Monthly Archives: August 2017

Rock and Roll Band Camp

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Lex did his second year [first year] at the Hartford Performing Arts Camp this week. The theme was Rock and Roll! They all got tie-dye t-shirts and the final performance today was a rock musical version of Cinderella. So much fun!

My drummer boy!

“Ash” crowd surfing at the concert. :)

I never get tired of watching him play!

“Ash,” getting teased by his “sisters.” The girl in the purple tutu was in Lex’s class and she’s an amazing performer. We always enjoy watching her on stage.

Ice cream at the end.

Another great year! Next year both kids will go. :)

House update

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Things are moving along fast with the house! We’ve got a garage framed, upstairs rooms framed, HVAC stuff in place, bathtubs in place, and the roof on. I got an email this morning from the builder saying the windows and doors have arrived and the cabinets and flooring are ordered. Eek! Coming along so quickly now!

We are still adding pictures almost daily to the Picasa Album.

We went over the other day with chalk and marked out beds, dressers, couches, and the kitchen table. I think it will all fit!!

Hello boys!

Eve, measuring out her bed.

Lex trying out the bed space.

The family room, looking into the upstairs bathroom.

Standing at the to of the stairs, looking in to Eve’s room, with Lex’s room in the background.

Ohh.. I hope we get to keep this little table. :)

On another day, while I spoke with the builders, Eve took some pictures and a video.

On the homefront (old homefront?) things are moving along as well. We are working on a contract to sell this house. It has been a frustrating process and we’re getting less $ than we had hoped for, but Alan and I keep running the numbers and still believe it’s the best option. Things will work out for the best. I’m sure of it. It’s going to be busy for the next few months!!

A great day in Ithaca

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Yesterday we drove up to Ithaca to spend the day with some lovely ladies from our past. As always, I wish we all lived closer together!  Molly and Eve bonded like old friends and Kate did a great job of making Lex feel special. :)

We met at the Children’s Garden where the kids ran through the Anarchy Zone completely unsupervised (which is the intention of the place) while Julie and I sat and chatted.  So nice!!

Molly and Eve took a smile break while washing themselves off with dirty sponges. Hard to get the mud off when the sponges are covered in mud too! They didn’t mind at all! ::)

Lex and Kate working together to refill the water bottles. This fountain has two levels of drinking fountain, a hose attachment, and two spouts on the side for cleaning feet. Pretty smart design!

Eve is going to love this picture when she’s older. She absolutely refused to smile. Bugger!

I love this crowd!! Just missing the daddies.

When we finished at the Children’s Garden we headed over to Taughannock Falls State Park for a little light hiking.  The kids and I missed the turn for the trail entrance and ended up at the visitor center at the top.  Oops!  The trail has a nice “reveal” at the end, but that was spoiled by the fact that we saw the falls first.  Oh well!

A view of the falls.

From the bottom of the trail. Julie and Jim were at this same park just last week and it was full to the brim! She said the entire river was full, swelling at the banks. Amazing what a difference a week can make!

Walking in the (very slippery) river.

It’s a really beautiful place!

The kids all wanted to climb this. Umm… no! It looked like a fresh landslide.

We made it to the falls – again! This time a little closer. :)

When we were all hot and tired we decided to head for the AC – and dinner!  We went to a cute little mall in downtown Ithaca, wandered the stores, bought “twinning” charm bracelets and some Harry Potter books (I can’t leave a bookstore without a purchase – it’s an addiction!) and then headed to the world-famous, vegetarian Moosewood Restaurant for dinner.  It was so yummy!  I had a fancy pasta dish and it was perfect.  The kids all found food they liked (with a little hunger sauce on top!) and we washed it all down with cake and ice cream at the end.  So good!

Twinning!

Ithaca has a “planet walk” much like the Montshire’s and we found Jupiter on the way back to the car. Can you see Lex in this picture? While the three big kids were goofy, Kate stood there so patiently with a big smile on her face, waiting for the picture. <3

Sadly all good days must come to an end, so we said our goodbyes and headed back to Franklin.  Eve and Molly have plans for a sleepover in Eve’s new bunkbeds, so maybe that will be our next visit.  I even promised Julie an above ground guest room, hopefully an upgrade from the basement suite we currently have.  :)