Block Party

This past weekend, we had a block party on our street. We did it a couple years ago, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. We had intended to make it an annual thing, but somehow, time got away from us last year, and before we knew it, summer had come and gone. We didn't want to make the same mistake this year, so we (Ashley) filled out the appropriate paper work and scheduled our "summer" block party on the last Saturday of spring.

We lucked out and had a wonderful day. The forecast called for thunderstorms, some severe, in the late afternoon. The party was from 4 - 8 pm, so we were plenty worried. Fortunately, the weather forecasters predict the weather almost as poorly as I pick NFL winners against the spread (I was something like 6 - 14 last year). We had rain in the morning, but by early afternoon, the sun was out, there was a gentle breeze, and the humidity was down.

We had a great turn out. Here are some shots of the crowd...well, not really a crowd...a somewhat large group of people is probably a better description.

We set up right in front of our house in the shade granted by some big trees from across the street. Dwight and Mary Helen (Buckeye fans, but still good people) brought a grill, while everyone else brought chairs and treats and good things to eat. There were a number of little ones running around. They spent some quality time checking out each other's roadsters (some are shown in the picture above). However, once they spied the kiddie pool, there was no stopping them. Initially, they were tentative, standing around, making little splashes and waves. This didn't please Isabel...I don't think she liked getting as wet as the boys (yes, she's screaming in the picture below).

The boys splashed so much that Isabel no longer wanted to be by the pool. I tried to explain to the little men that in the future, the last thing they'll want to do is chase the pretty girls away from the pool. They didn't believe me. The little tykes then let loose with a series of running cannonballs and belly flops, proceeding to soak themselves to the bone. Bode loved it, as did Jack, Luke, and Brady.

After the party was over and Mommy was changing Bode, the little guy said, "I had friends in Bode's pool." Very cute.

Finally, here is a picture of Emma. She is 10, and is the granddaughter of our neighbors that live across the street. Emma and her mom live in Cincinnati, and during the summer, Emma makes frequent visits. Bode loves Emma, so we had to get a picture. She is lovely young lady, and quite intelligent.

Pleasant week to all and Happy Father's Day.

Promotion

We've had a busy past couple weeks full of major events. Amazingly, I have been in the Air Force for 15 years (19 if you count my time at USAFA) and have been lucky enough to have attained the rank of lieutenant colonel (or as Ashley likes to call it, "Light colonel"). On 27 May we had a little promotion ceremony at work. A lot of folks from AFIT were able to attend, as were some old AFOTEC alums. It was great to see everyone. Bode really enjoyed himself, and was somewhat well-behaved. Here are some pictures. First, we have Bode fueling up before things started. Nothing like a bottle of water to make two year old happy (and wet).

Col Dave Cribb, the associate deans at AFIT, was kind enough to officiate the ceremony. Following the standard "Posting of the Order," Ashley and Bode came up and "pinned" on my new rank.

After my official introduction as "LtCol McGuirk," I proceeded to give Ashley and Bode some gifts. Ashley received a dozen red roses, while Bode got a little Teddy Bear.

The day after Memorial Day was my birthday. I'm now a whopping 37 years old, and that doesn't do me any good because I'm still in the same 35-39 age group for most running races. To celebrate my birthday, we took Bode to his first swimming lesson of the summer. He took a class last summer and he loved it. We expected more of the same this year. Sadly, Bode wouldn't even get in the water. He kept saying, "I don't want to go in the water. I want to go home," and when I picked him up and carried him in, he really started screaming. Rather than torture the rest of the parents and children, we decided to leave. We tried again on Thursday, but got the same response. We asked him what was wrong, and he told us, "The pool is scary." Evidently something is scaring him...anyone have the ability to read a two-year old's mind???

Ashley was lucky enough to catch the flu this week (on my birthday no less!) She went to work one morning and got there around 0730...and left around 0830 after spending some time worshipping at the porcelain temple. Poor kid. She's better now, but she should weigh herself because she didn't eat much this week. She did get some good news. A month ago she tested to become a certified aerobics instructor. I'm happy to report she has passed. I think it's neat I can now say I'm married to an aerobics queen :-)

On Wednesday, I took Auburn down to Cincinnati for her second round of chemo. It's about a 40-minute drive, so I left early and got her there by 0700. The vet called me at work a couple hours later saying Auburn's white blood cell count was too low, so chemo could not be done. She prescribed some antibiotics and said we could try again on Monday. Here's hoping things work out in a couple days. In the meantime, the big girl is doing great. Here's a shot of the three-legged rottie and the new lieutenant colonel. What a pair indeed!

Tomorrow is Sunday. There is a 10K race I'll do in the morning, and then if the weather cooperates, we'll take (drag) Bode to the pool and see if we can convince him the pool is fun. Pleasant week to all.