Slipping Through my Fingers

Last Friday Jacob picked up his 9th grade schedule. Yes, that's right, my baby is starting high school. It was weird enough that my firstborn entered his second year of grad school last week, now my youngest is officially a high school freshman. Where have the years gone?

Anyway, Jacob got a pretty good schedule. Our local high school is huge and is situated on a 305 acre "campus" that includes three large, separate buildings housing over 6,200 students. Five of Jacob's six classes are in the same school, but his fourth hour is in one of the other buildings, which will require him to trudge back and forth outside in all kinds of weather - rain, shine, hot, cold, snow, ice, etc. Adam managed to do that when he was a student there, so no biggie.

School begins next Tuesday and, hopefully, Jacob will not only be successful, but he will somehow be able to enjoy himself, too. Do any teens really love doing schoolwork, though? I doubt it.

Week in Review

Another week has zipped right on by. On Monday morning, Jim, Jacob, and I dropped Adam off at the airport for his return flight to Denver. We then drove to the Detroit Zoo where we met Nancy, Carey, Barb, Abey, and Josh. We all stayed for hours and I am happy to report that a lot of animals were actually up and active, which seems to be an unusual occurrence whenever I visit a zoo. Early Tuesday, I brought Jim to the airport so he could catch a plane back to Houston. Naturally, his flight was delayed, and, as a result, he was late to work. There was also a small earthquake on Tuesday that was felt by lots of people in Michigan, but not by anyone that I know. On Wednesday, there were severe storms around town. Thursday morning, Jake and I had to wake up at 6:10 so he could get to the 9th grade high school orientation at 6:45. In addition, he had his dyslexia tutoring in the afternoon and managed to stay awake despite getting very little sleep the night before. On Friday, we rolled out of bed at 6:30 a.m. in order to get to the high school for Jacob's 7:30 time slot to pick up his fall schedule. (Whose great idea was it, anyway, to make teenagers and their parents rise at such horribly early hours during summer vacation? Bad idea. Yawn.) This afternoon, Jacob, Nancy, Steve, Richie, and I tried our luck at our local 9-hole Disc Golf Course. Steve was the victor and we had a lot of fun until the mosquitoes began swarming us around the 7th hole, forcing us to spend more time swatting them than throwing our frisbees. I talked to Jim a few times today and felt sorry for him in Texas, as the high temperature there reached 109 steaming-hot degrees. Geez. I am now watching the Weather Channel to keep tabs on Hurricane Irene, as we have nine family members in the path of the storm. Hope everyone stays safe and dry!

Abey and Josh popped their heads up to get a close up view of the prairie dogs at the zoo.

This guy - or gal - amused me. Can't remember if it was a gorilla or an ape or a baboon.

Happy Days

We have had a hectic few days ever since we left Texas on Tuesday. Family members arrived in Michigan from far and wide all last week in anticipation of Laura's wedding. Yesterday's nuptials, originally scheduled to take place outdoors, had to be moved inside due to a passing thunderstorm. The couple's vows were punctuated by an extremely loud clap of thunder at a very appropriate time during the ceremony. Mother Nature works in strange and mysterious ways. We had a great time at the reception and were excited to have all but one of our clan in attendance. (We missed you, Kim!)

The newlyweds left for their honeymoon cruise this morning and the rest of us gathered at our condo for the family's August birthday celebration. The weather cooperated nicely today. We enjoyed temperatures in the upper 70s and a lovely brisk breeze. (So refreshing after enduring that scorching Houston heat the past few weeks.) Tomorrow people start heading back to their home states and by Thursday all should be back to work. Looking forward to the next family shindig.

A blurry family picture. I'm sure the official wedding photographer got some better shots!

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Laura and Rob cutting their awesome cake.

Grandma with (almost all of) her grandkids.

Jacob dancing with Samantha.

The five August birthday peeps.

Birthday Weekend

Jim celebrated his birthday on Friday. He had to work - and he said it was a very busy day at the office - but we did manage to get out to dinner in the evening. On Saturday, we were signed up for a boat tour of the Houston Shipping Channel. The 90-minute cruise was quite interesting. It was not overly informative, but was fun nevertheless. Since the whole area is government-owned and secure, we weren't allowed to take any pictures. On Sunday, we had some of Jim's work friends and their families over to the house. One guy is into brewing homemade beer and he brought along numerous samples, which we all enjoyed. The merriment will continue next weekend in Michigan when we have a party for all of the family members with August birthdays.

Jim received some yummy homemade beer as a gift.

Jake and I surprised Jim with some nifty presents.

The pool is as clear as it has ever been. The water temperature hovers between 88 and 93 degrees.

Six Months

What began as a delightful spring in Houston has turned into a downright unpleasant summer. Rainfall has been well below average and temperatures have been far above normal for a very long time. Here is my month-by-month synopsis of the past half year at our Texas house.

March - Temps were lovely, 60s and 70s. Neighbors turned on their air conditioners, even though it was absolutely perfect weather for opening windows.
April - Warmed up nicely. Pool water jumped into the 80s. Spent lots of time walking, biking, swimming, and working on the yard. Really enjoyed wearing shorts and flip-flops here while it was still below freezing in Michigan.
May - Weather really heated up. Highs in the 90s, humidity climbed. I perspired whenever I left the house, sometimes even inside the house. Became more and more intolerable for outdoor activities.
June - Temps were super hot. Felt sorry for anyone working outdoors in the sizzling heat. I don't know how they managed. Pool water soared to 90 degrees, but it still felt good compared to the 98 degree air.
July - Just sweltering outside. I broke out in a sweat every time I had to walk the few feet from one air conditioned venue to another. Wouldn't even consider making the grueling trek to the street to check the mailbox.
August - Unbelievably miserable. 100 degrees every stinking day. Why anyone chooses to live in this state is beyond me. Too hot to walk or bike ride without risking heat exhaustion. Seriously. Ugh.

Jacob, Jim, and I are all heading back up north soon for Laura's wedding. Summertime in Texas has certainly given me a new appreciation for midwestern weather. I am so used to stepping outside here and feeling as if I am walking into a blast furnace that anything below 90 degrees will seem cool. Remind me of that when I start whining about Michigan's heat and humidity next week.

The Best Man

Last month, Adam's U of M roommate, Mike, married Andrea, Adam's friend from elementary school. The bridal party consisted of all of Adam's pals, including one girl he first met when they were only 4-years-old. The childhood chums all became so close over the years that another parent and I referred to them as "the group." When Andrea first began dating Mike during their freshman year of college, he quickly melded with the posse and was welcomed with open arms. To make a long wedding story short, the big day was simply lovely, the kids (sorry, I mean the adults) all looked fantastic, and the whole idea that someone from "the group" was old enough to get married stirred up a lot of emotion among the parents. I mean, wasn't it just yesterday that we were helping them with spelling words and multiplication tables? Sigh - where does the time go?

The best man and the groom.

Adam escorted the two maids-of-honor after the ceremony.

Adam gave his best man speech at the reception.

The wedding party staged a fake-fighting pose for the photographer.