He Walks and This and That

Exciting news. Mitchell is walking. Here he is, strutting his stuff, like Frankenstein. Mitchell officially became a walker while we were vacationing on Nantucket. Thanks to Grandma, we were able to hob nob with the gazillionaires who holiday on this idyllic island.

We learned, watched and talked a lot about the different ways to get to Nantucket. We took the traditional, or as Owen says the "conditional", ferry as opposed to the car ferry, fast ferry or an airplane. The journey to and from the island was definitely the highlight of the trip for Owen. For the adults it was driving a Jeep on the beach and watching seals swim along the coast line.

We stayed in this beautiful house and dreamed about owning our own multi-million dollar vacation home. We went on long walks, rode our bikes, and spent lots of time at the beach. Minus having a full-time nanny in tow (essential for any Nantucket trip), it was the perfect family vacation!

Our favorite past time was taking family photos where one or more child was not looking at the camera and/or making a funny face. Well at least the adults are looking good.

Exhibit A 

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

But the fun doesn't stop there. The entire month of June was a flurry of activity. We traveled to Florida, went on an air boat ride through the Everglades, saw an alligator, and the boys attended their first Bat Mitzvah!  

We even had a visit from cousin Holly and Owen was very happy. 

You Are My Sunshine

Yesterday was a big day. Owen graduated from the Peanut Room and is now a Sunshine - officially a preschooler. The ceremony had all the pomp and circumstance you would expect at an event for three year old's - songs, dinosaur hats made of construction paper and other art masterpieces. There was even an after party with snacks, balloon animals, face painting and a bouncy house - aka, three year old heaven. Here are some more pictures.

Proud Papa and the Graduate 

Sweet Peas Village Class of 2015

Owen and his teacher, Miss Brandi

The Rhode Island Linkers

Congratulations Owen! Hey, now that you're in preschool, I think it's time to start eating vegetables and going to bed without a fuss. Okay? I won't hold my breath.

First Bike Rides

Look at these lil' dumplings! Now we can tell them that they both fell asleep during their first bike rides. Owen (on the left) in Acadia National Park in Maine and Mitchell on the East Bay bike path here in Rhode Island.

This weekend we reached a major milestone as a family of four - we all went on a bike ride. It was the first time that we were able to do something together that Steve and I enjoyed doing pre-kids. We bought our bikes before we were even engaged and had much fun tooling about Chicago. I think it's fair to say that our bike rides these days will be safer, slower and sober. It's well worth it :)

Why? No!

My sons - Why? and No! 

All at once, it seems, and with vigor, Owen has entered into the dreaded, "Why?" phase. I actually thought this would have happened sooner and have no clue how long we will have to endure this torture. And by torture, I mean, answering hundreds of questions a day. At this point I'm not sure if this is a tactic of manipulation or mere curiosity but we literally had this conversation last night.

"I'm going to the store."
"Why?"
"Because we need milk."
"Why?"
"Because we don't have any."
"Why?"
"Because we drank it all."
"Why..."

With similar gusto, Mitchell shrieks, "No," usually while hurling Cheerios, waffles, blueberries, a bottle, etc. onto the floor. When Owen started saying the word "no" it was cute, sweet even, and only got more acerbic as time went on. Straight away Mitchell says "No" with the intensity of a toddler who has just been told he cannot have cookies for breakfast. Yeah, not so cute.

Slacker

Busted for slacking. My friend Marta writes a beautiful cooking blog. Yesterday, when I was reading her most recent entry, it dawned on me that's she's practically written a cookbook and traveled the globe since the last time I posted.

Here in Rhode Island, we've been preoccupied the Jekyll and Hyde antics of a spirited three year old and what seems like endless colds, ear infections and allergies. But pollen covered everything means that it's springtime and while the head may feel heavy, the heart is happy!

In between trips to the doctor's office we've been able to get outside to play and last week it was even warm enough to run through the sprinkler. These Linker boys are exhausting...it's a good thing that they're so darn cute. Angelic even. See what I mean?

Walley World

Steve and I took our big boy to his first movie this weekend. Our plan was simple. A babysitter for baby Mitchell, a 10am movie, lunch and home in time for nap. Perfect.

Well, we three Linkers had a Griswold-esque adventure across our fair state. Do you remember this scene from the movie Vacation?

Apparently the movie times on apps like Fandango and Yahoo movies are not necessary accurate. This may not be true in other parts of the country but things here in Rhode Island are a little...different. In our case, we arrived at the theater for the 10am showing of Monkey Kingdom and found an empty parking lot and locked doors. After a quick regroup we raced to another theater figuring that we'd only miss the previews. Sadly that movie theater was closed, as well.

In true Clark Griswold fashion, Steve was determined not to let Owen down and found theater that was really showing "the monkey movie" at 11am. Daddy to the rescue! Daddy and snacks. If it weren't for popcorn and candy and applesauce and raisins and pretzels, I'm not sure we would have made it through the entire movie.

Outside

We've had an exciting few weeks. Two weekends in New York, a trip to Chicago, a birthday and two top teeth but the most exciting news I have to share is that spring has finally sprung in Rhode Island. After what seems like an eternity - let me emphasize this again, an eternity - we were able to play outside this weekend. And also grill.

Not to belabor the point, but this is how I felt when we left the house yesterday morning.

Enough about me. Here are some pictures from Mitchell's birthday weekend in Chicago. During our short trip we went to the zoo, the park, we hugged trees and hung out with family. As for the birthday bash, I was a little surprised that Mitchell was not a fan of his smash cake. Our usually rambunctious eater chose a more conservative route, having his birthday cake fed to him by Mommy. Sweetness!