On with the Show!

I keep singing the Bugs Bunny Theme Song in my head:

Overture, curtain, lights,
This is it, the night of nights
No more rehearsing and nursing our parts
We know every part by heart
Overture, curtain, lights
This is it, we'll hit the heights
And oh what heights we'll hit
On with the show this is it

Tonight what heights we'll hit
On with the show this is it.

The kids have been working hard at rehearsals for six weeks now. Tonight they preview their show to a live audience and tomorrow is opening night! They have nine performances over the next three weeks.

Here's a family portrait of the Cheaper by the Dozen cast:

From Cheaper by the Dozen

And here are the kids in their cast T-shirts (artwork by Rebecca!):

From Cheaper by the Dozen

Backyard Bounty

From Plums

All this fruit came from our backyard! I just feel too guilty letting it go to waste, so this year I went into high gear. I just finished putting up 36 pints of plum jam. It's a good thing that the kids like it because I have a feeling they're going to be eating it for a while. Also, be sure and put "plum jam" on your Christmas list because I'm sure Santa is planning on getting you some!

After all the jam, I still had some extra fruit (a few apples and blackberries), and I put it all together to make a "Backyard Cobbler." It was really good!

From Plums

From Plums

4th of July

Panasonic asked the LiHD families to share our 4th of July traditions, so here's my version.

First of all, I hear there is a move to start calling this holiday "Independence Day" again, and I have to agree that it's a more meaningful designation. After all, we call it "Christmas," not the "25th of December."

My idea of a 4th of July celebration involves a cookout with extended family which includes homemade ice cream for dessert. It also involves some purchased fireworks like firecrackers, bottle rockets and sparklers and a trip to see the town's fireworks show.

Anyway, our idea of what this holiday should be has had to be modified a bit because we don't always have extended family around and there are some unique opportunities to celebrate where we live. So this is what our celebration weekend looks like now: We attend an annual parade and 1940's USO show in nearby Jonesborough, Tennessee. This year we also participated in a kid's revolutionary war battle reenactment at Sycamore Shoals State Park. We have great fireworks right in our neighborhood (on a vacant lakefront lot), so we don't have to battle any traffic or crowds to see a great show. This year we added a new tradition after stuffing ourselves in a backyard cookout - we read aloud the entire Declaration of Independence!

Here are some shots from the parade:

From July 4th weekend

From July 4th weekend

From July 4th weekend

From July 4th weekend

From July 4th weekend

From July 4th weekend

From July 4th weekend

not exactly 76 trombones, but at least several

From July 4th weekend

representing the "Overmountain Men" who mustered in this area to fight for Independence at the Battle of King's Mountain

From July 4th weekend

notice no Union Soldiers, for in the south the Civil War has never actually ended

From July 4th weekend

a reluctant participant

From July 4th weekend

friends Josh and Laura O'Bryan, cast members of the USO show - which was the best ever this year!

From July 4th weekend

getting candy thrown on the parade route


And now for the Battle of King's Mountain:

From July 4th weekend

kids sworn in

From July 4th weekend

This gal looked too pretty to fight!

From July 4th weekend

storming the "mountain"

From July 4th weekend

an unfortunate prisoner

Afternoon on the Lake

Believe it or not, this is the first time this summer that we have spent time as a family on the lake. The kids went tubing and Terry and I skiied. Now Terry is sore and is getting one of Rebecca's famous backrubs.