Moving Day

On Wednesday, July 28, we will be moving out of our home in Mentor where David and Jeff grew up. Packing and disposing of things have brought back many wonderful memories. It is hard to believe that we lived in this home for 20 years.

Today, I prepared the "pool shot" for disposal. We played hours upon hours of no rules water hoops for so many years. We had so much fun swimming and horsing around in the pool.

Ginger especially loved to be with us. She would get so riled up, both from our teasing her and our playing around. Remember how she would try to nip our suits when we would go down the slide? Or the treats put at the edge of the diving board?

We will miss this home but it is time to move on. The new condo will fit our life style so much more.

Pool Days

Who needs to join a big pool when you've got a glam baby blowup pool like this to cool off in 100 degree weather? We're pretty much in it every day, a front yard fixture in our neighborhood that you can expect to see if you drive by. Winter blizzards followed up by a sweltering hot summer...Virginia, where is your temperate nature?

Many Happy Returns, Grandmommy!

Ozzie and Harriet know how to party.

We all think you're a princess, even when you don't break out your crown.

You've been a blessing to us all, from the crib to the...er, crib. Thank you for passing on all your love, talents, faith and quirkiness. We love you!

How to milk it

I heard a piercing "Ow ow ow owwwwww!" that turned to sobs. Frankie had shut her finger in the front door. She rebuffed my efforts to console her. "It'll feel better in a minute," she wailed between sobs. Then, suddenly, the sobs stopped. She looked at me wide-eyed, lip quivering, "I think jellybeans would make it feel better..." Man, they learn how to milk the system early. Of course I gave her some. Hmm.

Happy Birthday Lolo!

Wish we could all be together to celebrate. Thank you for being such a steadfast, generous and fun dad, father-in-law and lolo. Have a great day!

Bethany Beach

Gracie, Julia, Hilary and a very pregnant me carrying Teresa back from the beach.

Itching to get in the water, can you tell?

Kudos to mom for bringing plenty of crayons and coloring books for those chilly non-beach days.

We hit a few snags on this inaugural trip as a family. The weather was a toss-up, and we had bad luck the first two days, but we did manage to get a couple good warm days in before leaving. The kids were happy to brave the icy waters, regardless. Next summer, we'll choose a condo that's less than 7 stories from the ground; something low is generally desirable when you have babies on balconies. And sickness...who can account for that? It hit, and God seemed to be calling each of us to a higher level of patience. Nonetheless, we were able to celebrate my parents' 39th anniversary by sending them off to a nice beach-side restaurant, the little ones enjoyed the sand and pool and ocean, and we all got to bond :)