A Day Off

Cal didn't have to work today, so he spent most of it at home.  He has worked quite a bit this summer and has done well with tips.  He has decided to invest a small part of his money and save several thousand for spending money at IU.  He has also been a lot happier this year as he hated working in a factory last summer.  It paid well, but it just wasn't a lot of fun.  This summer he has been outside working with his friends.  He has also learned how to interact with customers which will benefit him greatly in the future and has played a lot of golf.

Cam and I were home most of the day as well.  We did make it to the library.  We were looking for the book "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."  They couldn't find it, so we put a hold on one.  I also had him go with me to Ace to help carry bird feed.  Usually Meg goes, but without her here, he became the designated errand runner.  We got in a bike ride/walk and a game of ladder golf before the rain hit.

Doug, Cam and I had plans to golfing when he got home.  Cal even talked about going with us.  Once the rain started, however, Cal and I opted out.  Doug said he'd take Cam.  I told them to go without me and I would come and pick them up if the rain got heavier.  I worked on my photo album while they were gone.  After an hour or so, I decided to check on them.  They were just approaching 16 green and although they were soaked, they wanted to finish out.  Glad that Doug was game for taking him.  I hate being wet.

After golf Doug, Cam and I went to the new Italian place in Warsaw for dinner.  Cam had never been there.  He really liked it.  We brought Cal back a pizza.  While we were eating he was able to finish his midterm for Macro Economics and catch up on some assignments for next week since we will be gone.

Strangely Quiet!

It has been strangely quiet here the past twenty-four hours.  Meg left yesterday with Bethany's basketball team for a four day trip to Vincennes.  I have heard from her via text several times since she left and Cal and Cam are here, but without Meg the quantity and frequency of conversation at our home has diminished.  Although, I miss her, I am proud of her for going with the team.  It is a wonderful way to get to know her classmates.

Cameron had been wanting to go see the movie "The Mummy."  Since Meg did not want to see it we thought that this would be the perfect day to go.  We first went to Kohl's to do some shopping.  Cam wanted to find a pair of pink shorts to match his flamingo shirt.  He got a lot of complements on it yesterday at the golf tournament.  He thought the shorts would make it even better.  Unfortunately, we struck out.  Either the shorts were way too big or the wrong color.  We had a lot better luck with the movie.  I was afraid that it would be too scary for Cam or I, but it wasn't.  The mummies were kind of fake looking so that helped.  The storyline was good and we both liked Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll.

Tonight Cam had soccer.  I dropped him off and Doug picked him up.  I had to vote in the Tippecanoe Township Advisory board special elections.  Soccer went well for Cam.  Cal worked during the morning, but was around the rest of the evening.  HM came over later.  We enjoyed watching them spend quite a bit of time trying to get the ladder ball golfballs out of a tree.  Cam threw them up there when he was trying to avoid letting me win.  They moved them, but they are still stuck.  Hopefully, the next storm knocks them down.

A Fantastic Round of Golf

This morning Cameron had his third junior golf tournament of the year.  Normally, my parents take him to these events, but as they left for Las Vegas yesterday, I gladly volunteered.  His tee off wasn't until 10 a.m. which meant that we didn't have to leave for Erskine Golf Club until 8.  Cameron was in the first group and started off pretty well.  He bogeyed the first hole, but hit the ball well.  One of the boys in his group birdied the same hole, so he was two down to start.  From there Cam turned it on and played fantastically.  He birdied the next hole and except for one fast downhill putt and a drive in the trees, he scored almost perfectly ending with a 39.

Cameron still had to wait for three groups to finish to find out how he placed.  He wasn't too nervous as he knew that 39 was a great score especially since it was only two over par.  I was impressed with his playing today.  It definitely was a lot different than when I used to walk with Cal in the junior tour.  Then players weren't even allowed to talk to their parents.  Now they can have a caddy.  Almost no one had a pull cart when Cal played, now everyone does.  The caddies were even pulling the carts for the players.  Cam said that they could give help except around the green.  I didn't pull his cart for him except between the green and the tee.  That way I didn't have to watch everyone putt as putting makes me too nervous.  I did talk through Cam's thought process as he played, however, and for the most part Cameron didn't need much help.  He and Cal play a completely different game.  Cal worked on hitting the long ball.  He had the size to do so.  Cam instead had been working on course management.  He plays a lot like I used to when I played competitively.  It's a lot easier to watch.  His drive was a lot shorter, but it didn't stray too far from the fairway.  Cal calls that kind of game boring, but it was the way I loved to play.

It took about forty-five minutes for all of the groups to finish and the scores to be calculated.  In the end Cameron finished in first place and took home a very nice trophy.  The win also qualified him for the tournament of champions that will be played at the Notre Dame Golf Course later in July.  Proud of his work this summer.  Glad that I could be there to watch.

Soccer Practice Duo

Tonight both Cam and Meg had soccer practice at Bethany from 6 to 7:30.  It was the first time that Meg had driven Cam to Bethany and it went pretty well.  Not only did they ride over together, they actually ended up practicing together with the middle school boys scrimmaged against the girls.  Cam thought it was a lot of fun and felt he played well.  He had learned from watching Meg that when he gets put in at midfield drift toward the forward line.  It worked for him just as it had always worked for her and that way he didn't get as tired as he normally would at midfield.  Meg's take on practice was that the middle school boys and high school girls do a lot of arguing and trash talking when they play together.  Other than that she enjoyed it as well.

I was glad that Cam went to soccer.  He was still tired from his tournament yesterday and he had also walked 18 holes today at Raccoon Run.  He and Meg had piano lessons this afternoon and we stopped for ice cream at the Chief beforehand.  Thus, he did have some time to rest.  After going he decided that he will definitely be going back on Thursday.  Meg won't be able to join him as she will be in Vincennes with the basketball team.  

Once they got home Meg went to Pat's Chicago Dogs to have dinner with Nate Haines.  She has been enjoying the newfound freedom that having a driver's license brings.  I did finally get the truck cleaned out today, so she can call it hers.  I am interested in seeing if Cal claims it back for the next couple of days while she is gone.

The Playoff

The next stop on Cameron's junior golf tour was today at Harbor Shores in Michigan.  It was the furthest away and the most expensive, but well worth the time and money for him to play in it.  This was the same golf course that Doug had gone to several times to watch the seniors play.  Cam's tee off time was later than normal - 3:52 as everyone had to start on number one.  We got a text from Mom to let us know that they actually teed off about 30 minutes later than scheduled.  I didn't hear much from them the rest of the day and by 7 p.m. I decided to try contacting them.  No one answered or texted back.  I wasn't worried, just more interested in how he did.

While Cam was gone Meg and I went shopping in Goshen.  She has a busy four weeks ahead of her with a trip to Vincennes with the basketball team, our family vacation to D.C. and her two week stint at Camp Crosley.  We knew that this was the best day to spend purchasing supplies.  We found everything pretty easily except for a pair of hiking sandals.  Since we had time before tennis we decided to try Concord Mall.  It had been a long time since I have walked through it.  I was surprised by how few stores there were.  We did find a pair of sandals at J.C. Penney's, but they were out of her price range.  We tried one last store - Shoe Sensation - and they had exactly what she was looking for and well under half the price of the ones at Kohl's and Penney's.

I dropped Meg off at tennis as it was at Goshen Middle School.  It was when Doug and I were heading back to pick her up that we finally heard from everyone in Michigan.  Cam had played exceptionally well finishing tied for second.  Each one of them were at less than 5% on their phones so they were calling from one of his opponents' mothers phone to let us know that they were headed to a playoff.  It was well over an hour before we heard from them again.  Cam had finished third losing by a stroke on the third hole of the playoff.  We didn't talk to them again until 11 p.m. when they pulled in our driveway.  Everyone was exhausted, but extremely happy with Cam's round.  He had just enough time to show me his medal and give me the hole by hole details before he headed to bed.  

Michigan

We had wanted to take Meg and Cam back to Michigan ever since we visited last summer.  Originally, we planned on going over Mother's Day weekend as it was also their tulip festival.  Unfortunately, I was still recovering from my bought with pleurisy, so we had to postpone until today.  Even though the tulips were no longer in bloom at Windmill Island, it was still beautiful.  The weather was cool for June, but everything was in operation.  We stopped first at the hand cranked organ before touring the windmill.  Both were just as pleasant as we remembered and we enjoyed them immensely.  After the tour we walked along their path, enjoying the flowers and the horses.

From Windmill Island we headed into downtown Holland for lunch at the New Holland Brewing Company.  We decided on appetizers to share and although they were all delicious, the pepperoni pinwheels were voted as the the family favorite.  We spent some time after lunch walking through the shops.  Cam found a four sided Rubrik's Cube and I bought a bird puzzle.

Our next stop of the day was Saugatuck.  We loved eating in Holland, but Saugatuck definitely has the better shops.  We were bummed to find out that the Christmas shop was cut in half, but Glik's made up for it.  While there Cam found a flamingo Hawaiian shirt that fit him perfect and Meg bought a few shirts as well.  I was pleased with my purchases for the kitchen and for Doug's birthday.  Doug broke off from us to do some wine tasting.  Our last stop was Kilwin's.  Cam bought ice cream and Meg picked out fudge to share.

We had decided earlier in the day that we would stopped in South Bend on our way home for dinner.  We had thought about going to Evil Cheque Brewing Company yesterday after mini golf, but Meg needed to get back early.  Tonight we had plenty of time and were actually able to play another round of golf before we ate.  Unfortunately, the outcome was the same with Doug sinking a hole in one on number 18 to win.  Not sure that Cam and I will be able to recover.

Happy 1st Birthday Joshua!

Today my Mom's family gathered to celebrate Joshua Pancoast's 1st birthday.  It was special to everyone especially knowing how challenging it was for Jeannette to have a child.  When her twins died a year and a half ago I know that I prayed that she would one day know the excitement of raising a child to his or her first birthday.  Thus, it was a lot of fun celebrating with him.  It was also the first time my Mom's family had gotten together since last August when LaMarr was here visiting.

The weather was a little cooler than originally forecasted, but the children didn't mind.  They all went swimming and Cameron had fun on the Millennium Falcon float.  We were able to catch up with everyone and found out some scary news about one of the cousins.  Hopefully, it will pass into nothing.  There was also a mishap with my plate and the sliding screen door, but it made for a great story later.  Joshua was one of the few one years that I have seen really get into devouring the cake.  He finished it off pretty well while covering himself and his high chair with red frosting.

Overall, Meg, Cam, Doug and I enjoyed the afternoon and were glad that we could be there for the celebration.  Afterward we stopped at mini-golf in Mishawaka.  It has been awhile since we had played.  Doug was once again the winner, although it was a lot closer than the last time we played.  Once we got home Cam went over to Mom's to play games.  Meg had a tennis match with Nate and Nathan which ended at Joe's ice cream.  Doug and I had dinner at Kelly Jae's.  We hadn't been there in quite some time and it was nice to get away.  We all met up at our house for a bonfire.  By the end of the night the shelf was almost gone, but we still have enough wood for one more fire.  It was a wonderful way to end a cool summer day.

Golf?

Today was a lot cooler than yesterday.  The weather has definitely been strange this month.  Although I hate weeding, I decided today was the day to finish it.  By the end of the morning I had three wheelbarrow loads full.  While I was weeding Meg had Aaron and Graham over.  They played Mario Kart and Disney Sing It.  Now that Aaron has his license, he has been able to visit more.  Cam played golf the last couple of days and has been playing well.  Tuesday he was able to have Cade over.  It is nice that Cam and Meg have been able to keep relationships going with their Milford friends even though they switched schools.

Meg had her last day of basketball camp.  That went well this week.  She's been learning their plays and shaking out the rusty parts.  Doug, Cam and I went golfing while she was there.  Cal was already at Maxwelton, so he joined us for the back nine.  I hadn't played golf in three years and last summer I even sold my golf clubs at the garage sale.  Meg had a set, so I tried hers.  After the first two holes, I thought about picking up and just riding along.  I couldn't hit the ball at all.  I started to rebound and in the end did pretty well shooting 54.  The best part, however, was spending time with Doug, Cal and Cam.  I haven't played with Cal in a long time and was surprised at how long he hits the ball.  He shot 38 and Cam had a 42.  It was a great way to end an extremely busy week.

7 v 7 and Piano

Today was the hottest day of the week which wasn't surprising as it is always hot on 7 v 7 day.  Cam played golf with Mom, but they went early to avoid the heat.  I used the time to trim bushes out front.  I even got in a walk before he got home.  Cal was around for a lot of the day as he didn't have to work until 2.

We left for piano around 2:30.  Their lessons went well.  Cam is trying to master the Oogie Boogie song and Meg is working on The Little Mermaid.  After piano we stopped at Target.  Meg's been looking for shoes and I needed a few items.  Even with shopping and piano we were the first ones to 7 v 7.  Doug met us there.  Carl and Marina came out to watch Meg play and my parents drove up as well.  Meg played very well.  Her skills have really improved and most of her goals are now scored with her left foot.  Her teammates are starting to look for her more and she passes very well.  Tonight she even took a turn at goalie and did well with that even though she hasn't played that position in two years.

After soccer we went with Carl and Marina to Antonio's.  The wait was longer than usual, but we got a chance to visit that way.  They've been busy from selling the house and moving into their new one.  Meg, Cam and I left before Doug, so that he could go over some paperwork with Carl.  We listed to Legally Blonde on the way home.  Meg even learned how to properly use her brights and to stop when one deer crosses as there is usually another on the way.

Legally Blonde

Tonight Cam, Meg and I went to see Legally Blonde at Amish Acres.  We were skeptical going into it that it would be good, but in the end we all really enjoyed it.  The music was fantastic and the acting was great.  Each of us had the "omigod" song stuck in our head the rest of the evening.

While we were at the musical Doug went to the caucus to vote for the new sheriff of Kosciusko County.  Normally, I vote, but as my vice precinct committee person, he could vote instead once I filled out a letter of proxy.  It was important for one of us to be there and I was glad that Doug volunteered to do so.  Our sheriff was arrested for accepting a bribe from an inmate.  This inmate was having unsupervised visits with a member of the community in which they planned ways to milk their church congregation for money.  Once one of a police officers found out the sheriff threatened him if he told.  In the end the sheriff had six felony counts against him, but once he went to trial he ended up with only one charge of intimidating a witness.  He received probation and community service.  That sentence left a bitter taste in much of the mouths of a lot of community members.

The vote was big news in our area.  Doug said that there were television cameras in the courtroom and the fire marshall had to limit the number of spectators.  Overall, there were six men running for sheriff this evening to fill the last year and a half of the term.  We knew going in that it was a long shot that the sheriff's long time friend and former sheriff himself wouldn't win, but Doug wanted to see change.  Unfortunately the majority did not agree with him and Kosciusko County once again came across as a good old boys network.  Between this vote and the one two weeks ago it has been disappointing to see that the Republican party of our county cannot value change.

She's Legal!

Since school got out all Meg and I have been focused on was driving and parking.  She really wanted to be the first of the Heinisch children to pass the driver's test on the first try and I knew it would be a lot easier if she did.  With basketball camp, our trip to DC and Camp Crosley it would be very hard to schedule a retest.  In saying that if she didn't pass that would be ok too.

Today was the first time she could try as she was officially turned 16 years and 90 days.  I scheduled the test at 10:30 knowing that would give me time to get Cam to golf at Raccoon Run and let her practice a little before we left for Albion.  Meg decided to take some time to practice normal parking at the high school before we left.  She opted out of anymore parallel parking as she did very well with it yesterday.

We were thrilled when we met the driving instructor.  She was a lot more pleasant than either one that the boys had.  We hoped that was a good omen.  After she left I picked up Northanger Abby to catch up to where Meg stopped.  I didn't think I'd be able to read as I thought I would be too nervous.  Overall, however, I did pretty well waiting on her and by the time she returned I had finished a chapter and a half.

When Meg walked in she had no expression on her face.  I couldn't tell if that was a good sign or a bad one.  Once the instructor said to her, "Ok, go get your mom" I knew she passed.  With the boys the instructor was extremely rude after the test and jumped me about their driving/parking.  This was a new experience for me.  After signing the paperwork and getting Meg's picture we were on our way back to Syracuse happy to be done.  Meg decided to call and tell her Dad, but didn't want Grandma to know until she pulled into her driveway.  I know I will be nervous every time she leaves the driveway, but that's normal.  She's practiced a lot and has been a cautious driver.  I'll leave it in God's hands from here.

Cleaning Up

Today I started putting away all of the garage sale items that were left.  Clean up is alway easier and I was so excited to see how much we sold.  In total we made over $555 as a family which was quite a bit more than I expected.  The best part, however, was to see how little was left.  We boxed it up for Mom's sale in August hoping to get rid of more.  Whatever doesn't sell at hers we plan to donate.  I may keep some of the books and games for school, but other than that we do not want to bring any of it back,

Meg started basketball camp this afternoon at Bethany.  It has been a little overwhelming getting back into a sport that she hasn't played competitively for two years.  Everyone has been supportive of her and she definitely has met other students.  It has been tough being the new girl but that will change as time moves on.

Cameron had a disappointing day.  Every time he got ready to go to the golf course, it started to rain.  By the time it finally cleared up, it was too late to go.  He did have fun playing in our yard and trying out the Ladder Golf.  The rain changed Cal's plans as well.  He was supposed to work, but was sent home by 2 p.m.  He spent the day hanging out with friends instead.  I know the boys did't like it, but I won't complain about the rain as we needed it and it kept me from having to water my flowers.  

Happy Father's Day, Doug!

Cam and Meg were up early this morning.  They wanted to play nine holes before we left.  They both like Cascades and Cam had his best round there so far shooting a 40.  Once they got back to Parce's we packed up for the trip home.  He was taking a trip to Tennessee once we left.

We stopped at Oliver Winery for lunch.  It was the perfect place for a Father's Day picnic.  It has been a place that we have created so many memories with the Heinisch children over the years.  Even though Brett and Cal couldn't be with us, we did have a great time.  We drove home from the winery and had an easy trip back.  I spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking and doing laundry.  Doug decided to mow and work outside.

We invited my parents up for a Father's Day cookout.  Doug grilled steaks and pork chops.  Cal had to work, but was able to join us by 7:30.  Hannah-Marie celebrated with us as well.  Mom brought up a raspberry and turtle pie which were delicious.  The Heinisch children gave Doug an IU shirt, IU key chain and some Tito's vodka.  My Dad said he didn't want anything, but Cameron got the perfect gift for him - Ladder Golf.  We had fun playing with it the rest of the evening.

Taste of Bloomington

Doug was up early this morning to jog.  It was already hot and humid by the time he got back at 8 a.m.  I got up early as well as I wanted to hit the Farmer's Market for breakfast.  I found some delicious black raspberries for Cam and Meg and a cookie for me.  Doug like the breakfast tacos and Parce tried a tamale.  We woke Cam and Meg up when we got back so they could shower.  We walked up to the Art Fair on the Square and found some awesome booths.  We ended up buying a hummingbird feeder, a butterfly plant stand and two pairs of earrings.  After that we went to the Union.  Doug, Cam and Meg all wanted to play tennis and I wanted to do some Father's Day shopping.  We were all successful and ready for lunch afterward.

We had lunch at Noodles & Company on Kirkwood which has always been one of Cam and Meg's favorite.  We did some more shopping at the mall.  Cam picked out a gift for my Dad while I bought some candles at Yankee Candle.  Meg and I both found shirts as well.  I really needed one for the hot weather and was glad to find a couple that I liked.  We stopped at the Taj Mahal of Kroger's afterward to buy lunch for tomorrow's picnic at Oliver Winery.  I so wish we had a Kroger like it near us.

We headed back to Parce's afterward to rest before Taste of Bloomington and to watch the U.S. Open.  Doug walked over to the Taste before we did.  I met him at the jazz bands a little later and tried some sangria with him.  Parce, Meg and Cam walked over around 4:30 and we found some great food to taste - smoked corn, spicy meatballs, buffalo mac and cheese and more.  Cam and Meg were also happy with the Kona snow cones as they could make their own.  The three of us then headed back to the apartment to cool off and play Cam's "Rolling America" game for about an hour or so before meeting up with Parce and Doug again.  We actually found a jazz band that we all liked before staking out territory for the main attractions - Hairbangers Ball."  They were late getting started, but once they did we were all glad that we stayed.  They were just as good as last year and played several of my favorites.  I was most proud of the fact that Cam and Meg knew every song that was played.

We headed home at 9:30.  It was earlier than we had planned, but we were all exhausted form the walking and the heat.  Doug bought breadsticks for everyone and we decided just to relax at Parce's.  There was a lot of lively conversations and we finally called it a night at 11:30.  It was a fantastic way to celebrate Father's Day weekend.

Day #2 is Successful!

Today was the second day of the garage sale and in the end it was almost as successful as the first one.  It started off slow, but picked up quite a bit.  We had several customers comment on the low prices of our items and one paid me the biggest compliment by talking about how wonderful our academic resources were for our children.  In the end we didn't make quite as much as we did the first day, but we had some big sells and got ride of quite a bit more from our massive clean out.

Meg spent the day at Gabby's.  They went paddle boarding around the lake.  Once we picked her up we started picking up the garage sale and packing for Bloomington.  By the time Doug got home we were ready to go and were able to be on the road by 5 p.m.  Traffic was light on the trip down and we were at Parce's by 8:45.  He had just gotten back from Gavin's baseball game.  We walked to Opie Taylor's to find out that they were closed already.  After talking through our options we decided on the Trojan Horse.  We really like the food, but it doesn't seat more than five, so we don't get much of a chance to eat there.  Cam tried a chicken gyro which he really liked.  Overall, the experience was a good one and we would definitely go back.  After dinner we walked back to Parce's.  Everyone was wiped out, so we set up our beds and turned off the TV by 11:30 ready for a jammed packed Saturday.

Garage Sale Madness

Mom was up early this morning with pops and breakfast for Meg and I.  It was drizzling, so we waited until closer to 8:30 to drag everything out.  It took us about a half hour or so, but we were set up and ready by 9 as promised in our ad.  It started a little slow at first, but luckily one of the neighbors told me that someone took our sign at the end of the road.  I was totally surprised, but so glad that she told us as no one would have known that we were having a sale without it.  I remedied the situation as quick as I could and from that point on until late in the afternoon we were swamped.  I absolutely couldn't believe it as I was so afraid that we would have very few people and that none of our items would sell.  We didn't have any big ticket items, but we did have a lot of nice items.  By the end of the day we were well over half way to our goal.

Meg helped in the morning and Cam took over in the afternoon.  He had a golf tournament in Nappanee today and he and Dad enjoyed lunch at 6 and 15 afterward.  It wasn't Cam's best round, but he did learn a lot from it.  Meg had 7 v 7 tonight, so she and I left at 4:15.  We were a little early, so we waited in the van for about ten minute before any of the other Bethany teammates arrived.  I loved it when one of them saw her and started waving right away.  She has really enjoyed being a part of something as supportive as she has found Bethany to be.  She's also had a chance to meet a lot of her classmates before August, which will make the transition process a lot easier.

Meg's first game was against Wawasee.  I know that she wanted to play well and it was nice to see her do so.  She scored three goals and had a very nice assist.  It was fun to hear her 7 v. 7 teammates cheering her on.  They ended up winning the game 9-1.  The second game was against Northridge,  and the girls did well.  They lost 5-1, but had some nice shots and were never out of the game.  Afterward we went to Antonio's for dinner again.  We like their pizza.  Cam said he'd go with us next week if we promise to get dessert.  

Early Morning Golf & Piano Lessons

Cam was up and out the door before 7 a.m. this morning.  He and Mom wanted to play golf and on Wednesday if they don't tee off before 8, they are stuck behind the ladies day.  They also wanted to avoid the heat which worked well for them as they were back home by 10:30 a.m.  Cal had to work today, but didn't start until 2 p.m.  His time was cut short as an early evening storm blew in and forced Tippy to cancel the night league.  Even with nights like tonight he has thoroughly enjoyed working as a bag boy.  He has met a lot of people, made some good tips and played a ton of golf.

Cam helped at BINGO this afternoon.  He was still cracking up when we picked him up for piano lessons.  He got a kick out of one of the visitors who was playing BINGO as he really got into it.  Glad that Cam has been able to help Mom.  Piano went well as usual.  Meg found some new songs to try and Cam moved along in Brett's Nightmare Before Christmas book.  We enjoyed visiting with Mrs. Meek and were home just after Doug finished jogging.  He hasn't had to work late this week, which has been awesome.

Craft Day

Cameron had his golf game at Raccoon Run again this morning.  He played well and finished with a 44 .  That was six strokes better than last week topping the leaderboard for his age group.  He decided when he finished to play nine more holes.  I was glad that he took his pull cart as it was over 90 degrees by then.  Meg and I worked on the garage sale some more which Cam was golfing and I finally feel good about it all. We have a plan for it it in case it rains and the garage looks very organized now.  I do not plan on working on it tomorrow at all.

Meg and I picked Cameron up at 1 p.m.  They decided that Hacienda would be the perfect spot for lunch.  From there we headed home for a crafting afternoon.  Meg had a project that she wanted to get started on and Cam had his panda pillow to finish.  We got a lot done before Meg had to leave for basketball and soccer.  Cam decided to hang out at Mom's while I took Meg to Bethany.  Practice went well for her and Doug was able to ride back with us to get her.  We took Cam and Meg to Buffalo Wild Wings for traditional night.  It was a great way to spend a hot, humid day.

Almost Done

Today was a lot of work in the heat, but by the end of the day we did have all of the garage sale items marked and ready for Thursday.  I still have some organizing to do, but if we had to have it tomorrow we could.  Meg and Cam helped a lot today.  I am very worried that it will rain as they have been calling for storms all week.  I am also concerned that we just won't have the traffic for the amount of items that we have.  Doug said not to worry about it.  Everything is out of the house and we can always box it up for Mom's sale in August.  Worse case scenario we donate it all to Goodwill.

We took a break from garage sale work to take Cam to the doctor.  He had to have a physical for camp and a refill of his medications.  Meg also had to have her blood work done for her physical next week.  They did a finger prick for her anemia and she was at 14 which was a lot higher than last time.  Hopefully, she will be able to cut down on her iron pills.  The wait for the physical today was long.  Dr. Mulry has officially retired and I know they are understaffed, but we waited over an hour just to get back to the room.  We did get Cam's physical done, but will have to think about what we will do in the future.  It may be time to find a new family doctor.

Once Cam's appointment was over I dropped him off at the golf course.  Mom, Dad and Meg were waiting for him.  Meg has enjoyed playing with Mom.  Cam and Dad had their own items to work on, so they took off on their own.  Everyone had a great time.

A Lot of Stuff!!

Today Doug helped me a lot on the garage sale.  I appreciated it as we have even more items to sell then I realized.  I am very glad that everyone decided to clean out this winter, but am very overwhelmed with how much there there was to mark and set out.  We did get a lot done, but I think that this will take most of tomorrow as well.

Meg had Preston and Aaron over this afternoon.  They went to a friend of their's graduation open house and then to Grandma's to go swimming.  It was definitely a great day for swimming as we are having unseasonably hot weather for June.  Cam and Dad wanted to go see Captain Underpants, so the three of them decided to tag along.  Meg, Cam and my Dad enjoyed the movie as they had all read the book series.  While they were gone Doug and I went to dinner.  It was a nice break after all of the work we did today.

Open House Season

Today we went to four different high school graduations open houses.  They were all nice and with families that we knew well.  It was fun to see so many people out and about and the food was delicious.  I can't believe that it has been a year since Cal graduated.  It seems a lot longer than that.  One thing Meg and I decided after visiting so many today - no one beats me with pictures.  Pretty sure that I had that covered at Cal and Brett's.  Wondering if maybe I should start Meg's now.

Cam didn't get to go with us today, so we sampled the desserts for him.  His favorite would have definitely been the root beer floats at Alex Fiscus'.  I always prefer cake.  Cam did have fun without us.  He went to Kayden Mayer's birthday party.  It was held at Shanklin Park in Goshen.  Several of his classmates were there and he had an excellent time.

Once the parties were over, we went to 5 p.m. mass.  Cam had to serve and Doug was a lector.  Afterward we went to the winery for a snack and to listen to music.  It was a lot of Jim Croce, which I really enjoyed.  Doug ordered Bourbon Street pizza for everyone on the way home.  We ended the night by playing crochet and cards with my parents and having a bonfire.  What a lovely summer day.

Chess Champion

Cam finished Bright Time camp this afternoon by winning their chess tournament.  Instead of a medal or trophy, this year he was given a book on chess.  He really liked that.  I asked him if he had won every year that he had participated.  He said that last year an 8th grader beat him, so he finished second that summer.  No matter how he did, we know that he has learned a lot this week in chess and had fun participating.

Soccer had fun games and championships today as well.  Cam won best dribbler for the 7th grade which earned him a new pair of Bethany soccer socks.  Basketball and tennis went well also.  Cam was happy to have participated in Bright Time, but was definitely exhausted by the end.  He celebrated by hanging out with Grandpa while Meg went golfing with Grandma.  Meg hasn't played in quite some time, but did very well.  We enjoyed a bonfire afterward, happy to welcome in the weekend.

7 v. 7

Meg played with Bethany's 7 on 7 team tonight at Nibco field.  This was her first time meeting the soccer team and coach and it went well.  They played very well against Northwood and Elkhart Central holding both teams scoreless.  Meg was afraid that she would be rusty as she hasn't played since February, but that was definitely not the case.  She ended as the teams leading scoring and also had several assists.  Her footwork was excellent and it was a lot of fun watching her play.  She commented on the way home about it being a lot more comfortable playing with girls who are nice.  Next week's games will be more challenging as they play Wawasee and Northridge.

This was the first time that Doug got to watch Meg play as just a parent.  He enjoyed it immensely.  I loved sitting by him as he could give me insight into the game and it was very nice to have someone to talk to.  After the game several of the parents introduced themselves to us and seemed generally excited to have Meg at Bethany.  Mr. Kauffman's daughter will be a freshmen, so we did know one of the parents.  Cameron got a chance to talk to him about chess before we left.  We treated Meg and Cam to dinner at Antonio's afterward.  The pizza was delicious and we had plenty to bring home to Cal.

Enjoying Summer

Cam had a great day at Bright Time.  The three sports in a row are wearing him out, but he doesn't mind.  This is the first year that we have had him stay for lunch.  That has been going well.  He usually eats with his friend Avery.  Emma has been there also.  I get such a kick out of her.  On the first morning I walked in to make sure Cam was registered and had everything he needed.  As we were walking to his locker I heard a voice yelling across the hall, "Cameron, Cameron, Cameron, my best friend Cameron."  He never looked up.  After we dropped off his racket at his locker we walked back to the hall to put his lunch bag on the shelf.  This time we heard, "Cameron, Cameron, Cameron at least give me a wave."  At thought point I saw him smile to himself and hold his hand up.  Emma was satisfied with that and I laughed about it all day.

Meg had a lot of fun today as well.  Graham and Aaron came over to hang out.  They played games and made videos.  By the time we got home from the county council vote it was after 10 and they were still going strong.  Cal had to work today.  He has really been enjoying his job at Tippy Country Club.  At first it was a little slow, but now that the weather is warmer and the summer crowd has returned he has been scheduled more.  He got a great tip today and was excited to say that he would be able to get in 40 hours.

A Day of Running Around

Cameron had a great day at Bright Time camp yesterday, but decided that he would take a break this morning and go to the first day of the junior league at Raccoon Run.  Meg and I were there to  pick him up at noon.  He moved up an age group this year which meant he had to play off the black tees.  He did well for his first time, shooting 50 and finishing second for the 12-14 year olds.  He was happy with it.

Meg tried tennis this afternoon at Bethany.  She said that it went pretty well and enjoyed meeting their number one singles player.  The competition is not what it was at Wawasee and that will take some getting used to.  After tennis Meg went to basketball and enjoyed it as much as she did last week.  She said that she didn't play as well as she did Thursday, but still held her own.  She signed up to go with the team to a tournament in Vincennes June 28 to July 2nd and was excited about that.  

Doug did not have to work late, so he went with us to pick her up at 7 p.m.   She was tired from all of the activity, but ready to go to dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings.  Tuesday has always been traditional night, but tonight they had a special on boneless wings too which was a bonus for us.  Meg drove home so she could get some night time hours.  She has been doing very well with her driving.  She takes her test on the 20th in Albion.  Neither Brett nor Cal passed on their first time.  We'll see how she does.

Bright Time

For the fourth summer in a row Cameron has attended Bright Time camp at Bethany.  This year will be vastly different than the first.  That summer he only tried chess camp.  This week he signed up for soccer, basketball, tennis and chess.  It will make for a full week and there will be a lot of trips to Goshen, but just as he did the first summer he went, I know Cam will have a great time.

Home Again

We left this morning from Bloomington around 10 a.m.  Everyone was pretty quiet on the ride home. We had a fantastic weekend, but it was exhausting.  The trip back was uneventful and we were able to drop Cameron off at Evan's by 1:30.  They had invited him over to hang out and then go to see "Superwoman."  He had a lot of fun and highly recommended the movie.

Meg and I spent a good portion of today resting.  I still don't have my stamina back from when I was sick.  I was at least able to unpack and get the laundry going.  I also watched more of Parenthood.  I am almost done with the series.  It has been very good so far.  Aaron was supposed to come over and hang out with Meg, but his mom wouldn't let him as they were gone all day at graduation open houses.  That was disappointing as they had a lot of plans made for this evening.  Hopefully, Wednesday night will work for him.  Cal visited with HM before watching game one of the NBA finals.

Doug was busy as always.  He mowed the yard and then got all of the tables set up for the garage sale.  He even brought a truck load of boxes over from Mom's.  I was too tired to do much with the it today, but am planning on starting tomorrow.  Glad that we started ten days early.  Otherwise, I would never be ready.  We definitely cleaned out a lot last winter.

State Track Finals

We left yesterday at 5:30 for Bloomington for Hannah Marie's state track meet.  We had talked about leaving earlier, but Doug had to work and Meg had open gym.  In the end we were glad that we left that late.  State Road 37 was still under heavy construction and getting through it earlier in the day would have caused our trip a lot of delays.

Once we got to Bloomington we unloaded the van at Parce's.  Everyone chose Mother Bear's for dinner and we ran into HM and the track team there.  They had a good day cheering on the member of the boys team that made it to state.  Dinner was good and we were in and out a lot quicker than I thought we would be with all of the track teams that were seated around us.  Once we got back to Parce's Cal and Doug took a walk.  Meg, Cam and I visited with Parce before heading to bed.

This morning we headed to the Farmer's Market to buy scones and bundt cake for breakfast.  Next time I am bringing a cooler, so that we can pick up some fruits and vegetables to bring back with us.  We stopped at Kroger and Noodles & Company to pickup lunch for the winery.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day and several other families had the same idea that we did.

We had time before the meet to stop at the College Mall.  I needed some more candles, so Meg, Doug and I headed to Yankee Candle.  Cam and Cal did some shopping at Dick's.  Cal bought a new pair of tennis shoes for $40.  He was proud of that.  He hadn't bought new tennis shoes since October of 2015.  They then checked out the dogs at the pet store while we were at Journeys.  The shoe store had the cutest pair of Peanuts Vans.  Neither Meg nor I bought them, but we have them on our list for our back to school shopping excursion.

We got to the state meet at 2:15.  We all wore our Lamle Long Jumping shirts.  Mike and Robyn had just gotten there as well.  Hannah Marie's aunt and uncle also joined the group.  It was a lot of fun watching her compete.  She did well and we were all proud of her for making it as far as she did in the state tournament.  Unfortunately, she did not make the top ten finalists, but she definitely gave it her all.

After the meet we took the Lamle's on a walking tour of campus.  They had only been to IU one other time.  Campus was gorgeous and there were two different weddings happening.  One was at the chapel and another close to Sample Gates.  We spent time on Kirkwood before heading to Upland Brewery for dinner.  Parce (aka Jerry Skaggs) joined us as well.  I was afraid we would have to wait quite a long time as there were 11 of us, but we were seated within fifteen minutes.  Dinner was a lot of fun.  We enjoyed visiting and the food was delicious.  We even got to see the Oliver Winery hot air balloon take off.  After we ate, we all walked back to Parce's.  The Lamles had rooms at a bed and breakfast near his apartment.  Cal and HM decided to take a walk.  The rest of us split up from there and spent the rest of the evening relaxing.  It was a great day.

Giving It a Try

When Meg decided to transfer to Bethany her main objective was to get a fresh start with new friends and a supportive learning environment.  Our hope for her was to be challenged academically and to find the rigor needed in her high school classes to prepare her for college.  We discussed some of the extracurricular activities that Bethany had to offer, but those were never our main focus.  Now that she has been enrolled and the IHSAA cleared her to play sports at Bethany, Meg has had time to think out what she wanted to try.  Today it was basketball.  Meg hadn't played competitively for two years, but felt that she did well for her first time out.  She really liked the coach and found all of the girls to be supportive and friendly.  There's a tournament in Vincennes at the end of June that Meg has decided to participate in with the Bethany team.  We were excited to here that she enjoyed it.  We do not care which extracurricular activities that Meg choses, but we realize that meeting classmates before the start of school will make the transition in the fall so much easier.

Haircut Time

I really wanted to get my haircut last week, but we were swamped with end of the school year activities and Brett's visit.  Thus, I had to wait until today.  Meg also wanted her haircut, so she went with me.  She took more off of hers with three inches to my one, but she had more to cut.  We were both happy with how they turned out.

From the hairdresser we headed to Warsaw.  Meg needed fabric for a project and I wanted a new fountain for our backyard.  Preston called as we were leaving.  He had just finished working and wanted to walk to our house.  Meg told him that we would meet him there.  Once we got back Meg, Cam and Preston decided to go swimming at Mom's.

Cal also had a friend come over tonight.  He graduated from Concord and lived on the same floor as Cal this year at IU.  They went to Chubbie's for dinner and then to HM's to go out on the boat.  Alex and Jayce stopped by after that, so they could all watch the first game of the NBA playoffs.  The game wasn't quite as good as they hoped, but they had fun watching it together.