Dad’s Floatilla Birthday

For dad’s birthday, dad, Katy, Taylor, me and Bob and Mary Ann participated in Floatilla 2 in Suttons Bay, MI. Lindsey, Harvey, and mom were the “support crew!” :-)

The group of 2099 kayaks and canoes set the wourld record for largest float (connected) of kayaks. The weather was beautiful. Happy Birthday, Dad!

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Dear Captain Harvey

Parents forget things, so I am writing down those moments of your childhood that we want to remember. Some of this entry, and future entries like it, may seem random or insignificant. But that is not the case. Everything about you that we have learned in these first 120 days has been amazing, humbling, and rewarding.

As I write this, you are shuffling around your crib. You can’t crawl yet, but you can scoot with your legs. The result is red knees and cheeks, and a lot of grunting. It’s all fun and games, so long as you fall asleep soon!

You have recently started discovering things – from hands and feet to the whole world around you. You love crinkle paper and grabbing the dangly toy that hangs from the baby chair at Grandma and Grandpa R’s house. You like kicking your legs while “swimming” in the pool at Grandma and Grandpa J’s. And you like TV way too much. We only let you watch Sunday golf.

You’ve started laughing recently. The washcloth tickles your chin, and certain things we say (it changes) make you giggle. It’s wonderful to hear, and we can’t wait for more. I’m sure that one day soon you’ll do many things that make us laugh.

There are so many adventures that we look forward to experiencing with you. But there is this tug-of-war between “never grow up” and “We can’t wait.” And we all know you will grow up because you’re already 16 pounds! That’s nearly double what you were when we first held you four short months ago.

I could go on for much longer, but I’ll save it for later. You’ve settled in now for a few hours of shut eye. I’ll quietly ease out of the glider and see what Mom’s up to. We love you. Goodnight.

Weekend Update: Derby, Patch, and Sun

The sun and warmth of summer has finally returned to Traverse City, after leaving us in the cold for much of late July and early August.

On Friday evening, Lindsey, Harvey and I watched the “Derby,” which is sort of a fun tournament within another fun tournament known as the “August Invitational”, a/k/a the “Men’s Member-Guest. The top ten members are paired with the top ten guests (1 with 10, 9 with 2, etc.). They then play four holes of alternate shot format until a winning team is determined. Betting is permitted and hors d’oeuvres are served. Harvey fell asleep for the last two holes – he was sound asleep when I took the photo below.
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On Saturday, Lindsey helped me pile up the hundreds of saplings that I felled earlier this summer. The southern side of the lower driveway is cleaning up nicely. A little raking and additional trimming and we’ll be right where I wanted to be at the end of summer.

We also patched some of the driveway, which was far easier than anticipated. What remains to be seen is whether it will stand the test of fall and winter (think snowblower scraping over and over!).
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And I will leave you with a quick shot of one of my favorite parts of our property in the morning – the hillside next to the upper driveway where the soft orange of the sun peeks through the canopy and scatters itself upon the leafy forest floor.
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Husband and Wife Club Championship 2013

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Lindsey and I defended our Husband and Wife Club Championship title for the third year running (2011, 2012, and 2013). The format was six holes of scramble, six holes of modified alternate shot, and six holes of one best-ball of two. Our winning score was 65. Lindsey putted like a champ, and I drove the ball well. It was a beautiful, sunny, 75 degree day, and there was a good turnout of 22 couples.

Thanks to Peg and Dan for watching Harvey for about seven hours!