Melton and Melton, part 2

So Bek complained that there are more flattering photos of her than the one that appeared in this last post. And then we remembered that we'd been meaning to share some other pictures of Annie. And then we discovered that Matthew has shaken off twenty-five years of bad habit such that he smiles beautifully in photos now. That's just to say that we have a few more photographs to share from Matt 'n' Nat's really good time with us.

Foehn in the Sun

Matthew and Natalie arrived yesterday for a short and wonderful visit. We talked, bought cold coffees and colder beers, grilled Nolan Ryan sausages, played Farkle, and then, Tuesday morning, set out for a whirlwind tour of the aquarium and shoreline. It was all good, though the beaches on Ocean/Shoreline are prettier to look at from the a passing car than they are up close. Still, not just the up-close warts of the beach...something else. Something felt off. Heat. Insane heat. Cook-you-from-the-inside kind of heat. We arrived back at the house heat-stressed and exhausted.

In southern Germany, they talk about a mysterious wind, called the Foehn, capable of raising temperatures by as much as 50 degrees F and - according to folklore - driving locals to madness. Could it be that we experienced something similar? Were we so close to the madness that we simply couldn't see it? I don't know. Here are some pictures of us from the house, once we returned from our ill-fated outing. Let the reader discern wherein madness lies.

the virtual book swap (a 'novel' concept)

Bek and I are diving into books this summer. Not many books we both read, but that's what makes life and conversation interesting: "Hey, can you believe this?" "Quiet, I'm reading!" Anyway, we wanted to share our summer finds so far and put the question to you: what are you reading just now that you'd recommend to a fellow reader?

Beks' List

Bridges out of Poverty, Ruby Payne

Confections of a Closet Master Baker, Gesine Bullock-Prado

Making Peace, Jim Van Yperen

River Teeth, David James Duncan

Sheep in Wolves Clothing: How Unseen Need Destroys Friendship and Community and What to Do about It, Valerie McIntyre

Jonathan's List

All the Pretty Horses, Cormac McCarthy

Good Poems and Good Poems for Hard Times, ed. Garrison Keillor

Goodbye to a River: a Narrative, Jon Graves

No Future without Forgiveness, Desmond Tutu

The Pleasure of Reading in an Age of Distraction, Alan Jacobs

Sheep in Wolves Clothing: How Unseen Need Destroys Friendship and Community and What to Do about It, Valerie McIntyre

It Happens (Our Splash Park Debut)

Took Annie to the Aquarium's new Splash Park today. Apparently, it's been doing big business since its Memorial Weekend kickoff. Justin, a friend who works at the Aquarium, reported average attendance of 7,000 people a day(!!) over the 4th of July weekend, which is more than 2,000 more than the highs of spring break, which is just to say that the splash park is out-shooting even the Aquarium's most optimistic projections.

So you can imagine our relief when, despite our initial concerns that we'd be stampeded by pint-sized, water-crazed hooligans, there was an eerie and unexpected internal order to the chaos as we joined it. As if the children were exchanging invisible, unspoken messages between them so that disputes were minimal and fun was had by all. Annie and I played with a water-spraying turtle, we ducked through circles of water-fire and raced around irregularly times water springs. We watched the older kids wait for the uber-bucket to periodically pound them with water. Once Annie became comfortable, it was fun to sneak away and watch her interact, make decisions, and share with the other kiddos. Bek even caught some pictures.


It was all going so well. Then, unexpectedly, a 'CODE BROWN', discretely signaled by a whistle and an indication to leave the water area immediately, sent us to the showers. Code brown - let the reader understand - which revealed the order in the chaos to be illusory at best. And also explained the smell. Vile. Oh well. We cleaned up and made our way to the otters and turtles, said our goodbyes, and packed up the car. Off to Freebird's for dinner and Camille's for dessert. All in all, not a bad afternoon. But funny and awkward, in its own beautiful way.

face II

(I know, last pic doesn't fit the theme, but it's for Momma. Love you!)

childhood development and its multiple faces

So, too long between posts, and I'm sorry for that. Especially to the grandparents. But only kind of, because y'all are the ones who have kept us busy in the best way. Between Mom and Dad coming down to watch the Mavericks clinch their first championship and Mark and Debbie meeting up with us a few days later with family in California for a family reunion and celebration of Grandma and Grandpa Baker's 60th wedding anniversary, not a lot of time to write up blog reports. I'm totally okay with that. That said, we've rediscovered the camera in recent days, and wanted to share a few of Annie's more expressive faces. She delights in cracking herself up, and we are left to only follow her lead, again, in the best way.