Quick Survey

How many of you would go to a tattoo parlor called "The Bleeding Cowboy"? Show of hands? Kind of like going to a restaurant called "The Exploding Bowel", isn't it?

Golf

Explain how it makes it less of a sport because it has different rules and emphasizes different areas of physical endeavor? Does everything have to be the bloody NFL? I mean, I like football as much or more than the next guy, but jeez-holding everything up to the NFL for comparison makes me throw up a little in my mouth. Especially when I see how Tsar Goodell treats his peons...

A remarkably long without pictures

By which I mean, I've gone a long time without taking any. Which is weird. I didn't really take any at the 4th of July, even. Here's Gwen the mountain goat.

Aerin bugging me in my reading chair.


Kylie and Aerin, muggers for the camera.



Gwen, playing on the grass during the fireworks. What fireworks?

These fireworks. Yes, it was lame. I screwed up and got the lame fireworks this year.


Gwen didn't care much. She was just glad to be out in the sun.


Conor was glad to be out of the sun.


Drank a lot of this. Just like this picture.

Hey, it's a new post

Here's what's going on: Halle, Jack, Aerin, and their cousin Camryn waiting for Old Faithful to erupt.

And right after it's over.


And then walking back to the car after the eruption, the kids decided to stop and pose. Cam was so nice to indulge Aerin in a piggy back ride the whole way back.


We drove through Grandma Syd's favorite spot, Firehole Canyon, on the way back. It's petty steep, so we had to keep a hold on Aerin. I think they all wanted to chase the chipmunk down the slope.


Halle and Camryn.


Pushing Gwen in the shopping cart:


Aerin is a BoSox fan- that's my girl.


It was hailing like nuts.



View from the hammock:



The tramp:

Taylor Swift

I hate to be a crank about this, or seem obsessed, but that girl is everywhere. Idaho Falls has 5 country music stations within earshot, and I've had the recent experience of having her on 3 of them, and Carrie Underwood on the other two, all at the same time. I think Taylor is fine as a songwriter, but I long to hear someone else sing those songs. Not Carrie. Someone ELSE.

Then, I go home last night, and the CMT Video awards are on (quick question: do those folks actually feel like they won something? Or are they as vaguely embarrassed to receive a VIDEO award as I am to watch it?), and Taylor Swift performs live, once with Def Leppard (Poor Some Sugar) and once alone. And.She.Is.Terrible. It's like watching an 11-year-old perform at a talent show. She weaves around the pitch like a driver with 12 beers around the center line. And her stage presence is cringe-inducing. Like she is doing a parody of a parody of a rock star. And boy, is she gangly.

Don McLean was wrong. YESTERDAY was the day the music died.

Today's Pet Peeve: Misuse of the word "clinch"

You see it more and more these days, presumably because there are more rounds of playoffs. But friends, "clinch" and "win" are NOT synonyms. They have related meanings, but they cannot be used interchangeably. Tonight's offender was a Sportscenter graphic (really, of all the institutions, THEY don't know better?) stating that the Penguins had "clinched" the Stanley Cup. No, they won the Stanley Cup. The game, and the series, and the playoffs are over. They have not assured that they will win the Cup, it is already won. You "clinch" a division, or a game, when you have done something that assures that you will win the division, or the game, when the time comes. Like, the way the Rangers will clinch the AL West in, like, August this year. They will "clinch" in August, and "win" in September.

Drives me nuts.

Jack Dancing

I apologize in advance for this video. It is a small snippet of what was about a minute and a half of Jack dancing to a Wiggles polka. It was so hilarious I delayed getting the camera until it was almost too late. Try not to feel too teased.

Jack's Birthday

The big 0-5. The NBA Finals were on tonight, and I was reminded how they were on 5 years ago, in the delivery room while we waited for Jack to come out. And I was also reminded how I hate basketball. In the words (and accent/inflection) of Trevor: "I hate you so much."


On a lighter note, Apryl made shark cupcakes, with life-preserver cupcakes and little-Swedish-fish-about-to-be-murdered cupcakes. See how cute?



A close-up.


You can see how excited Jack was to open his presents. Actually, this is his no-nonsense, "I just told you how it is" face.


Tons of his cousins were here, to liven up the party.


The whole gang.


Kelsey and Gwen.


Jack forgot to wait until we were done singing to blow them out, and he remembered after he'd blown out two. Or so.


Jack is constantly asking me to give him a piggy-back ride, so uncle Trevor was nice enough to pinch-hit.

The last while

We went to Logan a few weeks ago, and stopped by Grandma Darlene's grave.

Then we had a picnic with Josh and Wendy and Kylie and Lainey. Lainey on a Rice Krispie Treat.


We borrowed Jim's canoe, and just like Lewis and Clark, we paddled it. Although, we didn't paddle it all the way...



Apryl is cute.


Gwen has really caught on to this whole "eating" thing. I've been telling her for years how cool it is, but she's a late bloomer, I guess.


There were trees in the park that the kids enjoyed even more than the water.


Kylie, minutes before her death-defying tree hang.


Aerin, two feet off the ground.


Lainey, holding on for dear life.
Then we got to ride Jim's SWEEEEEEET!!!!! bikes that he restored, Cushman scooters.


Here's the hang. It was like 20 minutes. She's got very good arms.


Halle played it safe.

Last week, we just hung out here, on our freshly-mowed lawn.

Played a little ball.
How long is "a while", anyway?

Indulge me

Sorry, had to post this picture, taken with my phone today. Too cute.

Recent Events

Is that a great blog post title or what? So original! So fresh! So descriptive!

Jack getting his diploma. Now he has a license to say he's sorry when he hits another kid.

Singing songs of joy.

Apparently, Jack's favorite letter is H. I don't know why.

Halle pushing Aerin in the shopping cart.

Gwen falling asleep in the chair.

The kids at their picnic table. Wish I had a picnic table.

Gwen, or as she is known down south, "Pepe".

Halle is a bookworm, just like her mom.

Jack in his sweet half-suit. I need to get one like it.

Baby-in-a-box. The kids love to hang out in boxes.

I have a picture like this for every one of my kids. I should go find them.

Playing with cousin Kylie.

Jack has an interesting look in this one.

Aerin asleep with Ichabod the duck.

The kids swinging at Grandma's.