Great Moments with Danny and Parker

Spring soccer season is in full gear, and as a three-year veteran of the sport Danny is focused, motivated and fired up to play every week. While he is Mr. Sports these days, I also know that part of his enthusiasm comes from the opportunity to see Parker regularly. In different schools and neighborhoods, it's hard to make that happen in spontaneous ways. Fortunately, they continue to want to play the same sport and on the same team. Better still, Amy is infinitely generous and lets Danny play and eat dinner with them on Mondays before practice, all to accommodate Clare's swimming and Laura's baby schedule.

This season's team boasts an energetic set of team parents who bring their very nice camera skills to both practice and games, leading to the above picture. This 'chest' bump took place after a nice pass-and-score play between the two of them. I love it, both because I wasn't there in person to see the game (three kids really does a number on the family schedule) but also because it brought to mind the many other terrific photos I have of these two:

I still remember sitting with Amy in the playroom, peeking out the window and finding our newly-turned three-year-olds as below:


Our still-two-year-olds on one of our great playdates at the Plummers' (pretty sure Tim has tried to block this shirt of Danny's from his consciousness):


A soccer practice precursor to the chest bump:


And this Crystal James classic from Danny's 4th birthday party:


Love these photos, and love these boys!

Walkers

Laura is completely enthralled with her new ability to walk. It reminded me of the exuberant face I caught on camera the moment Danny finally figured it out, too. Which then got me wondering if I had any pictures of Clare's big moment. Not really, nor do I remember it - I think it was just a very gradual thing for her. I did find a picture of her with the mower right around that time, so behold the comparison shots:

Clare:


Danny:


Laura:

Clare at 9

For the past couple of months, every picture I've seen of Clare makes me pause. She just looks so...old. I've been telling myself it's her newly grown out hair, or maybe the braces, but Tim and I both know the cold, hard truth: she's growing up.

Crystal recently posted a quote, and the first part of it really struck me in relation to Clare: “The day the child realizes that all adults are imperfect, he becomes an adolescent; the day he forgives them, he becomes an adult; the day he forgives himself, he becomes wise.” (Alden Nowlan) Clare is loved and revered by teachers, parents and (good) kids alike for her sweet disposition, beautiful manners, and genuine respect for people. I really cannot express enough how proud we are of her. But I do think that some adolescent attitude is starting to seep in to her world view. I know it's inevitable, and probably even important. I'm also fairly sure that whatever grief she gives us will be minimal compared to what many parents experience. I'm trying to think of it as a way of keeping me honest, and taking opportunities for open, even-keeled communication between the two of us. We'll see how that goes, considering that I am unduly afflicted with impatience and a wee bit of a short temper...

But enough about me. Clare gleefully celebrated her ninth birthday, and I joyfully joined in because it was a non-party year! We honored the occasion in two ways. First, her BFF from preschool, Elise, came over for a sleepover. Part of Elise's present to Clare was a pair of slippers to match ones she has. Adorable. (As you can see, Clare is a giant in comparison to Elise, who is the beneficiary of most of Clare's hand-me-downs.) The girls played beautifully as always, and were kind enough to include Danny in much of their antics. These are some good girls!

On Sunday, the big day itself, Clare opted to have some one-on-one time with yours truly and requested that we shop. Twist my arm! So after we attended church as a family, she and I peeled off and shopped, ate lunch, and had a delightful time. Since she refuses to stop growing, she was in need of several things, including new pajamas. The girl loves her PJs!

We rounded out the event with her requested dinner of steak, twice-baked potatoes and green beans with vinaigrette, as well as cake. She was showered with gifts, adulation and love. We're all crazy about our Clare Bear!

Frankenbaby

Or Lurch.

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More Hand-Me-Downs

Spring has more than sprung around here, so Laura's spring wardrobe has gotten a workout. Today she sported one of the few hand-me-downs left from Clare's babyhood (alas, the sweater didn't make it past Clare, but then again here in the ATL we don't really need it). Here's Clare wearing it on one of her visits to the Golden Dome (and I do not mean the Georgia State Capitol):


Here's a blurry shot of Laura wearing it while happily cruising around, recently recovered from her bout with the croup and an ear infection (first one ever for a Seymour child):


As I scanned through Clare's baby pictures to find the above, I saw a lot of similar expressions between these two sisters. They may not be strikingly close in looks, but they're definitely related. It was a bit poignant to look back through Clare's pictures, too, so close to her ninth birthday!

The Look of the Irish

Another St. Paddy's Day has arrived for the Seymours. All three enjoyed donning their festive duds:





Laura also decided this was her lucky day and tried her hand at walking, which she found very much to her liking! If I'm *really* lucky, this will amount to a little less time on my hip.


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How's It Going?

Last night at dinner, Danny was discussing a school friend's disputes with his brother. He and Clare wondered why the brothers don't get along (because yes, Clare and Danny always get along. HA!) "I love having a little brother," declared Clare. After a short pause, she then asked, "Danny, do you like having a little sister?" After a longer pause, Danny replied "Well, it's going well, but..." Clare and I erupted into peals of laughter at this particular phrasing, so I don't really know what his "but" was about, though it's easy enough to guess. She is, after all, a menace, one who had very recently and remorselessly ripped up the LEGO magazine that had just arrived in the mail. (Seriously, you should have seen the look on her face as he grew weepy over this. She was definitely spoiling for a fight.)

Nevertheless, she has won his heart, even though her presence often prevents me from playing hoops or hockey, or at least handicaps me so that I am forced to play one-handed while weighted down by 25 pounds of baby. Come to think of it, maybe he likes it that way...

If This Ain't The Truth...