Izzy's ballet recital . . .

Following up on the Roman theme, this was our Roman dinner outside. I think Ange's favorite part was eating with his fingers. Everyone was ok with breaking character to roast marshmallows for dessert.

Halloween with Nonna--
Here is the costume designer with her amazing creations. She made all of Izzy's "ballet cat" costume and the helmet for Angelo's Roman general (which involved leather, glue, plume . . . ). She even made the trick-or-treat bags. Thanks, Nonna!

Ready for the Halloween parade at school.

The long-awaited evening finally arrives.

Staying in character

Rome was built in an afternoon last Sunday.

Second-to-last great day at our new favorite beach, Crystal Cove.

More pictures from our summer trip to Utah.

In Mrs. Harrison's room

Meanwhile, at home . . . it was french toast and watercolors.

I just realized these are showing up in reverse order. Woops. Go down to the morning and scroll up to them in the right order until I can fix them?

Off he goes. (sniff, sniff)

"Dad, is she going to do this every year?"

Mom, c'mon! (Chaparral, Oh Chaparral
Our voices sing thy praise . . .)

On the way to Chaparral Elementary. . .

First day of second grade! Off to a good start.

The Princess Cat. Face painting rivaled the beer line and the chicken dance at Snowbird's Oktoberfest this year.

Mountain men, and woman

Ange in the the wildflowers at Albion Basin.

Angelo hiked Catherine's Pass with Dad and Grandpa Joe.

A Day at the Beach

Ange doing karate moves at Torrey Pines

Waxin' down ma board.





That water is pretty chilly, but I like it!




Practicing "the Crane," plus Izzy digging.

Fourth of July?

We spent the Fourth in Utah with Nonna and Grandpa Thomas, Craig, Marisa, Annie, and Rosie. There were fifes and drums. There were sparklers and flags. There was a cousins' parade. There were . . . dads in drag?

(The kids made a museum of the upstairs playroom, and one of the interactive exhibits was on costumes. George and Craig hammed it up in some of Grandma Mary's old clothes.)

The kids got into it too . . .

Wrapping Up First Grade

Angelo got an award for being a "Science Star." He also got an award for amount of time spent reading/being read to at home. Here he is with his teacher, Mrs. Hohn, and Mrs. Kerns, the snake-wrangling principal.

George's Bday

We made Jamie Oliver's "Party Cake" for George's birthday. Dare I divulge the year? (Guesses, anyone?) The recipe did not disappoint.

A Little Piece of Heaven

Grammy Lynne, Grandpa Scott, and Auntie Em were kind enough to watch the kids, so George and I drove up to Santa Ynez and Los Olivos for our anniversary this year. . .

Yellow Belt

Angelo earned his solid yellow belt on testing day. He skipped a belt -- went from white belt with a black stripe to solid yellow! This sensei is one tough cookie.

Mother's Day Brunch

Izzy savored the hot chocolate at brunch on Mother's Day.

For about 15 minutes one day, Izzy took to a pink bow in her hair.

My first ballet lessons have been fun, and you can see that I'm all about grace. My favorite part was watching ballet lessons. I also enjoyed running out into the middle of the floor once in a while and then running back to my mom. Several other girls seemed to enjoy this approach too.