Last Blog

As we close this blog website, we embark on new journeys.  Please visit our new blog at www.McConnellTimes.blogspot.com.

Curling

Ever since the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, my husband has been fascinated with the sport of Curling.  What is that, you ask?

I know, most people have never heard of it.  It's a lot like shuffle board, only it's on ice.  But don't make that comparison to a true curler, or they will go ballistic.

This sport has actually been around for several hundred years, originating in Scotland.









The equipment consists of a granite curling stone.  But not just any type of granite.  This is a special blue hone granite found only off the coast of Scotland.  This stone is then gently pushed across the ice while the "sweepers" help slow down, speed up, or curve the stone so that it stops directly into the desired location at the opposite end.







Eric decided to take the kids to an introductory session and was immediately hooked.  He then joined a team within the "Palmetto Curling Club" and curls once a week.  It's like a bowling league, only much less popular (unless you're a curler).  Did you know they have ice dedicated to this sport in Connecticut?  When there isn't dedicated ice, it takes about 30 min to convert a hockey rink.









Once the stone is launched, the sweepers then go into action.  The sweepers are lead by the Skipper, or captain, of the team.  The skip calls when to sweep, and how much.

Our family curling team!  The kids had a blast, but it was Daddy that became a true curler.

Splash & Dash Biathlon

I recently realized that we had 3 blogs still in "draft" mode, meaning they were never published.  So, completely out of sequence, here are those missed entries:
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In August, our kids competed in a biathlon.  The race had 2 events: swimming and running! Our two oldest had to swim 250 meters and run 1.5 miles while our youngest had to swim 25 meters and run 1/4 of a mile. With different distances for different ages, it was the perfect way to introduce the sport of tri!  Being at different locations to watch and take pictures was a challenge, but it was worth it.

Check in was really cute.  Even the little one got markings
on her shoulders and legs.

Our oldest daughter was 2nd in the lineup and surpassed the front runner in the swim.  She had a great transition, but paced herself too slow in the run.  Although she won first in her age category, she probably could have won overall.

Next was our son.  This was his first race with more than one event.  He also did great in the swim and is seen heading into the transition area.  This is where most athletes can waste valuable time, but we practiced it several times with each child so they would be at their peak performance.  He came in 4th place!

Finally, it was time for the little one.  A parent had to be in the water, and a life jacket was required.  So, even Mommy & Daddy got to participate!

Although the youngest participants weren't timed, the little one did awesome!

Our Summer Garden

While the summer is coming to an end, our garden isn't. Plentiful harvests are still coming in and providing some really delicious fruits and veggies for our family to enjoy! This year we planted: green peppers, basil, tomatoes, mint, oregano, cilantro, watermelon, jalapenos, black-eyed peas, squash, cucumbers, blueberries, sunflowers, potatoes, strawberries, and cantaloupe. Lots of yummy (organic) produce to cook with!

A Special Baseball

During one of our summer outings to the Greenville Drive baseball game, our son won an autographed baseball!

Since the ball wasn't signed yet by all the players, we had to come back later to pick up.  So, the day we picked it up, they let us on the field!









Case and all, this ball is something he'll be able to treasure for years to come!

New York City

My son had a fall break perfectly timed with his birthday, so the two of us decided to take a trip to NYC while Daddy stayed home with the girls.  After landing in JFK and taking the subway everywhere, we finally found our hotel right in midtown Manhattan next to Penn Station.  That was Day 1 - Just getting to the hotel!

Day 2 was spent at Ellis Island and seeing the Statue of Liberty.  While in Battery Park and waiting in line to catch the ferry, we spotted Freedom Tower in the background.  It's about four-fifths complete!  (Glass building in the background).  The day was incredibly gorgeous, so it was perfect weather to spend outdoors.  

After getting off the ferry at Liberty Island, we decided to grab a snack.  Apparently, the seagulls expect visitors to do this, and they patiently wait for their moment.  My son ended up sharing his $3 hot dog with this one.

It was amazing to see his face light up when seeing our Lady Statue for the first time.  It was closed for renovation, so we didn't stay long.  Then, off to Ellis Island.  This is where we spent most of the day.  We found my great-grandfather's immigration papers! The first time he entered the US in 1894 from Germany (age 19), and the second time he returned from a visit in 1914 (age 39) as an American citizen.  

Day 3 was rainy, so we spent the day touring all the buildings and shopping for souvenirs.  Our first tour was of the NBC (GE) building.  We saw rehearsals of Saturday Night Live, the studio where Brian Williams tapes the Nightly News, and how makeup artists are able to transform actors in a matter of minutes.  We even had an opportunity to take our own "nightly news" picture.

Then, we headed to the tallest building around - the Empire State Building.  We went up to the 86th floor at the perfect time of dusk.  The lights of the city were all on, with a fading sunset over the horizon.  Other than being extremely windy up there, it was worth the trip.

Day 4 was sunny again, so we spent our last day doing lots of walking.  We got to the Museum of Natural History just before it opened, and spent at least half a day there.  Our goal was to find all the exhibits from "Night at the Museum" movie.  Our favorite exhibit was the statue from Easter Island, or what we call "Dum, Dum" (it's nickname from the movie).

After the museum, we took a stroll through Central Park to the other side of Manhattan so we could catch 5:30pm Mass at the Cathedral.  We made it in plenty of time to spare, and enjoyed watching the end of a wedding ceremony being held there prior to the scheduled Mass time.  The extra time to sit was a welcome relief.

Our flight the next morning was very early, but we made it home safely.  It was a wonderful visit of the city, and I'm thankful we were able to see it before Hurricane Sandy (and the combined nor'eastern) damaged so much of it.  It was also precious time with my son that I'll always treasure.