our collective digital self
Posted by Michelle on Dec 5, 2008 in Hayley, Jeff, Michelle, More Family
I didn’t have time to take photos during Thanksgiving because I was cooking (and eating, watching football, sleeping, eating, you get the idea) but I took some the next day at the house and stable before Jeff’s family left.
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Posted by Michelle on Nov 17, 2008 in Hayley, More Family
On Sunday we met Hayley’s first/bmom Gloria in Greensboro with her husband Scottie and Hayley’s half-sister Faith. We had lunch, looked at some old photos and then took the kids to play at Celebration Station. It was a really pleasant visit. The bumper boats were a highlight for Hayley, she and Faith squirted all of us various times to their ongoing hilarity. I had my cell phone camera on and taped all four adults getting sporadically drenched.
Unfortunately some of my photos didn’t come out – the light is odd in those neon flooded places and a very strange woman who took a photo of the group and cut half of us out (i can get not being able to focus but aim??) So hopefully Gloria will give me a copy of that one and some other to add to this pile.
Videos on flickr have that little play icon in the lower right corner so you can tell they are video. They will play in the slideshow but it will be pretty crappy because it isn’t met to be looked at in that big size of screen. So if you go the page that is easiest to see them all, you can see it there.
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Posted by Michelle on Nov 14, 2008 in Hayley, Michelle, More Family
Hayley was a ball girl for the UNC women’s basketball team for their first game of the season against NC Central last week. They are over in the Smith Center for the year since Carmichael is being re-done, so it was a new big venue for her third year of being in the regular rotation at ballgirl. My mom came with us so it was extra fun.
As always Hayley was great. The staff on the floor asked her for more help than any of the other kids, all of which who were older. She cleaned up messed, asked refs if they needed water or towels, ran errands for the staff on the floor.
Right after halftime she ran over to hug one of the assistant coaches, Coach Tracy Williams Johnston who is a friend of ours, as they were leaving and I happened to catch it with the camera. There is something so nice about seeing someone genuinely happy to see your child and hug them.
That leads into the hysterical post-game story. Hayley has new basketball shoes my mom got her and she gets them signed each year by various combinations players from the men’s and women’s teams at UNC. So after the game, she sees Coach Hatchell still on the court talking to people and wants to get her to sign the shoes. She takes off with my approval and I see her over there, now with Coach Tracy our friend. And then they are gone into the tunnel area that connects the Smith Center court to the rest of the building.
I’m not too worried. She’s around people who know her and knows her way around the court. So my mom and I pack up our stuff and wander over to get her so we can leave. However, she’s not in the tunnel and I have a feeling now she’s gone back to the locker room with Tracy, which normally I just talk my way into but these are Smith Center security guards – not the easier going Carmichael guards. They acknowledge that Hayley is back with Tracy in the locker room but won’t let me back and won’t go get her.
I ask them if I could have Cat Greene go back and get her. Security says who – I tell them she was the head manager for the women’s team forever and is now helping on the floor. But the guy looks at me like he’s clueless. Again, you drop Cat’s name at Carmichael and the sea parts.
So we are just stuck waiting until a guard finally takes pity and hollers back to another coach out in the hallway. Tracy comes out with Hayley, laughingly telling us she kidnapped Hayley and might not give her back.
Of course all this time, Hayley has been wandering shoes in hand around the UNC women’s locker room having them sign her shoes. I’m not mad and I wasn’t really worried, it was just hysterical to me that my kid can get places that I no longer can and that she goes back into their locker room as if it was just the local gym, not a basketball powerhouse program.
We are leaving as Rashanda McCants gives her five and thanks her for helping. Hayley smiles probably not grasping she is an All-American, a future WNBA player with a NBA player for a brother. And in a way, I’m glad that she likes these girls and this program for who and what they really are. I love the influence these girls have on her.
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Posted by Michelle on Nov 14, 2008 in Hayley, Michelle, More Family
I have always loved Halloween. When I was young, I read a Ray Bradbury book called the Halloween Tree. I read it once, twice and then again, repeating that every fall. I loved that book.
The book starts on Halloween and takes a group of children on a scary journey through cultural history and version of Halloween, as they attempt to catch up with and save a dying friend. One of the key elements is the Mexican celebration Dia De Los Muertos (The Day of the Dead) which seemed fascinating to me.
Celebrated on on Nov. 1st and/or 2nd, The Day of the Dead is where gatherings of family and friends to pray and remember loved ones who have died. Some other cultures celebrate similar holidays as well and the Day of the Dead has its roots in Aztec culture. The idea is to honor the dead but also that people who have passed away are supposed to be able to hear your prayers better at this time than any other time. November 1st is traditionally to celebrate children who have died and November 2nd for adults.
Dia De Los Muertos isn’t as sad as it sounds, it is rather upbeat. Good candy, good food and good memories. The celebration can be at the graveyard or an altar/shrine in your home. You decorate with photos, food flowers, candles and items of those of who have passed away or things they’d like. You are supposed to tell funny and warm stories about those people and talk to them.
I was printing of some weekly reading assignments I thought would interest Hayley and found a great one of the Day of the Dead but it was written for 5th to 7th graders. Of course, she read it perfectly and loved it too. So we decided to make our own shrine at home to celebrate.
Interestingly last night Hayley was over at my folks and they went to the family graves this morning to tidy up. How perfect for our Day of the Dead event!
We set out to do it for my Grandpa Jim, Grandma Jeannette and Uncle Mike (my mom’s parents and her brother) but then Hayley decided we should add in our dog Sam who passed away, which was awesome. We made sugar skulls ourselves and decorated them in the style. Hayley talked to my mom and made lists of food and hobbies of our family members who passed. I got out photos, my grandmother’s engagement and wedding rings, my granddad’s prayer books and golf hat and ton of articles on my uncle’s golf championships plus Sam’s dog collar. My mom made a family recipe book that was a great addition. We added all sorts of food and snacks – doggie biscuits too. (I’m going to post a photo on flickr with all the items labeled.)
After some time talking to them, we ate the candy and food and blew out the candles. It was a great way to share about family history, learn about another culture’s history and traditions, not to mention be creative and silly! (It is so much fun it is to have a child with an inquisitive spirit.)
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Posted by Michelle on Oct 21, 2008 in Jeff, More Family
Jeff’s folks were selected to be on the stands right behind Barack Obama at a rally in Roanoke, VA on Oct. 17th. I collected some photos and videos of them.
Sharen is in light blue with a blue hat, John is in maroon shirt with a maroon hat.
Photos:
Video:
Posted by Michelle on Oct 19, 2008 in Hayley, Jeff
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I still have more beach photos to post but these are some funny ones of Jeff and Hayley being silly late at night in a gazebo overlooking the sound.
Posted by Michelle on Oct 18, 2008 in Hayley, Jeff, Michelle, pups & other pets
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We are still down at the beach. Our eight days here come to an end in the morning. I am not looking forward to packing up this place and heading home but at least we have Jeff here to help – but of course we have three dogs to get home too now.
I’ll post photos from the past few days tonight if I can and then some more from Hayley’s camera after we get home. Hayley and Jeff went to the Wright Brothers monument and have had fun walking on the beach with the dogs down to the pier.
Hayley has decided crab isn’t so bad after all and willingly ate hot crab dip, which I could live on of course. I suppose she held out as long as she could on the anti-seaford since Jeff and I ate it every night. OMG she is eating up a storm again. Gone is the bird eater and ravenous child has returned. It isn’t such desserts, she’s starving about every 2-3 hours it seems. Must be growing again. She got a henna tattoo of two dolphins and she’s insanely happy about it. It should wear off in a week or so but she’s just hoping it is still there on Monday when she goes back to school.
The weather has turned stormy Friday night and today – it has been amazing to watch the power of the ocean. Seeing wide variances in the tides has been fascinating. Hayley has gotten to see a very small version of what weather-related ocean episodes (hurricanes, flooding, etc) can do.
We have a blustery night here for our last evening. Thank goodness pizza delivery was available!
Posted by Michelle on Oct 18, 2008 in Hayley, Jeff
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Jeff and Hayley went to the Wright Brothers Memorial and had a lot of fun.
Hayley stood at all four marks of their flights while Jeff took her photos – you can see them in order in the slideshow. They also ‘re-enacted’ a photo I took of Jeff years ago on top of the monument there aka the Genius Photo. Hayley’s version is much cuter. I’ll try to drag out his at some point.
Posted by Michelle on Oct 17, 2008 in Hayley, Jeff, Michelle, pups & other pets
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Wednesday was a low key day. I had to get some work done so we hung out at the house (which is like a pleasure in itself! I worked outside on the deck and listened to the ocean. Hayley colored and played video games. We went out that afternoon to eat and shop.
Thursday was a great day!
First we had a special morning at the NC Aquarium on Roanoke Island in Manteo (about 15 mins away). We got to come in before everyone else for ‘breakfast with the manta rays’ where just Hayley and I that day got to help feed the manta rays and eat breakfast there. For the price it was a steal b/c it included getting into the Aquarium and breakfast – well little did we know it meant a private guided tour, behind the scenes access and so much interesting info from their amazing educator Ann Marie.
One of the coolest things was seeing what the animals ate in the prep kitchens that the staff uses. We laughed so hard that the alligators love to eat marshmallows as snacks! The fridge had a lot of snacks we would eat (peas & strawberries) and stuff we wouldn’t (crickets, dead rats and dead chicks for the snacks – gross!).
After the tour around, we went to the manta ray tank. We got to touch them and help feed them cut up fish. A few times with gross dead fish pieces was enough for me but Hayley had a ball. I finally got her to touch one – she’s resisted at every aquarium we go to. The rays’ mouths are on the underside so they’d just hover over the food and eat it up.
We saw a few more things and then went to breakfast in a classroom where we got to see all sorts of cool rays and shark stuff. We got to feel shark skin, see rays’ jawbone and more while we ate. It was just an unbelievable couple of hours.
With just a bit of work and a reasonable amount of money, we’ve had some experiences of a lifetime this trip.
Thursday evening Jeff arrived with the pups in tow. So we now have three wiggly dogs and Daddy to help keep a lid on the madness here!
Posted by Michelle on Oct 14, 2008 in Hayley, Michelle
I was laying out on the beach this morning and reading a book as Hayley ran circles around me, looking for all sorts of shells and creatures. She came over to show me her latest find and as I looked up at her with her wind-blown hair, I’d swear her eyes were the exact same color as the sky. They were all lit up with the sun, sand and water.
We came back, hopped in our very own private pool and are chilling eating lunch. Then off to Corolla for Jeep rides on the beach to see all sorts things and most hopefully the wild ponies.
