Big Sister Zita Is the Best

 He asked her to sit on the "mota" with him because he loves the motorcycles, but is also very scared of them.

A little snuggle into Zita's back does the trick. 

Sebby is an expert in getting siblings wrapped around his finger.  "Zita, will you go in the water with me?"

Lots more pictures to organize and post from yet another weekend away.

Cascais Pousada

The Cascais Pousada is the perfect place for a little family walk-around. Despite Moojie's Anchorman t-shirt, I thought I would try for a Christmas card picture. 

Yeah, let's not talk about it. I certainly don't want to mention how much I miss my DSLR camera. 

Sebby's teeth are on my top five favorite things in the world list right now. Every flash of his smile is just too much joy for one room. Ahhh, babies.

Seb is willing to sit still for a camera 0.05% of the time.

The monstrosity that is the Estoril Sol.

Happy Birthday to Our Sweet Sebby!

We have a birthday boy in the house!

We are all in awe at how lucky we are to have Sebby in our family.
I wanted his babyhood to last forever, but just like with his three siblings, it ended before I was ready.

Instead of an imoble blobby baby, we have a one year old who toddles around saying gato, cat, mama, dada, baba, and olá. We also have an inconsistent napper who has just woken up.

Now with nearly 13 kilos of squirmy baby in my lap, this will have to be cut short with just photos from the weekend.

Parque Palmela- Nov 3

Parque Marechal Carmona- Nov 2

 I'm only posting this dark blurry picture because it is identical to a baby picture I have of Moojie.

 He stands with ease, he just won't walk. Note the Gap size 12 month khakis- just a few inches short :)

Quick Snapshot Before School

 Some disgruntled employee at Blogger rotates these photos as a way of messing with people. I´m sure of it.

They all look so much alike to me. Mothers usually say they can't see the resemblance in their children, but boy do I see it!

I'm having a special girl's (plus Seb) afternoon with Zita today. She wants to shop for a good grammar guide, and get a few things for her 80s girl Halloween costume. She'll babysit Seb during cello today in exchange for Halloween costume money. This little barter economy we have going is pretty sweet for all parties.

We're gearing up for another rugby game tomorrow where Moojie's team plays the best team in the league. My heart hurts just thinking about it, but we'll be there to cheer the afternoon away.

Have a great weekend!

Scenes From Rugby

Having a BBQ in Portugal is serious business. Forget hot dogs and hamburgers; it's all about pigs. Roasting pigs turn a casual game into an all day event, and who doesn't love a good outdoor event?

I can see why Pai was all too happy to go to Moojie's first rugby games. They are the best! It wasn´t nearly as dangerous as I thought it would be, but I´m sure it helps that Moojie is one of the biggest despite being the youngest by two years.

The only tricky part of rugby spectating is keeping Mr. Seb from zooming onto the field.

Seb was fascinated with the climbing wall

and was also quite determined to get a taste of Pai's beer.

I watch rugby like I watch movies, which for anyone who has never watched a movie with me, that means asking questions throughout. We never learn if we don't ask, right?

It looks like these Rugby games will be a part of our weekends for the forseeable future. I can live with that.

Family Sunday

There were too many problems to name with my attempt at getting a picture of all four kids together. 

I would love this first one if it weren't so dark. This was as light as I could get it. 

maybe next time...

One of the Family

We are all big cuddlers on Happy Street.  The fact that Sebby can't crawl by a sibling without climbing up for a cuddle is no surprise at all. I think he is turning into one of those Great Danes, or other big dogs, that loves jumping on his owner's lap with no notion of how big he is. We've all had our fair share of elbows to the tummy, head butts, and even a split lip. It's all worth is for a good Sebb snuggle. 

Seb Helps With Homework

Everyone has his or her own desk, complete with drawers and school supplies galore, but they all seem to congregate in the sala where Seb makes his rounds and checks in. It was driving me crazy to have books and papers strewn about, along with fielding six hundred "have you seen my--- ?" questions later in the evening, but now I'm just acquiescing. Seb loves the activity, and I'm at hand to help both of them if need be.

Of course now it makes me wonder if we should get rid of their desks, but we've had enough furniture changes for one year. Is that even possible?

Back to August

I never did a post on Moojie's birthday and time sort of got away from us. So while Sebby takes a little nap, I'll get up as many pictures as  I can.

Moojie is Zita's polar opposite when it comes to birthdays. He does no planning and is very low-key about celebrations.

The day before his birthday was the dreaded braces day. Here are the before shots.

 Freddy is hiding behind them because Moojie got to hold Sebby. There is always a disagreement about who gets to hold Sebby, and the solution turns into many pictures with Sebby getting passed around.

 See how thrilled Freddy is to not be holding Seb?

 The book ends and I. I love having 14 years between these boys. I would never be able to bear Moojie being so old without that squishy baby in the house. When Sebby is 14, I'll start on a campaign for grandchildren.

He opened presents in our room in the morning wearing only boxers, so I can't post the pictures here. I think it was a tactical move on his part.

Freddy gave him a beach rugby ball. Zita gave him a beach towel, and Sebby gave him his annual Dairy Milk plus Reeces Peanut Butter Cups. He also got some much needed Rugby gear.  His big present was the lap top he has always dreamed of. Actually we split it with him; we are of the mind that children take better care of things they have worked for and contributed to.

 The birthday breakfast was pancakes, bacon, fruit, and orange juice. We only have juice in the house on birthdays and Christmas, so two full liters of orange juice was a party in and of itself.

 I make the same cake every year on his birthday. The chocolate satin frosting is from the Joy of Cooking and the cake is the chocolate truffle cake that I've posted here, but don't have the will to link to right now. It's yummy.

 He went to the beach with friends until our seafood dinner at Mar do Guincho. Low key celebrations, low expectations, and yummy food. Both Pai and I are hoping that Zita absorbed his approach, but I think it just got her thinking more about January 2014.