Last Days of Summer

On one of our last "mommy home days" this summer, we went out to breakfast at the Cable Car Cafe and enjoyed our blueberry pancakes while waiting for and watching the purple trains come and go.  Finley's moniker for the commuter rail trains is fitting but sometimes I forget others don't call them that!

Then, we headed off for one last trip to Drumlin Farm. After seeing all the animals outside and taking a hayride (in which we almost lost Dagny since she broke all three rules the hayride: don't pick the hay, stay seated, and don't hang over the side), we went inside the barn to see Midnight (pony) and tend to the wooden horses.

 

Dagny was learning how to manage her life on one nap that week, so she was a bit out of it, but probably still enjoyed the experience. 

On our way out, Finley played around and I snapped a couple photos of him through one of the windows of the wooden structure.  I can't get over how grown up he looks in these shots!

We raced home for naps and then met up with Dan for the preschool end-of-summer BBQ.  Finley took the opportunity to get up close to the front loader that had been doing work on the street in front of the their school all month.

Dagny is a Hoot

Dagny can be quite a drama queen and she ranges from super happy and giggly to rather irritable and high maintenance.  Not sure if it's due to her impending toddlerhood, the mouthful of teeth busting through her gums, or, gulp, her personality.  Here are some pictures from the past month that really capture her joys and while I never think to snap photos when she's pouting or crying, rest assured--there were plenty of opportunities to document that, too...

Post nap, pretzel, and a penguin!

Making a masterpiece

Enjoying some baked beans at our block party

Peekaboo!

Caitlin's Instagrammed Peekaboo!

Dagny Blasts Off, too

Just a month ago, I posted about Finley's fondness of shuttle blast offs and his counting backwards skills.

http://findingfinley.blogspot.com/2013/07/finley-blasts-off.html

Well, Dagny has figured it out (not the counting backwards, just the blasting off).  Here she is in launch position.

Monkey saw and now Monkey can do!

Gotta love the jeweled accessories, right? Not sure NASA would approve!

An Afternoon at the Playground

Some afternoons when I pick the kids up from school, we need to run a quick or not-so-quick errand (bank, CVS, supermarket, post office, etc.) but when weather and time allow, we head for a playground.  Last week, we went to one of Finley's favorites, the Fire Truck Playground.  There's a big fire truck type jungle-gym (see it in the background in the photos below) there, but more recently we have been spending most our time in the pebbles.  Dagny loves to dig with her beloved blue and yellow shovel, but there's no sandbox at this playground, so we had to get creative!

 

I treasure the moments when they are playing "together" and ignoring me :)

 Oddly enough, Dagny took a break from digging and wandered off.  Way off. Not sure what she was hoping to find over there...

 But after another few steps, Finley called her back over (such a protective big brother) and she can toddling back all smiles. Then we took off for the swings :)

Finley's First Day at CBE

Today was Finley's first day at his new preschool, Congregation Beth Elohim's Early Learning Center aka CBE ELC aka just CBE for simplicity sake.  He was excited to wear his new green backpack and meet new friends and teachers.  

Lucky for him, two familiar faces were there waiting for him to play and have breakfast with.  (Josh and Annie are siblings that we are family friends with.)

He reported a fun day that afternoon at pick up time and was excited to go back tomorrow, hooray!

Finley Smiles for Miles

Finley is a sensitive, good-natured guy who seems to be happy with his lot in life these days :)

Hard to believe we ever had a laugh without him around!

Water, Water Everywhere

Dagny's water table continues to be a big hit with both kids.

Finley's been getting pretty creative lately, here he is doing a "trick" by sticking his foot in the water and then "flipping" down to the ground.

Thanks to GG and Grandpa, this birthday gift just keeps on giving!

WP NY

We had fun just hanging out with GG and Grandpa, which was one of the main reasons for our weeklong visit.  Often, when we travel down to NY it is for a Jewish holiday or other family event and we don't get the time to just be together without having to be too many places at too many specific times.  

Finley showed off his scootering in the cu-de-sac.

After a fun visit to a playground, Dagny had fun walking back to the car with her grandparents.

One night Aunt Ellie, Uncle Donny, and Great Uncle Carl came out from Manhattan for dinner and we got to try out the newest restaurant in town.  We got takeout and dined outside on the patio, that's the way summer should always be!  On another night, GG and Grandpa babysat so Dan and I could go out  eat on a real date, what a treat!

The kids had fun playing in the moving truck we rented to bring a queen bed back to our guest room. I wish Finley's eyes were open in these shots, but I had to include them since both kids are having fun and wearing their NYY gear!

Muscoot Farm

We had been trying to visit Muscoot Farm for the past couple years, but the timing or weather just didn't seem to line up until now!

When we first arrvied, there was a very pensive sheep awaiting a bath and scrub down.  It was baa-ing so loud, we coudn't ignore it and had to see it up close.  Dagny was intrigued and kept repeating, Baa Baa Baa!

Duck Duck Duck!

"Mommy, these are cow sheep, see?"  Pretty bright guy!

Dagny raced a chicken!

And won!

Old time tractor time!

Dagny showing Grandpa her bright smile.

Great family photo!!

We had so much fun exploring the farm and then went to a delicious lunch nearby where we got to sit outside and watch trains, trucks, and all sorts of Finley-friendly vehicles.  Perfection.