Happenings with Pics

I know I am overdue for a quick update...so here are a few highlights from the last little while.

 

Last weekend, we completely surprised the kids with a trip to Maine.  We picked them up early from school with a fully packed van and headed out to have some play time with wonderful friends.  Lots of fun memories!

 

Abby has worked very hard on her "bug" project for school.  The oral presentation is entirely in French, and she does a fabulous job!

We supported our dear friends' coffeehouse fundraising event this Friday night.  It was a special treat for Jadon and me to perform our first public piano duet.  He is a natural performer :)

And Abby just loves to look pretty among the beautiful flowers of spring... (Don't mind the nice bruise on her forehead.  Her mother's tennis racket made contact during a friendly game on our local courts...oops!)

We also did some garden prep with our Growums garden kit.  The boys loved getting dirty and are really excited to try to grow some yummies!

Life seems very full right now, and we are thankful.

Coco and Bobo

Abby has two new buddies: "Coco" and "Bobo" from the Build-a-Bear Workshop.  I am glad to say that they have been very low-maintenance.  Minimal shedding and completely house-trained!

 

Love This Time of Year!

Let the Playoffs Begin!

The first-floor hallway of the Tapper house has been transformed!  Let the NHL playoffs begin!

Crazy Hair Day!

A Couple Malapropisms from Andrew

Andrew: "Mom, I need a chopstick!"
Me: "What are you talking about?"
Andrew: "My lips are all dry!"

Driving home together the day after the Boston Marathon...
"Mom, I heard that people are evaporating from Boston..."

:)

Boys and their Trees

Found this list posted online in relation to educational institutions which are creating safety policies regarding tree-climbing:

The Dangers of Unsafe Tree Climbing
According to the National Center for Policy Analysis, “unintentional injury is the top killer of children under 14, ahead of cancer and birth defects.”

• In the United States, more than 5,600 children die annually from unintentional injuries. (NCPA)
• Each year in the U.S., 140 children die, and 3 million more are injured in falls. (American Academy of Pediatrics)
• Falls are the second leading cause of death from unintentional injury in the U.S. (American Academy of Pediatrics)
• Being a timber cutter is the most dangerous job there is. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
• Tree climbing is so unsafe, lumberjacks can’t buy life insurance. (Sierra Club)
• 36% of all hunting accidents in Georgia are caused by falling out of trees. (Sierra Club)
• A village in Zimbabwe is experiencing an epidemic of villagers falling out of trees. (Zimbabwe Daily News)
• Children of Ukrainian farmers often died falling out of trees.
• The majority of hunters are not injured by buckshot, but from falling out of trees. (Panama City News Herald)
• Playground equipment over 8 feet [has] close to three times the injury rate of equipment under that height. (National Program for Playground Safety)
• Professional tree climbing organizations such as Tree Climbers International do not recommend free climbing because it is so dangerous. They believe that encouraging a child to free-climb is life-threatening. (from http://www.fiftydangerousthings.com/news/some-thoughts-on-28-climb-a-tree)

On the other hand, I'm pretty sure this (below) was mighty good for some Tappers today!