Sania picks our her own clothes now, and has a thing for stripes.
Sania and her new cousin Penelope during a Rizk-family confluence in early August. The kitchen ran non-stop, like a diner in Cairo.
I'm pretty sure from the expressions on people's faces in this photo that I just made a wisecrack about how I hope they don't mind eating out because I'll be eating everything they're cooking now. In the middle, my cousin Salma is making three kinds of tahini. BECAUSE THREE KINDS ARE BETTER THAN ONE.
Uncle Sean, smothered in children. At this point, it's all the cousins of this generation, Sania, Penelope, Reid and Petra.
Don't mess with the bedtime crew.
Reid wanted to try running, so we took him out to a local high school track. Sania did not "get" the concept.
This is me attempting to deliver some kind of "pep" talk to Reid, who was dispirited because an athletic grown up ran past him on the track. I was like, "when I tried a sport once... uh... let's call your grandpa the coach."
Reid is in his element on a playground, doing what the playground's manufacturers clearly prohibit. Wakefield Chapel, our neighborhood's namesake, is in the background.
Reid is a giant!
Sania likes playgrounds, too.
Sania has only one funny face. You're looking at it.
The next few photos are our entire record of Reid and Owen at the bus stop on the first day of school. Reid was calm, having freaked out the day before. Owen suddenly seemed shocked by the whole thing.
At this point, someone said, "Smile, Owen."
Reid attempted to "help" Owen smile. This was not a welcome overture.
They're doing fine in kindergarten, by the way.
Despite not actually coordinating it, Reid's mom and Owen's mom bought the boys matching backpacks from Land's End.
Reid's favorite color is orange. I don't know Owen's favorite color, but I could take a guess.
Both were practicing for later in public school life, when they would be required to haul more than 20 pounds of books, forms to be signed, and promotional catalogs featuring gift wrap to be foisted on friends and family.
The bus had rounded the bend and was drawing near. Reid's eagerness grew as did Owen's trepidation.
Owen thinks about the future.
Reid gets psyched, Owen adjusts his pack. They are seasoned pros.
I'm holding Sania there in the plaid shirt. She has asked each morning to watch Reid get on the bus. Hanging out with the neighborhood kids and the other moms was probably more fun than riding around in our van.
Then the bus took them away.
The windows were tinted, so they just disappeared around the bend after a quick chat with the bus driver.
