New Sunday Duds

Some Whiffs and Hits

Spring arrives at last. Time to play in the back yard. Here Anna is tossing the whiffle ball up for herself to hit. The lessons of last year seem to have been forgotten. Here we see Anna isn't exactly looking at the ball.
Ok, we are still working on watching the ball but at least our eyes are open this time.
A hit! Not bad considering the eyes are closed again.
Bat and ball connect but the eyes are still closed. Actually she does very well when the ball is thrown to here but I'm pretty impressed that she can throw the ball up herself and hit it pretty well sometimes.

Kitchen transformation begins

The first step toward a makeover of the kitchen has been taken. We took out the wallpaper and have just finished repainting the breakfast area in a color called "celery". This picture is pretty close to getting the hue of green thought the room is a bit brighter than it appears here. We also painted the pantry next to the door since it had never been finished before. We will wait to paint more of the kitchen until at least the cabinet doors and finish are replaced.

Elijah on Tip Toes

He needs every extra inch to try to be a helper with the dishes.

Golf.com: Tiger in a familiar spot

Golf.com: Tiger in a familiar spot

I've been glued to my computer and TV this week with the Master's coverage. At work I've had the live video from holes 11, 12 and 13 on all day Thursday and Friday. I know you all think I'm crazy but I really do enjoy watching golf and the Master's has become something of a tradition for me. It is the only event during the whole year I will make a big effort to see. March madness, eh I might watch a game or two, football, OK, I did watch the first half of the championship game because OSU was in the game, basketball; if the Cavs make the playoffs I'll watch some of the games. Other than that I don't watch anything anymore (The Indians are exclusively on cable which so I don't even have a choice there).

I've watched the Master's for 10 years and I know every hole. I've seen what can happen at each hole and knowing that history really makes the event riveting for me. This year is no exception. If you haven't heard, the best score is 2 over par after three rounds. Only one player was below par today because of the dry and windy conditions. I think what attracts me to gold if just how mental it is. Yeah, the physical skills are pretty incredible but its all about thinking your way through difficult circumstances. This year in particular. Every player knows that they are going to make mistakes but you can just see how the mistakes eat most of the players up psychologically. Tiger hasn't looked good but somehow he can keep the bigger picture in view so much better. Today he was even which was the second best of 60 players. When he completed his round he was 3 over and four back of the leaders but then the leader triple bogied on 15. The five in front of him proceeded to just do one bogey after another and now Tiger stand just one back and will be in the final pairing tomorrow. I wish I had a VCR because it is going to be a bummer to miss tomorrows round.

If you haven't watched, I find the Master's to be unlike any other sporting event on TV. with the minimal advertising and that soothing music and the emphasis on tradition I feel like I'm stepping back 50 years to a more gentile time. Going to Firestone for the World Golf Championship the past couple of years has reinforced my feeling for the traditions of golf. Where else can you go and be with thousands of people who are whispering and reverent. Sitting around the second green at Firestone is one of the most tranquil things I've ever done. Last year I took Andrew to one of the practice rounds and we had a great time together. He actually sat with me for an hour today watching tiger woods. It was the first time I've seen him really get excited about about a sport and could talk about what was happening. This year the WGC at Firestone is the first week of August and I'm really getting excited about taking Andrew for the practice rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday (kids under 12 are free those days).

Elijah after a Sunday Afternoon Nap

Sometimes it takes a few minutes to get going but sometimes he is pretty perky. The hair is a clue to how good the nap was. The wilder the hair the deeper and long the sleep.

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