The August Break: Day 21

More New York...(although none of these photos are ACTUALLY funny, they all make me laugh, because - and I'm sure this will surprise you - we were acting like idiots playing hooky all day.)

The August Break: Day 20

Yesterday I went to NYC with my friends Heather and Cheryl to see the musical American Idiot. I had seen it previously and am happy to report I loved it just as much the second time around. Plus, I had massive amounts of fun with my friends, many laughs, and solid plans to do this again next year. It's pretty awesome to spend the day in the city with people who have known you for 29 (Heather) and 19 (Cheryl) years. Oh, they stories they could tell....

You really don't know how badly you need friend time (sans children) until you get it.

(more New York pics to come...)

The August Break: Day 19

"Mommy, STOP TAKING MY PICTURE!!!" is what she is quite literally saying here.

Someone is really sick of The August Break.

The August Break: Day 18

It rained a lot yesterday, so we took that as a good excuse to hang on the couch and watch copious amounts of Dora.

The August Break: Day 17

Just got back from spending a large chunk of the weekend at the boat. We actually stayed over two nights in a row - the first time we did that. It was mostly fun, but the sleeping situation the first night was terrible. Greg, Jane and I all shared the little v-berth bed, and, at one point, I managed to, from a sitting position, slam my face into a sharp wood corner, rather than my pillow. OUCH. Last night Greg slept elsewhere on the boat and it worked out better. Anywho, I forgot my camera, so here are a couple of pics of the ones that were left behind (Jimmy looks terribly offended, no?).

The August Break: Day 16

OK, so, last week we went on a super-fun family trip to the Bronx Zoo. I have been wanting to go there with Jane since she was born. Greg and I are in love with the San Diego Zoo, but, alas, we are 3,000 miles from there, so the Bronx Zoo would have to do. And she loved it. (I had a fear that we would drive two hours and then have to leave 10 minutes later because she was scared of the animals.) And I took all sorts of really great pictures, and I was really going to milk it for a few days during this August Break thing. Until Jane managed, with a couple pushes of the buttons on my camera, to delete all of my photos.

I was devastated. Really! I'm no photographer (as you can tell), but it was such a great trip and I lost everything about 20 minutes before we left. So here is what I ended up with: a picture of me and Jane near a sign, Greg and his camel friend, and this pic of a gorilla that I uploaded from my Blackberry. Thrilling, I know.

The August Break: Day 15

My dresser is starting to look like it did 30 years ago.

The August Break: Day 14

On Saturday, we went to an old-fashioned clambake at Lisa's house. And to paraphrase Rodgers and Hammerstein, it was a real nice clambake, and we were mighty glad we came. (From Carousel! Get it? Anyone? Anyone?)

The August Break: Day 13

And this is the reason it is imperative we have a king-sized bed. (The laptop represents me in this picture.)

The August Break: Day 12

Nine years ago today, my brother got in a terrible car wreck which resulted in weeks and weeks in the hospital and rehab. So despite how annoying he is (as all brothers are), I'm very glad he's still here to irritate the crap out of me.

The August Break: Day 11

On Wednesday, we took a little field trip to Greg's alma mater, UConn, to see the cows and horses. Man, we love those cows and horses. As a side note: I sometimes wonder if people who aren't from CT think that this is what all of CT looks like. Because this is what a CT calendar tends to look like. Cows, horses, green trees and shit, and maybe a seascape to change it up.

The August Break: Day 10

I just realized I hadn't posted any pictures from Jane's birthday party a few weeks ago, so here you have it! That day was completely insane. I have hosted many a party in my day, but none so crazy as when preschoolers take over the house.

why?

I am interrupting The August Break to tell this quick story.

Jane has started to say two things a lot. One thing is, "I love you Mommy" (or Daddy). This is, obviously, awesome.

The other thing is, "Why?." Like, constantly, why, why, why, why, why. I have actually said, "Because I said so." (None of us are far from our mothers when it comes to this parenting thing.)

So, this is now a common exchange:
"I love you Mommy."
"I love you too, honey."
"Why?"

Girl, there aren't enough hours in the day to tell you why.

The August Break: Day 9

Today.

One of my all-time favorite things to do in the summer is sit on my back deck and read a book. So that is exactly what I am doing now.

The August Break: Day 8

I like to call this the Dora Coma.

The August Break: Day 7

I figured I'd post this recent self-portrait of Jimmy and myself, in tribute to the fact that he realized the invisible fence wasn't working this morning and made me run screaming like a lunatic in the backyard before 8 a.m. to find him (all is well). Oh Jimmy - you always keep me on my toes!

The August Break: Day 6

(I'm numbering the days by how many I'm participating in, not by the total days in the month of August.)

The August Break: Day 5

Today we went down to the family biz - I've mentioned that my parents owned a Dairy Queen for over 30 years, and then sold it to my sister about 15 years ago, right? And I worked there for 13 summers of my life? I can make a cone with a curl on top like nobody's business - anyway, today was Miracle Treat Day, and proceeds from today's sales and donations went to support the Connecticut Children's Medical Center. She had face painting, a bounce house, a tiny little petting zoo, pony rides, raffle prizes - it was quite the evening. Here are a couple of pics from our night.

The August Break: Day 4

I know you've seen this picture before, but today I am celebrating that ALL my friends in California can do this too.

(Well, maybe not in a Catholic church. But still. Plus, those ceremonies are way too long anyway.)

The August Break: Day 3

We recently went to my friends Mark and Desiree's wedding at Mystic Seaport. I have known Mark for 29 years, and I don't think I've ever seen him quite this happy. It was a gorgeous but very hot day. Here I am with my friends Heather and Shelly, who are Mark's sisters and two of my very best friends. It's absolutely nuts to have friends that remember every single dumb thing you've done in your life. I am extremely lucky.

The August Break: Day 2

The next couple of days in my life are going to be ..... unpleasant. (I don't mean to be vague. I haven't been feeling well. Believe me, it's better I don't go into details. : ) ) So I'm going to post pictures that make me smile, even if they are horrible. So here's one of me and my pal, taken a few days ago.

The August Break: Day 1

Well, here we go. Beginning today, I'm participating in The August Break - and my goal is to post a photo at least five days a week during this month. My first photo is one I took of Greg and Jane on Father's Day (yes, some of these photos will be ones I took over the past couple of months and haven't shared here yet - some will be more current). It is SO HARD to get a good picture of these two together - neither of them really respond well to my pleas of smiling for the camera. So although Jane is all washed out because my camera is horrible, I still love this pic.

As a side note - Greg got Lasik about a month ago, and it's weird already to see him with his glasses on. I got used to him without glasses really quickly, I guess!