Lily channels Cyndi

So it turns out that "after" pictures of the mulch pretty much aren't impressive. It looks like a normal house now. No "ooooohs! or Aaaaaaaahs!". So I'll spare you.

We've been busy this week. I have officially ruined my good work at working out. I got sick last week and so didn't do 5 days of exercise...the beginning of the week was a wash. But I decided that since I was sick and not just lazy, I'd give myself a one week extension rather than starting the 6 weeks all over. But after mulching last weekend, this week I was not sick...just lazy. So despite Jeff trying his hardest to shame me into it...I have slacked off. I will start again...maybe after vacation. In the meantime, I am still not snacking and trying to eat reasonably.

And in the meantime, we've had a busy week. Jeff only worked 3 days, since he had Monday off and took Friday off for Andrew's last day of school (I volunteered at the last day carnival, so I needed a kid-wrangler). Tuesday we had friends over to play at our house. Read: frantic cleaning and cooking in the morning to eliminate all pieces of mulch that had permeated every crack in our house and provide some nourishment to the boys visiting. Wednesday was pretty normal, with our visit to the My Gym included. I remembered to bring my camera for once...and know what? Not worth it. I just couldn't get them to stop moving...which I suppose is the point and all...

Mikey on one of his 1,000 trips up and down the carpeted ramp. Seriously...I should save several hundred dollars and just put one of these things in my house. With a carpeted ramp and a ball pit, I would literally never see my children.

Germ incubator...I mean, Ball pit.

Mike desperately wanted in...but I when I put him in he desperately wanted out. Repeat 15 times. I don't know what he thought was in there, and I don't know why he thought it would be different each time he was placed in there. I thought this would be a cool shot of the two kids in the mirror. But they refused to look at me or each other or the mirror. So instead I got the back of their heads, my headless body, and some stranger and her kid. Lovely.

Move over Annie Lieberman.
"Stop and smile, Mike."

Um. No. Must climb ramp one more time.

Lily "jumps" on trampoline. Following in her big brother's uncoordinated footsteps, Lily never actually leaves the ground with her jumps. Which makes it safe to put Michael on there with her...although he doesn't really enjoy it...just kind of sits there confusedly wondering why the ground won't stop moving.

Seriously. Can we look at the camera even now? Nuh-uh.

Tuesday night was Andrew's "Moving On" performance. One of my friends came to the house to watch Michael and Lily, so Jeff and I got to go and sit in the front row. Yippee! The first performance that I could enjoy without trying to keep Lily quiet and Michael fed and the camera pointed in the right direction and the diaper bag from falling over, etc etc. And, Oh! How far Andrew has come. He is leaving pre-school so much more confident and social and outgoing. I love this boy!

Taking after his mother's stellar posing style.

Getting ready to do his class's dance. Andrew told me afterward that he told Allison (his dance partner...little Shirley Temple), "Don't be silly. We want to show the audience how good we are, not how silly we are." He takes everything so seriously...

Andrew fanning a giant scarf for another class performance. At one point he turned and looked at me, smirked and raised his eyebrows as if to say, "Can you believe I'm cool enough to do this?"

There he is, back row. It's easy to find him...he's the giant. Jeff was in shock at how small and immature other kids Andrew's age are. You do just kind of get used to what you know...

And then we've just been enjoying the nice cool spring weather. Here is Lily singing a song. This morning while I was face painting at Andrew's end of the year party, Jeff and Lily were hanging out. Lily fell off the couch at one point and Jeff caught her. She said thank you, and he started singing Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time, "If you fall, I will catch you/ I'll be waiting...../ Time after Time."

Here is Lily's version.