First Day!

It was Sylvie's first day of 3rd grade at Claypit Hill School. I'm happy to report that she loved it. She really likes her teacher, Mrs. Murphy, and has made a new friend, Zoe. She especially enjoyed having 2 recesses and eating tomatoes from the school's garden. We all enjoyed that we could walk to the school in about 5 minutes.

This is her "bemused and a little irritated with Dad and his camera" face:

From this point to in the door was literally fewer than five minutes!

The short cut through the woods helps... but it isn't exactly secret.

At the front door Sylvie only paused because I asked her to. Otherwise she was plowing right in.

No need for one of these this year! The walking thing is going to be very cool.

On her way to bed tonight, Sylvie offered, "What a great day! I LOVE my new school. Such nice people there..."

So far so good.

Roller Racers!

Sylvie loved the roller racers at Davis Farmland last week, and (of course) I was able to find them on Amazon.  Our driveway is now a giant race track! Syl and Rose are BIG fans.  The dogs are on the fence. 

Nearing third grade!

Yesterday evening we hopped in our bikes and roughly two minutes later arrived at Sylvie's new school for a "new families Popsicle reception."

We met some nice people, including the incredibly nice principal and vice principal of the school, both of whom became fast friends with Syl. 

We had a tour, and checked out the library - where Melissa has signed up to volunteer!! She'll obviously be calling for tips, Aunt Amy. 

School starts WEDNESDAY!

Making the most of the porch

Everywhere I go these days, there is my bride working out!!

Of course she also uses the front porch more traditionally. 

We found Milo's twin!

Not a bad exercise studio

Found Melissa maximizing the waning days of summer this morning...

Davis Farmland

Another day, another adventure!

Today Syl and I headed to Davis Farmland, a petting zoo, playground, splash pad extravaganza. I'm generally not a huge petting zoo fan, but this one is very clean and well-maintained. 

Syl fell in love with a baby goat named Sammy. We spent a lot of time with Sammy, mostly because she was sweet and calm (especially for a goat!).

Syl also played with mice, piglets and a bunch of sheep, as well as other animals I forgot to photo. 

*Warning: the following image may be disturbing to some viewers (i.e., all Halasz sisters).

Syl was also a huge fan of the splash pad/playground.

We're back home now and showered--HURRAY!

Nature gals

Today Syl and I went to Garden in the Woods, a nature center near our house. Syl wasn't super excited about going (it was pretty hot today), but we ended up having a lot of fun. 

Syl enjoying the walk/activities:

The yellow paper Syl is holding is a scavenger hunt from the visitors' center. 

It was surprisingly hard to find a pine cone! 

We also met a few new friends. The black thing is a snake, NOT a stick (happily, I didn't step on it, but it was a close call). 

The best part for Syl was that I let her use my phone to snap a few nature shots, plus a close up of a funky dinosaur sculpture. She has Dan's eye!

Finish photo

Looking happier than I felt!

Half in the bag

Get it?

Bonus this year: A couple of friends from Holliston, Ben and Derek, both finished their first triathlons. 

Not a bad way to unwind before a race

Logistically the half ironman I am doing tomorrow (the "Timberman") is a lot more difficult than last year's super-easy (LOGISTICALLY) race in Mont Tremblant. But spending the two days before relaxing on Winnie doesn't stink. 

Sunset tubing last night was fun...

...until the boat ran out of gas. Tip: rowing a 10 person speedboat home is not a plausible alternative. 

The kids thought it was pretty funny though. 

And ultimately we got a friendly tow. 

Today was mostly checkin logistics, which were a pain. 

Right now I am doing my final prep on the dock. I believe the saying is: "Race like you train."

I am told beer has carbs.