Mario, Rory, and Rachel were the only ones to eventually brave the icy waters to reach this platform in the middle of the cove.

A nice view from the beach. I particularly enjoyed this stone outlook, which was perfectly situated on a stone jetty.

Rory sporting a post immersion hairdo.

To say the water was cold would be a huge understatement. Very brief incursions were the norm. Fortunately, the sun was warm, and thawing took only a matter of minutes.

After all four boys had cut themselves on one sharp rock or another, we decided it might be wise to rejoin the girls. This beach had an extremely shallow pitch and the low and high tide marks were separated by more than 150 feet.

The abundance of life, not to mention color, in these little pools was amazing.

Mario remains engrossed in the tide pool after the other boys move on.

Meanwhile, Rory and Kyle wade into one of the tidepools. Here, Kyle is actually slipping and reaches up to stabilize himself upon his cousin.

Next, Mario captures a starfish and decides it would enjoy a piggyback ride on the crab.

Mario, a future marine biologist for certain, captured this crab with his sandals.

Today, we packed up the crew and set out for Rockport, the boys in one car with me and the girls in another with Jeanine. The girls went straight to the beach. The boys decided to go exploring first and found a rock-strewn beach with plenty of tidepools.

My sister Alissa, suggesting a new surrounding color scheme to rescue the kitchen curtains which Jeanine and I dislike intensely.

Maya’s playhouse (built under the stairs to the basement, including a tiny window and door) is almost done. Rachel (visiting for the weekend with Johnny and Alissa) and Maya appear to be preparing tea.

Tonight a game of Risk is the center of activity. At this moment, Rory and Nicolai are combining forces against Kyle and Mario. Ural has just fallen. Earlier this evening I had a soccer match. My team was short handed so I called to see if Kyle would be interested in playing. All four boys showed up ready to play. Kyle was the only one large enough to play and did a very respectable job against an adult team. It is the first time we played on the same team. This has been a long time dream of mine. I look forward to doing the same with Nico and Maya.

Mario selected this photo for posting because he said his mother would like his “dreamy” eyes. Please note the cream cheese deposits from the bagel, which is being consumed chipmunk style (deposits in cheeks for later consumption).

It is 10 PM, and these boys are still eating. Rory is showing off the last bite of his bagel before polishing it off.

Kyle and Angela combine forces to put out the fire.

Jeanine prepared a peanut butter cheesecake for the occasion, and Maya helped place the candles. Yummy.

Dad finds great humor in the birthday card made by Maya.

Mom turned 76 yesterday, and models an ensemble she received as a gift.

Apparently, two sandwiches were not enough for Mario, who thought a frog would make a nice snack.

Dad and Mario could not be bothered with relaxation when there was the business of food to attend to.

Maya and Rachel are reclining comfortably while enjoying lunch. It seems to me that expressions of such contentment should be reserved for tired parents.

It was fun to watch the cousins at play. They did not miss an opportunity to share in the fun.

Not to be outdone, the adults took to the tree as well. My dad still can’t keep his hands off my mom. Photo by Nico.

Nicolai required no assistance going up but did accept help coming down. Not shown was the part in which he used the head of his older brother as a convenient height step.

Mario was the first to scamper up the tree and required the most coaxing to come down. The genetic monkey traits of his father at work no doubt.

It didn’t take long to find the perfect setting for a portrait of all the cousins.

Today, our family drove to the Mount Tom State Reservation to meet with Frank and Angela, the Quinn family, and Rory and Mario. Within 2 minutes of arriving, Nicolai spotted a large black bear. This was as close as I dared approach. In retrospect, it was probably too close.

Kyle assists Maya on the new “zip” line I installed today.

Maya was in charge of pancakes this morning.