First Pitch

A little summer . . .

What could be more summer than popsicles and baseball?

Jackson can't manage to eat a popsicle without making a huge mess. And then, for some reason, he comes to you with the stick in his mouth like this. Such a funny kid.
Jake is team doc for the Elmira Pioneers baseball team and they asked him to throw out the first pitch at their All Star Game last night. He did a great job.

He also got to shake hands with Tommy John, former major league pitcher.

It was fun to go watch him and to see the game.

Random Phone Pics . . .

I've been terrible about taking photos with our regular camera lately. Partially just having a busy summer, partially just pregnancy laziness! But I am tired of our old post and also found a bunch of photos I'd never taken off my phone that are kind of fun. So here's a look!

Dare I hope I'll have a runner in the family? Jack and I went out for a run (back when I could still run) and he got tired of riding in the stroller.
We found a great little soccer league for Jack this spring. He loved it and even had a great time playing the day it was wet, muddy, and a little on the cold side.

We really loved our May visit from my parents. Part of the fun for Jake was cycling with my dad, getting to show off the beautiful scenery around our home.

We hiked a lot, and got to enjoy beautiful Watkins Glen.

Love this photo of my parents.

Can't see this one too well, but James played baseball again this spring and Jake became the preferred team pitcher (it's a coach pitch league until the kids turn 10). Jake liked it a lot and made a huge difference to the team's success!

Summer park time, one of our favorite parks has this great tire swing and is close to the lake so the boys can skip rocks.

Despite the somewhat unreality of it all, we are getting ready for baby, due in about 7 weeks now. The boys had a "Siblings are Special" class at the hospital Saturday. Jack was so cute with his baby doll, giving it kisses and wrapping it up in the blanket very gently. Jack's favorite part of the class, though, was the field trip up to the maternity floor and getting to see a "real" newborn baby through the nursery window.

Even James got into it, despite the fact that this is all "old hat" to him!

Jack also wanted me to take a photo of him "using the force". We've been a bit Star-Wars obsessed since Jake got a Wii for his birthday and the "Star Wars Legos" Wii game for Father's Day. He and the boys have really enjoyed playing it together and of course the boys have wanted to re-watch all the movies as well.

Some other things we've been doing this summer that I don't have photos of:

1) Swimming lessons and just swimming at the Ithaca Swim Club. Jack loved his first experience with lessons and has become braver in the water. James has gotten better at swimming and diving.

2) The boys have been loving playing "dress-up" which I have been very remiss in not taking photos of. Jackson especially is hilarious, combining different costume pieces and making up new characters, like a "pirate jedi".

3) I have taken on a few huge projects that I'm really hoping will be finished before the baby is here! I am sanding/stripping 2 dressers and restaining them, and hoping to repaint my and Jake's room. I'm also revising our family cookbook.

Hope you are enjoying your summer as well!!

A Town Like Alice

My favorite summer read so far:

I think the author's note puts it best: "I do not think that I have ever before turned to real life for an incident in one of my novels. If I have done so now it is because I have been unable to resist the appeal of this true story, and because I want to pay what tribute is within my power to the most gallant lady I have ever met."-Nevil Shute

This book is loosely based on the experiences of Jean Paget, a young woman who, while living and working in Malaya during WWII gets captured with a group of other women and children by occupying Japanese soldiers. Herded along jungle trails for 1200 miles, this group experienced extreme hardship, illness, death, but also extreme kindness and mercy from unexpected sources. This experience helps serve her as she decides what she will choose to do with the rest of her life.

This is my pick of the summer so far--a great read, and a fairly quick one. I highly recommend it!