sat, 7/17...day 198

Filled up the van and made a run to the dump today. Always feels so good to get rid of some of the junk lying around, in the side yard and in the garage.

Took two old crib mattresses, FIVE booster/car seats, the no-lights-now Christmas tree that has been sitting in the corner of the family room, pieces of a cabinet that I had removed from the laundry room 6 years ago (!), a crumbling wading pool, and an old hose - among other things!

fri, 7/16...day 197

Tonight the Enso Center camp had a performance for parents and demonstrated to us what they'd been working on during the week. Beforehand, we tried out these harmonic water bowls. You dip your palms in the water, and then rub on the handles. The water starts rippling, and then leaps and sprays out of the bowl. It's quite fun!

This is Niall next to the teacher, Jason, demonstrating sword movements. Niall concentrated intently on all of the moves, not only during this part but all the other demontrations.

He had made a couple of friends during the week, too, which really warms my heart. Love to see him reaching out and having a good time with his peers.

thu, 7/15...day 196

Love these hanging "cups" that act as a downspout at the Enso Center.

And here's my Niall-guy, hanging out on the deck with me. The light was lovely this evening so I had to catch a few photos (of course!)

wed, 7/14...day 195

This is a view of the Microsoft Commons, from the window of a conference room where I've met with the Test Central team every week for months now. I sent my "moving on" announcement out to the teams yesterday, so this was a wrapping-it-up meeting for me this week.

I wish them all well, but am excited to be moving back to an IT Pro writing spot with my new group.

tue, 7/13...day 194

Cory has been enjoying watching Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, which I got from the library this week. Here he is pretending to be one of the characters in the movie, who wears an eye patch. He did a whole three-part "play" for me, re-enacting part of the movie. :-)

mon, 7/12...day 193

This week, Niall and Cory are at martial arts camp at the Enso Center in Redmond. They're learning about several types of martial arts, including Aikido, doing stretches, learning about moving their bodies deliberately in space, and practicing rolls, kicks, and even throws.

The instructor, Jason, and his "helpers" often demonstrate different moves for the kids, sometimes with fans or "weapons" (wood sticks or swords). The swords and so on, they emphasize, are only used to help them focus on the space around them rather than being used for self-defensive or to actually attack.

sun, 7/11...day 192

On Friday, someone at work posted a link to half-price tickets for Cirque du Soleil Kooza performance. I so wanted the boys to have a chance to see them, so I seized the moment and bought tickets for the second-to-last performance, today at 1:00.

It was wonderful! Cory got a bit antsy toward the end of the second half, but Tynor, Niall and I had a fabulous time. I think my favorite act was called the Wheel of Death. Two performers spun and jumped and flipped in, on, and over two wheels (actually circles) that revolved around a center point. They made the wheels spin around the axis by walking and running inside the circle bands, and balanced exactly opposite, and with one exactly on top, and so on. Here's a small photo of it:



It was amazing to watch - among many other amazing sights!