more reflecting...

Time! on whose arbitrary wingThe varying hours must flag or fly,Whose tardy winter, fleeting spring,But drag or drive us on to die---(tip o' the Cardinals Cap to Lord Byron)

Kind of a bleak passage, in fact the whole poem is pretty much a downer, but kind of matching the spirits today. Tomorrow is the first day of July, and I feel like the days are flying past at an incomprehensible rate. #1 son turned 12 last week. 4 years until he's driving. 6 years until graduation, heartbreaks, failures, successes, joy and sorrow all in his path, and nothing a dad that loves him more than life itself can do but stand on the sidelines and offer encouragement.

Enough of the maudlin...let's get on with the progress reports...

Cookie's continuing to aquit himself well at all-star practices...proving that he belongs. The tournament is in Paris, IL so we've got some commuting to look forward to.

#1 son's green belt test was laid low by the flu. He'll be testing in July, apparently.

The bulk of the trim work has been completed in the lr & hall way. We have some touching up to do, and I need to trim out the kitchen & bath, but it's progressing nicely. I can't say enough about the Bostitch brad nailer. It's a life saver.

I've been running & walking twice a week, but the results aren't where I want them to be. Could it be the beer and late night dinners? Nah....

updates...

Take me out to the ballgame indeed...More baseball is in our future. Cookie made the All Star team!! I think he might be a bit outmatched by some of the stud pitchers he'll be facing, but he won't embarrass himself in the field and it will be a great experience for him. Our last regular game is tommorrow. we've overcome adversity and grown as a team and as players, but the record doesn't really reflect it. Next comes the league tournament...then all stars....then football starts July 19.

#1 son is testing for Green belt this week. Unreal...one more belt and he'll be half way to being a black belt. It's going to be difficult enforcing curfew on the boy when he can side kick me in the face.

The princess is so funny and pretty and smart. She's having a ball this summer, hanging at the ball park with her friends.

The floor is in and looks great. We found some end tables at a garage sale that fit perfectly. All we need to do is put in the base, wrap the front door and touch up some paint and the interior will be complete. The porch will be coming down in the near future. Then start replacing/repairing windows. Gutters are on the distant horizon...We're getting there.

Oh, and when you're invited to a party, always go. Otherwise the party might show up at your house. We had 20+ people show up at our house uninvited Saturday night around 9. 15 kids in a 15 ft pool. YEESH.

Good thing the neighbors already hated me.

sweet, sweet victory

The team finally pulled one out, and everyone played extremely well! Mini me made several outstanding plays at 2nd, including one where he grabbed a grounder, tagged the runner and very nearly outran the guy to first for the double play. He scored a couple runs and seemed to be enjoying the game again. the last few games seemed like they had been drudgery.

I've lost 7 pounds...hurray. As I've said before, that's equivalent to a flea jumping off the ass of jumbo the circus elephant. No beers since Memorial day. No bread, pizza, potatoes. Basically meat. Lots and lots of meat.

The remodel moves forward. new floors this weekend!! I'm stoked.

catching up...

So the remodeling project moves forward. The boss is amazing in her single minded focus. Front door is now in. Kitchen, living room, hall way and bath are painted. Cabinets are nearly finished, with fresh paint and new hardware. (Hinges and handles are significantly more than we expected, but still less than all new cabinets!) I finally finished trimming out the bathroom...it's only been two years since we put the new window in! I also trimmed out the patio door. This weekend, the porch comes down, and in two weeks we get the new flooring for the living room and after putting new base trim in, we'll be DONE for a while, I hope. A buddy of mine loaned me his brad nailer. I'll never hang another piece of trim without it, if I can help it.

The kids are, quite simply, amazing. The princess earned high marks in every subject, and the boys both made the honor roll after having terrible midterms. Mini me was in the top 5 in his class in AR (advanced reading) points, and #1 son had the most points in his class, by far.

Baseball season isn't going like we wished. We still haven't won, but the team is getting better every game. The light bulb's going to come on one of these days and we'll get a w. Mini me's in a hitting slump right now. His attitude has deteriorated to the point where he might find himself riding the pine at tonight's game, all because he fancies himself a pitcher. he's gotten better, but he has to understand that coaches kids are held to a different standard of behavior. If the other kids see a coach's kid acting up or pouting, they think it's acceptable and it all goes to hell.

Stepdad turned 70 on Saturday, and we partied all day long. Sister unit and her fam came up from the loo. It's amazing how much their children are growing, but I guess mine are too.

The class of 2008 graduated from VG recently...reading their bios in the paper made me sad and more that a tad jealous, because I should have been one of the beaming parents, helping to pick out a college, finding the first apartment, etc. Instead, I drove her to rehab, to keep her out of prison. Temporarily, probably.

In fat boy tries to get skinny news...I'm cutting carbs, ( no beer since last monday, so sell your A-B stock, immediately...or wait until that european company buys it!) and I lost 4 pounds last week. I ran/walked about 1-1/2 miles on Thursday, and then did the same or a little more on Saturday. Will try to squeeze in a jog tonight after work and before the game.