Family Photo

In an act of extraordinary spontaneity on my part, we all headed to a picnic site in the Angeles National Forest for an early dinner at the suggestion of Mr. Sleep-Deprived (who also gets credit for packing all the stuff for the outing). It's not a perfect picture, but not bad for a camera on a tripod. I still haven't figured out how to get a one-year-old to smile at a tripod and flashing camera light. Of course even if Ms. Dimples had cooperated, our 4-year-old seems bent on goofing around (note the horse shoes), and our 2 1/2-year-old has his usual "canned-smile" that really isn't a good look for him. But hey, we're all there and accounted for - and I don't look particularly sleep-deprived!!!

The Gift That Keeps On Giving

One of the fringe-benefits of having four children is a gratifying sense that toys really earn their keep. In this instance, it is a gift from Grammy and Papa that has worn so well. The funny thing is that 3 out 4 of our kids (right about age one) have used it as a seat, when it is actually a table/busy box. Only our third-born (noticeably absent from all these photos) didn't sit in the table, but it may have been the chaos of our home addition that distracted him from the opportunity.

Where's Spucci?

At dinner tonight I was talking with the boys about the discovery of the New World and introducing them to Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci. A little later our 2 1/2-year old was doing some exploring of his own around the house asking "Where's Spucci?" (aka Vespucci).

Little Drummer Boy ... and Boy and Boy and Girl