Kings Island

We headed to Kings Island when it opened today. Pam had taken the boys last week and they wanted to go back with me, and I hadn't even been yet to pick up my (paid for) season pass. So we got there right as the rides opened at 10am. For the first hour you can ride the coasters that the boys like (Adventure Express and the Racer) as often as you like, since there's no line for them. I couldn't talk either of them into the Beast this time around (or any previous time). After the coasters we did the speed pitch - none of us won. Then we walked over and did the log flume (Wild Thornberrys) and then waited for them to open up Whitewater Canyon. After those two we were soaked (my shoes were squishing water), and we called it a day. It was a fun and very efficient 3 hours.

And this one belongs to ...

the Reds!

The four of us plus Bob and Kay went down to GABP to watch the Reds and the Cubs last night.

It started out looking like it might be a short night, as it started raining right as we walked into the park around 6:00. So we hiked up to the top of the section where the roof covered us and waited things out. We got to hear a strong medley of rain songs from the Reds music guy - where else could you enjoy Elvis's Kentucky Rain, 10,000 Maniacs' Thinking About the Weather, and OAR's Fool in the Rain all strung together? Then they put an old Bugs Bunny baseball cartoon on the big screen, followed by This Week in Baseball, which the kept the kids attention.

Then after almost an hour and a half delay the game started. It was a good one. The Reds had a 4-1 lead late which they squandered and the Cubs tied it up in the top of the 9th 4-4. The Reds came back with the winning run in the bottom of the 9th, which sent the ton of Cubbies fans in the park home unhappy.

That's two exciting wins in a row for the Redlegs. They beat the Brewers in 10 the day before. Maybe Pete Mackanin, their new manager, is better than we all thought. They are actually beating some good team lately. Seems like they could be really competitive if they had about 3 more good arms in the bullpen. Maybe next year it'll come together for them.

And then to cap it all off, it was Fireworks Night. We stayed put for a cool music and fireworks show, and got home late - around 1:30. So a night that started out looking like a disappointment ended up being a very good night all the way around.

The End of a Long Day in the Car

Here's two quick movies we took of the kids at the end of out 12 hour car ride back from Hilton Head a couple week ago. (This shows why we only do that trip once a year.)

Car Ride #1


Car Ride #2

Switching to Feedburner

I don't think anyone is using the RSS feed for this blog besides me right now, but just in case...

I'm switching the blog over to FeedBurner today. You can get the new feed here http://feeds.feedburner.com/LukesWhatsHappening

There will also be a new FeedBurner badge on the right side of the main page.

(Email me or call me if you want to know how to use the feed to keep track of new postings here.)

Over the river and through the woods....

Zach and Cole have been taking turns at GrandJane's house this weekend.

Zach got to go first. Pam dropped him off in Vandalia with GJ Thursday and he spent two fun packed days in Lima. They went to the Neil Armstrong space museum in Wapak. That's a pretty small sized museum, so it's perfect for Zach. He also went swimming (twice) at the SCC, visted the Sqirty Worm for putt-putt and some arcade time, and also to a Loco's game. GJ reported that he only lasted for about 3 innings at the baseball game. We met in Dayton on Saturday to swap Cole for Zach, Cole will come back on Monday, and GJ will be ready for a week of quiet, I bet.

Vacation Week Pics

We had a great week at HHI. We had rain for part of one day, and while it was hot it wasn't too bad. Only got to 90 a couple of days.

As usual we took pictures in spurts during the week. Here's the link to our collection.

Hilton Head Vacation

4th of July at the Beach

We enjoyed 4th of July fireworks from the back deck of our house in HHI. We were a mile or more from the fireworks at Harbor Town, and we had to watch them through a few trees. But, what we lacked in closeness we more than made up in convenience.

Salty Dog Boys

First night in town we had dinner at the Salty Dog. Pizza and drinks with the guy playing guitar for us. Not a bad way to kick off the week.

Here are the boys soaking up the atmosphere at the Dog.


After dinner, Pam and her folks and brother headed to the grocery to stock us with provisions for the week. Cole, Zach and I headed back to the house, then we walked over to the beach to make sure the ocean was where we left it last year (it was.)

And then to wrap up the evening they hopped in the pool back at the house. It doesn't get much better than an evening like that if you're Cole and Zach. It's no wonder why they think this vacation thing is a good deal.

Look out!!!

Down at the beach today, Pam had a fun encounter with a fast swimming predator. All four of us were walking in water about knee-deep, and I spotted a couple of dark fins headed toward us. Unfortunately Pam was closest to them and let out a pretty big shriek when she heard me say "sharks". Luckily they were small ones, probably about 2 feet long, so they couldn't do much harm other than scaring the daylights out of Pam.

All is well and the boys now have good story to tell about this vacation.

Vacationing at the Beach

We're at Hilton Head this week with Pam's parents are her brother. It should be a fun time to be down here for the 4th.