JV Football 2016-1

Homecoming Week was as hectic as I'd imagined it would be.  It was a lot of fun for us all but I am so glad that it's over. Today's post will be heavy on photos, short on words.

Fin accompanied me to Meg's JV game on Wednesday evening.  We lost the game by one point.  :-(

Fin was totally entranced by the cheerleaders.  

Colleen, Fin and I watched the Homecoming Parade in our little downtown square.  A little snack while we wait...

He spies the fire truck!  :-)

And behind it are the cheerleaders.

The big smile on Meg's face was for the mother of a friend who was kind enough to share the photo.

On Friday night the JV squad was invited to cheer with the Varsity girls during the big Homecoming Game which was a complete runaway, our favor. 

As part of the American Sign Language National Honor Society, Meg performed during the pre-game festivities....

....as well as cheered during the game.

The week concluded with Saturday night's Homecoming Dance.  Meg went with four of her besties. They all looked so beautiful!

Meg is actually looking fairly short here but, for the record, she was the only girl in flats.  The other four girls all had on at least 3.5" heels.  *insert bulging eyeballs*

My baby girl *sigh* ....

And that folks, was our Homecoming Week in a nutshell, sans all of the drama.  *wink*

Where's Waldo?

My apologies, but lately I just can't seem to find the time for blog entries.  Just to give you a peek into JulieWorld, here's what last week looked like on my calendar...


Sunday - Wednesday ...
Four Grandma Days while Jay and Colleen enjoyed some time with old friends in Orlando. Fortunately I had a bit of help on Sun/Mon due to the Labor Day holiday.  Tuesday was a "quiet" day home with Fin.  On that Wednesday Fin had swim lessons in the morning while Meg had cheer followed by tutoring at Barnes and Noble after school.

Thursday-Friday ...
My girlfriend Cristina visited Thursday AM until Friday PM.  She accompanied me to my local book club meeting Thursday night.  Friday evening Fin was back for an overnight stay followed by another Grandma Day while both his parents were at work.  Meg had an American Sign Language event at the mall Friday evening but fortunately Randy took care of the transportation.

Saturday ...
Grandma Day ...  'Nuff Said :-)

Sunday ...
I drove Meg and a friend down to West Palm where we went to two different malls looking for shoes to go with Meg's Homecoming dress.  We had a great time shopping and were eventually successful in finding somewhat dressy flat shoes for the tall girl who will be wearing a short dress.  :-)  We were gone most of the day and the 10,000 steps I registered on my pedometer should give you an idea of how much walking/shopping we did.  *insert bulging eyeballs here*



Here's how my this week is looking as of today...

Monday ...
I was able to get back to Zumba after missing all of last week due to other commitments.  It was great to be back but I'm exhausted.  Meg has tutoring after school (which means a trip to her former middle school) and then Fin will arrive for an overnight visit.

Tuesday - Wednesday ....  
Grandma Days for Fin and I.  Tuesday he has swim lessons in the morning.  Meg has cheer after school.  Wednesday he and I will be attending Meg's first home football game.  (Could be interesting. LOL!) and I'll take him home later in the evening to meet up with his parents once they're off work.

Thursday ...
Hopefully back to Zumba for me.  Meg's cheer squad will be walking in the Homecoming Parade later that evening.  I may take Fin if he's available.  *wink*

Friday ....
More Zumba in the AM.  The Varsity Homecoming Game is this evening and the JV Squad will be joining the Varsity squad in cheering.

Saturday ...
A morning mani/pedi appt for Meg followed by a hair appt in the afternoon.  The Homecoming Dance is that evening.  Not sure if I have Fin that night so the logistics of who she's going with and how's she's getting there have yet to be worked out.


I'm hoping to fit in some "play time" in my craft room this week.  I tend to get a bit grouchy if I don't have some time for me in between all of the above and regular errands, etc.

And Grandma Days?  They consist entirely of feeding/changing/playing/playing/playing with Fin. He is such a good boy and we have a lot of fun together.

Speaking of Fin...while I don't get on the computer much to blog you can find regular updates on my Instagram accounts.  Look me up and send me a friend request.  For my personal stuff (a private account) I'm 2GenMom.  There you can find out all kinds of Fin cuteness as well as what I'm doing, eating and yes, drinking.  *wink*  I also have a second account (public) for my crafty stuff.  You can find me by first and last name, which for obvious reasons I'm not posting here.  Those of you who know me will be able to find me.  :-)

So that's my life in a (sorta) nutshell.  I'm hoping to have my Grandma schedule for the next month later today so I can plan out my next several weeks.  Subbing has been out of the question recently but if this next month's schedule permits, I do have days lined up.  Today though I think I'm going to just do a bit of quiet vegging while I'm alone in the house.  :-)  

Bummer!

We were all set for the first football game of the season this evening but just got word that the other team has canceled, no doubt due to Tropical Storm Hermine.  (The opposing team is/was Okeechobee which is inland and I'm sure they didn't want to risk running buses should the rain bands reach them later today.)  Total bummer though.  We were looking forward to it.

I love their game day cheer shirts which they all wore today....

And I even got into the school spirit last night with my new manicure....

Their next home game isn't scheduled for two more weeks so we're really, really bummed.  :-(

Truck Obsession

I mentioned Fin's obsession with trucks in a previous post.  He goes nowhere without at least one truck in his hand.  Diaper changes, swim lessons, meal time, doggie duties, anytime we go "bye-bye"... you will rarely find him without a vehicle of some sort on his person.

As is our early morning routine we sit on the couch (he with his bottle and bag of Cheerios and me with my "hot") and watch some sort of kiddie show until I'm fully caffeinated.  He will hand me the remote and ask for "truck" at which time Grandpa has to give up his morning CNBC Squawk Box.  :-)  I recently discovered a really cute toddler level show available on Amazon Prime called Tom the Tow Truck and it totally mesmerizes him.

Once I'm fully alert and functioning we start right in with playing.  You may be asking just how does one play with trucks?  Well, we stack them. We crash them.  We wash them.  (Especially after he's eaten lunch with them.)  We line them all up. We practice their names.  We talk about what each one does....and then we start all over again.  He can do this for hours...and hours...and hours...so lately this is how we've been spending our days.  

I shared this video on Instagram recently so I apologize to those who've already seen it but I need to do some bragging to the rest of my family.  

At the time of this video we were missing the helicopter and the fire engine but trust me, he can pick out all seven by name.  I know I'm biased but I think that's pretty incredible for a 20 month old.


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Other randomness...

Against her many pleas, I attended Meg's high school open house this week.  I realize that she's in high school but I like to be able to place a face to a name when it comes to her teachers.  Chemistry (Honors) will definitely be her most challenging class but I have full confidence in her.

I started a Zumba Gold class last week.  (Think Zumba for the "older" generation.)  Two of my local book club friends attend and it's been a lot of fun. The ladies were all very welcoming and it's so nice to exercise in privacy (no windows to the outside world) and without judgement.  (I have no Latin blood in my whatsoever so while I can do the moves, I can't do them with style.)    

My Miami book club meeting is this Saturday.  Our book is  Lab Girl by Hope Jahren.  I loved it and while you certainly don't need to have a scientific background to appreciate it, I am very interested in hearing how our non-scientist members felt about it.  

That's all folks!  I know I'm not posting as regularly as usual so I appreciate that you're still taking the time to stop by.

Fin Can Swim

Fin began private swim lessons a few weeks ago, something I consider a must for all Florida toddlers. His instructor actually lives one block away from us so it's been very convenient to keep up the routine on Grandma days.

I've watched him slowly progress but was floored by this video that Colleen shared with me yesterday.  He has come so far in just the last couple of lessons!

I love that in addition to swimming, he's also learning to count.  :-)






I am soooo proud of the little guy and as you can see from that final smile, he's pretty darned proud of himself as well.  Go Fin Go!

Family Photos

My brother and his wife recently organized a family vacation in The Keys.  It's difficult for our entire family to all gather at once so this trip was extra special.  

I know not everyone in my family is keen on having their photos shared online so I will only be posting my immediate clan.  Today I thought I'd share a couple of photos taken during our first night's dinner.

You'll have to excuse my mussy look.  I had just spent 15 minutes entertaining a very active Fin outside in the 150 degree heat.  But my husband and daughter look fabulous, don't they?

And is usually the case with a toddler, it was impossible to get a photo of my son, daughter-in-law and grandson all looking at the camera at once.  But given that it was way past his bedtime, a busy boy is a happy boy.

I had no problem getting him to look at me later, especially when he decided he wanted to take the photos.

I'll share additional photos as I get them sorted and edited...not my favorite activity.

Back to School

If you think that only the parents of younger children relish "back to school" you would be wrong. Very wrong.   :-)  The summer boredom of elementary/middle school soon morphs into high school teen drama and while I love her like crazy, I was not sad to see her out the door this morning.

She is officially a high school sophomore and, as is traditional in our house, she is required to pose for a first day of school photo.  Please note her carefully chosen "all new (but doesn't scream new) slouchy outfit" as she put A LOT of thought into this plain white tee, gray sweatshirt and skinny jeans ensemble.   *eyeroll*

She has a fairly rigorous schedule so I'm hoping she likes all of her subjects and teachers.  This and "a bunch of friends in her lunch hour" will make the difference between smiles or tears when she walks through the front door at 3:00.  Wish us both luck.  

My Poor Neglected Blog

Dear Blog,

I haven't forgotten you.  Truly I haven't.

I wake up every morning with good intentions but somehow get sidetracked with one thing or another.

Right now I'm blaming it all on Meg.  (drama this, drama that, can you take me here? can we do this? can so and so come over? blah, blah, blah...blah, blah, blah, blah)

Princess starts back to school on Monday (hence much of the drama....don't even get me started on that) but if you bear with me, I'll be back to visit next week. We'll do some catching up, I promise.

I do wish I could stay and chat right now but you guessed it, Meg has to be somewhere in fifteen minutes.

Before I go though, I'd like to wish my father a Happy 75th Birthday today.  :-)

Love you Daddy!


Sincerely,

Jules

A Few of His Favorite Things

Those "lazy hazy crazy days of summer" are correct in only one adjective...crazy.  There's been very little lazy or hazy around here which explains my infrequent blogging of late.  I have yet to share any UK photos but hopefully they will be coming soon.  Today though my focus in on little Fin-Man.

Fin's two favorites/loves/obsessions are Balls and Trucks.  The kid cannot get enough of either and as his grandmother, I spoil him rotten with both.  We must have 8-10 balls here that we play basketball/kickball with in the house and last weekend I bought him a new flap book on trucks, a wooden truck puzzle and a set of five small trucks.  He carried at least two trucks with him everywhere yesterday...to swim lesson, in the car, and even just from room to room.  He also insisted on dining with his new vehicles.

What I found the cutest though was that he insisted on watching truck cartoons while playing with his trucks.  We have four different remotes that run our big 60" TV and he knows exactly which one does the internet streaming for Amazon/Netflix.  He kept bringing me the Roku remote asking for "a truck, a truck."  He didn't get his way every time but we did watch a bit of both Mater's Tall Tales and The Stinky and Dirty Show.  :-)

Here's a little clip of him playing with his new toys.

As I mentioned, he also loves balls.  He has both a basketball hoop and soccer net at his house and they are two of his favorite things.  He's gotten quite good at shooting baskets, even using the backboard to make his shots.  The video is quite grainy but you get this gist.

His daddy also taught him how to say "Goal!" when he kicks his soccer ball into the net although he tends to be very optimistic and exclaim "Goal!" every time he makes contact with the ball.  LOL!!!

  

As you can see, he has TONS of energy so our days together tend to be non-stop.  He is at such a fun age though and we all look forward to his visits.

A Right of Passage

During my blog absence, this happened...

Yes, the grumpy girl seen here got her learner's permit.  Why the scowl? Because Mom dared to ask for a photo. *gasp* It's obvious from her permit photo that she knows how to smile pretty but apparently that courtesy is reserved for strangers.  (Living with teens is definitely not all rainbows, glitter and unicorns but moms with blogs do get their revenge.)

If you live in FL, there's no need to abandon the roads quite yet.  Much to her daddy's chagrin, she has no interest in driving just yet so the roadways are safe for now.

Pride and Prejudice (with a little bit of Fin)

As I mentioned in my last post, I was home barely 24 hours when I left for my June bookclub meeting down south, spending the weekend with my girlfriend who coincidentally also just returned home from Europe.  (Hers was a trip to Switzerland and Italy)

Our club selection last month was Eligible, A Modern Retelling of Pride and Prejudice.  I don't know about you, but I'd never read Jane Austen's classic and figured this was as good a time as any to do so.  I decided to read them both "in tandem", basically reading a few chapters of P&P followed by Eligible, followed by P&P, etc.  I returned home from Europe with less than 10% to read in both books, which I finished the night before our meeting.

To my surprise I actually really enjoyed Pride and Prejudice, much more so than the modern day version.  (Eligible was good, just not great.  And while it isn't necessary to know the original tale, I do think it adds to the story of Eligible.) Anyway...I am now on somewhat of a P&P kick.

My girlfriend and I rented the 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice (with Kiera Knightly) and I have to say I was a bit disappointed.  The role of Darcy was totally miscast in my opinion.  A few days later I discovered an older PBS miniseries (1995) starring Colin Firth as Darcy and it is much, much better.  I haven't quite finished it yet but I'm already thinking about my next P&P movie. Any guesses?  Duh!  Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.  LOL!!!  I'll let ya know what I think.  :-)

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And because I know my mom is missing the little guy I'm including a short clip of our recent trip to what we locally refer to as "the fountains."  They are located in a beautiful riverside park (river as in the intracoastal waterway) that is less than 10 minutes away and absolutely free to the public.  I know we will be spending quite a bit of time there this summer.

Updates

Sorry for my longer than expected absence.  Europe was great and yes, we've been back for almost two weeks, but it's been one thing after another.  There have been some very hectic days (like leaving for the weekend the day after I returned), some Grandma days (missed that little guy like crazy) and some very lazy but much needed days.  I promise I'll share photos and stories later but for now let me share what we came home to...

As you may know, Meg turned 15 while in Europe which, while it will be memorable, did lack the usual party atmosphere.  You can imagine her delight when she returned home to this....

Unbeknowst to us, two of her very "best besties" snuck into her room a couple of hours before our return and gave her a birthday to remember.

Taped to her shutters were a loaf of Panera french bread and two plain bagels. You have no idea how thrilled she was especially after spending two weeks staring at Irish stew and really gross fish and chips.

What you can't see from the above photo though are the balloons...

And I do mean BALLOONS!  I don't think I've ever seen Meg smile as much as she did when she walked into her room that night.

I, on the other hand, came home to this...

Apparently going through the mail does not fall into Randy's department. ;-) Given that he had full time dog duty for 15 days, I certainly didn't hold it against him.

Curious as to what's there?  Felicity Jane is a scrapbook kit.  The two boxes below it were items for Fin...a faucet spout, a pop up dinosaur book and a hooded shark bath towel. The fourth box was Meg's yearbook.  They messed them up (gave them 15 pages of a Georgia high school...WTH???) so they were returned and rebound.  There were a couple of bills and the remainder was pretty much junk...some to be recycled, some to be shredded.

It was well after midnight when we walked in the door (5:00 AM by our European clocks which meant that we'd arrived home exactly 25 hours after waking up in our London hotel) so sleep came rather easily.  Friday was a quiet day of recuperation and then Saturday morning I was off to my girlfriend's for my Miami bookclub weekend.  More on that, other happenings, and of course, Europe in the next few posts.

This Girl ...

THIS GIRL...
will be turning 15 while in Europe.  Her birthday sun will rise in Scotland and but will set in England. I'm really going to miss saying "She's only 14."

She loves her Snapchat app and while I don't really "get it" I do appreciate the fun photos I receive.

THIS GIRL...
has really blossomed over the last six months.  She is becoming much more of a free spirit.

Her "costume" for an 80s themed grad party.

THIS GIRL...

has been open to new adventures.

To say I was thrilled that she entered into a 5K is an understatement.  

She walked, of course, but the fact that she got up at 6AM, 

participated, and finished made me one very proud mama indeed.  

THIS GIRL...
is now officially a sophomore.

She didn't even balk at her obligatory last day of school photos.

And finally...

THIS GIRL...

worked very hard this past quarter and earned herself the very first .... 'STRAIGHT A' ... report card in the history of her life.  :-)  

As we all know, math has been her nemesis forever but she persevered and earned herself an A this past quarter.  It's early, of course, but I am SOOOOO proud of her overall 3.9/5.1 GPA.  She has come such a very long way from our Homework Hell days of past!  (Woohoo!!!!!)

I'm so proud of you baby girl!

More Mother's Day Gifts

In less than 48 hours Meggie and I will be on our way to the airport for our much anticipated trip to Europe.  That first day is going to be a doozy though. We'll be getting up at 5:45 AM to make our way south to the airport and if all goes according to plan, we will be landing in Ireland at 2:00 AM, our time.  And because it's 7:00 AM their time, we will be hitting the ground running.  I'm not worried about Meg but I sure hope I'm able to catch some sleep on the plane.

I have so much I want to share before we leave but I don't know that time will allow.  First up though is the remainder of my Mother's Day present, yet another wonderful surprise.  I'll start with my favorite....

My gift basket contained an empty frame and now I know exactly what I am supposed to do with it.  I couldn't love any gift any more!  (except maybe a plate full of lemon donuts.  *wink*)

I'll leave you with a few of my other favs...

Pretty awesome, huh?

Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush

One of Fin's favorite activities when visiting Grandma's....





But once the berries are gone, he's outta there!



This is his sign for "all gone."




Don't you just love that berry face?  :-)

More Photos, Less Talk

For Mom, who has been patiently waiting for photos.  Last week in a nutshell.



Fin's first 2016 swim in our pool...

(He spotted a lizard on the screen roof.)





A beautiful belated Mother's Day gift from Jay and Colleen...

You may remember that was the weekend of the "plague."  (Thank goodness that's all passed!)





An early birthday gift for Meg....

The back piercing is the new one.

Her shirt very appropriately reads "Happy Camper."  :-)






And finally, Clay's graduation banquet for his International 1baccalaureate class of 2016....

This little play on words says it all.  We're very proud of Clay!!!

A Typical Grandma Day

Because I'm hopelessly behind, my theme for the next several posts will be "more photos, less talk." Today I'll focus on last week's Grandma Day.



Fin's morning ritual while I get Meg's lunch ready for school.

Quiet time hanging out with "the girls."

A trip to the mall where we finished up with some time on the "rides."  As I posted on Instagram, #noquartersnoclue.  :-)  He was sooooo happy!

Waiting outdoors at my local coffee shop while Meg gets tutored in math.

Looking for lizards at the school.

And finally, bath time before bed.  (I just love this photo.)

It was a good day.