Dinner with Michael

Michael treated me to dinner at the 37 Steak House at Harrah's.

This will probably be the last time we eat at 37 because it's being closed down for remodeling to be opened up as Gordon Ramsey's newest steakhouse in November. I'm hoping the next season of Hell's Kitchen (one of my favorite reality shows) will be for the head chef at Harrah's North Kansas City.

Hazel is 5 Months Old

Meanwhile this little lady turned 5 months old.

Her favorite discovery is her toes...always in her mouth when she's not sitting up. I'm seeing more of Violet in her but Melissa's kids all have their own look and personality. I wonder what Hazel will do while both Violet and Lincoln are at school. Watch out Lola and Khloe!

Lincoln Meets the Teacher

This little guy starts preschool next week and tonight was meet the teacher night.

He's going to the same preschool Violet attended but unfortunately he won't have Violet's teacher.

He's rather excited but he still deals with a little separation issue. I'm not sure who will cry more, Melissa or Lincoln.

Violet Rides a Bike

Not only is Hazel learning new skills but Violet has learned to ride a bike without training wheels.

Now Michele will have a biking partner when she's ready to ride the Katy Trail.

Hazel's Sitting On Her Own

Little Hazel is growing so fast and now she's mastered sitting up.

Give her another week and there won't be any tumbles.

Family Dinner

Getting my entire family for dinner takes a little bit of scheduling.

With the help of Trish, we all got together and Trish even made us lasagna.

I try to keep my toy closet full of new and interesting toys for Violet, Lincoln and now Hazel but somehow they always winds up going home with the Taylors. At least they get to enjoy them before they grow too old for them.

Too bad Hazel changes almost every day or I could have used this for my Christmas card. Who knows when we'll all be together again.

First Grade

Well Violet survived her first week as a first grader. FIRST GRADE! It seems like yesterday she was off to pre-school.

She has changed her grown up occupation from Vet to Art Teacher....

But her love for school is growing. One week down, about 40 more to go. That is unless we have another harsh winter. Keep up the good work Violet!

Water Bottle Toy

What is it about empty water bottles that can keep a baby occupied?

I was looking back through Violet and Lincoln's baby books and they both found a fascination with water bottles at 5 months old. Hazel seems to be a bit more advanced at only 4 months old. Either that or we figured it out sooner.

School Preparation

How does a 6 year old prepare for the first day of school?

By getting a mani/pedi! Violet just couldn't start school without looking her best.

I'd think a new backpack or a fun skirt would be at the top of my list. But a girl's gotta look good. I asked Violet what she was wearing the first day of school. She hasn't decided yet. She still has one more day to make that important decision. School starts Wednesday! My how time flies.

The Missouri State Fair

Part of living in Sedalia is attending the Missouri State Fair and for 13 years, each and every year, we went to the fair.

I've been back in Kansas City since 2001 and haven't been back to the fair until this year. And let me tell you after almost 20 years, it hasn't changed a bit.

Trish and I went with the idea of tasting everything you could possibly want from the fair. Corndogs were our first item on the list. If I had to guess, I'd say these weren't the hand dipped corndogs of the 90's but a more pre-frozen commercial brand. They didn't taste quite as good as I remember.

It doesn't matter what day you choose to go to the fair. It's always the hottest day of the year. I used more napkins to wipe the sweat off my face than I did to wipe off the sweetness from the cotton candy.

Walking around the barnyard was especially fragrant. I felt so sorry for all the animals. There wasn't a bit of a breeze flowing through this enclosure. There was one pen that held a turkey who was lucky enough to have a fan.

I forgot I'd told Teresa I was going to the fair so I was surprised when she found me sitting in the Roadhouse eating pulled pork nachos (best thing we had). I told you I went for the food. We also did the midway so Violet and Lincoln could play a few games. The rule at the fair is we play games but no rides. I have to admit that the rides looked exactly like the ones from years ago so I was happy to comply with that rule.

As always, leaving the fair is the best part. You finally get to sit in the air conditioned car and complain about how hot it was for an hour and a half before you get home. I can hardly wait to go back next year. As a side note, I think I have been back to the fair once right after Violet was born. Couldn't have been that great since I don't remember anything being much different than this time!

Working the Polls

For some reason after the last election, I thought it might be fun to work the polls. So I decided to sign up.

A few days before the election, you have to attend a training class. Most of the people at the class had already worked a prior election, so everything went fairly fast. I was listed as a "standby judge" which meant I would only work in case someone didn't show up.

After the training class, I met Teresa for lunch. A little update, being a standby judge means you have to be ready at 5:00 in the morning just in case you get a phone call and be ready at any time during the day to go to a polling place. Even though I was up at 4:00 am and stayed near my phone the entire day, I never got called. Was this worth the $100 I'll get paid? I don't think so. I believe my days as a standby judge are over. Now if they assign me a definite job, I may reconsider!