Memorial Day Weekend

 We had a nice long weekend, which was definitely needed!   We split the time between Sacramento, where Alaina played in her first summer softball tournament, and our cabin.

During the drive were were amazed at how green California still is for late May--its like all the water this winter has finally rehydrated everything.

We still have a lot of snow at the cabin--the beach is totally covered and the lake is mostly covered too.   I guess when you get 753" of snow in one winter it must take a while to melt!  No cleaning up the beach or our property or collecting kindling this Memorial Day.   It was incredible to see the damage the snow caused to the roads, street signs and even some houses.   It was a powerful winter!

Alaina continued playing softball--this time with snowballs!

The weather was in the mid 50s and mostly sunny, so even though we couldn't hike in the snow, we did get out to walk/bike in the neighborhood.

 

Our Memorial Day BBQ was indoors though--too chilly to eat outside.

A nice break from work.   The kids have 3 weeks of school left and are counting down the days!

Second Place Softball Season

 This weekend marked the end of Alaina's rec softball season.   She played well and had a great team.   The past weekend was the playoffs--21 teams in Marin competed to play in the championship--and her team made it to the game!

  Unfortunately, they did not win, losing quite substantially 12-3, but the umps did seem to favor the other team!

So her team received 2nd place trophies.   This is the second second-place trophy she has gotten this season.   Earlier this spring she also played on our town's all-star team, where her team, again, came in second.

Though there were a lot of tears shed by girls on the team, Alaina didn't seem to mind coming in second too much.   She just isn't THAT competitive.  

But, actually it has been a lot of fun watching her play and gain confidence this season.   She is going to play travel ball again this summer, so we have more softball ahead of us.

Working man

 

This spring, Ethan has not one, but two jobs!   After turning 14, he was eligible to work at Kumon, as a grader.  Now he goes there every Monday and Thursday after school and corrects kids' homework and helps them in class.   As a bonus, Alaina is a student, so he gets to correct her work too (which sometimes presents a bit of a conflict of interest......).   Any way, he gets paid 0.50 over minimum wage, which in California is a sweet $15.50 an hour.  Not too bad!

Also this spring, he is working as a little league umpire.   He has umped a few games, and tells us that it is "boring".   But he does get paid $40/game--pretty good money at age 14, so I guess the boredom is worth it.

Last week, Jason brought him to the bank and helped him set up his own checking account.  He now has a debit card, linked to Apple Pay...so he can charge away!   Financial independence!

Grandma Ferschl

 Today would have been my Grandma Ferschl's 100th birthday, had she not died in November of 2020 at the age of 97.5.  We had always talked about throwing a big 100th birthday party for her when she was alive--I know she really had hoped to make it--and was looking forward to it despite her religion.   I am sad that she didn't make it to this day.  Unfortunately, the pandemic likely made her final days much more difficult, being isolated and probably quite lonely.   The last time I saw her was through a window at her assisted living facility.   

I sure wish we could be together celebrating today--I can hear her now, in my head, ordering a steak from Alioto's, cooked extra-well done, "like a hockey puck", and maybe drinking a 7 and 7.   I miss her smile and her laugh, the snacks she alway put out for us when we came for a visit, her cooing over the kid's dimples.  But mostly, I just miss her.   Happy Birthday Grandma!