"Happy 4th!!"

This was truly one of the best weeks of the summer so far. First of all, I got to get off at one due to the holiday infringing on my early leave at 4 due to our "summer hours" we are doing. Second, we got to go to Seaworld the Saturday before! I haven't uploaded my camera pictures yet, but my iPhone pictures turned out pretty good:



Now that's a nice family shot. Man it was like 100 degrees out there. And despite its name, the 'sea' didn't keep us very cool.





This time, we all got under the water! Was so refreshing, I'm now wondering why I didn't do this last year! I had to push someone's kids out of the way, but...what can ya do sometimes, ya know?

On The way home we stopped by this Kolache place:



Mmm, so good. Like 30 different flavors. I think I ate one of Cari's though. It looked like peach but it turned out to be coconut!

Zach had to have TWO teeth pulled:



...and here they are:



Ugh. Turns out he had to have them pulled so his other teeth can grow in normally. Poor kid. he took it like a champ though.

Then on July 3rd, we went to downtown Arlington to catch some fireworks:







The ol' iPhone takes some really good shots when it wants to!

Then on July 4 Cari and Zach went to see Ethan play baseball so Emmy and I went it alone to the Overall sweat-loge-a-thon we have every 4th of July. Dad even brought some entertainment:



Still can't believe Ed and me lost to him and Richard. I guess not playing ever can not make you as good as you think you are. On the way home I took Emmy on an impromptu tour of Duncanville since it's right on the way home. We stopped by the park I used to hang out at a lot. Emmy had an idea:





Was a nice afternoon. I should get back every now and then just to see what's chnaged and what's stayed the same. Was a really fun week. We were talking about how there were certain episodes of The Twilight Zone where someone would go back in time to stop certain things from happening, only to see them happen anyway. So glad we had 56 brave individuals who signed the Declaration Of Independence plus the soldiers who defended that decision.

"Class Picture Time!!"

Yes, that time of year has come when every kid must actually take a bath, and actually put on not only clean clothes, but nice clean clothes. Here is Emmy's last class picture she will have at JB Little:



Aww, she looks great. Always cracks me up how there are kids that think dressing up means getting their nicest t-shirt out of the dirty clothes hamper and putting them in the dryer to "freshen them up".

Here's Zach:



Not sure why the hang dog look on his face. He's so sensitive sometimes. Somewhere there's a woman who will be able to channel that for him in the right direction.

Emmy also finished up her last soccer season...maybe forever...:



I think she enjoyed playing soccer as long as it was fun. But this league was all about playing perfectly and any mistake was magnified and she just didn't want any part of it. I don't blame her.

I remember when I would have those class pictures taken. One year I wore a shirt that said "Seattle" on it. All the letters were on a different colored umbrella. Another year I think I wore either a Popeye shirt or an Incredible Hulk shirt. Seems like no one ever knew it was actually picture day.

"Our New Car!!"

Well, not so much a car, but more of a behemoth! On 5-4-2013 we made a trip to Carmax to test drives some minivans, but not necessarily to buy one. Well, we found the one. The. One. A 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan with 28,000+ miles on it, and fully loaded. DVD Flip down screen:



...which is really cool because Zach and Emmy can watch movies during those long drives, say to Dallas, or Fort Worth, or the 7-11 a third of a mile from our house.



Man, just look at that dash! A lot fanicer then my 1997 Sentra. Then again, anything is fanicer then my 1997 Sentra. Anything. You name it.



I like the display. Looks like something Captain America would drive!



What's cool is I can open both sliding doors and the trunk door with the remote! Plus I can start the van form the remote so if it's hot I can get it started ahead of time and cool it off before we even get inside. That will definitely come in handy this summer. Gets a little toasty around here in July.

So what happened to the Sentra you may be wondering? Well, calm down and I'll tell you. My cousin Moriah, all of 18 years old and in need of a cheap, cheap, cheap car, decided that $500 was a fair price to buy the car I've been driving since Clinton was in office. So, I sold it to her...and explained all the little quirks and habits that you must know about in order to drive it. Hopefully her brother can work those things out and she can get another 16 years out of it! 205,000 miles...and counting.

"Field...Of Dreams..."

Yes, it is that time of year when the kids of JB Little take the field to compete in such heat-exhausting events as the 75 yard dash and tug of war! It's also the time of year when I actually get to use my sick days! Usually in May and September. If ya got em' use em', I say. Now Emmy's been doing this for a while, but this was Zach's year to truly shine! Here he is running the 40 yard dash:



Second place ribbon!! That's my little Usain Bolt!! Or Carl Lewis...depending which generation you're from.



Hula hoop!! He lasted longer than some of the kids but hips don't lie.



Me: "Okay Zach, the idea is to pull the rope harder than the other team!"
Zach: "Gee, ya think!? Get over here and help me!"
Me: "Gee, I would, but it wouldn't be fair to the other team dude..."
Zach: "Always a technicality with you, eh Pop?"

Afterwards, I went and got the Saturn inspected and brought both of them lunch:





Zach had McDonald's, Emmy had Subway. That's a lot of driving in one hour!

Then, Friday, it was Emmy's turn to shine:



Here they had to work a hula hoop down the chain of kids while they all held hands. The boy sure doesn't seem very enthused at having to hold Emmy's hand. Eh, what does he know. I couldn't get a picture of Emmy getting the hula hoop because her teacher chose to stand in front of each kid as they were moving the hula hoop. Some people...geez.



Emmy: "Hey Dad, how far did I kick the soocer ball?"
Me: "Let's see...official measurement is three feet!"
Emmy: "That's all!? I demand a recount!"
Me: "Judges? What? Two feet? Aw man..."



Here Emmy is in the shuttle relay! They won this event if I recall correctly. She's a lot like me. Not a fan of running but once we start we can usually smoke the competition.

I managed to get the garage organized quite a bit. Lots of stuff sitting around not serving a purpose, so out it goes! Found a couple of things people had been looking for, which usually happens when things get put up. Was a fun four days though. Went to Starbucks like, a lot, and Mom and Keri even came out to watch Zach and Emmy's games! Always nice to step away from the office for a while.

"A Funny Week..."

A lot of humourous things happened over the last week or so...first of all...



My horn...all 16+ years of it...decided to start honking by itself anytime it felt like it. Sure, everyone else got a big kick out of it, but it was embarrasing driving the kids to school and everyone looking over like "What did I do to you? I'm not in your way!". What you see here is me disconnecting the horn. I was hoping the problem would sort of go away on its own. I'm procrastinatoristic like that.



I had heard about this for a whilebut couldn't find the clip until now. Apparently Harrison Ford had some choice words for Chewbacca for fooling around with his wife ha ha. Who knew?



Me: "Hey Keenan, can I have some of that turkey leg?"
Keenan: "Um...I don't have very much left..."
Me: "Ohh...cuz...it looks like you have about 3 lbs. of meat on that bad boy..."
Keenan: "What can I say, I'm re-e-e-ally hungry..."

My Photoshopping skills notwithstanding, I wish they sold these things at ACE volleyball center. It's a long 2 hours sometimes. And those metal chairs don't help either. But I like watching Emmy play volleyball. She brings an intensity none of the other girls seem to have. Hopefully that will translate to good teamwork.

Grandma turned 85 this week!! I didn't take any pictures, namely because it's one hectic meal with everyone running around. I took a picture of Dad and his kids with Grandma:



Good shot.

"More Visitors!"

You know....just when I think I've purged my home of all outside creatures...



...a woodpecker decides to make my tree her new home! Now, while I admire the handiwork she did drilling a perfect hole to get into the branch, everytime we leave the house or come home all we hear is the constant tweets of the baby birds in the branch. Finally, Cari managed to get a shot of the mama bird:



I had to crop it a bit but it's a pretty good shot. Hopefully we'll be around when the eggs hatch and we get to see them come into the world for the first time.

Zach finally started coach pitch baseball!! He's been waiting to get rid of the T-Ball approach to hitting and now's the time. He went one for two so I'm very proud that he's learning the ins and outs of real baseball...



Man he looks sharp.



His coach had him play catcher the whole game, which I don't think is his best position. He's got too much speed and reflexes to be sedimentary the whole game. Maybe I'll make trouble and bring it up with his coach if he puts him there again.

After the game Cari and her friend Branda decided to go have some girl time alone so Jerramy and I took all the kids to...



...you guessed it, the Water Gardens in Fort Worth!! I was a little surprised to find out that Carson hadn't ever been here. My kids of course have been here a bunch. So we walked around and got some pretty cool shots:



Emmy was nice enough to take this shot of Zach and me!



This shot is currently my wallpaper at my computer at work! I may need to get this one printed up.



If you look closely, you can see the rainbow. Hint: It's to the left.



Me: "Hey Jerramy, whatcha takin' a picture of?"
Jerramy: "There's something fascinating in the water."
Me: "Oh yeah? What?"
Jerramy: "More water..."
Me: "Oh! Yes, that is...fascinating..."



This is a good background shot. So glad the city of Fort Worth decided to kick in a few bucks and make this place a true landmark for the rest of us. I don't remember when I first came here. I always thought it was a school field trip, but who knows for sure. All I really want for Zach and Emmy is to look back on their childhood and realize it was really great. Some kids aren't having so much fun and are wanting to be adults so fast. Hopefully it doesn't come too fast. I still like being the main thing in their lives...even if it's only me that believes it.

"They've Bloomed!"

Like clockwork.

Every three years, the irises in my flower bed manage to spring forth actual flowers! Here we are after three days:



And after three more days...



Now I can start to see the purple bloom starting to appear. I wish I had different colours that all bloomed at different times, that'd be really cool. I'll have to check out Lowe's or something I guess.

Zach starts real pitch baseball tomorrow!! He hasn't played t-ball in over a year, but so far he is showing he hasn't lost any of that instinct that makes him so good. We were practicing in the front yard last week and he can still scoop em up and throw em out!

Finally watched "Throw Momma From The Train" last week! Can't beleive it's over 25 years old and I never saw it. It was really good. I don't think I could ever bring myself to take someone's life though. I guess that's why I don't believe in the death penalty. Who among us has the right to determine whether someone lives or dies? After what happened this week, it's hard not to read about people dying:



And...



...it is just ridiculous that these things have to happen in the world. I really hope this isn't some kind of pre-determined course that a higher power put in force for one reason or another. If I find out that these were merely random acts of stupidity and unfortunate circumstances, I'd be okay with that. Really.

"Last Dance....Tonight...."

Yes, to quote the wonderful yet sad Donna Summer song, this year marks the last daddy daughter dance that Emily and I will go to as she is finishing up her last year at Little Elementary. I suppose all things have to end at some point. But it really seems like the last 7 years just kind of breezed by rather quickly. But, that's why someone invented cameras, right? A few pix:



This is a really nice shot of us. I may need to have this one framed. Someone on Facebook commeneted they thought I'd slimmed down. That's always nice to hear. It's always kind of hard to bring it up since you take the chance that the person you said it to didn't know they were trying to lose weight in the first place. Make sense:



We ended up accompanying Emmy's friend Ryann and her dad so I had someone to talk to while they ran around to who knows where. I thought this was a pretty good shot of them being silly. They were playing "Can't Touch This" and I busted a move. Emmy acted embarassed but deep down I knew she was embarassed to be seen with me. I didn't mind. I had fun.



Afterwards we all decided that the Melting Pot was the place to be. Not Braums, where we usually go. Mainly because someone we all know would be there talking his head off. But it was really good. We all shared the S'Mores chocolate with the marshmallow and graham crackers. Was really rich.

Then, Sunday, we got to go to our first Ranger game of the season! Section 9 which was really good seats for being in the outfield. But first, we got to walk the field in the Girl Scout Parade! I'd never been on the actual field before so it was kind of cool:



One guess who knew I was taking a picture?



Speak for yourself.



Josh who? Man did he get booed at this game. And he will continue to get booed at every game he plays here for the rest of his days. That's what you get for not standing by your word and drfecting to the enemy.



Johnny Football threw out the first pitch! I guess when you're the only freshman to win a Heismann trophy there are certain perks. Maybe I should win a Heismann, then I can throw out the first pitch. Someday...someday...

Well, we won the game 7-3, thanks to three Ranger home runs!! So, Zach did a dance only he can do:



Oh, to be young again...not caring what you do in front of people. Ha ha...

All in all we had a pretty fun weekend. As we began the 2013 Rangers season, we say good-bye to the annual spring tradition of the daddy daughter dance. There might be more later on, but for now this looks like the last one. They all had one thing in common though. We always had a fun time. But this year seemed to be the most fun. She's getting to be so grown up. She will always be my little girl though. No matter what she does in her life or where life takes her.

"One Fun Weekend!!"

Besides being Easter weekend, we also managed to squeeze in a trip to Six Flags! I switched shifts with someone at work to get off early so we could enjoy the park longer. And, since the iPhone 4 has a better camera, I managed to snag a few pix:



We always start with the Merry-Go-Round. Emily was doing something else so it was just the three of us + the Barkers. This is a good shot of da guyz.



I thought this would make a good shot of Zach and Carson. How Zach is managing to keep all of his teeth in his mouth and not lost any yet is beyond me.



Not quite sure what Jerramy is looking at...literally...I have no idea.

The next day we watched Zach's soccer game then went to Rita's Italian Ice in Euless:



Me: "Hey Jerramy, how's that Italian Ice taste??"
Jerramy: "MMMMMMHHHPPPHHMMM......."
Me: "I see..."

Then Jerramy and I took the kids to the River Legacy park! I had no idea this place existed, but Mr. Tour Guide apparently knew where everything is:



Everything is dinosaur-related...apparently.



Good background shot. It's actually a pretty cool place.

Then...Sunday...Easter morning! I bought a new shirt at Penney's just for that day. It's got Easter colours but it may be a little...I don't know...fruity? I hope not. After the morning church service the kids hunted eggs at their grandparent's house:



Zach: "Are you sure this is the magic Easter egg?"
Cari: "Um...define magic...?"
Zach: "Like...is it made out of real gold?"
Cari: "Ohhhh....then no. It may have some candy in it though!"
Zach: "Good enough."



Now I remember. Emmy had a camping trip with the Girl Scouts...that's where she was. Here we see she's on the hunt for some eggs. No Easter dress, but she got boots!



This was a lizard that was creeping around. He actually stated still long enough for me to move in and get a good shot of him.



Of course, what Easter would be complete without Silly String!! Everybody got sprayed...including...



...poor Cari. She leaveth alone, only to get supersoaked by yon string.





No one was safe...not even me! Everyone kept spraying me AND my camera...even after repeated warnings or my wrath went completely ignored...they shall pay for this.

I know I haven't had anything really profound to say lately. Maybe everything there is to know in life has been learned. Maybe not. But the kids are almost done with school. Emmy's gonna be in junior high in like four months! And Zach will be in second grade! Time just keeps moving on...and there's absolutely nothing any of us can do about it. So just enjoy the ride.