Ah, the sweet smell of success. Victory came to our softball team today for the first time this year. I was 2-for-4 myself.

Missy's birthday party was today. She has alternately wanted to have a princess party and a carnival party over the past few weeks, but ultimately decided on a carnival party (since there were going to be boys there), which is what we went with. The biggest thing was the fishing pond we rigged up, in which we strung a tarp over a clothesline between two trees and had the kids cast a fishing line with a clothespin over it, to where I and Marve were waiting with goodie bags of candy and trinkets. We also had the jarts toss and the stick the tail on the donkey, and the bunch of kids running around the backyard. Good times had by all. Mom and Dad got back from Pennsylvania yesterday after just a few days visiting Laura. The Myers girls even came back from vacation a bit early so they could come to the party (we had been feeding their bunnies this past week while they were gone).

Mom and Dad headed out to Laura and Thomas' house in Penn today. They're going to have a short visit before heading back. Meanwhile the softball team got in a makeup game today for one of the rainouts. I was 3-for-3 but we lost again, to a team I felt we should have crushed.

Alex and Missy had their first swsimming lessons today! They'll be going twice a week to the Y for lessons almost all the rest of the summer. They both loved it. Alex's class may be a bit advanced for him but the instructor said we'll see how he does. Missy was great in her class. They both already have done more than Beth and I could ever get them to do.

Today was a big all-employee off-site meeting at work, in which they explained the new mission and vision and values of the company and explained the difficult decisions they've made over the past year or two. I, however, just wanted to get to a 6:00 softball game, and had to rush rush rush to make it on time. Beth had to bring my clothes to CCAC and meet me there since by the time I got back to B5 I didn't have time to go home. It was scorching hot and I went 0-for-3 but made some good catches. Their infield was just too fast for me to get a hit off them. Mom and Dad also arrived this evening from Arizona. They'll be here a couple weeks for Missy's birthday.

Alex had his last t-ball game today. It was blazing hot, too, enough so that one of the kids on his team kinda fell down on all fours and threw up a couple times, just from running bases from second to third. I bet the season is so short because it gets too hot for the little kids. Missy also started going to "Party at Presby Castle" this week, which is a little day camp for the kiddies at the preschool in which they play being knights and princesses and live in castles and later in the week they have a feast. Very cute stuff, right up Missy's alley.

This was a great weekend. And again, the entire week has been booked solid. VBS started Monday, but Alex had a t-ball game at the same time, so I took him to that while Beth took Missy to church. Alex played well, and we wrapped up in time to get him to VBS just as the classes were starting. It seemed several of the kids on the other team were missing so that helped speed things up. Meanwhile, one of the ladies at church made a little birthday cake for Missy (our big 5-year-old girl!) and they sang happy birthday to her. Tuesday, Beth had the van shampooed and detailed...and it looks and smells NICE inside for the first time in...well, ever. Tuesday was supposed to be softball, but it was raining. So, I figured it would be called off, which would make things a lot easier for me tonight (driving the VBS van). BUT then Clint called and said it was still on since it wasn't raining hard enough...you gotta be kidding me...and I ducked out of VBS to go to the park, and waited in the bleachers for the end of the 6:00 game which was being played in a fair drizzle. Our 7:00 game did not start on time becuase they were waiting to see if it would let up, but at 7:20 it was called off. They were desperate to get the game in since 3 or 4 have already been rained out this year, speaking of which there was a makeup game announced for Thursday. Wednesday, there was another t-ball game, in which Alex's team (Indians) played Carson's team (Tigers). The kids were a bit late to VBS that day too. I skipped the Thursday softball game due to VBS. Friday, VBS wrapped up and the kids were off to bed late...and up early to catch a ride to Michiana Christian Service Camp for First Chance Camp! Alex has been excited about going for a long time, and he finally got Missy excited too. She said she was going to go down the water slide after all just the night before. Anyway, they were gone by 8:00am, and Beth and I had the day free. We went back to sleep first, but then spent the rest of the morning and afternoon going furniture shopping at the Amish places around here and Nappanee, then relaxed at home. It was a Katie day, and she got here just before the kids did in the evening. So, we saw the kids for a few minutes before we went out to dinner (had a coupon at Ruby Tuesday that saved almost $20) and to a movie (Terminator Salvation), and they were asleep when we got home, excellent. Today, our actual anniversary, we went to the Myers' house to hang out for almost the entire afternoon after church. Being Father's Day, we grilled and had watermelon. The kids played with their kids and some neighbor kids pretty much all afternoon (the slip 'n slide was the big hit).

Once again it has been a booked solid week. The kids have been going to a Kid Quest day camp kinda thing at Presby...Teepees, Totem Poles, and Tom-toms, which is basically a fun time where they learn about Indians and make Indian themed crafts. Alex's t-ball team is the Indians so he thought that was pretty cool too. So they've been doing that all week in the mornings. From the 'what now' department, the check engine light in the van went on on Monday...if it hadn't been serviced so recently I might have ignored it, but I figured I should check it out this time. The shop had it all day, and it was an evap code, which they can't tell me exactly what caused it, but they could clear it or keep digging to find out. I had them clear it, and it hasn't come back. Alex had t-ball on Thursday, but again it was a rainy day, and again it was postponed until Friday, but again we had small group at our house so Alex missed it this time. He wanted to play with the kids here instead of t-ball anyway. Saturday we had an open house at the church for Brittnee, graduating this year, and about as soon as we were done with that we went to a birthday party for Becca at the Myers' home. We stayed through that, I mostly because Brian wanted someone else in the house he could talk to while it was going on. Today, Beth and I worked a lot on setting up her room at the church for her VBS class. VBS is an Australia theme this year, so her class is set up to look like an Aussie sheep shearing shack. Or so we imagine. Later we took the kids to the movie theater to see "Up," another home run for Pixar.

Zimmer fired several people today. I was not one of them but several people I knew were. These times suck.

3-for-3 today in softball, but we lost again.

Beth and I had a very strange trip to Michigan this weekend. Pam and Marve are moving to a new unit in their condo complex, which is the same as their previous one only in mirror image, and we came up Saturday to help them out with the move. We got there in the afternoon, just in time to help out with a trailer load of big stuff like the washer and dryer, then we moved out all the clothes from their master bedroom, and then they didn't want to work on moving any more. So, we didn't. It was about an hour or two of work, then just some play time for the kids, and visiting until dinner. We slept in the old unit: the kids on an air mattress downstairs, Beth and me on the floor upstairs since we forgot any bedding for ourselves. Big towels over us. Nobody wanted to do any moving Sunday either, so we didn't. We went out to breakfast with Pam and Marve, then in the afternoon Beth and I took a nap while the kids played by themselves. I think that was the first time that has happened since early 2003. Sam turned 8 a few days ago and his party was today at Ric & Nickie's house, so in the late afternoon we went out there. The kids always have fun playing with their cousins. There was a cookout and cake and ice cream, and we headed home afterwards. Not much moving all in all.

Alex finished kindergarten on Tuesday this week with a field day. So now we have a first grader and Missy is our kindergartner. It's apparent there is going to be an adjustment period to summer because Alex hasn't been sleeping well and doesn't want to do anything or go anywhere without a lot of whining. He had t-ball Tuesday and today, and didn't want to go play either time (even though he had fun and did well both times). I basically bribed him to agree to go today with going to Subway afterwards. We also went to Wal-Mart afterwards and got me a bike so I can go riding with them this summer.

Softball lost again, even though we scored a few runs this time. I myself was 0-for-4. Even though I hit the ball hard 4 times, the third baseman (3 times) and left fielder never even had to move to catch the balls hit right at them.