Hello, I must be going

In brief, while I've been gone:

James turned 18 months old. The doctor continues to use the same old line ("the only thing he's slow at is getting teeth") about the same four chompers he's had for months now. His height remains average, while his weight is now hovering around the third percentile, and his head falls between the 50th and 75th percentile. He says 'nana (banana), mama & dada, nose (nuh), milk (muh), eye, ear, hair, tickle (tka), digger (dih) woof woof, meow, and vroom vroom. 

I turned my back on him for 30 seconds and found him at the counter, sneaking chicken livers.

Not quite getting the hang of finger-painting.

Although he looks blase here, James is quite the lover, always ready for a kiss and a tickle.

Peter's been schooling Henry at home. 

Henry started a 3-week Montessori summer camp yesterday. Drop-off yesterday was the first time he's ever been left without either me, Peter, Virginia, or my mom, and boy, did he ever not like it. After I unpeeled him from my legs and left, near tears myself, I heard him hurling himself against the door. Later, I learned from both the teachers and from himself, he hid under the furniture and "peed all over the building" (Henry's words). Once that was over, however, he settled down all right, and today our parting was perfectly undramatic. On the one hand, it's lovely to have a tete-a-tete with James in the morning, but on the other hand, three weeks seems like a long time to have Henry gone for four hours every day. I miss him. 

After camp today, a two-hour nap.

Both boys have thoroughly enjoyed our mulberry tree this spring.