Masquerade

The gang at the party in costume. Spaghetti was good, costumes were interesting.

Don't touch my candy

Alison, tired after a hard night of trick or treating, shows her loot.

Evan and I went with Brad and Mima to a train show. Ev liked it for a while, then got ver upset because he couldn't play with the trains.

Candy Man

Evan sorted the candy into bags; didn't have much interest in eating it, just playing with it.

Eat more chikin??

Ladies at the beef store dressed for Halloween.

Party

Evan at the UU church halloween party. He was a Thomas engineer. Alison worked in the haunted house- her job was to scare people coming out the exit.

Wilmaaaaaa!!!

Big Hurricane. Got a lot of it. Wind came in from the north, lost over 10 big trees including Royal Palm. No house or pool damage this time. Power out for 6 days! Ugh, at least the weather was nice--no higher than 75 on any of the 6 days.

Happy Halloween

We took Al & Ev to Bell Tower to trick or treat, and then around the neighborhood. There were very few houses giving out candy; the hurricane spooked them I guess. The church party was 2 nights ago. It was fun. Al worked in the haunted house and Evan went on the hayride in Don Maron's truck. He cried again. He loved trick or treating--held on to candy all evening

Y Challenge

Al and I are in the "Y Challenge" -- We have a pedometer and a cyclometer and we have to keep track of our miles, or fractions of. It took an hour to install hers on the wheelchair; it involves lining up magnets on the spokes and wire placement and programming the "computer." What a pain.

Evan has started "screeching" or banging his head when things don't go his way. Not a good thing. We are going to ignore it.

Ho Hum

You know it's a boring life when the most exciting thing you've said all day is "5 minutes till Lawrence Welk!"

Al and I went to the Y this morning. I really like that jumpy machine that moves your feet. I have no idea what it's called. It's some kind of cardio machine...

Tampa Day

We went to Shriner's yesterday. Al is good; everything went fine. We have to get some minor wc adjustments and deeper shoes for braces. We were waiting in the O&P waiting room when 5 of the TB Buccaneers came in and signed pennants for the kids. I forgot the players' names but this guy is not one of them. He's probably a star QB or something...

Watching "Bideos"

When Alison was 1 she watched Barney with this look, Ev is watching either the Wiggles or Thomas...

I took Evan to the Infant & Toddler Expo at Harborside. It was very dumb. I had to pay $3. admission just to walk around and look at people's advertising. There were supposed to be pony rides, games, and shows. They had a goat, a snake, a moonwalk, and 2 clowns. We left after 20 minutes.

Settings

I'm fooling around with different camera settings. This is the "portrait" setting. I don't know... I may try setting the stops myself next time...

Two Headed Kitten

The Honda van wouldn't start at Ev's playgroup today. It had to be towed to Firestone. It needs a new starter.

Evan went down the "big" slide at KJD park. This year he's more interested in climbing and sliding than eating the shredded tire pieces on the ground.

Kittens Everywhere

Free Kittens! Come and get them. Anyone who would like a cat, let me know. we have grey tabbies, solid greys with white faces and feet and black kittens. Males and females. email jcarville1@yahoo.com for more kitten pictures.

Day 4 of crappy weather

The rain and clouds are getting depressing. It's still too hot to really work outside and too yucky to swim. Alison is working on her Thespian project for "I Hate Hamlet." She has to design tickets, a program, poster, and press releases.

The cats are so messy. I have to redo their litter box every day, sweep their room and wash the floor. Evan's been crawling up onto the table and countertops and getting into trouble. He hasn't fallen yet.

Alarm Sabotage

Someone unplugged my alarm clock last night. I plugged it back it, reset it, and fell asleep. Well, not only did the monster unplug it but he turned the volume down to zero as well. So I woke up late -- didn't hear the alarm at all. Barely got up in time to get Al ready for school. Put my whole day off. I've felt crappy all morning and afternoon. Got a t-shirt for $1. at Lamb of God Thrift store. Cool.

Bad Mirror

I was at the Y this morning and the place was filled with "serious workout people." I was noticing that there weren't any "fattish" people in at that time of day when I suddenly caught sight of one walking in the side wall mirror. "Oh, here comes one," I thought. Then I stopped short, turned and really looked. AGGGGGHHHHH!! It was me! How depressing. I exercised the crap out of myself today, literally. At least Evan behaved and stayed in the child care for almost an hour...

A funny thing... Evan calls his potty the "bobby." He calls Melon "minnow" and balloons "balls." The new Super Target has these big red balloons at the front and he loves them.

No rain, low pool

The pool has a leak so when it doesn't rain we have to fill it with the hose. We've tried to fix these leaks so many times and then another one pops up. I've started watering the yard plants. Got a new sprinkler. It was $1.88. It cost less than the bag of candy I got at the same time...

Made it to church

The kids are doing a little better today. We made it to church and I got to do the sound. Yay! That was fun.

It's incredibly hot, in the 90's still and NO rain.

The 3 of us alone...

Mike's gone to NY. Just the 3 of us and we had a busy weekend planned. Unfortunately, both the kids got sick. So we're at home with fussing and coughing and wiping noses every two seconds... Fun. Don't know if we'll make it to church tomorrow...

Stars & Stripes Forever

Alison plays the piano at church on 9/11. There are 3 teen piano players and one guitar player. They all played on Sunday. Really nice kids!

Evan's Haircut

He doesn't look too happy but Evan got a haircut last week. He was good, didn't squiggle too much. He is into cars and garages this week. Also balls. Soccer balls mainly. His favorite video this week is Kidsongs "Let's Play Ball."

Crazy cats

Nadia loves boxes. You can hear her at night batting beer and coke boxes around the floor. The new cats are named Greg, Marcia, Peter, Jan, Bobby, and Cindy. Of course there were 3 boys and 3 girls so what else could we name them?

Sam

We're now running a zoo practically. We have 8 cats and the dog. They are all getting on fine which is a miracle. The small cats are separated into their own area of the house. It's going to cost quite a bit to fix all these cats...
Evan's cold is better. Al might have a bit of it now. She's been tired for a few days.

Busy days, busy nights

We went to Alison's Open House last night. What a hectic schedule. She has to travel about 1/4 mile between some of her classes. She flies. I could barely keep up... I don't know how she does it with a crowd of students on the paths and in the halls...

Ice Cream Face

His favorite part of dinner... He won't eat ice cream from a bowl, it has to be in a cone.

Evan shops!

They have a neat supermarket at the Imaginarium. Kids can use carts or baskets and shop and then go to the checkout and scan everything.

Alison played the piano at church today. "Stars and Stripes Forever."

Before Haircut

Evan really needed a haircut. I brought him to Bananas Salon yesterday and they did an excellent job. Evan was good until halfway thru, then he fussed and wiggled. They know how to handle toddlers there so I'd definitely go back... the haircut was only 16. I think walmart charges 11 or 12 for kids...

Evan at the Imaginarium

I've been training on the sound system at church. Quite complicated but interesting. Evan watched his Thomas "bideo" 4 times today.

Al with Ray

Mike took Al to the Red Sox-Devil Ray game and took her picture with the mascot...

Alison

Alison auditioned for the school musical this week. She didn't get a lead but she may get a small part or do stage managing again.

My favorite picture

He turned around when the camera clicked but I like it this way better. Kid's eye view.

Hurricane on the way

Hurricane Katrina coming tomorrow...it's only a cat. 1 or tropical storm now but they canceled school.

Ev in the fountains

I'm starting a digital photography class next week. Maybe I'll learn some new tips! Happy Birthday Mima!

Evan at Miromar

Picture: Evan at Miromar water fountains. Technically there are supposed to be "no diapered children" in the fountain...Who do they expect to play in it? Senior citizens?

Pizzeria Uno

We ate at the new Pizzeria Uno on Daniels with the Beans. They were leaving for Austria that week so it was kind of a good-bye lunch. The restaurant was good, the food was fine; the staff was inexperienced and lost. They messed up our order but ended up giving us extra free food so it was ok... very, very crowded on a Sunday after church.

Evan swings in Brevard

Found a big playground in Brevard. They also had a public pool but we didn't swim.

Baptist Country

The sign above the Lake Toxaway Community Center. Charlie's answer below.

When I get bigger...

Evan, thinking about the day when he'll get to go to camp...

Evan solo dancing

Evan loved Victory Junction too. Not 5 minutes out of the car and he was dancing in the dining hall. To disco.

Victory Junction Gang Camp

Alison spent a week here. "The best week of my life!" she says. How can you do better than that. If I die even a little rich all my charity money is going to the Paul Newman camps. They do more for kids with medical conditions than any foundation... such as URGGH jerry's kids. Disabled kids want to DO Things ; not get trotted out and cried over to raise money they never see. When in Connecticut, North Carolina, Florida, check out one of these camps. You will be IMPRESSED. website links from newmansown.com

In the park

Alison, Mike, and Steve hanging out in the park. We were waiting for Gabrielle so we could eat at Katz's Deli. Mike was NOT thrilled with the dining experience there; he preferred the Carnegie. Katz's has a weird ticketing system; I thought it was kind of junky and the food wasn't even mediocre. I'm surprised it's so famous...

park in NYC

Evan and friend play in park in lower East side of Manhattan.

Don't honk???

Mike spotted this sign in NYC. He thought it was funny. I suppose it is...

Mall in NY

We went to a big mall in Long Island -- with a merry-go-round in it. I think it would be very cool to be a merry-go-round operator.

Evan's first ice cream cone

Evan had his first cone at a fried clam/ice cream joint in Brookfield. He liked it so much that when I tried to pull the mushy, gooey leftovers of the cone mess away from him, he screamed, grabbed it back, and ran away from me.

One Cool Dude

Brad at hampton beach. He looks like a 50's teenager!

Evan digs at Hampton

Spent a day at Hampton Beach with Mima, Brad, Bruce, and Jen. It was a nice, cool day and the water was warm. It is only once in a blue moon that Hampton water is anywhere near warm. Al and Mike stayed in the water for about 2 hours. Evan dug. I took pictures and we all ate at "La Bec Rouge," home of the "jerk" comment.

Mike's family

We visited with Mike's father's side in Worcester. This is his brother, Raymond. Carol and Phil were there also. We had lunch and went kayaking on the pond.

At Great-Grandma's

Finally got to Massachusetts and began visiting relatives. Here are Evan and Alison with Great- Grandma, age 97, in Shrewsbury.

Camden Yards- Baltimore

This was the rainiest game I've ever been to. It was sprinkling at the start and pouring by the end. It was a SOP FEST- and we were soaked. Not to mention, getting very lost on the way to the park. This may well be my last baseball game ever.

Hot Job

After leaving NC we stopped in Washington and visited Arlington National Cemetary. As usual, it was hotter than heck there. The cemetary was very hilly, and pushing Al and Ev was hard. Alison found it interesting, especially JFK's Eternal Flame. I prefer his brother's "Eternal Waterfall." I wouldn't want to be buried with a fire on top of me, especially not in that hot place!

Evan in NC

Evan in the Pisgah Forest looking at the waterfall. Evan spent most of the time in NC climbing up and down the stairs at GS and Charlie's. He took over the fireplace hearth as his "place." It rained almost every day and Ev liked to play in the rain outside.

Cold Waterfall

This is a waterfall in Pisgah Ntl Forest. Mike went in the water underneath it and said it was freezing. On the other side of the road people were tubing.

Brevard NC 4th of July 05

Started the vacation on the 4th of July weekend in Brevard, NC. This is a main street celebration with street vendors, entertainment, etc. It was a very hot day here. We ate lunch at DD Bullwinkle's & Rocky's. It's like a 50's ice cream fountain with a general store. We also bought 25.00 t-shirts for all of us. There are some hilly and windy roads here. We went through Pisgah National Forest up to the Blue Ridge Pkwy.