new baby

So, here's the story.  And many of you FBers already heard it, but perhaps not the details...

I got my motorcycle license.  I did a weekend class and rode a bike for about 16 hours that weekend.  It was fun and challenging and tiring and I really liked it.  We rode 150s.  Now, I don't really know what that means, other than they are *very* small (manageable) bikes.

So, why I thought it was okay to try to ride Jay's bike is really beyond me.  In fact, I got on it and said to myself:  "self, there is no way this is a good idea."  But I tried.  And I failed.  It's a way big bike and not-at-all manageable for me.  I made it to the end of the driveway and when I stopped, put my foot down to stop the bike, it was too heavy and the bike and I went down.  On my arse (I had a nice bruise for more than a week) I went, and on it's side the bike went.  LUCKILY, the neighbor was out weed-whacking and came over to help me lift the bike off the ground (it took both of us to lift it).  He turned it around for me and I drove back home and parked it.

The whole family was in the car within an hour, headed out to look at more appropriate motorcycles for me to drive.  Well, you'd think all dealerships would be open on Memorial Day, but that wasn't the case.  Volkswagen was open though.

And I came home with my dream car:  VW Jetta SportWagen TDI.  Turbo.  and Diesel.  and panoramic sun roof.  yes, panoramic.  It's decked out and beautiful and I love it.

I will re-learn how to drive a motorcycle next summer, but for now I look for any excuse to drive my car.

road trip to CT

listening to tunes.  nine hours in the car...

serious nap time

three Jewett boys, walking through the fields

We made a road trip to Connecticut at the beginning of the month, to attend the wonderful Kate Bronson's high school graduation.  It was... hot, but a great weekend.  The Bronson's have a beautiful home, and Choate Rosemary Hall sure knows how to do graduation-- commencement speaker was Seth Meyers!  We ate good food, did some hula hooping, bon fire with fire works, bruins, red sox...  Thanks to Joanne and Tan for hosting us!!

boy update

spence

ben all geared up in catcher's gear

big brother reading to little brother

Why, yes, it has been a while...  These are some recent pictures of the boys, and I'll work backwards from here and post a few more...

Ben played baseball this season and *really* enjoyed it (so much better than T-ball last year).  The coaches were great and the boys all got to cycle through different positions each game.  Yesterday was the last game of the season and Ben was very busy at first base.  Despite just getting over a couple of illnesses, he had a great time.  He was chosen as "player of the game" and the team went out for ice cream afterwards.

Spencer got to watch quite a few of Ben's baseball games, though he definitely preferred the school playground and his best new friend, Caroline.  Unfortunately, most of the Saturday games were in the early afternoon... nap time... so Spence didn't get to stay for the whole time.

School is out for the summer!  The first day of summer vacation what did we do?  Well, the boys were all sick!  Not a good way to start things out, but (knock on wood) everyone seems to be feeling better now.  The pollen is THICK right now and Ben seems to be pretty affected (hoarse voice & red eyes), but it didn't stop all three boys from swimming today.

yoga on indian rocks beach

the boys doing tree poses

me in a backbend

beach babies

We had a couple of rainy days while we were at Indian Rocks Beach, so we made the best of it by doing some yoga in the rain...

Florida trip part 2

boys at a park

phillys spring training baseball game- me and B

the boys at the pool where my parents were staying

digging in the sand (we spent a lot of time doing that)

Florida trip

yoga mat on the deck of our studio apartment

palm trees

clearwater beach sunset

clearwater beach

fun at clearwater beach

boys at clearwater beach

Finally, a blog update!  Due to some technical difficulties with my photos, an update has been delayed, so there's quite a few photos to post.  Jay was in Florida for April and May, so I took the boys down for an extended vacation.  We stayed in a little studio apartment in Clearwater Beach for the first week we were there.  We were on top of each other, but luckily we moved to a larger apartment for the remaining (almost) three weeks.

misc

It's been warm enough to do a little biking

He's a bed hog.  But oh, so sweet.

Gabby really wants to be an outside cat!

lake

I feel so blessed to live in such a beautiful place.  And that my boys have the lake and the woods to play in daily.  Lucky, lucky us.

gabby

Gabby has certainly made herself at home and has become a wonderful addition to our family.  She and Gilbert love to wrestle and snuggle, and both the boys enjoy picking her up and snuggling with her.  Gabby puts up with a lot, and she is a very loved girl.

snow storm, take 2

S & I trudged up the unplowed driveway to meet the bus

boys got pulled home from bus stop on sleds

S kept falling over (on purpose) in the snow

Ben has been awesome about taking the bus home a couple/few days per week & Spencer and I enjoy walking up to the end of our road to meet the bus.  Two times recently we've taken up the sleds so the boys could be pulled home from the bus stop in the new snow.

Spencer's 3rd birthday party!

at the table with brother & cousins

He got his pink cake!!!

getting help putting the blocks together

this opening presents thing is pretty fun!

Spencer turns three tomorrow (!!) and we had his birthday party over the weekend.  Spencer thought the whole thing was pretty cool- especially opening presents.  He woke up the next morning and asked where "his people" were, wondering why the party had to be over.

harley

This dog was my comfort on so many occasions.  When I was living alone, a friend of mine came to my house (very unexpected) late at night & Harley sensed danger, so he climbed on top of me while I was in bed.  He laid all of his weight on me and emitted a low growl towards the door. I have no doubt that he was protecting me.

Another time, when Jay and I were renting a house one winter, a storm blew the front door open in the middle of the night and the cats escaped.  Harley came into the bedroom and nudged me with his nose until I woke up and followed him out to see that the door was open.

He rode cross-country with us when we drove to California, and flew from CA to ME back to CA (that last leg included a delay that caused the airplane to turn around, back to the airport so Harley and I could get off the plane-- we were 47th in line for take-off and the airline didn't want Harley to be on the plane that long...) What adventures!

Sure, he got into porcupines, and he was Houdini when it came to escaping, but that dog made me so happy for 13 years- even when he went to live with my parents once our boys came along.

Three years ago today we said good-bye to Harley-Man and I miss him every day.

Love you, Doggie. 

more from our snowed-in weekend

Spence made a play Doh plow on his truck

Ben made a silly putty beard on his face

Enjoying cookie dough.  Such good helpers!

Serious SORRY! tournament happened

Cookies

our day vs. Jay's day

The "mountain"

The right side is Jay's side.  Yes, I shoveled that.  Yes, he owes me big time.

Spence tried to enjoy it outside, but it was just too windy!

Jay's view this morning.

This is what Jay was doing while I was shoveling his side of the barn.  Yes, he owes me.

There's quite a difference between our little haven in Maine and where Jay is right now-- Clearwater, Florida.  He had to make a short, impromptu visit there in order to be prepared to start his anesthesia rotation there next month.  So, while he was strolling the beach, the boys and I were braving the craziness of this storm to plow a swath big enough so he can drive in the driveway when he arrives home tomorrow!  His flights were originally scheduled for today, but he was able to change his reservations easily enough to tomorrow.  Let's hope he gets home safely and quickly tomorrow so we can go on with the plans for Spencer's THIRD birthday party tomorrow afternoon!