First Day of School

Ella started 8th grade and Jack started 6th at the end of August—two middle schoolers!  Ella’s starting some high school courses this year with Math 1 and Spanish 1.  Jack is going to try his hand at the bass clarinet in band. 

Eclipse Party

Charlotte was pretty close to the Path of Totality for the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, but since Charlotte would get a 98.4% view of the eclipse we decided to avoid the crowds and view the eclipse locally with friends.  Longtime friends Baden, Ilse, and mom Ivy hosted a eclipse viewing party for us, complete with eclipse-themed snacks.  Armed with our eclipse glasses, we stepped outside periodically to see the different stages of the eclipse.  There was a strange glow of dusk for an hour or so outside on either side of the eclipse peaking for us around 2:40pm.  The glasses were strange because you could literally not see anything with them on until you looked up into the sky and could see just that sliver of sun.  The most comfortable way to check on the progression of the eclipse was to look down at the dappled light—the shadows were shaped like the eclipse.  I know the experience was much more extreme, with darkness for 3 minutes, for those in the Path of Totality, but what we saw was pretty cool, too.  It was definitely a memorable experience and fun to share with good friends.  Thanks for hosting us, Tauchers!

Instagrammin’ in August

We made the most of what was left of summer in August!

busch gardens with nonni and papa! | loving a sunny day at the park after lots of rain from tropical storm emily! | up close with the cheetah—that was a fun ride, too! | ella and jack did all of the coasters! | mama gorilla | tennis at nonni and papa’s club | jack trying out one of his birthday presents | ella doing some artwork in nonni’s studio | and jack | happy 12th birthday to jackaroo! | make a wish! | thinking… | i guess it’s a good one. | excited to visit the usta national campus in orlando | my tennis playing buddies | sweeping the court post play | bedtime stories with harper and hudson | cousin love | aunt jacqui, uncle randy, harper, and hudson took us to wekiwa springs. | the water was cold but beautiful—i took lots of pictures. | nana and poppop joined us in orlando! | uncle randy and his birthday skateboard | hudson trying it out | long-legged ella | happy 40th birthday to uncle randy! | live rocky horror picture show stage act at the brewery | cheers to nana and poppop | and jacqui | finally home with my pup and she tears her dew claw | poor girl had to wear a cone of shame for a week. | and she tore a piece off of it, so with the duct tape she looks like the dog from mars now. | new haircuts for school coming up | getting his award from coach dave | jack’s team won the pre-season tournament | watching the total eclipse with friends baden and ilse (funny—we started the summer with them and now we’re ending it with them) | eclipse watching | cool eclipse shadows | one final hurrah for summer—a trip to the quarry (again, lots of pictures) | end of summer tradition of ice cream at bruster’s | and, the first day of school—back at the same school, 6th grade and 8th grade!