Back to School!

Kisses

Ruby!

Oh Happy Day!

Welcome Ruby Ann LaPrade, my new niece! Congratulations Z, K, & D!! Since I don't have a Ruby pic yet, here's what Beau looked like when I told him about his cousin:

Smiles from the Lake

Pillows and the Pup

Another example of how hundreds of dollars of toys and games just don't hold a candle to plain old household items-- in this case, couch cushions and a canine. I think she arranged pillows and played like this for a full 45-minutes.

Beauster!

You Just Know

I wouldn't really consider myself a "blogger," but more an "uploader-of-photos-so-that-our-family-in-other-cities-are-current-with-what-the-kids-are-doing." But I just can't stop thinking about a Significant Moment in Parenting that happened last weekend and I have to share it. During the free dance at Mer's Fairy Magic Dance Camp, while 15 little girls in leotards ran around like maniacs, waving their fushcia chiffon scarves, one girl stood on the sidelines with her head hanging and seemed to be sad and feeling left out. Merritt, one of the youngest of the dancers, stopped the insane running and "dancing" to go put her arm around the girl and talk to her. I witnessed this from across the room and my eyes just filled completely with tears and I thought my heart was going to burst from my chest. A parent can hope and pray and teach and worry that their child will be a good person and then one day, you just know.