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Monday, May 31, 2010

An Ode to my Race Fans

The day before Memorial Day (in my family) is Race Day. It is for most of Indianapolis. But Race Day, for us, is an awesome day of laughing, racing, hanging out with family and friends, and enjoying the spectacle that is the Indy 500.

I grew up in a family of Race Fans. I knew the standard names. Foyt, Andretti, Unser, Mears, Rahal.  My 'uncle' John would come in town the day before Race Day, in his little MG convertible (I love that car)(I sigh just thinking about it), and we'd cook out in the back yard. I don't remember where Uncle John slept, but he must have spent the night. They'd pack a lunch the night before and would outfit themselves with hats, sunglasses, a newspaper, binoculars, and a thermos of iced tea. They would leave before we woke up. We wouldn't see Dad and Uncle John until later in the afternoon, but we'd get to hear 'the race' on the radio in the garage. I don't remember how or why the radio was turned on, but we would 'hang out' in the back yard on Race Day, just so we could hear the cars, Tom Carnegie, and the patter about the drivers.

At some point Dad and Uncle John stopped going to the race. Maybe it was about the time the Snake Pit got out of control? Or when the infield was redesigned? But the year Ironman and I got married, my siblings  and I purchased tickets together for the first time.

We've spent many memorable years at the track since then. There was the year Andre professed his love for Little Debbie, "The only woman who's never let me down." And the year a 'rookie' Race Fan was stunned to find out that plumber's crack was indeed a reality.  The year Patti explained rationale by way of "I wore velcro shoes as a child." And the year a Race Fan professed that The Race is "The Greatest Spectacle in Life!" The year the evil "blue poncho" (an anti-race-fan who expressed her distaste for our race excitement) was spotted in the Indianapolis airport (post-race) and we got the absurd idea she was stalking our cousin. There's the ever-present and completely adored Cousin Tommy who treks annually from the southwest just to spend the night on my parents' or brother's floor and then hikes with us to our seats to bake in the sun and listen to the roar of the engines.  The year Helmet showed up 14 hours after a wedding -- on a bicycle -- after having driven his car as close to the track as he could get and then riding his bike to get to our parking area.  The year my sister-in-law wore a goofy picture of her husband (yes, my brother) on her pregnant belly.

We've added race fans, temporarily lost them to childbirth (welcome to the world, Niece-ling) and weddings (Shannoan's brother in Hawaii of all places?!), exulted in poor footwear choices (high heels to walk from 30th street to the track, hello?! welcome to idiocy?!!), spotted what we suspected were aliens (from another planet, not the Arizona-type), and convinced ourselves of the technological worth of grapes vs gummibears as projectiles.

I LOVE the memories we've made at the track.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Sleeping Beauties

My beautiful little girl (I still think of her as a little girl, even though she's only about 4 inches shorter than me) has a job as a mother's helper this summer.

She loves her job.

The chix went to the zoo this morning with 'their boys'.  ('Their boys' are 26-month-old twins and their 5-month-old singleton brother.)  Apparently it was a bit exhausting.  The big boys did nap on the way home from the zoo, but they didn't nap for the rest of the day.

And the result?  Crab grabbed a little nap with Ironman when we all got home.  Sleeping beauties.


Friday, May 28, 2010

Fw: Scooby bit Niece-ling this morning...

From: Aunt Kake
Date: Thu, 27 May 2010 07:58:14 -0700 (PDT)
To: Schoon
Subject: Scooby bit Niece-ling this morning...

...so hard that now she has two lip-shaped bruises on her cheek. Just another fun day in the land of parenthood...
============
Aunt Kake

Thursday, May 27, 2010

I miss blogging

Truly.

But between work, volunteer stuff for IFMOTC, volunteer stuff for SSPOM, volunteer stuff for FTSC, the girls' swim practices/kickball practices/kickball games/and my everyday mom duties, I'm freaking exhausted.

Having no Internet for the past week was less than ideal, too.

On that note, though I've lots to say, it's time for bed. Another workday tomorrow - and the chix are requesting their nightly book!

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

They Say It's Your Birthday!

Introducing Niece-ling.
This little girl was born with a ton-o-hair.  Can you tell?

In these pictures, she's only a few weeks old.  I think it was 4 or 5.  But see that look on her little face?  She was telling me, "Hey, you're *not* my mom."  She's very opinionated.

And oh, my gosh, how sweet is it that her hair CURLED when it was washed oh so long ago?
Little love bug, cute little nakey baby, it was all I could do not to eat her up!

Today, this cute little bugger is 3 years old.  I'm in awe.  She has such a sweet nature, and reminds me of my sister in all the nicest ways (though she also has her stubbornness)(and dislike of waking up)(I'll stop with the similarities now).  I love that she willingly spends the night at my house without her mommy.  I love that she has her own name for me -- Schoon -- melt!  I love that she adores her 'big' cousins, but still prefers to cuddle on my lap during church.  I love that she's entering her 'girly' phase and prefers dresses and 'clip-clop' shoes to shorts and t-shirts.  I love her enthusiasm for anything crafty and how much she *adores* books.  Best of all, I love that she pretends to call "Schoon" on her toy cell phone when driving in the car!

Being an aunt is the absolute BEST!

Happy birthday, Niece-ling! Come for a sleep over soon, 'kay?


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