Autumn

“Autumn is the eternal corrective.
It is ripeness and color and a time of maturity;
but it is also breadth, and depth, and distance.

What man can stand with autumn on a hilltop
and fail to see the span of his world
and the meaning of the rolling hills that reach to the far horizon?”

–Hal Borland

Aidan's favorite book

Popular Science, and 600 Pieces

YESTERDAY...
We played at the lake with cousins. He must have played hard because even his beloved Popular Science magazine couldn't keep him awake on the drive home.

Another really cool thing about yesterday was the 45 minute conversation we had about evolution, extinction, and the Earth. He is also fascinated with "outer space" and dinosaurs and about how we become who we are. I adore these conversations and hope to have many more of them. My son is generally pretty scatterbrained, so I am always shocked when he actually remembers what I tell him - that's how I know he's really interested in something. 

TODAY...
Neither of us felt like doing much of anything outside. Miraculously, I found the instructions to this off-brand Lego contraption, so we were finally able to put it together - all 600 pieces. This was a whole lot of fun to build with Aidan, but I seriously question the 5+ rating on the box. Sure, he's not going to choke on the pieces, but I am doubtful that there are many five year olds capable of putting this thing together on their own.

We're busy with lots of big changes, but it's been a while since I've posted an update, so this is the best I have. I'm definitely loving this new stage of Lego building, having spent a large portion of my own childhood building "theme parks" out of them (before they came with directions). 

Onward!

Funny Signs of NOLA

Taken during my post-Memorial Day trip with my grandparents to New Orleans, in celebration of my 30th birthday. Enjoy!

AND if you happen to be in NOLA, run over to Dat Dog and have yourself one of their fabulous creations. Their Crawfish Hot Dog with Etoufee sauce was LIFE CHANGING! Awesome staff, too!

Happy 5th Birthday, Aidan!

My Little Circus Performer

Aidan did a GREAT job at his very first set of performances at Circus Juventas, debuting as a little sailor in the Toddler program. Though he's been doing this for over 2 years, this was his first show. He totally hammed it up for the audience, and definitely had a blast. He's excited to move onto the Kinder program this summer. Below, here is a video from his very first performance. Please excuse my terrible video skills - I clearly need to improve. 

And his final performance, lovingly filmed by Uncle Booke while I ran the spotlights. 

While Aidan performed in the Purple Show, I ran spots for the Yellow Show and rigged the Blue Show, so I didn't really have the opportunity to take much video of the other acts, let alone watch the show. I did have tickets for the last Purple performance today, but since they needed another person on spots (and I do so love torturing kids with the over-sized flashlights), I agreed. I did manage to get a couple of videos when I wasn't spotting, moving around mats, or running the spot lights. Enjoy!

Bungee Trapeze

Cloud Swing, Mexican Cloud Swing, and Swinging Trapeze

Great job to all the performers and volunteers for the May Shows - see you this summer for Oz!

Bipolar Weather

I think Mother Nature is a little confused this year. It seems She simply cannot figure out what to do with Spring. Observe:

4/23/2013 - Lots of fresh snow and 30 degrees. 

4/26/2013 - 72 degrees and sunny

Almost all of the snow melted, and we could swim at the lake!

Five glorious days of sunshine and summer weather! And then...

May 1, 2013 - Proof there is green grass under the impending snow. 

May 2, 2013 - 8-11+ inches of fresh snow, 35 degrees. 

[Also worth noting, friends 40 miles west of us didn't get any snow. What gives?]