Friday, July 21, 2006

Singing a New Song

Incoming!!!! More Laundry!! Another Friday, another camp pick-up!

Today Shirley, Will & I traveled to Lynchburg to collect Morgan & Caroline from music camp at Eagle Eyrie. (Katherine came too, though in another vehicle with another family.) The girls left Monday afternoon with other youth and chaperones from our church. The campers spent the week singing, stomping, moving to music, learning keyboard or guitar, making crafts & banners, and playing in the orchestra.

Every year on Friday morning families arrive to enjoy the end-of-camp concert. There's nothing like hearing several hundred young voices singing praises to the Lord, even if it does involve a bit of stomp. We arrived this morning to a sea of light blue t-shirts all with the theme "Roots" emblazened across the chest. The orchestra & choirs were wonderful!

After making the obligatory stop for lunch at the Madison Heights McDonald's we headed to church to trade children & luggage and then on home where we found Granddaddy lounging in the pool. It didn't take long before the girls & boy joined him, totally disrupting his solitude!!!

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Feeding the Hollow Leg

Wednesday night again, another swim meet. Katherine swam 25m freestyle again this evening and took at least 40 seconds off her best time.
Too bad there was enough lightning to call the meet. She & her friend Mary never had a chance to swim their relay.
Katherine did however have chance to eat just about everything I packed in the cooler. All the honeydew, hummus & mandarin oranges are gone and most of the strawberries, too! I'm thinking she has a hollow leg!



A special thanks to Grandmama & Granddaddy who came all the way to Fluvanna to watch Katherine swim...and eat!

Monday, July 17, 2006

A Dog Party*

Just over one month ago we lost our first baby. We fell in love with Wilson 16 years ago just after we finished law school. Someone had the bright idea of adding a new puppy to the summer of bar study and someone else went along with that idea. Sometimes I wonder how either of us ever got into school in the first place!

We had lots of fun with Wilson over the years and many wonderful memories. The most precious memories though are those of that sweet dog with our children. He was the most gentle and forgiving beast when they were near and always rose, even in the end, when they came out to see him.

Periodically, three-year-old Will asks about Wilson. The conversation usually goes like this: "Where's Wilson?" "He's not here anymore." "Oh, he died?" "Yes." "He go to a dog party?"

*see Go, Dog. Go! P.D. Eastman's Book of Things That Go

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Small Victories

The swim meet last night was made much more fun because Grandmama came to cheer the girls on while they raced and to hug them even though they were still dripping!

Katherine finished her first official race last night. She started the 25m freestyle event with a smile, crossed the pool, and came out beaming to many whoops & hollars & hugs!

Caroline swam hard against the City girls(and against their boys in one race!) and shaved 47 seconds off her freestyle time and 15 seconds off her backstroke time.

Morgan was a joy to watch as she cheered on her relay team and encouraged her sisters in their races. Morgan also swam her best times by 25 seconds in the backstroke and 15 seconds in the freestyle. She completed her first flip turn in the freestyle race!

Saturday, July 08, 2006

Home Again!

Yesterday we made the trip back up to Boswell, PA to retrieve the girls from camp. We borrowed a 9-passenger van so that we could take David's parents with us. David and I had tried to explain how beautiful the camp is, how wonderful the people are, and what a great, growing experience the girls have there, but these things are better experienced than heard.

We left yesterday at 4:30 am, stopped for breakfast in Berkeley Springs, WV, and arrived at camp before 10. The girls' belongings were all packed, piled outside the cabins, and ready to be loaded into the van. A trip into each of the cabins is always necessary though, because inevitably there is something left behind. This year I found a dirty, but identifiable sock, a bottle of sunscreen, and a letter from home. Not too bad.

We arrived in time to pack the girls' belongings into the van, catch up with some friends from church, and hear the campers sing in the dining hall. Following brunch, the campers discovered which team, Romans or Galatians, had earned the most points - Galatians won again this year. After the raising of the Galations flag, we all headed off to the individual cabin awards where each girl's counselors presented awards. Then came the closing ceremony during which the camp director presented major awards and next year's team captains were announced.

By all accounts each girl had a GREAT time! They are all ready to go back! They each have already made specific goals for next year. Katherine just came in and told me that she wished there was a 3-week term! I'm glad they won't ever do that! The laundry alone would do me in!

Thursday, July 06, 2006

making pupcakes

Today we hosted the UBC preschool & children's pool party, a weekly traveling event held during the summer months.
As one o'clock drew near, Will and I decided to make cupcakes. What fun Will had as he carefully put the liners into the pan and then filled each liner with batter. A very long 14 minutes later we had beautiful & yummy "pupcakes" to share with his friends!
All the boys & their moms had a great time swimming and snacking, and swimming again!

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Charlotte

David rediscovered a box turtle the other day. We think it is the same one that David found 3 years ago, this based on the leftover markings from nail polish on his back. David actually found it early one morning and put it carefully in a box on the deck so Will and I could see it when we got up. The crafty beast got out of the box and either carefully made it down the stairs or tumbled without injury onto the grass below. Either way, he wasn't on the deck when we went looking for him. Will & I searched high & low, to no avail.

Yesterday, David found him in the skimmer.
Thankfully, the poor little guy was able to keep his head out of the water. He didn't seem any worse for wear, and was actually much cleaner after his "bath".
Will named him Charlotte, most likely after a favorite pig & spider movie. After naming him, and marking him again, we let him go at the edge of the woods. We're hoping we'll see him again sometime when the girls are home.

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

Eight Years Ago Today


Eight years ago today we were blessed with our 3rd daughter who, though growing like a weed, has yet to become too big for lap sits & mommy (& daddy) hugs. We sure are missing her, but we know she's having a great time at SB2W! We'll just have to catch up on all those hugs on Friday! Happy Birthday Katherine!

Sunday, July 02, 2006

Mushrooms & A Groundhog

The recent rainstorms left us with some extremely large mushrooms. After a few days the mushrooms had grown even more and resembled umbrellas large enough for our dollhouse family to stand under. Will got a kick out of holding the mushrooms!
Following the removal of the mushrooms, David's task is to humanely relocate the industrious groundhog that has taken up residence in our pool area. So far we've only managed to traumatize the neighbor's cat!

Goalie Girls!


Caroline and Morgan have been playing lacrosse for several summers now. They have enjoyed it so much that they both played during the spring season, Morgan for her middle school team and Caroline in new YMCA girls league. Spring lacrosse was so much fun that they joined the Blue Ridge Lacrosse Club this summer. Their team played in the Charm City Lacrosse Festival at the Genesse Valley Fields, Parkton, MD in June.
Both girls played goalie a bit during their regular spring seasons and jumped at the chance to play goalie during the tournament. Morgan played 3 games in the goal and Caroline played one. Both had great games and really improved both in the goal and on the field with each passing game. We enjoyed watching the girls play (sometimes I had to look through my fingers - those balls come in fast & hard!) and are looking forward to attending more tournaments during the fall season.