This post is dedicated to the pool

The Greenbrook pool has become a steady fixture in our summer routine. It is two blocks from our house and regularly manned by several lifeguards who very dutifully keep the rules of the pool. Davin and Rowan have "G badges" which allow them access to the pool sans parents but Ellie and I usually tag along as she usually wants to swim too. When we aren't traveling or otherwise occupied, most summer days involve grabbing towels, the IKEA swim bag from the garage, and walking up to the pool where we hang out for two to three hours. We often meet friends there and it's a great place to hang out. Sometimes we bring dinner with us and cook using the outdoor grills. The boys love jumping from the diving board; Davin's gig this year includes shouting "Here comes the water buffalo!" as he plummets into the deep end. The kids did two sessions of lessons this year as well at the pool and they all improved in their swimming abilities. Rowan and Davin strengthened their strokes while Ellie learned to kick around a little by herself and have tea parties with me under the water. Despite our dutiful use of sunscreen, by the end of the summer we all look pretty brown. It's always a good day at the pool!

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Rowan Isaac Rees

The title of this blog also happens to be the name of our new baby. Rowan Isaac. Rowan is a Celtic name that means "little red one", and Isaac is a Hebrew name that means laughter. His initials (RIR) also spell the Portuguese verb "to laugh". So hopefully he will be a fun kid. We think he is already. He arrived today, November 28, 2007 at 2:15 pm (or thereabouts - I'll have to check the exact time). Both he and Katie are doing fine and resting a bit. He weighs 9 lbs, 2 oz., and as you can see from the picture, he has beautiful blond hair. He is a good little boy so far, and we're excited to have him in our family. Davin is with our good friends, the Smiths, this afternoon, but we think he understands a bit and is excited to meet his new little brother later this afternoon. We would like to thank you all for your love and your prayers, and hopefully we'll get a chance to talk to and see many of you soon so you can meet our little guy. If you want to see m...

Labor Day = No Labor

The fun part of moving is that we don't have to go far to find new adventures. For Labor Day we decided to head to the coast to explore. We started our day in Santa Cruz where we stopped for lunch but we didn't stay long. Our next stop was the Swanton Berry Farm where we picked strawberries. In September. In sweatshirts. My southern friends were shocked! The next stop was Harley Goat Farm in Pescadero. We loved watching the goats and browsing through the goat cheese store. Rowan was brave and even tried a little! After the goat farm, we wandered around the Pescadero village and explored the markets. The boys were excited to find a gumball machine but I was more interested in the dahlia market and the fresh artichoke garlic herb bread in Arcangeli's Market (we got our loaf hot from the oven and oh. my. heavens!). We ba...

Something to say

We were there in the kitchen, Rowan and I, when out of nowhere came this sound: “ma ma ba ma.” I stopped for a moment and repeated the sound to Rowan. He looked back at me and did it again: “ma ma ma ba.” This funny laugh bubbled out of me, the kind of laugh when you witness a miracle, something that someone told you was possible but you weren’t quite sure it was, but there it was in front of you, that perfect little miracle. I made the sound to Rowan again and he repeated it again. Picking him up, I spun him around, kissing him repeatedly. It was like a scene from a movie. I’m sure there were violins crescendo-ing somewhere and the audience was getting teary. “Be patient!” they told me, “it could be six months before he makes any kind of sound.” I was all prepared to be patient and I still am. There is a lot left to do. Even after this afternoon’s happy moment, I told myself that it could have been an accident or coincidence, but when he made the noises for Chris later this evening, I...

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