Elina

We have yet another addition to our family. Meet Elina, a gift from H's ex-girlfriend. She is a Jellycat "Bashful Bunny" and H got custody of her after the breakup. She came to visit some colleges with us this week.

Bjorn the Shark

When H and G got their IKEA sharks, they made up some lore about them. Sherlock is Snoopy's father, and Bjorn is Sherlock's father. Bjorn's father is also named Snoopy. They use patronyms, so it's Bjorn Snoopyson, Sherlock Bjornson, and Snoopy Sherlockson.

M promised to buy a "chubby XXXL" shark from Amazon if Geo got into the highest orchestra at his school. Geo got into the orchestra so now we have this ridiculous shark that is 4 feet long. Meet Bjorn.

Shark.zip

Bjorn passed out from eating Five Guys

Bjorn with Snoopy

Snoopy and Sherlock's big adventure

Snoopy and Sherlock rang in the new year  in Blackhawk. 

They love a good road trip, especially when there are snacks involved

Now they are curious about what's inside

Does this thing dispense fish?

Unfortunately, M and D ditched them to get sushi. 😂

Finnegan's birthday

Since we know Finnegan's birthday is November 15, we threw him a little shark-themed birthday party. H has always claimed that Finnegan wasn't going to be born until November 15, so we set his birthday to 0.

Finnegan

H came home from the gas station with a new friend, Finnegan.

Finnegan had a poem attached to him that the boys are constantly reciting:

Let's check it out so we can see

If you can swim faster than me.

I seriously doubt you'll win.

You haven't got a single fin.

My birthday is November 15.

So we have to throw him a party next month.

Fall is in the air

That means the animals are wearing hoodies and scarves and playing with pumpkins.

Oh, and the humans are having concerts.

(Geo trying not to laugh when seeing me dab on him.)

Chicago Shenanigans

M took Geo on a road trip to Chicago for a chamber music camp. Along with his new cello, we took Snoopy, Buh, and a new addition to our plushy family, Sharky Joe, who hails from the Florida Keys. 

Geo had fun learning to play chamber music with a string quartet. 

M explored Evanston, which is a nice college town.

Geo and M (and Buh) also worked on a tricky puzzle.

We mostly ate stuff from Whole Foods but tried some local restaurants.

We had a lovely penthouse suite at the Hyatt House, which cost more than our mortgage but afforded us a fantastic view of the fireworks on the 4th of July.

The week ended with a fantastic finale concert. Geo is going to Portland for two weeks and D is flying to Chicago to drive M home. The summer is halfway over but there are still some more adventures to come.

Five Below

There is this store called Five Below that keeps popping up everywhere around here. We love it because it has an amazing candy section. Every time we go out, we end up here to replenish our candy supply. 

Even Snoopy has gotten in on the action.

A new friend

Geo has always loved plush Peeps, even though he doesn't care for the candy. R bought him a new friend, and we surprised him with this ginorma-Peep on the way home from the airport. 

Rechonking the shonk

Snoopy was looking, well, droopy lately so we decided to "rechonk" (restuff) him. This gave M the opportunity to wash Snoopy, whose teeth are turning gray. The boys whined that M made Snoopy too fat, so she had to redo it, but now he is perfectly plump.

Before the rechonking

Rechonking supplies

Dechonked

Taking a bath

Drying off

Rechonked

Dechonked

Re-rechonked

Snoopy/Sherlock chronicles

The boys continue to be obsessed with their sharks, though M pointed out that Sherlock appears to be a deadbeat dad because he doesn't hang out with Snoopy. Hence, H is always trying to make it look like Sherlock is a good dad. Also, the sharks speak only German and a language called Sharklish that only Geo can understand.

Geo (+ Snoopy + Oliver) in Oregon

Geo flew solo to Portland earlier this week to hang out on the Oregon Coast with Grandma and Papa. He brought Snoopy and Oliver for company, as well as his stalwart companion, Softblank. He has been to a fish market and a cello concert so far and is currently trying his hand at whitewater rafting. He will be home just in time for his 12th (!) birthday.

Cello camp

This past week, Geo attended Suzuki camp in Thornton. He had fun, made friends, learned how to fiddle, and created great art. Snoopy and Buh also came along for the ride.