Chah-lston

Last week Amy & I concluded the summer with a vacation down to Charleston. We rented a house on James Island just a hop, skip & a jump across the marsh from Aunt Mel, Uncle Dude, Corinne and Sam and a mile from Folly Beach.

Amy & I crammed as much work as we could get done in the weeks leading up to vacation, led a Worship & Wonder training the morning that we left, and a finished up a multiple's club consignment sale that afternoon. We both slept hard the first two days that we were down in South Carolina.

The vacation was a really good one in that we were so ready to leave town and escape the day-to-day life at home by the time we departed and then we were ready to be back in the comforts of home by the time we returned at the end of the week. That's what a vacation should be, I suppose.




On Tuesday our friends Debbie Barrett and Chad Nance brought their litter up from Bluffton, SC -- Aidan, Abby, and Anmei -- and shared our place for a couple of days. I am not sure if the kids wore us parents out or if all the fun we parents threw at the kids wore them out. But either way, it was a really good time seeing the Nance crew.

Off the boat dock from the back of the rental house, the marsh rose and fell with the tides. It made for some good bird watching and fiddler crab hunting.


The parents loaded up the kids for a trip to the South Carolina Aquarium, which sits on a gorgeous spot in downtown Charleston on the harbor. The kids got to pet an alligator and saw plenty of penguins, sharks, fish and jellies to provide a good thrill.

Gus, Aidan & Anmei posed for their Nemo shark bait moment.


One of the fun parts of trips are the impromptu moments that you can't plan for -- like when six kids are tired and hungry after a morning of sightseeing in the aquarium. So the parents pulled out the beach chairs and fed the kids sandwiches & goldfish right there in the parking garage. All we were missing was a cooler and a football game....


The Rutledge crew got to reunite with the Crumptons and meet cousin Sam for the first time. He is a laid back little fellow who takes in the two year-old tornado that is his big sister Corinne with a big gummy grin on his face.

Corinne experienced the Owen shun first hand as she was enamored with her older cousin, but he did his best "girls are icky" impression all week. (Talk to Tess, little peanut -- the two of you can share stories.)

Corinne and Gus on the other hand are cut from the same cloth -- both rowdy & rambunctious and (too?) lovable with their younger siblings.

What fun we had and will have as this group gets older.


The rest of the week was dedicated to entertaining kids. We beached it several times. At first the boys were very cautious of the water, which is what you want as a parent when it comes to the ocean -- a combined sense of awe and excitement with a healthy respect for the tides when you only weigh 35 lbs.

By the end of the week though, both boys had their badges of courage with the water and were body surfing and sticking their heads underwater. And of course, the receding tides offer wet sand which is just perfect for building sand castles....


and making mud balls to throw at each other.


Little Tess enjoyed herself as well -- chasing sea gulls, playing in the sand, walking Tucker on the beach, and adapting very well to the relaxed beach schedule which sometimes led to lunches at 2:30 in the afternoon.

We did break out of the beach routine a few times. This was our first visit back to Folly in two years since Gus had his fall that put him in the hospital. So we drove by the house where we had stayed to see that the open stairs had been closed off with a deck on the back of the house. Little Owen and his crazy accurate memory remembered a lot of it two years later and was full of questions. It gave a good sense of closure, especially for Amy.

Then we drove over to the park a block away where the kids ran off the rest of their morning energy. Owen does his best eerie devilish impression coming out of the slide.


Finally, we hit Splash Zone -- which has to be one of the coolest water parks there is -- on the morning before we drove back home. The boys were just tall enough to ride down the monster water slides with Dad, Mom & Uncle Dude.

All in all it was a good way to end the summer before preschool started back for the boys this week. We finished the summer with a splash & a bang.

Cheers!

Beer Summit

At the risk of jumping back into politics for the first time in many months, I have to weigh in with my two cents on the controversy over the arrest of the black Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates in his own home by the white policeman, James Crowley, and the unfortunate comments that followed by President Barack Obama about the police department "acting stupidly."

I think all parties involved overreacted, and this incident highlights the open wound that still exists in our society when it comes to black/white relations. But that is not the main thing I want to address.

President Obama proposed a meeting at the White House that is taking place today with Crowley and Gates. He suggested they all get together over a beer to talk about the issue and the greater issue of race relations in America. Great, I'm all for reconciliation and discussion. But there is a bigger issue at stake here.

My issue is over the choice of beers that have been chosen for this Kum Ba Yah moment of national healing.

Crowley, the policeman, has chosen Blue Moon as his beer of choice, which is a wheat beer owned by Coors most often served with an orange. And while I scratch my head that a working-class civil servant hero is drinking a beer garnished with a citrus and admittedly I am not a hefeweizen fan myself, kudos to Crowley for setting the bar with something a little bit out of the box with a Blue Moon.

For Gates he went with the trendy Jamaican beer Red Stripe, which is beer hyped more for its image than it is its flavor. But given that the guy is 5'7", 150 lbs, walks with a cane, and is a public intellectual from Harvard it's clear that the guy is not a beer drinker. To each his own. I'll cut the guy some slack. He was after all arrested for being in his own house.

Now for our President. After sticking his foot in his mouth by uncharacteristically dropping his guard and commenting on a story based on emotion instead of facts, President Obama has some ground to make up. Ok, he spoke without thinking. He's human like the rest of us. So here is his second chance. If he picks the right beer, he gets to have his discussion and then move on to the swamp that is health care reform. As the leader of the free world President Obama can pick any beer he wants to be his companion in this discussion.

There are endless possibilities. Help out the struggling California economy and pick a flowery India Pale Ale with cascade hops, say Green Flash West Coast IPA for example. Or go with a Brooklyn Brewing variety, made in the most multi-cultural place in America in New York City. Or pay tribute to America's colonial roots and to greater Boston where this controversy originated in picking a Harpoon -- heck, even a Sam Adams.

Obama's choice? Bud Light. The king of lawnmower beers. Not even owned by an American company anymore. A beer so lousy the company spends endless amounts on promoting it with goofy commercials, animals, and models to make it the best-selling beer in America.

Where has Hope gone?

Superhero Summer

Owen & Gus have had quite the summer for four year-old little boys. After having GJ & Pappy visit their house for 10 days, the boys rode back to Kentucky to begin their Bluegrass Adventure without Mom, Dad & little sister. What fun!

After spending a few days in Glasgow with GJ & Pappy the boys journeyed across the state to spend time with Nana, Granddaddy and the Paducah crew. While there, there were reports of a superhero sighting nearby -- more on that in a moment.

When their time in Kentucky came to a close the boys piled into the van with their Aunt Ashley, Uncle Scott, and cousins Mason, Gavin & Brooke for the long return trip back to North Carolina. The kids were all reportedly on their best behavior -- funny how being together can bring the best out of each other.

Amy and I were very happy to see the boys for the first time in 8 days. It was obvious that we missed Owen & Gus more than they missed us. Oh well, that's the sign of a great visit right there.

We were then treated to a few days hanging out with the Posey crew in North Carolina. After an unsuccessful badminton attempt (cheap plastic poles from China!), we rebounded with bocce, a trip to the swimming pool, a campout in the backyard while it thunderstormed, and a great trip to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and the North Carolina History Museum.

It was a tremendous time getting to see the Posey crew. It took the boys a couple of days to recoup from their trip and the fun of the visit. Tess had to adjust to not having her cousins around to dote on her as well. We look forward to many return visits!

Cheers!

Recipe:

The first step in a successful museum visit is hydration.



Pack up the van so there are enough seat belts and car seats to go around.


Throw in some sea horses and plenty of fish.....



....and the occasional 50-foot long plant-eating dinosaur.....




.....a stuffed pelican going after its prey.....


......some sea turtles......



....a few minutes to rest & catch our breaths.....



.....some peanut butter & jelly on the concourse.....



......a little fun goof-off time by the pirate ship at the history museum.....



.....and out comes two extremely happy superheroes.
(Nana took this picture across the river in Metropolis, Illinois. An instant classic for us!)

Welcome Stella

Congratulations to Chris & Pam LeDuc on the birth of their daughter, Stella Caelin. This is Chris & Pam's first child so they are about to start the awesome journey of parenthood. This little girl will eventually take Nels Cline's place as guitarist for Wilco, so Jeff Tweedy be warned.

Amy & I are so excited for you all. Cheers to you!

Key Cats

So the boys are back in Kentucky about to finish up their Bluegrass Adventure in Glasgow and Paducah. Meanwhile, Amy & I have discovered what it was like to have one child -- a different experience than the chaotic house we normally inhabit, but it's still parenting.

In her brothers' absence, Tess has filled up the attention vacuum. Part of it may be Tess relishing her chance to shine and get attention. The other part may just be a (near) eighteen-month-old seeking out her independence.

Either way, Tess will probably be happy when her brothers return to North Carolina. In the meantime, Harper has gotten some more (unwanted?) attention.

Cheers!

Week of Independence

In what is becoming an Independence Day tradition for our crew, we were joined over the holiday week by grandparents as Pappy & GJ made their way down from Kentucky. As Amy is back to work full time, the July 4 weekend represented a busy quarter close time for her at work. So Pappy & GJ agreed to come down & help out with the kids. We all ended up having a tremendous time.

The hit of the week was the swimming pool. With the weather in the low 90's and moderate humidity -- by far the best July 4th weather we have had in our 12 years in North Carolina -- the pool became a destination on several days.

Owen is definitely a natural water bug. Even the life guards were laughing as they would talk about how excited he got as he winded himself up before jumping off the side into waiting arms.

Gus was slower to get comfortable with the water and getting his face wet. You can see the progression from the first day when his apprehension level was high to the last day when he was putting his whole head under water and holding his breath.

Little Tess was very mellow in the water. Amy, Pappy, GJ & I passed her around and around as we took turns catching the boys as they jumped off the side and she didn't mind a bit. Once I took her out to deeper water where I threw her up and caught her, she found the joy that is the swimming pool. She kept putting her fingers together which is her sign language for "more." Kids, swimming pools, and summer -- quite a combination.


Once Tess finally wore herself out from the sun & water, she found happiness in Mom's arms.


Another fun part of Independence Day week is Wimbledon. This year's tournament was terrific with a Williams sister final on the women's side and an incredible five-set match on the men's side between Roger Federer and Andy Roddick.

Amy & I even got out one night and dusted the old tennis racket off up at the neighborhood courts while the grandparents hung out with the kids. As much as I tried to safety pin Roger's talent to me, I just don't measure up.


After camping in Mt. Airy the boys brought back a taste for roasted marshmallows. So one night we gathered around the fire pit and made S'mores. Just when they thought it couldn't get any better than fluffy white sugar on a stick, the boys were thrilled as chocolate bars & graham crackers were added to the mix.

A sporting goods store close to us had a great sale on tents. So I picked up a 6-person tent and put it up in the backyard. Gus & Owen immediately wanted to sleep in the tent so after devouring some marshmallows the boys & I piled in for a good night's rest. Serta mattress not included this time.


Finally our last night together we borrowed a Raclette grill from our friends the Learys and cooked up a great dinner of bread, cheese, apple sausage, pepperoni, peppers, onions & potatoes. The boys -- excuse me, Batman and Robin -- were not impressed as they quickly begged for PB&J. Oh well, the adults and Tess enjoyed the heck out of it.

Cheers!

Mt. Airy

Last weekend the Rutledge crew packed up on a Friday afternoon and drove out of Dodge. Our friends Brian & Kelly Wise have a house out in the country in Mt. Airy, North Carolina, home of Andy Griffith and the model for Mayberry on the TV show.

Owen & Gus were incredibly excited to be around Gracen & Cate, and Tess seemed very happy being around two girls for a change. She actually got to play with dolls and push a baby stroller instead of playing with trains and Planet Heroes.

For Amy & me, it was a great chance to get out of town without cellphones, email & 98 degree heat to spend quality time with Brian, Kelly and all the kids. The Wises have a great piece of property on top of a hill where the breeze always seems to blowing, which comes in handy on warm summer days.

There was fishing, four-wheeling, camping, marshmallow roasting, slip n' sliding, and plenty of relaxing. It was a tremendous getaway, one we hope to be able to do again.

Cheers!
The boys' unanimous favorite moment of the trip: Roasting marshmallows. Forget catching fish, throwing rocks, staying up late, or sleeping outside. The guys were in hog heaven with those little fluffy white puffs of sugar.
If you have a farm, you just have to have a four-wheeler.



Tess proved that she is indeed Dad's daughter. Corn on the cob is her new favorite food. As if I needed another reason for this little girl to have me wrapped around her finger....

Most men would be ashamed to be seen lugging a Serta mattress into a tent to camp for the night. Not these guys. Hey, the women slept inside in beds with Tess & Cate!

The fishing pond was stocked with bluegill that were pretty easy to catch, which made Owen's first fishing experience very exciting. Owen is definitely showing signs of being an outdoorsman. He was very patient while we fished and was in his element all weekend, content to fish or just throw rocks by himself into the pond. Apart from the marshmallow roasting I think his highlight may have been picking out which lure to use to catch those monstrous bluegill.


Three peas in a pod were Owen, Gracen & Gus.

Tess was so happy to be amongst female companions. Gracen & Cate show Tess that girls can have fun jumping on the bed too.


The slip n' slide was a joy for all the kids, especially Tessa Lou.


Sunday morning saw a great hike down to a creek looking for deer footprints...and deer poop. On the hike back up the mountain, Gus was happy to ride the four-wheeler with Gracen & Brian. Owen was happy strolling back up with his mom.


Being out in the country spoiled us. It was so peaceful. The bullfrogs would come out at night & compete with the crickets for control of the songs for the evening. The sunrises were incredible...

...even if you were snoring away on a Serta mattress in a tent while the sun came up.

Happy Father's Day

Derek, you are an incredible dad! Happy Father's Day!

Race for the Cure

Normally when Gus, Owen or Tess are awake before 6:00am on a Saturday morning, Mom & Dad aren't happy. But Amy & I actually woke the crew up before sunrise this morning. Today was the Komen Race for the Cure over in Raleigh, as 22,000 runners united for the annual race for breast cancer research.

Amy & I had planned on running the first 5K race at 7am and then coming back home in time for breakfast with the kids. But we couldn't in good conscience ask someone to provide childcare beginning that early in the morning. So we signed the boys up for a fun run at the Kids' Zone and took the whole crew.

I ran the 5K at 7:00 while Amy entertained Gus, Owen & Tess. Then I took over with kiddos as Amy ran in a women's-only race at 7:45. The race is such an uplifting event as it winds through older neighborhoods in Raleigh where residents turn out to cheer people on and shower runners with their yard sprinklers. Pink shirts are everywhere as breast cancer survivors and their teams of supporters come out in droves. Bands and church choirs dot the course and perform for hours as runners make their way in three different races.

Meanwhile Amy & I had built up the notion of a kids' race for Owen & Gus -- how else were we going to get 2 four year-olds up at the crack of dawn without a scrum? So after our races we headed over to the kids' section where their "race" was supposed to take place. As it turned out the start to finish was probably 50 ft. which we figured would be a big disappointment.

So Amy & I decided to line the boys up for the 1 mile fun run which was taking place right next to the kids' section. The boys were all about it. Owen & Gus ran their little hearts out the whole way, stopping a couple of times to catch their breath. When they crossed the finish line you would have thought they won the Boston Marathon. Two excited little boys for certain.

So it was a long -- but very enjoyable day for the Rutl crew. Gus & Tess were falling asleep at the dinner table tonight. Thus, it's bedtime. Mom & Dad arent' too far behind.

Cheers!

Mom, the sprinter boys & Tessa Lou

The Rutledge dude runners.
Tess enjoyed the "pink" theme as she found a resting place.

The kid crew in a picture which is essentially a microcosm of their sibling relationship -- Gus gives Tess his Chick-fil-a cow stuffed animal while Owen scrubs Tess's head. Brotherly love comes in different forms.

Little Mobile Mama

Tess is fully mobile these days. She is enamoured with Owen, shouting "Ohh! Ohh!" whenever she sees him. Of course Owen will still have nothing to do with her. He will come around someday.

In the meantime Tess intently watches everything her big brothers do and tries to emulate it. When they laugh at something on TV, she laughs. When they get the sillies and spin around and around in circles, she does the same. It is quite comical.

Some people that see her think she's a spitting image of Dad and Gus. I see expressions and mannerisms of Owen. In reality she's probably an amalgamation of all of us.

Here she is stumbling around with purse, jewelry, & keys -- shades of Gus Edward here. Note Harper's quick departure when she sees the young one scampering around -- the cats are none too happy to have yet another human walking around to run from.

Cheers!

Dad's Weekend

So this weekend is going to be Dad's weekend with the kids. Amy is going out of town for a training course with our church so Owen, Gus & Tess will be hanging out with their pop until Sunday night.

I went to the grocery store to load up for the weekend. When I came back, Amy commented on the dietary selection I had chosen -- pizza, chips & salsa, burgers, squeeze yogurts, muffins for breakfast. Hey, if there is an easy button for Dad to push over the next 48 hours you better believe I'm going to be pushing it over & over!

Amy is going to miss her tennis idol potentially winning his first French Open. Now that his main competition in Rafael Nadal was upset earlier this week, Federer has a good shot. Thank goodness for DVR.

This past week has been the first since Amy has resumed "full-time" hours at work. It has been a juggle for sure -- hence the lack of blog posts, my apologies. But we made it through the week with everyone's limbs still attached and minimal emotional scars. Onward soldiers....

I have jumped on the Twitter bandwagon -- to follow Coach Calipari's endless sea of posts more than anything else. I think I have made 2 posts since getting on. Too much technology to keep up with. Amy is on Facebook, but I have refused to jump on that train so far. It's like cellphones. I held out (proudly) for a long, long time before I acquiesced and got on board with mobile communication. Now, I wonder how I functioned without it. I figure it's the same thing with Facebook. I'll hold out until it is mandatory and then wonder what I did for so long without it.

Tweet, tweet everyone. Have a good weekend.

Cheers!

Happy Splashing

The Rutledge crew is going to be resting & relaxing this weekend. In fact, we have already started.

I think it's safe to say that Tess may be a water bug. Her first experience in the kiddie pool was full of chuckles.

Cheers to everyone for a safe & fun Memorial Day weekend.

Basketball Goals, Strawberries, & a Clay Court Dream

Amy & I celebrated our 10th anniversary over the weekend. We shipped the boys off to Durham for a sleepover at Ms. Ann and Dr. Ron's house, and Dorothy stayed at our house with Tess. Although we didn't go far or take an elaborate trip, Amy & I did make a night of it in Raleigh, hitting two of our favorite restaurants and staying at a hotel downtown. It was a good break from the role of Mom & Dad that we play every day and to remember that we were husband & wife first before we were parents.

As we talked about things we had done over the past 10 years and things we wanted to do in the future, I was able to coax an agreement out of my wife that a basketball goal in the driveway needed to be in our future plans. Yes it was a random interjection, and yes it may have been influenced by Makers and Coke. But the tape recorder in my pocket doesn't lie.

The weather has reverted back to spring here in central North Carolina. Yesterday the temperature didn't break 70 degrees. For the first time in years, North Carolina is no longer in drought status as spring rains have been plentiful.

Our hummingbirds have finally returned to the house this past week. The boys decided to name the hummingbirds that come to feed outside our kitchen window. Whoever spots the bird at the feeder first gets to stake that claim that the hummingbird is his or hers -- "Flappy" (Gus), "Wings" (Mom), "Scooter" (Dad), or "Batman" (Owen). Tess just thinks we're all nuts.

Yesterday I took off a little early to go with Amy & the kids to the strawberry patch up the road. Owen & Gus did much better on this expedition than they did the last time when Gus ran out on the highway and nearly put Amy into cardiac arrest. The boys understand now that the red berries are the ones to pick as they know now that the green ones don't taste very good when they're made into smoothies.

For her part Tess was happy as a clam. She has finally started walking full-time so she slowly trotted up and down the strawberry row, picking berries to squish between her fingers and eating the goods before they made it into her basket.

Amy is into full-blown tennis mode. She dusted off her racket from storage and has been adamant about getting a game with her friend Julie or with me or with the dog for that matter. This woman is ready to play some tennis! Amy says it's because she loves the game and hasn't played such a long time. And it is true that Amy doesn't get enough time for herself and that she's been somewhat busy.....for the past four years.

But part of me suspects that the recent interest has something to do with the fact that the French Open begins this weekend and a certain Swiss tennis player recently knocked off Rafael Nadal in a clay court tune-up over in Europe.

If Roger Federer announces he's looking for a mixed doubles partner, Gus, Owen, Tess and I may be scratching our heads this weekend to find Amy on the tele from Stad Roland Garros instead of out on the deck for a Memorial Day cookout!

Cheers!

Game 7

Tonight is Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between Carolina and Boston. To most of the country this game means nothing -- "Wait, Versus is a TV channel?" And even in Boston the Red Sox and Celtics are center stage while the Bruins play second fiddle.

But in the Triangle where we have no other professional sports, NCAA basketball is over, Koach K is out promoting his latest book, and everyone is tired of the never ending John Wall recruiting saga, tonight's Game 7 is huge.

Caniacs love their Hurricanes, and despite the disappointment of blowing a 3-1 series lead fans are hopeful that Carolina can turn things around to advance to the conference finals. This has been an odd series. The three games that Boston has won have all been blowouts -- 4-0, 4-1, and 4-2. Carolina has dominated in two of their wins 3-0 and 4-1.

So the hockey analysts will say that the winner tonight will be determined by which team can force its game on the other team -- Boston with its tough, physical play or Carolina with its speed up front.

And while that may be true, I say the winner will be determined by something more scientific.

Notable people
Boston boasts Paul Revere, Thoreau, Edgar Allan Poe, John Adams and JFK.
Carolina claims John Edwards, Jesse Helms, Dean Smith and Michael Jordan.
Advantage: Bruins

History
Boston: American Revolution and Boston Tea Party
Carolina: The Lost Colony, segregation
Advantage: Bruins

Beverages
Boston: Harpoon IPA, Sam Adams
Carolina: Pepsi, Carolina Pale Ale, and sweet tea with so much sugar it crunches
Advantage: Canes

Sports
Boston: Red Sox, Celtics, Patriots, Bruins, Boston College
Carolina: Hurricanes, UNC/Duke/NC State
Advantage: Push (depends on your flavor)

Arenas
Both are named for banks -- Boston's TD Banknorth Garden (shameful) and Carolina's RBC Center.
Advantage: Push (lame corporate sponsors)

Mascots
Boston: Blade, a bear

Carolina: Stormy -- is he a Pig? A Bear? A Hybrid?

Advantage: Canes (there are no bears in Massachusetts!)

Well that didn't help. So I think it will come down to who scores first, especially if the Bruins are able to draw first blood and take Carolina off their game. If it's close watch out for Jussi Jokinen of the Canes. He has scored two game winners so far in the playoffs. It should be a great game.

Go Canes!