School Days So They Tell Us Are The Most Sublime Of Our Lives...

This HAS to have been the shortest summer on record! It rained all through June, we were doing family reunion and vacation all through July, and August just flew by. I think it's a crime to make kids return to school before Labor Day. But no one asked me. So, bright and early on Thursday, August 18, we inhaled our donuts, bedecked the kids in their first-day-of-school finery, filled up the backpacks, posed for the obligatory photo shoot, and sent them running for the bus! And I was off to shopping with only one child in tow...

Bye, Bye Miss American Pie

Donuts and traditions--love 'em! Any day of the week, any week of the year, count me in for both. I'm not even picky, I love so many variations--on both! So, as a young[er] mom anticipating Natasha's first day of 1st grade, I read about this donut tradition and decided to adopt it as our own, thus, combining two (three counting Natasha!) loves. Every year on the first day of school, we put out donuts and drinks for the neighborhood kids to celebrate the kick-off to academia. This year, Natasha designed the announcement flyer and all of the kids took them around to the neighbor houses. We love this tradition and, I think, what better way to start a new school year than completely hopped up on sugar?? After all, these beautiful kids are the teachers' problems now....hee, hee.

Now Gimme Money (That's What I Want!)

April, 2000--I experienced one of the proudest moments of my life as my hunky honey walked across that vast, black, Marriott Center stage, blue hood swinging as he moved, to accept his diploma declaring him, "Master". It had been a poor two years, with one baby girl, another baby on the way and no one earning a buck. 'Though I wasn't exactly excited to be moving away from home and family, I was grateful for a new Intel job beckoning to us from the beautiful Portland area. Fast forward to August, 2009--for the first time in nine years, I FINALLY got to see where my darling spends the better portion of his life putting that degree to use. Due to security issues (I know, I look dangerous, right?), I have never had the chance to see Shayne's office. My mind's eye had a picture of him on the other end of the phone, but now I get to blend fact with fiction. Once a year, IM Flash opens the doors to the building (all 2.3 million square feet of it!) and allows employees to bring their families to see what is going on perched up there on the mountain. I was stunned to see the interior hallways--you can drive two semi-trucks side by side down them and not have the trucks touch! We took a tour of the plant and were told we had walked a mile to see a bunch of processes I didn't understand in the least. Oh,well. I just wanted to see that office, that door that proclaims a space in the universe my significant other occupies when not with me. The kids loved the cotton candy (which Shayne volunteered to hand out to people for a couple of hours), the games, free lunch and their own name badges just like the one Dad wears. Thanks IM Flash for the party, and thanks Shayne for going to work there every day--we love you for it!

Do You Wanna Dance?

In my heart of hearts, I believe there is nothing quite as incredibly adorable as a tiny dancer. For the last year, while being a passenger in the the constant shuttling of Natasha to dance, Fynnley has cried and begged to be taken to dance class. I couldn't wait to make her dream come true! So, bright and early the day we arrived home from our trip (that's right, nine hours later to be exact!), I took Fynnley to Just Dance for her first ballet class! She was beside herself giddy in anticipation of all the whirling and twirling she would do for the next 45 minutes with her best friend, Portia, by her side. Jessica and I stood outside the door just giggling, sighing and fawning over our two dancing, princesses. Fynnley's incredible (and somewhat strange) flexibility allowed her great agility in her first attempt at stretches and dance positions. I'm guessing this will prove pretty helpful if she is to follow in her sister's footsteps! My heart just swelled to see how happy Fynnley was to FINALLY get to dance. She was distraught to end class and asked every day if she could go to dance class again. She loves to dress up in her new "dance-tard" and carries her ballet slippers all around the house in her special, little purse just waiting for Tuesday morning to come again. Miss Tiffany told me after class that as soon as the girls were given time to "free dance", Fynnley threw her arms open wide, began twirling and proclaiming, "It feels so good to dance!" When I hugged her at the end of class and asked her how it was, she replied, "Mommy, was I a beautiful dancer?" I eagerly assured her she is the most beautiful dancer I have ever seen (along with Nastasha, of course!) Love you SO much, my tiny dancer...

Do You Remember...

The first time I met Norie Riegel, she looked at me with a little smirk and said, "So, you're in love with Shayne, huh?" and started chuckling (somewhat evily, I might add). Turns out, upon finding out I had agreed to marry this boy, it was a pretty common reaction from those who had known Shayne his whole life! It made me really start to wonder what I was in for and what stories this boy had yet to tell. So, you can imagine my interest in attending his 20-year high school class reunion--what would all his old friends have to say about this guy (whom I now know so well)? Shayne didn't particularly want to attend (I sort of guilted him into it, I think), but, nonetheless, he agreed to go. Arriving at the venue, we laughed to see it was not much to look at. As we walked in, I giggled inside when I saw the girl handing out name tags--she was dressed in a Harley-Davidson tank top and cut-off shorts. Her partner was equally dressed up in Harley rag-tag finest. We slowly made our way into the dinner hall and I could just sense Shayne's lack of desire to be there. He began approaching people he recognized and tried his best to remember names (which he is famous for never knowing!) People were wheeling in coolers full of alcohol and quickly taking advantage of the chance to "party." We shared the dinner table with folks already putting down their fifth can of beer and getting louder by the minute. I enjoyed getting to meet a few of Shayne's good friends, and hearing them corroborate the stories I've heard for years. The rest of the experience? We decided we could leave it for another 20 years... or maybe forever! Nonetheless, I'm pretty glad this guy of mine actually graduated way back then--so I'll celebrate to that!

Catch A Wave And You're Sittin' On Top Of The World...

Shayne's favorite place on earth is on the beach! If I would let him, I think he'd move out of his cubicle and into a beach shack and sell surfboards for a living! His kids seem to share the same enthusiasm for sand and surf. We couldn't get Connor and Dane out of the water; over and over, they'd be beaten by the heavy, Atlantic surf and dive in for more. Natasha loved it as well, only getting discouraged by her lack of ability to ward off the daily sunburn! And, Fynn? She loved the sand and digging, but wasn't too sure about those waves. As long as we had a tight grip on her little hand, she agreed to let the swirling waters encircle her little ankles. We loved going to Rehoboth Beach and checking out all the stores along the boardwalk, and playing in the surf for several days at Fenwick Island beach. We especially loved sampling the food stores that lined the sand (the best fudge ever, Parker's caramel corn, Thrasher's fries, 100 flavors ice cream (Shayne and I had "Better Than Sex" ice cream--it was pretty, darn good!), thick crab cakes, and lots of crabs smothered in Chesapeake Bay seasoning (Shayne ate so many, he got blisters on his lips from the seasoning!)). Maybe next time, he'll actually act upon his desire to pay for private surf lessons...then we can open that beach shack!