New York, New York

Our summer of travel culminated with a weekend trip to NYC. We celebrated Sid and Carol's 40th wedding anniversary and 60th birthdays with Pat, Blaine, Tony and Lisa (and of course Sid and Carol). We stayed at the Desmond Tutu Convention Center which had incredible architectural features like 150 foot ceilings! At least that's what Aksel thought. When we arrived on Saturday afternoon, this Reid family was, of course, starving. So we found a little Italian pizzeria just down the street and had a brick-oven pizza. Then the rest of the family showed up.

The next stop was the Chelsea Market which really reminded me of downtown St. Paul...back when downtown St. Paul had activity past 4:00. While most of the extended family wanted to walk to the Hudson, this Reid family and Blaine decided to go to the American Museum of Natural History! We saw Dum-Dum who wanted some gum-gum but never saw Atilla the Hun Hun. A stroll through Central Park provided music and dance entertainment in the forms of random singing and roller skating exhibitions. The "best" skater was this 75 year-old man who decided that a shirt was optional. He talked smack to the bystanders about his skills and proceeded to shimmy around a bit, dropped his cane, cursed, and then he decided to go to a different area to showcase his skills.

Our six-hour drive home (which should be only three) allowed us to reminisce about Lachen and Aksel driving the horse-drawn carriage through Central Park, taking in the first morning session of the US Open, eating at Carmine's, taking a long tour through Manhattan and the continual neck strain of trying to see the top of all of the skyscrapers. The best part of the trip for me was a nice walk through NYU, then stopping for appetizers and drinks at Slane's. I think it is wise to expose the boys to the pub scene at an early age, particularly when it's open to the street with loads of interesting people milling around. The bartender made Aksel a juice concoction while Lachen scarfed down chicken fingers. While us three boys watched the Mets on TV, Anna found the bag she has always wanted at a little boutique a few doors door. We topped off our time on Bleecker and Macdougal at a creperie: nutella, strawberries, and whipped cream, anyone?

So, summer is over and now the school year begins. Our fall athletes arrived a couple of days ago. We had three full days of faculty meetings and are back in the swing of things.

New House

Some folks have been asking for some images of our new pad. Here are some shots so you can envision us going about our days and nights. And, don't worry, Dad, about the chimney. There are workers outside the house right now repairing it.





Lachen and Aksel have taken charge in decorating their own rooms, and thus their personalities shine. Lachen's is orderly and every last paper clip has a special and precise spot. Aksel still has some boxes to unpack and he already has piles amassing in the corners. They also have a guest room/playroom where they are currently building a cardboard brick castle. Cardboard bricks: best present ever! They took Shawn and I much of an evening to assemble, but that was an evening now over 4 years ago. Time well spent, dollars well spent. And, glory of all glories, when they do finally destoy them, they're recyclable! I have also commandeered a little room for my sewing room. I made some outdoor cushions for some chairs I found roadside. I would take a picture of them, except the workers are currently taking a Dunkin' Donuts break and sitting on them. I'm trying not to care that even my own family has not sat upon the cushions before the chimney workers.

Great Spruce Head Island

We spent a glorious five days with our friends, the Porters, on Will's family's island. Just a four hour drive north and a 30 minute boat ride east from Camden, and we arrived in a magical place. It is the stuff dreams are made of. Drawings of lobsters, battleship rocks, seals, and secret private islands are already filling the dining room table, and we've been home a few hours. I don't think the boys would have been remotely surprised to see Goblinnea roll out of the woods. She would have fit right into the world of wild blueberries, mussels attached to rocks later to be seen on dinner plates, lobsters turn from brown speckles to bright red, a treasure hunt with a real message in a bottle buried deep in the sand. Dragon murals were painted on the walls of the Big House where we stayed, and the world of Monopoly was revealed to Lachen and Aksel by Will on a rainy day. Magic and wonderment at every turn!

We learned so much about island life in Maine. We saw seals sunning themselves, learned all about the history of the island. See http://www.kennealy.com/Galleries/GSHI/ for more. We even visited Iza Trapani and her husband on their miniature island. She is a children's book author and illustrator. Her tongue twisters are a real workout. Lachen loved her books, and Aksel loved her 150-pound Mastiff puppy.

So, aside from Aksel's dozens of barnacle scrapes, Will's bloodied lip from a lightsaber duel with local accoutrements (a heavy spruce stick), and some lessons about respecting dogs' personal space, it was completely perfect. Thank you Porters!

Aksel's Golden Birthday

Aksel turned 5 on August 5th. Hence, his golden birthday commenced. We spread out the celebration (my favorite way of making a single day less crammed full and making the day after less of a letdown) and Aksel had a party in Minnesota several days before his birthday, a family blotkake on his birthday, and a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's with his friends 5 days after the 5th...The party was at 5:00 and yes, he had 5 friends there (Robby, Henry, Libby, Quinn, and Lachen, of course.)

Shawn and I are still getting over the shock that we actually allowed a party at the crazy pizza kiddie arcade. It seems to be opposite of all things we espouse: pre-packaged, processed, commercialized, overstimulating, and so it goes. Yes, it is the same venue that we knew as children. I went to Showbiz Pizza, but the companies has now merged, so actually we also were supporting a conglomerate. Agghhh!!! So, scruples were tossed aside--or at least they were tossed down the skeeball ramp to earn a few tickets. It was our boy's golden birthday, and the eco-conscious, Montessori-trained, organically-raised, socialist-leaning, fresh-air cured ways of the Reid family were put on <pause> for a few hours.

In the attempt to follow the Monty Python tune, "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life," we've added a new verse:
When a party's held at Chuck E.'s, just smile and listen
To Aksel's squeals of glee and endless grins.
There's diversity within, languages throughout, and
It's just one afternoon of Aksel's 1825 so far. (365 x 5, btw)
<whistling ensues>

Aksel may never know his parents' philosophical struggles on fulfilling his dreams. To our relief, Lachen is planning a Revolutionary War-themed party. He either wants to camp out as if he and his men were on the banks of the Delaware River, or take a trip to the Minute Man Museum for the historical media presentation. Hopefully, his three best buddies are free to put on the Minute Man garb and go all late 18th century on us. I'm already researching colonial cake recipes...

Minnesota Zoo with Olivia and Kayla

The new Grizzlies exhibit at the Minnesota Zoo brought us for a visit. It was a hot day for bears and boys alike. Luckily, there were misters for the boys strategically placed along the trail to cool them off. The bears had their own pools to wallow in. Check out the wingspan on Olivia and Lachen!

After the zoo, it was time to head to the lake at Grandma and Grandpa Reid's house. The shoreline drops off extremely quickly. It's 10 feet deep at the end of the short dock. Good thing we have so many strong swimmers!

Time at the Cabin

We've been traveling a lot this summer: to Maine, to Cape Cod, to the beaches, to Iowa, Minnesota, and to the cabin in Wisconsin. Since Shawn and I missed going to the cabin last summer (the boys went with G'ma and G'pa), we spent almost a full week this year. The weather was endlessly perfect. Jeanne and Pops and Grandma and Grandpa Hemberger joined us for a perfect week in the Northwoods. Lachen and Aksel attended their first pow-wow, and they even danced to a song just for boys about catching fish. Jeanne taught Aksel some of her famous songs. Shawn and Roz beat Jeanne and me in Canasta. The boys caught 45(!) fish one day, and we had a HUGE fish fry of sunfish. Pops and I had a great chat about micro-lending and the banking industry. And everyone left well-fed, relaxed, and sun-kissed. The conversion of the boathouse to the Kids' Cabin is underway. Lachen is already designing a locker system for the cousins (Lachen, Aksel, Jonah, Fredrik, Lexi, and Joe :) Aksel has been officially declared half fish, half dog, and half boy. You do the math. That's right: he really is more than one little body can contain!