A Big Announcement !!!!!

Our Inspiration House

We finally did it! After several weeks of deep thought, help from the neighbors and family and numerous trips to the store for paint samples, WE HAVE CHOSEN A COLOR FOR OUR HOUSE! Actually, we chose three colors. One for the walls, one for the accent and one for the trim.

We thought this would be an easy decision, but were we WRONG!

The whole process started with our painter dropping off a "few" paint samples for us. The "few" samples ended up being a large box with numerous books containing thousands of colors. Yes, thousands. Our neighbor, and personal consultant of colors, helped us search for the ultimate color for the walls. He was a great help until he realized that he could use these color samples to pick out colors for his future guitars (he has a slight obsession with ordering custom-made guitars). After that, we were on our own.

We started looking at greens because our house is currently green (as in Fannie May Meltaway green), but we wanted something darker, more updated. We found a color that we thought would be perfect, headed to the paint store for a sample, came home and painted a section of the garage with the paint. It turned out that the color was exactly the same as the one currently on the house!!! The sample in the book looked so much darker - I swear!

So.....back to the books... and several car trips around Valpo and Crown Point searching for the perfect colors.

Crown Point is full of old homes, including Queen Anne Victorians like ours. We found a few houses painted blue (not green) with different accent colors. Vibrant blues. They were beautiful, but maybe a little too bright for our corner-lot house (we would stand out like a sore thumb... just like the purple house kitty corner from us and we don't want to become "that house").

We eventually found the color we were looking for on an old home in downtown Crown Point. Blue, but not too bold. Brian went up to the house and started matching up our fan of paint samples with the wall of the house. I yelled at him that he better ring the doorbell before someone called the police. He rang the bell, stood on the porch talking to someone I presumed was the owner, and then disappeared into the house!

Meanwhile, I am sitting in our car with Claudia and William. They entertained themselves by engaging in a vigorous slapfest, periodically taking time out to claim extreme dehydration or beg for Daddy's return. As this was taking place, Brian was (as we found out later) taking a leisurely tour of the house while discussing paint selections and the merits of historical homes and stained glass windows with the owner (who happened to be the mother of one of my former students)! After what seemed like 4 hours, he emerged with a tri-fold of Benjamin Moore paint samples and the exact colors of the house! I graciously thanked him for abandoning me and leaving me trapped with our two angelic children.....

That said, the only way we could hope to survive the 35 minute trip home was to succumb to the children's demands for Dairy Queen.......

After our DQ treat, we drove home and picked up some samples to match the Benjamin Moore colors. We painted a section of the garage and then stared in disbelief. Instead of a blue, it looked more like a battleship gray.
"There's no way possible that it's the same color of the Crown Point house!" I insisted. "You must not have heard her correctly!"

So...... back to the paint store again, tri-fold in hand, with a request for more colors. By this time our garage was starting to look like an advertisement for Benjamin Moore!

The following weekend, we made another trip to Crown Point for one last look at "the house." As soon as we approached, I knew that I was wrong. The color was not the light blue I recalled, but more of a gray blue (Knoxville Gray to be exact)......as in, the exact color that the two foot swath of our garage currently was!

The lady was correct, Brian was correct, the paint sample was correct. I was wrong!

So we have decided that our house is going to be Knoxville Gray, Monroe Bisque and Garrison Red. This decision better be the right one. If not, we are looking at one expensive mistake!

Happy Birthday Captain William

William,

You had an awesome 5th birthday! Your pirate party was a week before your real birthday. Everyone had a great time celebrating with you. You received wonderful gifts too... a Lionel train, a family pass to the Field Museum, a Bomber jacket, dinosaurs and lots of pirate Lego's!

On your real birthday weekend, we went to swim class and then went to the Field Museum to see giant dinosaur skeletons and the Pirate exhibit. You took lots of pictures with your new camera. After the museum, we played in the grassy area by Lake Michigan. You and Claudia had loads of fun rolling down the big hills!

On Sunday, we stayed home and celebrated your big day. You requested pasta and meatballs for supper and cupcakes (which Daddy helped you make... a first for Daddy) and spumoni for dessert. What a great day!

Happy Birthday Little Guy!!!!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

A few pictures from William's birthday party.....

Treasure !!!

William and Mommy

Our Favorite Neighbor


Pirate Claudia


Captain William

Quotes of the Day

Mom, I'll still hug you when I'm five."
William, the almost 5 year old.

"This applesauce tastes like beer."
Claudia making an accurate statement.

Here's One For Viola

Thought you might enjoy this one Mom!

(Side Note: My dad was a Hamm's Beer distributor in Chicago for many years)

From the Land of Sky Blue Waters,
From the land of pines' lofty balsams,
Comes the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
Brewed where nature works her wonders,
Aged for many moons, gently mellowed,
Hamm's the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
From across the rippling water,
Through the whisp'ring pines and birches,
Comes the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
Comes a call to cool enchantment,
Comes a call to cool refreshment,
Hamm's the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
Hints of lakes and sunset breezes,
Dance and sparkle in each glassful,
Hamm's the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
From the Land of Sky Blue Waters,
From the land of pines' lofty balsams,
Comes the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
Brewed where nature works her wonders,
Aged for many moons, gently mellowed,
Hamm's the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
From across the rippling water,
Through the whisp'ring pines and birches,
Comes the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
Comes a call to cool enchantment,
Comes a call to cool refreshment,
Hamm's the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.
Hints of lakes and sunset breezes,
Dance and sparkle in each glassful,
Hamm's the beer refreshing,
Hamm's the beer refreshing.

Hot Fun In The Summertime

Enjoying summer here at the Stage house. We went to Michigan for a week with Brian's extended family. The weather was cold but we had a good time and the kids had a ball. Both William and Claudia caught their first fish!!! A bunch of fish actually. Papa couldn't keep the worms coming fast enough! We also took the kids around the lake on a boat ride, which they both enjoyed. William enjoyed the whole boat ride.......Claudia enjoyed it until she fell asleep!

The kids are enjoying their outdoor time. They have been playing with their next door neighbor friend Ellie almost every day. It's so much fun to watch them play. I love the sound of the bikes and big wheels riding up and down the driveway. They have been having loads of fun playing on the swing set (all 3 kids now know how to pump...I told them they have all joined the "swingers' club"!!!). They also enjoy making sand "guacamole" (the girls like Mexican), playing ball, swimming in Elllie's pool and just being kids. This summer is so much different than last year when they played side by side, but not together.

William was stung by his first bumblebee this past weekend. He was stung twice.... once on his upper lip and once on the bridge of his nose. Both areas swelled up, but he survived after a few necessary tears.

Claudia has been sleeping without guardrails on her bed. She's so excited to finally have a "big girl" bed. The first night she fell off the bed twice. Normally this would not be such a big deal, but it was for her. She is still wearing leg braces every night. She CAN'T walk in the braces.
I woke up to some commotion in the hall, assuming it was the cat, but it was really Claudia, army crawling into my bedroom!
"I fell out of bed", she moaned, "I'm okay".
Then it happened again and she once again army crawled into my room.
Poor Claudia. I can't wait for her to be done with those silly braces! Since that first night, she has remained in bed without any falls.

On a sad note, my dad's brother passed away. He lived a long and happy life and always had a smile on his face. We will miss him, but he is reunited with his wife that he lost 18 years ago and I am positive that he is happy to be with her again.

William's 5th birthday is coming up. His birthday party is this Saturday. He's going with a pirate theme this year. Aarrrrr matey! Should be a fun time!

A STAR IS BORN !!!!!!

Randy and Brian

Brian wearing his Papa's vintage suit and fedora

Filming in Joliet

Last night we had the opportunity to attend Crown Point, Indiana's movie premiere of "Public Enemies" starring Brian Stage and other lessor known actors such as Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. To make the evening even more special, we were joined by my beautiful sister and her handsome husband.

Our evening began with a ride on a trolley to the Hall of Justice in Crown Point. At the Hall of Justice, we checked in and then walked the red carpet with my movie star husband. Then we headed next door to the Old Sheriff's House and Jail, where scenes from the movie were filmed. We were taken on a guided tour of the jail and had the opportunity to see all the areas where the movie was filmed as well as the four bunk cell from the 1928 section of the jail where Dillinger was actually housed (this was not in the film).

Hall of Justice

Side note: prior to the filming of the movie, the jail was not open to the public except for sporadic tours. The local teenagers (Brian and his brother included) often broke into the jail late at night to explore.

Old Sheriff's House and Jail

After the tour, we headed back to the Hall of Justice for a few hours of wining and dining at the VIP party. Many people were dressed in 1930's dresses and suits. Brian wore his Papa's vintage 3 piece suit and fedora. During the party there were comments from the mayor of Crown Point, the sheriff's of both Lake & Porter Counties, and representatives from the Old Sheriff's House and Jail Foundation (to whom the party's proceeds went) and Film Indiana, along with raffles and an auction of an authentic Thompson submachine gun ("Tommy gun") used during the Dillinger incidents in 1934.

After the party, we all drove to the theatre for the premiere. We had great center seats and were loaded down with popcorn and drinks, our eyes fixed on the screen, trying not to blink in case there was a slim chance we might see Brian. And then a star was born.......

BRIAN WAS IN THE FILM!!!!!!

The very first scene is prisoners marching at the Michigan City State Penitentiary (it was actually filmed at Joliet's Stateville Prison). Brian is 6th in line. You can't see his face, but we knew it was him because of his height (he is the shortest ;-).

The second scene takes place in the Shirt Shop of the prison. The prisoners walk into the shop and sit down at their sewing machines to begin work.

BRIAN IS IN THE CENTER OF THE SCREEN!!!!!

Sandy brown hair...scar on his face, which the make-up crew made even more pronounced for the film. We are guessing he had about five seconds of screen time!!

Brian also made the local newspaper. Check it out!

Going Batty

Last night, Brian and the kids were upstairs getting ready for bed when I heard the all too familiar shriek. It was not from one of the kids... it was from Brian. The shriek that
announced "a visitor has arrived".

Yup, another stinking bat got into the house. Did you notice the word "another", as in"this is not the first one"? Bats, in this old house, occasionally make an appearance. We were initiated with the first one before we had the kids. Brian, the environmentalist / lover of nature, screamed like a little girl on a major sugar high. I, on the other hand, remained clam and removed the bat from the house using a shoebox. Actually, Brian did eventually calm down stopped freaking out and helped me.

The second bat was huge... it had a wing span of a pterodactyl! It swooped at us with speed unknown to most bats. We hit the floor in a fast army crawl, grabbed a golf umbrella for protection and crawled through the house and opened every door and window.

The third home intruder found it's way into our bedroom after William was born. Brian freed it by, once again, opening the doors and windows. By this time, I was starting to feel unkind lethal towards the critters and was in search of a more permanent way of removal.

We have also had several bats in the basement. There is nothing worse than folding laundry and seeing a moving object out of the corner of your eye. Brian also has had a few bats taunt him while he was in the basement. One dive bombed him resulting in "the scream". Another was found at the bottom of a laundry basket.

I am sure that there have been more, but I've tried to erase the memories.

Why don't we get rid of the bats, you ask? It's not that easy. We've priced it out. It cost and arm and a leg (or a wing) and there is no guarantee that they will all be removed or that they won't eventually return. Looks like a bat house might make a nice addition to our family!

Grandma's Birthday Pictures

Viola and Family


Grandma and the Kids

Enjoying Dessert With Matthew

Sydney and Jordan

Andrew and Sydney

Uncle Randy and William

Jordan... the oldest

Claudia... the youngest

" Happy Birthday to You..."

Rusty the Railcat and the Kids

Running the Field at the Railcats Game

(Claudia and Sydney are in the middle..litttle pink girl)

Happy 70th Birthday Grandma!!!!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

From Your Grandkids

We hope you have the best Birthday EVER!

We love you to the moon and back!

1970

January 1971

Grandma, Jordan and Sydney

Grandma and Sydney

Grandma, Andrew and Matthew

2002

October 1999

October 1999

June 2005

September 2006

May 2006

May 2008

Jordan: You make the BEST pineapple upside down cake EVER!!
Sydney: I LOVE to play at Grandma's house.

Andrew: You always pick out the best gifts for me!

Matthew: I like to play baseball at your house.

William: Grandma has the coolest toys like dump trucks and diggers!

Claudia: You make the best popcorn!

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day weekend is finally here... the beginning of summer! Ahhhhh!

We have a fun-filled weekend planned.

Saturday:

Swim lessons at the YMCA for the kids.

Brian and I will attempt to exercise at the YMCA (yes, this is true).

Mow lawn, clean house, make a dent in the huge pile of laundry.

Drop kids off at Grandma's house.

Go out for supper with friends (as in no children).

Streak through the neighborhood (just wondering if anyone will catch this).

Pick up kids from Grandma's house.

Sleep!

Sunday:

Grandma's 70th Birthday Brunch at Strongbow.

Grandma's Birthday Baseball game at the Steel Yard. Go Railcats!

Rumor has it that Grandma is throwing out the first pitch!

Back to Grandma's house for Birthday treats.

Monday:

Two hour steam train ride between North Judson and LaCrosse, Indiana.

Recover from weekend........