Saturday, July 28, 2007

The last softball game of the Summer

Larry and Cassie have been on a Church league softball team this Summer. Larry took these pictures (and 45 others) of the playoff game. Our team was cut with this game. The Score was 0-0 into the last inning and was decided at 2-3. It was both teams at their best.
The team is in red. Cassie decided she was in a torquoise-y type day.
My daughter the athelete. How does this happen?
Yep, she bats too.
Here she is being too cool on 1st base.

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Monarch Butterfly





This weekend I have been painting on the front of the house surrounded by all kinds of creatures. Bees, butterflies and yesterday I saw a humming bird. I am out of paint and the hardware store is closed for the day so there was time to catch one of the butterflies.

He let me get just sooo close and then he relocated. This explains the different locations in the yard. There are also day lilies blooming. The preference this weekend is the purple coneflower.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Cicada

Somehow this cicada found it's way to the porch. I think the finger belongs to Matthew. The photography belongs to Cassie. There is also a video of it emerging from it's cocoon. It is July 17, 2007. Does it seem a little on the late side to you too?

The third photo is what it looked like 2 hours later. It is still there. I guess it is confused.


Kristie took pics of her flowers. These flowers squeezed out the monarda she spoke of as invasive. There are hollyhocks in the back that I missed weeding out of what never turned into this year's tomato patch. In front of those are the rabbit repelling marigolds that the rabbits frolic in. The tall greens are from a single obedience plant that was a 'gift' in a nursery order I made. The flowers are spikes of lilac... in a few weeks. The weedy looking stuff is actually garden herbs.
Below is a combination of colors that can only work in nature, wild day lilies and purple coneflower. I have seen bees collecting from these flowers. These flowers have overgrown my service walk. Look closely and you can see a Japanese Lantern in the very front of the pic. It is green. Soon it will be the same orange as the lilies. It is a toss up as to which is more invasive. This is what I wanted.... flowers so hardy they can survive a husband with a lawn mower.

Sophie's graduation party

Two cousins, Larry and Tim facing the camera. Uncle Lawrence and Howard on the other side of the picnic table. It was HOT!!
A closer view of Larry and Tim.

This is Joyce and a friend talking with me. Howard and Tim are working with the tent. I am not sure who the rest of the people are.
This is James sitting with a friend.

The day was hot. The ladies spent most of it out of the sun.

Robin came with her Sarah and Lucas. Sarah has been invited to play varsity basketball in the fall.

Diane came down with Howard from the UP where they make their home. Their youngest enlisted after he finished school. He is 6 months older than my first child. Howard served and now both their sons have seen Iraq.

Sophia, remember the graduate, will be attending UW Waukesha in the fall. Still no picture of her.

Friday, July 6, 2007

There is a correction. The child on the fence checking out the lake is NOT Keegan. It is Kaleigh.

Southern Thoms day three part III

These are the pics that show a quick view of what the children did while out today. This is Keegan checking out Lake Michigan from the bluff above the beach.
Here are Kaliegh and Lucy checking out the lake from the shore.
Here are tired children using the path to return to the car.
One of my favorite things to do is watch the planes take off and land. This was after the beach visit.

Southern Thoms day three part II

This is a large lake with an undertow. I was hesitant to let them go in above their navels. Above is Keegan checking out the lake. He is quite comfortable in the water. Below, Cassie and Kaleigh joined him. First just wading, then with their t-shirts on and soon after in full swim gear.


There is a small tidal pool on the beach that the children were investigating. Lucy got a small cut on her foot. She kept her shoes on after that, but still played a few minutes in the water with the bigger guys.

Southern Thoms day three

It was a beautiful day for playing on the beach. Everyone had a quick sub sandwich lunch, rubbed on sun block and went off to the beach at Grant park. There is a path with a wonderful stair case that wraps through the forest. I took that. The children took a more direct route Cassie learned when she ran cc in this park. Below is Cassie somewhere leading the way down the hill, Keegan behind her in the shadows and the two girls right behind, still in the light.
I caught up with them checking out the beach from the pier.
Kaleigh and Lucy checked out the water while Keegan was cautiously checking out every aspect of the terrain from the pier.


Southern Thoms day two plus morning day three

Phil did the rest of the commentary. Please understand this is what twenty something males think is humorous.

ZOMG IT'S TEH UNIBOMBER!!!!!!!!!


Pozin Gangsta Style in Teh Hood of Stallis, Murda Murda


Damn Hippie Drum Circle


Chem 101: Making Tasty Pancakes

Sugar + Alcohol = K.O.

Southern Thoms day two part II

The children went to the Racine Zoo. Here they are deciding what to see in the time we had.This was a meerkat exhibit. Lucy had to stand on her tippy toes to see it.

Still the zoo, walking from on exhibit to another.

Thursday, July 5, 2007

Southern Thoms day two

I think the camera is off by 12 hours so this pic of the children and I at the airport taken by Cassie was added to the 2007, 07, 04 fireworks folder. The flash on ly goes so far.This is the children at a wayside just before we got the the Jelly Belly tour. I asked for one 'nice pic' and one silly one. Guess which is which.

Here they are after the tour. They were really good. We came away with a treat for 'mom and dad' and one for the Mineraths because I will not let them eat their jelly rats here. Ewwww!!!More uploads later. My car is done!!

Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Southern Thoms day one

Cassie took the cousins for a walk to and from Greenfield park. Note Keegan bringing up the rear. [double click on the tree] It was hot and sticky.Fed and happy. Larry lit the grill. Phil cooked Italian sausages and hamburgers. I scooped the H2O melon.
Later we saw the fireworks at State Fair park. These last 2 days I have seen fireworks from closer up than ever before. Tonight I had to tilt my head back.

We made turtle sundaes when we got back home. You will need to ask them why they are called turtle sundaes.

The children were given a choice of sleeping on the air conditioned carpeted upstairs living room floor or the porches. Kaileigh is on the downstairs enclosed porch sleeping on the swing and the other two on on the upstairs porch in the open. [refer to the graduation pics for an visuals] There is no bad weather expected tonight.

Fireworks July 3, 2007

This is a compilation of fireworks at the lakefront. I used the point and hope-for-the-best method of photography. Gary and Kathy invited us to share their view of the fireworks. They stake out a location and put a screen tent up early in the day. Matthew picked Cassie up after the West Allis Awards breakfast and they spent the day between his family's screen tent and Summerfest. Larry and I napped and met them after supper. It started raining with lightening about 1/2 an hour before the anticipated start of the event and then kept up the off and on light rain for the balance of the evening.
There was not as large a crowd as I remember in the past.... It might have been the weather or, just maybe the spot Gary staked out of prime viewing realestate made it seem that way.
The fireworks came from the North of the War Memorial, the South of the War Memorial and from the top of the old First Wisconsin building. We had 270° of excitement.
We walked in from the McArthur square parking lot to make sure we avoid gridlock. There was very little of that because the police kept everything running smoothly.
We all slept well last night.