Happy Memorial Day! For a change I took the day off and just switched my work day to next Friday.

I wanted to take the day off so Allison and I could sing in the Annapolis Memorial Day parade with the Girl Scout choir. We had to be down to Annapolis by 9am and already it was about 80 degrees out. We sang four different patriotic songs and practically ran through the parade(they had a fast pace this year). We were all sweating by the time we got down to the docks. This year we did not sing in the Naval Academy ceremony at the end of the parade, so Allison and I headed over to Kilwins for ice cream. Yes, there is another bit of Michigan here in Maryland. Allison was happy to have Superman ice cream and I had the Moose Tracks.

Tom and Scott spent their morning at Game Stop. And Tom cleaned up all the camping equipment out of the garage to put away his new used car! He decided he'd better pick out a car for himself since Allison will need to start driving soon. He picked out a Pontiac Vibe(4 door hatchback looking car) from Car Max on Friday. It looks like it will work for him-he likes that he can lower the back seats and put in camping equipment. I just don't like that it seems to have that cigarette smell and someone must have had a dog since the inside door on the passenger side is peeling off. Tom thinks a dog scratched the lining while sticking its head out the window.

Welcome Back from India Eric! WE loved reading your email and checking out all the cool photos. Sounds like you had an incredible trip !I am always amazed at how much you appreciate the United States after visiting another country. There's No Place Like Home!

We also spent Memorial Day doing some housework. Tom spent 3 days unclogging my kitchen sink! After gallons of Drain -o and countless hours of snaking the pipes, he decided he either broke through the clog or the pipe! Guess we will have to wait and see. He just couldn't bear having to call a plumber in on a holiday weekend(or any time for that matter). He thinks the pipes clogged where they hooked up the newly remodeled line to our previous, original pipes when we redid the kitchen. I hope that does not happen again! I meanwhile was busy reorganizing and cleaning out our shed and parts of the garage. Tom started putting away all the camping gear in the attic. I am sure by the time we get it all washed and put away, it will be time to pull it all out for another trip! I also spent some time doing yardwork-edging in 99 degrees is probably not the best idea, but I never seem to have any time to get it done!

At least I talked Tom into turning on our air conditioning. Summer weather came early to Maryland this year!

In the evening after dinner, we all went over to our neighbor's house to congratulate their daughter on her high school graduation. She opted out of the family party because she thought all her friends would be having parties instead. Turns out she only went to one party and none of her family members came to visit from Ohio except her grandparents. We were invited over on Monday night for cake and we dropped off a graduation gift.

I sent some official Memorial day photos-Allison in Annapolis after the parade at the docks, Scott waiting to put the flags out at the Veterans cemetery and our all American car collection(red, white and blue!).

So Tuesday we will all be back to school and work. If we don't melt first!

Well, I survived a week without Tom(sort of). I managed to clog my kitchen sink. Guess I can't do 20 things at once! Like dishes, laundry, cook and study with the kids.

Allison was mostly on her own this week.She was busy preparing for the High School Assessments. Thank goodness for online quizzes. She feels like she did well on her last two high school assessments(biology and english) last week, but the government test this past week was a bit tougher. And to think they may not have it next year! (Not in the budget!)

Scott was loaded down with homework and tests since he doesn't have much school left. I would have liked to have had him start his studying last weekend but we did not get the study guide until Monday(and because I asked the teacher for one). We mostly just worked on his spanish(telling time) and the vocab for his American history test. He also took a break while I was cutting the grass and washed and vacuumed my car for me. There has just been a yellow layer of pollen on everything. I also had him hose down some of the camping equipment(it was still full of mud) before I had to run and pick up Allison from work.

Last Sunday evening we had some guests drop by. The woman I met during Ladies Night Out who is from Michigan and is a Girl Scout volunteer. Their family moved here to Baltimore for work since her husband is an engineer and did not have much luck keeping a job in the Detroit area. She dropped by with her husband and twin girls(Scott's age) to visit with Cookie. They are shopping for a dog and thought about a Labradoodle. I told them to consider the Cavachon and she did. We are still waiting to hear if they found an available puppy yet. Not many here in Maryland. I think her girls could have stayed all night. They were mesmerized by all of Scott's electronic toys(they have two older brothers) and I think they enjoyed Scott's company too! I know he was in no hurry for them to leave! Their oldest brother just graduated from high school and was accepted into MSU, but being out of state, their Dad said it is too expensive. I guess their son was very disappointed. We hope to see them all again.

Tom arrived in Reno on Sunday afternoon with a fried computer. Tom was chosen as a Keynote Speaker for his group. He had his presentation on his laptop but since it was down he had to rely on the conference people to give him a copy of his presentation. Fortunately he had the back up and his talk went off well on Monday afternoon. He was then done for the week and decided the conference wasn't terribly exciting. However, Reno was not too exciting either. Instead he drove into Northern California to do a little sight seeing. Mostly just trees. He did have time to do a little networking. A woman from Hershey wants to hire him! I think it would be awesome to work for the candy company-and Tom could watch all the Hershey Bear Hockey games too! The hockey was tempting, but not the job.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch there was lots of homework going on. Allison was busy studying and working on her National Honor Society essay which is included with the application. Scott and I were busy studying for his history test, but he also had other homework assignments to complete first. Besides studies, we had fun activities to catch up with. I took Scott to his boy scout meeting on Tuesday night. First he had to type up his menu that he made from the rafting weekend and thenbreak it down according to the Food Pyramid as one of his boy scout assignments. Next we started on the budget assignment. Scott also stayed after school for his firs Lego Club meeting. The school is going to sponsor a Lego TEam next year to build robots and compete. Scott is very excited. Tom signed up to help out too(part of the STEM program). I also had to run Scott up to the dentist for his cavity. This time he had a real cavity and thought the whole thing was a bit uncomfortable. And it took longer for the novacaine to wear off.

Weds we were back to studying. I also was proofreading Allison's essay, so we decided by Thursday it was going to be turned in(it was due Friday). She managed to get all her paperwork turned in on Thursday morning, and I was asked to fill out a recommendation too from one of my girl scouts and Allison's classmate. (Nothing like last minute!).

Tom arrived home on Thursday night. I got Allison to her last Field Hockey practice, but I could not get SCott to gymnastics since they were at the same time. Allison has decided after trying out positions on the field, that she is happy to stay in goalie. She has also decided that field hockey in the spring is horrid for allergies. She said the Claritin is just not working anymore and we have switched to Allegra. A lot of the other drugs just make her very sleepy.

Right after her field hockey practice, I fed both kids and Allison and I went over to meet with the instructor for the Therapeutic Horseback riding program. We just missed her last Thursday, but we caught her this week(and no thunderstorm for a change). We took some more photos and had her sign Allison's paperwork as well as discussed her hopes for the project and needs. She said another girl scout was going to take on making picnic tables and clearing up a place for parents to sit and watch outside. We also found out that the woman in charge just happens to be the Aunt of one of my previous girl scouts and a great friend of Allison's! Small world.

Over the weekend, Tom finally was able to visit the stable with Allison to help her draw up a design on the computer. He decided to really meet the new handicap standards for ramp dimensions, it is going to need a double ramp with a landing. (Bigger project, more money). He is now busy working with Allison on pricing out the lumber. Allison needs to write up a proposal for approval first from the Girl Scout board before she can start work on the project. Unfortunately, the board only meets the first Weds of each month to review Gold Award submisions which is this WEds and I don't think we can get through all the paperwork and drop it off at the main office by then. Especially with Monday being a holiday. So it may have to go in for July. Still better to try and get it done this year I think than next year.

Tom and I had Friday off, but I was busy with doctor appointments. One for me and one for the cat. My doctor likes to keep an eye on my blood pressure. The medical field wants everyone to stay under 120/80 and I run 122/82(not enough for them to worry about right now so no drugs for me) Yeah! I then had to take the cat in for her yearly check up. She needed some shots and I still worry about her weight. She actually gained a 1/4lb from last year and is up to 8lbs. They said all her bloodwork is normal, but did give her an antibiotic shot since they said she might have a slight bladder infection. Overall, she is in great health for 11 yrs old(much to Tom's disappointment).

In the evening Allison had piano and Tom took Scott to a boy scout event. The boys place flags on the graves at the veteran's cemetery every Memorial Day Weekend. We have participated in this event for the past 5 years. After Allison's lesson, she joined our old neighbor's daughter at the movies to see the new Kung Fu Panda. Their Dad dropped off and I picked up.

On Saturday, after SCott's swim lesson, he joined the boys to see the movie and afterwards we hosted a sleepover. Allison had to work so we had some running around to do. Tom invited our neighbors over for drinks and an outdoor movie. The kids all watched the Yogi Bear movie on our projector in the backyard while us girls chatted inside.

On Sunday Allison and I had a singing event for a Girl Scout Award banquet with the GS choir after which we headed over for a pool party at Matt and Diana's house. Everyone brought their dogs so it kept us busy keeping an eye on Cookie with the big dogs(Cookie actually told the big dogs what she thought about them!). The weather has been incredibly hot over the weekend so it felt good to cool off in the pool, and Matt made incredible ribs and too much food. We were in charge of dessert so I had Allison bake brownies(even though it was much too hot to turn on the oven). Tom was finally able to clean out the vents and turn on the air conditioning(and Mark it is actually still officially Spring by the way). Summer doesn't start until June 21st and Allison has to go to school until June 22nd! Scott is done in two weeks.

At least the kids didn't have a lot of tests or assignments over the holiday weekend. Allison just finished up with reading A Catcher in the Rye(she liked it) and SCott is finishing The Rats of NIMH. And we were excited to see she got an A on her research paper that she worked on for several months. And she really did all the work herself. I especially like Allison's Honor English teacher this year-I thought she did a great job truly showing the kids how to write their own research papers step by step. But as I said, it is not over yet!

A Huge Happy Birthday to Christopher Bozyk who turned 14 this week! Happy Birthday Christopher!

I am sending beach pictures from our Spring Break(I wish we could have spent Memorial DAy weekend back at the beach!) That's Venice beach after a rain storm, Nokomis beach on Saturday before EAster Sunday and a stroll along the beach with Mom Seitz and Tom after dinner at Pops.

Baltimore Blog

Looks like we all survived the End of the World day! The kids were hoping they would not have to study. They still had to study, but we managed to have some fun too! And it was nice to finally see the sun! We have had non stop rain, tstorms and tornadoes all week!

We spent Saturday afternoon in the sunshine at the Wine in the Woods festival with our neighbors. The festival certainly has grown since we were there last. The festival brings together all the wineries in Maryland for us to sample and purchase their wines. And there are certainly a lot more wineries in Maryland now! It made it a lot harder to squeeze up to the tasting tables under the tents. But it was a beautiful day to sit out and have a picnic and get caught up with our neighbors activities. The kids mostly read their books and played video games. So Tom decided to take us all to the Drive IN Saturday night. They were playing the Big Cats Disney movie that Allison and I wanted to see, along with the new Pirates movie and Thor if we wanted to stay up all night and see it again. I think we all really enjoyed the new Pirates movie and the Cats movie was fine even though we missed the first 15 mins or so waiting in line to get in.

Scott's school had an outdoor movie night on Friday, Despicable Me, but we opted out. The outdoor drive in movie theatre is a whole new experience and we even got to bring the dog! She kept me warm sleeping on my lap while we sat outside the back of the van eating popcorn.

Fortunately Allison had Saturday off from work. She still has to go in on Sunday, but I think she enjoyed the break. She has been working very hard studying for her High School Assessment tests. She finished the computerized English and Biology tests and will take the Government test next week. Besides the exams, she has also had to keep up with tests and lots of homework in the rest of her classes. Especially since she missed a few classes while taking the 1.5hr long assessments. She just finished another novel in English, The Catcher in the Rye. She actually enjoyed the story and is finishing up the quizzes and vocab tests this week.

We were also trying to get her application together for the National Honor Society. Allison was busy passing out the recommendation forms to her 6 teachers and her Field Hockey coach. I went out and delivered forms to our GS coleader and two church representatives for her Altar Server position and work as a Peer minister for the confirmation program. Now we have to fill out her application and write an essay! All this so she can pick up more volunteer work if she is chosen as a member! Oi Vay!

On top of all that, we managed to come across a Gold Award project for her for Girl Scouts. (More volunteer work). The Gold Award is equal to the Eagle Scout position. A local horse stable was looking for someone to rebuild their therapeutic horseback riding ramp to mount handicapped riders onto the horses. Their ramp is 20 yrs old and needs updated. So Allison and I headed out to the stable on Thursday night in a tstorm after her field hockey practice to get an idea of the amount of work we have ahead of us. We just missed the instructor, but we will catch up with her. Allison has to have the project pre approved by GS council before we can start. And of course we need to ask for donations for building supplies. Tom said he would be happy to help her with the project. It would be nice to get it done this summer since her schedule will probably only get busier towards the end of high school. Allison is excited to be around the horses again. She is hoping if she has any free time to volunteer at the stable. It is nice that it is so close. (It will be even more convenient when she can drive herself!)

And if you heard, Maryland's horses have been quite popular lately with Saturday's Preakness horse race. Sadly, the Maryland horse, Animal Kingdom who won the Kentucky Derby came in 2nd place. Still not bad since the horse was rated 20th to win the Kentucky Derby. Now on to the Belmont in New York.

Scott is busy winding down the end of his school year. He performed in the choir on Monday night with the school band in their end of the year concert. The kids all did a terrific job, and we really enjoyed the music selections. Scott mainly enjoyed the cupcakes afterwards. I enjoyed catching up with all the parents. On Thursday he just had a 1/2 day of school as the kids participated in Sports Day. Friday he also had a break when the room parents organized a 5th grade picnic. Since it was my day off I went up to help pass out hamburgers and hot dogs. A few Dads rented a massive grill and cooked for us while all the parents donated the food. I even brought a few hula hoops and they put out footballs and basketballs. It was still a bit wet and chilly on Friday, and the kids only had about an hour to get their food, eat and run around. But it was a nice break for them I think. Scott unfortunately was running slow with a cold he picked up on the rafting weekend. He mostly leaned on my shoulder the whole time.

So I am on my own with the kids this week. Tom is off to Reno Nevada this week where he is the Keynote Speaker for a conference. His big day is Monday morning. Then he was trying to figure out what he is going to do the rest of the week in Reno(maybe a drive over to Tahoe). The way the weather has been he could probably go snow skiing!

So I will be on my own to run the kids to scout meetings, field hockey, piano lessons and the dentist. Allison had her turn this past week with her first real cavity. She did great and even made it through the novacaine injection without too much fanfare. Next week is SCott's turn. He actually enjoys the experience! And of course he can't stop losing his teeth! He brought another one home last week! I can't keep up with the growth spurts!

And speaking of growing, another Big Happy Birthday goes out to niece Stacey!

We are also waiting to hear how her brother is doing on his trip to India.

A few more vacation photos at Sea World. Allison loves feeding the dolphins(and so do I!)

Baltimore Blog

What a wet weekend it has been! And Tom and Scott were off Whitewater Rafting with the Boy Scouts this past weekend. I guess if you are going to participate in a water sport, it shouldn't really matter if it is raining or not. But thunderstorming is whole 'nother thing.

Tom and Scott were busy packing up(with my supervision and recommendations) for their long weekend trip to the Ohiopyle-the river course south of Pittsburgh- about a 3.5hr drive from our house. Scott was off of school and Tom was off of work on Friday, so they had plenty of time to pack that morning. Tom had Scott volunteer to cook for the troop that weekend to get his camping basics requirement finished. He had to prepare two hot breakfasts, one hot dinner and two snacks. The river crew served lunch. They made french toast and egg Mcmuffin sandwiches for breakfast and SCott wanted spaghetti with meatballs for dinner. Of course snacks included marshmallows. It just isn't a whole lot of fun camping in the rain. And it is a whole lot tougher to cook. Tom found out he was not too impressed with this troops resources. He said they are not terribly organized and do not have a lot of supplies. Not like his old troop. He also had to give the older scout boys a lecture about helping the younger boys. Yes I know, it is a Scout run activity. But like Tom and I finally agree on, someone has to first show the younger boys how everything is done and do a little supervising. The older boys kicked back and were going to let Scott's group struggle. Tom decided he'd better step in.

Tom also thought he and Scott could tent together but I told him it was a scout no no. I am pretty up to date on scouting rules since I have been running Allison's troop now for 6 years. Tom had picked up a new 4 person tent anyhow. When he found out he couldn't sleep with Scott in our tent, he bunked with another Dad and the boys were in together. The boys tent leaked of course and one of Scott's classmates cried all night long during a pretty nasty thunderstorm while their sleeping bags got soaked. Tom said lightening struck the camp not too far from their tents. Oh joy.

I actually think Tom enjoyed the rafting the most between the boys. But he said it was 7 miles of nonstop paddling around huge boulders. He figures he'll be sore for weeks. Even Scott had to paddle which I think made it more difficult!

So Scott has been to both camping extremes so far-freezing and drowning. The Scout Leaders swear it doesn't get any worse than it has! I don't know about that.

While Tom and SCott were getting wet, Allison and I had our share of water too. We had to take our boy scout safety swim test on Sunday morning. We each had to swim 4 laps non stop and then tread water for 1 min. I was a bit out of breath! But we passed so now we can join the boys on any water adventures-like camping at Chincoteague island this fall(with the wild ponies).

The boys got back Sunday afternoon and I spent the rest of the day washing very wet and muddy clothes. I also ran out and got the grass cut in between rain showers, raked leaves, cut tree branches and pulled weeds. I think I am as sore as Tom!

Since it was so nice and quiet here at our house on Saturday, I spent the day catching up with my blogs. I know some of you have been busy reading! Allison was working and the boys were off paddling. I would have been mowing the lawn, but too much rain.

Allison also had off on Friday-midterms- so she was scheduled to work. Tom dropped her off at the skating rink while shopping for camp food since I had a class to go to at work all afternoon. At least I got off in time to pick her up. Allison and I also ran some errands Saturday night. We both wanted to go see the new Disney film Big CAts, but for some reason it has left the Maryland movie theaters. It was posted in the newspaper, but was not showing at the movie theaters. I knew I should have insisted they take me to that movie on Mothers Day!

On Friday night it was Girls Night Out as I joined my neighbor at Houlihan's restaurant to celebrate her birthday. Turns out one of her friends is a newish transplant from Michigan. Her husband is a civil engineer and had to look for work outside the Detroit area from Rochester Hills. She was so excited to meet another Michigander that knows how to play euchre and Michigan Rummy(another polish catholic girl too) and that is familiar with terms like Fudgie. We were both crying over the Red Wings loss. We also closed down the restaurant that night!

Tom and I have been busy trying to keep up with the hockey games during the Stanley Cup finals. Now we are all out of teams to cheer for-both the CApitals and the Wings are out. Too bad.

We were pretty busy during the week too(surprise)-

Tom and I had to rely on neighbors to help pick up and drop off the kids last week since I signed both Tom and I up for a class on How to Teach Your Teen to Drive. That was actually a birthday present from Allison to Tom(cuts down on yelling we hope during up and coming driving lessons). Anyhow, the guidelines to get your permit and driver's license have changed since Tom and I were in high school. Now they really don't expect the kids to learn to drive from Driver's Ed, but they actually expect the real training to come from the parents. And we are supposed to prove that we spent 60 hours out on the road with our teen before they can apply for their drivers license. Even after they get their license, they are still under probation for two years.

I thought it was a good class.The instructor gave some good tips on how to provide our new driver with recommendations for safe driving and how parents can provide a better experience to their teens while teaching them the safe methods. They covered learning styles and how to incorporate all the different styles into learning to drive. WE also can keep track of our progress of the different skills Allison masters on the computer and print out a form to take to the MVA when we have reached our 60 hours. The class was two nights for 2 hours each night. We even managed to get a quick date out of it and went to dinner at Outback.

Unfortunately the class ran right into Scott's boy scout meeting on Tuesday night and Allison's field hockey camp on Thursday night. We were able to get one of the scout families to take Scott and bring him home. We were able to drop Allison off at Field Hockey, but I had to ask a neighbor to pick her up. The neighbor even let Scott come over while Allison was gone for a play date with her son. It all worked out great. And Allison was so proud of herself as she scored two goals in their scrimmage! In the two years she has played as a goalie she has never had the chance to score a goal!

ON Weds night I had to run Allison up to school for an Open House put on by this years Interns. They were showcasing their research projects-kinda like a science fair. We wanted to get some research ideas for Allison's internship program next year at Resurrection as a teacher's aide.

So that was enough activity for one week. Now I am busy trying to drop off forms for references for Allison for her application to the National HOnor Society. As much as they require for acceptance into the NHS, you would think she was running for president! And she has been busy taking practice tests for the upcoming High School Assessments scheduled for next week.

Wish her luck! And Good Luck to Eric Seitz who is currently taking a class in Delhi, India! My but hurts just thinking about that 15hr plane ride. Yuck!

Here are some more photos from Easter break. One of the neighbors at Mom and Dad Seitzs place in Florida thought this stone looked like a bunny, so they painted it for Easter-complete with a white cotton tail in the back! And to top it off, this bunny gave away free candy! Scott made many visits to that rock on Easter weekend. Amazingly, the Easter bunny also stopped by with some baskets for our family to hunt for on EAster Sunday(the TSA at the airport must think I am weird since I had quite a collection of Easter goodies in my suitcase-not the candy though! They did search my bag and left their calling card). I also sent of photo of Allison and Scott in their Easter best at church. And while we were visiting Busch Gardens Africa, Uncle Mark was experiencing the real thing! Hope your accommodations were better than this place Mark!

So we were all back home in Baltimore. I had picked up Cookie from the doggie day camp on Weds night after work. I had to drop her off Palm Sunday before church since we left so early on MOnday morning. She also picked up a cold and is currently getting over another ear infection.

Unfortunately we have all been battling colds and hayfever since we got back from Florida. My cold was so bad I lost my voice and had to spend the weekend whispering to Scott(not alot of fun since we were studying for tests and preparing his science poster). And Scott wasn't feeling too well. I know he is getting old when he said "I can't get sick, I have too much to do"! And his hard work paid off(at least for the science poster). His teacher was so impressed with all his hard work(and his mother's suggestions for creativity) that they took a photo of SCott and posted it on the school website while he was giving his presentation to the class.

And speaking of pets, we had one more week with our little gerbil Yoshi after returning from Florida and he passed away on the 6th of May. Scott and I buried him in the backyard with Gwen. We had the gerbils for 3 years. And I just got through reading a book I found very enjoyable called "The Gerbil Farmer's Daughter" (true story). Now I am reading about Dewey the Library cat-the sequel. It is all short stories about people and their cats and I have to stop reading it in public cause I can't stop crying when the cats and the people die. I had to wear my sunglasses on the plane cause I couldn't stop crying.

Anyhow, we were back to a crazy schedule. Allison with Field Hockey, after school High School Assessment prep, piano. Scott with gymnastics classes and Boy Scout meetings and swim lessons.

He and Tom went off WEds night to take their Boy SCout swim test. Allison and I had to reschedule. I had my last GS leadership meeting the same night for the school year. Now I have to sign up my GS troop online for next year before the end of the month.

Allison and I had another GS event/dinner and gala to attend. Allison and I are GS Board Members and we have two meetings a year and then the end of the year dinner. We had a wonderful formal dinner and then listened to the yearly awards ceremony. Afterwards they formally voted for the candidates being sent to Houston TX in November at the National Convention. Allison was voted in so it is a definite. And I plan on going with her(as a chaperone). Allison is so excited and can't wait to see all her cousins(we hope to squeeze in a quick visit).

Congratulations Allison!

Believe it or not, I was a little worn out by now on all the Galas and formal dinners! I am still recovering from my cold, and Tom and I both went to a gala on Friday April 29th when Kate and William were married.

OUr friends from MSU, Matt and Di invited us to the Gutterball GAla put on as a fundraiser for a Dyslexic School. Matt is on the board as the Accountant. He is trying to get Tom to have Northrop donate money for a new school. Ha! But it was a fun night with some actual bowling, lots of eating and drinking, live and silent auctions(we didn't get anything) and all around the theme of the Royal Wedding(if that makes sense). Some people came very formally dressed with fascinators and everything. WE even had wedding cake for dessert(very good too by a famous local bakery featured on the TODAY show when they sponsored the yearly wedding contest). And it was fun to see Matt and Di. Matt introduced us to the schools Principal and her lawyer husband who invited us all to his summer home in Maine(probably the beer talking). Diana and I are pretty sure our ex Governor Ehrlich was there too.

And speaking of famous Governors, our Maryland Governor and Mayor of Baltimore, the ever famous Governor William Schaefer passed away at my retirement community during Spring Break. They had lots of stories about him featured on the news. I did not realize he was the reason we have an INner Harbor, Orioles stadium, National Aquarium and Convention Center in Baltimore. When he took office, the waterfront was just a bunch of old shipping piers. NOw it is a major tourist destination including a port for Cruise ships like the Carnival line. Feel free to visit anytime! Some of you have already!

As this was Mother's Day Weekend, I decided to spend my Friday off putting in my flowers. I spent all day at HOme Depot picking out my choices for my various pots, including my tomato plants. I don't usually plant things this early since it can still get chilly at night. I think my tomatoes are suffering for it. But I was afraid if I waited to Memorial DAy weekend like I usually do that everything will be sold out(like usual). So I spent the day after my doctor appointment digging in the dirt. I also spent a day raking up dead leaves and trimming bushes, and cutting down dead plant stalks. And I only scratched the surface! I can't keep up with the jungle. And the jungle is taking over the house. I see a bunny family had babies in the garden-I found their empty nest. Sadly I also disturbed a wren's nest in my flower pot and she did not return to her eggs. I have never had a nest in that pot before so I wasn't expecting it.

On Mother's Day the kids treated me to a wonderful mass where they both altar served. It was just the two of them. Scott got to try out a new job by carrying around the water from the baptismal font while we all got sprinkled by the priest. He was pretty proud of himself and he made up for tripping over his rope belt on the altar when he first arrived! I think he was still getting over his cold and very tired. Especially since he stayed up late the night before while Tom and I went to a Spanish Wine TAsting party at one of Tom's coworkers house. I enjoyed swapping teenager stories that evening with all the experienced moms and sampling Spanish food.

Scott was also still pooped out from his volunteer work the weekend before. He helped run the games at the Nursery school fund raiser for the Presbytarian church where his scout troop is based. He did a great job working with the little kids(he was very patient and explained all the rules). And very formal in his scout uniform. He also liked getting free food and prizes for his work hours.

So the family took me to see Thor for Mother's Day(wasn't my first choice but I enjoyed it anyway).

A huge Happy Birthday to Mark Seitz who shared his special day with Mothers Day.

And Congrats to our friends the Hejza's back in Michigan whose daughter Katelyn made her Confirmation on Mother's Day. Congrats Katelyn. It seems all the church activities were later this year as the second graders were making their First Communion on Mother's Day weekend as well.

By the way, while we were on our Florida expedition, Mark Seitz was halfway around the world in Tanzania on the African continent completing a work project for his company Lily Pharmaceuticals. He was sent as an Ambassador of sorts to work at a sch00l for two weeks teaching English. Sounds like he had an amazing trip! He even got some running in to prepare for the Indy 500 Marathon. OUr advice to Mark was to run faster than the lions!

More exciting activities to come! More photos of Florida too including Disney and HOgwarts at Universal! Look how tall Allison has gotten(and how short I got!).

BAltimore Blog

As soon as the kids and I returned to BAltimore we were slammed with activities. Tom was off to LA having dinner with my brother Mike.

Big huge Congrats to my brother Mike who was rehired by the LA County Library system after being laid off for about a year. He will be working in a different library, at had to take a pay cut, but emphasis on Working(full time). And I guess he will try to keep his part time librarian position in Calabassas which he enjoys. Way to go Mike!

Since the kids missed one day of school they had a ton of homework to catch up on. We spent Weds night studying and doing homework. Neither one had too much to study over Spring Break at least. Allison had a few assignments she finished and we had her start studying for her Drivers Permit.

Scott got slammed over the weekend with several big tests and a science poster presentation. We had started before Easter break, so we got back into it. We did not have much free time during the end of the week however.

Allison applied to follow a Woman CEO around work for a day through the Girl Scout Distinguished Women Award program but did not get picked. Instead, they asked her to fill in as a hostess at the yearly GS gala. We also received two tickets to attend. Tom was not in town, so Scott got to accompany me. He mostly sat on the big back porch of the Country Club where the gala is held each year and played video games. We really did not have a big dinner(drinks and hot Hors'doevres) so I am glad I did not have to pay the $75 per ticket price(it is a fundraiser). WE did try our hand at a few silent auction items(SCott wanted me to buy most of them). And Allison did a great job greeting and meeting and passing out Girl Scout cookies to all the guests as they left. I also sat next to the President of our GS board and informed her of our ties to Northrop Grumman who generously donated thousands for the revamping of our main headquarters. I also met the head of the American Red Cross for MD(a woman) and chatted with several staff members from GS council and office. It was a very nice evening and Allison and I did not have to sing for a change with the GS choir like we usually do at this event. I also enjoyed hearing the speeches from the girls and their honored guests. ONe of the CEOs was the first woman to work for IBM in the 60s! She was a bit older than the other CEOS if you can imagine. So maybe next year Allison will get picked.

ON Friday I worked to make up for time missed that week. Sadly I did not have the time to organize my stuff for the neighborhood garage sale held on Saturday. Tom was home, Allison had to work at the rollerblade rink and I had signed Scott up for swim lessons. Tom thought he should get caught up since there are a lot of water activities planned for scouts and he will miss most of the swimming camps this summer due to other activities. So I was lucky to get Scott in on the spring schedule for swim lessons at the Y. He actually looks very good.

We then spent the rest of the weekend studying and preparing for his science presentation. Allison had another work day on Sunday, and then had to run off to another meeting to prepare for her summer volunteer work at GS camp in the archery program(lots of meetings).

At least Tom was home to help with the driving around! And to cut the grass! Which our neighbors cut while we were gone, even though we cut it before we left. Apparently we had a very wet Spring Break in MD(glad we visited Florida).

More photos of our trip to Florida! The Lego store at Downtown Disney. Allison is wearing her Disney pin collection. YOu trade your pins with Disney employees. One tourist walked into Disney world with a huge binder full of pins. I think he has all of them ever made!

So here is the update on our trip to Florida over Spring Break. What a Wonderful vacation we all had(and needed).

We left on a Monday morning as I mentioned in my last blog, but the airport was still packed. Mostly with the entire state of Maryland headed to Florida. We even ran into people we knew while standing in line to board our plane.

Scott was so excited to ride on a plane (for the second time that he actually remembers). We flew in the Tampa airport which is really very nice. They have tile mosaics of dolphins and fish in the floor, killer whale murals from Seaworld painted on the walls and even a large salt water aquarium built into the wall. It certainly got us into the mood for Seaworld since that was where we headed next. We rented a car and off we went to Orlando. We arrived at the park just in time for Allison and myself to walk up and feed the dolphins while Tom and Scott tried out the new manta ray rollercoaster. The park was absolutely packed. You had to arrive 45 mins before the shows to get in-even with our Platinum passes which provide us with a reserved seating section, it was filling up fast. So we didn't see all the shows-primarily the Shamu show since they had to cancel the first two shows(killer whales don't always cooperate). We have seen the show many times though(fortunately not one where an employee was being eaten!). This was the last week of this ongoing show which has been running for several years. Currently, they have opened with a new show but they still won't allow any of the staff to get in the water with the killer whales. Especially the one that most recently pulled a girl under by her ponytail. Sadly, since she can't breathe underwater, she didn't make it. Now they are planning to redesign the pool with a moveable bottom that would shoot up to the top of the pool if this ever happens again. Anyhow, we had our fill of fish and left for our hotel and dinner.

ON Tuesday we decided to visit Mickey Mouse at DisneyWorld. Again, lots of people. So many they closed the park after we arrived. However, thanks to fast passes, we were able to make all our favorite rides, even more than one time in the Haunted HOuse. And Disney never fails to surprise me as we noticed they upgraded some of the rides and shows. We even dragged the kids into the Hall of the Presidents and were pleasantly surprised to see they had changed the show, added a film and did quite a few upgrades. They are even up to date on all the robotic presidents. And my absolute favorite was the light show on the castle. They always have a 10pm fireworks show over the castle. We did not think we'd make it since it started raining in the evening, along with a few scattered thunderstorms. AS we were waiting for the fireworks show, a tstorm hit just behind the castle(God's fireworks). I know it wasn't too swift to stand out in a tstorm, but Disney is the Happiest Place on Earth. So no worries. The storm moved away just as the show started. They added a whole new graphics program to the light show-the castle actually looks like it comes alive with bulging walls and bursting balloons pouring over the sides from the rooftop. Then they show thousands of photos taken in the park that day on the castle. Very cool.

The next day we decided to tackle Universal Studios. This park, unlike its predecessor in California, is split into two parks. So we opted for the side with Harry Potter and lots of rides. Tom and Scott decided to pay double and get the fast pass for the rides. Allison and I however stood in line for 45 mins to gain access to the Harry Potter section! Then once inside, you stand in long lines to buy Butterbeer, shop in the stores, eat in the 3 broomsticks tavern or ride the rides. Allison and I opted to buy our butterbeer(non alcoholic by the way and tastes like butterscotch). I Liked it. And Allison and Scott got souvenir mugs-SCott tried the frozen style. Allison bought herself a Hermione wand. Scott and Tom rode the rollercoasters. We did not stand in line for over 2 hours however for the cinematic ride that lets you feel like you are in Hogwarts. Maybe in another 20 years when the line dies down a bit. And I did not mention that Allison and I went in first, then returned with Tom and SCott after we picked up our entry tickets to the Hogwarts section of the park. They had to funnel people in on a limited basis since it was absolutely jammed pack. Tom said that was probably similar to Calcutta India with all the people. We also did manage to buy Allison a chocolate frog for her Easter basket and we listened to Moaning Myrtle moaning in the bathrooms. Allison and I liked it, Tom could have skipped it altogether. But they did have some cool rides there including the Spiderman 3D ride.

Anyhow, we were tired by burning in the sun and too many people, so we left the park and headed to Downtown Disney. They are opening a dinner movie theater but we were a few weeks early, so we just caught Rio at the movies. We also actually were waved down by Ellicott City neighbors walking down the sidewalk. A family from Resurrection spotted us and came out of the store to say hello and tell us about all the other Marylanders visiting Orlando! The kids also wanted to stop and shop-Allison to trade her Disney pins(new hobby) and SCott at the Lego store. Tom and I were also surprised to learn that they shut down all the nightclubs on Pleasure Island and it no longer is a 21 and over section. We sure felt old since the last time we were there at the nightclubs, we were without children!

After a whirlwind visit to Orlando and a very nice stay at the Embassy Suites(thanks to Tom's frequent flier mileage), we headed down towards Venice to visit with Tom's parents. We stopped into Tampa first and spent the day at the Tampa zoo. Scott rode his first camel. (Allison been there done that). We also made a trip to Bradenton where Tom had located an authentic cuban restaurant from the Diners, Drive IN and Dives Food Network show so we could sample their Cuban pulled pork sandwiches. Scott wasn't too impressed(it definitely fit the Dives motif), but we enjoyed the food and the people were overwhelmingly nice.

By the way, everyone we came in contact with on our trip was overly nice(except we weren't too pleased with the Universal people). They just seemed happy to take our money.

Anyway, we arrived at Tom's parents house on Thursday night, and spent the next several days swimming in the pool, swimming in the ocean and riding bikes. Scott loves to catch the lizards and look for the tortoises on our bike ride along the intercoastals. We enjoyed dinner outside on the intercoastal near the Nokomis beach at Pops. They cancelled the 'All you Can EAt Fish Dinner" on Friday night though since they ran out of fish last year. Crazy catholics! WE still enjoyed our evening. Didn't see Mooch the Dolphin who lives in the canal this time though. But I swear the water has never looked cleaner or more blue-green. (Maybe it was all the chemicals from the BP oil spill clean up?). Really the water and weather was perfect temperature. We spent a whole day soaking up sun and sand at Nokomis(Allison and Tom spent more time reading and relaxing under our beach umbrella). Scott and I swam, boogie boarded and caught fish and starfish.

We ended our visit there with Easter Sunday mass and the Easter bunny even paid a visit to the Seitz Family. I thanked Tom's parents for our visit with their very own pink flamingo stained glass panel which I hand carried on the plane all the way to Florida! And I didn't have to make it-I found it at our Treasure Sale at work. Tom left Dad Seitz with my previous laptop to help keep him up to date with all the busy happenings on council at their community(since once again Dad Seitz is the President of the council). WE shared our two cents on the future plans for the upgraded community swimming pool and spa and learned about a new game called Pickle ball-looks like a cross between tennis and four square with paddles. Big competition. Easter Sunday we ate out and had to run in between the showers and thundershowers.

Monday we packed up and headed back to Tampa and spent the day at Busch gardens. They are doing some more upgrades there as well-two new coasters going in that they were running practice cars on the tracks. Scott can't wait. We love the Tampa Busch gardens because of all the animals. They had a baby cheetah cub being raised with a puppy since its mother abandoned her at the TAmpa zoo. I really feel for that Puppy. It looked like the same relationship Cookie and Pika have(Pika our cat usually gets her way since she has the claws!). WE had a short visit though since a tstorm rolled in around 4pm and they basically shut down the park.

WE headed to our hotel in Tampa near the airport. INstead of us all flying home together, Tom was informed that he needed to go out to LA. He had to reroute his trip and leave early in the morning. I was left with the kids to make it back to Baltimore, but our flight wasn't until 7 that night! I was left without a map and a rental car. Fortunately, Tom's Dad still belongs to AAA and he gave me a wonderful map of the Tampa area. I would have been happy to lie by the hotel pool all day until our flight out, but SCott and Allison weren't very impressed with the hotels accomodations. The pool was dirty from the previous night's storm, and there were still some rides the kids wanted to go on at Busch gardens since we had a short visit. Since we have season passes, it was not costly to return to the park so off we went. We had a wonderful visit-great weather and we got to do some things we missed the day before. Like feeding the baby kangaroos and SCott hit all the big rollercoasters all by himself. The kids also stuffed themselves on BBQ before we left for the airport.

Our flight was delayed but not for long. There had been all the devastating tornadoes in the south and midwest and all the flights were backed up. The Tampa airport was easy to navigate but a bit strict on rules. WE had a fairly easy flight home, dodging nearby tstorms over the Carolinas and W Virginia. WE were pretty pooped out by the time we got home though.

And no rest for the weary when we did arrive home!

Here are a few shots at the TAmpa Zoo including Scott on his camel and Busch Gardens. More to come!