The last of July '07

July has been a month of highs and lows. I can't believe it is almost over. That means summer is almost over in my book as August will fly by in a crazy heat wave and then we will play the back to school scramble!

Cal lost her two front teeth! They were pulled by her "personal dentist" who happens to be her cousin, Riley.

We had a couple of awesome outings at Camp Osto. The most recent was this past Thursday and Friday nights. Our gang + Riley, Hunter and Dan. The best part of this trip, in my opinion, (*note others may have a different version of this story) was our tubing ADVENTURE! We tubed past our normal spot to the 50th Street Bridge. We had no idea how long this would take by tube, but when we started asking we heard Three Hours. These reports came when we were already floating down the mighty Muskegon. Ouch. About 1/2 hour into the trip, Chooch announces he has to poo! Yikes! No problem with Papa Dan in the parade...he whips down Chooch's suit, floats him over the edge of the tube and tells him to "go". "THERE IT WENT!" exclaims Chooch and he was right....there IT went! Hilarious. ("out redneck" that one, George!)

Float, float, stop and swim, catchaturtle, watchacrawfish, float, float, float. Sky starts to look dark and stormy...rain begins to fall, gentle at first, then with a pelting intensity that made all but the most hardy of us (basically me and Dan) begin to cry and complain. "We're having fun, dammit!" is my exclamation, yet we are worried it may begin to storm soon. We find a cottage, beg a ride and are rescued by a Navy wife and her two little kids. We are still 45 minutes from 50th Street bridge by tube, but seriously 4 minutes by truck. CRAZY! Back on dry land and safe from any impending doom, we decide we had fun anyways. I tell the kids they will never forget this tubing adventure and will someday look back on it with fond memories (let's hope)!

Killer bass catching, campfire, rummikub, shooting the 22, driving the old Ford (Black Beauty) and drives for ice cream make the weekend complete!

Saturday we head back home and then Matt and I make the cross-state trip for my impromptu class reunion. (which is a 17 year class reunion, if you are counting...which I obviously am not). It was great to see some of my old friends and teammates and to catch up on all the years. The girls looked much better than the guys too, which was amusing to us!

Osto Friends Camping Weekend

If you are interested in camping out at Camp Osto on Friday / Saturday night, August 10th and 11th please email me or Osto. This is a couples, no kids event!

We are planning a long tube float on Saturday.

We have one two room tent someone can use. We have space for more trailers too if you have one you want to pull.

What to bring? Something to sleep in/on/under, some food for the grill, beverages, bug spray, suit / towel and a tube if you have one (we have about 8-10). Keep in mind Camp Osto is a rustic paradise so there is no electricity, nor running water (read: NO toilets / showers). We feel this just adds to the ambiance.

Come for the day or the weekend, we'd love to see you!

Grand Haven

We were in Grand Haven last week. We had super weather, the kids loved the great waves and walking to the light house. We enjoyed a visit with our east coast cousins - Hunter, Deb, Flynn and Nora - and had a special family reunion to celebrate their visit. Happy Birthday to Papa Dan too.
This is summer!

Fireworks

Click to play Make your own Smilebox

Bobby Kozminski

This city lost a hero on Sunday morning. Thank you to the men and women of GRPD who make a stand everyday. Bobby, God bless you and your family. You will never be forgotten.

Blood Upon The Shield
Confrontation in an alley. The Centurion does not yield.
But this time the good guy loses; there is blood upon the shield.
And the mournful sounds of bagpipes play out across the land,
drowned out by the sobs of a lonely young wife
and a child too young to understand.
While the killer pleads his case in court, the thin blue line is one man short.
And we're one step closer to society's fall; another cop's name is engraved on the wall.
Another state funeral, with an army in blue,
and we know it could've been me and it could've been you.
We all look ahead to what the future has in store,

front line troopers in a country that's at war.
At war with itself and at war with its cops and we're

out there every day 'cause the battle never stops.
It's not the way it is on TV shows or like we learned in school;

no cool music in the background, no playing by the "rules";
We're disillusioned warriors, but for right we'll always strive.
We just pray that at the end of our stress-filled day we'll get back home alive.
You stand out on the corner ignoring the insults and the stares,
close to the point of believing that no one really cares,
when a six year-old boy walks over after watching
you for awhile, reaching out to shake your hand,
on his face a friendly smile.
To him you are a hero, a protector of our land, and he wants
to learn about you, as a cop and as a man.
And when he asks you why your badge is covered by a black elastic band,
tell him about our Brother - A cop who made a stand.

~Author unknown

July 7 - Remembering Kevin Marshall

In memory of Michigan State Trooper, Kevin Marshall , a member of the Emergency Response Team who was killed in the line of duty on July 7, 2004. He was 33, married with two kids. I didn't know him, but I know a lot of good men who are a lot like Kevin Marshall in more ways than one. And thank God for them! Rest in peace.

The 4th annual Marshall Run (5K) is Saturday, September 1, 2007.

Little Patriots

In honor of Independence Day and all our freedom stands for...