Fun in the Sun

Today was Fun in the Sun Day at Drew's school. He got to wear his swimsuit to school and play out in the courtyard for most of of the afternoon. This year it was actually hot enough for all of the kids to actually play in the water. All the kids were having a great time, and no one seemed to be interested in eating their snack (hot dogs, chips, salads, watermelon, etc) even though the teachers and assistants had worked hard to cook and assemble everything. Drew was hesitant about getting in the pools because all the kids were jumping on each other, but he really liked this one with the giraffe head on it and eventually got in with his friend, Jackson.

We took some time to blow bubbles and play at the water table, but then I had to hit the road. It was just too hot for me, but Drew wanted to stay. No way does he want to come home with Mommy when he has a chance to ride the bus!

Memorial Day Ride

It's been a fun and interesting week around here. Last Wednesday, Drew fell of the play set at Andy's house and hurt his arm. Based on the way he was acting, I was a little concerned, but I thought I'd let the nurse check him out when he got home from work. Well, since high drama was still occuring when Adam got home, we decided to take him over to the Emergency Dept. to get checked out. Apparently, we didn't give the Tylenol quite enough time to kick in because, as we were sitting waiting to be triaged, Drew started using his arm and acting quite happy playing with his trucks on Daddy's lap. We skulked out of the hospital saying "Never mind" as we went out the door. Other than a little bruise, his arm is fine.

Thursday, we went for a bike ride on the Grist Mill Trail. Andy found it when he was out bike riding with Alex last weekend, so we decided to check it out. We parked (illegally, more on that later) on Ilchester Road along with a bunch of other bikers and did about a 10 mile ride into and around Patapsco State Park. It's a beautiful ride and is sort of reminicent of West Virginia in parts.

Saturday, Drew and I got to go to the grand opening of Andy's pool. Lunch and a DJ were provided by the community association, and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It was actually hot that day unlike the last couple of years when it's been really cool for Memorial Day weekend. When Adam got home from work, we went for a ($3.25 a gallon) drive and got some ice cream.
Today, we went for another bike ride on the Grist Mill Trail with Andy and the kids. The picture above was taken along the trail. Hailey and Alex did a great job keeping up on our 8 mile ride, especially Alex on his 1 speed bike. Unfortunately, when we got back to the car, a state policeman was giving everyone tickets (and there were a LOT of cars there today). We got a ticket, but he hadn't made it to Andy's car yet so he lucked out. Oh well, I guess we'll have to find another place to park. Adam and Drew and I went to a picnic this afternoon, and Adam went out in the evening. Drew and I were exhausted!

Happy Birthday Melva!

Today is Melva's birthday, and we stopped by to give her some flowers and cards this evening. We coached Drew about what to say, but it came out "Happy-here's some flowers!" Oh well. It's the thought that counts right?

We thought we'd combine the trip to Dad and Melva's house with a bike ride, and Adam decided that we could take the bikes with us and ride home from there, then pick up my car later. I think this picture of Drew sums up how I felt about this ride.

Actually, it wasn't all that bad, except that we didn't know our way around the paths in their neighborhood (or the two adjoining) so we spent a lot of time looking at the map and doubling back. We started the ride in Cedar Lane Park which has a playground that Drew loves, and he was pretty miffed that we didn't get to stop there. We finally got to Centennial Park where we stopped to eat some dinner and let Drew play on the big playground for a little while before we set off again. I was a little concerned that we weren't going to make it home by dark, but Adam assured me that we could make it. The next part of the trip did seem to go pretty fast and we managed to get home at dusk. We're getting closer to being ready for the big ride on June 10th!

In Training

This picture was actually taken last Thursday at the Mother's Day Tea, but Ms. Stephanie just e-mailed it to me today. We had a very lovely time -- the kids performed a little story for us, we all got our hug banners to wear (sort of like Miss America banners) and received a beautiful marigold in a painted pot to take home. I definitely got up-staged in the picture, but kids will do that to you every time.

Anyway, back to today. Adam tried to kill me. We'd been on the bikes exactly one time this year, and he decided to sign us up for Tour Dem Parks, Hon! on June 10th. We're only doing the medium (20 mile) ride, but let's just say I'm a little out of shape at the moment. We did a 14+ mile ride today from our house to Lake Elkhorn and back, and it was brutal. After about 3/4 of the ride, I told Adam and Drew that I was pooped. Drew said "In your underwear?!?!?!?" The boy is so literal. We finally made it home, and Adam and I loaded up on the ibuprofen. We've got just a little over 3 weeks until the ride. As they said many years ago in Smokey and the Bandit -- "I got a long way to go and short time to get there."

Happy Mother's Day

Yesterday, Andy and I took the kids to the zoo (gotta love that family membership). It was a perfect day weather-wise, and the kids were actually well behaved (for them). We managed to get through the whole zoo which can sometimes be difficult on really hot days.

We stopped for lunch in the area between the elephants and the giraffes. The giraffes were outside all day which really makes sense if you take a walk into their stinky house.

We finished up at the Children's Zoo where everybody wanted to brush the goats. Of course, it's impossible to pet the goats and look at the camera at the same time, but I tried.


Today is Mother's Day, and Drew and I had a pretty quiet day together. It's a regular work day for Adam, so Drew and I went to church as usual and then hung out at home for a couple of hours. Then we went to visit my friends Bonnie and Suzanne. Suzanne was down from Boston for the weekend, and I haven't seen her for since her wedding last year. Now she's having a baby and is due in August (and looks great). I know how hot she's going to be for the next few months!

Bonnie made some delicous food so I didn't even have to worry about dinner. Drew had a great time too since another friend of Bonnie's brought her boys along and the youngest played outside with Drew the entire time. Plus he had had unlimited access to punch and ice cubes to spill all over the front walk -- what more can you ask for?

Escape to New York

Right after the communion party (although it went on until the wee hours apparently), we hit the road to visit Nana and Grandpa. We arrived just before 11 pm Saturday night, and Drew managed to stay awake for entire drive. He was just a little excited.

On Sunday, Adam and Charlie got to work chopping down some trees that had been damaged by some high winds in a recent storm. Adam is always happy when he has a chainsaw in his hands.

We managed to get everyone out of the house on Monday. Judy doesn't venture out into the world of bugs very much so it was good to see her outside.

On Monday, we went on an outing to Belmont Lake State Park. Drew got to play on the playground and then we walked around the lake. The dogwood trees were in bloom and just beautiful.

We got to see some goslings out on the lake with their parents. Adam took lots of pictures, but I figured that one was sufficient to post.

After dinner, we had to head home. I think we made it home in just over 4 hours which is about the fastest we've ever made the trip. Drew finally fell asleep about an hour from home even though he tried his best to stay awake the whole way again.

1st Holy Communion or Hailey, Hailey, Hailey!

Feliz Cinco de Mayo! Today was Hailey's 1st Holy Communion, so it was a big day of church and partying. Hailey was beautiful in her white dress and veil, and she probably had her picture taken 1000 times during the day. We had a fairly large contingent at the church. Carole's brothers, sister-in-law and nephews all made it for the weekend. Plus Dad, Melva, Cathy and I were there from Andy's side. Adam volunteered to stay back at the house with Drew and Alex since it would have been really hard for them to sit through what could have been a really long service. Fortunately, Father Mike kept things moving along and kept it right at an hour. Unfortunately, my pictures from the church are a little blurry so I'm not posting them.

Carole's friend, Margaret, made the delicious cake -- everything on it was edible. I can't even imagine how long it took her to make it. Andy cooked hot dogs, hamburger, chicken and London Broil on the grill (don't ask for his seasoning secrets!) -- he was pretty busy for most of the afternoon. We definitely did not lack for food.

Mark and I are the proud godparents.

Andy cleans up nicely doesn't he? This shot turned out really well, especially after we got Andy to stop making bunny ears over Dad's head.

New Bike

We bought Drew a new bike today. Our intention was to buy training wheels for Alex's old bike, but we couldn't find any of the right size in the area stores. Plus, the old bike was almost too small for him, so we decided to let him pick out a new one. We're considering this a VERY early birthday present.

Drew was really nervous about being on the new bike, because it doesn't feel steady like his tricycle. He would ride a little way and then he'd stop and want to go inside. Then, 15 minutes later, he'd want to go back outside and ride again. We'll just continue to practice every day, and I'm sure he'll continue to make progress as the week goes on.