Teddy Faves

Just want to share a couple of my favorite Teddy pictures from the past few weeks, as I unload my camera memory card. Love this kid.

It's the Silver Line!

For years we've heard that the metro will for sure be coming to Reston on its way from DC out to Dulles Airport. We had that in mind when we bought our condo six years ago near one of the two planned Reston stops. Many political and economical and financial discussions and plan-changes have been going on for so many years it has been hard to keep track (pun intended) of the latest metro news. Well, last Saturday it finally happened! The grand opening of the Silver Line! For those of you who drive, it might be intrusive and annoying to have a metro stop by you, and all the businesses and people that come with it. But for your friendly, non-driving, epileptic momma, this is awesome!

Before, I could walk five minutes to a transit station to catch a bus to transfer to the metro to catch a train to get downtown. BUT. Now I can either walk 15 minutes to the station, catch a train and be downtown in 25 minutes or less, or, to make it even faster, I can catch a bus outside my door that goes directly to the station, be there in two minutes, catch a train, and be downtown even faster. It is so much easier, and direct, and exciting!

Today I took the boys on our first Silver Line adventure. Though the parking garage is still incomplete, the station is open and sparkly new. Maybe I got a few goosebumps walking over the toll road.

There doesn't have to be a silver lining, anymore...there's a silver line. (Badda-bing. Sorry, I just had to work it in somehow.)

Look out, Silver Line, weirdos boarding.

We got on the front car and watched all the new route and new stops.

Teddy's First Birthday- A Teddy Bear Party

I figured the first birthday...maybe the second... is really the only chance I'll have to do a teddy bear-themed birthday party for Teddy. I doubt as he gets much older he'll want to have a lot to do with teddy bear parties. So I went for it.

The party hats might have been my favorite part because I designed them myself. I used a regular party hat pattern, modified it a little and poked holes for ears, used foam instead of paper, made ears with notches, and stuck them in the holes.

Bear party hats

Stapled elastic to the sides

Inside the hat

Teddy the Party Bear

Cousin Clara Bear

Best Friend Bears

Cal and Clark wanted to help with the party,
so they colored a bunch of these teddy bears for a few weeks
before the party. I hid them at the party and the kids ran around
finding them. They were a big hit.

Bear paw cookies! brownie mix, upside-down Hershey dark chocolate
kisses, peanut halves

Yum, but more importantly, cute

I made a banner. I love banners.

I borrowed the chalkboard from a friend.

Bear face cake and Teddy Graham trail mix: The mix is
honey, chocolate, and cinnamon Teddy Grahams with mini marshmallows and raisins.
I separated the mix out into cupcake liners on a cupcake stand and used
the rest in the glass container for decoration.

Teddy's little cake. My mother-in-law
just happened to have a beehive cake
mold, so I used it and made a banana cake
with yellow "honey" cream cheese frosting.
I was hoping to make little bees for it,
but ran out of time.

The weather was nice so all the kids got to play
outside a lot and I even got to play with the
birthday bear a little.

Bear-friends

Teddy Bear eating berries

Teddy was not sure about sitting on a table
without a shirt in front of a room of people.

He did enjoy the frosting, though.

Brother bears surround little birthday bear, who has had
enough of this party.

It was a fun party, and not too much work. I stayed simple with food. We had round sandwich thins with chicken salad for the grown-ups, peanut butter and jelly for the kids, as well as cheese and ham sandwiches and crackers with cheese and salami. We also had a berries plate, apples, watermelon, (bears would eat those things, right?) and veggies. I made strawberry lemonade.

I can't believe our little Peapod who became Theodore John, who became Teddy, is one whole year old. We adore him and can't even imagine what it would be like without him now. We are blessed.

May-June-First-Part-of-July Highlights

 I'm going through pictures and want to post some May-June-first-part-of-July pictures to remember some of what we did during those months. Meanwhile the boys are watching Cinderella because they love the story (don't tell them I told you) and Teddy is napping. We'll see how much organizing and uploading I can actually get through.

Potomac Nationals game with Gammy and Poppy
for a birthday gift!

It wore them out.

Best pals Everett and Teddy ransacked kitchen cupboards together

Teddy spent many hours cheering on his tee-ball-playing brothers.

He even got to visit the dugout occasionally!

Cal and Clark had some special guest spectators.

Teddy got to join his brothers on the ice!

On his own personal sled

Wild animals at the zoo for Henry's birthday

More zoo visits-- wild animals with pals Hudson and Grayson

Baby boy growin' up

Secret Father's Day waffle-making and nose-pick staging.

Father's Day P-Nats baseball game

Summer haircuts after three tick incidents. You'd think
they like to play outside or something.

Just another tee-ball practice: Cal in hiking boots and
old man sweatpants shorts-- Clark all serious in his baseball
socks, cleats, athletic shorts, and short stop shirt.

End of season little league picnic: they got to play in the tee-ball
exhibition game!

It was a great season for the Blue Wahoos!

Teddy reacts to Daddy winning Coach of the Year

Something terrible happened to the highchair "car,"
which required fixing with salad tongs, ice cream scoop, broom,
and various other kitchen utensils. 

Babysitting Cousin Clara

Teddy's love affair with the dishwasher began.

Space Age ant farm! Super cool. Learned about
 the thorax and such.

Cool signed up for the Summer Reading Program at the library.

Plenty of pool time so far this season

Kite-flying (They still think they have to run the whole time.
I see no reason to tell them otherwise.)

Sausage-cookin' with Cal

Loggin' some Summer Reading Program books

First camp! Baseball camp just down the street.
Five hours a day seemed like a lot to me, but they did well and loved it.

To my horror, Clark resurrected his superhero,
  Black Groin, to fight with Cal's Green Face with PVC pipe.

We ordered some caterpillars and watched them
hatch into butterflies!

We loved watching them break out and discover their
new bodies.

Teddy still loves the dishwasher.
If we leave it open he climbs in.

Fourth of July at the lake house

Dirt-bathing and then water-drenching
after Dad's softball games- a popular pastime.

Head-first slide into home...aaaaand SAFE!

And here we go sliding into July...Teddy turned 1 on July 5th while we were at the lake house. We celebrated there with a candle in his first ice cream. This past weekend we had a real party for him. I hope to post the pictures before the month is up. Can't believe he's one!