third story completed

Liam really got the 3rd story in quickly.  Once I put in the joists, he was able to hammer in the cedar decking quite deftly as Crispin and I sawed and brought boards over.  In this photo, I am on the ground, Crispin is about 8 feet above me, and you can peek at Liam 8 feet above Crispin.  It was a windy day when we built this.  As I was doing this, I felt a sense of Vertigo.  I calmly talked myself through it, and then I realized that it wasn't vertigo, but that the trees were moving enough in the wind on that blustery day that the top level was moving much more than the middle level, creating an odd sense in a structure you sense to be solid.  Good thing we were building out of flexible wood and not concrete.  I appreciate also Liam's increasing comfort with challenges (not sure he would have wanted to go so high a year ago).

Plays and working on a tree fort

When we returned from our Virginia trip, theater subscriptions converged to send us to 2 musicals and 1 ballet in 8 days.  It was a lot, and it was great to see Swan Lake, Jersey Boys, and Grey Gardens.  Grey Gardens, the musical, was about the somewhat to very eccentric aunt of Jacque Onassis.  It was a theater in the round in a smaller theater.  We were sitting in the front row, sometimes inches from the actors.  Liam really liked watching how they changed sets up out of the floor and worked with that sort of space.  Crispin is still singing songs.  Liam is getting old enough that we could have a conversation about the Kennedys.

That being said, after all this, it was nice to have some down time.  School was closed on Monday because of a problem with their well, so the boys and I worked on their tree fort.

Crispin and the Hokie Bird

At the softball game

new school ID for Liam

boys and monsters

The new school for Liam and Crispin next year.

Birthday cake

With Great Grandma

Birthday celebrations

We are in Virginia about to have a belated birthday celebration for Liam.