Jack's First Wrestling Tournament

Jack participated in the Shenendehowa Youth Wrestling Tournament in Clifton Park, NY. He weighed in at 54 lbs and competed in Division 2B. He finished with 2 wins and 1 loss and took 2nd place. He won his second match after it went into double overtime and his final match went to 1-sudden death overtime period before he lost. We were very proud of him and Mollie and the girls had a little party for him when we arrived home. He started wrestling in December and has really enjoyed it so far.


He wins!


Grappling for an advantage.


Ready for his 3rd match.

View all the pictures from the tournament by clicking on the photo below:

Jack Wrestling Tournament January 2009

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from our home to yours. Here's to a safe Christmas holiday and a prosperous 2009. Hopefully the new year will include more blog updates.

Bahamas Trip March 2008

Mollie and Patrick flew to Nassau on Friday for a long weekend at a luxury home in the Ocean Club Estates on Paradise Island. We are guests of Shery and David Oakes, Patsy's bosses. The home is situated along the 16th Fairway of the Ocean Club golf course. It is walking distance to the ocean and is 2 miles from The Atlantis resort. We had a great time and really enjoyed the pool, beach, amazing house, and the great location. We enjoyed catching up with our friends from Ohio and relaxing for a few days.


Patsy, Amy & Mollie outside The Poop Deck Restaurant.

Here are a few pictures of the house:


Mollie and Amy having a chat poolside.


Back of the house and infinity pool.


Pool and view of the golf course behind.


Travis, Patrick and Jeff on the back porch at sunset.

You can view all of our pictures by clicking on the following link:

Bahamas Trip March 2008

Macie's Freudian Slip

Last night, Mollie was reviewing Macie's homework. One worksheet required her to complete sentences. One of these sentences started with: "A place I'd like to explore is..." Macie completed the sentence with "Canyon Ranch". We found this pretty funny, considering that Canyon Ranch, or "The Ranch" as it is known around here, is a very high end spa.

Photo of Canyon Ranch, Lenox, MA

When we questioned her about this she told us that what she really meant was the Grand Canyon. I think this might be a freudian slip that may provide insight into her very expensive taste. We all had a good laugh!

Welcome Sadie. Goodbye McCarthy.

Santa brought Macie a kitten. She was very excited and had asked for a real kitten many times leading up to Christmas. She named our new family member Sadie and has been very responsible about taking care of her. Sadie and our cat McCarthy (age: 14 1/2 years) became fast friends. They were often found curled up together. McCarthy has been an only cat for a long time so it was neat to see him have some companionship.

Unfortunately, last week McCarthy became sick and died on January 18. He showed some symptoms Tuesday night and was in worse shape on Wednesday so Mollie brought him to the Vet. They put him on an IV because he was dehydrated. He spent the night there and came home Thursday night to stay with us although his prognosis wasn't very good. He had developed kidney disease and had a growth on or near his stomach. He was healthy (or at least not showing any outward signs) until 2 days before he died, had a pretty darn good life, and spent his last month with a new friend, Sadie. Everyone is sad and misses him. Maggie may pick out a new cat so Sadie will have a new friend. We will post pictures if we get a new kitten.


Sadie

Sadie

Sadie and McCarthy

McCarthy spent his last night at home letting the water drip on his head. He always loved getting in the bathtub and we would let the water drip. He would drink the water and let it drip into his mouth. This night he seemed to be soothed by letting the water drip on him. When we brought him home he went straight to the bathroom and jumped in the tub!

Maggie's Snowball Dance

Maggie had her first dance a few weeks ago. She went with her friends and was even voted "queen"! She is growing up fast and her mom and dad are very proud of her. Below are some pictures of the girls before the big event.

Winter Fun!

Jack has been very excited to have his snowmobile running again. We got just enough snow this past week to snowmobile around the yard. All three kids have enjoyed riding it. Here is Jack in the front yard:



Jack on video:

Jane Sedgewick Play at St. Mary's

Maggie, Macie, and Jack all played important roles in a recent production about Jane Sedgewick and the founding of St. Mary's School. This play was written and directed by Mrs. Valleri as part of the celebration of St. Mary's Church's 150th Anniversary. While the girls had more time on stage and had longer lines, Jack was perhaps the hit of the show as Bishop Fitzpatrick!

Maggie opens an ornament at beginning of play:

Maggie and Macie look for more ornaments in the play:

Jack as Bishop Fitzpatrick with his Great-Grandmother (GG) Toole:

Jack with the real Bishop:

The cast of the play with Bishop McDonnell:

You can view all of the pictures and a couple of video clips by clicking on the following link:

Dec 2007 "Jane Sedgewick" Play at St Mary's School

A Tribute to Mrs. Utt

We lost a dear friend on Friday. Mrs. Jeanie Utt passed away after a long and courageous battle with lung cancer. Right to the end she was positive and engaging. She was the mother to Jay and Larry, and their sister Amy. She was like a second Mom to me. She was the wife of Mr. Utt (Larry Sr.), who was my 8th grade wrestling coach. She will be missed here but is in a much better place now. Following are a couple of pictures of her at Jay's wedding in October 2007.

Jeanie Utt, July 21, 1947 - November 30, 2007

Thanksgiving in Sarasota

We were in Sarasota for the Thanksgiving week with our friends Mark and Kelly and their daughter, Allie. We flew down Friday night. Saturday was spent watching Ohio State defeat Michigan for the 6th time in the last 7 years, to clinch the Big Ten title (again)! Then, we headed to the pool for the afternoon. Sunday was spent at Siesta Key Beach and a trip into the village for a late lunch and drinks at the Daiquiri Deck. Sunday night, Mark and Patrick went to Linkster's Tap Room to cheer on the Patriots against the Bills. Monday, we rented a boat for the day and drove up and down the Intracoastal Waterway. We stopped for lunch at Pop's Sunset Grill in Nokomis. We also anchored the boat and enjoyed a secluded beach at Midnight Pass. Tuesday, we spent the day at the pool and then went out for a great dinner at Flemings. We also visited our new friend, Chuck, at Roys for a drink and a late night snack. Wednesday, we explored Caspersen Beach for the first time and were delighted. We spent hours combing through sand and shells and found about 60 pre-historic fossilized shark's teeth. Check out the photos of the teeth below. This beach is known for its collection of shark teeth that wash ashore.
Thursday, we celebrated Thanksgiving with turkey, stuffing and the usual trimmings. We also managed to get in some time by the pool and Mark and Patrick played racquetball, too. We came home Friday. Enjoy the pictures here and be sure to visit the web album to see all the pictures from the week.

A Day at Siesta Key Beach

Boating on the Intracoastal Waterway

A gecko found Jack's shoulder!! The kids explore Midnight Pass

Lunch at Pop's Sunset Grill

Dinner at Flemings

A morning walk on Stoneybrook Nature Trail

Dinner at Sharkey's on the Pier in Venice

The pre-historic Shark Teeth we found at Caspersen Beach, Venice.

Slideshow of our pictures.










Click on this link to view all the pictures on the web album:

Thanksgiving week 2007 in Sarasota