Today's Toby

Sometime the book is so good that you have to stom mom and Spencer on the steps to read it aloud to them. Life's pretty great when you have a mom who can appreciate the silliest things. Happy Mother's Day to Cotton and to all the other mom's, especially our mom's, Bahiya, Rabi, amd Jessie.  We love you all!  

 Toby and his class had a field trip to Sandy Hook beach/bay/lighthouse. Thankfully, they had great weather for it. Toby and his friend Hudson on the bus. (They were all supposed to wear red.) The whole class.

Ready for his field trip!  

Tall enough to reach the water dispenser in the fridge - which is both crazy and mundane.  

Every now and again, if I'm sneaky, I can catch a real smile.  

Celebrating Star Wars Day.  

Time to recharge for a school week after a fun weekend.  

Enjoying reading some Exploding Kittens cards is a great way to start the weekend.  

Searching high and low. Someday he'll skip the scavenger hunt at the library, but for now it's still a big hit.  

For 3rd Grade Music, the kids learn the basics of the recorder. I'm not sure Toby is enjoying it, but he has been very diligent about practicing.  

A bit of before-school snuggle with his best bear.  

Toby has traditionally not welcomed deviations from his normal sleeping arrangement. But he was thrilled to shake things up for an indoor camp-out.   

Playing a word game on Dad's phone (with the help of the dictionary)...while using his feet to bop himself in the head with a ball.  

The 6-7 craze has largely passed, but today while cleaning out Toby's closet we found these balloons from birthdays almost 2 amd 3 years ago. We had not been allowed to toss them until today.  He wanted one more parting shot.  

Spencer had a play date at home, so Toby and I took a special trip to the local arcade. Here he is beating me in a football game.  

Out in front, leading the way home.  

Coming over to check out what Spencer was reading.  

 Today was National Jellybean Day. So we took the opportunity to sample a bunch of Jelly Bellies. Toby made notes about which flavors were his favorite...and which were never going to cross his lips again. (Cotton Candy, Lemon, and Lime were hits. Buttered Popcorn and Chocolate Pudding were not.)

Toby usually wants someone else to be outside with him, but today he was willing to risk it on his own.  

The days are getting longer, and the cherry blossoms are blooming, and we're bouncing back and forth between shorts and winter coats.  

 They are always happy to see Toby and Spencer at the early voting place. We're had enough elections this year, they're getting recognized.

Visiting the tallest of the tall at the zoo.   Included the 2nd pick for a better view of the giraffes.  

The last time we went to the zoo, Toby did not want to go anywhere near this guy. This time around, he was scratching him under the chin. (Photo from our previous visit.)  

Celebrating Dad! Happiest of birthdays to Jason. Thank you for always being willing to toss a football, for all the lunches lovingly packed, for all the help with projects for school, and for all the games of make-believe. For all the millions of other ways you take care of us, thank you. We love you tremendously.   

He gets his love of lion statues from his mother. (Mom and London Lions.)  

Rolling downhill (back when the weather required coats).  

Getting closer and closer to being Andean Condor size.  

More often than not, these are the types of poses we get these days.  They were already having a good time, and we hadn't even made it inside yet.  

Couldn't miss out on the Skee Ball!