Today's Toby

 

One can never be too safe when playing music with ones brother.  

Starting the weekend off right - making chocolate chip pancakes with Dad!  

Dear Kiddo, Today, you were almost in tears at the thought that you had been unkind. (You weren't. You just haven't learned how to keep certain thoughts to yourself yet.) You are often a goofball. But your heart is enormous. Love you.  

Usually Toby rides his bike, but every now and again they end up doing a Brother Bus.  

The key is to have a lot of good jokes. And some killer dance moves. Mom, what are you doing? Not THOSE jokes. And definitely not THOSE dance moves. Seriously.   

Goldfish? They're delicious.  You're loss.  

Giving the low-down in Station Square.  

Suffice to say, he was unimpressed when the map was not for a real place.  

We have had so many transitions this year. And while it hasn't come easily to him, this kid continues to roll with the punches. Thank you for your grace, kiddo. XOXO   

Spending some quality time with Slumbers after being at school all day.  

We did some chalk painting at the playground with some of Toby's classmates. Mom had her hands full while everyone was there, so there are only pictures of Toby finishing up. But a great time was had by all and we'll definitely do it again.   

Telling Spencer his secrets.  

Abigail and Toby decking the playground with rainbow sesame seeds. (I'm secretly hoping this will be the catalyst for Pigeon Pride.)  

We thought we would try a new bin activity.  Muddy Puddles! (Hat tip to Peppa Pig.) Also known as "taste safe mud". Spencer was grateful that he was able to get a moment to himself while Toby was occupied. Or perhaps he was only in it for the Cheerios... Survey says: fun times.  

Not besties, but getting along better.  

It's a blog post 19 months in the making.  In October 2020, after spotting an Alaska license plate leaving the playground, I decided to take Toby's picture with it. On that walk home we found 9 more states and kicked off the License Plate Challenge. At first he didn't know why we were doing it, but he caught on quickly. As you would expect, we continued to find them at a pretty good pace, then progress slowed immensely. Sometimes months would go by without seeing a new one. A neighbor kept an eye out and a list of states we still needed on his phone. This project kicked off Toby's love for geography for which I am very grateful. We kept a list that he crossed off with a red crayon with every new state. Today, it all paid off. I'm grateful for the memories that many of these photos spark, creating some excitement during a time when many of our days were forced to be repeats of all the many days before and after. Some of the highlights: Running out post-nap hoping the