Our silly little Delly Belly became a father for the second time.
This litter has four pups, two black and tan girls and two red boys. We will not be getting any of them, but it is nice to hear about them.
Dell is such a silly and sweet boy, it is nice to see his line being carried on. There are high hopes for this litter. One pup from his previous litter, Indigo, has been really tearing up the show circuit.
I really should get serious about showing this boy.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Artist of the Week: Academic Excellence
Today was the Sixth Grade Award ceremony over at Jake's middle school. A notice had been sent home last week inviting us to attend since Jake was to receive an award. What the award was for was not revealed and it was requested that I keep the knowledge of the award secret from Jake. The organizers want the kids to be surprised.
Right, I'm to keep this secret from a very smart and inquisitive kid. The same kid that was given an envelope (at least it was sealed) to take home to his parents and bring back a reply.
We just settled on leaving the mystery of what the award was to be and left it at that.
However we had a good idea of what it was going to be about. Jake had scored a perfect 600 on all three of his SOL's this year and had at least a B or better grades.
And that was exactly what he got.
Jake got an award for being on the distinguished Honor Roll (I'm not sure what that means) and a certificate for each of his perfect SOL scores. The really neat part was that he was the only kid to get all three scores perfect 600s. Not too shabby.
He is one very smart cookie.
Right, I'm to keep this secret from a very smart and inquisitive kid. The same kid that was given an envelope (at least it was sealed) to take home to his parents and bring back a reply.
We just settled on leaving the mystery of what the award was to be and left it at that.
However we had a good idea of what it was going to be about. Jake had scored a perfect 600 on all three of his SOL's this year and had at least a B or better grades.
And that was exactly what he got.
Jake got an award for being on the distinguished Honor Roll (I'm not sure what that means) and a certificate for each of his perfect SOL scores. The really neat part was that he was the only kid to get all three scores perfect 600s. Not too shabby.
He is one very smart cookie.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
10 Kibble Diet
I like to keep our dogs trim.
They are, supposedly (ie I need to actually enter them in shows), show dogs and must be kept nice and trim. I also want to avoid a whole host of health problems that dogs get when they are obese. Dachshunds are prone to back problems and excess weight increases the likelihood of something going wrong.
I take pride in the fact that I have never gotten the fat dog speech at the Vets. Mind you, my dogs have gotten a bit plump at times. This always seems to correspond with when I have kids in highchairs. But, I have always been able to take the weight off.
John and Dell, however, have a different view about what is their correct weight.
This weekend they took matters in their own paws and decided to supplement their diet. Somehow the closet holding their food was let open. The boys then happily raided the food bag. I didn't realize what was going on until I saw Dell guiltily skulking about.
Both boys looked bloated.
It looks like they had gorged on several days worth of food in the span of less than an hour.
So now both dogs are on what I call the 10 kibble diet for the next couple of days. They'll get just token meals until I think they are ready to go back to full rations.
They are, supposedly (ie I need to actually enter them in shows), show dogs and must be kept nice and trim. I also want to avoid a whole host of health problems that dogs get when they are obese. Dachshunds are prone to back problems and excess weight increases the likelihood of something going wrong.
I take pride in the fact that I have never gotten the fat dog speech at the Vets. Mind you, my dogs have gotten a bit plump at times. This always seems to correspond with when I have kids in highchairs. But, I have always been able to take the weight off.
John and Dell, however, have a different view about what is their correct weight.
This weekend they took matters in their own paws and decided to supplement their diet. Somehow the closet holding their food was let open. The boys then happily raided the food bag. I didn't realize what was going on until I saw Dell guiltily skulking about.
Both boys looked bloated.
It looks like they had gorged on several days worth of food in the span of less than an hour.
So now both dogs are on what I call the 10 kibble diet for the next couple of days. They'll get just token meals until I think they are ready to go back to full rations.
Monday, June 09, 2008
Little Tomatoes
Last Thursday Rebecca excitedly announced to me that we now have some baby tomatoes. I went outside and lo and behold we indeed have tomatoes.
The Roma variety (pictured here) has much larger tomatoes than the Big Beef (about the size of a marble). I know I'll be getting regular updates from my little tomato lover, Rebecca. We are both eagerly anticipating our first home grown tomato of the season.
The Roma variety (pictured here) has much larger tomatoes than the Big Beef (about the size of a marble). I know I'll be getting regular updates from my little tomato lover, Rebecca. We are both eagerly anticipating our first home grown tomato of the season.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Too Hot
Yesterday Jake and Nate had play off games. Nate's baseball game was at noon and Jake's was right after at 2:00 pm. I spent the day shuttling kids back and forth because it was to hot for them to just hang out at the field. In fact the temp was measured on the field during Nate's game at about 102 F.
I even snapped a picture of the car's thermometer. It was truly ghastly outside and it well be even worse today.
Both boys were fine. We pushed water on them and made sure they kept cool, quite and hydrated. Nate's team lost, which is fine. It is a double elimination tournament and it was their first lost. As for Jake's team, they kicked butt. They only had 9 kids show up and they won 11 to 3. And according to Jake, they went through 200 cold towels.
Hopefully the temps will be better later in the week.
I even snapped a picture of the car's thermometer. It was truly ghastly outside and it well be even worse today.
Both boys were fine. We pushed water on them and made sure they kept cool, quite and hydrated. Nate's team lost, which is fine. It is a double elimination tournament and it was their first lost. As for Jake's team, they kicked butt. They only had 9 kids show up and they won 11 to 3. And according to Jake, they went through 200 cold towels.
Hopefully the temps will be better later in the week.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Did You Get Your Doughnut Today?
According to those fine folks over at Krispy Kreme, today is doughnut day.
I snagged my free one and picked up a dozen so as to spread the joy at home. Admittedly the drive to Krispy Kreme wasn't worth the free doughnut, but I was up in the area to return a book at the Richmond library that was due today.
On a more serious note today is also the 64th anniversary of D-Day. So maybe we should be sending doughnuts to our men and women in the armed forces to celebrate the sacrifices that have been made to give us the freedom to have silly things like doughnut day.
I snagged my free one and picked up a dozen so as to spread the joy at home. Admittedly the drive to Krispy Kreme wasn't worth the free doughnut, but I was up in the area to return a book at the Richmond library that was due today.
On a more serious note today is also the 64th anniversary of D-Day. So maybe we should be sending doughnuts to our men and women in the armed forces to celebrate the sacrifices that have been made to give us the freedom to have silly things like doughnut day.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
I Think I Got My Money's Worth
And then some.
I bought this wading pool almost nine years ago. It was just after we bought this house. We had a little inflatable one, but it wasn't quite enough.
I really got it for Nate. He loved (and still does) getting in the water and splashing about. It was the end of summer when our inflatable pool gave up the ghost, but it was going to be warm for quite a bit longer. I went to a Toys R Us and scooped up their last one. It was steeply discounted and they had to drag it out from the far reaches of the stock area. I wrestled it onto of the van and triumphantly brought it home.
Both of the boys were delighted and all four have played with it every summer. I store it under the deck during the winter and when the occasional hurricane roars through. It is absolutely disgusting when I pull it out, but with a little soap and elbow grease it cleans right up.
I bought this wading pool almost nine years ago. It was just after we bought this house. We had a little inflatable one, but it wasn't quite enough.
I really got it for Nate. He loved (and still does) getting in the water and splashing about. It was the end of summer when our inflatable pool gave up the ghost, but it was going to be warm for quite a bit longer. I went to a Toys R Us and scooped up their last one. It was steeply discounted and they had to drag it out from the far reaches of the stock area. I wrestled it onto of the van and triumphantly brought it home.
Both of the boys were delighted and all four have played with it every summer. I store it under the deck during the winter and when the occasional hurricane roars through. It is absolutely disgusting when I pull it out, but with a little soap and elbow grease it cleans right up.
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Artist of the Week: Team Spirit
This week's artist is Max and Rebecca's tt-ball team, the Cubs.
One of the first things Larry did as coach for the t-ball Cubs was to start the tradition of singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" before each game with the "the Cubbies" being substituted for "the home team."
This policy was a huge hit with the team and even with a few other team managers. There really is nothing cuter than a bunch of little kids belting out a song.
So here it is, the t-ball Cubbies making Harry Carey proud.
One of the first things Larry did as coach for the t-ball Cubs was to start the tradition of singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" before each game with the "the Cubbies" being substituted for "the home team."
This policy was a huge hit with the team and even with a few other team managers. There really is nothing cuter than a bunch of little kids belting out a song.
So here it is, the t-ball Cubbies making Harry Carey proud.
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
It's a Trap
The cable guy showed up (early!) today and figured out what was wrong and fixed it in under 20 minutes.
He had only one question for me:"When did you first get cable."
I was a bit surprised and told him 9 years ago. He then nodded his head and told me he now had a very good idea about what was going on. I probably had a video trap on my line and all he had to do was pull it off. Apparently it was installed when we first got cable and has now given up the ghost. We just have basic cable and the trap was installed to filter out the unwanted (to us) premium channels.
I'm not sure if he installed a new one, it might not even be necessary at the point. I just hope I don't get stuck in the same situation as this person.
He had only one question for me:"When did you first get cable."
I was a bit surprised and told him 9 years ago. He then nodded his head and told me he now had a very good idea about what was going on. I probably had a video trap on my line and all he had to do was pull it off. Apparently it was installed when we first got cable and has now given up the ghost. We just have basic cable and the trap was installed to filter out the unwanted (to us) premium channels.
I'm not sure if he installed a new one, it might not even be necessary at the point. I just hope I don't get stuck in the same situation as this person.
Monday, June 02, 2008
Heroes
OK, I'm a bit late on the bandwagon, but at least I'm here.
Meryl dropped off her DVDs of Heroes a few weeks ago and just know I've gotten around to watching them. She told me that the show was great, but I never got around to it, until now.
Friday we lost our cable tv. Oddly enough we still have high speed internet, which is a far more temperamental beast. After repeated phone calls I got an appointment for tomorrow for a technician to stop by and figure out what is going on. So far the lack of television hasn't been a big deal. The kids mostly watch it when Max is getting nebulized, so now they watch something from our vast DVD collection. I miss the news and weather, but we still have the internets and I can get what I need there.
Last night I was restless and wanted something to watch. I was chatting with Meryl on the phone when I remembered Heroes. I popped in the first disk and then I was hooked. While I was stuck at the house while our road was being repaved and baking a last minute cake I watched the next two disks.
I love the show. From the haunting music to the quirky characters. I'll be polishing off the rest of the disks this week, even after I get my tv channels back.
Dang now I have another show to watch.
Meryl dropped off her DVDs of Heroes a few weeks ago and just know I've gotten around to watching them. She told me that the show was great, but I never got around to it, until now.
Friday we lost our cable tv. Oddly enough we still have high speed internet, which is a far more temperamental beast. After repeated phone calls I got an appointment for tomorrow for a technician to stop by and figure out what is going on. So far the lack of television hasn't been a big deal. The kids mostly watch it when Max is getting nebulized, so now they watch something from our vast DVD collection. I miss the news and weather, but we still have the internets and I can get what I need there.
Last night I was restless and wanted something to watch. I was chatting with Meryl on the phone when I remembered Heroes. I popped in the first disk and then I was hooked. While I was stuck at the house while our road was being repaved and baking a last minute cake I watched the next two disks.
I love the show. From the haunting music to the quirky characters. I'll be polishing off the rest of the disks this week, even after I get my tv channels back.
Dang now I have another show to watch.
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Nothing Says Romance
Like a giant fireball.
Larry and I went out for dinner Saturday night. We are always up for trying another place so he asked around at work for a restaurant recommendation and was pointed towards Juleps.
The place was easy to find and we were even able to snag some free parking. Mind this was after an interminable wait for a simply enormous SUV limo to move out of the way of a side street I had directed Larry to go down. I would like to note that just because you have rented a large limo it does not make you cool, especially if you are very drunk. Find a parking lot to decant yourselves and do not block any side streets. I really don't want to see you, your buddies or the driver paw through a bag's contents to determine if it is just trash.
Anyway, we did make the restaurant on time and had a wonderful meal. The service was excellent as was the food. Oftentimes one dish will stand out either for good or bad, but not this night. I stared with fried green tomatoes served with house made pimento cheese. I wasn't sure about the cheese at first, but after one bite I was converted. My main course, rack of lamb, was equally good. It was plump, juicy and cooked to perfection.
When we were done the waiter brought out the dessert menu. We decided to have the Bananas Foster for two. It was done, as it should be, table side. The waiter did a wonderful job, pausing just before the flambe so that the area could clear a little. The fireball generated by the rum was impressive as was the heat. The dessert itself was luscious. The warm bananas and slightly caramelized sauce melting into the vanilla ice cream. As an added treat the ice cream had been scooped into a chocolate dipped waffle bowl. The dessert is quite a production and well worth it.
Originally we had planned to stay out later, but after such a marvelous meal we decided it would be better just to head back home. It was a lovely evening.
Larry and I went out for dinner Saturday night. We are always up for trying another place so he asked around at work for a restaurant recommendation and was pointed towards Juleps.
The place was easy to find and we were even able to snag some free parking. Mind this was after an interminable wait for a simply enormous SUV limo to move out of the way of a side street I had directed Larry to go down. I would like to note that just because you have rented a large limo it does not make you cool, especially if you are very drunk. Find a parking lot to decant yourselves and do not block any side streets. I really don't want to see you, your buddies or the driver paw through a bag's contents to determine if it is just trash.
Anyway, we did make the restaurant on time and had a wonderful meal. The service was excellent as was the food. Oftentimes one dish will stand out either for good or bad, but not this night. I stared with fried green tomatoes served with house made pimento cheese. I wasn't sure about the cheese at first, but after one bite I was converted. My main course, rack of lamb, was equally good. It was plump, juicy and cooked to perfection.
When we were done the waiter brought out the dessert menu. We decided to have the Bananas Foster for two. It was done, as it should be, table side. The waiter did a wonderful job, pausing just before the flambe so that the area could clear a little. The fireball generated by the rum was impressive as was the heat. The dessert itself was luscious. The warm bananas and slightly caramelized sauce melting into the vanilla ice cream. As an added treat the ice cream had been scooped into a chocolate dipped waffle bowl. The dessert is quite a production and well worth it.
Originally we had planned to stay out later, but after such a marvelous meal we decided it would be better just to head back home. It was a lovely evening.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Sweet Sixteen
Sixteen years ago we said "I do."
It has been a sweet sixteen years and I'd do it again in a heart beat.
It has been a sweet sixteen years and I'd do it again in a heart beat.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Feel the Burn
After 10 plus years of sitting in a box and being moved from house to house, I finally unboxed one of my bikes.
Before children I used to bike a lot. I would even commute to work part of the way on this particular bike. Where I parked was about a mile away from my lab,so I would park my car, pull my bike off of the rack on the trunk and bike the rest of the way to work. It was fun, I save a few bucks on the shuttle service and I didn't have to wait for the bus. I even went as far as subscribing to a bike magazine.
Then we started having kids and moving from state to state. I boxed my two bikes up after Jake turned a year old and haven't ridden since.
This past week I took Nate's bike in for a new inner tube. I know how to change a tube, but I don't have the tools or the interest. I decided to try out a different bike shop than the one we have used before.
Nothing is wrong with the old place, they sell nice bikes, repair almost any type of bike and have every bike oriented gizmo under the sun. But I always felt like they were trying to see just how much they could sell me every time I walked in the door. Up selling was the norm and I got tired of it.
A few weeks-months ago I'd read an article somewhere about bicycle repair shops in the Richmond area. One stood out in the article as being particularly wallet friendly. I couldn't remember the whole article but the shop's name was Bunnyhop. After a bit of poking about on the internet I found them.
Bunnyhop, is just what I wanted. It is tucked in Richmond's fan district amid VCU. They have an incredible turnaround (can you wait an hour?) and they are very inexpensive.
I was so excited I dragged out my mountain bike and hauled it in for them to reassemble. I felt confident that they wouldn't try to pressure me into all sorts of upgrades. And I was right. For $15 I got my bike back.
The first ride was sweet. I'd forgotten how much fun it is to ride. I hate exercising, but this I'll do. I just want to become a bit more fit and be able to eat what I want. I'm starting off slowly, just over 1 1/2 miles a day on a nice rolling stretch of road. Once I get my cadence down and I don't have to keep going through all the gears I'll lengthen my ride. But for now I'm starting to feel the burn and it feels good.
Before children I used to bike a lot. I would even commute to work part of the way on this particular bike. Where I parked was about a mile away from my lab,so I would park my car, pull my bike off of the rack on the trunk and bike the rest of the way to work. It was fun, I save a few bucks on the shuttle service and I didn't have to wait for the bus. I even went as far as subscribing to a bike magazine.
Then we started having kids and moving from state to state. I boxed my two bikes up after Jake turned a year old and haven't ridden since.
This past week I took Nate's bike in for a new inner tube. I know how to change a tube, but I don't have the tools or the interest. I decided to try out a different bike shop than the one we have used before.
Nothing is wrong with the old place, they sell nice bikes, repair almost any type of bike and have every bike oriented gizmo under the sun. But I always felt like they were trying to see just how much they could sell me every time I walked in the door. Up selling was the norm and I got tired of it.
A few weeks-months ago I'd read an article somewhere about bicycle repair shops in the Richmond area. One stood out in the article as being particularly wallet friendly. I couldn't remember the whole article but the shop's name was Bunnyhop. After a bit of poking about on the internet I found them.
Bunnyhop, is just what I wanted. It is tucked in Richmond's fan district amid VCU. They have an incredible turnaround (can you wait an hour?) and they are very inexpensive.
I was so excited I dragged out my mountain bike and hauled it in for them to reassemble. I felt confident that they wouldn't try to pressure me into all sorts of upgrades. And I was right. For $15 I got my bike back.
The first ride was sweet. I'd forgotten how much fun it is to ride. I hate exercising, but this I'll do. I just want to become a bit more fit and be able to eat what I want. I'm starting off slowly, just over 1 1/2 miles a day on a nice rolling stretch of road. Once I get my cadence down and I don't have to keep going through all the gears I'll lengthen my ride. But for now I'm starting to feel the burn and it feels good.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Artist of the Week: Unusual
This week's artist is Max. He had a t-ball game tonight and I got this picture of him in the dugout.
As for this week's art, it is a drawing he brought home from school a few weeks ago. His teacher had passed out to the class two sheets of paper with one letter, a U and a K, on each one. Their assignment was to create a picture incorporating the letter. There were no other limitations. The children were free to do whatever they wanted, they could orient the paper any which way and they did not have to have something starting with the same letter in the picture.
And this is what Max did with the letter U.
It is a volcano with two dinosaurs, a Triceratops and a T. Rex, climbing on its sides. The letter U forms the lip of the volcano and contains the molten rock within.
Max loves dinosaurs and these are his two favorites, the Triceratops being the one nearest and dearest to his heart. I am amazed that his picture did not have his usual complicated battle scene. It is nice to see him branching out into dinosaurs for change. Maybe the title of the project "Unusual U" is what got him to do something a little dbit different.
As for this week's art, it is a drawing he brought home from school a few weeks ago. His teacher had passed out to the class two sheets of paper with one letter, a U and a K, on each one. Their assignment was to create a picture incorporating the letter. There were no other limitations. The children were free to do whatever they wanted, they could orient the paper any which way and they did not have to have something starting with the same letter in the picture.
And this is what Max did with the letter U.
It is a volcano with two dinosaurs, a Triceratops and a T. Rex, climbing on its sides. The letter U forms the lip of the volcano and contains the molten rock within.
Max loves dinosaurs and these are his two favorites, the Triceratops being the one nearest and dearest to his heart. I am amazed that his picture did not have his usual complicated battle scene. It is nice to see him branching out into dinosaurs for change. Maybe the title of the project "Unusual U" is what got him to do something a little dbit different.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Movie Time
This weekend I went to see Iron Man with Meryl. I've been wanting to see it ever since I saw the first trailer a year ago and we needed to find out how kid friendly the movie is.
The movie was fantastic, but not appropriate for my crew.
It is a fantastic movie, but has a well deserved PG-13.
So my two oldest are just going to have to wait until we think they are ready. But for the grown ups out there, go see it now. I've never been a big fan of comic books, I was (and still am) a huge fan of science fiction. But... I have really enjoyed all of the movies that have come out of the genera. I think the main reasons that comic books can translate so well is that the people making the movies are often fans and the comic itself is practically a story board for the movie. Iron Man is no exception. In fact I want to see it again.
The movie was fantastic, but not appropriate for my crew.
It is a fantastic movie, but has a well deserved PG-13.
So my two oldest are just going to have to wait until we think they are ready. But for the grown ups out there, go see it now. I've never been a big fan of comic books, I was (and still am) a huge fan of science fiction. But... I have really enjoyed all of the movies that have come out of the genera. I think the main reasons that comic books can translate so well is that the people making the movies are often fans and the comic itself is practically a story board for the movie. Iron Man is no exception. In fact I want to see it again.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Best Meeting Ever
Last Tuesday I had my monthly dog club meeting. Since I'm the president and the secretary was out sick, I really had to be there. Unfortunately that same night Max and Rebecca's grade was putting on a little show during the big end of the year PTA meeting. So we divided the troops, Larry took the dynamic duo back to school and I took the older two with me to the dog meeting.
The dog club meeting is held over at the Goochland Fire Company #1 in Manakin-Sabot, about 35 minutes away from our house. For once I was the first one there. I stationed the boys on the wall opposite were the meeting would be held and let them have at it with their DS Nintendos. The meeting went very well, we covered a lot of ground in about 45 minutes with not too many sidetracks and the boys were fairly well behaved. Once the meeting was over I waited for everybody else to leave before locking up. In order to lock the room you have to throw the dead bolt on the inside and leave through on of the side doors.
As we crossed the room to leave I opened the door to the rescue bay so the boys could take a peek at the ambulances. None of the crew were visible so I did not let them venture inside. Once out of the building I pointed out the big barbecue smoker they have in back and the squished car. Nate asked about the car and I told him I think it is for practice with the rescue equipment. As we walked over to it we found the crew. They waved us over and asked if we wanted a tour. The boys seemed up for it so we headed on over to the open truck bay.
There were three EMTs (one just got his certification) and two firefighters. They were very happy to have visitors and gave us the absolute best fire station tour ever. For 45 minutes we got an exhaustive rundown on all the vehicles, a tour of the facility, and we got to try on helmets and headsets. We also got to go inside two of the trucks (That's we when the boys got to wear the headsets, Jake got a laugh when he said "Red leader standing by.") and check out the interior of an ambulance. We learned all about the new foam technology they use, the tanker trucks and the thermal imaging device. The jaws of life (big and little) were hauled out along with the cutter (with the admonition to never put your fingers near the business end of the cutter).
It was a blast. We even found out that you can have a birthday party at the picnic table out back.
I think the station crew would have been happy for us to stay longer, but it was late and a school night. The boys were very happy that they went to my dog club meeting.
The dog club meeting is held over at the Goochland Fire Company #1 in Manakin-Sabot, about 35 minutes away from our house. For once I was the first one there. I stationed the boys on the wall opposite were the meeting would be held and let them have at it with their DS Nintendos. The meeting went very well, we covered a lot of ground in about 45 minutes with not too many sidetracks and the boys were fairly well behaved. Once the meeting was over I waited for everybody else to leave before locking up. In order to lock the room you have to throw the dead bolt on the inside and leave through on of the side doors.
As we crossed the room to leave I opened the door to the rescue bay so the boys could take a peek at the ambulances. None of the crew were visible so I did not let them venture inside. Once out of the building I pointed out the big barbecue smoker they have in back and the squished car. Nate asked about the car and I told him I think it is for practice with the rescue equipment. As we walked over to it we found the crew. They waved us over and asked if we wanted a tour. The boys seemed up for it so we headed on over to the open truck bay.
There were three EMTs (one just got his certification) and two firefighters. They were very happy to have visitors and gave us the absolute best fire station tour ever. For 45 minutes we got an exhaustive rundown on all the vehicles, a tour of the facility, and we got to try on helmets and headsets. We also got to go inside two of the trucks (That's we when the boys got to wear the headsets, Jake got a laugh when he said "Red leader standing by.") and check out the interior of an ambulance. We learned all about the new foam technology they use, the tanker trucks and the thermal imaging device. The jaws of life (big and little) were hauled out along with the cutter (with the admonition to never put your fingers near the business end of the cutter).
It was a blast. We even found out that you can have a birthday party at the picnic table out back.
I think the station crew would have been happy for us to stay longer, but it was late and a school night. The boys were very happy that they went to my dog club meeting.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Artists of the Week: Piano
Last Sunday Rebecca, Max and Nate had their Spring Music Recital.
Nate is an old hand at these and it was Max's second, but it was Rebecca's very first one. As an added bonus they received their trophies at the end of the recital. A few weeks before the recital the teacher's students are invited to be judged by another piano teacher. They students memorize and then play 6, 8 or ten pieces of music. If they are successful they will earn a small, medium or large trophy. My crew went decided to go for the small trophy and, as you can see by the very grainy photo, they each got one.
At the recital Rebecca was first one up, being the youngest performer and the least experienced. Rebecca was very excited and was eager to go all day long. She would get to wear her fancy dress and have treats afterwards. Her two pieces of music were My Dog Spike and Merrily We're Off to School.
She was a little hesitant at first with, but was able to step up and perform both of her pieces. I think she did a great job.
Next up was Max performing Party Cat and Mr. Machine.
Unfortunately my camera's batteries died just after he started his first piece, but I was able to get the spare set on hand in before his second and last song. He had his music book in front of him, but that was just to give him confidence. He knew both pieces by heart.
Then it was Nate's turn. As I stated earlier recitals are old hat to Nate.
He did a great job with both pieces. The first one, Chorale, is a very pretty piece of music, but Banjo Picker is where Nate really shined. It is a bouncy and rollicking tune that suits Nate to a tee.
They all had fun and overall it was a very good recital.
Nate is an old hand at these and it was Max's second, but it was Rebecca's very first one. As an added bonus they received their trophies at the end of the recital. A few weeks before the recital the teacher's students are invited to be judged by another piano teacher. They students memorize and then play 6, 8 or ten pieces of music. If they are successful they will earn a small, medium or large trophy. My crew went decided to go for the small trophy and, as you can see by the very grainy photo, they each got one.
At the recital Rebecca was first one up, being the youngest performer and the least experienced. Rebecca was very excited and was eager to go all day long. She would get to wear her fancy dress and have treats afterwards. Her two pieces of music were My Dog Spike and Merrily We're Off to School.
She was a little hesitant at first with, but was able to step up and perform both of her pieces. I think she did a great job.
Next up was Max performing Party Cat and Mr. Machine.
Unfortunately my camera's batteries died just after he started his first piece, but I was able to get the spare set on hand in before his second and last song. He had his music book in front of him, but that was just to give him confidence. He knew both pieces by heart.
Then it was Nate's turn. As I stated earlier recitals are old hat to Nate.
He did a great job with both pieces. The first one, Chorale, is a very pretty piece of music, but Banjo Picker is where Nate really shined. It is a bouncy and rollicking tune that suits Nate to a tee.
They all had fun and overall it was a very good recital.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Crunch's Legacy
Crunch certainly did produce some very nice dogs.
The two sons we have, John and Dell, are happy, affectionate and easy going boys. They love the kids and they mesh together very well. Crunch's waggy tail and friendly nature are readily apparent through most of his get.
In addition to his wonderful temperament Crunch also bestowed a couple more things to his boys. They both have very well developed prey drives. Dachshunds are hunting dogs and this is clearly applies to John and Dell. John has been a bit obsessed with moles recently (to the detriment of our lawn) and Dell is always using his nose outside.
Then there is Crunch's quirky little habit of sucking on ears. He used to endlessly suck on poor Rally's ears, leaving them slimy with his saliva. When we brought John home we thought it was fitting that John sucked his father's ears. At the age of 14 Crunch had stopped bothering Rally and was instead the target of his son's affections.
After Crunch passed away John no longer had any ears to suck, but then we got Dell. John enthusiastically resumed his ear sucking habit, but with a twist. Dell is an ear sucker too. Dell doesn't do it as much as John. Mostly it occurs when there are wrestling about as in this picture.
It was definitely one of Crunch's least charming traits, but it is interesting to see how it is being carried down the line.
The two sons we have, John and Dell, are happy, affectionate and easy going boys. They love the kids and they mesh together very well. Crunch's waggy tail and friendly nature are readily apparent through most of his get.
In addition to his wonderful temperament Crunch also bestowed a couple more things to his boys. They both have very well developed prey drives. Dachshunds are hunting dogs and this is clearly applies to John and Dell. John has been a bit obsessed with moles recently (to the detriment of our lawn) and Dell is always using his nose outside.
Then there is Crunch's quirky little habit of sucking on ears. He used to endlessly suck on poor Rally's ears, leaving them slimy with his saliva. When we brought John home we thought it was fitting that John sucked his father's ears. At the age of 14 Crunch had stopped bothering Rally and was instead the target of his son's affections.
After Crunch passed away John no longer had any ears to suck, but then we got Dell. John enthusiastically resumed his ear sucking habit, but with a twist. Dell is an ear sucker too. Dell doesn't do it as much as John. Mostly it occurs when there are wrestling about as in this picture.
It was definitely one of Crunch's least charming traits, but it is interesting to see how it is being carried down the line.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Standards Of Learning
This week my two oldest are taking Virginia's Standards Of Learning tests, otherwise known as the SOLs (a rather unfortunate acronym). These tests are used to some degree evaluate the students, but mostly to evaluate the schools. Certain minimal levels of achievement must be met by the schools to remain/achieve accreditation. The testing is just part of Virginia's effort to abide by No Child Left Behind.
Anyway, Jake is an old hand at the SOLs and regularly scores very high on them. Nate, however, will be taking them for the first time. He is not too concerned, his biggest problem is going too fast and making careless errors. I'll be picking him up from school not long after his first test tomorrow and I'll get his take on the whole SOL thing. I do know that he is looking forward to the candy that gets passed out at test time. It was really funny when Nate told me about it.
He excitedly announced to me that he'll be getting treats at school and wanted me to guess why. I told him it was for the SOLs and we know the researcher that brought this particular gaming of the system to light. In fact we have gone on joint family vacations with him and his family twice. Nate was stunned and then thought that was pretty cool.
Anyway, Jake is an old hand at the SOLs and regularly scores very high on them. Nate, however, will be taking them for the first time. He is not too concerned, his biggest problem is going too fast and making careless errors. I'll be picking him up from school not long after his first test tomorrow and I'll get his take on the whole SOL thing. I do know that he is looking forward to the candy that gets passed out at test time. It was really funny when Nate told me about it.
He excitedly announced to me that he'll be getting treats at school and wanted me to guess why. I told him it was for the SOLs and we know the researcher that brought this particular gaming of the system to light. In fact we have gone on joint family vacations with him and his family twice. Nate was stunned and then thought that was pretty cool.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Far From Recommended
I'm throwing in the towel on this one.
I picked up Redemption Falls from the library last week and I have been completely unable to get into it. The narrative voice switches around in the most maddening way. Reviewers claim it all hangs together in the end, I just have to stick with it. After 67 pages I'm just losing patience with the author. It might have helped if I had read an earlier book (Star of the Sea), but I doubt it. The book is just not my cup of tea.
So back to the library goes.
I picked up Redemption Falls from the library last week and I have been completely unable to get into it. The narrative voice switches around in the most maddening way. Reviewers claim it all hangs together in the end, I just have to stick with it. After 67 pages I'm just losing patience with the author. It might have helped if I had read an earlier book (Star of the Sea), but I doubt it. The book is just not my cup of tea.
So back to the library goes.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Wow! Big News Indeed!
I just get an email forwarded by Larry from his cousin Suzanne titled RE: The big news. It turns out that Suzanne just got married on April 12th in Las Vegas. She and her husband Ethan have a wedding blog that has all sorts of pictures and links to their respective blogs.
I was very happy to see that they did the whole Vegas experience to the nines, a hotel ceremony with a bona fied Elvis impersonator named Glenn.
Way to go Suzanne and Mazel Tov!
I was very happy to see that they did the whole Vegas experience to the nines, a hotel ceremony with a bona fied Elvis impersonator named Glenn.
Way to go Suzanne and Mazel Tov!
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Field Trip to the Zoo
Today I got to go to the zoo with entire kindergarten from Max and Rebecca's school.
The kindergarten trip to the zoo is an annual event and it was the first year I could attend. The zoo itself is real not a big deal for our family, being season pass holders for over four years, but it is always fun. Today's trip was no exception. The prairie dogs were feisty today and would come very close to the enclosure's fencing. As a result I was able to take the best photo I have ever taken of a prairie dog.
Anyway, since this was a school trip there was an actual educational portion to our visit. We got to learn about birds, reptiles and mammals on a kindergarten friendly level. But the best part was that we got to see some examples up close. Much to Max's delight TJ the penguin was brought out for the bird portion. Then the handler announced next up would be reptiles. After a little discussion about what is a reptile she went in back to fetch an example. At this point about a half dozen people left the amphitheater. They (rightly so it turns out) thought a snake was going to brought out and wanted to leave before the handler returned. And what a snake it was. Mac is an albino Burmese Python that is 10 feet long is about 10 years old. I thought it was neat that we could for once get a clear view of the snake and get a better idea of its size. Next up were mammals and we got treated with meeting one of the zoo's young chimps. I *think* its name was Quentin, but I do know it was male and very cute. Then it was off to see the zoo.
Max and I did a quick tour, it was getting late and he was getting hungry. S we headed back for snack we met up with some of Max's classmates. One of them wanted to see the bats and I offered to take him in. The other mom was very happy to skip that portion and Max was happy to have a friend in the bat house. Max, strangely enough, loves going to see the bats. He gets freaked out over all sorts of ordinary things, but not bats. That is the mystery of Max. After the bats we had snack and then a quick run to see the bears.
On the way I took this picture of Max and his classmate. They are looking at the porcupines and I was struck by how much physically alike the two boys are are. When viewed from behind they really look more like twins than Max and Rebecca. I can tell them apart, but can you?
The kindergarten trip to the zoo is an annual event and it was the first year I could attend. The zoo itself is real not a big deal for our family, being season pass holders for over four years, but it is always fun. Today's trip was no exception. The prairie dogs were feisty today and would come very close to the enclosure's fencing. As a result I was able to take the best photo I have ever taken of a prairie dog.
Anyway, since this was a school trip there was an actual educational portion to our visit. We got to learn about birds, reptiles and mammals on a kindergarten friendly level. But the best part was that we got to see some examples up close. Much to Max's delight TJ the penguin was brought out for the bird portion. Then the handler announced next up would be reptiles. After a little discussion about what is a reptile she went in back to fetch an example. At this point about a half dozen people left the amphitheater. They (rightly so it turns out) thought a snake was going to brought out and wanted to leave before the handler returned. And what a snake it was. Mac is an albino Burmese Python that is 10 feet long is about 10 years old. I thought it was neat that we could for once get a clear view of the snake and get a better idea of its size. Next up were mammals and we got treated with meeting one of the zoo's young chimps. I *think* its name was Quentin, but I do know it was male and very cute. Then it was off to see the zoo.
Max and I did a quick tour, it was getting late and he was getting hungry. S we headed back for snack we met up with some of Max's classmates. One of them wanted to see the bats and I offered to take him in. The other mom was very happy to skip that portion and Max was happy to have a friend in the bat house. Max, strangely enough, loves going to see the bats. He gets freaked out over all sorts of ordinary things, but not bats. That is the mystery of Max. After the bats we had snack and then a quick run to see the bears.
On the way I took this picture of Max and his classmate. They are looking at the porcupines and I was struck by how much physically alike the two boys are are. When viewed from behind they really look more like twins than Max and Rebecca. I can tell them apart, but can you?
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Artist of the Week: Second Concert
This week's artist is Jake.
My best pictures of him are almost always taken when he is unaware of what I'm doing. He is not hiding, goofing off or twisting his face into some sort of fixed smile. Instead he is just himself, a boy striding across the infield before the start of the game. Focused on what is about to happen and ignoring everything else.
Sometimes, like at last night's game, he does want me to take his picture, but that is a rare event now. I'm much better off sneaking up on him like I did a week ago when I got this particular shot.
Fortunately he is cooperative when I tape his performances from band class. He understands that it is a performance and that he is expected to play his instrument in front of a crowd that has free reign to photograph and video tape.
Monday was his second band concert for Beginning Band.
His level, beginning, played four songs: Knights of the Round Table (the video above),Genesis, Acclaim March, and The Tempest.
They are not the best band, but they have improved over the school year and they put in an honest effort. The percussion is amazing at this level and I can see why half of the percussionists in the District Band come from Jake's middle school.
But the best part for me is that Jake decided to go on with band next year. It's up to the teacher to decide if he'll get into Intermediate Band, but I think he will.
My best pictures of him are almost always taken when he is unaware of what I'm doing. He is not hiding, goofing off or twisting his face into some sort of fixed smile. Instead he is just himself, a boy striding across the infield before the start of the game. Focused on what is about to happen and ignoring everything else.
Sometimes, like at last night's game, he does want me to take his picture, but that is a rare event now. I'm much better off sneaking up on him like I did a week ago when I got this particular shot.
Fortunately he is cooperative when I tape his performances from band class. He understands that it is a performance and that he is expected to play his instrument in front of a crowd that has free reign to photograph and video tape.
Monday was his second band concert for Beginning Band.
His level, beginning, played four songs: Knights of the Round Table (the video above),Genesis, Acclaim March, and The Tempest.
They are not the best band, but they have improved over the school year and they put in an honest effort. The percussion is amazing at this level and I can see why half of the percussionists in the District Band come from Jake's middle school.
But the best part for me is that Jake decided to go on with band next year. It's up to the teacher to decide if he'll get into Intermediate Band, but I think he will.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Open Letter To My Children
I love all of you very much. I would do almost anything for you to keep you safe. But some days I don't like you very much.
It's very hard to love someone when they spend 25 minutes pitching a fit, instead of getting dressed and eating breakfast. Especially when the fit was first brought on when they were told to put on a long sleeve shirt and long pants (oh the horror) and extended when it was decided that the shirt *I was wearing* (purple with a teeny tiny geometric pattern) was not acceptable.
I was told that it was not fair that I was wearing that shirt and that any thing I did while wearing that shirt was no good.
Well, life is not fair.
I was, in the end, able to spoon the reluctantly fully dressed child onto the bus. I then sent an email out to give the teacher a heads up.
I'm not, however, changing my shirt.
It's very hard to love someone when they spend 25 minutes pitching a fit, instead of getting dressed and eating breakfast. Especially when the fit was first brought on when they were told to put on a long sleeve shirt and long pants (oh the horror) and extended when it was decided that the shirt *I was wearing* (purple with a teeny tiny geometric pattern) was not acceptable.
I was told that it was not fair that I was wearing that shirt and that any thing I did while wearing that shirt was no good.
Well, life is not fair.
I was, in the end, able to spoon the reluctantly fully dressed child onto the bus. I then sent an email out to give the teacher a heads up.
I'm not, however, changing my shirt.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Sometimes You Just Have to Kick Some Butt
You Are Buffy the Vampire Slayer |
 "We saved the world. I say we have to party." |
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Friday, May 09, 2008
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Fund Raising, A New Low
I've ranted about fund raising before, particularly for the middle school. I *thought* it was at it's lowest with the whole you must sell 8 items in order to attend the school wide party.
But I was wrong. Oh so very, very wrong.
The middle school kicked it up to a whole new level of evil. It turns out that at the start of the fund raiser a child is secretly selected as the mystery student. The identity of the mystery student is revealed at the close of the fund raiser. Both the kids and the parents are kept in the dark. The mystery student "wins" $100, but only if the student had sold five fund raiser items.
And guess who was the mystery student.
That's right, it was Jake.
Since he sold bupkis, he didn't get the money.
My poor boy last night was very sad about his lost riches. I was furious.
I had tossed the fund raiser packet shortly after Jake brought it home. He understood how I felt and agreed that the catalog had nothing to offer us.
I know why they did this, it is to improve participation. But it is so very wrong to tell a child "Hey you won! but you don't get the money because your parents didn't want to buy more junk."
I hate our middle school's fund raisers. I'll do the band stuff, but I'm writing off the school.
But I was wrong. Oh so very, very wrong.
The middle school kicked it up to a whole new level of evil. It turns out that at the start of the fund raiser a child is secretly selected as the mystery student. The identity of the mystery student is revealed at the close of the fund raiser. Both the kids and the parents are kept in the dark. The mystery student "wins" $100, but only if the student had sold five fund raiser items.
And guess who was the mystery student.
That's right, it was Jake.
Since he sold bupkis, he didn't get the money.
My poor boy last night was very sad about his lost riches. I was furious.
I had tossed the fund raiser packet shortly after Jake brought it home. He understood how I felt and agreed that the catalog had nothing to offer us.
I know why they did this, it is to improve participation. But it is so very wrong to tell a child "Hey you won! but you don't get the money because your parents didn't want to buy more junk."
I hate our middle school's fund raisers. I'll do the band stuff, but I'm writing off the school.
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Artist of the Week: Coiled
This week's artist is the always active Nate.
Today we got a rare day off, we had no baseball games. There had been one scheduled for Max and Rebecca, but there had been a scheduling error. The game was a make up for one of our many, many rain outs. However, the opposing team already had a game scheduled today. So no game for the t-ball Cubbies. Instead they got to play around outside until dinner, enjoying the warm late spring weather.
As for the art, Nate brought it home from school a few weeks ago. It only suffered minor trauma from the bus ride home, one of the side coils along the rim broke off. A little bit of glue and it was right as rain.
It is a fairly ornate coiled pot/mug (the side handle makes me think mug, but this little pot can not hold water). The main color is a vivid shade of cobalt blue with little splashes of red. It is featherlight and fits neatly with two cupped hands.
I like it. It is a true object d'art with no practical use. The blue color is my favorite and the accents of red really pop.
Today we got a rare day off, we had no baseball games. There had been one scheduled for Max and Rebecca, but there had been a scheduling error. The game was a make up for one of our many, many rain outs. However, the opposing team already had a game scheduled today. So no game for the t-ball Cubbies. Instead they got to play around outside until dinner, enjoying the warm late spring weather.
As for the art, Nate brought it home from school a few weeks ago. It only suffered minor trauma from the bus ride home, one of the side coils along the rim broke off. A little bit of glue and it was right as rain.
It is a fairly ornate coiled pot/mug (the side handle makes me think mug, but this little pot can not hold water). The main color is a vivid shade of cobalt blue with little splashes of red. It is featherlight and fits neatly with two cupped hands.
I like it. It is a true object d'art with no practical use. The blue color is my favorite and the accents of red really pop.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Then There is Baseball
I'm so sick of doing laundry.
Because of the short season and the vast amount of rain outs we are having a lot of back to back game days. Nate is coming off of a four day run, Max and Rebecca are just to starting a four day game streak and Jake will be playing games five out of seven days next week.
This kind of scheduling is grueling on the kids. Most of Nate and Jake's week day games start at 7:30 pm. Which means a very late night. On a school night. I'm lucky that I have a bunch of night owls, but I know some kids are a wreck the next day. Fortunately the t-baller games are only scheduled for 6:00 pm, but that's plenty late.
And, of course, we only have one uniform per player. This results in my doing a load of wash every day for the next two weeks. Little itty bitty loads loads that offend my Yankee soul. I normally do laundry twice a week. Two to three loads each Tuesday and Friday. That has gone out the window. I'm glad I have a washer and dryer, but I'm sick to death with using them. But the shirts, pants and socks need to be washed. I can fake it a bit with the socks and pants. We have a few sets from previous years, but the shirts have to be done. And it all really does need washing. The older boys don't get too stinky, but they certainly get grubby. Especially Nate who spends a fair amount of his time as catcher and often has to roll around home plate to make (and he does make them) the play.
I'm looking forward to tennis and the pool. There is far less washing to be done.
Because of the short season and the vast amount of rain outs we are having a lot of back to back game days. Nate is coming off of a four day run, Max and Rebecca are just to starting a four day game streak and Jake will be playing games five out of seven days next week.
This kind of scheduling is grueling on the kids. Most of Nate and Jake's week day games start at 7:30 pm. Which means a very late night. On a school night. I'm lucky that I have a bunch of night owls, but I know some kids are a wreck the next day. Fortunately the t-baller games are only scheduled for 6:00 pm, but that's plenty late.
And, of course, we only have one uniform per player. This results in my doing a load of wash every day for the next two weeks. Little itty bitty loads loads that offend my Yankee soul. I normally do laundry twice a week. Two to three loads each Tuesday and Friday. That has gone out the window. I'm glad I have a washer and dryer, but I'm sick to death with using them. But the shirts, pants and socks need to be washed. I can fake it a bit with the socks and pants. We have a few sets from previous years, but the shirts have to be done. And it all really does need washing. The older boys don't get too stinky, but they certainly get grubby. Especially Nate who spends a fair amount of his time as catcher and often has to roll around home plate to make (and he does make them) the play.
I'm looking forward to tennis and the pool. There is far less washing to be done.
Monday, May 05, 2008
6 Weeks and Counting
We have just 6 weeks left in the school year.
Nate noted that this morning before stepping out to the bus. Just six more weeks of getting up early to wrangle kids out the door. Just six more weeks of asking kids school lunch or packed. Just six more weeks of making sure that somebody (usually me) is home to greet them after school.
Then...
It's a little bit this and a little bit of that and a whole lot of unstructured time. The first few weeks are brutal, my quiet days will be over and I'll be exhausted by the constant talking, but I'll adjust. And then summer draws to a close and it's back to school.
Nate noted that this morning before stepping out to the bus. Just six more weeks of getting up early to wrangle kids out the door. Just six more weeks of asking kids school lunch or packed. Just six more weeks of making sure that somebody (usually me) is home to greet them after school.
Then...
It's a little bit this and a little bit of that and a whole lot of unstructured time. The first few weeks are brutal, my quiet days will be over and I'll be exhausted by the constant talking, but I'll adjust. And then summer draws to a close and it's back to school.
Sunday, May 04, 2008
Dell
It has been a eight weeks and Dell has wormed his way into our hearts.
Dell is a little wiggle worm. He's is always rolling over onto his back and waving his front paws. If you sit on the floor he'll try to crawl into your lap or under your legs, madly wagging his tail the whole time. I found that he'll wag even harder if you say his name in a bright and happy voice.
He and John get along very well. There have been a few disagreements, but nothing serious. They love to wrestle with each other and just like Crunch did with John, they are usually at my feet. The funniest thing they do when wrestling is when they are side by side and both on their backs mouthing each other. When they are outside they careen across the lawn bumping into each other. It's almost like a roller derby out there. Then they rush back indoors to flop at my feet.
Interestingly John has matured immensely with Dell in the house. He is no longer destroying toys left and right, that seems to be Dell's job for now. At least Dell drops things when asked with John it was more of a 50-50 prospect. However Dell hasn't learned to stop barking when asked. John is fairly quite with a very classic scent hound bell like aroo type bark . Dell, on the other hand, has a much more robust bark. He sounds far bigger than he is. Which I guess would make him a good watch dog. I just wish he would knock it off when told too and wasn't so chatty at night.
Overall it was a good thing to get Dell. Now have two very silly and very happy red boys.
Dell is a little wiggle worm. He's is always rolling over onto his back and waving his front paws. If you sit on the floor he'll try to crawl into your lap or under your legs, madly wagging his tail the whole time. I found that he'll wag even harder if you say his name in a bright and happy voice.
He and John get along very well. There have been a few disagreements, but nothing serious. They love to wrestle with each other and just like Crunch did with John, they are usually at my feet. The funniest thing they do when wrestling is when they are side by side and both on their backs mouthing each other. When they are outside they careen across the lawn bumping into each other. It's almost like a roller derby out there. Then they rush back indoors to flop at my feet.
Interestingly John has matured immensely with Dell in the house. He is no longer destroying toys left and right, that seems to be Dell's job for now. At least Dell drops things when asked with John it was more of a 50-50 prospect. However Dell hasn't learned to stop barking when asked. John is fairly quite with a very classic scent hound bell like aroo type bark . Dell, on the other hand, has a much more robust bark. He sounds far bigger than he is. Which I guess would make him a good watch dog. I just wish he would knock it off when told too and wasn't so chatty at night.
Overall it was a good thing to get Dell. Now have two very silly and very happy red boys.
Friday, May 02, 2008
Thursday, May 01, 2008
Going Round And Round For A Cure
I have a new favorite NASCAR driver. Really, I do.
Before moving down south to Virginia I was only dimly aware of the whole stock car racing thing. But now that I'm in the south and the mother of three little boys that love all things that go fast I've gotten quite an education. We settled on a couple of racers to watch, one of them being Elliot Sadler. Why Elliot you ask? Well he is relatively local and at the time drove the M&M car.
Then last year a new driver, Denny Hamlin, hit the scene. He had an amazing rookie year and is from the Richmond metro area. So I started to watch him. This year he has become my official favorite because of his foundation's focus, Cystic Fibrosis. It turns out he has a close relative with CF. In fact tonight there is a short track race just south of Richmond that will benefit the foundation.I would have loved to have taken the kids, but it is a school night and Nate (he's pitching too) has a ball game that starts at the same time as the race.
Then to put the whole thing over the top is Denny's auction. He is selling off all the stuff in his life that slows him down and all the proceeds go to St. Jude Children's Hospital. The site is a hoot, there are things like a rocking chair, spa slippers and War and Peace. I don't know who came up with the idea, but I love it.
So go Hurricane Hamlin.
Before moving down south to Virginia I was only dimly aware of the whole stock car racing thing. But now that I'm in the south and the mother of three little boys that love all things that go fast I've gotten quite an education. We settled on a couple of racers to watch, one of them being Elliot Sadler. Why Elliot you ask? Well he is relatively local and at the time drove the M&M car.
Then last year a new driver, Denny Hamlin, hit the scene. He had an amazing rookie year and is from the Richmond metro area. So I started to watch him. This year he has become my official favorite because of his foundation's focus, Cystic Fibrosis. It turns out he has a close relative with CF. In fact tonight there is a short track race just south of Richmond that will benefit the foundation.I would have loved to have taken the kids, but it is a school night and Nate (he's pitching too) has a ball game that starts at the same time as the race.
Then to put the whole thing over the top is Denny's auction. He is selling off all the stuff in his life that slows him down and all the proceeds go to St. Jude Children's Hospital. The site is a hoot, there are things like a rocking chair, spa slippers and War and Peace. I don't know who came up with the idea, but I love it.
So go Hurricane Hamlin.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Artist of the Week: Book
This week's artist is Jake.
It's getting harder and harder to get pictures of him. The Halloween photo is fine (since he's in costume) and he barely tolerates the mandatory annual/holiday photo. The rest of the year I have to get them on the sly. This is one I was able to crop out of the group photos from his band field trip. It's a testimony of how good the camera is even with extreme cropping, the picture still has a fair amount of resolution left.
Anyway, back to my post.
I was digging through some old papers when I found a little book Jake made last year with one of his classmates. I don't remember it, it must have gotten mixed in with the vast amount of stuff Jake dragged home at the end of the year. I found it to be utterly charming.
It is a take off on the old "How much wood could a woodchuck chuck" tongue twister. It details the reason why you never see a woodchuck chuck wood. If you click onto the cover you can then check out the whole book over at Flickr. I even retyped the story.
I love the pictures and the little Anglicism at the end cracks me up. I have no Idea where that came from, except that we do watch a fair amount of Monty Python.
It's getting harder and harder to get pictures of him. The Halloween photo is fine (since he's in costume) and he barely tolerates the mandatory annual/holiday photo. The rest of the year I have to get them on the sly. This is one I was able to crop out of the group photos from his band field trip. It's a testimony of how good the camera is even with extreme cropping, the picture still has a fair amount of resolution left.
Anyway, back to my post.
I was digging through some old papers when I found a little book Jake made last year with one of his classmates. I don't remember it, it must have gotten mixed in with the vast amount of stuff Jake dragged home at the end of the year. I found it to be utterly charming.
It is a take off on the old "How much wood could a woodchuck chuck" tongue twister. It details the reason why you never see a woodchuck chuck wood. If you click onto the cover you can then check out the whole book over at Flickr. I even retyped the story.
I love the pictures and the little Anglicism at the end cracks me up. I have no Idea where that came from, except that we do watch a fair amount of Monty Python.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
The Graduate
Last night was John's last class of basic obedience.
I signed him a few weeks ago in anticipation of Dell's arrival. I thought it would be good for John to get some one on one time with me after the arrival of his half brother and a little obedience training wouldn't hurt.
John was a very good boy throughout the course. His most impressive moment was when the two dogs on either side of him decided to go visit each other and practically trampled John. John just sat there, wagging his tail and completely focused on me. It would have been completely understandable if he had snarked at the two doofuses, but he didn't. He got a ton of praise from me and the other instructors.
He was admired by all and was a pleasure to work with. Too bad his trainer (me) is such a slacker and only worked with him a couple a times a week. I should try again and actually work on him between classes. It looks like he might have some potential in the obedience ring.
I signed him a few weeks ago in anticipation of Dell's arrival. I thought it would be good for John to get some one on one time with me after the arrival of his half brother and a little obedience training wouldn't hurt.
John was a very good boy throughout the course. His most impressive moment was when the two dogs on either side of him decided to go visit each other and practically trampled John. John just sat there, wagging his tail and completely focused on me. It would have been completely understandable if he had snarked at the two doofuses, but he didn't. He got a ton of praise from me and the other instructors.
He was admired by all and was a pleasure to work with. Too bad his trainer (me) is such a slacker and only worked with him a couple a times a week. I should try again and actually work on him between classes. It looks like he might have some potential in the obedience ring.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Makes Endless Rain Look Pretty Good
I've touched on, all right whined, about some of our endless rain. Right now the rainfall for April is over 8 inches. We have had a ton of baseball/t-ball games postponed and the kids are driving me up the wall with all their pent up energy. I had to force them outside today after an hour of their bouncing around and arguing.
But this nothing compared to what happened in Colonial Heights and Suffolk county today.
I first got an inkling that there was a bit more going on weather wise than rain when I picked up Jake from school. He had stayed after school for band rehearsal and I was supposed to pick him up at 4:30. I was a couple of minutes early, but Jake said he had been waiting for thirty minutes.
What?
The rehearsal had been called early because of tornado warnings. Jake tried to call home, but he knew I could not come any earlier and was fine with that.
I was shocked.
There had been some rumbles of thunder, but tornadoes. No way.
When we got back home I put on the news and I was amazed at the devastation I saw. It looks like nobody was killed, but wow. I thought we left this behind when we moved away from Wisconsin.
But this nothing compared to what happened in Colonial Heights and Suffolk county today.
I first got an inkling that there was a bit more going on weather wise than rain when I picked up Jake from school. He had stayed after school for band rehearsal and I was supposed to pick him up at 4:30. I was a couple of minutes early, but Jake said he had been waiting for thirty minutes.
What?
The rehearsal had been called early because of tornado warnings. Jake tried to call home, but he knew I could not come any earlier and was fine with that.
I was shocked.
There had been some rumbles of thunder, but tornadoes. No way.
When we got back home I put on the news and I was amazed at the devastation I saw. It looks like nobody was killed, but wow. I thought we left this behind when we moved away from Wisconsin.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Pop Goes the Weasel
I have no idea where or how I found this short movie, but here it is.
It's a nice way to spend just under 5 minutes.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Spooooooooooooon!
Ticks are back!
Sadly it's not the Tick, who is easily my most favorite hapless superhero. Instead it's the horrible blood sucking kind that leave itchy welts that you swear are never, ever going to go away. Mr. Dell seems to be a bit of a tick magnet, I pulled three off of him tonight. So it's time to break out the Frontline and dose the dogs.
Last year was a very mild tick season, the drought definitely had a negative impact on the local tick population. But this year looks bad, we've had tons of rain and no winter to speak of. A good solid freeze helps knock back the bugs and we only got a few days of cold weather interspersed with freakishly warm days.
Oh and in case anybody is wondering about the title, go watch this over at YouTube.
Sadly it's not the Tick, who is easily my most favorite hapless superhero. Instead it's the horrible blood sucking kind that leave itchy welts that you swear are never, ever going to go away. Mr. Dell seems to be a bit of a tick magnet, I pulled three off of him tonight. So it's time to break out the Frontline and dose the dogs.
Last year was a very mild tick season, the drought definitely had a negative impact on the local tick population. But this year looks bad, we've had tons of rain and no winter to speak of. A good solid freeze helps knock back the bugs and we only got a few days of cold weather interspersed with freakishly warm days.
Oh and in case anybody is wondering about the title, go watch this over at YouTube.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Running Home
After seemly endless rainy days, to the tune of 5 plus inches this past weekend- bringing April's total to just over 7 inches, the fields have dried out and baseball has started back up again. Jake played yesterday and tonight Nate, Max and Rebecca had games to play.
Tonight I got to watch Nate's team whomp their opponents at 16 to 1. It was only their second game meanwhile Jake is halfway through his schedule. The dynamic duo's game wasn't quite so lopsided, being just t-ball. The biggest surprise on the t-ball front is Rebecca.
She is really getting into playing the game. During her first game she made an out and since then she has become a fairly focused player, far more than her twin, Max, who has a tendency to run hot then cold throughout the game. Rebecca pays attention to what is going on and knows how to react. Fielding and base running are coming easily to my little girly girl.
And here is my little girl racing home.
Tonight I got to watch Nate's team whomp their opponents at 16 to 1. It was only their second game meanwhile Jake is halfway through his schedule. The dynamic duo's game wasn't quite so lopsided, being just t-ball. The biggest surprise on the t-ball front is Rebecca.
She is really getting into playing the game. During her first game she made an out and since then she has become a fairly focused player, far more than her twin, Max, who has a tendency to run hot then cold throughout the game. Rebecca pays attention to what is going on and knows how to react. Fielding and base running are coming easily to my little girly girl.
And here is my little girl racing home.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Artist of the Week: Collage Again
This week's artist is Rebecca. She is playing t-ball along with her twin and is having a great time when the kids get to actually play. If the rain holds off a little longer they'll get to play tomorrow.
But this is not about baseball, it's about art.
Most of the art the kids make at school is pretty much directed by the teacher. The medium and the subject matter are all part of the curriculum. There is some individuality to the pieces. I'm pretty good at picking out my kids' stuff out of the crowd, but there is a sort of uniformity to it all.The students do get some time for free expression, but it is usually regulated to smaller scraps of paper and time. All the major works are part of a lesson plan.
But once in a while a big sheet of paper is acquired.
Rebecca was at the art station at center time and she was able to get a fair sized piece of paper. On her own she selected all the materials for her collage and composed her picture. She received no direction from either the teacher, classroom aid or parent helper. This work is wholly her own.
When she brought it home she proudly told me that her teacher was showing off her picture to another teacher. Rebecca was thrilled to get such recognition from her teacher, whom she adores.
I too am proud of what my little girl can do.
But this is not about baseball, it's about art.
Most of the art the kids make at school is pretty much directed by the teacher. The medium and the subject matter are all part of the curriculum. There is some individuality to the pieces. I'm pretty good at picking out my kids' stuff out of the crowd, but there is a sort of uniformity to it all.The students do get some time for free expression, but it is usually regulated to smaller scraps of paper and time. All the major works are part of a lesson plan.
But once in a while a big sheet of paper is acquired.
Rebecca was at the art station at center time and she was able to get a fair sized piece of paper. On her own she selected all the materials for her collage and composed her picture. She received no direction from either the teacher, classroom aid or parent helper. This work is wholly her own.
When she brought it home she proudly told me that her teacher was showing off her picture to another teacher. Rebecca was thrilled to get such recognition from her teacher, whom she adores.
I too am proud of what my little girl can do.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
A House of Readers
Max and Rebecca aren't quite there yet, but the boys have become big readers.
Right now they are tearing through the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series by Kathryn Lasky. In fact their enthusiasm is so great that I've started reading them as well. I'm not sure who brought the first one home, but both boys read it. Then they clamored for more. It was spring break so we stopped by our local library to get the next book. When school resumed Nate got the third and fourth book. Nate raced through both, Jake finished the third and started the fourth and I started the third before the books were due back at Nate's school's library. Then we hit a snag, the fifth was not available at our local library nor at Nate's. Luckily we had interlibrary loan to come to the rescue. So now we have books four through six (I picked up the third at our local library and finished it last week, I needed to catch up).
This should get us through the rest of the week.
Right now they are tearing through the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series by Kathryn Lasky. In fact their enthusiasm is so great that I've started reading them as well. I'm not sure who brought the first one home, but both boys read it. Then they clamored for more. It was spring break so we stopped by our local library to get the next book. When school resumed Nate got the third and fourth book. Nate raced through both, Jake finished the third and started the fourth and I started the third before the books were due back at Nate's school's library. Then we hit a snag, the fifth was not available at our local library nor at Nate's. Luckily we had interlibrary loan to come to the rescue. So now we have books four through six (I picked up the third at our local library and finished it last week, I needed to catch up).
This should get us through the rest of the week.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Last Friday Jake And I Go to Norfolk For a Tattoo
And it's not just any tattoo , but the Virginia International Tattoo.
It turns out that Norfolk hosts the largest tattoo in the US and the band teachers at Jake's school decided that it would be this years big field trip. With Max and Rebecca tucked away in Kindergarten I could be a chaperon for this big event.
The kids had a great time and if you click on the group photo you'll be led to a photo set of our trip.
The tattoo itself was held inside the Scope Arena and it was quite exciting from the start.
The boys around me were impressed with both the size of the bands and the 21 gun salute. I loved the music and the marching drills.
Of course there is nothing like a whole procession of bagpipes and drums. As I recall this particular group was from Canada, but it wouldn't surprise me if other groups had blended in.
In between performances the Imps Youth Motorcycle Display Team would careen around on the floor.
They would do all sorts of stunts, the two most thrilling were the pyramid featured above and an incredible complicated bit for driving motorcycles while sitting backwards while crossing in front of another backwards motorcyclist. I think Nate would have loved this part the most.
In addition to the military bands and precision drill teams, there was a slew of step dancers. During this particular portion of the show the dancers were accompanied by an Irish folk group.
I thought they sounded and looked great.
I don't know if we'll ever go again, it was certainly worth going to at least once. Jake was a little disappointed that he missed out on a field trip with his science class, but he decided that this was a far better trip.
It turns out that Norfolk hosts the largest tattoo in the US and the band teachers at Jake's school decided that it would be this years big field trip. With Max and Rebecca tucked away in Kindergarten I could be a chaperon for this big event.
The kids had a great time and if you click on the group photo you'll be led to a photo set of our trip.
The tattoo itself was held inside the Scope Arena and it was quite exciting from the start.
The boys around me were impressed with both the size of the bands and the 21 gun salute. I loved the music and the marching drills.
Of course there is nothing like a whole procession of bagpipes and drums. As I recall this particular group was from Canada, but it wouldn't surprise me if other groups had blended in.
In between performances the Imps Youth Motorcycle Display Team would careen around on the floor.
They would do all sorts of stunts, the two most thrilling were the pyramid featured above and an incredible complicated bit for driving motorcycles while sitting backwards while crossing in front of another backwards motorcyclist. I think Nate would have loved this part the most.
In addition to the military bands and precision drill teams, there was a slew of step dancers. During this particular portion of the show the dancers were accompanied by an Irish folk group.
I thought they sounded and looked great.
I don't know if we'll ever go again, it was certainly worth going to at least once. Jake was a little disappointed that he missed out on a field trip with his science class, but he decided that this was a far better trip.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Happy Passover!
It's been a wet and wild day here today, with clouds and rain all day long. But this didn't affect our Temple's community Seder, it was warm and welcoming inside.
The food, as always, was excellent with the added bonus this year of leftovers. We got to bring home half a roast turkey breast and candied yams. Meryl came along with us and she too got to bring home some of the bounty.
It's not the fanciest, the biggest and certainly not the wealthiest of congregations, but it is one of the nicest.
So Chag Sameach to all of you who celebrate Passover.
The food, as always, was excellent with the added bonus this year of leftovers. We got to bring home half a roast turkey breast and candied yams. Meryl came along with us and she too got to bring home some of the bounty.
It's not the fanciest, the biggest and certainly not the wealthiest of congregations, but it is one of the nicest.
So Chag Sameach to all of you who celebrate Passover.
Friday, April 18, 2008
I'm Glad It's Your Birthday
Today is my mother's birthday and I just want to say
Happy Birthday To You
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Imagine If I did Drink Coffee
Created by OnePlusYou
Which is really funny since I don't drink coffee and I swore off caffeinated beverages 12 years ago. Okay, I might have the extremely rare cup of tea, but that's it baby.
As for being a vibrating crack-head, um I don't think so. Laid back is more my style. Although I will admit I did take the test three times, twice with my right hand and once with my left and got pretty much the same results each time.
Courtesy of the Llama Butchers.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Artist of the Week: Box
This week's artist is Max.
Max is a funny, quirky little guy. Certain subjects such as zombies and vampires are off limits, but he loves all of the Star Wars movies, freaky aliens and all.
He also loves to draw pictures, the figures still remain in the stick figure stage, but are elaborate with some sort of tale to tell. Max really dislikes coloring pages and unless the subject matter interests him, it is done in a slap dash fashion.
So it's always interesting to see what happens when he is directed to create something for school.
For Valentines day all the students had to create a mailbox. A shoe box wrapped in plain paper was to be used. After a huge struggle to find boxes during Jake's first year in school, I have learned to stock pile all the shoe boxes that come into the house
So it wasn't a problem for me to conjure up a few for Max to make his selection. He settled on a bright red one that I carefully wrapped in white paper, only exposing the edge of the lid. I though the bright red color contrasted nicely with the stark white paper. I even cut out a hole (with a big protest from Max) for the kids to use as a mail slot for the valentines.
I then sent Max off to school with his box to decorate while in the classroom.
And this is what he did.
There are all sorts of wild animals , trees and a building. The one concession to Valentines Day is the single heart that I'm sure was added as an after thought. Jake and Nate had produced far more Valentines thematic boxes in kindergarten. But that's Max, a boy that marches to his own tune.
Max is a funny, quirky little guy. Certain subjects such as zombies and vampires are off limits, but he loves all of the Star Wars movies, freaky aliens and all.
He also loves to draw pictures, the figures still remain in the stick figure stage, but are elaborate with some sort of tale to tell. Max really dislikes coloring pages and unless the subject matter interests him, it is done in a slap dash fashion.
So it's always interesting to see what happens when he is directed to create something for school.
For Valentines day all the students had to create a mailbox. A shoe box wrapped in plain paper was to be used. After a huge struggle to find boxes during Jake's first year in school, I have learned to stock pile all the shoe boxes that come into the house
So it wasn't a problem for me to conjure up a few for Max to make his selection. He settled on a bright red one that I carefully wrapped in white paper, only exposing the edge of the lid. I though the bright red color contrasted nicely with the stark white paper. I even cut out a hole (with a big protest from Max) for the kids to use as a mail slot for the valentines.
I then sent Max off to school with his box to decorate while in the classroom.
And this is what he did.
There are all sorts of wild animals , trees and a building. The one concession to Valentines Day is the single heart that I'm sure was added as an after thought. Jake and Nate had produced far more Valentines thematic boxes in kindergarten. But that's Max, a boy that marches to his own tune.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Flat Stanely Has Been Everywhere
The now essentially dormant Terry of Possumblog briefly popped out of hibernation to post what is possibly the best Flat Stanley slide show ever.
So mosey on over to here and see just what Flat Stanley has been up too. Just hit play and enjoy the show and for the back ground story head on over to here. Oh and the music, it is just plain perfect. There is nobody like the Man in Black.
So mosey on over to here and see just what Flat Stanley has been up too. Just hit play and enjoy the show and for the back ground story head on over to here. Oh and the music, it is just plain perfect. There is nobody like the Man in Black.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Spring is Here
Spring is firmly entrenched around here and here are a few signs.
The flowers have been blooming for quite awhile, but I don't take anything seriously until the lilacs start doing their thing. Ours started a week ago and are featured in my new header.
Opening day for baseball has come and gone. Now I 'm not talking about this, but rather the local Little League's opening day. Last year was a dismal rainy affair. This year it was much colder, but was mercifully brief because it was postponed to yesterday and started at 1:00 pm instead of 8:00 am. The best part was the reduction in speechifying. I suspect the original mucky-muck couldn't reschedule and the league decided to just stick with just the board of directors and the ceremonial first pitch.
But for me the biggest sign that spring is here to stay is when I break out the shop-vac. Yes, it's time to vacuum the tree.
The flowers have been blooming for quite awhile, but I don't take anything seriously until the lilacs start doing their thing. Ours started a week ago and are featured in my new header.
Opening day for baseball has come and gone. Now I 'm not talking about this, but rather the local Little League's opening day. Last year was a dismal rainy affair. This year it was much colder, but was mercifully brief because it was postponed to yesterday and started at 1:00 pm instead of 8:00 am. The best part was the reduction in speechifying. I suspect the original mucky-muck couldn't reschedule and the league decided to just stick with just the board of directors and the ceremonial first pitch.
But for me the biggest sign that spring is here to stay is when I break out the shop-vac. Yes, it's time to vacuum the tree.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
A Bag Full of Plagues
Today was the last day of Sunday school before Passover, there were Seders galore and all sorts of fun things going on.
Jake's grade and older had silly songs such as "There's No Seder Like Our Seder", "I've Been Cooking For This Seder" and my favorite: "Gilligan's Exodus" which featured this great line -a three hour meal. I could overhear them while I was reading in the library just down the hall.
Nate's group 3rd through 5th had their own Seder in another building so I don't know what was going on, but I'm sure it was fun.
The remaining lower grades had their own individual Seders in their respective classrooms. I brought in some caramel matzah crunch for Max and Rebecca's classroom and get to see the kids all dressed up in the robes they made last week. It was all very cute, but the best part was the bag they brought home.
Each child was given a plain white paper gift bag and told to decorate it so it looks like matzah. Then the bags were filled with the ten plagues.
They have blood, frogs, lice/biting insects, wild animals in the form of a mask (Rebecca got a lion and Max got a bear), pestilence (in the form of a googly eyed cow), boils (bubble wrap), hail (super balls), locusts (I know they're butterflies, work with me people), darkness (created via sunglasses) and a wee plastic baby for death of the first born.
I love the bubble wrap for boils, I think that is such a cool solution. But I think my favorite is the cow. It is such a pathetic and awful looking thing. It's grossly over sized googly eyes really do make it look as though it is suffering from some horrible, eye popping disease. I've always like Mrs. L and the cow shows she has the sort of twisted sense of humor I love.
Jake's grade and older had silly songs such as "There's No Seder Like Our Seder", "I've Been Cooking For This Seder" and my favorite: "Gilligan's Exodus" which featured this great line -a three hour meal. I could overhear them while I was reading in the library just down the hall.
Nate's group 3rd through 5th had their own Seder in another building so I don't know what was going on, but I'm sure it was fun.
The remaining lower grades had their own individual Seders in their respective classrooms. I brought in some caramel matzah crunch for Max and Rebecca's classroom and get to see the kids all dressed up in the robes they made last week. It was all very cute, but the best part was the bag they brought home.
Each child was given a plain white paper gift bag and told to decorate it so it looks like matzah. Then the bags were filled with the ten plagues.
They have blood, frogs, lice/biting insects, wild animals in the form of a mask (Rebecca got a lion and Max got a bear), pestilence (in the form of a googly eyed cow), boils (bubble wrap), hail (super balls), locusts (I know they're butterflies, work with me people), darkness (created via sunglasses) and a wee plastic baby for death of the first born.
I love the bubble wrap for boils, I think that is such a cool solution. But I think my favorite is the cow. It is such a pathetic and awful looking thing. It's grossly over sized googly eyes really do make it look as though it is suffering from some horrible, eye popping disease. I've always like Mrs. L and the cow shows she has the sort of twisted sense of humor I love.
Friday, April 11, 2008
A good Friend
I have the bestest friend ever.
I was talking to Larry on the phone Wednesday (he's out of town at a conference) when it suddenly hit me that yes the two games the kids have on Thursday don't conflict and are at the same field, but I'm going to be stuck there from 5:30 to at least 9:30 and maybe as late as 10:00. The late hour isn't too big a deal for the older two boys, Max and Rebecca, however are another story.
So I called up Meryl and asked her if she was busy Thursday night. And it just so turned out that she wasn't.
Whoot!
I gave her a choice she could watch Jake's major-minor game or shuttle the rest home and stuff them into bed. Since the pollen counts are up Meryl elected to take the younger set home, which made Max and Rebecca *very* happy. Of course they completely forgot on Thursday and Max started to grouse about how he never gets to ride in Aunt Meryl's car. I stopped him cold when I said "Well you do tonight, Aunt Meryl is driving you home."
Nate also decided to head back home, he had his fill of the park and he wanted to ride in the Jeep. From what I understand he was quite a stickler about the speed limit. Meryl asked me later how I can stand driving him about. I simply pointed out that in the van he's in the back row, far. far away from the dashboard. In the Jeep... well he got to ride up front and got an unobstructed view of all the dials. And yes the front is not ideal for a nine year old, but I trust Meryl and she has the ability to shut off the front passenger airbag.
Anyway, the younger crowd got home safely and I got to watch Jake's team pretty much annihilate their opponent. The game got called at 9:15, Jake's team was up by more than10 runs and the other team had no hope of coming back in one more inning.
We got home at an almost decent hour and Jake even got to visit for a bit with Meryl. It's a nice having a good friend that can pitch in when you need a little help.
I was talking to Larry on the phone Wednesday (he's out of town at a conference) when it suddenly hit me that yes the two games the kids have on Thursday don't conflict and are at the same field, but I'm going to be stuck there from 5:30 to at least 9:30 and maybe as late as 10:00. The late hour isn't too big a deal for the older two boys, Max and Rebecca, however are another story.
So I called up Meryl and asked her if she was busy Thursday night. And it just so turned out that she wasn't.
Whoot!
I gave her a choice she could watch Jake's major-minor game or shuttle the rest home and stuff them into bed. Since the pollen counts are up Meryl elected to take the younger set home, which made Max and Rebecca *very* happy. Of course they completely forgot on Thursday and Max started to grouse about how he never gets to ride in Aunt Meryl's car. I stopped him cold when I said "Well you do tonight, Aunt Meryl is driving you home."
Nate also decided to head back home, he had his fill of the park and he wanted to ride in the Jeep. From what I understand he was quite a stickler about the speed limit. Meryl asked me later how I can stand driving him about. I simply pointed out that in the van he's in the back row, far. far away from the dashboard. In the Jeep... well he got to ride up front and got an unobstructed view of all the dials. And yes the front is not ideal for a nine year old, but I trust Meryl and she has the ability to shut off the front passenger airbag.
Anyway, the younger crowd got home safely and I got to watch Jake's team pretty much annihilate their opponent. The game got called at 9:15, Jake's team was up by more than10 runs and the other team had no hope of coming back in one more inning.
We got home at an almost decent hour and Jake even got to visit for a bit with Meryl. It's a nice having a good friend that can pitch in when you need a little help.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Trudy's Ice Cream
A lot of dog breeders name dogs along some sort of theme. The themes can run by the litter or the breeding line.
For example: John's litter had a Beatles theme. There were only four boys and their puppy names were: John, Paul George and Ringo. Puppy names are not always kept, but as you can tell John got to keep his. It's a nice plain, honest name and so is John.
Dell's litter is a good example of a thematic line. His Great Granddam was Candy Cane. Candy Cane produced Godiva who in turn had (Nestlé) Crunch and Hershey. Crunch in turn begot Dell (Ghirardelli), Brad (Five Star) and Trudy (Gertrude Hawk). There are a few more in the litter, but those are the ones I know.
Anyhoo I was checking out the ice cream at Food Lion the other day when a new limited edition ice cream caught my eye. Turkey Hill has something called Gertrude Hawk Box of Chocolates. I'm a huge fan of Turkey Hill, I love chocolate and it's Dell's sister Trudy! I had to buy it. I really had no choice in the matter.
I brought it home and eagerly scooped out a small bowl to give it a taste. Oh my, is it good. It has the scrumptious Turkey Hill chocolate ice cream as a base and chocolate miniatures from Gertrude Hawk sprinkled liberally throughout.
I love it and so does my husband. The whole thing was gone in less than three days. I told Trudy's owner about it and she is now trying to find it around her.
So now we have a new favorite ice cream, Trudy's Box of Chocolates
For example: John's litter had a Beatles theme. There were only four boys and their puppy names were: John, Paul George and Ringo. Puppy names are not always kept, but as you can tell John got to keep his. It's a nice plain, honest name and so is John.
Dell's litter is a good example of a thematic line. His Great Granddam was Candy Cane. Candy Cane produced Godiva who in turn had (Nestlé) Crunch and Hershey. Crunch in turn begot Dell (Ghirardelli), Brad (Five Star) and Trudy (Gertrude Hawk). There are a few more in the litter, but those are the ones I know.
Anyhoo I was checking out the ice cream at Food Lion the other day when a new limited edition ice cream caught my eye. Turkey Hill has something called Gertrude Hawk Box of Chocolates. I'm a huge fan of Turkey Hill, I love chocolate and it's Dell's sister Trudy! I had to buy it. I really had no choice in the matter.
I brought it home and eagerly scooped out a small bowl to give it a taste. Oh my, is it good. It has the scrumptious Turkey Hill chocolate ice cream as a base and chocolate miniatures from Gertrude Hawk sprinkled liberally throughout.
I love it and so does my husband. The whole thing was gone in less than three days. I told Trudy's owner about it and she is now trying to find it around her.
So now we have a new favorite ice cream, Trudy's Box of Chocolates
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Artist of the Week: Collage
This week's artist is Nate.
He has quite a mop of hair now and that's the way he likes it. He still looks very cute, but I keep wanting to just neaten up his hair.
Anyhoo, this is him by one of the outdoor panda enclosures at the National Zoo. He actually requested this photo. He plans on bringing it in for his "share day" at school, the theme this month is interesting places/travel. He had a great time at the zoo and he wants to tell his class all about it.
Not so coincidentally, his art project is from school. He brought it home a while ago and I was immediately struck by the vibrancy of the colors. I like how the ocean's waves were formed by tearing the paper at such an oblique angle that the raw white center of the paper is exposed and thus creating the foamy white-caps of the waves. The green bits are a sea serpent that (sadly) lost its head in transit. I think this is my favorite work of his so far this school year.
He has quite a mop of hair now and that's the way he likes it. He still looks very cute, but I keep wanting to just neaten up his hair.
Anyhoo, this is him by one of the outdoor panda enclosures at the National Zoo. He actually requested this photo. He plans on bringing it in for his "share day" at school, the theme this month is interesting places/travel. He had a great time at the zoo and he wants to tell his class all about it.
Not so coincidentally, his art project is from school. He brought it home a while ago and I was immediately struck by the vibrancy of the colors. I like how the ocean's waves were formed by tearing the paper at such an oblique angle that the raw white center of the paper is exposed and thus creating the foamy white-caps of the waves. The green bits are a sea serpent that (sadly) lost its head in transit. I think this is my favorite work of his so far this school year.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Science is Fun
I love this.
I saw it over on Improbable Research blog and I just had to share it. I thought the swim noodles as spindle fibers was a brillant idea and the cell membrane formation at the end puts it over the top.
Monday, April 07, 2008
Fly Like an Eagle
Yesterday, just as I crossed the border from Maryland into Virginia, a bald eagle flew overhead.
They are beautiful birds and can be found in every state except Hawaii. All they need is access to large bodies of water with tall trees nearby to roost in them, Maryland and Virginia have both in abundance.
This was a far more stirring sighting than the one I had a few years ago.
I was driving along the highway not far from home when I spotted our Nation's Symbol. It was on the median (which is about 20 feet wide at that point) picking at some road kill. Such a lovely image. I'm so glad that I now have a far more regal memory.
They are beautiful birds and can be found in every state except Hawaii. All they need is access to large bodies of water with tall trees nearby to roost in them, Maryland and Virginia have both in abundance.
This was a far more stirring sighting than the one I had a few years ago.
I was driving along the highway not far from home when I spotted our Nation's Symbol. It was on the median (which is about 20 feet wide at that point) picking at some road kill. Such a lovely image. I'm so glad that I now have a far more regal memory.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Rain, Rain, Go Away
We've been getting a lot of rain the past few days and we're getting pretty sick of it.
Thursday Nate's scrimmage was canceled when about half of the other team bailed out on the coach. This resulted in a great deal of whining and pouting from Nate.
Friday was just gloomy and overcast, but the ground was soaked which made the dog show I was at that much more exciting. It was an outdoor show and it meant that I got to run around and kneel in the mud. John was a trooper, but Dell was another story. He was a little fool, rolling around on his back and keeping his nose glued to the ground. Too bad, because the judge did like him, but he wouldn't let me show him off.
Saturday was supposed to be opening day for Little League, but the whole thing got postponed. They wanted to avoid last year's debacle with the photographers (the pictures were so awful the coach demanded a re-shoot). Rebecca, surprisingly, was the most upset and literally burst into tears when I told her that she wasn't playing that day.
Today I schlepped off to another dog show up in Maryland. It was absolutely wretched out, a cold biting rain with an occasional blast of wind to liven things up and again it was an outdoor show. The rings were set up as normal, six rings in two parallel rows with a large central aisle dividing the rows. A large tent was erected over the central aisle with only a small portion of the individual rings covered. Just enough to cover the stewards table. Outdoor dog shows are almost never canceled due to rain, it takes extreme conditions are force a cancellation. So show dogs may have a fru-fru and pampered reputation, but they are shown outside in the rain and the mud.
Both of the dogs were rock solid in the rain, only flapping their ears when the rain lashed harder. They weren't what the judge was looking for, but I was happy with how they performed. Neither of the red boys are the natural that their sire (Crunch) was, but they are coming along.
Nate's team had practice today, but only a few kids showed up. I guess some of the parents got scared off by the drizzle, but that doesn't stop my crew. The ones that did show had a great time playing in the mud. But I'm tired of all this rain.
Thursday Nate's scrimmage was canceled when about half of the other team bailed out on the coach. This resulted in a great deal of whining and pouting from Nate.
Friday was just gloomy and overcast, but the ground was soaked which made the dog show I was at that much more exciting. It was an outdoor show and it meant that I got to run around and kneel in the mud. John was a trooper, but Dell was another story. He was a little fool, rolling around on his back and keeping his nose glued to the ground. Too bad, because the judge did like him, but he wouldn't let me show him off.
Saturday was supposed to be opening day for Little League, but the whole thing got postponed. They wanted to avoid last year's debacle with the photographers (the pictures were so awful the coach demanded a re-shoot). Rebecca, surprisingly, was the most upset and literally burst into tears when I told her that she wasn't playing that day.
Today I schlepped off to another dog show up in Maryland. It was absolutely wretched out, a cold biting rain with an occasional blast of wind to liven things up and again it was an outdoor show. The rings were set up as normal, six rings in two parallel rows with a large central aisle dividing the rows. A large tent was erected over the central aisle with only a small portion of the individual rings covered. Just enough to cover the stewards table. Outdoor dog shows are almost never canceled due to rain, it takes extreme conditions are force a cancellation. So show dogs may have a fru-fru and pampered reputation, but they are shown outside in the rain and the mud.
Both of the dogs were rock solid in the rain, only flapping their ears when the rain lashed harder. They weren't what the judge was looking for, but I was happy with how they performed. Neither of the red boys are the natural that their sire (Crunch) was, but they are coming along.
Nate's team had practice today, but only a few kids showed up. I guess some of the parents got scared off by the drizzle, but that doesn't stop my crew. The ones that did show had a great time playing in the mud. But I'm tired of all this rain.
Friday, April 04, 2008
Fun Times
Last weekend we drove up North for a very big event. The daughter of close family friends was turning 13 and having her Bat Mitzvah.
She did a wonderful job leading services, reading her Torah portion and Haftorah with confidence. It was a moving experiance when he parents went up during the service. Her mother choking back tears of joy and pride and her father beaming throughout.
Then it was time to eat and make merry. The kids all had a great time and Larry and I got to catch up with friends we hadn't seen in years. We also got to play "pass the baby" with little Ethan. He was born last December and we got to see him when he was just over a week old. Now he's a very sturdy three month old that was happy to be any body's arms. It was fun playing with him and it was great for his parents to get a bit of a respite.
I too got a respite. Rebecca joined in with all the older girls that happily took her under their collective wing. The birthday/ Bat Mitzvah girl sought us out and told us that she assigned one of her friends to be in charge of Rebecca and make sure she got some lunch. Jake and Nate also escaped to the kids table, just leaving Mr. Max.
The cutest moment, for me at least, was when Rebecca danced with her Daddy. The DJ played "Unforgettable" and fathers started dancing with their daughters. Rebecca wanted to dance too and searched out her Daddy. Her smile was practically incandescent when she started to dance with him.
It was according to Max "the best place and the best party ever."
I gotta agree with him.
She did a wonderful job leading services, reading her Torah portion and Haftorah with confidence. It was a moving experiance when he parents went up during the service. Her mother choking back tears of joy and pride and her father beaming throughout.
Then it was time to eat and make merry. The kids all had a great time and Larry and I got to catch up with friends we hadn't seen in years. We also got to play "pass the baby" with little Ethan. He was born last December and we got to see him when he was just over a week old. Now he's a very sturdy three month old that was happy to be any body's arms. It was fun playing with him and it was great for his parents to get a bit of a respite.
I too got a respite. Rebecca joined in with all the older girls that happily took her under their collective wing. The birthday/ Bat Mitzvah girl sought us out and told us that she assigned one of her friends to be in charge of Rebecca and make sure she got some lunch. Jake and Nate also escaped to the kids table, just leaving Mr. Max.
The cutest moment, for me at least, was when Rebecca danced with her Daddy. The DJ played "Unforgettable" and fathers started dancing with their daughters. Rebecca wanted to dance too and searched out her Daddy. Her smile was practically incandescent when she started to dance with him.
It was according to Max "the best place and the best party ever."
I gotta agree with him.
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Best Slayer Video Ever
I like a variety of music, though I will admit hardcore metal is pretty darn low on the list. I'm more of a punk rock girl.
But this is absolutely perfect. It is the result of the combined madness of Amazon, Instapundit and FARK. My husband found it and I'm deeply indebted to him for this masterpiece.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Artist of the Week: Lego X-Wing
This week's artist is Max.
Max is a huge Star wars fan, if fact I think you would be hard pressed to find a bigger fan in his age group. He would watch Star Wars movies all day long if we would let him. A close second would be playing Star Wars Galactic Battleground (He is not allowed right now because a fair amount of reading is involved and he is not ready.)
As a result most of his creative play centers around Star Wars. Nothing makes him happier than a rousing (plastic) light saber battle in the backyard. Most of his buildings in some small way relate to George Lucas's epic. One of his favorite books at the library is the "Incredible Cross-Sections of Star Wars, Episodes IV, V & VI: The Ultimate Guide to Star Wars Vehicles and Spacecraft." He can't read yet, but he will spend hours poring over the illustrations in the book.
So of course his Lego creations reflect his passion.
Max made this particular space craft at the end of last February. It is an X-Wing Fighter that was completely his own design.
In the first two pictures the ship has its s-foils or wings in the open/ attack position. In the last frame the wings are in the closed position.
I thought this simple little craft was utterly amazing. At age six he was able to figure out a way to make the wings change position. I think most kids his age wouldn't have even bothered.
Even Jake and Nate were impressed by his resourceful solution.
I have a drawer full of sharp knives and not a single butter knife in the whole lot.
Max is a huge Star wars fan, if fact I think you would be hard pressed to find a bigger fan in his age group. He would watch Star Wars movies all day long if we would let him. A close second would be playing Star Wars Galactic Battleground (He is not allowed right now because a fair amount of reading is involved and he is not ready.)
As a result most of his creative play centers around Star Wars. Nothing makes him happier than a rousing (plastic) light saber battle in the backyard. Most of his buildings in some small way relate to George Lucas's epic. One of his favorite books at the library is the "Incredible Cross-Sections of Star Wars, Episodes IV, V & VI: The Ultimate Guide to Star Wars Vehicles and Spacecraft." He can't read yet, but he will spend hours poring over the illustrations in the book.
So of course his Lego creations reflect his passion.
Max made this particular space craft at the end of last February. It is an X-Wing Fighter that was completely his own design.
In the first two pictures the ship has its s-foils or wings in the open/ attack position. In the last frame the wings are in the closed position.
I thought this simple little craft was utterly amazing. At age six he was able to figure out a way to make the wings change position. I think most kids his age wouldn't have even bothered.
Even Jake and Nate were impressed by his resourceful solution.
I have a drawer full of sharp knives and not a single butter knife in the whole lot.
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
It's Not Just Any Zoo
It's the National Zoo.
So here are a few pictures from last week's trip to the National Zoo.
We all love going to the zoo and I thought it would be a good spring break diversion. It is a reasonable driving distance, the zoo itself is free (parking is another story) and the weather promised to be fairly good (especially compared to the truly awful heat and humidity DC experiences in the summer).
Originally I planned for us to leave by 9, quarter to 10 was closer to the truth. The Zoo's website recommends that you arrive before 10, but that's just crazy talk for this crowd. I was a little concerned about parking, but driving was really our best option. Paying for public transportation and parking would be prohibitively expensive for the five of us. I figured that even with the cost of gas it was better for us to risk the parking. Plus then we could have a picnic and be able to stash our stuff in the car when we were done.
We got up there at about 12:30 and the parking lots were full. We did a slow tour of the lots and were waved on by the parking attendants. I briefly contemplated parking on one of the residential streets nearby, but I was leery of the 2 hour time limit. I would have been happier with a three hour limit, that struck me as about the right amount of time. So I turned the van back towards the zoo's lots and tried to remain hopeful. After one slow lap I saw a lot open up for the car ahead of us. I was allowed in and at that point the lot was closed off again. Talk about lucky! We had to wait for the family of 10 (!) load up their van, but I was fine with that. We were going to have a legitimate parking space.
Then it was off to the zoo.
We entered the grounds by the maned wolf. One of them was out and checking out the antelopes housed next door. The wolves are visually striking and possibly one of the stinkiest animals (short of a skunk) that I have ever smelt. You do not want to eat your lunch by them. We did, however, enjoy watching it before the wolf retreated to it's little den. Then it was time to move on to what we really wanted to see, Pandas.
Two of the of the pandas were outside in their yards. The third (and I have no idea which one it was) was lolling about on some rocks indoors. I got one rather grainy shot of the panda scratching it's belly, but I like this one more of my boys.
As you can see they have decided to grow their hair out. Both of them have mop tops with Nate looking positively Beatlesque.
Anyhoo, after the pandas we ended up going to the birds.
The indoor exhibits were very nicely done, I liked the large indoor aviary, but the outdoor exhibits wee better. We were all fascinated by the Double-wattled Cassowary. The combination of the horny protuberance on it's head and the vivid coloration of it's neck and wattles gave it a rather Jurassic appearance. But, they were not my favorite bird. That honor went to the flamingos. I love their brillant pink plumage. We have them at our local zoo, but they never get as close to the fence as this flock. From the birds we strolled back through panda world and eventually ended up in the Small Mammal House.
We got to see tree shrews (very cute), tamarins (also very cute), meerkats (cute) and naked mole-rats (freakishly ugly).
You know how sometimes something is so ugly it's cute? Naked mole-rats are not like that. Their little tunnel exhibit looked like some sort of post apocalyptic hamster habitat gone horribly wrong. Excessive nuclear radiation gone wrong. They are nothing like Rufus from Kim Possible. So I won't show you them, instead you'll have to settle for a picture of Rebecca (extremely cute) under a palm frond. (Note: the line across her face is a stray hair that was not nearly as noticeable in the dimly lit building).
After the small mammals we by passed the great Apes because nobody was interested. However we did like the Orangutan highway above our heads. From April to October at certain times the Orangs are free to move from on part of the zoo to another via overhead cables. The Orangs weren't out yet, but it was still fun to imagine them swinging overhead. We also gave a pass on the reptile House (too crowded, there was a line just to get inside.)
However we did see the Komodo Dragon, which was on Jake's must see list. It was terribly active, but we did find it. At this point everybody was getting anxious and ready to go. We paid a quick visit to the big cats, had a quick potty break and headed over to the all important gift shop.
On the way we passed a life sized sculpture of a triceratops. This is Max's all time favorite dinosaur. I asked him if he wanted a picture and he zoomed on over. His smile is a bit odd because he is showing off the little gap in his smile. He had just lost that tooth just a few days ago.
Rebecca than dragged us on to go shopping. She had been dying to buy something from the get go. Quite honestly she would have been happy with just going to a gift shop and blowing her allowance. But instead her mean mommy dragged her through out the zoo before letting her shop. The first shop was a bust (she only had $7 and it really wasn't enough to get what she wanted), but the next one we stopped at was the clearance tent and she got a cute little camel. Max got a triceratops, Jake got a panda and Nate got bupkis. He didn't bring his money and confided to me it was probably best that he left his money at home. That way he would save it for something good. Such a smart boy. We then headed back to the van and home.
So here are a few pictures from last week's trip to the National Zoo.
We all love going to the zoo and I thought it would be a good spring break diversion. It is a reasonable driving distance, the zoo itself is free (parking is another story) and the weather promised to be fairly good (especially compared to the truly awful heat and humidity DC experiences in the summer).
Originally I planned for us to leave by 9, quarter to 10 was closer to the truth. The Zoo's website recommends that you arrive before 10, but that's just crazy talk for this crowd. I was a little concerned about parking, but driving was really our best option. Paying for public transportation and parking would be prohibitively expensive for the five of us. I figured that even with the cost of gas it was better for us to risk the parking. Plus then we could have a picnic and be able to stash our stuff in the car when we were done.
We got up there at about 12:30 and the parking lots were full. We did a slow tour of the lots and were waved on by the parking attendants. I briefly contemplated parking on one of the residential streets nearby, but I was leery of the 2 hour time limit. I would have been happier with a three hour limit, that struck me as about the right amount of time. So I turned the van back towards the zoo's lots and tried to remain hopeful. After one slow lap I saw a lot open up for the car ahead of us. I was allowed in and at that point the lot was closed off again. Talk about lucky! We had to wait for the family of 10 (!) load up their van, but I was fine with that. We were going to have a legitimate parking space.
Then it was off to the zoo.
We entered the grounds by the maned wolf. One of them was out and checking out the antelopes housed next door. The wolves are visually striking and possibly one of the stinkiest animals (short of a skunk) that I have ever smelt. You do not want to eat your lunch by them. We did, however, enjoy watching it before the wolf retreated to it's little den. Then it was time to move on to what we really wanted to see, Pandas.
Two of the of the pandas were outside in their yards. The third (and I have no idea which one it was) was lolling about on some rocks indoors. I got one rather grainy shot of the panda scratching it's belly, but I like this one more of my boys.
As you can see they have decided to grow their hair out. Both of them have mop tops with Nate looking positively Beatlesque.
Anyhoo, after the pandas we ended up going to the birds.
The indoor exhibits were very nicely done, I liked the large indoor aviary, but the outdoor exhibits wee better. We were all fascinated by the Double-wattled Cassowary. The combination of the horny protuberance on it's head and the vivid coloration of it's neck and wattles gave it a rather Jurassic appearance. But, they were not my favorite bird. That honor went to the flamingos. I love their brillant pink plumage. We have them at our local zoo, but they never get as close to the fence as this flock. From the birds we strolled back through panda world and eventually ended up in the Small Mammal House.
We got to see tree shrews (very cute), tamarins (also very cute), meerkats (cute) and naked mole-rats (freakishly ugly).
You know how sometimes something is so ugly it's cute? Naked mole-rats are not like that. Their little tunnel exhibit looked like some sort of post apocalyptic hamster habitat gone horribly wrong. Excessive nuclear radiation gone wrong. They are nothing like Rufus from Kim Possible. So I won't show you them, instead you'll have to settle for a picture of Rebecca (extremely cute) under a palm frond. (Note: the line across her face is a stray hair that was not nearly as noticeable in the dimly lit building).
After the small mammals we by passed the great Apes because nobody was interested. However we did like the Orangutan highway above our heads. From April to October at certain times the Orangs are free to move from on part of the zoo to another via overhead cables. The Orangs weren't out yet, but it was still fun to imagine them swinging overhead. We also gave a pass on the reptile House (too crowded, there was a line just to get inside.)
However we did see the Komodo Dragon, which was on Jake's must see list. It was terribly active, but we did find it. At this point everybody was getting anxious and ready to go. We paid a quick visit to the big cats, had a quick potty break and headed over to the all important gift shop.
On the way we passed a life sized sculpture of a triceratops. This is Max's all time favorite dinosaur. I asked him if he wanted a picture and he zoomed on over. His smile is a bit odd because he is showing off the little gap in his smile. He had just lost that tooth just a few days ago.
Rebecca than dragged us on to go shopping. She had been dying to buy something from the get go. Quite honestly she would have been happy with just going to a gift shop and blowing her allowance. But instead her mean mommy dragged her through out the zoo before letting her shop. The first shop was a bust (she only had $7 and it really wasn't enough to get what she wanted), but the next one we stopped at was the clearance tent and she got a cute little camel. Max got a triceratops, Jake got a panda and Nate got bupkis. He didn't bring his money and confided to me it was probably best that he left his money at home. That way he would save it for something good. Such a smart boy. We then headed back to the van and home.
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