the Hipps family...: Why are you still wearing your pajamas, Mom?

Walter has asked me this a few times on the way to school. I guess my wardrobe has gone a little downhill since we've been back...instead of getting dressed to work at school I've been getting dressed to work at home in sweatpants and a t-shirt quite a bit! I'm telling you, when you've been away for 2 years there is a lot of work around the house to catch up on, and its the kind of work that requires sweats, not dresses.

So, the boys are back in school, back at Sunny Hollow Montessori in St. Paul. They are transitioning nicely. Owen was really excited about getting back there and is enjoying all the team games they play during recess. Walter is finding his way and making new friends. Many of his friends that he remembers left the school while we were away so he his getting used to new names and faces. I have no doubt he will be friends with everyone by the end of the month. Here are a few token first day shots - Owen is in 4th grade and Walter in 2nd:

Here are a few more photos from our trip to Alaska as well. We were part of the 30% that actually see the top of Mount Denali and were lucky to see it 3 separate times. I read a book about mountaineering last year and couldn't help but think about it while we were there since it is one of the 7 summits. We ended our trip with a visit to the Alaska State Fair. The boys had a blast making wax hands (at one of my dad's childhood friends' booth!), riding rides and seeing the enormous vegetables. When you get 21 hours of daylight in the summer, you can grow some serious cabbage, carrots, rutabaga, etc...