Proof I Got a Girl to Play

I asked Carrie to try an intro game of Descent with me for my birthday. I got to cash in today!

Maybe she'll try another round for Christmas!

Happy Summer Day-Care

I have to convince Shane to come home from day-care. He's quite happy there. Of course, I have to convince him to go in the morning, too. Shane's nothing if not consistent.

The Russian Branch

Nana and Pop are in Russia to help Megan with Baby B. Big B is in Afghanistan. They are a globetrotting family.

I grabbed these pictures off of Facebook.

The playground looks top notch!

Notice Pop's pants. He had to wear identification at all times.

Life is exciting in the State Department.

Megan will have help after Nana and Pop leave. Irina is 55 and will be Baby B's full time nanny. She's transitioning from one State Department family to another.

Nana and Pop will have tons of photos when they return. I wanted to make a quick note here. I can't help it. I think my family is interesting!

Mom-Mom's Funeral

Mom-Mom's funeral/remembrance was this weekend in St. Louis, MO. Carrie woke up at 5:00 AM Saturday to make her flight. It was a life-well-lived and not a sudden tragedy, but I still expect it to be an emotional weekend. Even when someone was ready to go, you know that you will miss them. I'm glad that Carrie took the opportunity to be with her folks and extended family.

Carrie has sent some great pictures home for Shane. I bet it was Grandpa's idea to look at the trains!

If it weren't for the big blue train, I would find it hard to believe they were in a train station.

There are wooden bridges...

...and fish...

...and a mall?!? The sign says "TRAINSHED." Unless, the misspelled "tarnished" I think it's safe to assume this picture was taken close to the blue train earlier.

Grandma and Grandpa love to travel. Travel agency suits them.

This picture actually looked like a train station to me (albeit an incredibly fancy one).

I hope that Carrie's family is enjoying their time together. They should swap stories, celebrate the good memories, enjoy each other's company and pay their respects. I'll add more pictures if Carrie sends them. 

UPDATE: Carrie reported that the trains are decorative and no longer functional. No wonder they looked so clean. No current lines pass through. It's a thematic/historic mall.

Library Summer Challenge

Shane and I knocked this sucker out in a day.

WHOA

I picked up Shane from day-care Friday. He pulled out his snack and asked "Can I eat some crackers?"

"It's dinner time! Let's see what Mommy has planned at home." I buckled Shane in and walked around to my door. "It's only a few minutes away!"

I hopped in and said "I missed you! Did you miss me?" Shane muttered a reply. I turned around to talk a little more. "How was your school day?"

"Gwft." Shane's mouth was full. When did he learn to open wrappers?

"Oh!....You can open those now," I said

"Yupft."

I was part miffed part impressed. I went ahead and rolled with it. We backed out and went home (I got my own pack later).

Kitty Friends

Max has a cat 'friend.' Jackson likes to saunter up and say "Hello." Max plays defense. 

There was a hiss and a loud crash Friday night. I saw why when I reached the dining room.

It went back in easily. One plastic snap is missing, so it could happen again. Maybe Jackson learned not to mess with Max's windows.

Random Work Emails

Text: "Alright this email was sitting in my outbox and JUST sent…how does this happen TWICE in one day?"

My reply:

Morale: Pictures make great snarky responses over email.

I can't wait to find a use for this one:

Full Disclosure

I started to tell kids I am moving. I don't start a conversation with it, but if a question leads into it I give the reveal. One kid told me he was going to wrestle next year and asked if I would still be a coach.

Ah, The Great Outdoors!

Katie asked Carrie to look at a moped with her, so Shane and I went on an adventure. He was resistant until he saw some large rocks.

Then he didn't want to leave the rocks. I had to drag him along until we found a bridge. The bridge lead to a creek...

...and then Shane didn't want to stop. "Daddy, let's go on an adventure!"

Once Shane builds up steam he doesn't like course corrections! I had to force him walk down the street to the park we found. He was happy to play once we got there!

And in true Shane fashion, he didn't want to leave there either! The other kids skedaddled, but he wanted them all to come back. Shane was pretty tired by the end and wanted to piggyback home. Only he wasn't that tired. He wanted me to run with him piggyback. "Daddy, I'm giving you running energy! Now you can run!" (Note: it didn't work.)

I left him sweaty and asked Carrie to check him for ticks. Then I headed back north.