Table for Eight

There's More

2009-09-15T17:35:00.005-05:00

Not only does he sing........

He also plays the bugle.

- These photos were taken by the wondrous Navy Parent, Nushi Carrera. Nushi lives near the yard and frequently posts photos from various Naval Academy events as well as from the day to day activities. There are a boatload of parents who will be forever grateful to Nushi for providing us with frequent glimpses into the lives of a Naval Academy midshipman, and even better - photos of our very own Waldo. Thanks, Nushi!

He Sings?

2009-09-14T22:16:00.004-05:00

There's my Waldo - front and center, trumpet (aka soprano bugle) in hand and SINGING. I didn't even know he could sing.

- photos compliments of Navy parent, Stefan Ventura,
I told you Navy parents were wonderful!

More sightings! I love Navy parents!

2009-09-07T15:12:00.006-05:00

This is a tough one. My Waldo is in there, but it takes a mother's eye to spot him. First row, second set of shoulders. You can see just a bit of his glasses behind his ear and the diagonal stripe on his shoulder board.

Behind the drums, front row of horns, with the glasses.

In the row closest to the camera, second from the right - carrying the thing that looks like a trumpet but is actually a soprano bugle (so I'm told). I'm pretty sure that's Ian's roommate two people in front of him. Boy, I'm getting good at this Waldo thing!

Navy parents with cameras - I love you!!! Thanks to PixelParv for the photos!

First Waldo Sighting of the Season

2009-09-03T11:35:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Nushi, fellow Navy mom, here is the first sighting of my Waldo for the year - right of center in the dark glasses. (No not sunglasses - transitions.) This is a practice parade and they are wearing the uniforms that they wear on a typical school day. The firsties (aka seniors) are in tan.

The Box Kids

2009-07-28T12:08:00.002-05:00

The littles and the neighbor kids confiscated our recycling boxes and turned them into the preferred mode of transportation for superheroes. Unfortunately, the girls had not been briefed on appropriate and inappropriate decor of said vehicles and were kicked out of the club for drawing hearts on one superhero's rear fender. Imagine that!

When Max was driving around in his box this morning, he recounted the offense. I tried to stick up for Catherine and Hope and told Max (age 7) that even superheroes need to have a little heart. His response, "They do! They have a heart for justice!"

This time next month.......

2009-07-26T15:44:00.003-05:00

I will have a whole better perspective on life,

I will not be yelling, "shut the door, shut the door, shut the door,"

I may actually start and maintain an exercise program,

I may be sane for at least 6 hours/ day,

I may start sorting, organizing and scrapping 20 years of family photos,

I may blog again!

This time next month school will have been in session for one week and it doesn't look like I'll be homeschooling anyone next year. Last year was my first year, in 19 years of motherhood, to have an empty quiet house from Monday to Friday, for six hours each day. I think I spent the whole year in shock and recovery. This year I plan to actually accomplish something! Tune in sometime next month.

Blowing Bubbles, etc.....

2009-06-26T23:41:00.007-05:00

I am loving my Mother's Day gift - a new Canon Rebel. These were the first photos I took. It just took me 6 weeks to get the pictures on the computer. Aren't they great?

Herndon - finally!

2009-06-25T23:24:00.018-05:00

You didn't think I'd show pictures of the Naval Academy with out at least one of the Drum&Bugle, did you?? That's Ian on the far right. This was noon meal formation. Sorry there's no sound!

Some of my wonderful new USNA mommy friends!

Ian and Kiley carb loading before the big climb. McDonald's delivery compliments of Grandpa!

The monument! It is much taller than it looks in this picture, especially when coated with lard!

Getting started.

Making progress. They used their whiteworks from plebe summer to wipe the lard off the monument. They also scooped up handfuls of lard and flung it to wherever it might land - sometimes on the spectators. I was lucky, me and my camera stayed grease free.

Ahhh - the top, at last. Just when it looked like we would be there for hours, a young mid from Wyoming scaled the bottom layers of the pyramid to grab the dixie cup from it's perch. It happened so unexpectedly that noone had the Navy cover needed to replace the dixie cup. All ended well and the class of 2012 finished in a respectable 1:14:38. Just the right amount of time if you ask me.

Some happy plebes-no-more!

The aftermath! They brought in some heavy machinery to clean the whole place up. New sod was even in place by that evening and everything was ready to go for commissioning at the end of the week.

Here is Ian, no worse for the wear, after the climb. I never saw him during the whole event. He and his friends were on the bottom layer on the opposite side from where I was sitting. I am sure I wouldn't have seen him in that mass of midshipmen anyway.

Ian and Austin, after the climb, all decked out and ready for a celebratory dinner. Plebes No More, Plebes No More!!!

Of course, after all of the hoopla's over, somebody's still got to do the laundry and for this time it's not ME!!!

I will return.........

2009-06-19T19:09:00.004-05:00

There is a whole lot going on at Table for Eight, and surely some of it is noteworthy enough to be blogged, it is just that I can't seem to grab enough uninterrupted time at the computer while all of the kiddos are home.

The Waldo sightings have been put on hold for now as well, because Waldo is currently residing under the very same roof as the rest of his siblings. His 4 week leave ends Sunday and then it is off to spend a little time learning about the Navy while aboard the USS Monterey.

More Waldo sightings to follow once football season begins. Go Navy!

Marching into Herndon

2009-05-20T15:04:00.003-05:00

Here is Ian and friends, marching into Herndon. He is right behind the flag bearer. More photos to follow, once I figure out how to operate my new camera. This photo is compliments of Navy Mom Nushi. I never even caught a glimpse of Ian until after the mission was accomplished. He tells me he was at the base on the opposite side from where I was standing. Avoiding more photos ops by Mom, no doubt.

Induction Day 2008

2009-05-10T18:29:00.003-05:00

The finals are over and the class of 2012 can see the end of their plebe year drawing near. Sea Trials are on Tuesday, followed by Herndon on Monday and then...... PLEBES NO MORE!! Here's at look back at how the journey began.

Ian's I-Day @ Yahoo! Video

A Week at Disney - in 5 minutes or less

2009-05-08T07:09:00.002-05:00

I'm so glad I have a techie family! This one is by my husband. And yes, number two child was missing due to winter percussion competitions. She'll travel to Disney next year with band, so her time is coming, but we still missed her. We went during Ian's spring break since the Naval Academy isn't too flexible. We used the military discount that Disney is offering until Dec. 23. It is a HUGE discount. Check it out.

Plebe Life

2009-05-05T09:03:00.001-05:00

Here is what my boy has been up to lately. During finals week :) The year in review, as seen by a plebe:

Update

2009-04-16T09:42:00.002-05:00

It seems my blog life has fallen off dramatically lately. It is not that I haven't had anything to say or any news to share, but I am frustrated by the fact that I still have trouble figuring out how to work my computer. Just when I had figured out how to download my pictures in less than seven steps, my husband decided to hide our photos in something called Maxtor. And some of our photos were taken with Carly's camera which for some reasons puts them in another location from the rest of our photos. I'm getting old, and I'm tired, and I just don't have the energy to fight with my PC anymore!

So, you'll have to take my word for it - we went to Disney for the first time. Picture my family, minus Carly, standing in front of Cinderella's castle, or at our favorite park - Animal Kingdom, standing in front of the Tree of Life. Steve's three months of studying paid off and we had a relatively stress free and relatively inexpensive (for Disney) trip. We are very thankful for the military discount that Disney is offering. We wouldn't have made the trip otherwise. If you have an active duty or retired military family member, you should really check this out. The military special runs until December 23rd. Check it out: http://tinyurl.com/disneymilitary

Had to Share - #10 on NY Times this week!

2009-03-27T21:07:00.001-06:00

Watch CBS Videos Online

Huh???

2009-03-24T13:06:00.004-06:00

This was on a wall in a school we visited for a band contest. I will withhold the name to protect the innocent. So, how smart do you have to be to find the Learning Lab? I was baffled, but I guess that's not saying much.

Check out Craig M. Mullaney - Multimedia - Videos

2009-03-05T11:06:00.002-06:00

Take a look at this poignant new book by Craig M. Mullaney, a West Point graduate and Rhodes scholar who fought in Afghanistan. His website has an must-watch "trailer" video, and there's a chapter excerpt on VanityFair.com. Craig was also a teacher at the Naval Academy which is how I stumbled across this book, but after the first few pages I knew this was not just a book for military moms. This is a must read for everyone who is proud to call themselves an American. That's how good I thought it was! So go buy it, request that your library carry it, recommend it to your book clubs and then let me know what you thought.

These are some of the impressive reviews of the book below.

"Extraordinary"--Washington Post
“A wonderful, beautifully written story of the education and development of a young soldier-scholar..." —General David Petraeus
"A classic memoir about what it means to be American." —David Lipsky, Rolling Stone
"The ultimate's soldier's book...a lyrical, spellbinding tale of war, love, and courage. The Unforgiving Minute is the Three Cups of Tea of soldiering."—Ahmed Rashid, New York Times bestselling author
"A powerful narrative of purpose, responsibility, courage, and personal growth. Every young man and woman in America should read this book."—General Wesley Clark
"An unusually honest, funny, accessible, and vivid account of a soldier's coming of age. This is more than a soldier's story; it is a work of literature."—Steve Coll, Pulitzer Prize winner
"A thoughtful, introspective work reminiscent of the great British memoirs of World War I.... Read it."—Thomas E. Ricks, The Washington Post
"A compelling, can't-put-down book, a well-written, memorable description of preparing for war and leading in combat."—Joe Klein, Time

More on the Mid.......

2009-02-28T21:46:00.004-06:00

Apparently, they have classes in snake charming available for the Midshipmen. Really, this is another New Orleans picture - you probably figured that out, huh?

This one's from Annapolis. No snake charmers here! Ian is on the far left.

Another Waldo Sighting

2009-02-15T19:30:00.003-06:00

This is how Ian spent his birthday - in New Orleans. He is on the right, third one from the front. Happy Birthday to my favorite plebe!!

Introducing Gary

2009-01-31T09:49:00.004-06:00

Yes, I am still here! Life has just kept me away from the computer; although, I have discovered Facebook and maybe that has become my new vice. Especially, since I can IM Ian once or twice a week.

What prompted me to finally get on here and post is to introduce our newest family member. As you can tell from the title, his name is Gary. Here are the facts - he is Korean born, 9 years old, wears glasses and is bilingual. He is also Max's best friend! And I would include a picture, but he is quite camera shy. In fact, he is so shy that we haven't actually seen him yet - even though he sometimes occupies the middle back seat of our minivan. Since I can't see Gary, Max is sure to make certain that Gary's seat belt is securely fastened and then he lets me know when it is safe to take off.

It is ironic that our only two kids to have invisible friends are our bookends - the first and the last, those two that have a bond that melts a mother's heart. First born actually had a whole menagerie of invisible friends (I resist the term imaginary b/c I fear that may hurt their feelings. They could be readers of my blog, you know).

Our first invisible was a turtle named Piggie Yahkie. He just appeared one day and spent several years with us. He was joined by many friends, the most memorable being Monk - the monkey, what else? Our friends came and went as the pleased until one day, they just no longer showed up - a sad day to be sure.

When first born hadn't seen his friends for a year or so, we were driving by a pond and first born casually pointed out the window and announced, "That's where Piggie Yahkie lives now." So, I hope they are all well and have found their places in the world. And for now, we will enjoy Gary, because we know his time with us may be sweet but brief.

I won, I won, I won!!!!!

2008-12-29T20:04:00.005-06:00

I am not a big contest person, but I do enter from time to time. Mostly for contests that I see in magazines, websites or blogs, for prizes ranging from vacations to ipods. I would say that on average I enter from one to two contests/month.

Today, a good-sized package arrived at the door and it was addressed to only me - not the whole family. There was no return address, so as I was ripping through the tape I was trying to think of who may have sent me a belated Christmas present.

Imagine my surprise and delight when I discovered that I was receiving a PRIZE from one of the contests that I had entered months ago!!! Even the kids were thrilled! I was so excited I called my husband, my brother and my best friend in Maryland. I know you can't stand the suspense anymore, so scroll down to see a picture of me and my prize.

I've named him Harvey and he has taken a position of honor at our computer desk. The thought of turning him into a lampshade has occurred to me, but I couldn't bear to drill a hole in his hat. He is a Celebration Spud. Happy Belated Birthday to my favorite Spud Family! And hurray for me! I won, I won, I won!!!

Conversations from the Backseat

2008-12-27T10:20:00.003-06:00

I won't identify the participants, but anyone who knows us well enough will be able to figure this out. For those who don't - clues will be provided. Steve and I found this interaction amusing - but it might just be a parent thing, so you have been forewarned.

Living in the middle of nowhere means we do quite a bit of driving to get anywhere. With all of the kids home we have had to dust the cobwebs off the Suburban and put her back in action. We are very thankful that gas is now under $2, which means that we can not only drive to the movie theatre, but can purchase the tickets and watch the show.

We do not have prearranged seating in our Suburban so you never know who may be sitting next to whom. On the way home from celebrating my DH's birthday yesterday, in the far back middle seat we had The Reader, wearing his headlamp and thoroughly riveted by his new book, The Wild Blue, The Men and Boys who Flew the B-24's Over Germany 1944-45 (there's your first clue).

In the far back corner, we had The Talker, whose ability to speak English has rapidly improved over the past year (that's clue #2). The Talker (or Incessant Chatterbox as some might call her) was doing what comes naturally to her, and The Reader was absorbed in his book.

You'd think a talker and a non-talker would be a good match for each other - but from my experience it does help if the non-talker would occasionally look up and nod or give any slight indication that he is following along to the conversation or chatter.

Finally, The Talker couldn't take it any more.

The Talker: "Why do you like reading so much??"

The Reader: "Why do you like talking so much??"

15 minutes passed by with the talker continuing to talk and the reader continuing to read.

The Talker: "Don't you ever get tired of reading?"

The Reader "Don't you ever get tired of talking?"

End of conversation, for one participant anyway.

This was Thanksgiving

2008-12-13T16:47:00.007-06:00

I figure I better catch up from Thanksgiving before I start in with Christmas. So here goes:

The welcome home sign was made by the kids at our church.

Here's Ian doing a little recruiting talk - in the third grade classroom.

Dear Santa

2008-12-10T07:49:00.004-06:00

Dear Santa,
It's close to Christmas and there's a few things I would like. First, a Wii remote and numchuck. If a visitor comes, then they could play too. Next, an Easy Bake Oven. If Mom is sick, than I could cook for her. And the last thing I would like is a surprise! I want a surprise, because I can't think of anything else. Merry Christmas!

Love,
Catherine

P.S. Bring Mrs. Claus to my house too.

**** How long do you think it will take Catherine to cook dinner for the table for eight using an Easy Bake Oven? And how often do you think she'll have to replace the light bulb? Results to follow - that is if Santa comes through on his end.

Chicago

2008-12-07T22:41:00.002-06:00

Ian's camera has gone MIA so I am dependent on his friend's for pictures. This was in Chicago, just before Thanksgiving. Hopefully I will have some Army Navy photos to share soon, and I will dig through my Thanksgiving photos as well. I need to be come reacquainted with how to find my pictures once I have asked my AV crew to download them for me. That is what happens when you get old - you must repeat such complicated tasks frequently lest your feeble brain forgets how to do them. Thank goodness for my ever growing AV crew.

And for my friend Linda, we have realized why I have no more funny stories to share. Ian took them all with him to the Naval Academy. I am forbidden from posting them on my blog (for security reasons), but maybe I'll have to send you an email sometime. Just remember to hit delete after you read it, or you computer might be fried.