Cam thinks he is 5

Cameron turned two recently but he still says "fie" when you ask him how old he is. On his birthday we went to the zoo. It was a little rainy but still busy. The highlight??? for Sam at least was seeing the big gorilla eat poop. I liked seeing the young tigers and it was so long ago that I can't remember what Cameron liked the best (snacks probably). I am still behind is posting our recent events. It was nice to have Hill and Tom and their girls with us. We had such a busy day (zoo, driving, baseball) that Cameron was too tired to eat any of his cake. He did have fun opening his presents. He is kind of a monster sometimes but we sure love having him in our family!

One day with Hill we drove a long way to play at this cool park.

Addy playing hide and seek in the maze.

Elsie practicing her steps.

Flying off to go sky diving.

Racing!

Gettin' dizzy on the tire swing.

Big 5

When Sam came in the morning of his birthday he said, "Mom, I'm five now. Look! I can run faster!" He could not wait for this birthday to come. He is looking forward to Kindergarten and other things bigger kids get to do.

After school we went to lunch with the Billings and Hill, Addy and Elsie. It was a real party. They were so nice at Chick-fil-a bringing out balloons and cows for everyone and ice cream too. Later in the day Sam got to open some presents. He was not surprised when he opened his light saber (because he had found it the day I bought it), but he was still excited. The headlamp was also a gift-trying to be just like Dad.

That night the neighborhood kids gradually gathered in the yard so Sam got a party after all. We sang and had cupcakes and the kids had a great time playing together. We are so blessed to have Sam in our family. He makes us laugh everyday. Happy Birthday Sam!

Hangin' Out

Hill and her girls came to visit us last week. We have done so many things, I have a million pictures to go through. Here are a few of the kids just playing in the yard.

Still a boy...

Em at the E.M.

Em came out to visit us this weekend and we had a great time.  Even though we missed the rest of her family it was fun to go places with just the two of us.  So, thanks Matt and Vince for taking over the kids!!!  After I picked her up from her red-eye flight, we headed into DC and went to the Eastern Market.  (It is not ideal for large families so we haven't gone there in a while.)  The market building had a big fire not long ago and they are rebuilding it, but everyone was still set up around it just like normal.  They have built a temporary building for the businesses that used to be inside.  

We went in to eat breakfast at The Market Lunch.  The lady gave Emily that hardest time about her order.  It went something like this:

Em:  "I'll have the Two Egg Plate and an order of French Toast" (which comes with potatoes and toast per their sign)(Em and I were planning on sharing the french toast, in case you are wondering why Emily was ordering such a big breakfast.)

cashier:  "Do you want anything with the eggs?"

Em:  "Doesn't it come with potatoes and toast?"

cashier:  "The Egg Plate comes with potatoes and toast."

Em:  "Yes, that's what I want"

cashier:  "Just two eggs with french toast?"

Em:  "No, the eggs with potatoes and toast and an order of french toast."

cashier:  "If you want the Egg Plate, it comes with potatoes and toast but if you want eggs with french toast that is different."

This went on for a few more circles until she got it figured out.  I ordered second so I made sure I said it loud and clear.  Then when we got down the line, this lady was looking at us and shouting out orders.  I thought she was talking to us so I waved my hand as if to say "that's our order" but she wasn't talking to us.  She was yelling at her cooks.  I thought she was funny so I snapped a picture as sneakily as I could.  

After breakfast we walked all over the market looking at jewelry, art, produce, and flowers.  Then we headed to the National Gallery, and after that we got a little lunch in Shirlington.  I can't even remember the last time Em and I did something like that-it was really fun!

To see some lovely shots of Em go over to my photo blog!

Freezing Ferry

We visited Harpers Ferry with Missy and Ru a couple of weeks ago on one of Matt's Monday off.  It was a cold day and we about turned into icicles as we walked across the bridge.  It is a lovely little town and probably even more enjoyable in mild weather.  We had fun being together and on our way home we stopped at Five Guys for warm hamburgers and fries.  

Cherry Blossom Time!

It is one of my favorite times of the year in DC. The trees were beautiful and we were able to walk around the whole Tidal Basin. Pictures of the cherry blossoms never do them justice, so you'll all have to come and visit us next year so you can see for yourselves. It was another chilly spring day but as the morning went on it warmed up and was beautiful and sunny. It was fun to be with Missy and RuLynn. I didn't have all the boys with me which made it easier, but I like to share days like that with them all, so I missed Nate and Spence a bit. Would have like to have Matt there too.
We thought about going to the fireworks last night or maybe going in this morning for another walk but I think we were all too worn out from the hectic game schedule yesterday. I'm happy that basketball is over. They enjoyed it but now we are starting baseball for Spence and soccer for Nate and Sam. Cam continues to be the troubled spectator.

This is the view of the Jefferson Memorial from the FDR side.

I thought this picture was so funny.  He was pulling all sorts of faces for me.  I PROMISE, he does not realize what he is doing with his finger.

The blossoms grow right out of the tree trunks.