Baby Bunnies

We decided to let our rabbits breed again, in hopes of ending up with a couple female bunnies we can tame better than the last set.  Since they run free in our backyard, we weren't aware of them having a litter until Andy was working out back and discovered four baby bunnies hopping around on the patio.  The kids are, of course, overjoyed!  We put them in a hutch so we can tame them.  They are getting plenty of love and attention from our kids and the neighbor friends.  Nichole and Leslie are pretty much inseparable lately, and Lucas and Chez are playing a lot, too!

friends

 

These girls are a crack-up.  They are the best of friends.  I remember when we bought our house, and we hadn't met anyone in the neighborhood yet.  Lucas was 2 and Destany was 7 months old.  We really hoped there were kids on our street. 

One day, as we started working on the house to get ready for the move, a sign went up across the street.  "It's a Girl!"  Turns out there are many little boys on our street, but only one other little girl.  These two stick together.  It may get loud (oh, the drama these two create!), but their friendship is a gift. 

And yes, they have blue hair.  It's all the rage on our street.  Not on yours???

Rest assured.  That make-up kit is a goner.  They used the whole thing in one hour, much to my delight.  There are many layers of makeup on their beautiful faces.

campfire prep

As I mentioned recently, the weekly campfires are a highlight of our week!  The kids are so excited for us to begin that they often start preparations early.  But since there is a lot to do, I don't complain.  This week, they....

hauled wood,

cut some pieces smaller,

and laid out copious amounts of junk food.

Ever the helpful baby, Brooklyn took it upon herself to break the graham crackers into lots of tiny pieces.  There were no complaints, though, as the other kids know that this ensures the opportunity to eat graham crackers for snacks, not JUST at campfire, like mommy prefers!

After a month off, Lucas was pretty stoked (ha ha, get it?) about this week's campfire.  He started getting ready at about 3pm and did almost ALL the prep himself.  He was amazing!  He raked the whole yard, swept the patio, hauled wood, and put out the table of food.  We rewarded him with a run to Trader Joe's for 'healthy hotdogs' (nitrate free, minimally processed, etc.) that he could roast over the fire for dinner.  Yum!

Funny Friday

 

 
Once a week we have a campfire in our front yard with our neighbors and anyone else who stops by.  We make s'mores and serve up hot apple cider and maybe a few beers.  It's the perfect way to relax after a long day.  (If you live in the area and want to join us, just ask me for details -- we'd love to have you stop by!)

Not surprisingly, this is our children's favorite night of the week.  They look forward to it for days, and often write up personalized invitations that they pass around the neighborhood to make sure their friends have not forgotten.  They also like to help set out the food and drinks, put out camp chairs, and get the firewood ready. 

This week, I walked into the boys' room to find this little scene.  Lucas had been reading in his room and had this bright idea that he could reach more branches on the dead bush outside his window from inside the house.  And of course he wasn't concerned with how many sticks, leaves, and little pieces of bark would be in his bed next time he needed it.  He was just excited that he'd hit the jackpot on kindling! 

What is that saying?...oh yes, 'boys will be boys!'  Well, I thank God our kiddos are all so different from each other.  It sure keeps life interesting.

....so we could tell them apart

Lucas and Chez are really into catching caterpillars these days.  A few days ago they found two caterpillars that looked the same.  They couldn't wait to show us.  And then Lucas told me, "Mom, they're identical, so we marked one of them with a marker so we could tell them apart."

evenings with the neighbors

We are blessed to live in a wonderful neighborhood, with several families with young children.  A few evenings a week we play out front, where there are spontaneous games of soccer and football, riding scooters and bikes, playing in the sprinklers, writing with chalk, and the occasional argument.  It's always an adventure!

buddies

Lucas looks forward to playing with his neighborhood friends ALL DAY LONG.  In fact, he often plans his day around the time they get home from school, finishing up his morning routines, chores, and homeschooling early enough to maximize their time together.  A day that is thrown off by errands or appointments can leave him in tears, worried he won't have time to play out front.  We are blessed to have such wonderful neighbors! 

This week, Lucas and Jonathon spent a couple afternoons playing out back in a fort.  It wasn't easy to get a good pic of them, but here is a pretty decent one.

And here is a sampling of the rest of them... 

 

 

...pretty impressive, eh?

Neighbors....friends. :)

These two have way too much fun together.... :)