Visit to the country

We went to my grandparents' lake house yesterday to visit with the family. When we used to go my grandparents always has projects for us. Painting the house, repairing a fence, building a walkway...anyway Bryce decided to carry on the tradition. He kept himself very busy sweeping, mowing, clearing the yard of sticks. It's hard work but someone has to do it.

Also-he had his first visit with a horse. There is a horse next door to my grandparents' house. When Papa was walking the dog he patted the horse. Russell saw this and decided to take Bryce over there. Check out this video:

Can never resist a few stills either...

Meet the Teacher

Bryce is starting a Mother's Day Out program on Tuesday. Today we went to meet his teachers and classmates. I've been talking about school fora few weeks now and Bryce has been fairly negative, "no school", "no meet new children", "no learn new songs". You get the idea. I had low expectations for today. Bryce did great though. He liked the room and played very happily for 45 minutes. He actually didn't want to leave. Let's hope Tuesday goes as smoothly.

I don't have any pictures related to my comments so here are some of the kids doing what they do best: Bryce playing golf and Ivy lying around.

A new toy

A new toy for the kids is hardly newsworthy. Seems like something new shows up daily and thankfully Bryce's favorite activity is still playing golf. But this time, the new toy that showed up was for me. For my birthday, mom got me a neat little video camera. Not much time to start my bid for an Academy Award...or America's Funniest Home Videos for that matter (does Bob Sagat still host that show...because I just saw a rerun of Full House and...well, nevermind).

Anyway...the software that comes with it seems to suck so I'll have to figure something else out (like buy a Mac). So far I've figured out how to add a title and credits and slam an MP3 over the top...but there is very little in the way of artistic control...and after all, I am an Arteeste!



Oh...and I can also extract pictures from the video...which if you've ever tried to get a 2 year old to look at you & smile on command is about as likely as me not having to sit next to a 400 pound, hegiene challenged woman every time I fly. I can't speak to the quality of the pictures...this is sort of a test, but I thought they were fun.

Tin Roof...Rusted

What the hell did that line from the B-52's mean anyway? If you ask them...they said that it really meant nothing. For those of us in attendance at Spencer & Julie's wedding this past weekend, it took on a whole other meaning. Well...in my mind 2 meanings.

The first thing that will come to most people's mind was the absolutely OUTSTANDING karaoke version of Love Shack that Spencer's buddy JR did. Truly priceless schtick that I can only hope will somehow make it to YouTube via cell phone video or hidden camera. I don't think I can do it adequate justice except to say that if you imagine Curly from the 3 Stooges with a microphone, 12 Red Bulls, and a fist full of crystal meth...you might have an idea of what JR was putting down....TIIIIINNNNNNN ROOF...rusted!!! (it's even fun to type).



The other meaning of "tin roof...rusted" that I was referring to is the transformation I've seen in my brother. I saw a version of him this weekend that I've never seen before...calm, laughing, dancing, smiling...total enjoyment. Don't get me wrong...we've had our share of laughs & good times; he's cracked the occasional joke; I've even seen him dance (he did after all stay in my room at the fraternity house when he was 16...if you smell what I'm cooking)...but I've never seen the whole package...until Sunday. I asked myself what happened? Clearly...only one conclusion...his Tin Roof...Rusted. How else can you explain it? I think Kevin Costner fixed his problem in a similar way:






See...his tin roof rusted. And for Spencer, I think the same thing happened. He found a great wife...got the job he wanted...found some breathing space, and just hit the damn ball up the fairway. And for that...I'm pretty darn proud of him.

So congratulations to Spencer and Julie on your wedding...I hope you have a great time in Aruba, and while your there, try not to get your White Butt...Toasted.

Visit with family

My grandparents were at their lake house so we went to my parents' house for the weekend to visit.

Ivy loves napping on Mimi's shoulder.

Bryce taught Papa how to play golf.

Mimi and Bryce reading.

Ivy watching the fan. Her new favorite activity.