Tales From My House: Yard Sale, Jack's Lost Tooth & Fort Washington

No big exciting adventures to report, but isn't every day with four kids something of an adventure? I am going to work my way backwards and see how far I get on writing about what we've been up to recently.

Today, we had our first ever yard sale. My family had a few when I was a kid, and I enjoyed going to yard sales with my mother, but Thomas and I have pretty much relied on Craigslist or Freecycle to get rid of unwanted belongings. However, a few weeks ago we received an e-mail that the neighborhood was going to host a yard sale. We had a bed and a few other things to clear out so we decided to participate. The kids were VERY excited. They all woke up at 6:30 this morning and quickly got dressed, so they could come downstairs to see what they could do to help. They set up a table outside and ate breakfast among the stuff for sale. Anna enjoyed talking to customers and liked being a salesman. The sale started at 7, we started bringing stuff out at 6:45 (we had it ready to go in the garage, just needed to move the tables outside). The bed was sold by 7:05. The person who bought it didn't have a truck, which was probably a good thing because the bed drew people in. I would say about 25 people asked about it (even though it was marked with a sold sign). I think without the bed sitting there, things would not have gone nearly so well.

Some things were hard to say goodbye to, but we were always happy when items found a good home. We even gave things away (like some old bikes) to people who seemed like they could use a good deal. At the end of the day, it was nice to clear some stuff out and to spend the morning sitting on the front porch chatting with folks.

For dinner tonight, we had some good friends over. It had been awhile since we had all gotten together and it was wonderful to sit and talk. So, today was a great day!

Luke is growing so fast. It is hard to believe that he is almost two months. I will definitely do a post when he reaches that milestone, complete with lots of pictures. The kids absolutely adore their baby brother. I was worried that Kara would be jealous, but it is the opposite. In fact, at the bus stop on Friday, one of my neighbors was holding Luke when the kids got off the bus. Kara ran up to me, asking what she was doing with Luke. I said, "oh, she's going to borrow him for the night." Kara burst into hysterical tears and said no one could take her brother. I was touched by how much she loves Luke, and of course, I told her I was just kidding and that Luke would come home with us. He is an awesome baby--super cute and sweet. He is not very smiley yet, and usually spends his time looking around with a very serious expression.

A rare smile from Luke

His more common expression

Friday was teacher appreciation day and we made treats for the kids' teachers. We also gave them some Sharpie and dry erase markers. The kids spent over an hour making cards, which I thought was really sweet. They all adore their teachers and were genuinely excited about an opportunity to tell them why they appreciate them, and to give them something to show it. We did a treat that they could make (pretzels with melted chocolate and m&m's) and everyone worked nicely together. I was very pleased with their attitude and it was a fun evening for everyone.

Jack (finally) lost his first tooth, literally. It happened at school last week and he took the tooth out to show to someone on the bus and dropped it. We left a note for the tooth fairy, telling her where she could find it and apparently she did because she left him lots of good treats. He now talks with a slight lisp, which Thomas and I love.

Hmm, that only covers the past 3 or so days. The kids had International Day at their school, which was a huge event. I volunteered in Anna's class. Thomas was off that day, so he and Luke came up for an hour or so, checking in with each kid, and then he took Luke home. It was an awesome event and the kids learned a lot. I love seeing how they behave in other environments. I learned that Anna has a friend she isn't allowed to stand next to in line because they talk too much. For some reason, that struck me as very funny.

Anna making something in "Mexico" (with the help of one of our neighbors, also named Anna)

Last weekend we took the kids to Fort Washington. It has been on our list of things to do for quite some time. The weather was beautiful and we all had a great time. We love that there are so many interesting things to do here. The kids, especially Jack, love to learn about the early history of our country (especially when battles are involved). He's actually become pretty knowledgeable. Here's some pictures from around the Fort.