We spend a lot more hours with Harlan and Porter, even though they nap. Seamus and Gilbert spend time at school and out with family or at an activity, and when they’re home, the younger ones are too, so it feels like we just don’t see them much on their own. In the last week, though, we’ve had fun with Seamus and Gilbert.
It snowed on Saturday! We went to see The Princess and the Pauper: A Bollywood Tale at Imagination Stage. I thought it was hilarious, but Patrick didn’t like it as much as I did. It was balmy and sunny when we left home for the theatre. When we got out of the show, it was snowing hard! We added a ticket to our next show (Robin Hood) because we thought it would be a tragedy to leave Porter behind for that one!
They had President’s Day off school, so I asked our neighbor to babysit Porter and Harlan in the morning. Seamus, Gilbert, Patrick, and I went to Arlington Cemetery. It was the first time the boys had been (well, Gilbert went once a long time ago, but he doesn’t remember how he made too much noise at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier…). We saw the Kennedys graves, walked up to Arlington House and learned some stuff from the docent. I knew a tidbit about a lock of Washington’s hair, from one of my colleagues, which almost got us a private tour, but not quite! The grave of L’Enfant is up on that hill, too. Then we went over to the Changing of the Guard ceremony. The boys were bored until they figured out that we were waiting quietly for something. It was a cold, misty day, but they behaved really well and we all learned new information. Then we went to lunch at a Greek place, and raced home.
On Wednesday, it was 80 degrees. Yes, after snowing on Saturday! They had early release, and I didn’t have afternoon meetings, so I walked with Seamus and Gilbert to the library and park. They ended up playing a game of pick up basketball at the park, and I sat in the sun and read a whole book. It was unbelievable! The basketball game looked like fun–kids ranged from 5-11 years and everyone was so kind to each other.
I got some time with them yesterday too. In the morning, I took them and Harlan to Victory Comics for the Pokemon play time. I forgot to put a diaper on Harlan, so I spent a lot of time in the bathroom there, since he couldn’t decide if he really needed to go or not. Then, Seamus had an afternoon game (painful to watch); afterwards, the three of us went for ice cream. I let them pick the flavors and toppings for the sundae, but they couldn’t eat it all! We left a scoop and a half in the bowl!
At home, we settled in for some Catan expansion. Santa brought this new game to them, but we hadn’t had enough time to figure out how to play until yesterday. It was really fun! A totally different game.
With Porter away at Nana and PopPop’s for a couple of nights, we were able to focus some time on the bigger boys, much to their pleasure. Popcorn and a movie rounded out the week.
Seamus and Gilbert are so much fun to talk to and play with as they get older and more thoughtful. We like doing things with the big group, but it’s also fun to get some time with them on their own.
Academic Leigh Speaking 