Swimmin' and Swingin' Through Summer

It seems like this summer is being spent behind the wheel of a car, behind the baseball diamond backstop, and up in the balcony of IWU's natatorium.  Sisi swims---teaching kids in the mornings at Fairview Pool, hanging out with friends at the same pool in the afternoons during summer camp, and twice a week at IWU where she practices with her swim team, The Funky Fish.  So named for their coach, Coach Fish.   J'dude practices or plays 2-3 times a week, and pitches at least an inning or 2 most games.  Last Friday he pitched 4 innings.  And I have to say that if he could have pitched all six innings of the game they would have beat that pesky team that they have lost to twice.  But at his tender age, 5 innings is the limit and his coach knows that 4 is better for him.   And so it goes.

Today, though, we had no swim practice or games in the evening.  I finished working this afternoon, came home and took a lovely nap.  So perhaps I should have titled this Swimmin', Swingin', and SNORIN' Through Summer.  And after my nap I ate dinner, prepared by Ironing Man.  Then J'dude and I did the dishes.  Now everyone is reading, or at least quietly pretending to do so.  I love these serene evenings at home, even as much as I love watching the little people do what they love.

It Was Just One of Those Days

Swim meet in Springfield.  Event 1, 50 yard freestyle.  Sisi dives in off the block, all goes well, she does not swim her best time but she feels content about her swim.  Event 2, 100 yard breast stroke.  This is the stroke she has practiced most in the week before the meet.  We even got up early on Friday and went to the pool at 630 so she could work on it some more.  What we didn't anticipate was a goggle malfunction.

The goggles slipped off and down around her neck, essentially making her feel like she was choking.  There may have been some water-swallowing along the way.  She had to walk to the end of the lane and climb out, gasping a bit.  Coach Tommie did a great job of calming her down, reassuring her that her whole first year of swim meets might have snafus as she learns, and that stuff like that "happens to absolutely everyone."

Event 3 was at least an hour and a half later.  That's a long time to walk around and let worry build in your brain.  So that when she got in the water for her 100 yard backstroke, she was scared poop-less about choking again.  After the event (which she did finish) she was crying in the locker room because she was afraid she'd always have that feeling every time she got in a pool.

About halfway home from Springfield, after a short pep talk from her mom and 15 minutes of distracting video games, she announced in a cheerful voice "ok, that's over"  and then she asked her big brother for advice.

J'dude said when he messes up in a baseball game (which he would hardly admit EVER happens, well okay he strikes out a lot), he remembers there will be lots of other chances.  And, he added, it's just little league (not, for example, the 7th game of the World Series when the Cubs finally have a chance to win it all -- example provided by his mom, of course)

As it turns out, we drove straight from the meet to one of his games.  He pitched well, but struck out a lot.  And they lost.

Likewise for California Chrome, who I must say looked like he enjoyed running WITH the other horses instead of ahead of them.  

At the end of the day, all I can say is that we had a beautiful rain, then the stars came out last night brighter than I have seen them in years, and ....CUBS WIN, CUBS WIN!!

'Scuse Me While I Kiss the Sky

Right, it's from Jimi Hendrix Purple Haze.  (I hope.)  Because I'm on a Color Roll now and the color of the day is purple.

But first a slight glance backward at the past 2 days of black and blue. (Don't worry, not that kind of black and blue.)

Tuesday evening we attended Sisi's 5th grade orchestra concert.  She's there in the front row wearing a black suit and a blue bandana.  And looking quite musically inclined, because she is!

Wednesday the little maestra turned 12.  She asked for a pound cake with no frosting, and she wanted it to be blue. Of course.  We compromised on a pound cake with blue swirls and part of it unfrosted.  The breaking of the cake into 3 pieces was my idea.  Ok, it was an accident for which I take full credit.

My other great idea was to invite 3 of her friends from school to walk home with her and have cake, but not to tell her they were going to do that.  Somehow she didn't not figure out that they were actually coming to the house with her until they all got here, and even then she was surprised.  Happy Birthday Sisi!

Today it's a purple haze in the backyard.  Lilacs

Hint of purple on the rhubarb stalks

Phlox!

This little guy isn't purple, but he looked so cute I added him to the mix.  (Not my creation, found on plant trellis at a garage sale!)

Now if we have some Purple Rain the garden will look great!  

Parkland Bluebells

The Player and I went to Parklands for a short hike yesterday afternoon because it was a beautiful spring day, because it was my last Monday off work (going to a 5-day per week schedule next week) and because we heard that "the bluebells are out at Parklands."  We heard that information on good authority from a fellow at church who hikes there a lot.

So the first half mile or so on the hike we saw

trillium

violets

forget me nots

periwinkle

and finally just a few meager bluebells

but then, o then, o my, we headed down close to the Mackinaw and were transported into Bluebell Acres:

Carl Sagan would have said there were Billyuns and Billyuns of Bluebells!

Blue Monday

J-dude requested I make THIS today -

And indeed I shall make Berry Blue Jello.  But first I will annoy my son by singing all the songs I can remember with "BLUE" in the title.  And I will have help from Ironing Man.  We will start with Blue Velvet...harmonizining on the dum dum duuuum parts.  J-dude will ask how do we both know this song.  He will finally decided is it because you guys are OLD and we will have to agree with that assessment.  But wait!  We are not done.

I will start singing Blue Suede Shoes, which will earn me a slightly smaller eye roll from J-dude.  Then Ironing Man will remember Blue Hawaii.  Night and youuuuuuuu.... yes that earns a little more of the orbital rotation than my shoe song.  

Next I will break out Tommy James and the Shondells Crystal Blue Persuasion.  We are definitely on a roll now...yes, an eye roll roll.  

But then, an amazing thing will happen.  J-dude will look over at the OLD people bopping around the kitchen, and say "Devil in a Blue Dress."  I will first think he might be talking about me, but I will only wearing a blue t-shirt.  Well, I will have pants on too of course.  But they are red.  (Yes, of course unmatched PJs, I wouldn't wear red pants out of the house.)  So I think he will be playing the OLD people's game.  

I can't wait until he asks for Red Jello.  Because then we can get Grandad to play Red River Valley on his harmonica!!

Oh Where O Where Has My Little Kim Gone?

Here I am.   Well, that was a long and successful game of Hide and Seek on Blogger.

Here is what's been up in our realm.  Kids have been driven to 17 different activities including baseball practice, swim practice, birthday parties, the mall, and to a friends house for "Dinner and a Movie Night"  (every other Friday.)

I have been working.

I have been working on a mosaic table top for church.  It is almost done, but I had to order more beautiful Blue-Avio tiles  from Tiny Pieces in Chicago to finish up. The Tiles are In The Mail.

Ironing Man took a trip to Ohio to visit his kids and a friend.  We missed him here, especially the day I had to clean house and do laundry.  Everything was so ... wrinkly without him.  Sigh.

But he's back!  Hurrah!

Yay!

I am trying to stick to the Exercise (almost) Every Day Plan.. walking or bike-riding, and so far it's gone pretty well.

I've taken some fantastic naps.  In fact I took one today while I was planning to finish reading The God of Small Things, this month's book group book.  It was a fine, fine nap.  And the book is well written and...so very very sad I can hardly bear it.  It makes me need to sleep between chapters.   I read it years and ago and forgot how very-sad-I-can-hardly-bear-it it is.

Tonight the girl-child has Junior High Orientation.  Where O Where does the time go?

Death to Pop-Ups

I can't get rid of them.  Since my boy used my computer to play some downloaded game that I did not know about, they are everywhere.  I'm sure it's a virus/malware/crazy kind of mess-up in my laptop.  I am tired of the frequent in-my-face "You Might Enjoy Reading..."  and "Click Here if You Don't Speak Spanish."

Pero si, hablo espanol!  Basta!

Speaking of viri (wouldn't that be a great plural for virus?), ok, viruses...we watched The Dallas Buyer's Club on DVD last night.  I was completely blown away by the transformation of both Matthew McConnaghy and Jared Leto.  They won their Oscars for good reason.  And I had no awareness of the existence of the antiviral drug "buyers clubs" that existed during the time of the drug trials for combatting HIV in the 80's.   Desperation is the mother of invention, too.

Thank goodness for better options now.  I just wish I could find the right dose of the right substance to get my computer virus under control.