July 28, 2013: Jasmine and Charlene - Grand Haven

 

 

 

 

Jasmine, my Mom, Maggie, and I took our morning walk on the trail.     I don't think Jasmine realized how fast Maggie can run on the leash.     She was like a speeding bullet.  
We made eggs, bacon, and bagels for breakfast and then got ready for our trip to Grand Haven.    We were going to go the cabin that my Aunt Charlene rents each year, but it was raining all morning, so Charlene decided to come with us to Grand Haven.
It was about 58 degrees and raining all morning.     We walked towards the pier, but decided to stop as far as the ice cream shop and then turned around.    Maggie was soaking wet.    I should have brought her rain jacket.
All of us had umbrellas which was nice.   We checked out the 'Must Love Dog' store, as well as the Blueberry Haven store.  Then, we looked at the cars that were on display at the car show.   We each picked out our favorite cars.   Jasmine liked the car with the flames on it.    I liked the purple gangster car.   My mom liked the old Cadillac.    Charlene liked the yellow car.

Enjoyed spending the day with my Aunt, Mom, Jasmine, and Maggie.     I love taking kids this age places.  I have done this over the years with Matthew Tomasiewicz, the Connor boys, my little sister, Brittanie, and now Jasmine.     I wish my second cousins, Devon and Emma had lived closer, as I would have done more with them when they were growing up.

We had hot dogs and mac and cheese for lunch.    I asked Jasmine if she would take care of me when I am in a nursing home and she said she would, but she won't take me to the bathroom.   I got quite a laugh out of that one.    

We worked on Jasmine's American Girl scrapbook added some photos from the weekend.       Then, we went back to her parent's house.     She saw the neighbor kids outside and ran over there.    But, she gave me a big hug just before I left.   

July 27, 2013: Dykemas and Jasmine Morse

What started out as a quiet Saturday, turned out to be a busy one.    Bob Dykema called us in the morning to see if we would be home around 1 p.m. as he and Becky would like to come for a visit.   I was quite excited to see them.  Bob and Becky have been good friends of ours over the years.  When I was a kid, I would go stay with them and their kids, Kim and Steve.   They used to have an in ground pool which was a lot of fun. Kim taught me to do hand stands in the pool. I remember Steve would come chase us around the house with his water gun.   
Anyway,  it was Bob's 50th high school class reunion.  He graduated from Muskegon High School and grew up a few blocks away from my dad and uncle.
We all took a walk on our trail around the condo complex.  It was a cool day, but still okay for walking.    My mom had made some delicious banana bread, so we sat down and had a piece of that.

Later on, Jim and Melanie brought the kids over.  Jasmine was going to have a sleep over at our house.    Jasmine told me she prayed all week that she would be able to come over my house.  That sure melted my heart.

We made cupcakes and decorated them, while watching an episode of Cake Boss on Netflix.   I think Jasmine enjoyed yelling at my mom to keep her spoon out of the batter.  I got such a kick out of that.    Then, we went downstairs and watched the 3D movie, Madagascar.  I made popcorn in my fancy maker and some cotton candy.  It was a lot of fun.     I don't like cleaning out the popcorn machine so only use it for special occasions.

Maggie slept most of the night with Jasmine.  Jasmine said Maggie licked her from head to toe.  

July 22, 2013: Birth of the Royal Prince

Today, Catherine Middleton, gave birth to an 8 pound, 6 oz. boy at 4:26 p.m. London time at St. Mary's Hospital in the Lindo Wing.  This is the same hospital that Prince William and his brother, Harry, were born.    I listened to the news a good part of the day, waiting to hear if she gave birth to a girl or boy.    

I read online that the Lindo Wing had been remodeled in 2008.   Each of the rooms came with Wi-Fi Internet, satellite TV, and a comfy recliner for the dad.    

Catherine and William named their son George Alexander Louis.

I found an interesting article on the Today website regarding the skills that the nanny would need to have in order to apply for that job.

"The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are not believed to have hired a nanny yet, and it remains to be seen whether they will break with royal tradition and raise the future king without one.


However, if they need a 21st-century Mary Poppins who can perform martial arts and driving stunts as well as change nappies, a school in Bath, England, has plenty of candidates for them.

At Norland College, prospective nannies learn traditional child care and cooking skills that have been taught at the school since it was founded in 1892 — but they also learn modern techniques to help protect the rich and famous.

They may still dress in their old-fashioned brown uniforms with felt hats and white gloves, but they also can handle hand-to-hand combat with an attacker and outrace aggressive paparazzi in a car. The nannies are trained in martial arts to fend off potential kidnappers and also learn evasive and stunt driving skills to deal with everything from dangerous weather conditions to dodging the press.


“We are creating the most prepared nanny that we can for the modern-day family,’’ Claire Burgess, an early years consultant at Norland College, told TODAY Wednesday.

When the couple return to their royal duties, which require extensive travel, they will likely have to consider hiring a full-time nanny to raise their son. If they decide to bring on a nanny, they will know where to look for ones with modern and traditional skills.

“I think ‘supernanny’ is definitely the term or would be in the job description,” NBC royal expert Camilla Tominey said on TODAY. “Looking after the royal baby Cambridge, it couldn’t be more high-profile.”

Trainees pay $55,000 for the four-year course, learning skills like first aid, sewing and cooking in addition to self-defense and driving. In the second year of the course, students learn from a stunt driver on the Castle Combe Racing Circuit in Wiltshire about how to handle a car in all kinds of situations, from icy roads to potential kidnappers to pursuing paparazzi.

Nannies are part of the fabric of British society and have been a fixture in the royal family over the years: Prince Charles had two nannies, and Prince William and Prince Harry each had three. Thus far, William and Kate have not announced any decision on whether they are hiring a nanny for their young prince. William has taken paternity leave from his job as a helicopter pilot to help care for the boy.

“They have said, ‘Look, we don’t want to have huge amounts of people around us for these first weeks and months, we’d like to be hands-on,’’’ Tominey said.