August, Part 1

A boy and his croc, off to explore the world

While our kitchen was out of commission, we branched out: Here's from our first-ever McDonald's family breakfast.

 Anna and Aunt Mini

We borrowed Sean's car while mine was in the shop; when we no longer needed it, they met us halfway for the hand-off, and for breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien.

"It's a shrimp!"...sculpture to adorn our shelf. 

Anna's photography (whilst unpacking the kitchen, I think.)

 Sometimes when Tom needs to go in to the lab on a weekend, Peter joins. There are many reasons to love MedI--hot chocolate on the 5th floor, the foosball, the sound tunnel, but Peter also just loves being a scientist with Daddy. Lab rules: Labcoats at all time--no exceptions. 

Just a little bit cute, I think. He brought his favorite book to read

...and read (and watched) patiently for an hour. 

Long story.

Tire jumping

Getting squeeeeshed

Chillin at the fountain after a romp

Meg came over several mornings to help me with the kids and other things. So grateful for her!

Wegmans carts. The best.

They proved to be aggressive drivers. 

Will need to work on that over the next 10 years or so. 

Here's a gem. Lest I forget someday: 

Anna likes to call me into the bathroom...and then suspiciously disappear. 

Magformer architect

Here was some good news in August: Welcome to the world, Nadia and Noemi!

warming up for their first scrimmage

After: showing me "control"

  

Playgrounding

side-seat puzzling...he can't let it go.

Peaches and Orange

Late July, 2017. Peach-picking:

 

Now, you might be noticing something askew with Peter's right ear ...

The portraits on the sofa from the previous post were taken the same morning...does he seem at all lopsided or red to you?

Well, I confess I didn't notice it on the couch; only later while picking peaches did I catch it. Peter has always had big reactions to bites, for a couple days his poor ear looked like this:

 Anyway, a good time was had by all...

Switching fruits, we headed down to dear old Orange for a sweet shower...

A little girl time with the family women at Aunt Gege's wedding shower

With the beautiful mother of the bride-to-be

...and my girl, and the old bricks of Orange Baptist Church

Garden dancing, chez Pop-Pop

Sunday Morning with Grandaddy and Oma

Lunching at yoders

Finishing out with an evening stroll on the best summer driveway with 2 of my favorite shadows.

Morning at Nana and Daideo's

Time for a pajama nature walk

Mmmm....I can just smell the fresh morning air now.  

 

Earning his keep

Happy boy on Daideo's tractor in Pop-Pop's hat

  

A Farewell to the Sofa

Once upon a time, a young couple bought a new sofa. They went all out; it was stylish (at the time...in a natural, late-70s way), the top of the line, meant to last a lifetime.  The family grew, and the sofa served them well. Here it is, a few years later. 

1-yr old Katherine and Pop-Pop

Cousin dress-up circa 1985: Katherine, Brian, Anne, Stephen, Bonnie  

The couch moved to another house, was reupholstered to reflect its status as a 90's sofa, and continued to serve the family through the late 80s and 90s, as they studied for spelling tests, watched Pete's Dragon and Star Wars, read Misty of Chincoteague by candlelight when the power went out, made decisions about new schools. It lent itself to sleep-overs, after school Saved by the Bell episodes, angry blow-outs, tv dinners, thousands of books, college acceptance letter opening, late night conversations. 

The family changed, the sofa moved again; it moved to Maryland, here and there. It settled and stayed, and so did it's owner, and soon it again belonged to a young family. 

The sofa is a little sentimental; it had to go looking up pics like this in Nana's photo album...

...and comparing them to ones like this...

The sofa aged, and it ended up in a basement where it was eventually replaced by a sofa-bed to better accommodate visiting relatives. And since 3 sofas is enough for one townhouse, and since it still had some life left in it, it was passed on to serve another family for another season of life. 

You were loved, sofa; thanks for the memories.

Now that I'm at the end of it, this post really isn't so much about the sofa, but remembering all the life it witnessed, and the changing seasons, and people it bore through them.  

And a celebration of God's grace to me every step of the way through to a new generation and his promises beyond.