25 August 2023

It has been a summer of manga and musicals.  Nut Brown discovered manga at the library this summer and he and Bobo and Rosebud read manga all summer.  Nut Brown and Bobo memorized all the words to Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-long Blog and Hamilton.  There was much mutual singing which would break out whenever there was conversation.  One or the other of them would quote a lyric and they would just go on from there.  

Here are some of the other things we did this summer:

Looking in amazement at the phenomenon of water falling from the sky.  They were reaching out the window to catch it in their hands.  And of course there are mushrooms when it rains!  Notice the multitude of rubber bracelets on D's wrist.  He collected them at his Texas school and wore them every day for several months to use as a fidget.  Sometime in August he took them off.

Walking along the Ma & Pa Trail downtown.  The boys are singing.

 

Fourth of July parade downtown.  There were a lot of marching bands.  Also a float celebrating the fact that our county declared independence from Britain three years before the rest of the country.

Hiked out to Kilgore Falls, the tallest free-falling waterfall in Maryland.  We didn't come prepared to wade, and the kids went home completely soaked!  

Enrolled kids in school for next year.  Nut Brown and D are in the same school building, so after D finished, he and Rosebud and I shot his rubber bracelets at targets in the hallway while waiting for Nut Brown to resolve his class schedule.

Went to the county fair.  Checked out the livestock and fired squash out of squash launchers to win prizes.  We also watched draft horses drag weights in a contest.  Rose Pink and I liked that best, but the younger kids got restless.

Celebrated Mr. Brown's birthday.  Nut Brown energized the planning for it and made a pinata.  We tried to make it a surprise but 

We went on a tour of a potato chip factory, which was cool. They gave us chips hot off the line, which were tasty!  That evening some friends came over for a treasure hunt that led to the pinata, followed by pound cake topped with brain-shaped jello.

We picked up several bags of obscure potato chip flavors at the factory, and Rose Pink gave Mr. Brown a  big bag of some more.  He was literally covered in chips!

The next was our family birthday.  We went out for a fancy dinner per tradition, and chose a seafood restaurant in Havre de Grace so we could eat crab, which is a big thing in Maryland.  Unfortunately it turns out that none of us really like crab.  Mr. Brown's salmon was amazing though.

Spent an afternoon at Hammerman Beach on a lake in Gunpowder Falls State Park.  It was a perfect day and we had a good time.

Picked huge blackberries at a you-pick and made blackberry jam. The blackberries were amazing fresh and the jam is good too!

Celebrated Nut Brown's birthday.  Mr. Brown and I did not get as many celebrations of Nut Brown accomplished for his birthday as we felt that he deserved, because he is awesome and amazing.  He finished summer off by passing the test to and getting his learner's permit.

On to school! Three kids in three new schools.  Maryland is full of kind people, so we are not worried.  Nut Brown and D are actually in the same building, and they are walking to school.  Rosebud catches the bus to the elementary school.  She is stoked and very excited.  We went to the open house, and met her teacher, who is named Miss Hershey.  Rosebud mistakenly called her Miss Reese - something to do with chocolate anyway!  She started writing a review of her elementary school as soon as we got home and gave it five stars even before the first day of school.

Here we go into fall!

8 July 2023

Rosebud, trying to get a sense of how old I am: "Mom, did you have stores when you were a kid?"  

6 July 2023

 Last Saturday we went to the farmer's market and came home with exotic homemade jam (mulberry, strawberry rhubarb pineapple orange and lime ginger plum) and also five types of honey.  The beekeeper sold sampler bear shaped jars that were only a couple inches tall and very difficult to resist.  I decided the best way to sample everything was with a tea part, so we acquired some bread and crackers for tasting, made three pots of different teas, added a few other delicacies, and had tea (the meal) together.  It was really fun!

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Random photo of Rosebud who came out with this hairstyle after I asked her to brush her hair one morning:

3 July 2023

 Tonight, at dinner, Mr. Brown made lasagna and it was amazingly delicious.  He and I got to spend most of the day together and it was pretty great.  He's my favorite.  After dinner, Nut Brown suggested singing Dr. Horrible karaoke and he and Bobo and Rosebud sang the whole thing together.  The boys have really been on loving that musical and they love singing it together.  This morning we walked on the Ma and Pa Trail and they sang selections from it as we walked through the tunnel and on the path on the way back.

on the trail this morning

singing together this evening

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this is what happens when there is an unexpected thunderstorm downpour right as it's time for bed and Mom says that you can't go outside in it because it's time for bed and she wants to talk to her sister tonight so you have to stay inside:

29 June 2023

Back in May, we went hiking in Gunpowder Falls State Park.  We found fallen trees to climb on, the ruins of old farmhouses, and tadpoles to catch in a creek.  Lovely day and a lovely hike.  

 

26 June 2023

Last night Mr. Brown gave Bobo a task to do during scriptures, to keep his hands busy. It was grinding animal crackers in a big mortar and pestle to prep them for a cheesecake crust. It was so interesting that the rest of us got out other mortars and pestles from his collection and joined the fun.  Scriptures was derailed and instead we had a great time crushing crackers to powder together. Love it!!

22 June 2023

Nut Brown competed in his first jiujitsu tournament and he won second place in his weight class!  Mr. Brown and I are so proud of him, and he was very proud of himself!  Even though he lost his last match, he didn't give up any points, which is quite an achievement.  He has learned and grown so much from participating in the jiujitsu training at the Texas gym.

21 June 2023

Last night Bobo came tearing upstairs with Nut Brown hot on his heels, hollering about something Bobo had done. He dashed into his room and shut and locked the door, leaving Nut Brown pounding on the outside.  I asked what on earth had happened, and Nut Brown told me that Bobo had closed all his tabs on the internet browser. He had plugged in his wireless mouse, and then when Nut Brown wasn't paying attention he had closed the browser and all the tabs!  Mr. Brown and I both laughed about it, and Nut Brown acknowledged that it was a good trick, albeit frustrating for him.

15 June 2023

 Last day of school and fifth grade graduation for Bobo, who is headed to middle school this fall!

With his friend Everett

Mrs. Kalthof

Mrs. Derby

Mrs. Heilman

This morning, when he came out with his Sunday shirt on, I asked him why, and he said that Mrs. Derby had told them that they might want to dress up, so he did.  He hates wearing his Sunday clothes, so I can tell that he really loves Mrs. Derby.

When they had Teacher Appreciation week, I helped both Bobo and Rosebud write thank you notes to their teachers.  Despite the fact that he hates to write, he did put his thoughts on paper for them.  He let Mrs. Kalthof know that she was the most chill teacher in fifth grade ("will she know what chill means, Mom?") and thanked Mrs. Heilman for letting him read her books.  Then he wrote to his homeroom teacher, Mrs. Derby, and thanked her for the plant (which he was happy to have as a gift for me), and for helping him earn cookies with his behavior at recess, and for "helping me understand my mom's concern and helping me keep track."  Mrs. Derby has been wonderful for him and deserves all the loyalty and affection that Bobo gives her.

He was sad at graduation because of the farewell aspect of the ceremony.  He is very sensitive to the losses that happen at the end of every school year.

14 June 2023

Nut Brown came home with a lot of these from high school. 

and his class placement:

 

13 June 2023

 A friend of our has two cherry trees that are having a gangbuster year.  We are reaping the bounty.  Rosebud was happy to help me pit several hundred!

4 June 2023

 This evening our friends Jon and Megan hosted a welcome party for us combined with a farewell party for another family leaving the ward.  Bobo brought a lego creation with him and lost a piece of it on the lawn.  He asked me to help him look for it.  We started combing through the grass, and he said to me, "I'm going to go pray."  He went off and came back a few minutes later, and we looked on the lawn together.  Almost right away he said, "I can't find it, it's not here, we'll never find it, we might as well quit," but I reminded him that God couldn't help us if we stopped looking.  A couple minutes later, a brother from church called out to me, "Sister Brown, are you looking for something?"  I explained about the lego and he said, "Oh ho, I've been there!" He and his teenagers came to help us look.  He asked Bobo if he had prayed, and Bobo said he had.  His daughter found the missing lego piece thirty seconds later.  Bobo was amazed.  He said right away, "I'm going to go say a prayer of gratitude."  I'm so grateful for the examples of faith that have taught him that God hears and answers prayers. 

9 May 2023

The family we are staying with has a sweet 4yo named Elijah who thinks that Bobo is the best thing ever.  Bobo makes time to play with him and chase him around and make faces and be a big brother, and in return Elijah adores him.  Bobo recently picked up the phrase "Oh my gosh!" which he uses when he's surprised or impressed.  He has a particular intonation, with emphasis on the first syllable --- "Oooohhh migosh".  Elijah has also picked up the phrase with the same intonation.  It's very cute to hear him say in his little 4yo voice  "ooooohhhh migosh" when he is wanting to emphasize something!

5 May 2023

We were invited to an annual Cinco de Mayo picnic in Maryland with our new friends here!  There was so much food, and the weather was lovely, and we had a great time hanging out.  Here are my girls enjoying the food and each other:

29 April 2023

Rosebud and I went to help a friend of mine who is starting a "flower farm".  We planted about eighty plants together this afternoon.  It was a lot of work but I really enjoyed working with her! Turns out she knows a lot about how to transplant purchased plants into the ground.  Maybe we can go back sometime and help again.

27 April 2023

Bobo turned eleven!  Rose Pink made him a Minecraft grass block birthday cake. He was so happy all day!  Mr. Brown sent a birthday box for him, too, and he really enjoyed painting the dragon in it.

 

24 April 2023

Happy Earth Day!  Rosebud brought home this drawing of the earth and sun giving each other high five.  And Bobo is very proud of this rabbit drawing.

 

22 April 2023

Rose Pink arrived in Maryland! We closed on our house on Wednesday and she arrived on Thursday.  On Saturday we were at the DMV getting licenses and titles in order, and she put the license plates on her new car.

She is super happy to have her own car now!  She bought it from the lady who sold us her house.  It's a 2010 Chevy Malibu with 92K miles on it, with a sun roof and leather seats.  She's really enjoying the additional independence, although driving it has been a bit of an adjustment since it's bigger than our Hyundai.

21 April 2023

The elementary school PTA held a "Night At The Museum" science/history fair.  Rosebud really wanted to participate and she chose frogs.  We read a lot of books, and she chose facts to put on her board.  She and I worked on it together, and we played a recording of frog sounds at her display.

Her teacher came to see the exhibits her class had prepared, and she gave certificates to the participants.  Rosebud is very fond of her teacher.

It was also the night for student art displays.  Here are Bobo's ceramic snails:

and Rosebud's watercolor turtle:

It was really fun to work on this project with her, although it took longer than I thought and we were scrambling at the last minute.  Rosebud was happy to have completed the project.  And Bobo was so pleased at the pride of place his snails had.

16 April 2023

On our drive out to Maryland, Rosebud asked why there was a large space at the edge of the road that we didn't drive on.  I told her it was called the "shoulder" and why roads have shoulder.  She nodded understandingly and since then has continually referenced it as the "elbow of the road".  I've corrected her a couple times but it hasn't gotten fixed in her brain yet.

The other day we were talking about houses, since we have just bought a house here to live in.  I asked her what her dream house was like.  She said, "I don't know, Mom, I have pretty weird dreams for a kid.  ... oh, wait, did you mean what would be in my house if I could have anything I wanted?"

Love this little girl.

14 April 2023

Just back from a spring break visit to Texas to see Mr. Brown and Nut Brown and Rose Pink!  It coincided with Easter, and we had our friends the Weeks over to celebrate with confetti eggs.

   

Good times!

It was also the weekend of Rose Pink's last concert with MCO.  This time it was in a proper venue, and the performance was amazing.  I'm so sad to be leaving this behind in Austin.  I wish they had something in Baltimore.  The theme for the concert was "I'm So Blessed" and the music was phenomenal.