It was my birthday on June 3! Instead of me having a birthday party I am going to go to the American Girl Place instead. I also had two of best friends over for a sleepover. We had a great time together. I can’t wait ‘til 8/5 when we go to the American Girl Place. So anyway my birthday was really fun!
birthday cake Clara had her birthday party this weekend. She had seen a very creative cake on the PBS show Zoom, and decided to have it for her birthday. I supervised her, but she basically made it by herself. Lots of people commented on the cake as I took it into the local movie theater's party room.
swim season wrap-up Yesterday, the swim team had their end-of-season party (pizza, ice cream and trophies). We also got a spreadsheet report of their times for the season. Clara shaved 5+ seconds off her 50-yard freestyle over the course of the season, and she also got "legal" in butterfly and breaststroke (much harder than I realized)! She got to be closer to two friends from Sunday School who were more experienced swimmers. It is hard to start the team when you are 9, but next year she will be a year older, but still in the same age bracket.
Ellie joined the team unexpectedly, as the coach needed 6-year-olds, and could tell Ellie was ready. Her improvement was really dramatic: 7 seconds off her 25-yard freestyle, and 13 seconds off her 25-yard backstroke! She was an alternate for the States meet (by virtue of being third in her age group), but was not needed. She is getting much better at butterfly and breaststroke, and will master those by next season.
Mallary and I were thrilled with the swim team experience. The kids are much better swimmers, much fitter, and I believe they feel better about themselves. The coaching was exemplary: they pushed the kids to improve, but were very compassionate as well. They set the tone for a team full of kids that urged each other on to do their best, and comforted each other when things didn't go well. Sign us up for next season now! posted by Tom 9:58 AM
Saturday, February 19, 2005
immortalized Through the kids' school, we have made friends with a truly talented woman named Kristina Wegener. She painted an amazing mural for the kindergarten hallway, full of children's literary characters. Mallary and I both loved her work so much that we asked if she was willing to paint a portrait of our kids. She agreed, and the result is shown here. We all love it. The kids have decided we need another one, so they can each get one when we die.
Oooooooh, Barracuda Today the girls swim team (the Barracudas, sponsored by our JCC) had their first swim meet of the season. They were very nervous, despite having done time trials a few days ago. We all had a tiring afternoon, but I think they girls really enjoyed themselves.
The exhibition meet was at the Woodbridge Community Center, which we sometimes visit for ice skating. Ellie swam 25 yard freestyle and 25 yard backstroke. She was initially relieved to learn that the other team had no girls 6 and under, so she would only be racing against her own teammates. However she still got nervous, and later told us that her eyes started tearing up as she approached the starting block. She thought she had to go off the starting block (not required at her age), so she climbed up and dove in as the buzzer sounded. I was a timer, and was there to meet her at the end of her races.
Clara swam 50 yard freestyle and 50 yard backstroke. She had good form, but was concentrating on her stroke so much that she did not do a flip turn. She was also an alternate for a relay, but was not needed. She will swim a relay next week. After the meet, there were refreshments for the kids upstairs in a lounge.
I was a backup timer for the meet. I figured out the job about halfway through the event: I was to start my stopwatch at the beginning of the race, and not stop it until all swimmers were done. Then if any lane timers had a problem with their stopwatch, they would call me over to time the swimmer in that lane. I was called into duty a few times, and it certainly made the hours go by more quickly (there were about 60 events).
Both girls did really well. They were right with the pack, which we think is great for first year swimmers. The team is great for them: they work hard and learn a lot, but the emphasis is on fitness and improvement. The coaches really emphasize that the most important ribbon to win is a "best time" ribbon, meaning a personal best for a given event. Now that Clara and Ellie have official times in some events, they can try to beat those times and get those "best time" ribbons! posted by Tom 8:34 PM
Saturday, November 13, 2004
Melted Ice Cream Cake Last night we were invited to have Shabbat dinner at the home of friends. The girls and I made a new dessert from The Cake Mix Doctor: Melted Ice Cream Cake. Simply mix a basic white cake mix with three eggs and 2 cups of melted ice cream--- your choice of flavor. Add your favorite frosting to the baked cake. We used a pint of Ben and Jerry's Cookie Dough ice cream, which I knew the girls would love. Next time, I'd like to try Coffee Heath Bar Crunch. posted by Tom 8:01 AM
Sunday, August 22, 2004
pet cemetery We are REALLY bad with pets. When we went on summer vacation, we asked Clara's friend Brittany (from across the street) to feed our only remaining pet: a fish named Sage.
Clara left this sign in front of the tank for Brittany:
Smith/Saltzman family website 
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
