Oakland Cobras

Emily is now an Oakland Cobra. We finally broke down and joined a travel team.

In August, Emily tried out for a few travel softball teams and after being invited to join a couple of them, we decided to go with the Cobras as they were the Rochester team (less travel time for practice).

So, now a month later, we have our first all-day tournament this Saturday. Unfortunately we do not have our uniforms yet (hence no pix to post). I'm still wondering if they have been ordered. I chuckled at one of the emails we received, indicated that they keep negotiating with various vendors and the uniform price goes down. I chuckle mainly because I'm thinking to myself "Hello, this isn't a new club, why hasn't this been done already." But then I think, bummer on the previous years, as no one ever called around for competitive bids on the uniforms. Works for me as the price goes down.

Now, I'm entering the how many fundraisers do we need to do stage. Can I have a choice between fundraiser vs. just writing a check to cover Emily's cost? So faced with our first fundraiser: Squares on the MSU vs UM football game, I'm wondering what happens when we don't sell our "allotment". Neither Richard nor I are in front of colleagues all the time anymore to push the Squares. Do we have to buy them if we don't sell them? I'd rather write the check to Emily's account versus write a check to have 1/2 the money applied to Emily's account. Of course if we win...the payouts pretty good.

Of course at the parent meeting, I made the fundraiser suggestion of Scrips, with which some people are familiar. This is a nice passive fundraiser. You purchase a prepaid card for Kroger, which Kroger gives back a percentage to your organization. Hey, a girl's got eat! No extra cost for me to just do the weekly (sometimes multiple times a week) grocery shopping and voila, my organization gets $$. For some reason, people didn't understand this topic & thought Football squares & Bowling parties are great!

So, needless to say, get your football square here ;)

And all she wanted to do is play more softball....

To Wii or Not to Wii

That is the question in our household. The kids want a Wii. Why, probably because their friends have one....well good, go visit your friends :)

As I was about to make that commitment, I started analyzing it as the pricey electronic toy that it really is & will we actually get our money out of it. While it would have been good during summer vacation as a part-time activity, now that school is back in session, there really isn't any time to even turn on the t.v., let alone play electronic games.

As I have been told, "at least the Wii encourages actual movement with the kids, based on the game." Isn't the better movement still playing outside?

Our Nintendo DS has paid for itself multiple times over. Not because my kids sit on their beds and play it, but as a car activity driving up north, driving to Atlanta, driving to sport games, it keeps the "are we there, yet?" down to a minimum.

So I'm looking for feedback from all of you out there that has one. Is it worth it? Since you purchased it, is it actively played or since the novelty has worn off, does it collect dust?

The deal I made with my kids is that we'd all buy it....1/3 from everyone. Funny how they quit asking for it once they realized how much would come out of their bank account. That's right, Bank of Mom is endless :)

Back to Routine

So, today was the first FULL day of school....time to get back into routine. No more loafing around the house twiddling my thumbs by exercise received from the remote control. Time to actually get out of bed & get moving.

Emily has decided she's going to walk to the bus stop with the next door neighbor that now attends Middle School. So, now I'm thinking, humm wonder if it's time for a cell phone so she can call me when they arrive too late and miss the bus. I'm sure tomorrow when it's raining at 6:45 she'll be more interested in the car ride :)

Andrew has decided he doesn't want to walk to school...it makes his legs tired. Mind you, he has NEVER walked to school before the past two days, when I thought it would be a good time for me to get some extra exercise as well as the dog. Of course when he told me this, all I thought was that it sounds like we need to walk to school more to strengthen up those little legs.

I went back to Lifetime today...with all the other SAHMs...which was self-evident in the parking lot. I did more leg work on the elliptical, don't want to jump in too much after being idle. Tomorrow I plan to hit the cycling class again...then Friday, back to Pilates.

Now I have to pull out my list of things to do that I didn't finish when summer started and get all the little odds & ends finished from the Spring projects, so I can start the Fall projects. I also want to start on my own list that I wanted to complete when I left the employment world. What a loser I would be if I did not get something checked off the list before I decide to go back to work.

Time to find that list :)

Registration Day

Well...it's that time of year...FINALLY! No matter how much fun you can have in one summer, School Registration always come sooner than later!

Off we went...as a family at that...to West Middle School with the envelope with the plethora of paperwork (can't anything be done on-line?) to get Emily all set for school, which starts next week. First we wait in line for the $2 Planner, not required, but you get points off in certain classes if you don't use the "not required" planner. Then onto the Class Schedule with locker combination. Then onto Pictures, pull the paperwork & check out for that one. Then onto Yearbook Sales, pull the paperwork & check out for that one. Then Emily wanted a school hoodie this year, so get in that line & pull the paperwork & check out for that one. Then PTA, then Music Boosters....finally it was time to move out of the cafeteria & get 2 out of 4 books....hadn't figured that one out yet, then off to find the locker. Upon arrival, Emily opens it up & we start unloading the backpack we brought with all the locker paraphernalia that is required as the 6"wide x 9"depth locker lacks space for any storage, so you have to create your own. Fortunately, Emily passes on the locker shelving stand, which her BFF must have as she is not tall enough to reach the only shelf to store books. We jury-rigged her binder thingy she carries to class into the locker (Emily has the angle all figured out to get it to fit), quickly shut the locker so nothing falls out, then wait for Emily while she and her BFF wander off to make sure she knows where to go next week.

So a couple hours later, I ask her if she remembers her locker combination....of course not! Where did we put that thing...hopefully not in the binder thingy.

Just wait until you see how long Emily's hair is in her pictures...comparing it to last years and it must have grown another 4-6" over the year.

Tomorrow is Andrew's turn....

Meet the Cousins

So, I get home from Scotland, do wash, and a couple days later we head up north for most of the week.

My niece Jill is at the Lake House vacationing with her family, so it was a great time to (1) spend with my Great nephew & niece, as well as for Emily & Andrew to meet some cousins...and second cousins.

As usual, the kids hit it well & took off playing together down at the beach, out in the water, on the tube, paddling to the middle of the lake, and fishing.

Fishing was main priority for Levi (Jill's son), so Emily hopped right to it. Andrew came along reluctantly as he remembers getting a hook lodged in his lip or something when he was 2...everything was when he was 2...so he swore off fishing. But thanks to Tony (Jill's husband), as well as peer pressure, got him back to swing the lure.

So during a evening boat tour, all of a sudden the kids at the back of the boat, were yelling "Stop the boat, stop the boat". I'm thinking someone's falling in, or dropped something in the water...like the fishing pole, but no Levi & Emily caught a fish & needed to reel it into the boat. Emily didn't realize how much work catching a REAL fish really was. Her usual catch is something the size of my hand, but this one we ate.

Then we headed down to Atlanta the following week and stopped in New Bremen both ways...going down and coming back to visit and pop in on the Bremenfest parade. Low and behold all of my brother's kids were in town for the parade, so Emily & Andrew got to meet all their second cousins!

My Scotland Voyage

Yes, I've been back in the country for a couple of weeks, but continuously on the go (somewhere else)...were you thinking...how long is this trip? Well, all I can say is that it was FANTASTIC! Kind of wish I was just getting back...I could have stayed forever! Not one thing stands out as this is the best part of the trip. I remember all of it as each day had it's own best parts that doesn't weigh over any...probably why I could have stayed forever...definitely in the Highlands.

Some of my most memorable moments:

• Plane delay in DTW, causing us to miss our flight from AMS to EDI, which then we were placed on separate flights...are we ever going to get there?
• First views of Edinburgh Castle up on the hill.
• Wondering if we'd ever find a restaurant that served food after 8:00 pm in Edinburgh.
• Checking out the men in skirts...proper term...kilts.
• Driving in a Right-hand Drive car on the Left side of the road -- only bounced off the curb one or two times, or was it three or four...what can I say, the roads are more narrow & those trucks seem to really come at you. Which B road is this?
  
• Remembering to look Right-Left-Right vs. Left-Right-Left when crossing the road.
• The drive from Edinburgh to Fort William...or really Stirling to Fort William...what a view.
• Seeing snow still on the mountains.
• Seeing heather on the mountainsides ... just like the postcards.
• Seeing a Highland Coo (Cow)
• Climbing the wee hill behind Glenfiddan & capturing views of the glen & of the Harry Potter viaduct & steam train.
• Inverness ... love this town!
• Having the sun rise at 4am and set at 10:30...or was it later & earlier....just always seemed to be there!
• Drive to Skye...or was it the drive back seeing the things I didn't see going out.
• Leaving my mark on Scotland as I had to go really bad :)
  
• Stopping by several Standing Stones that date back 4000 years+
  
• Eating a great deli sandwich outside the Beauly Priory when it was in the 80's (25C)
  
• Chatting with the Earl of Mar at Castle Leod.
• Wading in the sea at Nairn...collecting shells & rocks for the kids
• Dinner outside at Findhorn watching the tide go out...great Fish & Chips!
• Walking through the Battlefield of Culloden.
• All the meals in Inverness...best yet!
  
• The views & tasting at Glenfiddich distillery.
• Staying at the Dinnet house, a more recently built (100 years old) manor house & having dinner with our host & other guests...great conversation.
  
• Mist rolling in over Dunnotar Castle & St. Andrews.
• Seeing the 8th century Pictish Stones at Meigle & St. Andrews.
  
• Attending evening service at Roslyn Chapel after touring it.
• Staying at Borthwick Castle...where Mary Queen of Scots & her 3rd husband Lord Bothwell spent their honeymoon...mind your head when going into the loo.
• Breakfast conversations with other guests at Borthwick Castle...is 2 hours too long for toast & cereal?
  
• Trying to decide on which abbey was my favorite, Jedburgh, Dryburgh, Melrose...Melrose won out!
• Seeing all the castles...Best Ruins: Dunnotar & Urquhart; Best Rebuilt: Eileen Donan & Stirling will be when complete; Best still occupied: Castle Leod & Glamis; and I'm sure my choices will change when I start revisiting my pictures.
• My daily Scottish breakfast of Two Fried Eggs, Bacon, Grilled Tomato, yogurt & granola, fruit & in Inverness add Porridge with scotch liqueur & real cream.
  
• Amazed that others were more obsessed with our Presidential race then we were!
  
• Digesting all the centuries of history that has occurred in one country!
• Lucking out and only have a couple days of light rain off & on...blue skies & sunshine!
  
• And course, spending it all with my sister.

Off to Scotland

As many of you know, I leave today for a 2-week vacation to Scotland with my sister Jane. The trip all started after we both read the "Outlander" series by Diana Gabaldon...if you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. After planning, researching, updating itineraries, making arrangements for kids, making to-do lists and checking them twice over the past year, it's finally time to leave for the airport. Whew!

The excitement for the trip went in spurts as did the research...when I'd go a couple weeks, busy with home improvements & not search for something on the internet, then the excitement would wean. But, hop onto the computer with the plans to do a couple of searches and end up spending hours, the excitement was re-energized and I wanted to leave that day. Sometimes the best part of the vacation is actually the planning, as you look forward to the trip and the excitement builds.

For instance, I remember one day a couple months back when things just weren't going right, hotels were filling up, couldn't get this or that, and needed to change our flight arrangements as my sister & I planned to extend out our trip to do more things. So, as I had already had 2 strike outs for the day, I wasn't looking forward to calling NWA as what I wanted just wasn't on the website. So, I place the call and tell them, first I want to change my flight return date, then second I want to change my sister's ticket, so she's coming through DTW & we are on the same flight, flying together, the rest of the way , then on the way back, I want her to go directly from the Amsterdam connection to LAX. Mind you, I am flying business class across the pond. I knew it was possible, it just wasn't popping up as available on the website. So the NWA agent worked hard & said, no problem we can do that, bumping my sister up to Business class with me, so we both have enjoyable flights, have a meal with real utensils, & can get some sleep versus just a crick in the neck. Wahoo! Home Run! I'm sure going to miss being an Elite member next year....maybe I'll go back to work this fall to hang onto it...it's all about the upgrades :)

So then July came....and it was time to go shopping to find clothes to wear...with dropping a few pounds, I now faced the dilemma...what do I wear. So off to Eddie Bauer I went for all their super sales! Was very successful there & began filling my suitcase. I have a design potential for all the engineers out there...make a suitcase for a woman traveler! There just isn't a good place to pack shoes...and you know we need to take multiples. Don't put them in side pockets that take up the actual usable surface space for packing & don't make me just lay them on my clothes...who knows where I walked! I have an idea in mind if any one is interested in drawing it up...maybe I'll hit up Richard's engineering drawing skills...

So now I'm Eddie Bauer-fied, organized, packed...with my shoes in plastic bags but touching my clothes, passport in one hand, boarding pass in the other & ready to leave for the airport. Meeting Jane at her gate at 4:00 pm. Chat on the flip side!