Guenthers were once in Seattle...: September 2013

Greyson is halfway to age 8. Half a year can go by in the blink of an eye, can't it? Graham turns 4 next month. I don't need to lament this with all of you - you, my friends and family, are experiencing time passing too and I enjoy listening and watching as you experience the day to day. I read somewhere that there are 962 Saturdays (or something like that) before your children go to college with the message to make the most of each of those days before the kids leave and I thought, 'ok, sure' there will be Saturdays where fun and games are planned and every minute is filled with wonder and joy, laughter and memories. But more often there will be Saturdays where the laundry gets done, the house gets cleaned, errands are run and we shoo our kids out the door for some peace and quiet and I see no reason to feel bad about that. Is that making the most out of a Saturday between now and college? I think it is or the kids would stink and we'd lose our minds.

I'm frustrated with the age of Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook not because these vehicles allow us to share but because they feel like the scoreboard of a game. And although we don't necessarily see the points tally up, we keep track because to compare is human. And validation feels good.

We, the Guenthers, are doing the best we can and I've not written about it lately because, well frankly, I'm tired. And the snuggle time on the couch with the boys or the quiet times to sit when I've shooed them outside is all I have effort for. Until today. I've saved some photos and some quotes and apologise that you haven't had a chance to keep up with us more reguarly because those of you who check in frequently have told me how much of a bummer it is to see the same post here for 6 whole months. So, here you go! Enjoy!

We moved into our new house in April of this year- if you're keeping track, this is house #5 in 5 years. We live in a great English neighbourhood in the village of Ascot and if you're a horse racing fan you should plan a visit as the famous Royal Ascot racecourse is walking distance from our front door and on race weekends we can hear the crowds cheering. The Queen comes to Royal Ascot every June and next year I do plan to get fully dressed up, crazy feathered hat included, Mike in a morning suit if for no other reason than to take a picture and tick the box - been there, done that.

London recorded one of the hottest summers on record this year. Our new house has a great garden where we spent many days jumping on the trampoline, playing soccer and of course, firing up the BGE. It was an eclectic mix of activity from sport to theater and of course, travel. My mom and aunt visited in June, Mike's mom came in August and then the dog days of summer quickly turned into a return to school. Greyson in 1st grade, Graham in 'Scramblers'. There were zero tears this year (yay!!) - Mike carpools with our neighbours and the tears are coming from their little Scrambler, Graham's bestie Reid. Graham tries his best to console him but the commute to school is a long one for Mike on his days to drive as Reid cries almost the whole way there.

We are now watching the leaves turn and today, as I write, the sun is shining. It is my perfect day - sunny and a cool and comfortable 60F. We watched the Packers beat the Redskins last night via NFL Gampass- $130 for the season is money well spent. American football is the thing I miss the most (even more than American bacon - no, really)

GRAHAM*isms*

Mom: "Graham, do you need a napkin?"

Graham: "Mmm, no. It's faster if you wipe it on your clothes"

Graham: "When you gonna have a butt and penis? When you're a grown up?"

Graham: "Ow! That hit me on the headfore"