Update on the Snow's

I'm sorry that I really haven't posted much this week except for a few quick updates on our doctor appointments. This week has been a doozy. On top of the usual things life throws our way I've also been dealing with the scheduling of doctors appointments, tracking down yearbook waivers, and of course, working on the yearbook itself. Wednesday night I also went with Tracy to see Katy Perry at the House of Blues, Thursday night was my PTO board meeting, and tonight is the Math Family Fun Night (isn't that an oxymoron?) and basket raffle. The few minutes that I actually have to sit down and not do anything the last thing I want is to be sitting at a desk and typing on my computer. I just want to veg.

So.....quick recap on everything I didn't write about this week:

KATY PERRY: Great show! Tracy and I had a great time and Katy puts on a fantastic show. Tracy even bought me a Katy Perry cherry chapstick from the merch stand. I told her I would treasure it as much as the NKOTB key chain she got me at their concert last year. It's the little things that make me happy.

PTO BOARD MEETING: I made it through the board meeting without volunteering to be on next year's board. I really need a break. I did, however, volunteer to chair the Fall Family Fun Night but that is something that I had really wanted to do this year but it didn't happen because of my other commitments. I chaired a FFN back in November 2006 and I loved doing it. The theme that year was "Around the World" and we set up seven rooms as the seven continents. We had sno-cones in Antarctica, karate demonstrations and lessons on using chopsticks in Asia, we had a drum group in Africa, a kangaroo (yes, a live one!) in Australia.....you get the drift. Next Fall I'm doing a Time Travel one to tie into History and Social Studies lessons. I'm actually really excited about it.

MATH FAMILY FUN NIGHT/BASKET RAFFLE: Tonight is the Math FFN which I honestly just don't see as potentially fun but I'm sure it will be for the kids. The co-chairs have put a lot of work into it and my understanding is there is a train theme and kids get to go around to different "train stops" and play games that fool them into thinking that math doesn't suck. (Gee, can you tell how I felt about math class through my educational years?) This is also the night of the PTO spring fundraiser which is a basket raffle. Each classroom chooses a theme and the kids all bring in one item that goes with their classroom theme. The baskets are then raffled off. Hannah's class chose the New England Patriots/Football as their theme so Hannah contributed a Patriots' Monopoly game. I co-chaired this event last year with my friend Denise and I have to say, I'm glad I'm not doing it again. It's a lot of work and I would have loved to have been involved again but there is no way I could do it at the same time as the yearbook without me ending up curled in the fetal position and Lincoln wanting to divorce me and the kids turning me in to Child Services for having abandoned them. See Lincoln....I am learning how to say "no" to things.

This weekend brings more yearbook (what else?), a hair appointment, and about a million other things that I don't have time for but the good news is that I talked Hannah out of having her slumber party this weekend. I just couldn't do it. I told her we'd choose another weekend sometime soon but neglected to tell her that it probably won't be until the end of May. This weekend is out, next weekend is Easter, the weekend after that is our trip to Niagara Falls, the weekend after that is April Break (which a lot of people go out of town for), the next weekend is Derby weekend, and then Grandma and Grandpa are out here the following weekend so that puts us into middle or late May for her slumber party. I'll just sell it to her as an "end of the school year party" if she complains about it. I'm certain I can get her to buy into that.

And that's all folks..... Thank you for reading the latest installment on the crazy life of the Snow Family.

Geography Lesson

Tonight Tracy, Denise and I went out to celebrate Denise's birthday which was yesterday. While we were having drinks Tracy was grilling us on where we are taking her next weekend. In our effort to throw her off the scent we were tossing out all sorts of U.S. cities where we could be taking her.

Me: You know, you're going to be really shocked if we take you to Omaha.

Tracy: I hear Utah is actually very pretty.

Me: Um....Omaha is in Nebraska.

Did I tell you Tracy is blonde?

Did I also tell you that Tracy is our PTO President and at Wednesday night's meeting she actually said Play Groin instead of Playground?........twice!......in front of the principal!......and the dean of students!.......Ha ha!

Hip Hop Cardio

Last night while Tracy and Denise were sweating it out at Hip Hop Cardio I was drinking champagne, eating a caterered gourmet dinner, and sitting by the water looking at the Boston skyline with the sun setting behind it while listening to Lucinda Williams and John Mellencamp.

So, needless to say, this week I don't hate Tracy. Sucker.

UPDATE: Apparently Denise didn't make it to class last night either (it was her son's 2nd birthday). And Lacy, our beloved teacher who ran in to us at the Rose Garden the other night eating fried food and drinking beer, really made them pay. Tracy said it was a BRUTAL class.

Martha's Vineyard

Today is our first day back in the real world since our trip to Martha's Vineyard. We took the ferry down Thursday night and got back late Sunday. We had a wonderful time and the weather was great. The first full day we were there was beautiful so we decided to load up the kids and go to the beach over at Chappaquiddick. There are lots of great beaches on Martha's Vineyard but part of the fun of going over to Chappie is riding the ferry. It's a little 3-car ferry that takes about 90 seconds to get from one side to the other. It's the most pointless ferry ever but it adds a lot of charm. Here is a picture of the ferry that I took last summer.

Once over on Chappaquiddick we headed to this great beach area. On one side you have the ocean side with waves and everything. On the other side of this little stretch of land you have the bay. While technically it is the ocean too it's a lot calmer and very shallow. It's a great place for the kids to play because the water is usually warm and it's shallow for a long way out and you don't have to worry about currents and tides and stuff. It's also usually pretty deserted.

Friday afternoon we headed back to the house and hooked up with the rest of our party. Denise and Brian and their two kids came down as well as Jim and Laurie. They were all with us last year as well. In addition to all of them we had another couple, Grace and Mike, and their 12 year old daughter, Sam, staying with us. It made for a full house but it was lots of fun. That evening the men cooked mexican food for us and we sat out on the porch and had dinner and drinks.

Saturday was another beautiful day and we headed back to the beach at Chappie. Everyone went that time except Cliff and Jim. In the early evening we headed down to Oak Bluffs and rode the carousel and did some window shopping. When we got back that night we BBQ'd at the house, put the kids to bed, and then started with the games. Right before the kids went down for bed the town fireworks went off and we had a great view from the house. The grown-ups then sat up and played The Newlywed Game and Taboo. After awhile everyone but Tracy, Brian, Denise, Lincoln, and I headed up to bed and we continued to sit out on the porch and drink. It was nice to sit around and talk. LOTS of laughs that night.

Sunday we had a huge breakfast out on the porch with eggs, french toast, sausages, and hashbrowns. It was pretty hot and muggy in the morning but we were all pleasantly surprised it wasn't raining since that is what the weathermen had said to expect. Lincoln and I got everything loaded up in the car so we could enjoy the afternoon and then after Jake's nap we headed into Vineyard Haven to do some souvenir shopping. We had told the kids they could each get something and so they happily picked up a couple of stuffed animals from The Black Dog.

After that we headed out for an early dinner with Denise and her son Coby. Then we caught the ferry and headed home. We got home about 11:15 last night. The rest of the clan all head back today.

I will be posting some pictures soon of our trip. I got some great shots of the kids at the beach.

Here is the house we stay in. Isn't that an awesome porch?

Tracy and Denise are trying to kill me

My friends Tracy and Denise have convinced me to join a Hip Hop/Kickboxing class that they take here in Upton. Tonight was my first class. I think I am going to die.