Take Me Out

Sporting events inspire a lot of emotion around here. It's not always the emotion that you would expect but the passion is there for some aspect of most athletic endeavors (Jack is our newest NASCAR fan. Apparently, you can take the genes out of New Hampshire but you can't take the New Hampshire out of the genes). For some of us, wings, beer, and discarding strict (oh, who am I kidding) "we eat dinner at the dinner table" rule to watch a game is the manifestation of our spirit. For others, it is dressing from head to toe (and accessorizing) with her team's colors. And for others still, passion is shown by wanting to get the heck out of one event to get home to watch hockey (any hockey game will do but if one team is wearing red, well, there you go -- they are the winners. This does not bode well for some dads in our house during this Bruins/Blackhawks series). But, if I thought we were a pretty passionate household when it comes to most sports, we clearly missed the boat when it comes to soccer for one member. I really like soccer and watch a fair amount of it during the Olympics or World Cups, but admittedly, we only watch regular match games in passing. In Seattle, we might be in the minority. This town barely ekes out a showing for the beleaguered Mariners. And while the Seahawks draw sellouts, we can't decide if we want an NBA team or not. But the regulars (all 50,000 of them) at the Sounders games? WOW. No seriously, WOW. They are insane. Cheers, songs, scarves, signs, choreography, bands (yeah band!), fireworks -- it's an entertaining, participatory experience. Molly, John, and I really enjoyed it when we went on Saturday. Jack, unsure of what to make of it all at first, eventually decided (a few minutes into the first half) that he HATED it. He covered his ears, thought everyone was nuts, and begged to get the hell out of there. He was not amused by the excitement, poor thing. Luckily for him, there was some entertainment on the way home.

Go Sounders. I did not (shocker) put this cheerful outfit together. The crazy thing? She didn't look out of place amongst the sea of green-clad fans. 

Jack is starting to realize that the crazies are out in full force

Heh, are there any hockey players around here? Maybe an Earnhardt or two? 

Maybe I'll wave for my friend Theo, whose seats we are using, but really, this is just insanity. What are those darn scarves for?

Trains on the way home + cotton candy = good game-time escape

Speaking of sports, we'll pretend that the t-ball hustle looks like this all the time.

Minus the yelling part at the end (of course), I feel like this sums things up pretty well.

That East Coast Vibe

Bad updater. Bad multitasker. Bad stay-in-the-moment Mom. I've been remiss in many aspects of life over the last several months as our family prepares to undergo (we hope!) another transition. Most of you know that we are probably (we hope!) moving back to the left side of the country this summer and I seem to have forgotten to keep up with lots of other things as I juggle these imminent and approaching curve balls. I'm sorry to you, blog readers (if there are any left!) and I'm especially sorry to my little monkeys (the irony isn't lost on me that I have to say no, I can't play/help your work out your fight/feed you right now because I need to find a school for you to go to. They think that trade off is cool, right? Ah, notsomuch) for being a little absent in the mental department. In the midst of the chaos, we have had some glorious weather, some super duper fun visitors come (thank you!), and some fun times with dear friends in the Emerald City (that's Seattle, in case you didn't know and happened to think our nickname was the Rain Soaked City or the Super Drenched City. Those are all lies, though! Lies!). And you have ended up, dear blog, right at the bottom of the heap. It don't feel none too good but heck, show me someone who keeps every ball in the air and I'll show you someone... with a very devoted follower of one. Me.

I could moan and groan some more but I've beat myself up about not soaking up these moments enough that I'll just gracefully move on to the sunshine and rainbows portion of the evening. Here's what we have been doing:

Scooting. 

and some organized activities like T-ball

And, of course, there is the time honored tradition of tagging along at the T-ball practice. This is Jack with one of our favorite little persons and Jack's future wife.

There has been some hiking with the lady

and with the man.

and the've been on slug patrol.

There's been sprinklering (and slip 'n sliding due to our incredibly warm and dry spring)

with a wonderful sojourn to Florida in there to play a little golf and swim and swim and swim

And hang out with the cousins!

We've been celebrating birthdays (hockey socks are a one way ticket to crazy town)

with friends.

  

Someone has been dressing up and asking mom to take pictures. You know, just because.

There has been more finding some more small spaces to hide out in

and finally enjoying outside feasts again.

While this may be a lame, quick recap of the past few months (minus the recent Gerbi cousin and aunt and uncle visit), my mind has been a million places and for a committed non-phone-communicator, I've been on the phone too much. The next six weeks promise to be nuts but I also publicly pledge to return to living in the moment for at least thirty minutes a day and to remove the damn phone/computer/iPad from my grasp for at least two minutes every hour and to look around and actually enjoy our last several weeks here. I can't even begin to process leaving Seattle so instead, I'm looking forward only to heading east. This is a very, very bittersweet departure. I have loved it here and I'm leaving behind an amazing community of family and friends who I will miss very, very much. I am, of course, also looking forward to moving back to family and friends who I have missed very, very much for four years. So, the processing will come later and for now, I just look forward to the return and the new adventures that life will impart on us in this phase. While I have learned that, *gasp*, that I enjoy change, I am really enjoying the idea of settling back in with the good people of the eastern seaboard. 

Oh Mama

Happy mother's day. Thank you to these two, most of all. Motherhood brings unimaginable joy and without these crazy monkeys, I wouldn't fully understand what gives life depth and meaning and all the topsy turvy in between. We are blessed to have mothers, to be mothers, and to know mothers. I am thinking of my own mom half way around the world today, my mother-in-law across the country and all the the mamas in between. Thanks moms. 

Super... Smoosh?

Thank goodness the Easter Bunny was able to find our sneaky little superhero last weekend. Clearly, he moves faster than the speed of light to get in and out of this super-uncomfortable-looking doll crib. Sometimes, I don't know what to do with this man of the hour but most of the time, he melts my heart with his super sweet, super heroic little personality. 

Keep The Old Ones

We have met some really, really great people out here and for that, I'm grateful. The community we've developed over the past two-ish years is sustaining and fun and helpful and kind. Still, there is something irreplaceable about old friends and I am really super grateful that there are actually still people out there who put up with us after all these years. And it sure is fun to remember all those old times (those "times" perhaps involving some suspect choices, a little bit of alcohol induced fun, and apparently some really high waistlines). It's very hard to describe how comfortable and hilarious and happy it is to sit back and slip into an old groove with great people that you've known for many, many years. It's even sweeter when you've got little people running around thoroughly enjoying their little buddies as much as you're enjoying your big buddies. So yes, I'm thankful for the Seattle folks but I'm even more thankful for the childhood/college/early adulthood  (I use that term loosely) friends with whom we've seen a lot of thick (we're breeders after all) and thin (ah, sprint-triathlon training) times. It's the girls' weekends, the quick dinners, and the longer trek-out-west visits that nourish the soul and lengthen the evening.

And with that, a heartfelt thank you to the Owens family for coming out to visit for several days this week. Everyone squished into our little house and hopefully (despite some very tired Doyle children), we were the merrier for the more. I know that I had such a great time and I think the little people may have had an even better time at the kids' table and running each other ragged. We were blessed with great temperatures and sunshine, but more importantly, wonderful company and more than a few laughs. 

The seriously good-natured, super-sweet boys (sorry Will, I think Jack is showing off his should-be-patented choking/hugging/tackling embrace)

The saucy ladies: pretty in pink 

All the small folk

Protective big sister #1

Protective big sister #2

Buddies

Interpretation Is Two Tenths Of The Law

THIS is the Statue of Liberty

and THIS is... 

the Statue of Deliveries.