phoenix

any ideas what this actually is? winning guesses may get a prize...

the 4th wall

ghost in the machine

mama

i got enough complaints that i was lacking, so...

toys

cafe sunshine

oldie

i finally got to rework this one from months ago.

fledgling

new swing, new sole

these shots are becoming a theme at this point.

corduroy and red

up to old tricks.

clear

unharmed

ducky

from the grandmother and grandfather

rain and little haystack

we went to the beach yesterday, which turned out the be the first rainy day in a good long while. figuring that there is no bad weather, only inappropriate clothing, we went looking for rain gear for anatole (finally!), deciding that we were tough enough salts to brave the storms as we were. hah.

the only children's rain gear we could find in all of pacific city was a very sweet, very chic, very feminine coat and boots set. being parents of the new century, we forged ahead, and i think that anatole pulls his new equipment off with greater finesse than anyone i've seen. the bright colors were a blessing for the photos, too. yes, being insane i did take my precious camera into the driving rain and sand, well wrapped in plastic and rubber bands. the plastic gave the photos a sort of vaseline-lens effect, which lends the scene a dreamy, cozy sort of feel. don't be fooled, it was wicked out there, and we had a blast.

this first photo is of the rain on the windshield looking out at that rock by cape kiwanda that looks exactly like haystack rock, but isn't. the intensity of the weather had definitely increased exponentially by the time we got suited up and had snacks and maybe said a few prayers. the wind was such that anatole got knocked facedown a couple times before he got the hang of leaning into it. i did take pictures of that, but ethan said that to do so was sadistic, so i did not post them.

layers

midway through preparations, looking very much like a little lobsterman.

wet beach and pixie

ethan is illustrating the weather conditions better than anatole here. poor man got soaked in seconds, and threw in the towel shortly after this photo.

this stone was anatole's companion on our slog. he periodically stopped to sample the sand density and other objects with it in a very careful, almost archaeological fashion.

butterflower boots!

my tongue slipped and i called these critters 'butterflowers', ethan liked it and it stuck.

walk

anatole and two of my charges, everett and truman, on our way to the park. everett's taking a breather on the front wheel.

the good side

bearpaw

i love the soles of anatole's shoes, which he was showing off nicely on the swing

trove

anapea and his towel, one sunny day

joon dance

crayola brown

new art

e & a

izze bottle and boy

whirl

snow

randomly inserted, ethan, anatole, and andrew in the driving snowlets in maine

gemma, oscar, and olive in the chinese garden

gemma and olive

my friend gemma and her youngest, olive, on portland's waterfront

curtain fight, new mexico

bums

half naked in the echo room in new mexico

the echo room