Brian, while acting as Lysander and being somewhat drugged into sleep by Puck made it into the on-line New York Times "The Week in Culture" slideshow. He just finished A Midsummer Night's Dream with the Princeton Festival and it was a great show and cast. Even though it is not a sad show, the ending was so beautiful today I was crying. On a Baz Luhrmann cd I got from the library years ago, he had a couple of dance versions of the ending of the opera that I used to listen to over and over, not knowing he used the melody from the Britten opera. Hmm. . . I may also have cried from being so tired. Up late packing tonight, crazy travel day tomorrow, but a good run for Brian.

Hello from Phily. We have spent a few days here between Brian's performances (the opera opened last weekend and was very well received. Here is a link to the reviews.) We are hosted by the Nuttalls and they are such great hosts even while they are out of the country! We have had a great time and will post more later, but here are a few photos while I have a good borrowed wireless connection.
Above is the fountain at Logan Square. Kristy clued us in that locals "wade" in it. It was very fun, so fun that we may do it again.

One of my old friends from growing up has a sister in the area who watched our kids so we could walk around alone for a little bit. We went to Ritterhouse Town that was established in 1690. Anyhow, we are winding down and getting ready for the last weekend of opera before heading home next week. We have liked it out here, but there is no place like home.

Just blowing some bubbles in the PA back yard tonight after dinner. I need to get more photos of the town and all the great stone houses. We are surrounded by great history but I am also surrounded by a 3 and 1 year old who make it not so easy to take photos of historic places I would like to photograph. Oh well, as much as they wear me out at times, there will be time for historic photos later, but little ones will not stay little.

We love bubbles.

PS Kristy, we borrowed a jacket. We will leave it at your house. Colin's new jacket got left at home somewhere.

A few photos from today.
I got Colin this Superman t-shirt recently. He was playing Superman in Nursery at Church before I think he knew what superman was. I liked the shirt since it is blue and Colin is all blue, all the time. I showed Colin some Superman clips on youtube today and he was transfixed. He is funny when he wears the shirt because everyone calls him Superman and he does not quite know how everyone knows.

Janie had a nice stroller nap today. I love the dreamy light.

We were playing in the back yard this evening. Jane loves to feel the wind.

Our hosts recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary and let me take a photo to commemorate the occasion. I very much hope for a 50th wedding anniversary with Brian.

Finally got the big one year old a cup cake with frosting. She was a little tired but figured it right out, cute girl.

Then straight to the bath!

Since Jane had a fever on her birthday (that she then shared with Colin) we tried to somewhat re-do the birthday celebrations at a cute little place Brian and the other opera singers found. She is feeling much better than she was last week. The fever only lasted 2 days and then almost all was well. (There are a few details I won't elaborate on since they mostly involve trauma for me. Things have been a little rough.)

I love Colin here talking to the desserts. The display case sort of babysat him for portions of the meal while he just stood studying the desserts. Brian wiped off his hand prints with a baby wipe, which kind of left things streaky. We may not be welcome back here any time soon.

Loving all things M&M related (thanks to Papa Mike) he got a large M&M chocolate cookie. He is looking so lovingly at the cookie in the top photo. We need to get some of the refined sugar out of that boy's system. At a recent trip to the science museum, he learned about the blood mobile from a TMBG's song (it is cute and available on youtube.com). We have talked about how our bodies need good food to go around in the blood mobile. To his credit, Colin did jog nearly 2 miles with us today. There is a great trail here that is the canal's old tow path and Colin now likes to ride part of the way in the stroller and then got out and jog. We intended him to ride longer today but at our half way point he jumped out and started jogging. It maybe left him too tired because he had a spectacular tantrum at Target tonight.

The bakery did not have anything cake-like, so Jane is still missing out on destroying something for her 1st birthday. We will still make it up to her. I got a strawberry lemon tart that was a little tart for her liking, poor baby.

We are a bit out of order chronologically, but we spent a couple days in Philadelphia recently and loved it! Sadly our friends the Nuttalls who live there are in Mexico City, but they are letting us borrow their car and apartment (which is one of the coolest apartments I have ever seen!)

In the above photo, we were impressed by the masonry at the Masonic Temple.

Colin takes a rest at one of the huge fountains.

Brian and Colin reenacting some fighting behind Independence Hall. We told Colin the story of naughty King George who was mean to the people here so they had to fight for their own country. We were also able to see some old friends from Indiana but sadly did not get any photos. Good times.

April was wondering where all the collages were today. I should gather more photos (and am still working on my blurb book of Jane's first year) but here is a Jane in the first four quarters of her life collage. She was very cute with the box of crayons today. She chewed a hole through the bottom of the box, chewed on some crayons, and had lots of fun handing me crayons over and over again. Handing me things is a favorite game these days. She also loves to throw and somewhat catch a ball.

She is a sweet, funny girl. She shows a lot of personality and a great sense of humor.

She is beginning to like the idea of becoming bipedal. She took her first step the other day for Brian while I was taking out the trash. Her first step was in the 1830 part of the home we are staying in so I think she shows a great interest in history.

This was back in Feb. (on DanaLee's floor) but I love that baby profile.

Her birthday also marks an entire year where I have not slept for more than 3-4 hours in a row. Great. Amazingly even 40 weeks pregnant I would sleep through the night without the need to get up like most prego women. For the nearly perfect baby that Jane is, she is a horrible sleeper. Sleep training does not work when you are nearly constantly traveling and when you have a big brother like Colin who knows right when to wake her up. Oh well, we will still happily keep them both and just continue a life of total sleep deprivation.

Happy Birthday Baby Jane!! We drove around rural New Jersey looking for a cute bakery but did not have much luck today. We stopped at a place but their baked goods were almost gone. Brian and I shared the last lemon bar and Jane worked on a chocolate biscotti.

She was a little hesitant because she has been a little under the weather today, but warmed up to the chocolate.

Colin had fallen asleep in the car and slept through the entire outing. Brian and I both need haircuts.

Happy one year! We are so happy to have Jane in our family. She is a joy and a good little soul, even if she hates to sleep. We hope for many, many birthdays together.