Broken Monday

Saturday they went to play basketball at Del Val. Greg was just shooting layups and came down wrong on his foot. We thought it was only sprained and he would be walking with a limp for a few days. Ha! Boy were we wrong. Actually the nurse assistant at the pediatrician said it was probably only a sprain but sent him to the hospital for an xray anyways. Turns out he fractured his growth plate in his ankle and will be in a cast for at least 4 weeks.

He got a pretty cool looking black cast and has a silver sharpie for everyone to sign it. He is handling it pretty well even though I know he is bummed about missing fall ball this year. He got a walking boot so that after about a week he can ditch the crutches. I am going to guess he is ready to ditch them by Friday. He is going to get car service to and from school this week while he still has crutches so he gets a little extra sack time in the morning.

A Return to Ireland

Day 4 in Ireland and we were up quite early as the sun woke us up at the farmhouse at 5:30 am. It drives me batty how it is daylight until 11 pm at night and then the sun is up so early. Kathleen, our host, had a nice breakfast laid out for us and we packed up our stuff for the day out sightseeing. We were the last people to be picked up from the farmhouses, so we didn't see the bus until 9:45 am. Off we went to Waterford.

Greg took a picture of the old boats in the harbor at Waterford as we came into town. It was another beautiful day weatherwise and the scenery was quite beautiful. As we were driving around the town, Jim was giving us a history lesson. The old stone walls that I took a picture of were some of the remaining wall fragments of the walls built by the Vikings in 1000 A.D. The Vikings were in Ireland for 100 years.


We arrived at the Waterford Factory and our first stop was the shop where you could buy all kinds of stuff. They also had displays on the various Waterford trophys that had been given out at famous golf tournaments. This was only a short stop before our tour of the factory.

We broke up into small groups for the tour. It was a terrific tour as we were very up close and personal with the workers. We got to see the entire process from the glass being blown to the finishing work and cutting done on the crystal. We learned that for every crystal trophy made for tournaments (tennis, golf, racing, etc.), they make 3 of them. One is the winner's trophy, one is a replacement in case something happens, and one is to keep at the factory for their showroom/museum.


From start to finish, Waterford does a good job of explaining the entire process. Even at the very end of the tour as we were headed out the door, there was one last demonstration by master cutters as to the cutting process. The apprenticeship to be at this level is very long.


As you can see, the kids liked getting to touch the trophys that were made at Waterford. Once our tour was complete, we walked over to the store for a quick run through again, but I didn't buy anything. I couldn't be bothered with shipping something back or carrying crystal throughout the rest of the trip. We did learn all about the logo for Waterford crystal - the seahorse.

Our next stop was the town of Waterford where we would have lunch and a short amount of time for shopping. Because we wanted to spend time walking around the town, we had a quick lunch at McDonalds. We visited a bookstore and a music store (where I bought my brother an Irish whistle in the key of C). Larry and Greg were still looking for a hurling jersey. Time went by pretty quickly and soon we were off to New Ross to visit the Dunbrody. More on that later.

Content Kitties and a Trip

Last weekend, after a relatively sleepless week, we got to see Casey and find out how she fared on her trip. We arrived on campus around 2 pm and found out from the crew in front of Robinson hall that there was a bus arriving within 30 minutes. As the bus pulled around the green, we hoped that Casey was on it. Not having talked to her since Tuesday, we were anxious to see her. The bus was met by quite the unique group of people but it was fun to watch. They enjoyed dancing and music before grabbing their packs and heading to the dorms.
It was fun watching these young adults have fun. Casey soon joined us and we were quite happy to see her. The house seems emptier without her jumping down the stairs, but I'm happy to see her with these new experiences.

The weekend was busy with getting her settled into her dorm room and making sure she had everything she needed for awhile. We went out to dinner on Saturday (Applebees) and lunch on Sunday (Liu Liu). I only teared up a little when we left on Sunday because she seemed pretty happy there and I was happy for her. Doesn't mean that I don't miss her, but I am excited to hear of all of her adventures. Notice the quilt on the bed - I made that. Unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to take a picture of it to add to my book of quilts. Guess I have to wait until it comes home next summer. If I remember, I will take a picture when we see her in 3 weeks for her birthday.

Finally, this morning I took these kitty pictures for Casey. I know she misses her Lucky and I want to assure her that he is doing well. He is getting lots of hugs and kisses which he hates, but also lots of petting.


I didn't take a picture of Kitty this morning because she was already back in bed when I had my camera out. I promise to add more Ireland pictures and continue my travelogue soon.

Goodbyes and New Beginnings

I was awake long before the alarm was supposed to go off. I have been dreading this day since Casey started kindergarten. Don't get me wrong - she is so ready for this new phase of her life. She has so much ahead of her and I know that she is anxious to continue learning all that she can. I just can't help but miss her because I could always count on her to give me a hug or a hand or an ear to listen to. I am excited and scared for her as she goes out into the big world. But I know that she has a good heart and a good head and is mature and able to handle what is put in front of her. I hope she knows how proud we are of her and what she has accomplished and what is yet still to be accomplished. If you are reading this Casey, I want you to know that the house seems a little less full tonight and a lot quieter. Oh, and I have given Lucky quite a few hugs already. We won't tell you who has been sleeping in your bed though!!!!

Greg started high school today! Wow, how did that happen so fast? He willingly posed for the obligatory picture in front of the fireplace and I even took a picture of him with Kitty. He had a good day even though he found out that he did indeed have summer writing assignments for Honors English. Guess what he spent hours doing tonight? He just finished and I promised him a game of cribbage before bed. By the way, he loves Mrs. Pittner and when I asked if he thought he might get involved with theatre, he said "maybe". Dr. Young came up and shook his hand today and Greg loved where his locker is - very convenient to all of his classes. He is such a great young man and I look forward to his own set of outstanding achievements. He is going to grow up so fast now.

I will continue the Irish journal next time. Until then, off to play cribbage.