More pics

Ok, so it's been a while...

Ok, so I was busy birthin' a baby, what do you want?? In random order (in other words, however Blogspot uploaded them...)

More later, I promise...they're too cute NOT to put up pics.

The Golden Boy

GOLD MEDALIST
Basic 4 Compulsories

BRONZE MEDALIST
Basic B Freestyle

Diamond State Autumn Skate
November 19th, 2006
Wilmington, DE

Luke has changed coaches since his last competition. In October, decided he wanted to switch to Roland. Yes, you remember an earlier entry correctly. Roland is the one who "made him work all summer." And yes, Roland continues to make him work. However, they are getting on very well (at least from Mom's point of view), and Luke enjoys his lessons with him. Luke has also expressed interest in being a coach like Roland, though he agrees he probably needs to practice "a little bit more" before he sets up shop. They have only been working together for just over a month, but there is a definite difference in Luke's skating. For the most part, it's much sharper than before, and Luke seems much more comfortable on the ice.

Luke has changed skates as well as coaches. He has "out-performed" yet another pair of skates. His new pair has a stiffer boot and more advanced blades. "All the better to jump with, my dear..." He has been working on his Waltz jump since summer, but now has added the Bunny Hop, Toe Loop, and Salchow to his repertoire. He's only just begun the latter two, but has mastered the basic mechanics of them fairly quickly. They're not the most graceful yet, but that will come with time (and more practice, of course).

Today, Luke competed in two events at the Diamond State Autumn Skate competition, sponsored by Wilmington (DE) FSC. He had originally planned to compete in the Showcase event as well, but decided that he'd rather do two great programs than three that he may not have polished enough.

His first event was the Compulsory skate, where he tied for first. He and the Co-Champion were both named Luke! This was a new program for him, as he had only competed at the Basic 3 level at Sun, Sand, and Skate in August. (Due to some paperwork mix-ups, he wound up skipping the Hollydell Open.) He had entirely new set of skills demonstrate his proficiency with--most notably three-turns. He did a great job with them today.



His other event was the Basic B Freestyle. He repeated his Basic B program from Atlantic City, with some changes and skill "upgrades." He did a great job with that program today. At his last competition, he placed 4th with it, so 3rd and a Bronze medal is certainly an achievement to be proud of. He held his reverse Chinese spiral (a one-footed gliding maneuver) for several seconds. It is a difficult move that involves catching the skate blade, crossing the caught foot/ankle over the supporting knee, extending the free arm, and holding the position while gliding backwards.



Next up is "Holiday on Ice" in December at his "home rink," the Vineland Ice Arena. It's a Holiday themed exhibition show on December 10th. He is performing two programs. One is a group program with the others in his Learn to Skate group, and the other is a "Solo Spotlight." Though his one program may be called "Solo Spotlight," he will have to share the overall spotlight with his brother. It will be Matthew's first skating performance. He is going to be skating with his Learn to Skate lesson group. Photos will follow, of course.

Let's give thanks for all our blessings...

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!


Today was Matthew's Kindergarten Thanksgiving Feast. The children had a short presentation where they each had a turn in the spotlight. They sang songs their teachers had taught them. Everyone did a great job! Matthew was an excellent "Hiyah" drummer.




The class tipi has been "handed down" through many school years. There are almost 15 years' worth of childrens' names and drawings on it. Matthew drew a picture of a boy in his spot.



And then...we feasted! Turkey, ham, potatoes white and sweet, stuffing and veggies and of course...homemade pumpkin pie made by the Kindergarten teacher. Yum!

Great Job, Luke!!!

5th Place, Level 3 compulsories
4th Place, Group B (Level 3/4) Free skate
Sun Sand and Skate Figure Skating Competition
August 5, 2006
sponsored by Atlantic City (NJ) FSC



Luke's already looking forward to his next competition. He's planning to compete in the same events as last time at the Hollydell Open (Sewell, NJ) in October. He's also looking forward to the Autumn Skate Competition at Wilmington FSC in November, where he hopes to qualify for the Level 4 compulsories. He told us he wants to compete in *EVERY* competition he can! We're very proud of him!

Just some random photos

Some pics from our weekend at the shore. Nothing exciting--just Neal had a couple days off so we went to Mimi and Pop Pop's beach house for the weekend. Did the boardwalk thing, the beach thing, and the mini-golf thing. Meg lost her ball; Matthew got a hole-in-one. (Maybe Matthew should quit while ahead--last golf outing, Meg got the hole-in-one.)



Matthew and the latest girlfriend. They went driving together. Very much a "love 'em and leave 'em" kinda guy still--by the next ride, he had a new flame.


Ok, it's not the best of pictures. But at least they're both looking at the camera. (Hey, I have low standards. The Santa's Court photographers like me.) Anyway, this is the boys on the Apache Helicopters on the Wild Wheels pier. It's rare to get them both on a ride together, other than the bumper cars (where they attempt to knock each other out of the ring) or the Tilt-a-Whirl (which doesn't get good pictures due to high speed of car and greenness of Mom after a few whirls).


What Celia would look like in a burka. Just kidding. She was hooked up to her feeding tube/pump, so no rides for her that night. So she invented her own fun--she discovered a vent in the stroller hood and played peek-a-boo with Neal and the camera.

More pics later. I have some beach pictures and some of the kids in the pool. They'll have to wait until I have time to edit the file sizes, though. Hugs to all.

Scott Hamilton started with crossovers, too...

Finally, we got some pictures of Luke skating. Check out his new skates...he got "too good" for his old ones. They were rated for entry-level skating, not for jumps and spins. Luke decided that in lieu of a birthday party, he wanted to participate in Skate Camp.






He skates 3 1/2 hours on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. He's still working on some of his "old" moves, but has also begun work on jumps and spins. He can do a pretty decent Waltz jump, even if it's his Mom saying so.



It's not perfect, but it's a one foot take off and one foot land. (NOT an on-the-butt landing, like Mom would. If she got the nerve up to start with.) Roland, the jump coach, has also been instructing them in some toe jumps. Luke spends more time kissing the ice with those. His only complaint with the whole camp is Roland makes them work hard. I told Luke that was his job. Of course, Roland had him jumping in under half an hour, so Luke has decided Roland's a pretty OK guy, in the end. He's also begun taking private lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays with Laura Handy, his former group instructor (yes, who also makes him work). Laura has encouraged him to enter into a local skating competition, so Luke will be competing at the 2006 Sun Sand & Skate competition in Atlantic City, NJ on August 5th. He is entered in two events--the Basic 3 Compulsories, and the Basic B Program (levels Basic 3 and 4). The compulsories are the traditional "skill execution", and the Program is a skating routine with music. He's very excited and looking forward to it. We're proud of him for just giving it a shot.

Happpy 2nd Birthday, Celia!

Happy Birthday, Celia! We're so excited you're turning two today.

Celia celebrated her 2nd birthday with a Finding Nemo pool party at her Mimi and Pop Pop's house. (Mimi and Pop Pop are Daddy's parents.) Everyone came and had lots of fun. She loved swimming in the pool with her cousins. We had cookies and ice cream and popsicles for dessert, and Celia even had her very own popsicle. We have been freezing Pedialyte in popsicle molds for "something different." Daddy even thought ahead and gave her the one with the orange stick, so her popsicle was orange and white, just like Nemo.

Isn't it amazing how fast a year flies by? They say "What a difference a day makes!" so I guess the difference a year makes is simply more than 300-fold! Last June was when we discovered Celia's egg allergy as we were trialling cake ingredients, and in July we discovered the true extent of her allergies. It's been a long year to diagnose and properly treat everything that has happened, but it's amazing how far we've come in a year. Yes, we've had lots of intervention, from physical therapy to multiple surgeries, but the end result is a healthy, happy little girl who is running around, talking up a storm, and growing! Yes, GROWING. She's up to 11.4 kg (about 25 lbs) and 84 cm (33.5 inches). This makes her nearly spot-on Average for her age! As we keep saying, Average is Good. We like Average. We're looking forward to a bright, happy, healthy, and AVERAGE year three!

Kindergarten, Here I Come!

Congratulations to our Preschool Graduate, Matthew!!

Friday, June 9th was graduation day for the Class of 2006 of St. Rose of Lima Preschool. The graduation ceremony was held in the St. Rose of Lima Church Hall that evening. The students put on a presentation of "A Day in the Life of a Preschooler," complete with circle time and an exibition of what they've learned this year. Matthew showed he learned the color black. They also learned the "Our Father," to do crafts, and to sing songs. The children performed "Five Little Ducks" and Matthew was one of the ducks that went "over the hills and far away."

September will bring many much-anticipated changes to Matthew's life. He will move up to the "Big School"--Notre Dame Regional--that his brother attends. He will also get to ride the school bus every day. Mom's not so sure Luke and Matthew in the same bus seat is a good idea, but she'll leave that one up to the driver to referee. He can hardly wait for September to arrive.