Kyle and Hannah sit down to a game of cards after building a fire and preparing tea and snacks. Maya enjoyed a Brazilian dance and yoga class this morning while Nicolai spent the better part of the day at a wrestling tournament. He had a single match which he won by pinning his opponent in the second period.
After Nicolai finished wrestling last weekend, he borrowed my camera and took photographs of his teammates. This one was selected by the photo editor of the Concord Journal for the front page of the sports section. Click on the photo for a closer view and notice Nicolai’s first photo credit for a published work.
Lately, Maya spends a little time each morning rollerblading around the kitchen island. Today, she enjoyed skating around “Dusty,” our robotic vacuum cleaner, while he was busy doing his job.
Today I met with a former wrestler from my home town of Schenectady, NY. He wrestled for Niskayuna High School the arch rival of Mont Pleasant where I attended school. The encounter game me reason to search my archives in search of the name of another Niskayuna grad that I wrestled with in college. Points will be deducted if you do not pick me out on the first guess. Absent any other photos for the day this clipping will have to suffice for today’s entry.
Kyle requested a haircut this evening and I grabbed a before and after shot. I enjoy cutting the boys hair. It is a nice way of being close to them. They both complain that I take too long and that I cut their hair too short but I think they have also discovered that I do pretty good work. Reportedly Hannah approves which is really all that matters.
It was a very busy day at work and I came home exhausted with little energy to take a photo for the day. On such occasions I give myself permission to select a photo from the past. Here is my choice from exactly 10 years ago featuring my favorite daughter.
Since moving into our home almost seven years ago, this closet has been a dumping ground for luggage and backpacks. The key word here is dumping. Today, I took some time to build in a set of shelves, which, with any luck, will result in a more organized use of the space. While I was at it, Maya also got new shelves in one of her two closets.
Celebrating her 50th birthday today is Jeanine’s close friend Irene. Her husband organized a surprise private dinner party at the Colonial Inn, where we spent the evening enjoying the company of her circle of friends.
Nicolai won three matches today to win first place in the DCL (Dual County League) Tournament in the Junior Varsity 100 pound division. He wrestled with great composure and strength beating every opponent by a margin of 10 points or more.
When I returned home from work this evening, I found Kyle, Hannah, Nicolai, and Maya playing this game of their own invention. The binders created ramps down and up on which a quarter is rolled with the goal of landing in one of the bowls, each carrying a different score. I am always thrilled when the kids find an activity they can all enjoy together. When they have invented the game themselves, it is that much better. The brothers teamed up against Hannah and Maya who led up until the final round.
I received this bonsai tree more than two years ago as a gift from the family, and it has thrived under my care. I water it weekly and prune it once a month or so. I realized I had never posted a picture of it and decided to rectify that oversight today.
Nicolai defeated his opponent from the Boston Latin School this evening with a first period pin. His match finished at 7:30 and I raced to Acton for my 8:30 indoor soccer match. Unfortunately, we lost 4-1 against a team I felt we should have beaten. Kyle has really improved his study habits and is applying himself with real intensity for mid term preparation. We will all be glad when the week is over.
Every year, we post select holiday cards on the wall in our breakfast nook. This year, the task was not completed until our order for small magnets arrived today. Before wallpapering this wall, we painted it with magnetic paint, which makes it ideal for posting photos and artwork. See if you can find your card.
Everyone looks on as our new Roomba (floor cleaning robot) drives around the kitchen in search of things to vacuum. It employs several different navigation algorithms (diagonal runs, spirals, wall hugging, cliff detection) which the kids have already started to evaluate. Nala does not know what to think of this low profile intruder but has so far elected to keep her distance although she did become quite concerned when it started to push her food bowl around. Jeanine is reserving judgement until she sees the final results. We have tentatively named it Dusty.