Ordinary Life

In July, we met up with my good childhood friend Jamie,  in St. Augustine.  Jamie and I have been friends since we were in the 6th grade. Over the years we've drifted in and out of contact as life drifted us in various directions. Over the past year, we have been able to reconnect and introduce our children to one another. In a neat twist of events, her Liam and my Rye have become friends, too.  So I guess you could say it was a double play date :) We rode the Ripley's Red Trains and the carousel in  Davenport Park   (Say, do you know the difference between a carousel and a merry-go-round? We do.) And we rode out the rain in the nearby Dunkin Donuts. It was a really great day.  If you ever have an occasion to tour St. Augustine, take it. Learn stuff. It is a fascinating old city. I plan to go again sometime and pay closer attention to the details. And to take pictures. Again. Because the entire roll of our day together was lost to a corrupt SD card. (...

  It was a fun day and the World Golf Village was an excellent host. Providing shelter with a smile,  through what felt like an endless downpour, we never felt like an inconvenience. I know that at least one of my children, if not all of them left with the freshest breath they've ever had. A well stocked locker room affects a child with the sudden need to groom... with all the products provided.... or, at least it seems to have that effect on mine.  Chandler  qualified second  at the Drive, Chip and Putt Qualifier in St. Augustine. He moves on now to  the sub-regional qualifier in Orlando. We are excited for him.

  From the drawing board to local print and koozies... one of my favorite parts. Check out Amelia Boat Club   online (and in person!) Coffee4Lunch helped with the web site too. Borrow a boat or a waverunner while you're there and be sure to compliment their new image. :)

HAPPY 4th of JULY ! We spent the day @ the Plantation.  Lunch @ Marchet Burrette   Live Music all day.  Meandering around the shops and grounds  Shuttle to and from Fireworks. It was a grand, relaxing day. Please enjoy this short story by O. Henry: The Fourth In Salvador

We like to make messes... the harder to clean up, the better. The more likely to leave stains, sign us up! I exaggerate but we do have a way of gravitating towards splotches and splats. Tie Dye was no exception. During this project, Chandler was in a bit of a hurry to get through so that he could pursue some other interests, so he more or less splattered his shirt with one color and called it done. Once all of the finished projects were untied and rinsed out, I could tell he was slightly disappointed with his results. I believe he learned from it, and if he's anything like his Momma, it will be one lesson amongst many on the fine art of being fully present and focused. (Am I the only one here who battles the multi-tasking monster?) He went on to help with another, more traditional shirt and put a humorous spin on the first one. We have at least half a bottle of each color left over, but we have run out of 'blank slates' to tie dye. Rye was determined she wanted tie dyed und...

  Chandler joined his head pro and a team of junior golfers for a North Florida Junior Golf tournament @ South Hampton. (North Hampton is their home course- perhaps it should have been called the Civil War Tournament- ha.) Some rounds are great for self-esteem, other rounds are great lessons in self-control. Chandler did win a hat and box of golf balls for one of the closest to the pin holes. On the next round...

Chandler was enrolled in the same FLVS hosted leadership class as Logan but had delays in his project due to waiting on certain items to arrive via shipping. His project idea was to partner with the same CareNet center that Logan had, with an emphasis on encouraging young fathers. We learned that many care centers are trying to increase efforts to reach out to expectant fathers and  provide new parent education  for young men facing a new phase in life.  Chandler assembled "New Daddy" bags. He chose a baseball themed bag and a small, soft baseball. On each baseball, he wrote "Play Catch With Me Daddy" or a similar sentiment to capture the idea that a young man will have an important role to play in his baby's life. He also included a copy of The Life Book~ generously provided by Gideons, Intl.

Harnessing the sunshine, we had a little fun with our shadows.  "Shadow is the obstruction of light. Shadows appear to me to be of supreme importance in perspective, because, without them opaque and solid bodies will be ill defined; that which is contained within their outlines and their boundaries themselves will be ill-understood unless they are shown against a background of a different tone from themselves." Leonardo da Vinci

We like to try new things, especially new and interesting candies from different countries. Anytime we shop at Publix--because they have a good selection-- we choose one (sometimes 2 or 3) new treats from the "Ethnic" aisle to try.  And if we get within 5 miles of a World Market? Hide the wallet. While searching for a video to enhance a recent school lesson, we stumbled onto some totally non-related videos of a lady doing YouTube reviews of various things she had purchased at her local Asian market. I didn't know you could make a job of such fun, but judging by the many similar videos we've discovered since that first day, it turns out to be a "thing".  But the best discovery we made on that day were the Japanese candy kits she had chosen to review. The worst discovery we made is that in a town as small as ours, Asian grocery stores are hard to find. So, despite my oldest son's protests that we were supporting the axis of evil by using Amazon, we chose s...

Chandler qualified @ ANNIKA Academy for Jr. Elite Team.  He is taking the occasional lesson there as time & travel permit. Event & First Lesson Photos: