Jeanine delivered another signature ice cream cake for the celebration. 

I was at work and missed the Tea Party, but good friend Kate was kind enough to capture the moments for us. 

In a normal home this would be a bunch of potted plants. Chez Jeanine, these are actually edible treats to be served at Maya’s Birthday Tea Party. I am told they were so realistic, that some children could not be convinced to dig into the “dirt”. 

Today little Miss Maya turned 8 years old. She starts the day caring for her new baby. I remember when she was as small as Nala and I was holding her in my arms. 

The grass on our field is now taller than Maya in some places. Here she finds refuge from her pursuer who questions the logic of entering what must look to her like a dense forest. 

The puppy chasing my little cat. 

This morning was the final match of my spring season and after the game I took the customary team photo. We needed a win or a tie to maintain our division one standing and were fortuante to achieve the latter after squandering a 2-0 lead. I had a beautiful solo goal taken away by an offsides call made by the ref who had his back to me when the ball was played. Although the goal did not count, it was a very sweet play that I will remember for a very long time. The ball was lobbed over the sweeper and the goalie came racing out to collect it. I was racing in to get there first. I beat him to it by a millisecond, flicking a quick header past him on the right and then jumping over his attempt to tackle me before slotting it in the low right corner. 

I took dozens of photos and these are among my favorites. I will try to post all of them on my web album later in the week. 
 
 
 

Later in the day we drove to Old Lyme, Connecticut for an annual gathering hosted by my cousin Anita and her husband Tony. The food is always magnificent and this year was no exception. 

Nico had a mock diving competition this morning (intra-squad event judged by high school divers). The idea is to acclimate to all of the requirements and routines of a real diving meet. Here he begins a forward one and a half in pike position. He placed second. 

Ever since the dog arrived, the pigs have received modest attention. This morning, Maya cleaned their cage and set out new bedding. This child loves anything with fur on it. For the record, I will be saying no when she eventually gets around to asking for a horse. 

Kyle refused to let me take a picture of him and his friend so I got stuck with a stupid flower from the garden. I will try to remember to ask Jeanine what kind it is and update the posting. 

As much as Maya loves the dog, there is little question that Jeanine is enjoying the puppy more than anyone. This is how I found them when I returned from work. 

Unfortunately, I did not have enough time to dial in the right shutter speed to get a clean shot of her leaping through the air when she decided I had gotten close enough.