Kids of Kensington

Spring is here and the kids are out.  I've begun capturing images of them and others in preparation for another end of year book, The Kids of Kensington Ave, part 2!

Here's a few from the last couple of days.  Murphy is such a part of the fabric - the kids include him as one of them - and so have I.
BTW - the boys don't wear shoes in the winter either!!

Teddy

When Carmen was here last week, she played with Teddy Bear.  He was on the downstairs bed in the guest bedroom, but she brought him upstairs and left him in our purple chair when she went home. 

Now Teddy is wondering when Carmen will return to take him back to his own bedroom.  He's sent her an e-mail with his picture so we will see what she says.

Carmen is growing!

Carmen visited us yesterday, along with her Mom and Dad.  She now calls Murphy by his name, Diana is Anna and I am Erry (or something along those lines!).  She slept for a long time in the car, while Murph and I worked in the front yard.

After getting up, we did her usual activity in the back yard - picking up small stones and throwing them in the pond!  She occupies herself with that for quite a while, then back inside for some food.  I have to clean the pond out anyway so not a big deal.

It was a fun time with her, listening to her growing vocabulary and watching her interests in different things.  She plays well by herself, and when she wants you, she comes over and gets you by the hand.
Impossible to resist those eyes!

Signs of spring!

For each of us, the signs of spring are very personal.  Somethings trigger a very strong response based on our experiences in our youth.  Others elicit a "WOW" response just based on the beauty of what we are looking at.

Here's some scenes taken today - we just had a wonderful snowstorm (25+ inches in the mountains) and the sun was setting and the dark cloud bank coming in to obscure the sun.  Murphy - as usual - leads the charge by just being out in the space!







Buds are filling to the bursting point.  Aspen are doing their thing with the furry things, that then capture the snow.  Flowers and roses are expanding and rising to the warmth and joy of the sun!

Carmen's Birthday (number 2)

Carmen had her two year birthday party today, and we got to go.  Her folks did it at the Discovery center in Gateway shopping mall, which is a place for kids of all ages (63 also!!).

She had some wonderful friends there and I got a few pictures - here's some of the best.  The beauty and innocence in a young child's face is truly astounding to experience.

Dog Days!

Murphy has been spending a lot of time with Fenway, the golden retriever down the street.  For a while, Murph either wouldn't play with Fenway or he would play very rough.  Fenway is a sub-beta dog, so he won't stand up to Murph at all.

But lately, for whatever reason, Murph has modified his play with Fenway to be gentler and they spend hours playing in the front yard(s)!  Here's a couple of shots that I got - remember, this is gentle play :-)

To the victor goes the spoils!!!

The best camera

The best camera is the one that you have with you at the time you need to take a picture!!   In this case, it was my iPhone!

My girlfriend and I celebrated 32 years of marriage tonight, at the New Yorker, where we began the journey 32 years ago.  Wonderful to be there, lots of memories.  Tom Sieg, one of the owners who always sat at the end of the bar and welcomed everyone, left us about 3 years ago.  We talked to him everytime we came in.  They leave an empty chair at the end of the bar - we all believe that Tom sits there and still greets us.

Here's an iPhone pic of the evening...