Summer = Swimming

This was going to be a straight-forward post about our first swim meet of the season, but I started getting all nostalgic.

This is our fifth summer on the swim team. Here's a peek at the kids our first year:

Robbie was eight; Joey, six; Ellie, three; and Ainsley, one. Robbie was on the "Swim-to-Win" team, and didn't compete in any meets. Joey was in lessons, but NOT happy about it. It was really a spectacle when he had to go off the diving board. Ellie and Ainsley would play in the baby pool, and I couldn't take my eyes off them for even a second. It was exhausting to get everyone ready to go, with suits, towels, goggles, snacks and sunscreen. When we got home I had to bathe and dress them again. I wondered if I'd made a mistake.

This year Robbie is almost thirteen, so it's the last year he'll come to the later practice (8:30 a.m. instead of 6:30 a.m.). Ainsley (five) is on the team for the first time, and thrilled. The kids all swim for an hour a day, and will swim in nine meets in June and July. They are not the fastest kids on the team, but they are solid swimmers (well, the older three, anyway) and they love it. Robbie and Joey get dropped off at the Stringhams at 8:00 a.m. and bike to the club, then back after practice. I show up with Ellie and Ainsley for practice at 10:00, and usually make it home by noon, after their lessons and showers. I enjoy our mornings there—I don't have to worry about anyone drowning anymore, and get to hang out with Melissa, and see other friends I've made over the years. By the time we get home, I don't have enough time for everything else I want to do, especially on the days we have meets, but really, that is the only downside (well, it's not cheap either). I'm so glad we've stuck with it. Even if they are never competitive, the kids have worked hard, and gained a great life skill. They have bonded even more with their cousins, and we have great memories of our summers at the pool. And I don't have to listen to them ask if they can play video games all day long (only half the day :). Anyway, when I walked into the club for our first summer practice (they practiced after school for three weeks), I felt a surge of happiness. This is summer.

And finally, here are a few photos from our first meet. Here's Joey, probably twice as tall as he was, and a hundred times more comfortable in the water. In the background you can see Robbie (with Lindsay).

Ainsley was a spectator at this meet, taking advantage of a rare opportunity to wear a pair of "real" glasses. Her teeth are the only remnant of that cute toddler.

Ellie, waiting for her race to start.

She's made a ton of progress, even since last year. She's very proud of the fact that she's in lane five (lane six is the top lane).

Here's Joey. Needs to get his head a little lower, but a nice stroke.

Robbie, doing the breaststroke.

This next photo is NOT one of my kids. One of my friends told me she'd love a good photo of her son doing the butterfly, so I took a bunch, and initially thought I'd post this one as another reason I LOVE my camera. But now that I've gone the sentimental route, I can't help but think of the next five years. Another huge shift in our lives. I'll be busy trying to savor (and photograph) every fleeting moment.

That "Dirt Rain" This Afternoon...

Yeah, that was my fault. But the kids had a great time, and the car was clean for a good twenty minutes or so.

91 and Still Young

Grandma Clayton's birthday party wasn't as big as last year's, just family for cake and ice cream.

No one can believe she's 91. As I was growing up, my friends always asked if she was my mom. She's still active, physically and mentally. With my cataracts, herniated discs and bursitis in the shoulder, I swear she's in better shape than I am.


Grandma is one of the greatest blessings in my life. I'm so grateful for another year to spend time with her, and for the chance my kids have to know and love her. I need to figure out how to do this more consistently—we live so close, but sometimes go for a couple of weeks without even talking. A sad example of the urgent things crowding out the important things.

Now that she's a regular blog reader via her iPad, at least I can tell her here:

Grandma, I love you! We all love you!!

Then and Now

I did the last post oldest to youngest, so I'll reverse that here. I've always managed to remember a first day of school photo, but this year I thought it'd be fun to take a photo on the last day of school and compare them.

Ainsley's before and after photos are not quite right. I took a photo of her with Ellie on the first day of school for the older kids. I loved that she wanted to match her older sister, so I got them together, but not a shot of her alone.

I did get a shot of her alone on her first day of preschool, but not in the same spot as the other photos. Either way, she looks so much older to me. She's definitely a girl, not a toddler. Sigh.

Ellie looks older too. Those two front teeth really make a big difference. It'll be a few years before she grows into them. And although the camera angle is not the same, she is definitely taller too.

Joey went from loving a buzz cut to wanting a mop. I love it. Orthodontist visits are in our near future.

Robbie hasn't changed much. New glasses, a little taller, and if possible, even more confident.

It has been a great school year, but hooray for summer!

Sometimes the Apple Falls Far From the Tree

Warning: Reading through this post, I'm aware that it sounds a lot like bragging. It's intended as praise for my kids to read, not as a comparison to anyone else. Although I mean every word of this, luckily my kids are also blessed with an abundance of flaws and weaknesses to keep them from getting whisked off to heaven. This is a celebration of some of their strengths and achievements.

Today was a blur of awards assemblies at our elementary school—they paired grades 5-6, 3-4, and 1-2, so with kids in 2nd, 4th and 6th, Ainsley and I were there most of the day. We didn't really know if any of the kids were winning awards, but went anyway. The fifth and sixth graders were first.

Robbie won the Presidential Academic Excellence Award (you have to maintain a 3.5 grade point average, score above 90% on all state and national tests, and be recommended by a teacher and administrator). Whatever your politics, it is pretty cool to get a letter from the President, even if it is a form letter. It wasn't really a huge surprise, Robbie is a smart kid, and has been in the honors program all through elementary school. The BIG surprise was when they announced the awards for the Math Olympiads. I guess they take a series of five tests in five months, all "hard" problems. They passed out certificates for participation, then patches for those who scored between 35-85%. They kept calling names, and I'm sitting there thinking, "Did Robbie even take these tests?" because he wasn't called up. Finally, they held up the trophy for the person with the high score, and announced that it was Robbie! Lots of cheering and applause, and a few proud mom tears. This is all the more impressive considering the lack of math interest/ability modeled at home. He really did it on his own. We're hoping that Grandpa Ralph is willing to tutor in a few years, when he gets to Trig and Calculus.

We are so proud of Robbie. He has excelled academically, socially and spiritually. It's hard to believe he's old enough to start Junior High, but he is ready. It was fun to hear the sixth graders singing along to the music in the year-end slideshow and cheering when they were promoted.

Half-an-hour after Robbie's assembly was Joey's. He made the Honor Roll (all A's or A-'s for the year) and got a certificate for "Best Reader" in his class. He is also in all the honors classes, and his teachers always comment on Joey's fun and creative personality. As Rob likes to say, he is "wicked smart" and we're proud of him too.

Sadly, here's where the narrative goes photoless. We went back to the school for the 1st-2nd grade assembly, but had to leave for Ainsley's swimming lesson before they got to the 2nd grade. They don't start getting letter grades or separating out into advanced classes until 3rd grade, so Ellie simply got a certificate from her teacher (the "Deep Thinker" award). However, she had straight "5's" (the equivalent of an A) all year long, in all subjects and citizenship. Her teacher loved her, and Ellie is already ahead of where the boys were in 2nd grade, having passed off her times tables through the 5's. Maybe a future Math Olympiad winner? She is very social, and gets invited to more birthday parties than any person I know. She is the youngest in her class, but still at the top. We're super proud of her.

One last "graduation." Ainsley had her last private lesson at Swim Kids. She wanted to be on the swim team with the other kids this summer, and has been working hard to be able to swim 25 yards. She has a great attitude, and it has paid off—she is ready and excited for swim team. In addition to her positive attitude, she has a super high social IQ, and she's practically a human GPS. She is a joy, and of course we're proud of her too.

Play Ball!

Two weeks into our newly formed neighborhood league, and we love it. After our "game" with the Stringhams, I was talking to Becca about the fact that sports are so competitive at such a young age now, and we agreed that it'd be fun to bring back the pick-up game, family-style. It has been a treat to play with the Breinholts, Allens, Coxes, Perrys and Morgans. Davey Perry said something about getting to play with "the greatest people in the world," and I said, "YES—thanks for letting us join you!"

Photo Scrooge Discovers New Level of Purgatory

I'm actually posting this on June 16th, but backdating to satisfy my OCD need for order.

We all know how he feels about photos; today Photo Scrooge discovered something he likes even less: preschool. I had to be at the hospital for cataract surgery at 8:00 a.m., so after he dropped me off, he came home and got Ainsley ready for her last day of preschool. It was Circus Day, and we got a note saying parents were welcome to come, although it would mostly be a performance for the kids' entertainment. Well, Ainsley wanted us to come, and after seeing her perform the gorilla rap, it seemed promising. It was kind of a big deal, last day of preschool for our youngest. I probably would have been fighting back tears, because as tough as they can sometimes be, I LOVE toddlers and preschoolers. I feel like every one of Ainsley's milestones is bittersweet. So it's probably a good thing that unsentimental Rob went. When I got out of surgery I found the following text messages waiting for me:

"Most annoying program ever. Lame teacher skits."

"Worse than a dance recital."

And finally, "I'd rather be having eye surgery."

Best. Concert. Ever.

Rob thinks The Police concert a few years ago was better. And I'll admit, it's a tough call. But I've got to give it to U2. What a show.

We loved every minute of it. Except maybe the minutes that Fat Courtney Love was shoving/stepping on/groping us. Still, worth all that and the year-long wait. I love them as much (or more) than I did as a teenager. Hope they're still rocking when I'm a grandma.

P.S. This concert was a close runner-up.

She just makes me happy.

This photo is definitely going into my "favorites" folder. Ainsley wishes she had glasses, so has been wearing this pair of sunglasses with the lenses removed everywhere the past couple of days, including to church and school. She says they make her look smart. Darn cute too.

She's also taken to carrying around a magnifying glass and notebook, for her "investigations." I love this girl.

Today

• I'm hoping my sensitive tooth is not a cavity.
• I made it out of Costco without buying anything that wasn't on my list.
• I'm listening to a podcast on meditation.
• I had a sandwich for breakfast and oatmeal for lunch.
• I need to figure out how to sync my calendar to my new iPhone.
• I wish it was warm and sunny.
• I'm craving a really great novel.
• I might be willing to settle for a really great movie.
• I feel grateful.

Finally caught up!

Whew. Now I can start taking pictures again.

Sunday was our Backman Family History night, at Bill and Ginny's house. After our trip to Gettysburg, Robbie was especially excited to see Bill's collection of Civil War memorabilia. Joey doesn't have the Civil War background, but does have the typical fascination with weapons for a boy his age. This Colt Rifle is taller than he is, and pretty heavy too.

The handgun was a big hit too.

As was the sword.


What is it with boys and weapons anyway?

My favorite relic was the Bible, with some pretty heart-wrenching journaling on the inside of the front and back cover. I loved the photos too.

Usually these evenings we read the history of an ancestor, but tonight Grandma Janet told us a little about her life. She is amazing. We love her so much. We feel so lucky to still have her, Rob's grandpa and my grandma around.

H - E - Double Toothpicks.

Here's how Photo Scrooge envisions it:

I had to spell it out because my kids are offended by my potty mouth. If they come across this word in the scriptures, they'll protest ("Wo unto the liar, for he shall be thrust down to...I AM NOT SAYING THAT WORD").

But they'd probably agree with Rob. No one loved the ordeal of going for our first ever professional family portrait. Not even me, and hello, I'm the Photo Nazi. I got stressed over what to have everyone wear, haircuts, getting it all washed and ironed, checking kids out of school early, and trying to achieve the impossible feat of having us all looking decent at the same time.

I did relax and stop snapping at everyone once we were there. Everyone I've worked with at Busath has been so professional and nice. I asked our photographer, Dave, if his assistant could take a picture of him taking our picture, for the blog and year-end slideshow. He told me he gets that request all the time, being such a famous photographer. :)

I just hope we'll have at least one good photo and it'll be worth all the work. If it turns out anything like these photos, I'll be thrilled.

A League of Our Own

Yay! I'm finally done catching up April, all backdated. I can finally move on to May, and that won't take long, because I quit taking photos, knowing that I was so behind.

When I filled in our May calendar, I was slightly alarmed by the weekly YM softball games. Robbie played one season of Little League, but that was FOUR years ago. On Saturday, we got out our mitts and threw balls in the backyard for as long as my shoulder could take it. The boys had such a good time that they suggested a "game" with the Stringhams for family night.

We used tennis balls, hoping to avoid any ER trips for our inexperienced kids.

I love that Samantha wore a "uniform."

Our league is open to kids of all ages.

I love this photo of Jonas and Samantha, demonstrating the seldom-seen "baseball flop."

Amelia, clearly a big hitter.

She takes after her Uncle Rob.

Check out that follow-through.


Rob loves to pose for the camera.

I don't usually post this many photos for something like this, but I couldn't resist these.

We didn't really play Marshes v. Stringhams, because that would hardly be fair—they've got an extra player.

We had a great time. I kind of wish we lived in the era of the pick-up game. I hate that it's so competitive at such a young age now.

No, they weren't climbing the fence to catch a fly ball.

Here's hoping for more casual sports, not to mention more sunshine and fresh air.