Progress Report

So I am now 2/3 of the way through this Project 365. I'm finding it generally easy to keep up with taking the daily pictures, although there have been some days that I've missed (I challenge you to figure out which ones!). Keeping up with the daily posting has been a pain this summer, but I hope to get caught up and back on track now that school is in session and I've waded through several major household projects.

In doing this project, I've made 256 posts on my blog so far this year--not too shabby considering there have only been 243 days! Oh, and so far I've taken 4,965 photos (and that doesn't include the ones that I deleted because the quality was poor). And 122 days to go. Should make for some great photo books at the end of the year...

Are You Ready for some Football?

Ryan is! He and his friends are feeling the slight (and I do mean slight) chill in the air and are switching from basketball and wiffle ball to football. It won't be long before we have to deal with the disagreements about who should be on which team and whether someone was actually disobeying the 'no tackle' rules.

Fantasy Football Draft

Kevin has participated in fantasy baseball and football for as long as I've known him. In fact, his old baseball fantasy league began with his friends Jason and Michael back in high school. In recent years Ryan has followed Kevin's team standings as the sport seasons progressed with some interest.

This year is the first time that Ryan is drafting his own fantasy football team. Our neighborhood friends have put together a father and son league. Watching him prepare for the draft by studying all the players in different positions and putting together his strategy to create the best team possible was priceless. Like anything else, he took it very seriously. We'll see how their teams do in comparison to the other league members (which include Chip, Brandon, Don, Brady, Chris, Jake, Gavin, and Jonathan).

Following in My Footsteps

The girls have always enjoyed "helping" me to cook. Up until recently, that helping has primarily consisted of dumping ingredients that I've measured into the bowl, cracking some eggs (into a separate bowl to make shell retrieval a bit easier), and holding the mixer. But today we turned a bit of a corner while making Banana Pudding.

I prefer making homemade, cooked vanilla custard--it tastes SO much better than the instant pudding! And I can use skim milk without it really being obvious. I had already whisked the ingredients together when the girls came downstairs and asked to help. I was a bit nervous, but decided to let them try stirring the custard until it came to a boil. I really thought they'd get bored after 4 or 5 minutes. But they kept at it for the full 20 minutes! I was so proud of them. They also used real knives (*gulp*) to slice the bananas. Now, I did have to slice some of their pieces into 2 or 3 thinner slices on occasion, but they really did a great job with this task too. Next, they layered the vanilla wafers and bananas on the custard (I had to do the custard since it was a large, hot, heavy pot). And finally they helped to squirt the whipped cream all over the top and spread it. They revelled in the compliments from all our friends.

Now to figure out how to make sure they don't try to make brownies the same way as I did...

Like Father, Like Son

Ryan has begun collecting football and baseball cards. He can spend hours just looking at them and learning the stats. It honestly boggles my mind how he remembers all of the various bits of information. Kevin gets a kick out of watching him and going through cards with him. He says he was the same way as a kid. And he has thousands (and I do mean THOUSANDS) of old cards in his closet. Tonight he got down some of his collection for Ryan to see. Ryan was thoroughly impressed by all the Walter Payton and Cal Ripken Jr. cards. It warms my heart to watch them together like this. Kind of gives me a glimpse into who Kevin was as a kid.

Un-Quarantined

As a part of our de-lousing of our home, all of the girls' stuffed animals had to live for a month in large black plastic bags. Some websites said that 2 weeks was sufficient, but others recommended a full month. We opted to err on the side of caution. I can not imagine dealing with lice during the school year! So today was an exciting day for the girls when they got to open the bags and get their lovies back. They were quiet, and busy for some time this afternoon and then asked me to come up and see their "zoo."

Late Summer

So now that I have all this "free" time, I can actually work on things around the house without interruption. It's rather nice to pull weeds, water plants, and generally enjoy the quiet. But I have so many projects that I want to get to that it still feels awfully busy around here!

First Day of School, 2009

First and Fourth Graders!

Paperwork, Times 3

The amount of paperwork that needs to be filled out each school year is remarkable. And the fact that the exact same information needs to be provided for each of three children is a bit of a pain. And the fact that a large percentage of this paperwork is the EXACT same form that was filled out the previous year is not only a pain, but a HUGE waste of paper.

But I'm done, so far, for this year. And yes, the picture is blurry on purpose to mask all the identifying information.

Who Needs a Barber?

Belly Flopper

Playing Nice

Lake Kids

ADFA, Mooresville

It seems that we will be spending a fair amount of time here over coming years. The girls are completely loving both their dance and gymnastics classes, and are talking about wanting to take additional classes in the future. When they aren't here, they are generally found practicing what they are learning and making up dances in our living room. They are both close to acquiring rug burns on their chins from repeated attempts at a pose called a "chin hold!"

Travelers

All fun trips must unfortunately come to an end. We've spent a great week plus a few days with Steph, Sam, and Cam, but today she needs to get back to reality and get her classroom ready for the next school year, plus all those orthodontist visits! And so we bid farewell until the next time our families get together to spend days filled with errands, scrapping, playing, and other sorts of fun. We're looking forward to a trip to Virginia some time in October to re-visit Cox Farms. And some of us are looking forward to the day when a certain family finally moves on down to NC for good!

Super Mandy!

My neice, Mandy, earned her wings this weekend when she took her first plane trip to visit North Carolina. It would appear that she enjoyed the experience, and has decided to try learning to fly without benefit of a plane for future trips. Or perhaps she's just pretending to be Supergirl. Watch out, sis, she's going to be crawling before you know it!

Baby Bella

When the children aren't around, Bella's favorite place to sleep is on Kevin's chair. It is rare to find her snoozing here when the kids are nearby, though--they make too much noise and won't leave her alone. She's been spending a LOT of time under my and Kevin's bed this summer... Oh, and she is still quite a petite little kitty, maybe 7 pounds, and her smaller stature is further emphasized by Midnight's monstrousness larger size.

Surprise! and We've Got Crabs!

Before leaving for my MD trip, I had commented to my friend Barbara that the only thing that would make my party better was if my sister could be there. Fast forward several weeks and I was talking to Beth on the phone. She was experiencing a challenging time with her kids and was feeling worn out, tired, and in need of a break. I mentioned my conversation with Barbara to her, and suggested she hop on a plane and come down to join us. I was shocked and delighted when she responded that that sounded like exactly what she needed. The next morning she called to let me know that she had found a reasonable fare for her and Mandy to come down for the weekend! We were both thrilled and I think there may have been some girly squealing involved. I picked her and Mandy up this morning and we've had a wonderful time so far!

Oh, and did I mention that my amazing, thoughtful, generous husband shipped in LIVE Maryland blue crabs for my party? And steamed them himself? And mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, they were delish. Seriously.

Drink Master

Upon returning from the movies, Stephanie and I found Kevin busy preparing for the next night's festivities. He was mixing up a variety of "fruity, girly beverages." There were Island Punch-a-tinis (blue) and Sour Appletinis (green). Little did we know that the blue ones would live up to their name (punch). Our neighbors have decided that Kevin should no longer be allowed to prepare beverages unsupervised.

Pool Hair

Katy is growing out her bangs which requires that they be in clips or barrettes or some type of restraint all the time. Today as we were getting ready for the pool, Steph offered to do a tight, high French braid to contain them for a change. She is an accomplished braider and made it look so nice and neat. If only I could: a) braid as well, and b) keep Katy sitting so still and quiet for the time required to do one! I'm always amazed at how nicely my tender-headed daughters will sit when someone else is brushing and tugging at their hair. They squawk and wiggle the whole time I try to get it fixed.

Tiny Dancers

Today is the first day of dance class for Olivia and Katelyn. They are going to the Academy of Dance and Fine Arts for a combo dance class every Monday which will introduce them to ballet, tap, jazz and some hip hop; and they'll be taking a tumbling class there on Wednesdays. This is the same studio where our neighbor, Barbara, sends her daughters. Katelyn has been asking to take these lessons for several months now and is thoroughly thrilled that her big day is finally here. Olivia had only asked to take tumbling, but I signed her up for dance too because she always loves dancing with her friends. I've told her that she needs to try it for a month and if she doesn't like it, she doesn't have to keep taking it. They were very excited to get their dance shoes and leotards this morning!

Oh, and after dance class this afternoon? Olivia declared that she loved the class and can't wait to go back next week!

Go Jump In a Lake

Olivia has conquered so many water-related fears this summer! And today she conquered her fear of jumping off the boat into the lake. She's been jumping off the side of a pool into water that goes over her head for a few weeks now. We took the boat out for dinner on the lake this evening and she decided she was ready to give this next task a try. And she loved it! She spent the rest of the evening scrambling up the ladder and jumping off the edge.

Lucky Girl

Not many little girls are lucky enough to have a Daddy who will paint their toenails for them. And especially one who will paint their toenails with three different colors in a specific pattern! But my girls are.

Nit Picking

I've been accused of being "nit-picky" about details in the past. Fortunately this trait has come in handy while having to actually pick nits from my childrens hair over the past week. What a miserable, tedious task! Add to it ridiculous amounts of laundry that have to be washed daily in hot water (all bedding, individual coverings for our furniture, any towels used that day), and I'm seriously falling behind in doing other forms of housework. I'm spending nearly 5 hours a day either picking nits or doing laundry related to lice. Hopefully this aggressiveness and fastidiousness will pay off and noone else will get lice in the house.

On an up note, I'm going to see Coldplay tonight! With my hair pulled back in a ponytail because I'm afraid to style it in any way that might get it close to my daughter...

Party Planner

Kevin asked how I would like to celebrate my impending 40th birthday, and I said I would love to have a Maryland-style crab feast. The idea appealed to him, and he has been busy planning the festivities ever since. When I returned from our trip, he had ordered a special stand for the steamer pot to hook up to a propane tank, and a huge bucket of J.O. Seasoning which is even better than Old Bay! It almost makes me excited about turning 40. Almost. If nothing else, it softens the blow a bit. :)

Home Again, Home Again

We got on the road REALLY early (like 6:30 a.m.) to get back to North Carolina. I think we were all feeling a little homesick and couldn't wait to get back. It was a long, but uneventful drive. And thanks to our early departure, we got home before 3 in the afternoon which allowed the kids a few hours to run around and get their crazies out before Kevin got home. Olivia was quick to hop on her scooter and work on her newest trick--jumping on a moving scooter (!).

Old Friends

Okay, so we're not REALLY that old. At least we don't feel it, although I'm sure our kids think we're positively ancient! Thanks to Facebook, I re-connected with one of my closest friends from high school, Samantha. We lost touch after we both went to college, so it was great to catch up on-line several months ago. While visiting Maryland, I got to meet her for lunch (thanks for watching the kids, mom & dad!), and even though nearly 20 years had passed since we'd last gotten together, the years just seemed to melt away as we talked and laughed and compared notes about our lives and husbands and kids.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

We were fortunate enough to be just a little over an hour away from Grandma on her birthday this year. We met in Havre de Grace and spent some time wandering the boardwalk area near the lighthouse. Then we drove to the Tidewater Grille for a delicious dinner overlooking the Susquehanna river. We felt quite full, but wanted to have ice cream for dessert so took a rather long, but enjoyable walk to a local ice cream shoppe. It was wonderful to get to spend a part of Linda's special day with her for a change.

I was also reminded of the challenges of photographing 3 children who really aren't in the mood for a picture simultaneously.

Who Needs Theme Parks?

We took the kids to Rocks State Park this morning to go wading. They had so much fun working to add to a rock wall that had built in the creek to create mini "rapids" for tubing. And just wading around, skipping stones, finding huge rocks and making big splashes. We easily spent over 2 hours there. The best part? It is absolutely free. Gotta love those types of activities!

Got Lice?

While getting the girls ready for the family party, I discovered that Olivia had gotten lice. There were only a few live ones, but several eggs were visible in the front of her scalp. Gulp. So, Dad offered to run up to Whiteford Pharmacy to get shampoo. Later I also got all new brushes for each member of our family, additional treatment shampoo, and special combs to help find nits, plus bobby pins for pinning back hair during our checks and gel to help prevent those who did not have lice from getting them. So far I've spent over $100 to try to get rid of these little suckers. But having them eliminated is priceless.

Penance

From the time that I became aware of a camera being pointed in my direction until some time towards the end of high school, I became a very reluctant subject of photos. As is typical of God's sense of humor, I have now been blessed with a child who is as equally reluctant to have his picture taken as I once was. And it is thoroughly frustrating! So let me take this opportunity to publically apologize to anyone who attempted to take my picture with whom I failed to cooperate. I have learned my lesson, and think that my penance has been served.