Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for...

This boy braved getting braces the other day, and I dare say he looks handsome and so grown up too. Of course, he opted for red and blue bands being the diehard Sox player that he is.

Baby kitties...cute, cuddly, playful.

Miss Bit took on and won her Daddy's challenge to make 7 new friends at camp. She has at least a dozen new cohorts.

This team.

This coach.

This catcher.

Slow Summer days. This week we stayed close to home so the kids could play the days away with neighborhood friends. The boys worked on a movie, Zombie V, in between games of baseball. They held tryouts for the parts. Miss Bit scored the highest. During her casting call, she had to cry, pretend to be shot, act like she was being eaten by a mummy, play dodgeball and run a race. I cannot wait to see this.

Girls with muscles.

My boys turned 3 this week. Happy birthday Peanut and Tigger. I still owe you a tuna fish cake.

My in-laws have been married for 45 years today!

Tomorrow we celebrate my brother and sister-in-law's marriage with lots of family and friends over cocktails, dinner and dancing. They have been married for 28 days!

T. Bone is playing hookie from camp today and instead he's golfing with my Aunt and Uncle.

Time to work through Gennen Roth's insightful book Women Food and God, and to enjoy Kathryn Stockett's The Help.

Participating in Tuesday's Unwrapped at Chatting at the Sky this week. I was inspired to visit some new (to me) blogs and even to leave a few comments. I never do that. Sometimes I want to, but I end up just lurking. I even got a few comments of my own. I think I don't care about them, but then I see I have a message and I get all giddy. So if you read this, do me a favor and leave me a comment whether I know you or not and consider it your random act of kindness for the day because it will make me THAT happy.

Watermelon.

Trader Joe's.

Summer "To Do" lists: go to lots of beaches, hike at Audubon, make play doh and slushies, eat lots of ice cream and smores, play mini-golf and baseball, go to batting cages, Six Flags, State Fair, Irish Fest and a water park, meet Dad for lunch, swim in Grandma and Grandpa's pool, spend a rainy day at the museum and the movies, see fireworks, go to church festivals and farmer's markets, paint pictures and rocks, have picnics, play dates and sleepovers, read and write everyday, take bike rides, and plan road trips to Chicago, Madison and Door County.

A half day of vacation today to get started on that list.