Brooklyn (Non-)Dodger

At Brandon’s invitation, the kids and I attended our first home basketball game of the year. His niece and family were in town, and he thought—correctly—that the little ones would enjoy meeting to hang out in the stands. We arrived at halftime, spotted our friends, and joined them for the second half.

The good news is that the kids had good chemistry and exhibited the teamwork needed to share snacks, give high-fives, and cheer their hearts out; the bad news is that team on the court didn’t play as well together as our team in the stands, and the result was a rare home loss.

Head Rice

I’m not expert in the language, but I believe “Chipotle” is Spanish for “place and provider of nourishment for my family at least once a week.” It is also the place that gives your kids these boatlike containers for their beans and rice, which double as sombreros at some point during the meal.

A Joyous Occasion

A.J., in our world, stands for Austin James, who is Olivia’s dear friend. But it can also stand for absolute joy, which is what the two of them had when hanging out this afternoon. After taking in lunch at Panera, they rolled into a nearby bowling alley for a couple games of tenpins. Olivia asked what it’s called when a vegetarian throws three strikes in a row—answer: Tofurkey—and A.J. demonstrated a bowling acumen beyond his years.

Hot Topic

Every time we go to the play area of our local library, Reed insists on wearing the firefighter helmet. Maybe it’s that he identifies with the boy on the cover of a book on firefighters from his personal library.

At this early age, he obviously doesn’t understand the risks of head-lice contraction, but as parents we know that he’s playing with fire whenever he’s playing with fire (gear).

Wash You

Reed is to Olivia what Rubber Duckie is to Ernie—making bath time lots of fun

Feeling Chippy

Our son loves veggie sticks—he calls them chippies—and the stick part of a broken toy broom. He put them together to create magic.

Sticks Figure from chris k on Vimeo.

Smoothie Operator

Straw Man from chris k on Vimeo.

Brush Within the Law

Inspired by the street artists featured in "Exit Through the Gift Shop" but not their risk-being-arrested-at-every-turn methods, Olivia busily prepared her newest artistic creations on a brand-new easel from the comforts of home.

Keyboard Meeting

When it comes to learning piano, Olivia is lucky on two accounts: one, her mother—or father, for that matter—is not a Tiger Mother; two, she studies under Margaret, a family friend and incredible teacher. Margaret is so kind, and especially so because she conducts the weekly lesson at our house, which allowed us all—from Grandma Randi to Reed to the proud parents—to enjoy an end-of-lesson concert this week.

Keep Accompany from chris k on Vimeo.

Concert Doers from chris k on Vimeo.

Encore! from chris k on Vimeo.

Rock Stars

Aiden and Olivia joined their dads for a recent rock-climbing outing. We’d signed up for a parent-child introductory class, where we learned the basics of safety and technique. After the class, we were given time to roam the walls. The kids had a blast hanging on and hanging out; the dads, on the other jittery and clammy hand, had a harder time overcoming their apprehension of altitudes.

Adorn with a Silver Spoon

For those of you who have been around my children, you know firsthand (first-ear?) how clamorous they are. So how do we feed our big- and loud-mouthed kids? With giant eating utensils, of course.

In Memoriam

Max, earlier today

We adopted Max, a retired racing greyhound, nearly eight years to this day. In that time, he logged many hours dreaming of mechanical rabbits; accompanying us on our walks; taking baths; standing stall and sitting awkwardly; allowing kisses and hugs and more hugs; eating treats; and sharing in festive occasions.

He truly was a member of our family. As Olivia noted in a letter to a friend, we used to have five in our family, and now we only have four.

Yet those four will always remember the special times we shared with our special guy.

We miss you so much, Max.

We love you dearly.

Stack Photo

When the odds are stacked against you, just stack the blocks in an odd arrangement, and then knock over the tower with the crushing force of your hammer swing. Repeat 100 times.

Giving Everyone His Vest Shot

Future model?