Dancing with Our Star

Briana has been taking dance since last fall and Saturday was her end of the year recital. You haven't experienced parenthood until you sit through 3+ hours of a little girls' dance recital. Plus, Briana was only on stage for about 15 minutes, doing 3 separate routines. Here are some clips of the 3 (the Christmas DVD will include the whole routines):

"This little light of mine"


"Hey good lookin' "


Gymnastics


We were very proud of her. She definitely isn't scared of being on stage, and what I am most proud of is she really enjoys herself (as you can tell from the 3rd clip). Here are a few pictures:
Of course, we got her flowers and she was very proud of her 1st trophy!
She is moving on to gymnastics (she actually started last Thursday). Look for pictures in the near future.

Briana's getting big, too!

We've mentioned several times how big Alex has grown over the last several months. His big sister is also growing really fast. Today at her 6 year old doctor's visit, we found out Briana was at the 75th percentile for height and weight (46.5 inches tall/47 pounds). At this rate, she might get close to Gretchen's height (5'9").

Father's Day

Last Sunday was my 1st Father's Day as the father of 2 and I have to say it was a great day. First, I got to sleep in REALLY late (around 10 am). Gretchen picked up some donuts from our favorite donut shop and I received this great card:
I also got next season's Ohio State coaching shirt. We took it easy in the afternoon, then went to my favorite restaurant for dinner - On the Border. On the way home, we got Icees (another one of my favorites). Finally, I saw a great interview at halftime of the Boston-LA NBA Finals. Bill Walton, one of the greatest basketball players ever, interviewed his son, current LA Laker Luke. Bill won championships with Portland and (ironically) Boston, while Luke was trying to win a championship with the Lakers. You could see how much Bill loved his son and how proud he was (he had a huge smile on his face throughout the interview). At the end, Bill told Luke how he wanted him to win the championship, then Luke thanked him and wished him a happy Father's Day. Bill's response was great - "In my life, everyday is Father's Day; that's how lucky I am." What an incredible philosophy and one I want to follow. Chances are neither Alex nor Briana will win an NBA/WNBA championship, but I really enjoy celebrating their accomplishments, even if they seem minor to others (Gretchen will tell you that I couldn't stop smiling when the doctor told us Alex was at the 95th percentile for height). I am so proud of Briana and Alex, and yes everyday is Father's Day for me.

Meeting a Legend

I've met some pretty famous people in my life, but it's not everyday that you meet a member of the baseball hall of fame and a true legend. Earlier this month Cal Ripken, Jr. was in town to sign his new book, Get in the Game: 8 Elements of Perseverance That Makes the Difference, at one of our local Barnes & Noble. I have been to many book signings in the past - Pat Croce (former owner of the 76ers), Dick Vitale, Steward Mandel (of Sports Illustrated), and Mike Greenberg (from ESPN's Mike and Mike in the Morning) - but the line at this one was by for the longest (I was an hour and a half early and my ticket number was 200). I waited about 3 hours and finally got to met Cal. I can't say I was a huge fan of his when he played, but I always had a lot of respect for him (how can you not for someone that played over 2600 consecutive games) and had always heard great things about him. He was extremely nice to everyone (he played with all of the kids) even after signing his book for over 2 hours. He also took the time to take pictures with everyone. Unfortunately, I didn't have a camera so the picture below is from my cell phone (and not very clear).I would have posted this earlier, but I got a copy signed for my brother Ricky for his birthday; I wanted it to be a surprise. In July, Coach Tressel has a book signing - I can't wait!

Schools out!!!

At least for me and Briana (Gretchen works until next Thursday). Briana had a great year in kindergarten and is ready to start 1st grade in August. On the last day of school, Briana received a DVD from her teacher (Mrs. Price) that featured all of her classmates. Each child was asked "what do you like best about kindergarten?" They also drew what they liked on the computer. Mrs. Price sure is liked! This is a great keepsake and we hope her future classes do the same.



Last week, Briana attended a day camp at Ohio State. "Camp Recky" offers different themes each week. Briana attended during "discovery week"; she learned all about Ohio State and it's traditions and had a great time. This week, Briana, Alex, and me will be staying home waiting for Gretchen to finish.

Congratulations Uncle Ricky

This past week, my brother Ricky was named principal of South Waco Elementary School. Good luck Uncle Ricky - we are proud of you and know you will do a great job!