Thursday, September 25, 2008
Published
Avery has been writing reviews for a while for ReaderViews, and one was recently picked up by the Chicago-area paper, The Southtown Star. You can see it here.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Florida vacation
Earlier this month, we spent ten relaxing days at the beach in Destin, Florida. We went with Papa and Ronnie, and stayed on a house right on the beach. It was a perfect location, and we felt like we pretty much had the beach to ourselves.
We all had a wonderful time, despite some weather-related complications. With Hurricane Gustav having just passed by, the water near the beach was full of a thick, green algae bloom for the first several days. It was a bit like swimming in spinach...blech. But past the wave breaks, the water cleared considerably, so we spent a good amount of time playing on the sandbar. We also spent lots of time playing in the sand, building sandcastles, and just relaxing on the beach.
After the first few days, the water cleared just in time for Hurrricane Ike to pass to the far south of us. We didn't have so much as a raindrop, but the waves were huge and the tide came all the way to our steps, where there had previously been about 35 yards of beach. We had a few days of double red flags, which meant no swimming at all.
And with the beach lost under the waves, we had to find some indoor activities to keep us entertained. Luckily, we don't go anywhere without an armload of games. We played countless games of Bananagrams, Mille Bornes, Scrabble, and dominoes. Papa taught Avery, Bill, and I how to do Sodoku, and we had plenty of time to read and watch movies. We also brought the Wii, and we all had fun showing Papa and Ronnie how to play Guitar Hero and Wii Sports. Papa was a natural!
Oh, yes, and we all had time to catch up on our sleep....
We ended up staying three days longer than we originally intended, because Hurricane Ike traveled the same path we'd have taken home. If you're going to get stuck anywhere, I'm pretty sure the beach is the place to be! The weather finally cooperated, and we got our beach back the last few days. The green algae was gone, and the waves were perfect for boogie boarding!
All in all, it was a wonderful, relaxing trip.
(You can see even MORE pictures here!)
We all had a wonderful time, despite some weather-related complications. With Hurricane Gustav having just passed by, the water near the beach was full of a thick, green algae bloom for the first several days. It was a bit like swimming in spinach...blech. But past the wave breaks, the water cleared considerably, so we spent a good amount of time playing on the sandbar. We also spent lots of time playing in the sand, building sandcastles, and just relaxing on the beach.
After the first few days, the water cleared just in time for Hurrricane Ike to pass to the far south of us. We didn't have so much as a raindrop, but the waves were huge and the tide came all the way to our steps, where there had previously been about 35 yards of beach. We had a few days of double red flags, which meant no swimming at all.
And with the beach lost under the waves, we had to find some indoor activities to keep us entertained. Luckily, we don't go anywhere without an armload of games. We played countless games of Bananagrams, Mille Bornes, Scrabble, and dominoes. Papa taught Avery, Bill, and I how to do Sodoku, and we had plenty of time to read and watch movies. We also brought the Wii, and we all had fun showing Papa and Ronnie how to play Guitar Hero and Wii Sports. Papa was a natural!
Oh, yes, and we all had time to catch up on our sleep....
We ended up staying three days longer than we originally intended, because Hurricane Ike traveled the same path we'd have taken home. If you're going to get stuck anywhere, I'm pretty sure the beach is the place to be! The weather finally cooperated, and we got our beach back the last few days. The green algae was gone, and the waves were perfect for boogie boarding!
All in all, it was a wonderful, relaxing trip.
(You can see even MORE pictures here!)
Rhys's birthday bash
For Rhys's 6th birthday, we had a pool party at Mamar and Doc's house (yes, it was a month ago). Despite a little rain, it was a great party.
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