All in the Family

It seems my one and only sister has found a good way to keep everybody in the family updated. Send pictures to her brother and let him do all of the work. As you can see, she was much to busy enjoying her vacation (and rubbing in the ski runs in the background) to e-mail them herself, so this seemed a good way to her. Looks like a very relaxing vacation, although the young one will probably need therapy after seeing that fish. We hope our friends will send pictures soon also so we can share, but this will at least show the other half of our family here. And truth be told, if you lived in Lincoln Nebraska, wouldn't you be vacationing as much as possible? Hope you all have a good weekend.

Does she ever sit still???

What do you get when you cross a Type A personality (some of us would say anal retentive or obsessive compulsive) with a stay at home Mom? Projects, lots of projects. I thought I would show a few of her bigger ones, although by no means does this cover the whole list. While I am sure to suffer more ridicule on my next golf game in Nashville (although winning money almost every single time takes the sting away from the abuse I receive), I have to admit when it comes to home improvements, I am married to the female version of Bob Villa. Thank god, because unlike those masochists in Nashville, I have no desire to build a deck in the middle of the summer in the South. So let's start down the road. When we moved into our house here near Atlanta in 2004, the inside of the house was pretty awesome, but the outside was a mini-disaster. So, Shireen's projects started with the front yard as the before and after pictures will show here.

Then, out of the blue, came the inspiration that our kitchen should be splash guarded to death. While I have been known to splatter some spaghetti sauce, I don't think I could send it 20 ft. away, but as usual the wife disagreed and for the better part of a month, our garage was filled with the sound of a tile saw and the remnants of tile dust. And while, as usual, Shireen's math was horrendous (are you sure that 7/16 is more than 3/8) with that wonderful Wisconsin education, the project came out extremely well, especially for all of the cursing and mistaken cuttings.

After that her attention turned back to the outside. The back yard and the wooded area has been a constant source of Shireen's obsessive nature (we should buy stock in Roundup) and so we went from just a god awful yard with half of it not even having sod and a woods that looked like it hadn't been touched in 20 years, to sod, to an expanded irrigation system to finally a complete ripping up of dead sod that wouldn't take and the laying down of mulch and plants. Just for the record, Shireen's Mom, Linda, has been pressed into service of all of these outdoor projects and usually heads back to Wisconsin overly glad to get away from her daughter. Even I was pressed into service in this latest venture and had the enjoyable experience of roto tilling the mounds of dirt and dead sod which was an absolute joy. As usual, the yard came out looking great and if we could get a rain shower sometime this year and have a heat index under a 110, we might even get it looking better.

So next on the list, and currently underway is the digging up of the ground below the deck in preparation to lay stone and tile for a patio flooring. This time Shireen is springing the project on her Dad when he comes to visit (last time he got the next fixture for the sink). Luckily we have leverage with the grandkid and are able to parlay that into projects. We will post the completed project when done along with the 2 or 3 more that I'm sure Shireen has added to her list by then.

Bend it Like ......

Ok, maybe not quite. We have started the first year of soccer, and while getting the rules of the game haven't become quite clear, at least Brendan looks good in the part. Of course, the practices in the 100 plus degree heat haven't helped, (Mommy's water bottle has been of more interest than learning the game). However, while Daddy waits for the golf bug to kick in, this will do.

As you can see we started with our backyard practicing, although the basketball impulse was still strong (those damn Indiana genes). Then came the practices where I could do the cones, but what the heck was this net thing all about?

And lastly came the first game. Whoever decided that 8 A.M. was a good time for a Soccer Game had to be a sadist. All family members were present although less than awake, especially the participating player.

And then came game time. While we ran around after the ball, we had no desire to go kick it with all the other kids kicking at it (thus kind of clueless on the whole goal of soccer, so to say), although our stint at goalie was a perfect shutout (of course, no kicks by the other team helps that stat). However, there was no shame in not mixing it up, did you see the size of those girls says Brendan, when I'm in high school and wanting to date them is one thing, but getting kicked by them on the Soccer Field at this point is a whole other.

So thus ended the first week of Shireen being a Soccer Mom, which of course included a hour and a half stint in the concession area and Brent being a Soccer Dad (is that a voting bloc?). While proud of our only boy, Mom and Dad realize there is much work ahead on the whole concept of Soccer (once again, Dad is really humoring Mom, before the all day golf lessons begin). We especially hope the grandparents and other family members enjoy and we say hello to all of our friends that may be checking this out for the first time.

As a complete side note, congratulations to Amanda Blumenherst this weekend for finishing runner up in U.S Women's Amateur. Bill, her uncle, who was her caddy this weekend was one of my best friends growing up and we still keep in touch especially when I make it back to Ft. Wayne. I have known the family for years and Amanda has led Duke to the Women's Natl. Championship the last two years, was College Player of the Year the last two years, made the Cut at the Women's U.S. Open the last two years and received the Nancy Lopez Award for Top Women's Amateur Golfer in the World this year. Amanda lost by 1 hole in a 36 hole final that was televised on the Golf Channel this weekend. You will be seeing her on the LPGA Tour quite a bit in a couple of years and she is a great person for younger kids to look up to. She is going to stay at Duke for 4 years even though she could be on the Tour now and has amassed straight A's while at Duke. While there are many sordid stories in sports right now, it's nice to see someone have success that is doing it right.

We will be entering a new post in the next couple days of the numerous projects that obsessive, compulsive wife has taken on lately, which will show pictures of the house here in Atlanta for our friends across the country that have not seen it yet. We hope you are all doing well and look forward to hearing from you, don't be shy to post your comments. Later.

Brent

Summer Living in the South

As we try and get through the multiple 100 heat index days, we have decided to show a piece of our life in the South. Brendan attended his first Braves game and although Mom and Dad sweated to death, Brendan decided Slushies and Cotton Candy were more than enough to get through the heat. Brendan decided to call Grandpa during the game and during the call, Jarrod Saltalamachia hit his second home run of the night. Unfortnately, Salty is now playing for Texas, but Brendan got to see Salty's only two home run game for the Braves. Also this spring, Brendan started his career towards playing for the Braves in 2025. While a hitting machine, catching a ball ( or at least watching home plate) and running to first base (instead of the leisurely stroll) were problems we hope to correct next year.