Lazy Days of Summer: Monarch Festival

Technically, school had started when we caught the south Minneapolis 2nd annual Monarch Festival. But it was still Summer and the festival concluded our lazy summer perfectly as it celebrates the end of summer through the migration of the monarch butterflies from Minnesota to Mexico. It combines the vibrant, warm culture of Mexico with stoic Minnesotan resignation of impending cold.

There was mucho art.
Here Emma decorates the butterfly kites that they hung and flew during the festival.

Calvin and Enoch made mud balls (dirt packed around milk weed seeds to plant for hungry Monarchs on their way to Mexico).

Willa and me with a hard, young KetzalCoatlicue Aztec Dancer.

We listened to great latin music. As well as canoed, played games, and ate nummy, nummy pastries from A Baker's Wife.

Bon Voyage butterflies! Come back when it gets warm!

Lazy Days of Summer: Watermelon!

One of the best parts of Summer is the watermelon. We ate as much of it as we could!

Emma

Taran

Enoch

Calvin

Willa

Ode to my Pants

Ah, the start of the holiday season: the Eating Season!

So, in honor of all that I will consume, I've dug up a poem I wrote while either pregnant or early post-pregnant with Willa. I was in love with a certain belt that I picked up a second hand store. It's elastic, very 80's and a daily part of my wardrobe...

My Stretchy Belt

O Stretchy Belt, O Stretchy Belt
I write the things that I have felt.

For even though my bum is large,
and my tummy is like a barge,

You keep my pants a-way up high,
so no one can play that game "I spy."

Happy Holidays!

Lazy Days of Summer: Dirt Surfing

August 16, 2010

Willa never worries about getting anywhere fast.

She gets down and really enjoys what this world has to offer.

Ahhh, to be young in the summer...

AHHHHH! To be her mother!

Lazy Days of Summer: Dancing with Bumpa and Nana

August 7-14, 2010

On our wait out to Sacramento to visit my family, I learned that my parents were coming to visit me (or Minnesota really) just a few weeks after I would get home from California! While they were here we went to the art festival at Powderhorn, visited distant relatives, and danced...

The old and the young, Generations cutting a rug.

Calvin with cool moves.

Taran doing the sprinkler.

Summer makes us want to dance!

Lazy Days of Summer: Taran turns 9

August 4, 2010

Summer means 3 Martin birthdays. Emma's birthday and my birthday were celebrated in Sacramento. Taran's was celebrated in Minneapolis with popsicles for cake.

Birthday popsicles lit up...

Blurry wishes.

Happy 9th Birthday BOY!

Willa's First Christmas Photos

Lazy Days of Summer: Lookin' GoooOOd!

August, 2010

Enoch and Calvin took advantage of long mornings and did there own hair.

Martin Quote

Nae-Nae [our 3 year old neighbor, tattling to me]: Calvin hit me.

Calvin [defending himself]: It's because she called me not nice--and I AM!

Lazy Days of Summer: Announcing Elizabeth Kaylin

Summer 2010 wasn't lazy for everyone. David's sister was very busy making a playmate for the Martins.

She started like this...

But came out like this...

Hopefully she can over come her parentage.
Welcome to the world!

Lazy Days of Summer: Take That Santa!

June 19,2010
There's Long Back Story Here: Last December we visited the scariest Santa ever! He was a part of the park program's "Pancakes with Santa" Breakfast. But when we walked through the community center doors all we could see was a grungy looking bum wearing red pajamas and slouching on the naugahyde foyer couch.
After another look, I realized he supposed to be Santa! Even Enoch understood something was amiss because he took one look at the man, pointed his finger and yelled, "You're not Santa!"
Well, instead of turning my kids around and going right back out the door we came in, we decided to give him another chance. After all, he had seen us, sat up and tried to smile and everything.
So against my better judgment, I let the hobo-Santa convince the kids that he was the real-Santa. As they sat on his lap and told him their secret-heart-of-heart desires everything was going well, until Enoch told Santa his Christmas wish, "I want a gun."
[A nerf gun Enoch had seen in the store a couple of days earlier had become his latest craze. He wasn't going to get it, but only because I'd already bought his gifts. That and besides Santa only brings the Martins one big family gift and all toys and individual gifts come from family and friends--even though my children stubbornly cling to the belief that everything comes from Santa on Christmas morning, no matter what the tag says.]
But when Enoch asked whole body shaking, eyes shining, for his must have toy, Santa said: "No!"
He looked into my hopeful boy's face and said, "Santa doesn't give guns. They are not good."
Say What?! Can a creepy Park and Rec Santa say that?! I'm pretty sure that's the parent's call.

Well to Santa I say...
Take that!

And I say thank you to the Cain boys for sharing the guns that you no longer want.

BANG! BANG!

I can't resist one more picture...
At the breakfast, Taran, probably inspired by the spooky Santa, made an alien reindeer hat, which he shows off while holding Willa here.

Lazy Days of Summer

Thanksgiving is coming and we've got pie on the brain...

But before we can talk about gratitude and feasting, we need to finish up our summer story. While some of the Martin summer was filled with exciting trips and outings that Emma, Taran, Enoch, and Calvin have documented so well, most of summer 2010 was slow, long, and joyously LAZY!

June 8, 2010
The last of school! A warm rainstorm was the perfect way to wash away school cares!

Taran and a school friend after a run in the rain.

Emma, Enoch, Calvin jumping in mud puddles.

Mid-June
Enoch and Taran took advantage of a slow summer days to cuddle up and read.

Almost every night was a sleep over in Taran's and Calvin's bed.

Three months of unplanned days gave us the plenty of oppertunities. We rode our bikes, had our annual Lemonade stand, did early morning tennis lessons, and did Minneapolis Park and Rec Summer camps (Emma: Gymnastics camp, Taran: Maze camp, Enoch & Calvin: Animal camp), we even made it out to the Mall of American by light rail.

Martin Quote

After being put to bed, all three boys saw a quarter sized spider run across the floor of their room. Each one of my brave boys immediately jumped from their beds and ran to safety.
Unfortunately for them, their tired mommy was not impressed with their plight, and ordered them back to bed.
So there they sat sandwiched in a no man's land between the creepy crawly horror and the wrath of a tired parent who could be scarier than any spider imagined. After doing the calculations my smart boys decided back to bed was the safest place.
The only problem was how to reach the of bed when the spider was last seen by the entrance of the room...

Taran [careful, eldest boy]: We should go all at once.

No response, no movement.

Enoch [wily, middle child]: We should go youngest to oldest!

Sacramento 2010 by Emma, Taran, Enoch, & Calvin

June 28, 2010-July 17,2010

Wyoming on the way out

Emma: It was hot! (And Addie had a brain freeze.)

Enoch: I liked being in the handcart.
Calvin: I liked being in the covered handcart because my eyes were getting burned.

Taran: I remember that me and Addie pulled a small handcart. We had fun time at the hotel water park. Going backwards on the lazy river was hard!



Willa and Grant share a drink at In-n-Out

Taran: We had a yummy hot dog and drink.

4th of July

Emma: Sparklers, fireworks and family is the best!

Enoch: It was great. I did the fire writers where I was writing.
Calvin: That was good. I liked-ed it. I want to do again.

Taran: All the fireworks were awesome. Especially the one that wasn't a ground one, but we thought it was.




Trampoline Challenge

Emma: It looks like we almost broke the tramp!

Taran: It made me go high.

Mommy: Aunt Kirsti, Uncle Jared, Uncle PJ and I tried to rocket each other off the tramp. We competed to see who could jump the best. I was not good at it. Aunt Kirsti's a rock star jumper because she did while pregnant.
It was Uncle PJ's idea to make it a competition. That goes back to when we were children; he turns everything we do into something he can win.



5th of July Heavy Hangs

Emma: We had fun with that, well, I did.

Taran: I love passing out candy to everyone, especially Grant.

Drive-in Movies

Emma: It's movie time!

Enoch: We watched Toy Story 3. We laid down on the seat.
Calvin: Addie was there.

Taran: I watched The Last Airbender instead of Toy Story 3.



Grandpa Martin's grave

Emma: We miss you grandpa.

Enoch: Saw grandpa's grave and gave him love.
Calvin: I putted flowers on.

Taran: It was sad to visit because we saw two dead babies graves. I put some flowers down on my grandpa's grave.

Grandma Martin's home and toys

Emma: Willa loved the mailbox.

Enoch: I liked the cooking man because the cooking man had that cooking hat and those blue eyes.
Calvin: I liked-ed the guy from Beauty and the Beast. He had a arrow then he shot it. That was the best-est toy.

Taran: It was fun playing with the little people automobiles.

Kitty in the barrel

Enoch: Yeah! The kitty cat. It stays in the little barrel.

Taran: The kitty cat was cute.

Davis Farmers Market

Emma: Mmmmm! Kettle corn!

Enoch: Yummy popcorn.

Taran: Yum! So much kettle corn.



Sac Zoo, Taran feeds a giraffe

Emma: Purple tongue? Weird!

Enoch: Zoo!

Taran: I fed one.

Calvin: I wanted to feed the giraffe. I didn't feed the giraffe.

Enoch: They're hungry.
Calvin: I wanna go there again

Taran: It was like the tongue was a devil's snare--the plant that grabs you in Harry Potter.




Ice Cream after Zoo

Emma: Ice cream? Hot day? Perfect!

Taran: Mmmm. I loved the ice cream.



Girls' Night Eclipse

Mommy: Nana, Aunt Kirsti, and I went out to see the vampire movie. We've only seen them when we are together because Nana likes them. Aunt Kirsti and I like them too; we laugh the whole way through. Afterward we had a candy bar tasting. Nummy, Nummy!



Day with Grandma Martin

Emma: Double scoop? Sure,why not.

Enoch: I had root beer.

Taran: Rocky Road. Delicious.

Emma: What's her secret?
Cotton candy ice cream!

Taran: She's transforming!

Mommy: We also went shopping with Grandma, ate lunch and dinner with her, and visited the temple with her to see great Aunt Glenna and great Uncle Larry who work there.

Beach day, cold!

Emma: Giant crater? Waves that push that push the sand under your feet and you back? Waves? Cool!

Calvin: Ahh, we go to the beach.
Enoch: Remember it whacked me?
Calvin: And it pulled you.
Enoch: Remember it went over Addie?
Calvin: And it pulled me.
Look at cute Oliver.

Taran: We had wave fighting practice.

Swing Challenge at the park in Santa Clara

Mommy: I didn't get a picture of this one because I was swinging but we went to the park after dinner, after watching the World Cup, after church. Uncle PJ challenged Aunt Kirsti, Uncle Jared and me to see who could get the highest on the swing in ten swings. While I did horrible on the trampoline, I made up for it in the swing challenge!

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk: Emma and Joey

Emma: Fun, fun, fun!

Taran: Elise and me were in the car behind them. It didn't make me dizzy.

Enoch and Grant on the planes

Enoch: Oh. The water park.
Calvin: No not the water park. I call it the fair.
Enoch: All of the planes were attacking planes.
Calvin: And I was in a red plane.
Enoch: I was with Grant.

Taran: I was on a plane because I had to go on one with Henry. I had fun going the altitude.

Enoch, Calvin, and Henry at the game booth

Emma: Guns and a video game mixed? Not gonna miss it!

Enoch: But I didn't get to shoot.
Calvin: Me either.
Enoch: Wait. Am I shooting?
Mommy: No, you were just pretending.

Lois's Birthday with more ice cream

Emma: Baskin Robins!

Mommy: Grandma's birthday.
Enoch: How old was she? Thirty months old?
Calvin: I got bubble gum.
Enoch: I got bubble gum too.

Taran: It was a big scoop of bubble gum.

Fairy Tale Town

Emma: Tell us a story Mother Goose!

Enoch: I had a great time.
Calvin: Me too.
Enoch: The crooked mile was very, very crooked.

Taran: The crooked mile was my thing.

Trip back: Independence Rock

Emma: Wow, that's a big rock!

Enoch: Very cool. We got to climb up.
Calvin: No we did not. That one is an easy one to climb up. That one was a hard one.
Enoch: We went to that Independence Rock.

Taran: Independence Rock was fun, but hot. I climbed it some. It took a lot because I was hot.