Levitt Shell

I would love to see the 9/28 show of Zydeco, Lil Malcolm and the Houserockers.  Anyone up for that? Looks like no football game for SBA that night so Carter won't have to play in the pep band.  Three others I can't make and Latin (9/21) doesn't interest me, although, if that is the only one you guys can attend, I'll do it. :)

Isn't it weird how busy we've become because of our kids?  Carter found out his Man #1 part in the play has just one line.  Wow, all these practices for one line.....oh well, I figure it is paying his dues for the next play.  He is really excited about being part of the production so that is a good thing.  Thank goodness kids can hang out in the library after school, otherwise, I don't know what I would do on some of these weird timed days.

Ran into my old boss's wife at the fair tonight.  Weird, but she is very nice.  Jim is actually the one who saw her.  That man NEVER forgets a face.  I doubt I would have known who she was.  We ran into a woman at meet the teacher night at Emerson's school and they figured out they taught math at the same time at Cordova High that one year he taught when Carter was in kindergarten.  Good Grief!!  She has a daughter in third grade at SFA and now teaches at St. Agnes.

Julie, how did the back to school week work?  I enjoyed reading your quotes.  I think my favorite was:THERE ARE NO STUPID QUESTIONS, THERE ARE ONLY STUPID ASKERS OF QUESTIONS
Jim and I always comment on how when you are in a seminar (continuing ed or whatever), there is always one person that appears to just want to hear themselves talk and must ask questions or provide comments to just clarify what the speaker has already explained or obviously wasn't listening and asks a  question that was specifically answered during the presentation.  Enough already!!  No one even wants to be in these classes to begin with....why prolong the agony!!

I got to quote my Dad today when we were driving down the road and a car was coming towards us taking up more room than they should  "Guess that driver thinks he'll just take his 1/2 out of the middle".  Oh the woes of country roads with no middle line.  I feel sorry for Carter learning to drive on them.  BTW, development has come to Oakland Julie, but unfortunately, the schools still suck.  If we had good schools it would be pretty easy living here.

I was telling Cari that our friends, the Millers, down the road (Carter's best friend, Mason) bought a house in Lakeland because she can't take the driving to Briarcrest anymore with three kids and two of them having after school activities and I'm sure the first grader will follow suit soon.  Their house will be going up for sale soon.  Carter has taken it in stride (it's not like they're moving out of state, Mom, and besides, I haven't seen much of Mason lately anyway).  I imagine Emerson will take it harder when he understands the significance.  Right now he just thinks it would be cool if we bought their house (way out of our price range).

Emerson has been having some behavior problems in first grade.  He apparently has decided that he is very funny and needs to be the class clown.  Unfortunately his teacher (and I) don't agree.  She is very nice though and patient (thank goodness).  Hoping to get this nipped in the bud.  We have moved from the Gem Jar (thanks Julie) to the ticket system.  He gets tickets for good behavior (and loses them for bad).  Each ticket is worth a 1/2 hour of electronics so if he wants to play, he has to be good.  He did finally earn his account on Minecraft so the sky's the limit (actually, he is limited to two hours of electronics a day and rarely gets the chance to use both of them).

Oh well, got to go make the lunches so I don't run late in the morning.  Another week begins.

Brenda

constant state of busy

OK.  i know this is supposed to be a really fun time.
Don't get me wrong ...it is.   I am just not sleeping enough.

This past week was a blur.
Volleyball and more volleyball.
Football friday////volleyball/fair/birthday party saturday.
that was child 1.
child two is an all day sunday affair.  kevin turns 13 on wed.
 an all day celebration.
then on to youth group and 'the talk  for boys'.
Kevin has a  friend and they  have a nice small but fun youth group.


I have a 35th high school class reunion.   WOW.
since Kevin is off friday and corinne is stuck in memphis  er, VOLLEYBALL!!!
kevin and i will go to La.  and visit family and friends.

The shell concerts will be starting up so Brenda and Cari we need to go to at least 1 together.
I have a U of M concert series mailout.  looks good.  might even try to go to a few.


waiting on the contractor, still!!
outta here,
c

repeat of 2005

Yes, um well maybe if they say we must!!!!!!!!
yep that is the general concensus.
Ole Isaac cannot make up his mind, although i thought trying to  crash the convention was a good one!!
So we wait to hear if friends and family will make the journey northward.

C played more volleyball in one week than she had played in 3 weeks last yr.

The hutchison game was WILD.  There is a line judge on each end of the court on opposite sides...so they can look down the line and watch the baseline.....well the fellow on the opposite side of the court ruled on a ball and the  ump/ ref took his word///the sparks just kept flying.
the varsity ended up winning but the wshs coach was repremanded.....

hopefully we will NEVER see them again  the (refs)

3 more games this week...cannot wait to see what pops up next.


My 35 yr high school reunion is sept 15th. amazing!
my 9 yr anniversary is sept 12th...kevin's b.d.   awesomely amazing!!

later, c

We're ALMOST back to school

School starts for Parrish on Tuesday, Belle on Wednesday.  It will be nice to have more of a schedule, but I have enjoyed this summer.  Belle is starting at the 'big' school in Manchester (the public elementary/middle school).  I say 'big' because it has around 450 kids from PreK to eighth, but it's big for us.  I will admit, I am the one having a hard time with it.  I am going to miss having her a quarter mile from home.  Manchester is a 20 minute drive.  It's kinda what you get when you live in almost the middle of nowhere,  Brenda are you nodding your head?  Although I am sure that the development has really moved out your way.

I am working, we absolutely can't afford for me not to.  It is such an interesting (to say the least) situation that I could write an entire book.  I am basically a house cleaner/personal assistant/etc. for a reclusive multi-millionaire genius inventor who lives in a hunting shack on forty acres with more ammunition, guns and provisions than you could imagine.  Guess where we're going if the shit ever hits the fan?  I have done several commercial landscape designs for one of the US Lawns branches in Connecticut this past month, hopefully more will follow.  I will also work at the mountain this winter I think - my eighth season.  Can you believe it?

I've had a pensive night.  I read this quote from Christopher Hitchens which I love and aspire to:

My own opinion is enough for me, and I claim the right to have it defended against any consensus, any majority, anywhere, anyplace, anytime. And anyone who disagrees with this can pick a number, get in line and kiss my ass.

Not.even.close.to.this

But, it made me remember the list of quotes that aunt found on my Uncle Tony's computer after he died three years ago & how awesome it was to have.  There are thirteen pages of them, I reread them tonight - These are some of my favorites, actually most of them are my favorites, but I can't cut and paste forever and really...how much do y'all all want to read?  He was a helicopter fighter pilot in Vietnam, so many of them are related to that.  But they are intermingled so much with my dad.  So many of them are his favorites...some are attributed to him.  They were both wonderful, loving, great men apart but together they were SPECTACULAR.  I miss them.

GOD IS MY CO-PILOT.   HOWEVER, I'VE FOUND FROM PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE THAT MY CO-PILOT LEAVES A WHOLE HELL OF A LOT OF IT UP TO ME sign in a ready room at whiting field

I WILL FIGHT NO MORE FOREVER                               chief joseph

THERE ARE NO STUPID QUESTIONS
THERE ARE ONLY STUPID ASKERS OF QUESTIONS t rothschild

KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN AND YOUR TURNS UP             wish for a combat helicopter pilot

…I SHALL BE TELLING THIS WITH A SIGH

SOMEWHERE AGES AND AGES HENCE:

TWO ROADS DIVERGED IN A WOOD, AND I-

I TOOK THE ONE LESS TRAVELLED BY,

AND THAT HAS MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE.         r frost  1916

                                                                        recently found underlined in a text book from 1960

…YOU GOTTA KNOW WHEN TO HOLD 'EM
                KNOW WHEN TO FOLD 'EM
                KNOW WHEN TO WALK AWAY
                KNOW WHEN TO RUN…                                    k. rogers

PEOPLE WHO SAY "THAT BEING SAID" ARE USUALLY ASSHOLES FULL OF SELF-SERVING SHIT

                                                             rothschild

A GOOD TITLE FOR A COUNTRY AND WESTERN SONG-"VALUEJET TO MEMPHIS"

                         j, s, & t rothschild  while waiting in atlanta for a valuejet to memphis 

                                                                        (on the way to my wedding....)

So, I started my own quote list on my computer...I think you should too, not to be bossy.  I love quotes.  I wish my dad had, but he said them so often, I feel like they are a part of me.  Those and his favorite songs.

Sending lots of love to you all...

Full speed ahead

Wow!

2 weeks into school and I am in shock!

Crazy schedule.

School make the paper in the WRONG way.(Julie see CA sunday for Goeff Calkins piece)

Volleyball games that last 4 hours.

ok, when we were kids my mom worked , got FOUR children from home in the morning to school ANDevents after school while my dad traveled each day from sunup to sundown to

work.  I cannot remember missing dinner AND  staying up late to do homework.

Corinne has 4 games this week. 2 at the high school, one at st benedict,(will do my best to get there brenda) and one at hutchison.

BUT WAIT ....saturday is a tournament!!!

On the day the freshmen play (with the j.v. and Varsity) it can be a 4 hr stint.  fr play best 2 of 3, j.v plays best 2 of 3 but Varsity plays best  3 of 5!!

The girls must stay for all 3 teams to cheer them on.  C and I got home at 8:45 last night.  she said she did not have any homework...rare occasion.

whew!!

Kevin is signed up for algebra 1.  welllll he had decide it is too much work so he wants out!!

"it  takes too long to do the homework, mom!!

and all the other kids had ms beck and are really ahead of me....SO, catch up, stay after school!!

he has not had a decent math class in 3 yrs.  finally some real homework like c has had  for the past 3 yrs.

need to go wake the troops.

  later, 

c

Howdy

Glad you had a good vacation, Carole.  BTW, I saw on the St. Benedict calendar that the Freshman Volleyball team plays White Station on 8/22 at home.  That's Corinne's team, right?  We'll plan to be there if that's the case.  Let me know.

Headed to KY lake (only two hours to the part we're going to) with our friend Genie and family this afternoon returning Sunday.  Then I plant to drive to my Mom's with the boys on Monday.  My brother and his wife will be there.  I considered making Jim drive back with our friends on Sunday and just heading to Indy from there, but I think it will be too complicated.  What's another 2 hours on the road anyway?  The van just turned 350,000 miles.  Go Dodge!!

Jim wants to go to CA before school starts.  Once I get back from my Mom's it may be a possibility.  Fed Ex employees get major discounted airfare with Delta and Air Trans (American once you've been there longer).  We had forgotten about that.  You do have to fly stand by though.  The travel agent said it may take two days since there are four of us, but she was confident we would get there (and back).  Jim thinks it sounds like an adventure.  If I can just tone down my control freak personality, it would be fun.

Off to clean the pool and go to the grocery to stock up for the weekend.  Enjoy!!


Brenda

checking in

hi again,


we are back!!
a driving marathon it was.  charleston/jekyll island/navarre beach.
we left on friday the 13th...true to its name...it STORMED on the way to atlanta, so we stopped
outside birmingham.
saturday we finally made it to charleston. Lots of history and LOTS of walking, despite the fact that they have a free trolley system in the old sections.

we ate seafood...not superior like N.O.,la but pretty good.

we visited the Yorktown carrier, Fort Sumpter, Magnolia plantation ( it has a swamp with many many alligators.  Keith took K and C to the aquarium while I went to a museum.
The last day we took a walking tour ( we were his only clients that afternoon!!)
got to see and old theatre that had been a hotel, and a REALLY old church.
beautiful wood and tiffany glass.
Corinne and  I found time to get some shopping in too.

jekyll island was hot  and had many mosquitoes waiting for us.
another private tour of a  wooded area .this guy had props...maps and animal specimens as show and tell.  Next on to the turtle preserve/hospital. Then on to the water park...we were there ~2 hrs and had to evac due to a water spout over the  bay/marsh area.
we dressed and drove on to Navarre beach by way of Jacksonville.
we stopped to eat dinner at a hole in the wall. GREAT  fried shrimp...20-25 huge shrimp on the two platters.

navarre was relaxing...sand and more sand.
Keith went fishing...caught a sunburn.

we got back home sunday night.
We all had our moments, but on the whole we enjoyed the trip.

Corinne has volleyball each morning then choir camp.
kevin goes to choir camp  1/2 day
next week is their last hurrah then AUG 6th is school.

sad that it has passed so fast.
Julie I am so sorry for your friend and the family.

I also am assuming thane has a new job/territory.
Glad you are able to stay near Dartmouth for Belle.
r u working or not?


 Brenda  we too are  feeling out of touch with family.Our big Italian family spent EVERY weekend  with my mom's family on sat and dad's family on sunday  when i was  growing up.
I am rather envious of my mom's brother's kids...they see each other several times a week, go to church together and their kids go to school together!!...even better Keith has a brother in the same town and HIS children see my cousins' kids at school and church.
Keith's nephew went to a prom with my cousins' daughter.
my dad's family goes to church and school with this crowd!!
my kids are missing out on a lot of family time.
That was one of the reasons we went to florida during this trip.
Keith's brother was already there and his sisters and dad and other brother planned to be there.

A big thankyou to cari for watching the Lizard and going to get
more crickets!!

goodnight
c