GRISWOLD 2009 - "GRISWOLDS GO FOR BROKE - THE RECESSION TOUR"

GRISWOLD 2009 began a little earlier than normal, starting on Memorial Day since it's going to be a little different than our typical Griswold excursions. In short, the global recession has impacted us like everyone else, with one of us unemployed and the other having to take a recession-based pay cut like so many other people these days. The intrepid Griswolds will venture forth though, experiencing things a little closer to home, things that we may too often take for granted or just have not gotten around to seeing yet. So today, Memorial Day, was officially GRISWOLD 2009 - GRISWOLDS GO FOR BROKE - THE RECESSION TOUR - DAY 1!

For the first day of our extended Summer-long vacation, we hopped into the P.T. Crusier and headed west towards Springfield, MA. In Springfield, we visited "The Zoo In Forest Park", a smaller zoo in a city park kind of setting.

While Dad and Rebecca waited for the zoo to open...

...Erik decided to goof around on the playground. Note the large drop-off on the edge of that asphalt walkway...

...Erik didn't notice that drop-off until he'd taken a tumble off of it. Mom and Erik walked to the car and took care of it, so we finally ventured forth into the zoo.

Inside we saw a number of animals, like a cougar...

...some foxes...

...some peacocks...

...and a number of other animals. It was a cute little zoo.

From the zoo, we took a fairly short drive to the town of Westfield, where we went to Stanley Park. Stanley Park was a pleasant place with ponds, gardens and lots of active and passive activity areas. We had heard that this park was famous for its black squirrels, though we didn't see any. We did enjoy a casual walk through the park though.

While walking through the park, we noticed that in a small pond area, there were a number of tadpoles...lots and lots of them. This immediately brought Steve back to his days as "nature boy." We hatched a plan to bring some of these tadpoles home with us, to add to Erik's ever-growing menagerie. We quickly left the park and headed to a Wal-Mart which we'd driven past earlier. After grabbing a small butterfly net and some containers, we headed back to the park. After a nice picnic lunch back in the park, we grabbed our net and containers and headed back to the pond.

In the end, we came home with two different types of tadpoles. First we collected around 50-60 (maybe more) of these little tadpoles.

These tapoles are quite small, their heads around the size of a nail head or maybe a small pencil eraser. They will eventually turn into little toads, which we'll release in the woods behind our house.

We also caught some bigger tadpoles. These required a little more skill to net. We captured 6 of them with heads around the size of a Susan B. Anthony dollar coin and another 3 with heads just smaller than the size of a dime. The larger tadpoles will likely turn into bullfrogs eventually, if we're lucky with them. The dime-sized ones may be leopard frogs in the end.

They all made it safely home, except for one of the tiny tadpoles which didn't survive the trip. That's not a bad percentage. We've now got them all safely housed in appropriate tanks for their size and needs and we'll wait and see what happens.

Griswold 2009 - Day 1 was a lovely day, sunny and with highs in the low 80's. We had a very nice day and enjoyed the four of us being together. The wheels are already spinning and if you're in New England, watch out, the Griswolds may be coming near you sometime soon!

NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY

On Thursday, May 21, Rebecca was inducted into the North Reading chapter of the National Honor Society.

The induction was comprised of a few brief speeches, some music selections and candle-related ceremonies.

Here's Rebecca after the ceremony, including her friends who collectively refer to themselves as "HARK". (Haley, Amelia, Rebecca, Kiara) I guess Rebecca hangs out with a brainy bunch, even though sometimes they have a hard time keeping their tassles on. (Particularly Rebecca!)

They're a happy bunch...

...but they also know how to be silly!

We're very proud!

THE 2009 NORTH READING HIGH SCHOOL JUNIOR PROM

Friday night, May 15, was the night of Rebecca's North Reading High School Junior Prom. Rebecca had recently picked out a lovely dress and she looked stunning in it.

Rebecca and her date went to the prom with a group of friends and their dates. Below...Kiara, Rebecca, Amelia, Nicole and Haley.

Here's Rebecca again with Haley and Nicole.

This is Rebecca and her date, Rich, who is getting his boutonniere.

Here's Rebecca getting her wrist corsage.

Here they are together...

...and again outside.

Here is the whole group, who all looked great!

One last pose outside with the ladies.

Mom and Dad even got to sneak into a picture!

And then they were off to the prom!

A crowd gathered outside of the Thomson Country Club for the Grand March, a chance for all of the well-dressed young men and women to show off their outfits for everyone.

Here's Rebecca as part of the Grand March.

And then there was one final shot as they headed in for the prom.

Between the prom itself, the after-prom party and the sleepover at her friend Nicole's house, Rebecca had a very late night, but she also had a great time. We were very proud of her, but we're not sure we could stand how grown up she looked!

Starting To Feel Like Spring

The temperatures are starting to rise, flowers are blooming and trees are opening up. (...and Steve's allergies just love those trees!) It's finally starting to feel like Spring! Our Magnolia tree bloomed beautifully this year, a great, early indicator of Spring.

One nice day recently we took a walk around our small, local zoo, as much for the walking as for the animal viewing, but the animals are a nice distraction. It was great to be able to see this guy up close...

...and even closer!


The flamingos were in full color as well!


Our container gardens are now fully planted and we're already seeing the beginning signs of what we hope will be a bountiful Summer! (...and no...those flamingos were NOT stolen from the zoo!)

The Magnolia tree is beyond its blooming, but some nice color surrounds it now.

Spring is blooming everywhere!

SIGNS OF SPRING!

We're finally starting to see a few signs of Spring here in cold, blustery New England. Though the calendar turning to April is not a guarantee of no more snow, as evidenced on April 1, 1997 when the Boston area received over 24" of snow (YES...2 FEET!), it does give one hope that warmer temperatures are on the way.

A good sign of Spring is the beginning of the Spring track season. On Wednesday, April 1st, Rebecca's track team had their first meet. (Rebecca is center in this picture.) Rebecca typically runs the mile, but this time her coach asked her to run the 800 meter race, which is approximate half a mile. (Two laps around the track.)

Rebecca finished with a good time of 3:05.

Another sign of Spring to us is the blooming of the Daffodils in the woods behind our house.


While you might not think of Daffodils as the kind of plant you'd see in the woods, these flowers have their own logical explanation. Almost 20 years ago, when we were fairly new to our house, we made a lot of changes in our front yard. One of the changes involved removing a large number of plants, like the daffodils. When we pulled them, we tossed them into the woods, figuring they'd just die. Instead, they established themselves and year after year they've returned. They've become our personal harbinger of Spring.

Now we just need some sun and some warmer temperatures. Today is around 50, but windy and very overcast. Tomorrow though is supposed to be in the 60's and sunny. It's about time!

IT'S PICTURE TIME!

It's that time of year again...time to drag the kids kicking and screaming to the local photo studio for pictures of the two of them together. (We focus on individual pictures during the late Summer, around the time of their birthdays.) The kids did well though, as always, and took some great pictures. We even did a couple of individual pictures just for fun. ENJOY!

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