Long Time, No Blog

I haven't blogged in about a month. It's been a difficult month. Thomas and I are back in the office. Honestly, that part is fine. I prefer to work at home, but going in person is no big deal. I get the same work done in the same amount of time, so whatever. But, other things are frustrating. The tone of the administration is unlike anything I've experienced in my 20+ years of working for the Navy. And, I am not talking about the quest to find areas where reductions can be made. While I personally don't want to lose my job, I am more fearful that we have gone down a partisan road and are further dividing ourselves along party lines. It is really hard to articulate without saying too much. 

In better news, the kids are keeping busy with good activities. In fact, Luke is at a baseball tournament as I write. Moving up to AAA has not been great for his team; their record is 3-13. They have lost many games by just 1 run, so the kids don't want to move down. Personally, I am tired of them being the bottom seed and thus having the 8am Sunday morning games, so I wouldn't mind returning to AA.

Kara is enjoying lacrosse. She is a varsity starter (most games) and scored her first goal! She usually plays defense so generally isn't in position to score, but occasionally plays mid, as she did the game where she scored. Unfortunately, I was not there to see it. But, Thomas and Anna were and they said it was very exciting. Their team has a great record of 7-1, but they do have some stronger opponents in the second half of the season. Regardless, it has been a great experience for her.

Anna has been helping us out a lot with Luke and babysitting in the neighborhood. She also started posting Vlogs on YouTube. 

Jack has been busy with band and track. He set a new PR for the 2-mile and did it in 11-minutes flat last week. Right now, he is on a bus, traveling back from a band trip to DC. We haven't heard too much about it yet, but Jack said it was a 9-9.5/10 experience.  Among other things, they went to museums and got to do a wreath laying ceremony at the tomb of the unknown soldier. The trip made Jack homesick for our life in Maryland. They also went to a concert at the Kennedy Center, which later made the news because the crowd booed the VP (Jack said he was not among those who booed).

Other happenings: we have done a few trips to the theme parks (Hollywood Studios, Epcot, and Universal). We also went to Leu Gardens one Saturday. I went to lunch with my sister and visited my dad. I met a friend for lunch at Red Lobster. Jack's band had their MPA, they did great and got straight superiors.  The weather has been beautiful. 

And, to conclude, a few photos from the month:

Luke in "The Scream" at Epcot's Festival of the Arts

Kara doing the draw

On the Skyliner

I love the sandhill cranes

Anna and I saw an otter in one of the neighborhood ponds. We watched him scurry from the water to the woods.