Meet our Newest Addition!

We've thought for awhile that KC needed another cat to play with and we'd talked about getting him a kitten next spring. But then a wonderful opportunity presented itself last week. The breeder who brought us KC had a year-old kitten she was willing to part with.

Meet Noelle. Like KC, she is a Siberian cat. Her coloration is called "colorpoint" which means her colors are primarily on her points, i.e., face, ears, legs and tail. In real life, her eyes are blue. They are very clear and reflect lots of light so it is difficult to photograph them well. She is related to KC but we haven't figured out exactly how, either a niece or distant cousin. Noelle came home this past Saturday and has hidden herself well.

KC now knows there is another cat in the house. He is mildly curious and mildly put out about it but, for the most part, is carrying on as usual. This seems to be very un-catlike behavior but then, we've always thought that KC was part dog. More on this story as it develops!

Yes, I Jinxed It!

It's been difficult getting Lyra into her crib for a big stretch of sleep ever since I made that last post. Bill's been traveling quite a bit for work and I sure miss the extra pair of hands to help with the kids at bedtime. I should know better than to post sleep improvements to the world, shouldn't I?

Two in a Row! Do I Hear Three????

Lyra has slept ALL NIGHT in her crib the last two nights! This is very exciting! We have had a hard time getting her to sleep a long stretch in her crib except between 3am and 9am. This is not a very convenient time when you have older children who have school, camp, swim practice etc. in the morning.

Anyway, Bill and I are very happy about this new development. Now if Lyra's tummy can just adjust....she is starving in the morning when she does eat and she is such a little piggy that she overflows. I really think that I'd rather deal with an extra night feeding than wash the sheets every day. But surely this will fix itself soon. And I am not quite willing to call two nights a trend. I've probably just jinxed the whole thing by posting this. But I can't help it! I have to tell the world because having her sleep this long is Such A Big Deal!

Old Sturbridge Village

We took a weeklong vacation to New England. Since the drive is so long, we spread each leg of the trip over two days so we could make the drive part of the adventure.

Is anyone buying that? OK. The real reason was that Lyra had some serious bouts of screaming in the afternoon and we COULDN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!! No, really, she was pretty good, it's just that the hour of screaming seemed like five.

We stayed with our friends, Jeff and Mary Withey, for a night on the way up and that was really fun. Then we spent a week in Maine at Linekin Bay. On the drive home, we'd meant to go at least as far as Connecticut but, again, the screaming(!) so we didn't make it that far. However, we were so lucky that our patience ran out right by Old Sturbridge Village!

Old Sturbridge Village is a living history museum that demonstrates life in a rural New England town in the 1830s. That is a not-to-be-missed excursion so we spent the night, then took our time in the Village the next day. We got home very late but it was well worth it. Tons of pictures follow. 

This is Rufus. Will and Eva got to see firsthand why chewing with your mouth open is bad manners and they actually agreed that it was disgusting. While Rufus was posing for his portrait, a chipmunk made off with a bunch of his food. 

Eva is helping grate nutmeg for a currant pie in Delia Freeman's house. The man in the background is making batter for biscuits. Notice that Eva has stolen my sunglasses. 

We were walking through a barn and heard a muffled clucking. We looked around closely and found Momma Hen in the stewpot with her chickie! There were a couple of eggs in there too. Maybe (we hope) they will hatch soon. 

Will and Eva especially loved watching the tinsmith work. We saw a potter, blacksmiths, farmers, and how the wool carding machines worked but I think the tinsmith was still the favorite. 

Will tried his hand at building one of those zig zag fences you sometimes see around farmland. 

Linekin Bay

If there is a wall, Eva wants to climb it. This is in front of the Linekin Bay Resort, a family camp in Maine, near Boothbay Harbor, where we just spent a fun-filled week. There are sailboats, kayaks, a pool, and lots of places to explore. Everyone eats in the Main Lodge so you get to know the other families there during your stay. The West lodge has books, movies, games, and a fireplace. It really was a lot of fun! 

Will had a great time in the pool. This one was salt water and Eva didn't like it but Will did. He made a friend, Robby, and they showed off their crazy jumps. Here is Will mid-cannonball. 

We took an afternoon and went to Freeport to L.L. Bean. Will and Eva wanted to read instead of shop. What a surprise. 

This picture is taken from the dock in front of the Main Lodge at Linekin Bay Resort. Isn't it beautiful?

Edie and Dave were in New Hampshire while we were in Maine. They drove up to see us on the 4th. It was so good to see them. I do believe this was the coldest 4th of July I've ever experienced. 

Will and Bill are returning from their kayak trip. Lyra and I did not attempt a boat of any size this time. 

Here is a landmark occasion, Lyra is sitting well enough to be in a restaurant high chair! And a shopping cart too! She was sitting well before but the improvement over the week we were gone was noticeable. So life is a little easier. This is good because it is going to get harder soon as she is really really trying to crawl. 

Bill took Will and Eva kayaking (individually) to Cabbage Iisland, a little island in Linekin Bay. There were osprey nesting there. Here is one standing guard while the other feeds the chicks back at the nest. 

Fun at the Witheys

We stopped by jeff and Mary's on the way up to Maine. It is always so much fun to see them and Will and Eva wished that could be the vacation. The kids are warming up Will's fishing pole. They didn't catch anything. (Whew!) 

Somehow, we end up at Jeff and Mary's every time we have a baby. Fortunately, that is not a requirement for visiting. I think we have pictures like this of all of the kids with Jeff.

Will caught a crawfish. It took several attempts before he got the guts to grab it. He brought it back to study and then released the poor terrified critter back into the wild. 

One of the things Will wanted to do on the New England trip was go to a "swimming hole." There's a creek near Jeff and Mary's. It was cold! 

Last year, Jeff and Mary took a decent family picture of us and it looks like they did it again! I like that we are standing in front of a family tree. 

Lyra's First Table Food

As you might be able to tell from the picture, Will and Eva are *even more excited* than Lyra to start her on solid food. We gave her some rice cereal and there were serious negotiations about who got to pick out the bib, feed the first bite etc. I had to show them how to do "the yum-yum train" and properly market white goop on a spoon.

Lyra actually likes the white goop. The butternut squash today was not so popular. Smart girlie....it really is better with a bit of butter, brown sugar and nutmeg. 

Eva's Gymnastics Party

Eva has never really had a birthday party with a bunch of friends; we've mostly done small celebrations with her. We were supposed to do a proper party last year but pregnancy-induced nausea and torpor killed my motivation to plan any sort of party. So, a year and two weeks late, Eva has a birthday party with her friends at the gym where she takes gymnastics! It was fun and I do believe a may be a convert to outsourced birthday party entertainment. 

Is it snack time or dress up? Seth and Harrison show that it is possible to be dashing with goatee and without. 

Those cupcakes are everywhere. I am glad we had extra because they were very good, if I do say so myself!