Spring is sprung

Look what was happening in our garden when we looked outside this afternoon! We saw several yellow buds when we got home from church, but these popped out during the brief period of bright sunshine this afternoon.
There were more, and I took a few close up photos, but they turned out blurry because I rushed--there was thunder cracking overhead! So ...

We interrupt this blog to report that the rainstorm has changed to hail with sunshine trying to force its way through the rainclouds. Sounds like Springtime to me!

Lily's gymnastics *ETA photos and a video

Video by Tom

Last week was Lily's last day of gymnastics for this session. Tom and I went along to the last class to see what she does and watch her get her ribbon. They did things differently this time--before, visitors were allowed into the gyms during the final class, and even participated. Not so this time--we watched from the doorway and were invited into the little gym for free play and the ribbon ceremony. This was Tom's first time to see either of the kids in action at the gym, and he was impressed, as I was, with our granddaughter's abilities. She has no fear and does all the same activities as the older kids in her class, and she does them well. It was fun to watch. Although Tom would have preferred to participate. Or even take the class....

My camera is not very good at candid shots, but below is what I got that day:

Lily in the little gym, offering to show us her stuff.

Checking out her knee while waiting her turn on the trampoline.

Preparing for Circle Time.

"TumbleBees are lots of fun"

Lily gets her ribbon from Miss TC. Ta da!

Isn't she cute in her little leotard? It was lots of fun to see Lily enjoying her time at the gym. She starts the new session soon. I hope she has just as much fun this time around.

Following are Tom's photos from that day:

Balance Beam. She walks on this like it's nothing.

Toes on the bar

The following is a series: walking backward on the beam.

Preparing the forward roll.

Moving forward.

...and the finish.

Bringing the toes up...

...and over.

She climbed onto the rings and just sort of flipped herself into this position. Love it!

Ribbon Ceremony.

Ta-da!

Today with Lily

Lily arrived in her jammies, having been wakened and brought over fairly quickly. Mommy brought her clothes--and the Princess dress, shoes and hair ribbon Lily insisted upon bringing. After Mommy left, we asked Lily if she was hungry. She was. I asked if she wanted to get dressed before eating. No, she did not. So Grandpa took Lily upstairs in her ladybug jammies and fixed her some scrambled eggs--her current favorite. When she came back down to the Family Room, she told me she wanted me to see how pretty she is with her Princess Dress and shoes on. After she got dressed up, (and she did look very pretty) Lily decided she wanted to build puzzles. Ariel was built first, by Lily with Grandpa's support. Then Lily wanted to play on my puh-nYOU-ter--and I learned that there is a Princess website. We listened to a couple of stories and helped some Princesses chose what to wear today, then moved on over to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse website. Eventually, Lily decided she wanted to make cookies, and we headed upstairs to the kitchen. After the batter was mixed up, Lily and Grandpa played ball while Grandma listened to happy laughter from the kitchen. She really had fun! Lily was very happy when Mommy got back, and they headed for home together--after Lily confirmed that she told Grandpa she would be coming back tomorrow! That must be Lily's plans, because no one else knows anything about it. :) I have plans for lunch with my sisters tomorrow, so if Lily comes back during the day she gets Grandpa all to herself. They might both like that.

Our Sunday

I guess our Sunday actually started last evening when we attended the 5:00pm Mass at St. Francis. We did that to free up this morning, so that we could go hear Jodi share her testimony at church where they live. Jenny decided to go with us--Jay fed the kids and got them to their regular church. Jodi invited us to come early and share breakfast with her and T.J. Jodi made us waffles with homemade whipped cream and fresh fruit. Yummy! I had two.... It was good hearing Jodi share her experiences with the congregation--she speaks well. As a bonus, Spring is arriving a bit earlier an hour south, and we got to see blooming daffodils galore.

This evening, Jenny and Jay had bible study. They asked last night if we could keep the kids as Jay's Mom had early symptoms of illness and didn't want to get anyone sick. Naturally we said 'yes.' Since they would return home at about 6:15, we told them we would handle dinner. So we made hamburgers, chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, raw veggies, biscuits, and Tom made scrambled eggs for Lily. We do spoil our grandchildren...but that is our job. We try to do it well. ;)

So we shared a meal with each of our children and their families today. Perfect!

Dolphins Blowing Bubbles....

How cool is this?

Tree Removal

We recently had a tree removed from the driveway that leads to our garage. The Birch tree was over one hundred feet tall, and encroached about three or four feet into the path. I truly cannot believe the former owners of this house allowed it to remain there for all those years! I hated taking to down, but besides interfering with my ability to park easily, it was a hazard to the house.

The landscapers sent a crew of three to do the job. Two remained on the ground and removed the downed branches to the chipper, where they were used to create mulch. The third, and probably most skilled member of the team, was the climber. As he went up the tree, he used a chain saw to remove all the branches along the way. Tom was impressed with his abilities; I was impressed with their efficiency. They started at 9:00am and were done by 2:00pm. They even cleaned up. We did not have them remove the stump or take away the wood--we figure it will burn nicely in the fireplaces.

Getting started. All these pictures are taken from the second level of our home.

Just a little higher. If you look closely, you might be able to see the cigarette that dangled from his lips throughout most of the job.

The base of the tree. Can you see how it impedes on the driveway to the garage? You can also see a few fallen branches.

Chipping the wood.

This shot was taken from the living room,a little further away. The climber is up above where the roof cuts off the view.

This is the very top of the tree. The thumps as some of the branches fell could be felt throughout the house. Interesting feeling.

Look what's happening in our yard...

Tom spotted this as he was walking his cool-down after a run. I'm so excited! I can't wait to see what else pops up in the garden this Spring.

Measuring up

I've been meaning to post this picture since the end of January. If you look carefully, it says "Lily/2009 Janua uary 31rst." Ryan measured her against the wall in our upstairs hallway, and documented the event in proper detail. ;)

"Wedding Reception Part II"

On Saturday, Tom and I hosted a 'wedding reception' for TJ and Jodi--so that the many members of the family that could not attend the actual wedding in December would be able to share their good wishes with the happy couple.

I had a lot of help with the food for the event. Way back on New Year's Eve, my sister Cathy offered to provide a wedding cake from her favorite bakery (Snickerdoodles) for the party. I hadn't even thought of this, and I loved the idea. The cake itself was perfect--two layers with white frosting and purple decoration and a tiny little bride and groom on top. The caketop bride was even brunette--just like Jodi. Tom's sisters Laura and Dina made all the sandwiches - about 70. They used different breads and fillings to include chicken salad, roast beef and turkey-and they were really good! I heard lots of nice things about the sandwiches. My sister Janet and sister-in-law Lisa both made deviled eggs. That was an 'oops'--they offered help, and I suggested several items to both, including deviled eggs. I should have followed up to see what they were each making, but as it turned out, almost all the eggs were eaten that night! My daughter Jenny made chile and a cake--gorgeous, with strawberries on top--and she helped clean and decorate, too. Many thanks to all who pitched in--I needed the help and I really appreciated it!

In all, we had 42 people here that evening, including a few we weren't expecting--which was great! I'm so glad they decided to come when their plans changed. It was a nice evening. The adults all seemed to enjoy visiting with one another, the kids played on the new floor mat we bought for the toy cars. The older boys enjoyed the nice evening by exploring the back yard with flashlights. And Lily wore her Flower Girl dress for the event--so cute.

I was so busy all evening, I didn't take a single photo. I'm hoping my family will share theirs with us.

So--Best Wishes to TJ and Jodi. We are all so happy for you both.

Happy Birthday, Gary!

Our Brother-in-law, Gary, reached a milestone birthday today. Gary has been a valued member of our extended family since he married Laura all those years ago...we all love him and hope his birthday has been a celebration of the joy of life and love and being with the people who care most about him. Happy birthday, Gary, and many more.

Lily's Birthday Dinner

We were invited to Jen and Jay's for a birthday celebration dinner. Jen was doing some last-minute cake prep when we arrived. She was trying to do this while making dinner at the same time. Multi-talented, that girl of mine. Dinner was selected by Lily--chicken alfredo. Ryan likes it, too--he was so excited to learn what we were having for dinner, he couldn't talk fast enough to express his delight. For good reason, it was delicious! After dinner, Jen finished decorating the cake, then dimmed the lights and presented it to Lily. She seemed to be enthralled with it. After cake and ice cream, Lily opened presents. I had her open the dress I bought for her while we were in Florida first. She liked it, but moved on to other packages quickly. Next she chose to open the gift bag that held a stuffed bunny. I knew she wanted a bunny of her own and Tom helped me pick one out for her this weekend. It was the cutest (and by happenstance the cheapest) bunny we found at the mall. She gasped out loud when she saw him in the bag. As she was opening the next package, she saw the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse logo. She got very excited and ripped off the wrapping while saying "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!" She didn't evenknow what it was, but she knew she likes MMC. It was very cute. Her final gift from us was a Sleeping Beauty coloring book--I got this because I couldn't find a Sleeping Beauty puzzle for her. Next up were her gifts from Mommy and Daddy--a game for her Leapfrog, her own flashlight, some books, ands maybe another item or two in a Disney Princess gift bag. Lily enjoyed opening all her presents, and I think she will get much pleasure from them.

Waiting for the birthday cake.

Giggling at Grandpa while waiting for her cake.

Getting gussied up for pictures.

Still waiting.

Here it is! A Princess cake! And Mommy made it herself.

Looking up at Mommy.

The Birthday song and candle-blowing.

Mommy's getting plates....

Are we going to eat her dress?

Present time!

Some bunny loves you.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LILY!

Lily helping Grandma make cookies during one of our regular Tuesdays. See the Princesses on the left?

Today, our sweet granddaughter is three years old.

She has been eagerly awaiting this birthday, asking her Mommy daily "Is it my birthday?" When she has spoken with me on the phone this week, she'll say "It's not my birthday" in a tiny little voice that sounds slightly dissappointed.

But no more, because today she is THREE!

She is also every grandmother's dream. She greets me by running into my open arms, or at the very least with a smile. She answers "I am!" when I ask "Who's the best girl?" and then asks "Who's the best Grandma?" Lily is sweet and fun and I am so glad that I get this time to share with her.

Lily is also blessed with a loving and attentive Grandpa, who she loves very much. Today while I was out shopping, he called me to remind me to stop by the toy department and look for a Sleeping Beauty puzzle--because that's her favorite. She told us that on Tuesday last week when we had her and he remembered. How sweet is that? (By the way, I had already looked, and they didn't have Sleeping Beauty--they had Ariel, Jasmine and Belle. I chose Belle because I think she might be Lily's second favorite.)

I hope your third birthday is wonderful, dear Lily. I love you.