We had an abbreviated trip to the beach Saturday. The thunder and lightning held off just long enough to try skipping stones and snap some gorgeous pictures of the kids.
I LOVE this picture. It is exactly Leah at this moment--the look, the messy pony, everything. It is perfect.
I let this one fly this afternoon:
"You see how the kitchen looks right now? It better look that way when you're done."
--when asked by Leah if she could make cookies.
Emma and Leah had their first swim meet last week in Avon Lake. We don't know their times, but we do know they had a lot of fun!
Emma's events:
100 Medley relay-breaststroke
25 Freestyle
100 Freestyle relay
Leah's events:
100 Medley relay--backstroke
25 Fly
100 Freestyle relay
first time in swim caps!
this was just the beginning of the skin art--soon came a lion, pig, cow, and "Go Westlake!"
on the diving blocks
ready to race!
Emma after finishing her leg of the 100 free relay 
Leah after her leg of the 100 free
Teammates for the 100 free relay!
Two meets this week--and I have encouraged the girls to imagine the Jonas Brothers chasing them to help them go a bit faster. They immediately had to add this funny and terrifying thought to their letters to Sydney. They really do not like the Jonas Bothers. That is another post.
Heard coming out of my mouth last week:
"If you don't know what a word means, you shouldn't say it."
(Mom actually got to witness that one!)
My poor, sweet husband. He was so excited to give me my birthday present this year. That day was kind of a crazy one, with weddings and recitals and all, so the actual time for celebrating my birth was still obscure. Leah handed me the gift bag but I waited to tear into it because I just didn't know what was going on. Finally Glenn said, "Why don't you open it? You are going to love it!" It was all downhill from there.
See, long ago Oprah aired her "Favorite Things" episode, and my interest was piqued by a pair of sandals that are supposed to be comfortable and also give you a little bit of a workout as you wear them. What could be better? I was in the market for a comfortable pair of sandals that I could wear for miles since I don't do tennies in the summer. I briefly looked into them online but kind of let it drop.
AWKWARD!
Both Glenn and I tried so hard to get ourselves out of this sticky situation. We both felt put on the spot, never a good place to be. Plus, my dad, whom I think could have easily put himself in Glenn's shoes, was right there, so I think Glenn and I were doubly embarassed.
The best birthday gift of all was that Glenn and I eventually got on the same page, and I was handed another card--this time with the receipt inside--that professed Glenn's love for me. That's all the present I need. That and some Roxy flip flops I found for myself at Marshalls.
Thanks for a great day, Glenn, and for an even better life!
This picture courtesy of Mom, who watched all 7 grandkids (thanks!), and Melissa, who along with Nate, makes for a wonderful dining companion!
"This song is horrible and amazing at the same time."
--said when listening to "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis for the 105,764th time.
Tonight was the first night of what could possibly be a very long journey in our family. Tonight was Andrew's first baseball game. Not quite little league yet, as there are no balls, strikes, or even outs. And even though Andrew knows the difference, he doesn't care. He loves this game and is ready to play, no matter what form it takes.
assuming the position
preparing the future
safe with a double
a smash hit
heading for home
always ready
Go Grasshoppers!
Of course, a visit from Grandma and Grandpa would not be complete without a trip to Ci Ci's. We went there for lunch on Friday. This served as our pizza for Pizza and Movie Night, since we were headed to the game that evening. Dad put it best when, as he headed back for round 3, he quietly said, "I love this place."
Are you proud of me for finally pulling the camera out in a restaurant?It started off as a great idea. Let's take Grandma and Grandpa to the Indians game! Let's get peanuts and Twizzlers and Cracker Jack to take with us! Let's sit out in the bleachers for the first time right next to Grady Sizemore! Everyone was over the moon about this game.
But then came the weather report, Andre Bernier's gloomy forecast of thunder and rain. We checked the radar and it looked like it might be over and done with before we even needed to head downtown. Who cares if it pours all afternoon, as long as it's done by 7:05 pm.
Everything seemed ok as we headed down to the Jake, I mean Progressive Field. We were prepared with ponchos but they would prove futile in fighting off the impending storm.
Grady warming up and then looking at me!!
It was so exciting in the park. We saw a bunch of new soldiers get sworn in, heard the national anthem (we usually miss this part), watched Grady and the boys warming up, and were ready to cheer on the Tribe. So of course we were pumped when Grady hit a first-inning home run. Fireworks went off and we cheered with our mouths full of Cracker Jack.
The crowd and the rain seemed to thin out, and we were hopeful that we could soon hear "Play ball!" We even ventured back to our seats for a few more minutes. 
But the weather would prevail, and as the clock ticked steadily on, and the tarp stayed in its place on the field, we decided to call it a night. What a bummer. I was hoping that they would call the game, so that maybe we could go the next day, or at least sell the tickets to someone. It just seemed like such a waste. But you cannot control fate, and now we have a night we will never forget. Just for different reasons that we had originally hoped for.
Looking on the bright side--the ponchos kept those of us under 5'6" totally dry. Emergency ponchos--giving short people everywhere a reason to live.
The other night as I was getting dinner together, I discovered that the rolls I had bought to make subs for dinner were moldy. Since I happened to have some other rolls in the fridge, I decided to not get angry, but instead told Brooke and Andrew we'd use them to feed the ducks.
Emma and Leah have swim team practice at Clague Park, and I remembered that there is a huge duck pond there. So the next morning we dropped the girls off at the pool and headed over to the pond.
Oh how I wish I had my camera!!! There were tons of ducks and geese, including little babies. Brooke and Andrew had a great time throwing the bead out to them. (We didn't see the sign discouraging such actions until we were done. Oops.) There was a big deck there overlooking the pond, and then some paths out to the side. The kids went down on the rocks and had fun "skipping" stones. It was kind of funny how the ducks thought they were throwing bread again--maybe one of the reasons for that sign...?
Afterwards we went on a walk through the woods, so nice on a hot day. We passed by the tennis courts (Brooke does NOT want to play tennis), the war memorial ("I give service to my country, too, Mom!" -Andrew), and the gazebo (makes a fun, echoy noise). And then we headed back to the pool to watch the end of practice and dip our feet in the water.
The kids were so excited about our little adventure, going on and on about how "we should come back here with Grandma and Grandpa!" We will definitely come back, and we'll have a camera, too!
We have had our new couches for about three months now, but just yesterday I finished the wall arrangements. I was not willing to make a permanent committment that I might one day regret. Plus, I know how in the past I have had the tendency for over-hanging. You know, where you put all this stuff up on the wall that you think looks good, but just ends up looking like a cluttered mess over time. I have actually enjoyed my clean and simple wall with my one huge piece of art.
But if you recall, over Easter break I had the kids do an art project which needed to go up at some point. I had Nate do some vinyl for me, but again--the pressure got to me and I kept putting it off.
Well, with my parents coming tonight, I decided it was time to take the plunge. I got out the hammer, nails, measuring tape, and laser level and went to work, all by myself, mind you. And a couple of mathematical calculations later, it was done! It actually turned out to be pretty easy. And I am so happy with the way it turned out, it had me at hello.
I think the vinyl looks amazing, and I love how unique the kids' artwork turned out. The arrangement adds just enough to that huge wall without getting too complicated. I feel like the living room is finally complete--here's to a long and happy life together!
...when it is out on the curb! See all this garbage here?
I love this picture because it means this junk is out of the house!!! We did a lot of cleaning, sorting, organizing, and purging this week, and the bags were piling up! Everytime I'd walk out to the garage I would remind myself that Wednesday night was coming soon....and now it is gone forever! Hip hip hooray!
Yesterday was a typical summer afternoon--well, actually a rainy one, which we were grateful for since it cut some of the humidity. But I digress. (Can you digress when you haven't really ever started?) Anyway, I told Emma and Leah they could make cookies. And I decided that I wouldn't get involved at all. I figured they are 10 years old and can figure out a basic recipe.
I told them to pick out a recipe and that's where the "no involvment" idea came to a screeching halt. They went right for my two Magnolia Bakery books. Yeah, we are not messing with cake flour and unsweetened baker's chocolate today, ladies. They settled on one of our favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes and went to work. I got out the mixer and the shortening (shortening sticks are the ONLY way to go!) and "no involvment" was back on.
With a little help from Andrew, they really did do everything themselves! Measuring, mixing, scooping--it was all them. There was a lot of dough-eating too, and my first thought as a do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do mother was to nip that finger-licking action in the bud. But then I thought--what's the fun of making cookies if you can't eat the dough?!? I thought it was funny how they left about a spoonful each in the bowl when they were "done" putting the cookies on the sheets.
The cookies were fantastic! They even threw some butterscotch chips in there which really jazzed things up. Leah and Emma saw the whole thing through from start to finish, and that includes the clean-up!! I am proud of my bakers-in-training and hope they grow to love it as much as I do. (That's why I had to let the dough-eating go!)
The oh-so-delicious end result!
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