Ah Chess

You had him at strategy

Hopefully with all of the chess Jacob insists on playing we can rise above the whole Arkansas thing. 

I guess I'll have to go for that P.h.D. after all

I've enjoyed being the only member of our family with a graduate degree.  I mean, you know, mommy got her masters!  And man it helps me in my day to day parenting adventures.  Nothing gives me greater joy than to discuss word order in Dominican speech or the etymology of the word "gringo" with my boys over the proverbial pb and j.  Soon enough my degree will serve me professionally, but for now it's just bragging rights.  Bragging rights that Matt has pried out of my cold, dishpan hands.

I knew when Matt got out of school he would also have a masters, and I would have to be happy with an educational tie.  Alas, it was not meant to be.  A few months into his MBA we realized that, for a myriad of reasons, it would make sense for Matt to also get a masters in Public Policy.  Two degrees!  Two.  Bah.  You win this time Hutch.  Only this time.

It really was a great time to celebrate Matt's accomplishments and our family's small role in them.  We're so grateful for our time in Chicago (something I know I've beaten into my readership).  And I am so proud of Matt's hard work and dedication.  My parents were able to come out for the graduation and unsurprisingly my dad took a million wonderful pictures of the event.  Here are some of my favorites.  There are a lot of them.

Graduation was held in Rockefeller chapel, which made me feel like Matt was graduating from Hogwarts.  Seriously, with the stone walls, cloaks and scepters (I counted at least two) it was a far cry from the innocuous setting of the Marriot Center.  A score board really takes a bit of the pomp (and slight creepiness) out of it.  This was pomp (and creepy) filled.  But the building was beautiful.  And so was Matt.

Receiving his diploma

And then the heavens opened and a light shone upon the Master(s).  He's sweet.

A truly beautiful building.

The next day we slapped some brand new maroon bow ties on the boys (thanks mom and dad) and took some pictures of the graduate and his family by the business school and Rockefeller chapel.  Again, thank you so much dad and there are a lot of pictures.  

Bartenders!

Little graduates!

Rockefeller chapel

I love the look on Ben's face.  

Jumping for joy (trying to cheer up Jacob...unsuccessful).

Cheesy face of mine, unbelievably beautiful face of Benjo's

We did it!  Go team Hutch!  (That's how I'll make myself feel better about the whole Matt beating me thing...hooray for coattails!)

Skillz

Nico is doing amazing things lately. You can see his new tricks below.

Please see past my unnaturally high, squeaky voice. (Whenever I'm trying to capture a very specific thing on video my voice jumps octaves pretty fast...something about nerves and begging.) Also, please ignore my grunting in pain and annoyance when Jacob jumps on me. And my pronouncing Jacob as "Jeekbop".

But do see his amazing puzzle abilitays. Also enjoy his round of applause. And lastly, enjoy his new word.



His first time using his new word was when Jacob came out of his room a few days ago.

Brothers!

I'd like to take a moment to say that Nicholas really is delightful. He's a sweet baby (not a toddler yet, so don't even try to call him one). He is smiley and mild. He likes to pat me firmly on the back when I hold him and say, "ma-my". He also is a world class cuddler. Seriously, he would win any cuddle competitions (when he's in a cuddly mood, of course) hand down. I just am really enjoying him. And those cheeks! I'll stop.

Nico-pico

He's just really, really, really cute...even with a piece of cracker in his mouth.














He's also an avid "more" signer. I faithfully signed "more" to Jacob for 6 months and nothing. Nothing. I half-heartedly signed "more" to Nicholas for two weeks and voila! He also says, "Mah. Mah." to drive his point home.














And seriously, what cuteness! What sweetness! Good natured and good lookin'!

Would you care for some intensity with your dinner?

When I was a little girl my mother used to tell me stories about me. You know, "Once upon a time there was a little girl named [pregnant pause] Robyn, and one day..." I loved it. Mom is a great story teller. She always seemed to have a husky, intense voice that filled the stories with lots of suspense and intrigue. I really can't remember if the stories were moral little tales to help me be better or if they were stories of me catching unicorns with my rainbow lasso. I simply know that I felt so special and so amazed to think that I was in a real, live story!

The other day I decided to tell Jacob a story about himself and Nicholas. He fell in love. We have definitely not ventured out of the realm of solid reality, but it's pretty amazing to see his genuine interest in these little tales. (Although part of me wishes I'd never started "Once upon a time"ing it. The demand is amazing and Jacob is quite the taskmaster. )

Last night Jacob was asking for "Once upon a time" and so I started telling away and the look on his face told me that he was in, he was all in. This video is a bit long, and I'm sure you won't understand every word he says, but I think you'll get a glimpse at what our days are filled with lately. (I actually just spent the last 30 minutes telling a convoluted tale about my kids and their friends.)

A lot of the time what I am saying is just repeating Jacob because he now can really drive a plot. He fills them with lots of characters (his friends from nursery & the neighborhood), violence (bonks), and emotion (crying). Enjoy!

So bright they blind me!

That's right. These boys don't stop! Look at them go to town with their new crazy skillz. Also enjoy some "Wubba wubba" with Nicholas.

Does this mean I'm brilliant?

We think so. Look at how observant our little boy is. That's some serious concentration. And brilliance.