we visited. No one else was in there so we got to chatting, asking him if there's anything at Sturbridge that he doesn't do (parson), what he likes best (working on his own farm), etc. We told him he's one of our favorites and then I told him his nickname. Turns out, he lived out of a backpack for 10 years. He also is an expert on chestnuts, works in his fields barefoot, plows his fields by hand, and gets moody when it's time to kill a chicken. I kind of feel like we've been stalking him with everything we know, but it's really just that we visit a lot and hear snippets of conversations on various visits. We also wonder if they have started to recognize us, seeing how we visit so often. And how many male toddlers are there who wear a fedora and carry Curious George on their back?
I don't think this farmer has a nickname. I think his real name is Justin.
Ram (and lambs to keep him company) separated from the rest of the flock.
Playing Shuttlecock and Battledore.
Apparently we can't get away from the pump these days.
Sawmill in action. Or as Bennett says, "sawmill goes up and down".
On Sunday we went to the Boston Children's Museum for one last visit during our membership. We got there pretty early so it started off being not very crowded, but that quickly changed. And we realized it's way too chaotic for us. Too many people, and it seems to give Bennett a bit of ADD as he quickly runs off from one thing to another.
He got a little further in the climber, but still not very far.
Bubbles!
Bigger bubble!
If there's an opening for a face, we must take a picture.
Bennett had his picture in the paper yesterday! There was a photographer at Sturbridge while we were there on Saturday. Here's the clipping.
But let me back up...
More Daddy Daycare on Wednesday. They started off the morning watching part of the Curious George movie. Bennett sat in Daddy's lap and hardly moved.
Then it was time to go on a field trip. First they stopped at Brandeis to visit Daddy's co-workers (and help Alicia fix her lamp) and then they came to my work and we all had lunch together.
When they got to my office Bennett had his first experience walking through a revolving door. It was just like on TV/ in movies with the person continuing to walk around.
On Thursday my work had our summer outing at Kimball's. Bennett LOVED the bumper boats and we went on them three times. Going again in the future may prove slightly more difficult since the boats aren't cheap and he's not going to understand why we can't ride them multiple times. Plus we lucked out with hardly any lines.
Friday's Daddy Daycare started off with reading a pile of Dr. Seuss books in bed.
Then it was time for a field trip to Woodcraft where Bennett descided to accessorize with dust collection fittings.
Bennett also picked out his clothes and decided that the shirt made him look like a cowboy.
Other highlights of the day included Chris announcing that it was lunch time, Bennett going into the kitchen, opening the fridge, getting the jam out, and then grabbing a grape. He then ran back into the living room to announce to Daddy that he had taken a grape.
He also announced that he's had hamcheese at Sturbridge yesterday. Not sure where this came from since he hadn't been to Sturbridge since the weekend.
But speaking of Sturbridge, let's get into some more details from our visit. Saturday was their annual "Fire and Ice" day. (Well, technically they also have Fire and Ice in the winter when they celebrate the ice harvest.) There were lots of fire trucks and other fire aparatus, a bucket brigade contest, and they would be making ice cream.
While we were at home getting ready to leave, Bennett was playing with some dress up clothes. We mentioned that we were going to go to Sturbrudge and that there would be firetrucks there. He grabbed one of his firehats (apparently he has 4 of them!) and asked if he could wear it. We said sure, but swapped it for a different one with an elastic. Much easier to stay on his head, and as it turned out, also easier to carry when he wasn't wearing it.
When we got to the parking lot there were a couple of trucks for kids to explore. One was a canteen (complete with a mobile bathroom) and then there was also a more typical (at least to me) truck. Bennett climbed around the seats and up on the back.
Once we got inside there was thsi antique truck, a couple more modern ones, and some handtubs. He wasn't a fan of the siren on this one, but he did like sitting in the seat and ringing the bell.
We checked out this exhibit with a cow that you can "milk". He loves to visit this spot every time we come, and the cow has been out of order for a while. I also gave it a try and sprayed some water on Bennett, and then of course he wanted to keep spraying himself.
A highlight of the day was the bucket brigade contest. Bennett kept asking to do it, and luckily he had a chance when the contest was all over. In the first round, there was a 3 way tie with a time of 1:01. In the second round they narrowed it down to 50 seconds, and then in the final round, I think the winning time was 47 seconds. Wow those people were quick! And it was one of the teams of teenagers that won.
There also was a chili contest with various local restaurants supplying the chili. The Publick House (which is where we had our wedding reception) won!
After the teams finished up the bucket brigade, Bennett and some other kids decided to give it a try. Or at least they had fun dipping buckets (or hats) into the water, spilling some on themselves, and emptying tiny amounts into the barrel. Good thing they weren't being timed.
As this was going on I noticed the photographer taking pictures of the kids. I think initially Bennett didn't have his Fire Chief hat on, but I put it on him and he kept playing. After a little while the photographer came over and asked for names/ages. He mentioned what paper he was with and that there would likely be a slideshow on the website later that day and that he wasn't sure if it would be in the Sunday paper or not.
Sure enough, that evening I found the online slideshow. Bennett's in there and all of us are in the background of another photo as well. And then on Sunday I found the article online. I had meant to look for the paper when I was at the grocery store in the morning but I forgot. In the afternoon we walked to a couple of local drugstores but they didn't have them. I guess we were just out of their circulation area.
So after Bennett went to bed I went out to a grocery store in a nearby town and found a copy of the paper. Sure enough, there was Bennett! Here's a link to the article which is posted above, but now you'll actually be able to read it. If you scroll down a bit you'll see the photo of Bennett, and you can click to see it larger, as well as another link to see the slideshow with a few other photos.
The other fun from Saturday was hearing the ice cream truck. Bennett and I went out and I got him a popsicle. This thing proved to be very messy! He had red stained hands, face, legs, and even a dribble down his chest.
Before
After
On Sunday we had friends over for food and games. We started off with brunch- pancakes, donuts, cinnamon rolls, fruit. Yum! Then we headed outside for a water fight. The goal was to get Jason soaked, and I'd say we accomplished that. (For some reason we always pick on Jason, seen here with the hose.)
Bennett had fun, but he didn't quite understand why people kept taking water out of his pool.
After the water fight we went in to dry off/ change clothes and play some more games. The kids played with Bennett's toys and the adults played Dicecapades.
At the end of the day we asked Bennett what he liked best. He said "playing choo choos with 'BJ' (DJ) and Davis" He also had lots of books read to him by Caitlyn. Thanks for being such a good sport Caitlyn. The boy certainly loves his books!
