Lightning Man and Thunder Woman

Liam turned four years old yesterday!

It was a great birthday. I made the kids reversible superhero capes, with invaluable help from a dear friend, which turned out to be a big hit. The capes have the kids' initials on them, and Thea said they stood for "Thunder Woman" and "Lightning Man" instead of Thea and Liam. I thought that was terribly clever.



The cake was a hit, too, especially with Mike's homemade buttercream frosting.

Liam has continued to be a sunny, friendly, adorable guy. He has a great sense of humor, though, as with Thea at that age, his punchline is usually "Poop!" His sister and he are great friends; they rarely fight and share with each other better than I have a right to ask for.

Liam's favorite foods are macaroni and cheese and meatballs from Ikea (which were his birthday dinner), but in general he has an adventurous palette. He'll try almost anything, including pickled octopus a few months ago. I was insanely proud, and maybe a little grossed out.

The thing I find baffling about my sweet little boy: he is incredibly outgoing. When we're in the grocery store, for example, he'll say hello and start talking to anyone who catches his eye. I find this to be both charming and unnerving, since I'm usually a person who will avoid talking to strangers at almost any cost. It is a wonderful gift to have him in our lives.

Today Liam turns 4

The capes turned out pretty well!

Liam's cape, part two

The trim! Man, I hope I can finish this before 5:00 tomorrow. I would have had a much better chance if not for finding a tick eating my leg this morning and the resulting panic, followed by dog washes, laundry, and doctor's visit. Now I've got two weeks of antibiotics to go through to ward off possible disease, and I'm behind with Liam's birthday plans.

My big kids

My friend Tara took this great photo of the kids a couple months ago. She's got a real knack for photography, I think. She captured a nice moment of calm in an otherwise crazy day.

Are we not men?

I went to see Devo perform Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! at the 9:30 club with a collection of my favorite friends. We were all excited to see them, though I had no idea what to expect. I knew it would be a fun show, just because of the crowd I was going with. But I had no idea Devo would rock so hard. I've been to a lot of shows — hundreds, if you count local bands — and this might be my all-time favorite show. They were amazing.

Making a cape for Liam's birthday

It'll be reversible, personalized, and handmade when we're done. But,
man, what a lot of effort. Thanks for being my co-conspirator in this,
Mike!

Tough guy and his cocktail

Sibling love

(A real post tomorrow, I swear.)

Wishing peace and health to our veterans

(Hmm, I don't think I get what this poster is saying. It's a leeeettle too subtle for me.)