Springtime Fun

So we were playing outside on the swing....

and it started to sprinkle a little bit. So my daughter went in and grabbed her umbrella and started to sing....of course her sister started to copy her....





... except for the falling down part at the end.

Xcalak, Mexico

Xcalak Mexico is on the southern end of the Yucatan near Belize. This was our third year to go down and we plan to go back again next year.













No TV, no radio, no phones. You get to eat, sleep, dive, snorkel, read, and there is the option to do ocean fly fishing. We affectionately call our daily gathering before dinner "happy hour." We recall the events of the day and share snacks and adult beverages.












The restaurant onsite serves fresh fish daily. They catch themselves. Here, the proprietor throws fish scraps to the frigate birds.

I love it here!

Had a great trip and visit with family and friends from around the country. Our next trip is tentatively scheduled for late February or early March. TBD. A hurricane passed through the area last year...the resort itself did ok but we could see differences in the landscape to some extent.


This year, I drove to Chicago and then took a direct flight to Cancun with Marilou. From Cancun, we piled into two vans and drove for 5 or so hours to the remote fishing village near Belize. There were 14 of us in total. Uncle Paul was sufficiently recovered from his knee surgery to dive. Josh successfully completed his discovery dive class and was able to go out for some deeper dives. It was great.

Josh after his first real dive.

Uncle Paul's birthday was earlier this week on the 23rd. But the plan was to surprise Marilou who has a landmark birthday in May. It was fun.

Someone grabbed my camera.

It was nice to come home to spring!

hummingbirds

Dean has had hummingbirds in Bloomington already...time to put up your feeders. Keep them clean and refresh them frequently!

Arthur E and Richard J

I received a letter today from Aunt Ruth Ann about cousin Art. He passed away in February at the age of 95. Most of us have been to the farmhouse where Art lived and where Dad was born. Dad was born on Art's 10th birthday. Art and his sister Esther had to wait in the barn during the birth.

Richard J was a cousin who was in Mom and Dad's wedding. He passed away on april 6 at the age of 82. Ruth Ann says Richard was especially close to Dad because he was closely related to Don E.

Margaret

NCAC 2008

This post is long overdue, since NCAC Conference was back in February. Better late than never!

This is the pool where the Conference meet is held. I believe it was in Canton?

On deck, ready to get in.

Warming up for the race!

The 100 Freestyle sprint

Napping between events

Margaret predicted a color change... here are the results! Don't worry, it's not permanent, and the fierce mohawk intimidated the competition. :P

Nothing in this sport is possible without the team! Me with my assistant coach and team captains. (note the bald head... most of the guys shave completely!)

The guys celebrating our results! 4th place is a big deal in our Conference, and we even beat our rival school Wooster.

All and all, we had a great season, with 90% of the team getting lifetime bests in one or more event. We got three swimmers to make B cuts, broke 4 pool records, and sent one of our guys to Nationals! I made lifetime bests in all three of my events: 50 free, 100 free, 200 free. I have had a great time, and will be continuing with my swimming career through college.

Harrison Highlights

Mary has accepted a position at the Cleveland Clinic on day shift. She works mostly a normal human schedule although her commute is an hour each way. She is on the tranplant team performing all of the tests necessary to insert organs from one human being to another. Her training at OSU impressed her new employer and now she is there.

David is in the wacky world of corporate buyouts. Yesterday the Associate Vice President who used to be over him visited his department and begged all the customer service representatives to come join him. Dave is no longer scrambling for a job. He has an interview for a Personal Lines Underwriter position on Tuesday so he might end up with some choices, but the good news is he has a job July 1.

Dave and Jane's Plymouth Voyager died Saturday of a broken transmission. At 204,000 we decided it wasn't worth a new transmission. Any leads on a good cheap car would be appreciated as we are scrambling for wheels.

Dave

Family Updates

Grace has been doing ballet lessons and loves it. They have a recital on Tuesday April 15th for anyone interested in coming. I am sure she would love to see you. (Please call for times and location).


Also, Grace's school has a Variety show every year. There were several acts and some very talented kids at her school. Obviously we have our faves..

More on foals

I'm talking baby horses...(colts and fillies)

Willow had a filly. It is her first born. She already has a name >>> Sugar! It's because she is so Sweet! Sorry for no picture but she is all legs, sort of pumpkin colored with a big white blaze on her face. She is fearless and curious.