We are ... Penn State!

Last weekend Don and I went to our first ever U.S. college football game: Penn State vs Temple. The pre- and post game tailgating was over the top! RVs and cars with Penn State chairs, banners, tablecloths, cups, awnings, tents, and Nittany Lion statues everywhere. Merchandising is big! And EVERYONE is wearing Penn State t-shirts, jackets, hoodies, hats, socks, jewelry, cheek tattoos - a sea of white and navy.



After our tailgate gawking and watching the parade, consisting of their huge marching band, flag bearers, baton twirlers and dancers, we watched the game. The highlight of the game, for me, was the halftime show! It was incredible!

They have a woman who is the national baton twirling champ. Unbelievably talented!

This is a shot of the field at halftime from our seats. From the section with the "S" (for State) to the entrance in the center of the end zone is where the Penn State students sit. They have a huge section where they stand and cheer the entire game. The "S" is compiled of seniors who are given white & navy t-shirts every game so they can form this "S".

Our college football games @ UWO and WLU were NOTHING like this (but they were fun too)!

The best part of the day was seeing Bryan again. He lives, he survives, he's doing fine! Needless to say, we had a great visit to PSU!

Vacation - Cape May & Hannah

We've already been back for a week but still, I wanted to post a few pics from our little vacation to Cape May NJ, Annapolis MD, and Washington DC.

First Cape May -
Its beautiful! Cape May is located at the tip of NJ at the entrance to Delaware Bay. We arrived on a beautiful sunny day, just a day before the remnants of Hurricane Hannah were to hit the shore. The anticipation of the storm was exciting. Everyone was out on the boardwalk, watching the surf build and the sky darken. At about 3pm on Saturday the rain came, pelting down so hard it hurt. (Of course we got caught in it!) We ran back to our hotel soaked to the bone.

Here's our hotel from the beach on Friday afternoon - a very hot, sunny day:


On Saturday morning the surfers were out in the pre-storm waves:

Here is the view from our room when the rain was so intense we couldn't see beyond the road:

A break in the storm came in the early evening. As soon as the rain stopped, people were out walking and enjoying the break. Lighter rain returned off and on that evening. Hannah was in a hurry to get up the coast - didn't last long.

Back to beautiful, blue skies on Sunday morning. Don and I walked the boardwalk to the end, then out to the Cape May lighthouse.

That was our first visit to Cape May. I didn't post my photos of the Victorian homes for which Cape May is known. Next post, I'll add to this trip.

Bryan is doing fine

IMing with Bryan tonight from his dorm room. I grabbed a few screen shots, mostly to surprise him if he ever goes to this blog. He started classes about 2 weeks ago so his settling in. It was fun to chat tonight.

Mentally preparing for Friday

On Friday we take Bryan to Penn State to move him into his dorm. I'm so excited for him - starting a whole new chapter of his life, expanding his world, meeting new people, experiencing more independence and adjusting to the ups and downs of life without the full safety net of parents nearby.

I'm not at all worried about how he will adjust. I'm worried how I'll be! I guess its like the first time you put them on the school bus. I am sentimentally sad for the chapter that's ending.

I wouldn't have it any other way than him heading off to college. We're proud of him. We enjoy having him around, laughing, getting the groceries out of my trunk, troubleshooting our computers ... all the day-to-day stuff.

My friends tell me that before you know it they're home again and you're both testing each other's limits!!! Until that day, I know he'll be fine. But will we?!?

On the lake today

Today was a perfect day for a kayak on the lake ...

Don, the lake and blue skies

Approaching St Hubert's chapel

Checking out the beaver dam, one of two on the lake.
We didn't see the beaver today but he has swum along beside us in the past.

Heading south on Lake Kinnelon.

Tattoos

My theory on tattoos:
If you think you need (need???) a tattoo, get a henna. Live with it, experience it, let it fade. If you still really need a tattoo, get another henna. If after that one fades, you still want a tattoo, get another henna. And so on.

Really, why ever get a permanent marking on your skin? Just like clothes, tattoos seem to go in and out of style. It was once (very recently) cool to get your lower backside tattooed and now there's a not-so-kind name for those tattoos. Who knew? They were cool at the time.

I am all for doing what you "need" to do especially when it doesn't hurt others, but do you really know in your teens and 20's what you're going to want to wear for the rest of your life???

Carolyn got a henna (sorry for my lack of focus):

It is cute but I'm glad it will fade. She got it on the boardwalk in Ocean City, MD, while visiting with her MD friend.

Bryan was asked to design a tattoo for a friend. They're all 18 now so can get it done without parental consent. Bryan enjoys doodling and his designs were used for a school event this spring. A friend asked him to work up of couple of designs that he might then consider for a tattoo design. The friend liked one design as is and had it inked onto his upper arm a few weeks ago. He showed me and actually, I am surprised to say, I liked it! Maybe because it was Bryan's design but not Bryan's arm!?

To each his own. I just don't get it (and I guess I don't have to).

The Frasers do NYC

A few weeks ago my brother and his family visited. We don't get to see each other much but even with the time gap we seem to pick up where we last left off, which usually means we were giving each other a hard time.

As usual, I'll tell the story of their visit with photos. This first collage shows a few fooling around faces. That's Haley and Carolyn, looking more and more alike these days, then Toby sporting Cole's shades, Cole in Cole's shades, and Don and I in Little Italy - hot and bothered, literally!


Here are the more serious faces: Haley, Carolyn and Cole waiting for their grub, Vicki and John glad to be seated for a respite from walking in humidity, and Don and I with "normal" faces.

This last collage could be titled "Cole in the City." As you can see, he's not too much of a ham!!! Cole made lots of friends in NYC. His new friends and us will look forward to his return! And we didn't find the Ca$h Cab - next time!

Next time it is our turn to visit the Frasers in their neck of the woods (redwoods, that is). Did I hear someone offering me a little Rodney Strong Sauvignon Blanc? Taxi ...