First day of school

Monday, October 5th. Silas was more than excited, and had plenty of fun. But he still called in Sleepy Cub and Corduroy for back up. You never know when you might need a friend.

The Ballad of S.O.E. Ruffy

Silas set himself up with the guitar and a "microphone" (aka the guitar stand) yesterday and spent a good bit of time composing and singing some songs. They started out as an amalgamation of verses from different songs and poems he knows ("there was a farmer had a train, and on that train was a school bus...") and evolved into more original compositions -- primarily revolving around the exploits of train cars. Below is the end of his last song, about a train car named "S.O.E. Ruffy":

A Dynamic Duo

Silas and Margaret are beginning to play with each other ... here they share a ride on the HMS Exer-saucer ...

... and Silas helps her out with a bottle.

When Margaret is sleeping, Silas can take on more serious tasks, such as constructing a bus with seats for 30 people.

Silas has also been keen for Margaret to practice her sitting up skills -- which are improving daily. We captured this recent moment on camera together...

and Silas took a "good movie" to document the occasion.

Baby Jack!

Here are some snapshots of our brandnewest baby cousin, taken in his second 24 hours. Congratulations Auntie Sarah and Uncle Ryan!

Hard at work:

It's official:


Fuss:

What are you people doing out there?

Where's Margaret?

She's coming to get you.

A well-travelled sleeper, Margaret has been camping,

and beaching.


But she's not one to miss a meal,

or a laugh.

Cousins are awesome

Not because they eat popsicles while they watch movies,

but because they eat hot dogs while they watch movies.

Did you know Bob Dylan was a gingerbread man?

Silas lives in a rapidly expanding universe. For example, we did not expect our recent vacation to Rhode Island to include a boat trip to Alaska:

When we visited dad's friend Nick in New Haven on our drive up, Silas wanted to know -- as we opened the door to Nick's apartment building -- "Is Nick a cat, or man?" Nick turned out to be a man, and we played with him at the beach, along with his human son, Matteo:

Silas likes to tell stories, and one of his current favorite heroes is Bob Dylan. In this video, we catch the tale end (so to speak) of Silas -- playing at being 25 -- bending the ear of another long-time dad friend, Fred, regarding Dylan's exploits -- complete with a gratuitous display of male-ness which cannot be taught: