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(Isn't that the weirdest guidebook cover you've ever seen?)
Kris is in Iceland with his dad right now. Well, actually he's not there anymore. He's on his way back at the moment, which I'm glad about. They haven't had any travel difficulties, which is ironic considering the fact that nearly all of Europe is closed down due to volcanic ash.
They planned this trip long ago--months before there was any hint of volcanic activity. It was purely just bad luck that the day they were flying out was the day after the big eruption. Crazy stuff.
But they've had a good time, and hopefully Kris will come back with some fun photos that will be posted here.

Grandpa had a few hours to play with Max before they left, and hopefully will have another few hours before he goes home tomorrow. Max is loving it.

::school pictures::

What's better than your kid's school pictures? Why, school pictures with YOU in them of course!
Max's school held a couple of "boy" events in the last month or two--a father and sons and a mother and sons.
The one that I went to was reptile themed. They had a guy there that brought tons of reptiles that the kids got to learn about and hold. I think I may have actually posted about that. The one Kris went to had a magician. Max loved it and Kris said it was pretty funny.
But seriously it doesn't get any more hilarious and cheeseball than these photos.

Isn't that the craziest backdrop you've ever seen? And seriously, if I was sitting next to a tree all full of snakes in real life I would not be striking a "glamour shots by Deb" pose ("Kay, hold still right there. Now, just imagine you're weightless, in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by tiny little seahorses.") I'd be running and screaming.

This one is pretty hilarious too. Mostly Max though. You'd think the kid had never had his picture taken before--or maybe he's just training to be the star of Awkward Family Photos. Who knows.
Pretty funny stuff.

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What can I say--the man loves his cars!

The other day he told me that he just LOVES cars right now--maybe even more than legos. Woah, that's heavy.

This shot was totally candid, not even slightly staged. This is how we found him at about 10PM the other night. What a funny little guy.

Happy Birthday to Grandma

This video pretty much speaks for itself. This is for a great mom and grandma. We just wish we were a little closer so we could celebrate with you today.

Love Kris and Ginna and Max

::odd::

Here is a very odd scene that I happened across sometime last week. I'm just not sure what's going on here.

Any ideas?

::another project::

This one turned out pretty darn cute. I made it a few weeks ago for a friend's new baby.
I took the little hippo pattern I've made many times before and modified it so he looked all sleepy like the puppy we made earlier. I would've just made a puppy, but I still can't figure out how to knit well enough. Someday I'm sure.
Anyway, sleepy hippo needed a blanket. So I knitted/crocheted him one.
Max said he needed one--just like everything that I make.
So what do you think?

::egg hunt::

On Saturday we had a big easter egg hunt with a bunch of our friends. I'm happy to say that not only do we have enough yard that we could host this year, but the weather cooperated beautifully. It was sunny and lovely and a great time.

I made lots and lots of sugar cookies for the get together. Max was really helpful this time and put the sprinkles on very carefully and well. I think they turned out pretty cute.

We scheduled it for in between conference sessions. Sessions are at such weird times out here--starting at noon and then again at 4. So everybody came as soon as they were done with the first session at 2.
When everybody arrived I sent the dads out to hide the eggs that everybody had brought. When I walked out to see how things were going I was very amused to see the trampoline looking like a shoe and sock store.

The kids were having a total blast on it.
It was fun to see all the colored eggs dotting the yard, and the dads hiding the eggs.





Needless to say, the kids were super excited and raring to go.

Ready, set, go!!








Once all the eggs were found (which really didn't take as long as it should've, considering how many we had!) the kids sat down to count their spoils, to feast and trade.
I think they were having a good time, what do you think?


While the kids were busy the grownups chatted and snacked and hung out. It was perfect.



We had a great time. It's nice that we have good friends we can be with on holidays like this, when we're especially prone to miss our parents and brothers and sisters, and little ones are missing their cousins. It's like we're a big adoptive family out here, and it's great.
We'll miss everybody when we go and when they go. But for now, there's always Rex in pink bunny ears. That makes everything ok.

::scenes from last week::

We survived the historic flooding here in RI with nothing but some inconvenience. We were supposed to keep our sewer use low for a few days (no showers, dishwashers, clothes washers, flush the toilet "only when necessary"--yuck). I never appreciate that stuff enough until I can't use it.
We were also kind of stuck--most of the roads out of Warwick got closed at some point, including the freeway.
But though it took Kris two hours to get to work one morning, he got there. And now the roads are all open, yay!
Here are a couple of scenes from last week:

National Guard guys standing at the corner of one of the streets in Warwick. They were all over the place with their hummers and trucks, directing traffic and keeping people safe.

A lake, submerging a freeway exit. Lucky for me I could get on there, but nobody was getting off. Isn't it crazy?

And last but not least:

Grandma Kathy sent Max a new "car quilt" to add to his current collection. It's a race car track and he loves it. She sent it just in time. We were trapped inside by the rain and the flooding, and after monday Max's school was cancelled for the whole week. So it was nice to have some new entertainment that wasn't on the TV.


I wish I could have gotten some interesting and spectacular pictures of the flooding, but it was next to impossible to get to any of the really flooded areas. Plus, I'm not that dedicated. I'd rather stay warm and dry. And luckily now for us out here, the sun is shining and it's warm. Hopefully it'll stay that way so everybody can dry out.

::happy easter::

Happy Easter from us here at our house.


It's been a wonderful weekend. If only every weekend could be like this!