Around home in Florissant
I always hated Jan and Feb in St. Louis! Cold, snowy, icy, dreary. The snow is pretty for about a day, then it's dirty and dreary again. Pepsi sure liked it, though.
Perhaps changing from Catholic school to public school wasn't such a good idea---at least for Angie now in 8th grade. She's having trouble in PE (8 tardies), suspension for "fighting", grades suffering and not doing her homework. At least she's excelling in music and they have a great jazz band.
Tim also has taken up music again. He got an electric guitar with xmas and birthday money. We told him we'll pay him back if he's interesed enough to take lessons. So he's taking lessons and doing really well. He even played Happy Birthday to my Mom over the phone---which she later mentioned meat a lot to her.
Tim and I are also taking a racketball clinic. We're the only 2 in the clinic, but that doesn't surprise me since the office knew nothing about it when we registered.
Angie went skiing with the SSJJ youths from 11pm-6am. Sounds like she did well.
The new Y volleyball season started up again in Jan. and we're playing as a family. Even Pete and Mary Kuntz are playing with us.
I'm still reffing one day a week to keep the Y membership.
Tim injured his knee playing basketball. We took him to the ER and told he had a strained knee. 3 weeks later, he was still hobbling so I took him to Dr. Sheridan (bone Dr.). He immediately noticed swelling and popping and suggested surgery. So on Fri, 2-24 he had surgery. At least his condritis dessecans looked good according to Dr. Sheridan, but about 1/2 of his cartilage in the one knee was removed.
REport cards are in and Tim got straight A's again and made the National Honor Society. He plans to take 4 honors classes next year, including French IV. AFter a couple years of slacking off, he's working hard again. He was also nominated for a special math and science summer school 4 week honors class at UMSL. He didn't want to do it, but applied anyway---didn't get chosen as one of the 52 in the state but was picked as an alternate.
Now Angie's slacking off. HOpefully that will change soon. Maybe it's just that she's become boy crazy. She did try out for the jazz band and made it. She was chosen to go to a band festival during school in May.
This Spring I also gave the kids the choice of having their bedroom floors refinished or recarpeted. They chose carpeting and picked out new carpeting that was installed in March.
April---Tim takes his driving test for the 3rd time and now has a drivers license. Now he's gone all the time.
April 25--my best bowling day ever! Started out slow with a 137, then got 236 and 207. But I was just subbing, so didn't win anything even though I have high game and series for the league.
May 10---finally got our family room floors professionally refinished.
ANgie's been dating Chris for a couple months now. She's also done some caddying for extra money
Tim and his friends seem to really enjoy school and the teachers really like them. They're constantly pranking each other and even involve the teachers. They're a smart bunch of kids with creative, but good, minds.
June---another jaz concert with Angie having a couple solos. Although she played one of them with her brush and reed holder in the bell of her sax and forgot it was there. The conductor kept pointing at the sax but she didn't know what he was pointing at until he reached in and grabbed her brush. Then she remembered and shook the reed holder out---in the middle of the song. Thought it would have been a great video for "Funniest Home Videos"!
Funny side note---Angie's history teacher told her she was "creatively strange" in a positive way.
Now that summer is here, I let the kids dye the hair.
Ken --- got a new company car---an all white 4 door Ford Taurus.
Angie's playing softball for a new summer team and doing great. Originally the coaches step-daughter was going to be catcher, but after 3 innings, Angie has been catcher. She's been hitting really well after the first 4 at bats, too, becoming 2nd highest on the team. The coach made an interesting comment to her at one game---"You look like you're ready to hit the F___out of anything that comes anywhere near you!" He's always so quiet that surprised me.
June---Father's Day--- we went to Casa Gallardo with the Fischer's for the buffet lunch. Don mentioned that he thought Angie was being rather ridiculous when she had said she didn't want to play select VB because she wanted her weekends back, but now he really understands. Jenny's team has played a lot of tournies this year. She even broke a finger last week.
6-28 Took Tim to an orthodontist consult for his overbite. I didn't realize how big his overbite was until he asked why Angie got braces and he didn't and he stuck his tongue out at me through his clenched teeth. The Dr. actually recommended surgery.
6-29 got a 2nd phone line that Angie's helping to pay for. Tim calls it Chris's private line. Angie and Chris's relationship is still going strong.
At NAM one day while Tim was hanging out with Erin, NIcole, and Tom, Mrs. Gettemeier asked Tim what happened to Angie's hair. He told her a story about being in an accident,to which she said, "are you lying to me, Hon". Then Mary said something about Nicole's car to which Tim said, "are you lying to me, Hon?" He said it went right over her head, but Father was standing there snnickering. Tim's not nearly the quiet kid he was. He's become quite the comedian.
7- 9 Scout camp!!!! Yeah. Angie even rode with Chris's folks to visit him at a different scout camp on Thurs.
7---- while the guys were camping I had the living room /dining room floors refinished.
7--- getting ready for the Oregon trip and next year's school year, Angie got her physical. The Dr. said she has a functional heart murmur (like I do).
Angie has also started working at BJ's Bar and Grill and restaurant. Tim's been working for Steimel doing yard work.
Oregon
Usually when we're in Oregon, we spend a couple nights around the Lincoln City area---nice beaches, variety of restaurants and shopping, closest to Dallas. But this year we took a trip up the coast.
Hugs point on the north shore of Oregon. Before the highway was built, the beach was the only way to travel along this stretch of coast.
Heading down to the beach from the parking lot.
Some of the caves along the beach
