Grand opening - Jack Northrop Elementary School

On Friday, May 27, 2005, Jack Northrop Elementary School enjoyed its grand opening. Yes, the building is shaped like a flying wing, a shape seen on airplanes such as the B-2 Spirit aka the stealth bomber. The "cockpit" houses the administrative offices (of course). Jack Northrop pioneered the use of the flying wing and the company he founded, Northrop Grumman, built the B-2. Some Northrop family members were in attendance on Friday. The kids assembled outside for some singing and other ceremonial stuff. It was a pretty warm day and there is no shade out front. One kid in Ethan's class fainted (and has since recovered).

Just what the sign says                               Complete with scale stealth bomber on a stick

The view out behind

Now that we have a pool, you are probably interested in the whole backyard. Here is an attempt at a panoramic shot. This is four different photos pasted together. It represents almost 180 degrees of view from the back door. One real nice thing about this house is the trees. The whole backyard is shaded at just the right level. Since it is a dry heat here, having shade makes it very nice outside almost all the time. Of course the pool temperature could be higher but it is hard to maintain anyway since it always cools off at night. The high desert is a different sort of beast.

Backyard panorama

Quality crafted swimming pool ... in about an hour.

Who needs three weeks and $20,000 for an in-ground pool when you can set this up in less than an hour? Recognizing the need for a pool now that we live in the desert, we invested in an Easy Set Pool. Pop-up pools seems to be all the rage right now. I must admit I was skeptical but I am a believer now. We chose the 12 foot by 2.5 foot version. It is shallow enough for Orion and Meri to stand. The older boys also enjoy it though Brayton complains he needs more depth so that he can frog-kick. The complaint is not serious enough to prevent him from spending all afternoon in the pool. I spent two summers as a pool boy for Pool Chlor so I am fairly confident with pool chemicals. This pool promises to be a challenge though - 1,500 gallons is a little less forgiving than 12,000 or more. I have to admit our pool in NY was green once or twice (or more).

Pop-up pool makes Brayton happy!

Jessica is one with one.

Today (17 May) was Jessica's first birthday. The tradition in our home is to let the new one-year-old have their way with the cake. This spectacle has already occurred in our home four times previous - Jessica had a big slot to fill. She delivered - Jessica turned in the best performance we have ever witnessed. We were able to capture some of the glory as shown below:


The birthday girl approaches the cake ...


Step 1: Remove fish girl.


Step 2: Commence cake dismantlement.


Step 3: Feed to hearts content.


Come siblings! Feed with me!


Step 4: That's probably enough cake for awhile.


Step 5: Cleanup.

Curls anyone?

Saturday evening, Jessica experienced another first.

Jessica's first time in curlers


Curls make me happy!

Six years old and loving it.

Ethan has reached that magical milestone of six years old. Much celebration occurred.
General Grievous was featured prominently among the presents. Though it may be some time before Ethan gets to see the movie starring the General (Star Wars III), he is already a fan. He has always taken a liking to bad guys - ne'er-do-wells such as Green Goblin and Skeletor have also been favorites.

Is Ethan happy about his birthday presents? Another monkey puppet makes me happy.

Not to be outdone!

Jaidyn upon seeing her cousin Brayton's stitches on the blog said - "Hey I want some of those." So she let Davin smash the back of her head into the window sill and what do you know. 3 stitches. She also discovered one of Dr Cabey's favorite tools, "the papoose". Screaming and twisting 2 year olds are hard to get stitches into so just strap them into "the papoose" and stitch away.

For the record Jaidyn does not endorse the use of "the papoose" in any way. But the extra large papoose should come in handy once they reach their teens.

Ice cream makes it all better.

With Lucas and a restylized bandage.

Family Day at work

Our lineup of Stealth Fighter pilots