My Dad, sister, and I went out for the evening to play trivia (and as part of a group of Very Knowledgeable People, ranked in the top 10 in the nation for most games), so that left Mom watching the kids. (Thanks Mom!). As grandmas are wont to do, she spoiled them and allowed the older pair to stay up way past their bedtime, so they were still up when we returned.

They had amused themselves all evening with a race-track toy, and for some reason Anthony had built a silly tower over it. (Clearly, engineering is not his strong [...]

Holy Cow, today was a busy day, with the monster play I posted about earlier seemingly the only time to relax. I'm too tired to post much tonight, so just a quick few shots of a monster hit Anthony did this afternoon. His game has definitely moved up a notch since last year's baseball play.

He'd hit it so hard that the thick plastic ball actually dented. You can see it dented even in the first shot above.

(He's wearing a shirt from his old preschool gymnastics class.)

Anthony, Josh, and I made up an impromptu game, "Monster Game", where I try to get them amid roars and growls, but I'm thwarted if they hit me with a soft squishy basketball. It's a kind of rough play that my folks would never have let us do in the house when I was little, but somehow as grandparents they let slide. 🙂

Of course, both Josh and Anthony relish beaning me with the balls. If I'm able to catch one without a ball, the other has to "save" him (by beaning me with a ball).....

The boys asked the [...]

In these pictures Anthony is sporting a LEGO watch that his cousin Josh gave him when he arrived the other day. LEGO's design is ridiculous.... it pinches him every time he puts it on or takes it off... but he loves it, and has suddenly shown a greater interest in telling and measuring time.

My sister arrived yesterday with her kids, Josh and Jena, for a week of summertime play. Josh invited Anthony for a race outside almost immediately, and it was all I could do to keep up.

Four-year-old Josh wasn't fazed when seven-year-old Anthony turned out to be faster, and they raced a lot. I think Josh just wanted to show off how fast he was (because in his dinosaur-loving mind he's a velociraptor).

We were tidying things up before they came, and Anthony helped Grandma fill a bird feeder. At first it was troublesome because the feeder was taller than Anthony...