Bikes, Boats and Beach

our last weekend of the summer

we headed to Rob’s Aunt’s and Uncle’s house

my happy place

first on our agenda….the bike path that runs along the Cape Cod Canal

we started at the railroad bridge

and headed toward the Bourne bridge.

Rob ran alongside Caroline…while i stayed back with Coop…we didn’t make it very far..but we enjoyed watching the boats go by.

the first thing that happens when we get to the house…we head to the dock.

ropes, nets, buckets…..lots of exploring and lots of things to catch!

and then there are the boats….and oh ya…the cousins who drive the boats! the kiddos were in heaven!!!

Cooper shares a laugh with cousin Matt

Caroline gets a ride on the jet ski with cousin Ben

and then we headed out for a boat ride with Uncle Bucky

to Buzzards Bay….the kids loved the castle

Cooper, “there must be a really pretty princess who lives there!!”

 

and we got a water side view of the railroad bridge and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.

as the sun went down…Rob got a ride with cousin Ryan….who tried REALLY hard to throw him off…..      

after a wonderful day out on the water….we spend the next few hours enjoying the glorious sun set.

   

1st day of First Grade! so exciting!!

we got in last night about 9pm….from a weekend at the beach…we stayed until the last possible moment.

i overslept….leaped out of bed….ran to Caroline’s room…to find her glossy eyed and sleepy.

poor thing is too tired to be nervous about school!

after dragging coop out of bed…we begged him to put some pants on so that he could be in a couple 1st day pictures.

 

time for the bus!

Caroline’s friend Carly thinks i’m a little weird….but her brother thinks i’m funny! love these kiddos!!!

  off on the bus!!!

Butterfly Kisses

the weather here in the NorthEast has changed…we have gone from hot sunny summer days to cool fall like weather.

with a rainy day ahead of us we decided to take the kiddos to the butterfly museum…Magic Wings in South Deerfield.

      

Cooper was a little jumpy…..

why they would want to land on this squirmy 4year old…waving his stuffed elephant any time anything came near him..i have no idea…….but they did!

Nonna was a great sport….this one landed right on her shoulder.

and then this one landed right on her hands and opened up its beautiful wings……

so…Caroline was determined….and i was afraid she wasn’t going to leave until one landed on her.

  so we sat….and sat.

and it finally did!!

and one of the most fluttery ones landed on her head and fluttered for a minute….very cool! if you like butterflies landing on your head.

  

green summer

our library’s summer theme is Go Green!!! and the kiddos have been having fun with the idea!!

here is the list they have been given……for every 3 boxes they cross off they get a raffle ticket to win prizes…

 

we checked out this great book at the beginning of the summer and have been busy with projects!!!

   our first project was to re-use lots of containers and make this castle……they got right to work getting everything ready  

 

one of my favorite things about summer is our little garden….can’t get any greener then this!!!

we have planted eggplant,basil,beans,carrots,spinach,dill,cucumbers,zinnia, and morning glories.

everything started out wonderful…the summer has been hot and sunny! but i have re-named our garden to be …the Good, the Bad, and the ugly!!!

lets start out with the good shall we….

the zinnias and morning glories look amazing!

and plenty of basil…for pesto and more pesto!

now to the Bad…..

the eggplant…this one we had been watching for weeks….only to find it nibbled on by some kind of critter….Caroline thinks a squirrel…Cooper thinks a bear.

the morning after i took this picture….this one was eaten too!!!!

now on to the ugly…….

does any one know why our cucumbers look like this?!

we got a few great ones, but the rest look like this!

so we cherished the good ones and had them with our favorite rice vinegar…so good!

The kids have been working hard on shutting off the lights when we leave a room and turning the water off when we brush our teeth.

Cooper has learned where we recycle the paper and plastics and has made that his special job.

and today we will be donating a bag of old clothes.

what will you do today to be green?