Skipping Town

 The kids start school on Monday. I can't believe this summer is almost over. More catching up: We went to a Pirates game with Andrew a couple of weeks ago. We stayed longer than usual (usually when we go with him we leave after the pierogi race) but not till the end, which he was horrified by because it ended up being a really close game. We tried! Andrew and the girls went to Baltimore overnight last weekend to see an Orioles game with family friends. I stayed home with the pets. Graduate Orientation was last week, the culmination of months of planning and preparation. It was exhausting but all went well. Now back to regular working life. We've all been running. Andrew, Lucia, and Greta all ran a 5K last Friday (Lucia was with her team and Andrew and Greta registered as well) and all did great. Lucia came in 2nd in her age group, and Andrew and Greta got medals for their age groups as well. Now that Orientation is over, I'm back to running as well, though it's been ha

I'm egregiously behind with my summer blogging. I can't catch up for every single day, but here are some highlights: Last weekend was one of my favorite book sales. Mom and Dad drove in and we all went, coming away with about six bags of books. We went out to a few yard sales afterward, then out to lunch at Ritter's diner. Then we came home and show-and-telled all the books we bought. This week was absolutely crazy since it was Graduate Orientation, which meant extremely long work days that started very early and went late.  Nutmeg's birthday was Monday--she's five. We celebrated on Wednesday with some new treats. Greta wanted to make her a bunny cake she'd found online, beginning this project at 10pm, filling our blender with rabbit pellets and hay and a banana. Hay was all over the kitchen counter. Andrew nearly lost his mind while I laughed and laughed. The end result wasn't too cake-like, but Nutmeg loved it nonetheless.  This week and last have been alm

Last beach day, and it was a good one. Another perfect day of weather. Greta and I went on a bike ride on the boardwalk in the morning, and then all of us spent the day on the beach. Lots of swimming etc. For dinner we got lobster rolls from Quincy's--delicious. We went back to the beach for sunset and had someone take a family picture. Luca found another baby shark and threw it back into the water. Two baby sharks in one vacation--a little unsettling, IMHO. Then it was back to the house for final rounds of Telestrations, and packing, and finally finishing the puzzle. The days seemed long at the start, but somehow the week has come to an end.

Today was a perfect beach day. No wind, sunny, warm. I went on a run in the morning--my first time actually hitting three miles. That's the conclusion of my C25K program, and though I have definitely improved, I am not yet ready to run a 5K. But it was (gasp) satisfying to hit this achievement. We spent the whole afternoon on the beach. Lots of swimming, skim boarding, and wave jumping. Greta is still breaking out in a heat rash after being in the sun, which is mysterious. But otherwise it was an excellent day.  We had leftovers for dinner and then went into town for ice cream. The adults scandalized the kids by opting NOT for the usual Kohr's. Molly, Mom, and Dad got hard scoops from Uncle Charley's. Andrew and I chose gourmet ice cream sandwiches from Peace Pie. We had someone take a family picture of us as we sat on a bench on the Washington Mall. I bought a wave ring at Across the Way, and Greta bought a Cape May hat with a shark on it.  We played games back at the hous

Another double-length beach day. Greta and I went on a three-mile bike ride this morning on the boardwalk. We headed to the beach around 10:30, and the kids once again used their skim boards. These are incredibly dangerous and, indeed, Lucia had a bad fall today and really bruised her hip. But the kids do enjoy using them. We were a little beached out today: Lucia went back to the house early because of her painful bruise and then got stung three times by bees at the end of the walkway; Greta, for her part, has broken out in a heat rash all over her body. She is claiming she's a vampire and is allergic to the sun. Andrew, Greta, and I rode our bikes out to Sunset Beach later in the afternoon and met the others there. It was too high tide to do much sifting for Cape May diamonds, sadly. On the way home we stopped at CVS for various ointments for bee stings and skin irritations. Molly and Jeremy went out tonight to procure tacos for dinner from El Pueblo Taqueria, which were deliciou

Another double-length beach day. I went running this morning on the boardwalk (2.75 miles) and then we all relaxed for a bit at the house. We went to the beach around 10, and it was another windy day--windier than yesterday. But the kids didn't care, especially because Molly and Jeremy went to Big Lots to get the kids skim boards. They spent a long time figuring out how to use them and eventually found some success. Then they used their boogie boards in the extremely rough water.  When we felt windblown enough, around 2:30, we left the beach and put ourselves back together at home. Then we rode our bikes (Mom and Dad walked) into town to do a little shopping and have some pre-dinner Kohr's. Lucia bought a purse at Across the Way and a handful of Good Luck Minis, a tradition. Greta bought a tiny glass shark at Swede Things and Good Luck Minis.  We made dinner at home (pasta with cauliflower, carrots, and grilled chicken), and while we cooked the kids went onto the second-floor d

Beach Week! The most highly anticipated week of the year. We all arrived on Saturday after a tearful goodbye to the pets. Mom and Dad rode with us. We are in the same house we rented last year, a short walk down a path to the beach. We unpacked and then went to the beach for a bit, and the kids got in the water. Dinner was pasta and sauce that Mom brought with us. Then we walked into town for the first Kohr's of the week. We went into a couple of shops, and Lucia and Greta found the sweatshirts they want to buy. (It's a firm tradition that every year they get a new Cape May sweatshirt.) We set up the puzzle Molly brought and planned our dinners for the week. Sunday, Molly and I got up at 6am and went to the grocery store to stock up. Then we went on a family run--Mom and Dad walked on the boardwalk while the rest of us ran. I'm up to 28 minutes now, about 2.75 miles. It was very pleasant to be running on the boardwalk in the morning.  We prepped lunches and bags for the bea