Clare on her 16th

I can't believe she's sixteen already!  We kicked off the day with a visit to the DMV, followed by her maiden voyage behind the wheel.




Later we celebrated at her grandparents' house with a homemade Red Velvet Cake, thanks to Alton Brown.

  

A Clean Room is a Beautiful Thing

It never fails.  They let their stuff lie around until the floor is impassable, and the cleaning job is overwhelming.  Then I have to step in and direct them until it's put back together.

However, there's nothing like a newly clean room to inspire them.  They played quietly in there for over an hour once the carpet was visible again!

Philip

Philip loves to be outside, weather notwithstanding.  However, he can't be trusted to go outside by himself, and more often than not there are no willing volunteers to chaperone him.

This afternoon he asked for his raincoat so he could go out in the rain.  We couldn't find the raincoat, but he was content with his jean jacket.  I was in the kitchen, finishing a meal, but every so often I'd step out of the front door and call his name, Marco-Polo style.

The last time I just peeked in the yard instead of calling  him.  There he was, flat on his belly on a slab of flagstone, directly under the rain spout.  I watched as he reached down into a puddle and fished around until he had a rock.  Then he put the rock in the bucket of his dump truck, backed it down the slab, and dumped the rock on a pile with the others.  Then he drdove back up to the top and started over.

As soon as he noticed me, he started hamming for the camera, then announced, "I'm done," and headed off to his next adventure.

 

He has also been very interested in the crayon maker the kids received a few years ago from their grandparents.  Twice a day he asks if he can make new crayons.  Here he is eagerly watching them melt.