Wednesday, June 8, 2005

Go Blue!

It’s been a busy week so far. We’ve spent a lot of time planning our various moves, finances, and everything else related to these house sales. We have everything pretty close to under control, but there is so much to do that it was incredibly inconvenient that a water bottle leaked onto our cell phone today and broke it…

Gabriel took his first step yesterday, but we weren’t sure if it was real or a fluke, so we were pretty convinced when he took another step at playgroup today. We’ll consider it walking when he takes two steps. He had playgroup today, and he had a blast. Jake has the coolest toys, and we think that the Chipster was extra happy to explore new stuff. He’s got the old stuff at home all figured out already. Anyway, he is getting really close to walking. It was really interesting how differently Chip and his friends are developing. He’s very mobile but isn’t even close to talking or even making meaningful gestures, whereas Jake is the total opposite. He is starting to talk already and can say "Bye-bye, dada" and knows when to clap in the "If You’re Happy and You Know It" song! Zoe is getting to be a super crawler and is a really quick learner – she learned the "so big" gesture in about 5 seconds today. All of our babies are so amazing in their own ways.

Matthew had a great softball game today. Although his having-a-busy-day wife forgot his softball gear and had to drive all the way back to Midtown during rush hour to get it, making 3 trips to LockMart today and a grand total of about 3 ½ hours in the car, he got a hit and fielded a ball in his khakis and might have to start wearing a suit so he gets some home runs. In all he was 2 for 3 with 2 singles and an RBI. He had 2 putouts; it was a pretty slow day at first base. The Intimidators, or "Intimadators" as their new, soon-to-be-dishrag jerseys were printed, beat the whiny baby and so cleverly-named Security and Fire team, 11-4.

We decided that to drive up to Michigan with the passenger riding with his knees in his chest and unable to recline, with Gabriel getting antsy was not a good idea. Besides, the whole process of selling our home is going to be difficult enough for us without having to spend 12 hours sitting in the car brooding about it. We reasoned that it would be very much worth the money to fly, especially given the price of gas. We got plane tickets on Priceline, since regular fares were through the roof and there weren’t any last minute deals through any of the airlines. Surprisingly, we have very reasonable times for our flights – evening for one and afternoon for the other.

Gnocchi

Patty undertook a new endeavour yesterday: gnocchi. It was a simple procedure, but getting the dough to the right consistency proved to be quite difficult. It turned out pretty well, although it could have been firmer. We should not have bathed it in flour before boiling so the pieces wouldn’t stick to each other, because that made them slimy. Other than the minor improvements, it turned out pretty tasty! We will likely make gnocchi again with a couple of slight alterations to the recipe.

The University of Michigan softball team won the College World Series tonight! Woohoo and Go Blue! We’ve been following their progress through the entire tournament, and we have been really impressed with both their star pitcher, Jennie Ritter, and their freshman future Olympian first baseman, Stephanie Findley. Ritter pitched almost the entire tournament, and Findley drove in all 4 runs today with a single and a 3-run homer. They are now the first U-M softball champions in history, and in fact, they are the first softball champions in history east of the Mississippi!

It seems like nearly everyone we know is moving to western Cobb County (known here simply as West Cobb). We know a couple of people that already live out there, like two people on Matt's softball team and our financial advisor, and several people that are about to make the move. The heck with all the headlines that intown is the happenin' home destination, West Cobb is the place to be! We also found out that Cobb is building a new middle school and a new high school that should be finished in the next couple of years, which is both great for Gabe and an indication of how much development is going on there.

Here’s a bit of advice to fans of drinking water and cell phones everywhere: don’t put those two things together. It breaks the phone. On a related note, don’t call us. At least, don’t call us if you expect to hear our response. We can hear you, but you can’t hear us. For some people, that might be an attractive deal. So if that applies to you, by all means, give us a ring. You won’t hear the obscenities we’re screaming at your egomaniacal self. Seriously, though, we’re hoping to get a new phone and for the love of all that’s good and holy, not with Sprint!