Childhood Friends

There's something about getting together with friends from your childhood. They know all the fun stuff we did as kids.

Jana, Jamie, John, Jim and I got together for dinner at Jana and Jim's house. We laughed and laughed about things from grade school and high school but then things turned to kids, grandkids and ailments. I guess old friends still do old people stuff.

New Storm Day

I got a Grandparent's Day present a little early this year. I finally went to the top of Jamie's "To Do" list and he installed a new storm door for me.

I'm a little...okay...a lot claustrophobic and I like having my front door open. Nothing really happens in my neighborhood but it's nice to know if something does I'll be able to see it!

Football and Soccer

For the next few weeks, Saturdays will be spent at the football field and the soccer field.

Lincoln had his first tackle football game. That's him on the end in the maroon jersey. I wasn't very comfortable watching him go out on the field to play tackle football. There were a few boys I'd like to have checked their birth certificates. They were huge. But Lincoln seems to enjoy playing.

Later that day was Hazel's soccer game. Watching 7 year old girls play soccer is..what can I say...rather uneventful. The girls haven't quite learned to play a zone defense. It's just a bunch of little girls in a group trying to kick a ball. There are a few who seem a little more versed in the sport but not many. What a way to spend a Saturday. 

Starlight Theater - Neil Diamond - A Beautiful Noise

I haven't been to Starlight Theater in years. My best friend from high school invited me to go and see the Neil Diamond musical "A Beautiful Noise". It's the story of Neil Diamond's life. I didn't realize he started out by writing music for other artists. When the cast started singing "I'm a Believer" I turned to Jamie and said "wasn't that the Monkeys song?" Turns out it was written by Neil Diamond.

While the temperature was extremely hot, it's nice to have friends with season tickets next to the stage where you can feel the air conditioning. It made for a "Beautiful" night!

4th of July

It's not really 4th of July yet but Trish asked me to help her with her car so we took advantage of the day and went to breakfast and then shopping.

We finished off what should have been half a day but turned into the whole day with ice cream from Andy's. Now that's a 4th of July bang!

Milestone Anniversary

Melissa and Jamie celebrated a milestone anniversary - 20 years.

I offered to help Violet babysit so they could go out to dinner. There was a lot of pool time which made me very nervous. I kept counting heads to make sure no one was lost.

Add to that, Pearl wanted me to keep filling her water table so the water would rain down. Not a hard job but when she gave me the cup with holes in it, it was much harder to keep filling the upper trough.

We then went inside where I had 5 kids demanding my attention - reading books, playing with babies. Just goes to prove why we have kids when we're young. Happy Anniversary Melissa and Jamie. May you survive another 20!

Michael Turns 45!

I can hardly believe Michael turned 45. I can't believe I'm still NOT 45!

Teresa and I took him to lunch at one of his favorite spots - Q39. As usual I forgot to take a picture. Luckily Michael took one of himself. Happy Birthday Michael! Now that's enough. 

Flashback

An old friend was digging through old photos and sent me a copy of a picture taken on a float trip back in I believe the late 80's.

This sure brought back memories. Good or bad it doesn't matter. I looked good!

Michael Jackson The Movie

Violet wanted to go see the Michael Jackson movie so we went together. I didn't realize Michael Jackson is only 4 years younger than me. The movie covers the first 30 years of his life when Michael Jackson was mostly singing with his brothers - The Jackson 5.

The kids these days are watching Michael Jackson videos of his dance moves. Lincoln is constantly doing the moon walk whenever I see him. I told Violet that Michael Jackson was the Taylor Swift of the 70's and 80's. I highly recommend seeing the movie and can't wait until the next one comes out.

Hummingbird Feeder

I usually put out my hummingbird feeder each Spring. I was a little late this year, maybe...when do hummingbirds start coming around?

I didn't have it set up for very long before the same hummingbird returned. I know it's the same one because of the white ring around its neck. While I'm not an expert on hummingbirds, I don't think all of them have that white ring. I'm calling it my hummingbird anyway. By the way, her name is Jaunita! Juan and Edwardo are the other 2 but I haven't seen them around.

Pearl Working the TV

I did a littler babysitting with Goldie and Pearl. After reading several books to them I decided to put on the TV to a show the kids might like. As with all electronics, I couldn't figure out how to turn the stupid TV on. Pearl wanted the remote so I figured she couldn't break it if I couldn't even turn it on.

Next thing I now Pearl's intently watching her favorite show on the TV. How do kids do it?

Nearing the End of the School Year

The end of another school year is getting closer.

Kids don't go on exciting field trips much any more. Instead they play games on the playground. They seem to enjoy it!

Mother's Day

I couldn't have asked for a better Mother's Day.

With the help of Teresa, Jamie and Michael I was able to get my driveway sealed before the winter salt treatment stuff absolutely ruined it.

Instead of trying to fight the crowds we had a barbecue at home. What better way to get family pictures.

While waiting for Teresa to finish barbecuing the hamburgers, the kids entertained themselves with a deck of cards. It took me awhile to find the cards but I knew I had a deck somewhere. Maybe the cards were hard to find because of my shock of the kids wanting a deck of cards instead of playing on their iPads!

I try to update a picture I have around my house of Melissa with her kids. Success!

Another photo I wanted was of me and my kids. We tried one up close and then a little farther away. I think I look better farther away plus we were all squinting without sunglasses. But unclose it was.

What a great day full of fun and not too much drama! 

Hazel's Baby Book

I did it! After 6 years of procrastinating, I finally finished Hazel's baby book.

My goal is to finish Goldie's and Pearl's baby books before the end of the year. I really don't know why I keep putting it off. The books look so good when I'm finished and I love the feeling of accomplishment. Let's see if I can stick with this goal!

Flag Football and Soccer

It's the end of flag football and soccer season and with all the make up games I got a little tired of watching games.

But Pearl and I were troopers and showed up for Hazel's soccer game. Lincoln had already played his flag football game and this was Hazel's second soccer game of the day. What's a little sunburn when you have suckers! 

Happy Birthday Michele!

While neither Michele nor I count birthday years anymore, Michele did celebrate...let's call it another "trip around the sun".

Just a small celebration with her and Bruce and just about every fast food place in Aurora! Happy Birthday Michele!

Lincoln's Pick 6

I love watching the Chiefs play football and consider myself a pretty avid fan. It wasn't until sometime last season when I found out what a "Pick 6" meant. I actually thought it was like a betting thing like playing the lottery. Turns out it's when a defensive player intercepts the ball and scores a touchdown.

Doesn't happen very often but Lincoln actually had his first Pick 6 at flag football. We weren't able to capture a picture of the actual touchdown but this shot is pretty impressive.

Michele & Bruce - 50 Years

Talk about a milestone. Michele and Bruce have been married for 50 years.

They went to Loveland, CO to buy a love lock that they were supposed to lock on to the public art sculpture designated for the locks. But Michele decided it might be better off with her at home. Happy Anniversary!

Update Wall Pictures

I finally got around to updating the pictures on my office wall.

After staring at the wall for several hours putting up one picture then re-evaluating again, I finally finished. I don't know what I'm going to do when Violet graduates from high school. I'm running out of wall space. At least that's another 5 years away. I might not care by then!

Busy Weekend for Ma!

Friday I went with Melissa to Violet's volleyball tournament in downtown Kansas City. After looking for a parking spot for 30 minutes, we finally found one about 6 blocks from Bartle Hall.

Violet's team seems to start strong and finish...well not so strong. They wound up in the Diamond bracket for the remainder of the tournament. Diamond may see high but in volleyball world, it's not. Violet had some really good hits and her serves were great. It's the other girls on the team that needed a little help.

Saturday I had responsibility for getting Lincoln to his football game and Hazel to her soccer game. Teresa was there to help but that didn't make up for the fact we were having a blistering cold front. I would have much preferred to go to the volleyball game again but Lincoln's not old enough to drive yet. After the games we hit Chick-Fil-A (where else) then home for sketching and games.

Entertaining kids can get rather boring so we loaded back in the car. I took the kids to the firestation where Jamie was working claiming I was dropping off homeless kids. That didn't work so I took them to Yogurtini. Then back home where Melissa finally showed up around 9:30. Definitely a case as to why we have children when we're young.