Lunch with Aunt Pam and the Firemen

Melissa called this morning and said she was meeting Jamie's Aunt Pam for lunch and asked if I wanted to join them. After being in the house for the entire week, I thought this was a good opportunity to get out.

Melissa then let me know that Jamie was working at the fire station in Blue Springs and was going to join us. We were surprised when we saw the ambulance and fire truck pull into the parking lot.

While on vacation earlier this year, my friend and I stopped for lunch and she offered to pay for lunch for a young man in the military as a way to honor those in the service. I remember thinking what a nice gesture. So I decided to buy lunch for the entire Station 2 crew. It's ironic that we had lunch at Firehouse Sub. I'm also pretty lucky the subs are rather cheap. Cheap but good.

Luckily we made it through lunch without the guys being called out on an emergency.

Golf Tournament

Golf is a sport best played on a regular basis. Not as a once a year event.

So my body is telling me this evening after playing for 6 hours in an annual golf tournament. I don't think there's a muscle in my body that isn't aching. I like playing golf but it's a very frustrating sport. No matter how hard I try, I'm never consistent in getting the ball from point A to point B.

It isn't surprising to know we didn't win the tournament but we didn't lose. Yes we had the highest score (which in golf is not a good thing) but we actually tied with 2 other teams for last place.

Fall Yard Work

Almost done with the Fall yard work. Bushes trimmed, magnolia planted.

Just needed a little muscle to finish up. Now those nasty thorn bushes are gone. Thanks, Michael!

Babysitting

Melissa and Jamie needed to go talk with their builder, so I was recruited to babysit for a couple of hours.

I remember when my kids were young and my mother would take them to the lake. She had all these games and activities to keep them busy. So I decided to take a painting kit so Violet and Lincoln would have something different to do.

Violet is very neat and precise in her painting. Lincoln was more interested in getting the paint on his shirt and hands than on his refrigerator magnet. The painting didn't take quite as long as I anticipated, so we played Barbies, iPad games, trains and ball. Then we spent the next 30 minutes watching out the window for Melissa and Jamie to come home. Next time I need to take more than one project. I was pooped!

Touch A Truck

The City of Independence must be running out of things to draw attention to the city. We went to Touch a Truck where kids could climb on trucks, tractors and motorcycles, honk horns and learn about different vehicles in the city. This has been going on for 11 years, so there must be some entertainment value here.

Violet started out climbing onto a boat. Her favorite part was swinging around on the seat that was much too high for her to climb on.

Lincoln posed with the fire dog.

And they both enjoyed sitting in the back of the police car. Let's hope they don't get used to that!

Our favorite truck was the ice cream truck. Violet was trying to be silly with her face covered in ice cream. But towards the end of our visit, that's about the only way I could get her to pose for a picture.

Jamie's 5 Second of Fame

I received a text message from Jamie telling me he was going to be interviewed for Channel 9 news. I don't usually watch the news but every time during the day that the news was on, I was focused on watching for the interview. Not at noon, not at 4:00 but on the 5:00 news there was mention of interviewing a student for the water rescue program.

Jamie is learning to do swift water rescue. This is a part of technical rescue dealing in white water river conditions. Due to the added pressure of moving water, swift water rescue involves the use of specially trained personnel, ropes and mechanical advantage systems that are often much more robust than those used in standard rope rescue. The main goal is to use or deflect the water's power to assist in the rescue of people trying to overcome the power of the water. So far he's practiced in the Missouri river (at night) and World's of Fun. The interview was conducted at World's of Fun using their white water river attraction. His actual time on air was only 5 seconds but it's exciting to say that someone on TV is related to you. Way to go Jamie!

Violet Turns 4-1/2 Years Old

Every day is a chance to celebrate something.

While Violet was at Disney, she celebrated turning 4-1/2 years old. Going to Disney your 4 year, 6 month birthday? I wonder what she'll get when she turns 5!