Barritt/Annabelle/Jay

I Demand Satisfaction

2012-01-17T22:54:00.000-05:00

50 or so days since the last post. Since then J has really started talking, B has lost more teeth and A has had a birthday.

We've got sort of a shortage of good pitures from actual cameras these days - when both parents have phones that take decent pictures, that becomes the default. However, upon the importing of a few pictures taken with a camera, I noticed some choice ones of A, all of which show the outside world the behavior we see every day: A is happy touching presents, and, fortunately, also happy with friends. But she should not be crossed.

Drumsticks and Stones

2011-11-28T13:56:00.000-05:00

We've returned from a fun-filled, cousin-filled and stuffing-filled Thanksgiving holiday in Roanoke. Thankful for the warm weather and healthy kids.

Schaddenfreude Jr.

2011-10-24T09:58:00.000-04:00

Usually we can never get our oldest kids to smile like this for the camera - never. But lo and behold, there is a new trick:

1. Go out to Salem Lake on bikes.
2. Find the abandoned ropes course you never knew was there despite going to Salem Lake on a pretty regular basis.
3. Let kids climb on rickety stairs associated with said abandoned ropes course.
4. This includes Jay.
5. Watch kids laugh and smile once Jay falls backwards off the steps into a pile of leaves.
6. Feel guilty, but take picture quickly.

Precious Cargo

2011-10-08T21:11:00.000-04:00

B lost his third tooth this morning, whilst camping. After returning home, all of us were on the verge of collapse, but knew that we had to find the tooth fairy pillow. After searching in vain for a few minutes, we gave up hope for finding said pillow this evening. However, Barritt quickly improvised a backup method of delivering the tooth to the Tooth Fairy (see below; and yes, that is his tooth in the treasure chest). His tableau is so good, one wonders if he intentionally lost the pillow. In any event, B has honestly indicated to us that he hopes the Tooth-Guarding Ninjas will come alive later tonight to meet the Tooth Fairy - not to scare her, just to make friends.

While you are here, enjoy the other pics of A&B at Stone Mountain Falls (earlier today), and Jay at the Moose Cafe (last week). It's going to be a while before he goes toe to toe with that moose.

Jay, Dining Room, September

2011-10-02T14:14:00.001-04:00

Jay is seemingly everywhere at once these days, except when you are trying to find him. If he is not escaping out the front door, he is sitting on the side of the toilet "washing his feet", or attacking a brother's legos, or attacking a sister's painting or "helping" to take the painting tape down. Here are signs of his mischief from a one week period, in just one room of the house. OK, the first picture isn't mischief; it is a gesture that states the obvious: I'm a third kid, I do what I want until it inconveniences one of the other four of you.

Back from the Beach

2011-08-26T16:22:00.000-04:00

In this world of Facebook, Twitter, back to school and getting more than a hundred emails a day at work, it is increasingly hard to find time to keep this old 2005 blog technology updated. Nonetheless, we'll try to do it once a month . . .

The Chambers will never take one of those pictures where all of the subjects' clothes, smiles and dental work all match. Part of the reason for that is philosophical, part of it is because we are all somewhat introspective and therefore none of us perform well and part if it is because there is just too much wiggling in our family. But all in all, I'm pretty pleased with this souvenir from the annual beach trip:

Heat Wave

2011-07-22T13:34:00.000-04:00

Baby Jay does not care if he is holding his popsicle upside down. He does not care if he is eating a popsicle before even his brother and sister have eaten breakfast. He just knows that it is 112 degrees in the combined shade of a crepe myrtle and a plastic car, and he is doing what he can to make it to his next nap.

Queen for a Day(?)

2011-06-13T22:07:00.001-04:00

Lest you have any doubt this is our four year old getting ready for her first dance recital, the bottom picture confirms that even a dress seemingly made of clouds and cotton candy can't stop Annabelle from being the sassiest pre-schooler in town.

2011-06-13T21:59:00.000-04:00

Annabelle likes her lunch to look her in the eye. Please note the cucumber and lettuce were grown in the back yard!

Barritt had his face painted as a werewolf at Dad's company picnic. Fortunately, the full moon passed before the End of the Year kindergarten party.

Barritt's school year has flown by. He LOVES his teachers and classmates. He had a great year.

Quick and dirty

2011-06-13T21:58:00.001-04:00

That title describes both Mom in the 36 North Triathlon earlier this month and the next couple blog posts. Maybe if I get the pictures up Matt will write something funny when he has a moment...

Off to the races

2011-05-29T12:00:00.001-04:00

B and A made an appearance at the North Carolina State Criterium Championships in High Point yesterday. B had done a couple of kids races before, but had never done a whole lap race. Yesterday he was escorted by our friend Rodney (the guy with the orange seat, who, until now, you may have been thinking was sandbagging an easy win in a kids race), and had a great time.

As for A, it was her first race, and she got on the podium with a solid 3rd place. Technically, every kid in the kids race gets the same prize, but let's just say she was one of the first three in her race to get the prize.

Back in the Saddle

2011-05-04T11:25:00.000-04:00

Alas, we have but one picture from the last month or so, and it was taken on Dad's phone. But it is an important picture, documenting Mom's return to the great wide world of outdoor bike riding. Her trusty steed had been ignored in the corner of the basement since about the time she had determined that Jay was her on-board passenger in the Fall of 2009.

The return to the saddle was last weekend, mostly along the banks of the French Broad in Western NC. By all accounts it was a success. Pictured here is Mom, along with our friend and navigator, Jim. Note the horses in the barn to the left, nodding in approval.

And the name of this hydrangea is . . .

2011-04-12T15:30:00.001-04:00

Annabelle.

April 3d, 72 degrees in the backyard

2011-04-04T08:51:00.000-04:00

Celebrating the first birthday of Jay, a.k.a. the Small Mouth Bass.

This is what Jay looks like on a full suspension mountain bike. We should have gotten one size smaller.

Farmboy


S'mores. Yes, that is melted marshmallow holding her hair back.

Afternoon Caucus

2011-03-08T10:24:00.001-05:00

These Are Action Shots: You can't expect me to get their whole heads in the frame

2011-02-21T13:51:00.001-05:00

Sunday afternoon at the playground:

How we've looked in January

2011-01-29T11:22:00.001-05:00

We've been a busy bunch this month - mom and dad have been working more than they really want to, dad finished the cyclocross season, mom has started training for her race season, B had his first science fair project (Honorable Mention! More pics coming later), we all went to the beach with great friends and temporarily escaped what has been a cold cold winter, Jay seemingly is constantly assailed by fevers, drooling and fussiness and A has generally just been a hot mess since turning 4. Hopefully things will chill out some in February, but we have our doubts.

The Big 4.0

2011-01-10T19:55:00.002-05:00

Annabelle is probably not the first 4 year old to get a time out in the middle of opening presents. She's probably not even our first 4 year old to get a time out in the middle of opening presents. Nonetheless, she was all ears and all smiles once the amazing hexacolored cake hit the table.

Happy birthday kid!

Now get to bed.

2011-01-06T08:21:00.000-05:00

Its funny the first time.

2010-12-23T09:32:00.000-05:00

Our December So Far

2010-12-19T20:58:00.001-05:00

A few good shots showing what we've been up to so far in the last month of the year. The middle two shots are from today's Christmas pageant at St. Pauls, where B played Joseph. As one friend put it when he passed us in the hall, "I guess if both of your parents went to seminary, you are bound to get pretty good roles in the Christmas pageant".

(so they aren't all smiling - but they are all in the same picture - a rarity)

Autumn Leaves

2010-11-23T16:31:00.000-05:00

Walking home from church on Sunday it dawned on me that this is the first place we have lived in a while where those paper bags for collecting leaves aren't mandated. A policy that will no doubt work to the delight of our kids for a few years to come. And to the chagrin of the unfortunate mother who must add "leaves" to the list of things to be brushed out of A's hair (that list already typically includes tangles, yogurt and toothpaste).

All Hallows Eve . . . our 300th Post!!!!!

2010-10-31T21:02:00.001-04:00

The freaks don't always come out at night. These freaks come out at about 5:30.

Little Otis

2010-10-31T08:00:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we had a quick Autumn trip to Mt Airy and Levering Orchard in Ararat, VA. But A's lunchtime behavior landed her temporarily in the clinker.

Barritt Things Considered

2010-10-18T21:12:00.005-04:00

It's that time of year again - time for the big Fall fundraiser at most public radio stations. Our local station, WFDD, has pared the Fall ask down to one day (One Day Wednesday, which is 10/20/2010). In advance of this, the family attended a party this evening hosted by the station for its volunteers and supporters. Barritt, a life-long listener of public radio, was needless to say, enthused.

What began as a tour of the station soon led to Barritt being interviewed by our friend Molly Davis. In what can only be called a tour de force of interviewing, of the likes unseen since Terri Gross' 2002 Fresh Air interview with Gene Simmons, Molly asked piercing questions of Barritt, such as the following:

Molly: Barritt, can you think of any way that WFDD could better serve you as a listener?

Barritt: (silent contemplation, due to his general satisfaction with WFDD)

Molly: Barritt, what I guess I am trying to get at is, well, is there anything that we could do now to maybe reach out to the 5 and a half year old demographic that we understand will be intellectually, politically and financially influential in roughly 29 and a half years?

Barritt: Well Molly, when you ask it that way, I would like to have a little more coverage on Legos, both on the domestic and international front. Especially from Denmark, where they make Legos.

At any rate, it was thrilling to be there. Barritt is excited to have had his views conveyed. And if you are a listener to WFDD, don't forget to pledge this Wednesday. Or you can do it now here.

JT Farnhams, Essex, MA

2010-10-02T16:03:00.000-04:00

We waited 5 years for this.

Textbook Autumn Day in New England

2010-10-02T15:34:00.001-04:00

Jay, getting his first taste of New England. Later on, via mom, he'll be having fried clams. After that, his dad will go on and on about the epic cross race where he fought it out for - wait for it - 65th place!

2010-09-10T14:20:00.000-04:00

More Firsts

2010-09-10T14:01:00.000-04:00

Annabelle's first day of preschool was Wednesday. Just as emotional for Mom as Barritt's first day of kindergarten, but the actual emotion was a different one. Catch my drift?

Camp Create

2010-09-02T22:27:00.001-04:00

Not technically a "First Day of School" photo, it needs to be included.

Making Mom Weepy

2010-09-02T11:12:00.001-04:00

The Littlest Panther

2010-08-28T20:54:00.000-04:00

and his mom.

What are you looking at?

2010-08-19T18:58:00.000-04:00

You wanna get to the beach, you gotta go through the Mad Dog.

Ice Cream Stop #2

2010-08-19T15:01:00.000-04:00

Ice Cream Stop #1

2010-08-19T15:00:00.000-04:00

98.6 and risin' here at Kiawah.

Family Dinner: the Medium for Life Lessons

2010-08-07T09:16:00.001-04:00

Barritt, like his father, when confronted with the truth of his origins, snickers.

Annabelle responds with stunned silence,

and then loses her appetite.

Jay is not interested in this lesson at this juncture.

The Happy Fatman

2010-08-02T12:05:00.001-04:00

June, Part II

2010-06-30T10:39:00.001-04:00

June recap

2010-06-30T10:36:00.000-04:00

Giant Steps

2010-06-18T22:06:00.000-04:00

This must have been the kind of picture Coltrane was thinking about when he named that album.

From the YiaYia Archives

2010-05-31T09:03:00.000-04:00

Just found this blast from the past. When Annabelle is a cheerleader at UGA we will all look back and say "We knew this would happen."

Adventures in Babysitting

2010-05-31T08:53:00.000-04:00

Annabelle really wants to help with Jay. Jay is not sure he needs this kind of help.

The Middle Kid

2010-05-12T12:20:00.000-04:00

Annabelle has been, shall we say, "challenging" as of late. However, given a little direction, her energy that would otherwise be focused on disaster, destruction and attempted fratricide (of both the big and little brother variety) seems to have produced some impressive results.

Quatro de Mayo

2010-05-04T08:12:00.001-04:00

Jay, upon finding out he gets to drink margaritas (filtered through Mom of course) tomorrow.

Jay - Week 3

2010-04-21T10:31:00.000-04:00

Jay is not an Oompa Loompa; we are currently trying to calibrate our monitor at home so that our edited pictures don't come out so orange on other folks' computers. Nonetheless, folks are crying out to see his constantly changing mug, so here are some current shots of the lil' Jay O Lantern.

Day 9 for Jay - Year 5 for B

2010-04-11T21:38:00.001-04:00

Our pictures don’t represent the biggest event of the weekend – B turned 5 on Friday. But he had already had a party a few weeks before the arrival of Jay, and another at school on Thursday, so Friday was low key. There are a few good pics on YiaYia’s camera, but we did not download any before she headed back to Roanoke this afternoon for a well-deserved sleep.

Kind of a lame shot of Jay, but there are so few so far with his eyes open. But there is a nice (though dark) shot of A, playing the new game she made up: Blanketscotch.

Day 6

2010-04-08T09:49:00.002-04:00

Jay has received countless (because Jay can't count to 3) requests for pictures of his ever-changing face. However, photography is low on the priority list for caretakers who actually have to go through such self-reflection as "Do I have time to go to the bathroom right now, or should I attend to the almost 5 year old who somehow just cut his lip with Legos, or the 3 year old who has a penchant for poking Jay in his posterior fontanelle?"

Trust us on this, Jay is cuter than he was yesterday or the day before. But here is a picture from Day 1, just because.

New for Spring: Joseph Patrick Chambers

2010-04-04T16:15:00.005-04:00

Named after a man from Arimathea, and a man currently between leases in Manhattan and Delray Beach, we call him Jay for short. Mom and Jay are fine. B and A are jacked up, as Barritt now officially qualifies as a mob boss and Annabelle is officially a big sister. The triumvirate is now complete, and the co-emperors are officially concerned about balance of power issues.

Some pics below. Bear in mind, newborns are only cute to parents and close relatives, and even then, not all the time. So we'll keep it brief for now, until he comes into full blossom of cuteness.

Back by Popular Demand

2010-03-16T07:43:00.002-04:00

In anticipation of the new addition, the kids have really been ramping up their performances.

Pizza night

2010-02-20T08:48:00.000-05:00

Breakfast of Champions

2010-02-20T08:46:00.000-05:00

Lately B has been excited to fix his own snacks or even bring us breakfast in bed, like he did this morning. He fixed three plates just like this, making sure Annabelle's was on her favorite pink plate, somehow balanced them in his arms and brought them all upstairs for us to enjoy. I usually prefer a healthier breakfast, but who could refuse oreos, frosted shredded wheat and fruit snacks once in a while?

Breakfast Club

2010-02-13T08:56:00.001-05:00

A little something for all you lovers out there - Happy Valentines Day!

Annabelle: The Big Bed Tapes REVISED

2010-01-23T19:22:00.009-05:00

OK - movie issue has been fixed:

Birthday Shenanigans

2010-01-11T13:45:00.005-05:00

As many of you know, A turned 3 yesterday. As you also know, with 3 year old presents also come 3 year old responsibilities. For example, A is now responsible for putting out fires and sleeping in a non-cage bed.

New Pics

2009-12-28T10:04:00.002-05:00

It has been a busy month preparing for and purveying Christmas to a 2 year old and a 4 year old. Here are some belated pictures (more to come once we get home).

Leafpeeper

2009-11-23T14:09:00.002-05:00

Annabelle, getting the most out of the Barnhardt's oak tree on an unseasonably warm November Saturday. There were leaves in her hair, pockets, shoes and the turtle part of her turtleneck. Fortunately for her she insists on wearing two pairs of underpants these days, and the leaves were only able to permeate the first layer.

Barritt's New Best Friend

2009-11-10T21:33:00.000-05:00

is, naturally, Caramel Corn.

Late Harvest

2009-11-03T20:22:00.000-05:00

After a long night...

2009-11-03T20:19:00.000-05:00

...this little vampire just wants to take off her lipstick and get to bed.

Danbury, NC

2009-10-24T20:35:00.001-04:00

The Chambers highly recommend Priddy's General Store in Danbury, NC. Your family can see bluegrass free every Saturday afternoon in October. Your two and a half year old can eat her first homemade fried apple pie, and then part of a second one. Then she can dance it off, as her four and a half year old brother looks on approvingly, whilst eating his first Moon Pie.

Ubiquitous Seasonal Punkin' Patch Photos

2009-10-24T20:26:00.001-04:00

It's been 5 weeks

2009-10-24T11:47:00.002-04:00

We've been super busy - Dad has been at work all the time, B is hitting the books or the soccer field, A is memorizing every song she's ever heard and Mom is taking care of the other three and herself.

We've been slack on the pictures - after getting new cameras last year, we haven't made time for enough pictures. I imagine with autumn leaves and the ensuing holidays, more will be coming.

Not a staged picture

2009-09-17T08:50:00.002-04:00

Barritt, wearing Dad's shades and hat. After 9 months of being spoiled in the Hottessy, he claims it is too sunny in a regular car to see the DVD player.

Genesis 9

2009-08-25T08:08:00.003-04:00

B&A had a picnic with some friends, which was interrupted by a late afternoon summer thunderstorm. After waiting out the storm in the dry part of the jungle gym, the kids emerged to find this.

And lo and behold, there was a loud voice in the heavens, saying: "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between Me and you and the couple of other kids that are with you, and maybe for successive generations: I set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and Tanglewood Park in western Forsyth County. I will never again send a torrent and flood to mess up your playground. At least not today. Amen"

Don't Lego Of That . . . .

2009-08-03T22:15:00.002-04:00

(not Barritt's actual X-ray)

Monday, 12:50 a.m. The cry of distress comes out of Barritt's room. Not one that we are unaccustomed to. Every few days there are night terrors of the mild variety, usually about something mildly scary like spiders or dinosaurs or non-orange cheese. And the descriptions of said dreams are typically difficult to piece together, for they are made in the semi-conscious incoherence of a four year old falling back to sleep.

But last night Barritt was wide awake and sitting up in his bed.

Dad, walking in the room: "B, what is it?"
B: "Dad, I think I swallowed some Legos."
Dad: "What?"
B: "I think I swallowed some Legos. But don't worry, they were only the little ones with one dot."
Dad: "How many?"
B: "Two, I think."
Dad: "How did it happen?"
B: "Wellllll, I was just sitting here, biting on the Legos, trying to get them apart, and I just swallowed them."
Dad: "We've told you not to bite on the Legos."
B: "But Mom is asleep and she has the fingernails."
Dad: "Are you sure this wasn't a dream?"
B: "No, this was about two minutes ago. Maybe three."
Dad: "Are you sure they were just the little ones?"
B: "Yep."
Dad: "Go back to sleep. I think you are going to be OK."

As I went back to bed, the true scary thoughts started to rise up within me. No, I was not concerned about some kind of GI distress inside of Barritt. After all, there are probably 10,000 Legos swallowed in the United States every day, and anyway, we have at least 3 family members who could help deal with that.

The real scary thought was: what the hell is he doing playing with Legos at 12:45 a.m.? After all, he was asleep when we went to bed at 10 p.m. What is he making? How integral to his invention were those two (at least) tiny one-dot pieces he swallowed? Does he do this every night? What will he make tomorrow night?

We might need to start locking the bedroom door at night.

Did you know...

2009-07-22T21:42:00.000-04:00

...that you can add spinach (fresh or frozen) to a smoothie and your kids will still drink it? We've been making them with vanilla yogurt, orange juice, frozen berries, frozen bananas, spinach and wheat germ. Considering the rest of our diet this week has been strawberry pop tarts and hotdogs, I feel pretty good about the smoothies.

WFU

2009-07-19T21:22:00.001-04:00

My friend Jen came to town last week and we met on Wake Forest campus to visit and let the kids run around. Its hard to get 5 kids looking the same direction at once...sorry we can't see your face below, James!

Lobster Gram!

2009-07-13T14:23:00.000-04:00

"What are you lookin' at?"

Our friend Bobby came with his daughter to stay with us a few weeks ago. We had a great visit, eating, canoeing, eating, swimming, eating and eating. Then last Friday afternoon, this guy and his buddy arrived on our porch. Thanks Bobby! It took me and Matt back to our days in Manchester, MA.

Summer bounty

2009-07-12T16:42:00.002-04:00

Every time I post a blog entry I have to re-learn how to do it...passwords, formatting pictures and text. Sometimes I can only manage to do one thing at a time. Pictures one day, text the next. In case these pictures don't explain them selves (like the one below), I'll walk you through.

Above is one of the first decent harvests from the Chambers Family Veggie Patch. Its been relocated and expanded in 2009. Earlier in the summer we had great luck with lettuce and peas, and now we are loving the early tomatoes! Do you recognize the fruit at the very top? A fig! Thanks to Mrs. Dobbins we have several bushes full of fruit, but this was the only one anywhere near ripe for now.
Sangria for a baby shower with the neighbors. We have great neighbors. And this was great sangria.
Ice cream cone cup cakes on the back stoop with some of said neighbors (not the same ones the who enjoyed the sangria).
This isn't the greatest photo, but we had such a fun time that I wanted to document it. A couple Mondays ago we went to Pilot Mountain. Within the first 10 minutes, B discovered a "hideout" and rejected all encouragements to hike anywhere else. So we stayed on this outcrop all morning, blowing bubbles, snacking and playing The Three Robbers. The best part about the game was that A's Baby got re-named Tiffany, from the story, and now A calls her "baby Sniffany."

Our Summer, So Far

2009-06-07T14:30:00.001-04:00

Picture number one with the shirt off - B working the slip'n'slide in the neighbor's back yard. This is how he remembers our veterans on Memorial Day.

No matter how many Animal,Vegetable, Miracles or Omnivore's Dilemmas a parent reads, it is hard to overcome the force of an excited four year old, confronting the General Mills trifecta at Costco. We have a love-hate relationship already with Costco, but for B it is only love.

Pic two with a shirt off. First watermelon of the year. Probably the first time A has had her own section of a watermelon.

Clearly, Annabelle should have her own melonballer.

Birthday 4.0

2009-05-04T20:12:00.001-04:00

This picture is not from the birthday party, clearly. We felt like we had to include it if only for the Our Gang/Little Rascals-like depiction of a dislike for school. And B won't even go to school for another year and a half. And it wasn't even taken in a school; it was taken at the Arthur exhibit at the Children's Museum. And even if Barritt was in school, and it was a real classroom, look at the message on the board! Not unhappy news at all. Nonetheless, we thought the picture had to be shared.

OK. On to the birthday pics . . .

Yar! Barritt's birthday was a big hit, replete with two chocolate ganache pirate ships decked with 8 cannons, enough eyepatches to go around, and enough booty to fill several pairs of jeans, er . . . I mean a playroom.

2009-04-13T20:13:00.000-04:00

We don't want you to be misled; more often than not one of these two seems to be upset about something the other did to them. Yet there are the nice moments where the depiction in a photograph defies reality in such a nice way that you hold on to them, portray them to the world, and mislead others into believing that you have perennially irenic cherubs. Annabelle in her Easter getup and Barritt with his mom-made shirt round out the occasion.

More pics to come later in the week. Lots of birthday party hikinks to detail.

Our Day in Rowan County

2009-03-22T21:53:00.002-04:00

Sunday was a killer day - 70 degrees and sunny, and we weren't trapped inside the house or on a long car ride as we seemingly have been the last 50 Sundays. We hung out at the park in Salisbury, watched Dad race, and then went to the NC transportation museum in Spencer, NC. It was a fine spring day, and it left the kids exhausted as you can see. Annabelle went down mid-PB&J, as did Barritt. What kind of parents let their kids nap at 5:00 p.m.? The same kind that have to endure Barritt moaning in the room next door at 9:53 p.m.

On Tybee Time

2009-03-11T08:49:00.006-04:00

Is it worth it to drive 6 hours each way, screaming all the way, to hang out at the beach with friends for 48 hours? Absolutely.

March Forth!

2009-03-05T16:02:00.003-05:00

Well, it is really March 5th, but I've just realized that I lost my annual opportunity to take advantage of one of the greatest jokes of all time. Anyhoo, here are a few pics. More to come for sure next week, as we are supposed to have 78 degree temperatures and sunny weather at Tybee Island this weekend.

Interrupting a moment between Annabelle and Grady from across the way.

This picture isn't very good, nor is it very cool. However, this sweater that mom made is very good and very cool. While Barritt's first assessment of it was that it was "too yarny," he has taken to it in the past few days.

Local warming

2009-02-08T19:39:00.002-05:00

Various shots from the last week. You can tell from the relatively undoctored color in the shots that there was a big shift in the weather over the course of the five days, spanning from snow to 70 degrees and sunny. You can also tell that we don't have photoshop; elsewise the residue of about 10 meals would have been taken right off of Annabelle's face.

2009-02-08T19:38:00.000-05:00

Pancake Saturday

2009-02-02T22:15:00.001-05:00

Maple syrup seems to bring out the devilish side of both kids.

Snow Day

2009-01-26T20:06:00.003-05:00

Sure, technically it did snow so it was a "snow day", but was it really necessary to cancel school all over the county? After some hot chocolate and 30 minutes of bundling up, we ventured outside. As you can tell, there wasn't much snow to play with, but Barritt gave it his best, using the Hess truck as a snow plow. Go ahead at laugh at us, all you Yankee Barritts!

Make this for your next party. Thanks to Eddie Ross

Its a crudites platter made from a hollowed out cabbage with old-school sour cream and onion dip. The healthy angel on my shoulder, with her argument that vegetables are healthy and beautiful, barely won out over the hedonist angel on my other shoulder who kept chanting "Ruff-les. . . Ruff-les. . . Ruff-les"

2009-01-13T15:02:00.000-05:00

2009-01-13T14:57:00.000-05:00

Annabelle, v. 2.0

2009-01-11T09:15:00.000-05:00

Annabelle, though she has been acting like one for about three months, is now officially a two year old. Yesterday was replete with cupcakes, social family interactions, tantrums, presents, jealousy, joy, fatigue, and celebration. Celebration and joyousness predominated however.

Please, Sir.

2009-01-07T22:11:00.000-05:00

ALC requesting her seventh pancake.

Shenanigans in the Kitchen

2008-12-30T21:17:00.002-05:00

Clearly, we are no longer resigned to using Dad's blackberry camera. Note the detail in our new aprons Mom made, our craft projects on the pantry door, and Barritt's devious nature. If you double-click on the picture you can almost hear B's laugh and Annabelle's shriek.

Overdramatic

2008-12-28T08:15:00.001-05:00

Dad and Uncle Patrick, initiating their first annual post-Christmas climb up Roanoke Mountain. It isn't too hard to establish an outdoor post-Christmas tradition when it is 60 degrees outside. Regardless of next year's temperature though, there are big plans to have Uncle Sidney follow us in a support vehicle and shout at us from a bullhorn.

Lovefeast

2008-12-24T23:10:00.000-05:00

Mom and the kids, taken inappropriately during the Children's Lovefeast. Merry Christmas everybody!

Advent Calendar - Day 22

2008-12-23T10:01:00.004-05:00

Yesterday's advent calendar event: peppermint chocolate chip milkshake at the official restaurant of upper middle class children. And it doesn't matter if you aren't upper middle class; you can split one of these four ways.

Place holder

2008-12-05T22:38:00.003-05:00

Our camera is broken, seriously. It something fresh batteries couldn't even fix, so we're asking Santa for a new one. Until then, enjoy this picture of me and Annabelle, mere days before her first birthday. I'm bottling beer, naturally.

Gettin' Juiced For the Day Ahead

2008-11-11T21:36:00.001-05:00

Supply your own narrative here. Actually, this would be a good picture for a contest for blog viewers to submit their own narratives ....

We're still here

2008-11-04T18:56:00.000-05:00

We are still here. Our camera is out of commission, and we have been really busy now that we are a normal family with two adults with responsibilities and two kids with lots of energy. More to come . . . . meanwhile, enjoy these pictures taken a few weeks ago at Hanging Rock. Barritt hiked a mile by himself. Look out K2.

Picture Day

2008-09-25T13:59:00.000-04:00

This is the shot the professional photographer didn't get: Barritt's shout out to the Q-Dogs.

Who is that number 7 on the red team?

2008-09-16T10:18:00.000-04:00

Is that Matt Stafford, sensational quarterback and number 7 for the red and black Georgia Bulldogs? No. It's not Mike Vick, is it? No. It's the new number 7 - Barritt Chambers, of the 3&4 year old Gators, of the Central Y league.

So far, he seems to know to at least look in the direction of the ball. He also has the capacity to let bygones be bygones, and even have a refreshment break with someone from the opposing team, so long as that person is Wyatt, our neighbor across the street.

He can also get his pre-game stetch on.

The Closest Thing we Have to a First Day of School Picture

2008-09-16T10:10:00.000-04:00

Barritt is thinking: I did this last year. Am I going to have to take this picture on the front porch of wherever we live on the first day of school every year?

Annabelle is thinking: What do you mean "get in the car"? I have places to be now? I can be late to things?

Mom answers: Yes and Yes.

Where we've been, what we've done

2008-09-01T09:20:00.001-04:00

There has been radio silence since August 5, and the 26 intervening days may surely have been the longest lapse the blog has encountered since Hurricane Katrina. Sometimes we want to quit. But when our blogging aspirations hit their nadir, we hear a nasal senatorial voice, quoting Harriet Tubman, encouraging us to "keep going."

We just spent a week in the High Country of NC, having some R&R and a sip or two of B&B, capped by a visit to the Upstate of SC, to herald the arrival (sometime this week) of Baby Barnhardt the Third.

See the eight pictures in the next few entries . . .

2008-09-01T09:11:00.002-04:00

Here, B is strapped in, once again. We had to make a sortie every day to Boone or thereabouts, since it rained every single day. Save of course the day we left.

A on the rainy porch

B, sitting on the porch with Dad, on a cool crisp morning. The morning of our departure for Greenville.

2008-09-01T09:10:00.003-04:00

The B, at Linville Falls, where we picnicked on Friday.

A, tastefully in her natural form at the Barnhardts.

B and Cameron, eagerly awaiting the passing of the peloton at the USPro Road Championships in Greenville on Sunday.

What we found in our mail when we got home.

Kiawah 2008

2008-08-05T09:07:00.000-04:00

Off to the State Cap'tul

2008-07-28T07:46:00.002-04:00

Like so many other domestic responsibilities, I've recently thought, "hey, I need to catch up on that blog." But we've been busy. A and B are getting a lot of sun time in at the beach with Mom and the cousins. B has apparently lost his aversion to all things water, and the reports are that it is hard to get him out of the ocean.

Dad is off to State Cap'tul. The powers that be there desire to test his prowess in all the kinds of law that he will never practice. It will all be over in 60 hours. Unless he has to do it again in February.

So in less than a week, we'll have peeling skin, we should weigh a little more, and we'll put up pics.

Falling down on the job

2008-07-11T12:53:00.005-04:00

I can't help but notice our ratings have been declining. Many of you are wondering 'what's the point with checking a blog that can't even post once a week'? Accordingly average hits have fallen from 19 a day to 15 a day since we moved to the Dash. Why would you trouble your left click with us, when, for example, one of Mom's favorite blogs posts 79 times per day? (leading to an excitement and expectation causing Mom to stand by the computer, constantly refreshing the page).

I can't argue. And Dad won't help me make an argument. He is too busy trying to figure out who is a life in being for the purposes of the Rule Against Perpetuities. Or exactly what the difference is between equal protection and due process. Or how he did relatively well in law school, given his dearth of substantial legal knowledge.

So above is a picture of B and Cam, from this past weekend. In the tradition of what is presumably the most viewed Twin City blog, I'll give a free apple core to the first person to name the location.

Cousins

2008-07-01T13:26:00.000-04:00

Connor, Tyler and Uncle Sid came for a visit last weekend. Barritt and Connor celebrated Tyler's first birthday (without Tyler) by decorating and eating some cupcakes, then spent the rest of the weekend running naked through the backyard. Those pictures are tucked away until I can maximize their embarrassment potential.