Recovery and Monday

Mr. Morgan's recovery over the weekend from his bronchial thermoplasty (outpatient surgery) on Friday morning was even better than we'd hoped. He was back to feeling pretty normal on Saturday, which he spent working on our friend Tyler's car. (Hamilton calls him "T for Tyler.") I'm sure Mr. Morgan quickly recovered because he was nursed so well. And big-chair companions and coffee help, too.

I peeped at my phone this morning to discover a text from my friend Vanessa whose husband is running for solicitor back home. He's been campaigning almost a year, already defeating the incumbent in the primary. She passed along this picture asking for prayers to deal with the crazies who apparently come out near an election. I didn't know people actually did this sort of thing; the message is almost too over the top to be believable as a legitimate campaign sign. (Obviously, David doesn't support guns in public schools.)

I dressed the boys warmly this morning, so they could play outside while I enjoyed some quiet time inside. After a few minutes I checked on them to find Collier crying a bit. He was wet from the waist down with no shoes on and one sock off. Hamilton said he'd gotten into some water that had puddled in some toys from last night's thunderstorm. So before mid-morning arrived, Collier had his second outfit of the day on.

The boys enjoyed some inside-fun like coloring and Play-Doh this morning. Hamilton's gotten more into coloring lately, and he'll spend some time trying to draw a picture. He's drawing camels right now; they look more like an oval with 14 legs. Then he exclaims, "Look, Mom, a camel! A camel! I drawed a camel!"

With election day tomorrow, I'm anticipating a good result. I really hope it's not a repeat of 2000 though, when we didn't know who was elected for all those weeks. I'm so excited about the election that we're hosting our own last-minute, election-night watch-party. I'd love to be at a real watch-party, but I'm happy we have some friends, with no kids to put to bed, who want to watch with us.

Summer Update

Two days ago I peeked on Collier, as he played on the back porch. I found him sitting in the chair like a big boy. He learns new skills almost every day, as he continues to prefer walking to crawling. He's housing seven teeth now, and he's still drooling enough to warrant a bib.

No, I haven't cut his hair yet. How can I cut those few curls in the back--I mean, my kid has some curls! (It's so unbelievable as to be untrue, so I keep them for cuteness and for proof.)

Collier is even cuddlier than Hamilton, which I'm loving as he's still so little compared to his big brother. He often lays his head on my shoulder even if he's not tired. It's just for a few seconds, just like a hug. He loves food, and he'll still eat anything you feed him--you just better have a lot ready to give him.

Despite the heat, the boys have LOVED playing in the dirt area I cleared for them. We hope to fill it with sand soon, but both sure love the dirt. Several times this past week we bathed them/hosed them off on the patio before they stepped one foot inside.

I so enjoy this view out our double window: I can keep an eye on the boys while they play in the dirt and heat, while I'm cooking dinner or cleaning up the kitchen. I can also intervene as Hamilton steals Collier's toys, flicks dirt in his face, or whacks him with a plastic shovel. All of those things happened this week. Hamilton now understands that I can see him, so he often takes a quick peek toward the window if he's just done something questionable.

Claire and I went to earthArt on Thursday for some much-needed away-time from the boys. We painted our clay pottery from our last girls' trip, so in a week or so we can pick up our creations. I'll be sure to snap some pictures of our handmade treasures to share. We ate lunch out before our pottery time, and we finished the afternoon with frozen yogurt before heading home.

The boys love to play in the little pool, so unless I want wet boys when they're done playing outside, we have to empty the pool before venturing into the backyard. Hamilton likes to jump in onto his knees splashing water everywhere.

Hamilton's so much bigger this year in the pool than last year; I can hardly believe it.

Collier tries to climb everything, so he wasn't detered by the lounge chair.

Isn't this a determined face?

This past week Mr. Morgan and I ate breakfast one morning with just Hamilton, since neither Claire nor Collier were awake yet. As we dined on fresh blackberries from Mimi and Pops's garden, Hamilton said sweetly, "I love you."

He does volunteer this phrase occasionally, so I replied as usual, "I love you, too."

He corrected me in a serious tone, "I was talking to the blackberry."

May Mayhem

I've done it again. So much time goes by between posts that, dear reader, I'm sure it's hard for you to stick with me. My time is so divided and rationed with two rambling boys, a maturing middle-schooler, and a sweetheart husband. My house doesn't get cleaned nearly as often as it should--though in fairness to the other "less busy seasons" of my life, it never did. My list of things to share seems to grow exponentially the longer it takes me to post.

1. We're busy around the Morgan household, as I think everyone is especially in May. Claire and Hamilton both have year-end events next Thursday night, and Claire's already had two year-end viola concerts. Mr. Morgan and Grandma Judy attended her first concert. Claire's in the middle of this sea of performers.

Claire's two best friends joined her for a banana split following the concert.

2. It's been 10 years since I graduated from college, and during alumni weekend I got together with my roommate and suitemate from freshman year. We toured the campus which has WAY more stuff than when we attended--new buildings for just about every department, more "green space," and a much bigger and oh-so-necessary library. We were slightly jealous of the new students, as we listened to our tour guide talk about all the improvements. I also felt old seeing the potential students, but the distinguishing part of the campus--the old buildings, historic homes, and large live oaks--hadn't changed a bit.

We dined at Palmetto Cafe in the Charleston Place hotel, which was delicious, but the skylights created unflattering shadows for the only picture I snapped of the three of us.

A few shots from freshman year really bring back the memories.

3. The boys and I have been thoroughly enjoying Sandra McCracken's new album for children. We've been listening to the few teaser songs she released for free a few weeks ago. Yesterday the full album went on sale. For anyone with little ones, it's a great listen for you and your kids. And every song teaches a big truth in a simple way, using my favorite phrase "little one" in each song. Hamilton loves each song, asks for each by name, and knows most all the words. So cute. And he's learning awesome truths like, "Little one, in the storm God cares for you."

4. Hamilton and Collier escaped for a few days with Mimi and Pops at the farm last week. I got lots of house projects done, so I was happy. The boys spent a day at the Tweetsie Railroad riding a real train, so Pops and Hamilton were both happy. (I'm not sure which one was more excited about the train ride though.) Read all about their adventures. Mr. Morgan and I ate dinner in peace with no squealing and no feeding the ravenous monster that Collier has turned into. We even had enough energy for a date night.

5. Claire and I relished our rare girls' afternoon (because the little boys were away) that we spent at earthArt Pottery. Everything about our experience was delightful. I have not stopped talking about it to everyone I meet! We'll go back soon to finish our clay hand-built pieces that we started.