Egret

This elegant egret spent Saturday afternoon in the mud of the marsh off Winter Harbor.

I caught him contemplating the meaning of life on one of my breaks from playing games with my friend Glenda's girls on the nearby beach.

The weather started off iffy but later was sunny and unseasonably cool considering we're well into the month of June, usually heavy with humidity.

Saturday was spent on this wonderful beach.  Sunday I caught up on chores and ended up watching the USA-Portugal World Cup match.  After however many years of cheering on my daughter in soccer, I still don't know the rules find it hard to go from Wide Open to Zero on the spectator speedometer that summertime brings.

So World Cup has helped fill a void--says the person who hates watching sports on TV, even though she clutches a cowbell on the sidelines in real life.

Anyway, I'm enjoying the World Cup.

Milestones

Dillon, Kai, Daughter Maria and Jesse

Last weekend was jump-started by a home soccer victory Friday night against Northumberland.  Daughter is on the varsity team this year, so her playing time isn't nearly what it was last year on JV. That doesn't prevent her from enjoying it though.

She's all smiles on the sidelines.

Then Saturday was filled with a double celebration.

My friend Alda turned 50.

And her adorable son Henry turned 10.

Everyone was feeling festive.

Extremely festive.

Friends:  Catherine, Carol Ann, Lisa, Glenda and Alda
(My apologies, Alda, my camera decided to play with your eyes a bit. 
Glenda, yours were just plain closed. Laughing that hard takes concentration and focus.)

Alda's sister Maria (not pictured here but probably working diligently in the background) made all the arrangements which included a tent, decorations galore and some of the best food I've had in a long time.

A good time was had by all, and the fun and frivolity continue this Friday when I join the bunch above in a girls' weekend in the Outer Banks. I'm very much looking forward to this much-needed escape from Life.

Speaking of Life, we have an away soccer game this evening at Rappahannock which means driving, driving, crying because the driving just never ends more driving and a late night return trip home. I will post again on Friday.

In fact I made an executive decision (as CEO, COO, CFO and very lax-of-late housekeeper of this blog) to aim for posting something on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in an attempt to get this very wobbly train back on track.

It may be a track with no particular destination and the train might not move very far, but by golly we've got to get back on track.

Have a great week.

Three Things

Thursday is here, which means it's time to share three thoughts--even if the person asking you to share three thoughts doesn't feel like sharing much of anything herself.

Let's begin.

1.  I've been sick since February Saturday with a hacking cough and sinus pressure that has not yet caused my head to pop straight off my shoulders.  But it's coming.  It can only be a matter of time. 

2.  What makes the above ten thousand times worse is that I've missed the summer-like weather we've had.  All I can do is glance longingly from inside during the few points in the day I actually feel like living moving about.

3.  The pity party is now over.

4.  (Because three is only a suggestion.)  On Saturday, Son is giving a presentation at Virginia Commonwealth University as part of the Chesapeake Bay Governor's School Science Symposium.  He'll be discussing his senior project for Governor's School which involved creating an underwater microphone.  It also involved many years months of frustration, several trips to Radio Shack (there are no Radio Shacks in Mathews, by the way), a few canoe trips to the Gwynn's Island bridge, and lots more that's way beyond my comprehension.  Hopefully he'll be delivering the speech in layman's terms (that include diagrams with stick figures for old people whose brains stopped working on precisely the exact same day that their child--who is now delivering scientific speeches about underwater inventions to a panel of judges--was born).  Either way, I am very proud of his accomplishments and look forward to his talk.

4b.  (Because I can't leave Daughter out.)  Daughter played her first varsity soccer game Tuesday night.  Even though I was so sick I could hardly see straight, I sat in the stands and watched.  Mathews lost but we played Gloucester which is a far larger school.  All things considered, they did fairly well considering they haven't had much time to practice.  Daughter played most of the second half, and although it's vastly different from JV, I thought she did very well and am very proud of her.

Now it's your turn to share three things or two things or six things or four things.  Whatever you want.

Anything at all.

Birdhouse

These houses and trees live down Mobjack.

(That one trip to Mobjack a few weeks back sure produced a lot of photos.)

A bird was resting comfortably on the front stoop 

of his house as I slowed down to take his picture.

Although this particular little bird stayed on his front stoop, the bird known as Chesapeake Bay Woman flew the coop this past weekend.  I traveled to Delaware to visit my friend Iris. It was great to get away for a much-needed break, but Life didn't seem to want to let me have too much of a diversion.  I came down with what sounds like walking pneumonia bronchitis on Saturday.  (Insert the sound of a heavy sigh--abruptly interrupted by a hacking cough--here.)

In other news, Daughter made the high school varsity soccer team. She is one of five girls on the team of twenty-two.  There are two home games this week: Tuesday and Friday nights.

I hope my (self-diagnosed) bronchitis improves by Tuesday, so I can assume my proper place in the stands screaming and hollering at full capacity.

Have a great, cough-free week.

At Bay

These are from Aaron's Beach.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Two: Where CBW Brags About Her Daughter

(Again)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is from last night's JV soccer game against King William. 

(At King William.)

Mathews won.

(Even though last time they beat us.)

By the way, King William is big enough to have its own girls' soccer team.

So they're not co-ed.

With a beautiful female as a captain.

For example.


The End.

Daughter

2011 Soccer 

These pictures of Daughter are from seasons past.

2011 - 2012 Basketball

Spring 2012 Lacrosse

Her sport du jour is MHS JV soccer. Friday night's game against Middlesex was a tie, 2-2. Last night, Mathews won against West Point 2-1.

All four of the goals in the past two games were made by the same little girl who ferociously--and very naturally--charged after the ball at the age of three while everyone else including her wonderful brother was chasing butterflies.

At the risk of bragging, I just have to say out loud, once again, that this girl is something else, and I am thrilled and honored to be her parent.

Below are a few of my previous bragging sessions.

2011 Fall Sports

2011 CB Daughter 

2012 Lacrosse 

p.s. Son is absolutely wonderful too. He just found out he's been accepted to a NASA program that will take him to Langley Air Force Base over the summer.

My cup runneth over.

p.s.s.t. The Chesapeake Bay Family just found out we may be/likely are related to Lucille Ball, thanks to a reader who visits my mother's blog.

When the cup runneth over, it pours. Or when it rains, it runneth over.

Or something.

Hodgepodge

This weekend was a whirlwind of activity kicked off by Daughter's Friday evening's soccer game against Middlesex, which ended in a tie, 2-2.

(Guess who scored both of the goals for Mathews?  Anyone?  Bueller?   Hint:  She's near and dear to my heart.)

Friday and Saturday nights involved good food and good friends.

Before I knew what hit me, Sunday showed up on the doorstep.  Realizing I hadn't taken any new pictures, I headed out in search of anything more interesting than the azaleas in my front yard for a car ride that took me from Gwynn's Island to Bethel Beach.

Edwards Creek, Gwynns Island

In the marsh near Onemo

Approaching Bethel Beach

This week we have three more soccer games, unless Mother Nature decides that three games in one week is too much and sprinkles some rain showers on one or two of them. Speaking of the weather, and we may have been, it has been unseasonably cool here lately, especially given that we're already a day past Cinco de Mayo.

I'm really looking forward to some warm weather, which no doubt is right around the corner along with the mosquitoes, fiddler crabs and other sordid nuisances assorted creatures that come with the heat and humidity.

Daughter

A huge thank you to my friend Charlie Koenig of the Gazette-Journal for all three
of these photos of my daughter from Monday night's JV soccer game.

 She's the only female on offense.  
These two defenders were doing a good job protecting the goal
until she reached into her bag of tricks and pulled out a heel kick.

I love this girl.

We are still struggling to comprehend this weekend's tragic, tragic loss of one of our teens and the absolute horror and heartache that comes from hearing a mother sob uncontrollably and inconsolably because her baby is gone.

And there is nothing we can do to fix it.

Although I have never been shy about hugging, kissing and declaring my love and adoration for my son and daughter, I can't seem to say it enough here lately.

When my daughter was about three she used to say, "Mommy, I love you too much."

I love her and her brother too much, too.

Soccer

This was a scrimmage against Warhill.  It was ugly and also brutally cold

These pictures are from a scrimmage about a week ago against a double A school. Mathews is single A. The game was, dare I say, atrocious.  I'm not sure how many points we lost by, but it wasn't pretty.

(Also, I am not sure what the appropriate rules are for spelling out or capitalizing As when it comes to schools, so just overlook any blatant errors I may have just committed.)

Here we have two #7s and two #12s.  What are the chances?

Fast forward to last night, the opening game of the season.  Not only did they play much better, but they won, 4-3

Seven has always been my lucky number.  By chance she was given it.
Also, on her arm is a special designator for her status of captain.

At the risk of sounding like an overly boastful a really proud parent, my daughter scored 50% of the goals.  Two of the four.

Did I mention this is a co-ed high school team, and many of the teams they play against have all boys and no girls?  

I think I'm going to like this soccer season.

Three Things

Welcome to Three Thing Thursday, where I share three things, and you share three things - whatever you want.

I'll begin.

1.  Today is Chesapeake Bay Daughter's birthday.  When I asked her what she'd like as a very special breakfast (blueberry pancakes?  an omelet?), she requested Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. I never buy the stuff because I normally burn it make it from scratch, so she considers the boxed version a delicacy and a rare treat.

2. I asked her to contribute to this edition of Three Thing Thursday and encouraged her to say anything that popped into her head, no matter how random.  She noted that she was "swelled up" (Translation:  she's mad; it's one of my father's favorite phrases) because she didn't see a recent episode of Saturday Night Live hosted by her favorite singer, who was Taylor Swift up until this evening.  When I asked her to confirm the favorite singer, she said Katy Perry.  What do I know, I'm just the mother who serves boxed macaroni and cheese for breakfast as a "special birthday treat."  

3.  She also said,  "CBW made popcorn and the next day when serving dinner she spotted the pot with popcorn still in it."

You see, CBW makes popcorn--at least four times a dayweek--the old fashioned way, by pouring oil and kernels into a pot, covering tightly with a lid, and heating on medium-high.  The other night I made an extra large batch to ensure plenty of leftovers for snacks, fixed a bowl for CB Son, and put the lid back on the pot intending to come back later to bag it all up.

Last night upon returning from a very long day, I searched for a clean pot to set aside for today's Birthday Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. I lifted the lid off the pot on top the stove, and there sat all the uneaten popcorn.

I wonder how she feels about day-old popcorn for breakfast.

Now it's your turn.  Please share three things.  Whatever you want.  Anything at all.

Happy Birthday to my precious angel. I love you.