back home for the rest of the holidays

we're back in minnesota after a special christmas week with nana and papa. lots and lots of snow here--and more on the way, supposedly, later in the week. thank goodness for our friends tim and wyatt johnson who took care of snow removal while we were gone.

we had a very special time with nana and papa (as well as dennis, deidre and the boys--the jackson 5, as nana calls them) in Cape. good eats, some puzzles, and lots of scrabble and christmas records (old-school, on a turn table).

gift-giving also fun too (although listening to the graphic, anti-consumerist young adult novel "Feed" on the way home gives a bit of pause on that front): ben gave emma a video of burning yule logs, and she gave ben a box of little Debbie's oatmeal pies. more seriously, emma got softball equipment (sliding pants, a catcher's glove, and batting gloves), terri a hockey bag and an enamel cast iron pot, ben fancy new head phones and a digital audio recorder, and doug got pickled pig's feet and some retro zubaz pants. we gave papa an electronic rain gauge to go with the thermometer from the jackson five so he'll have a full-blown weather station out back.

Nana's presents were a bit bumpy: we gave her an enamel cast iron cooking pot like terri's that didn't work on her glass top stove and a book she had already read (Mary Ann Glendon's "Home"). And the J-5 got her some shirts that didn't fit. Luckily, we were able to go to the mall after church on sunday and find a new book (Tinkers), exchange the clothes, and trade the pot for an immersion blender.

lots on tap for week ahead: hockey and bball for emma as well as her job taking care of our neighbor's cats and a suite at the Wild game on weds with her friend Stephanie (doug hoping to tag along too); ben's planning on jamming with his band buddies (which group not quite clear) and taking the test to get his learner's permit. Doug and Terri will be trying to get some work done and will be (hopefully) picking out a new mattress over at Macy's. Probably some snow shoveling in there too--another big storm predicted on new year's eve.

Oh, and we all got phones and a family plan so if you want to call or text any one of us, we'll be happy to send you the numbers.

winter weekend--now extended

breaking late news: no school in st. paul, minnesota tomorrow! only the 2nd or 3rd time since we've lived here. not a huge surprise at this point. biggest blizzard since we've been here fell on saturday (and bitter cold ever since). somewhere between 18 and 24 inches in our yard. (hard to tell with all the blowing). ben did much of the snow blowing with the rest of us stranded in baldwin wisconsin at emma's hockey tournament. it turned out to be kind of fun: emma's team made it to the championship and though they got second, they played a great, physical, fast-paced game that ended up 6-4. (emma knocked a few folks around and even had an assist). speaking of hockey, terri's team squeezed in a game late this afternoon and got their second win. even more exciting: terri had a hat trick! (that's 3 goals, for those of you new to hockey.) don't know what tomorrow will bring--besides school, emma supposed to have bball game, and ben driver's ed. but we're guessing it'll be a fun morning...and lots to look ahead to for the week anyway: mmsa band concert, more hockey, ben's test to get his learner's permit, ben's parent/teacher confs, etc. what a time of year to be dealing with several feet of snow.

Pictures from Italy

Emma's favorite pizza in Rome.













Terri and Emma at the Duomo in Milan.








Emma outside of the coliseum. This was one of Emma's favorite sites in Italy.



Emma eating spaghetti outside of the Vatican.

wintery mix

winter definitely here in minnesota--big snow last week; woke to an icy, slippery sunday morning; freezing rain and flurries this morning, with more in the forecast to come. the good news? emma gets to have hockey practice outdoors tomorrow night at north dale!

hockey season off to a big start: emma had two games this past weekend, one win (5-2), one loss (4-0). terri's team scored their first goals last week though they lost 4-2. emma has games weds and sat; t on sunday.

we're hoping to have thanksgiving dinner together on thursday but a bit worried about terri being able to get back from LA as planned weds night with the weather. (she is there for a final ceremony for her mom that happened today).

ben's been busy with band stuff--he is trying out a new singer and player for his group, been invited to play with two other bands, and has several folks at church wanting him to play with them. kind of fun and exciting, though who knows where it'll go. tomorrow, the usual bass lesson.

first snow!

big, wet flakes wafting down all morning--a beautiful first snowfall on a quiet, cozy saturday. ben and hannah outside romping around like little kids; also trying to knock the snow off of various trees, bushes and shrubs. looks like the big old lilac in the west 40 might be a casualty, in fact. still, with nothing really urgent to go do, a great day to hang out and revel in the onset of a new season.

we lit candles...

...for grandma on all saints sunday--ben at hope, doug at grace, and terri and emma in italy.

doug and ben had a busy, church filled weekend overall--they sang in the "Faure Requeim" with the combined hope and grace choirs sunday afternoon (after a rehearsal friday night). it was also the weekend of the ordination and installation of a new campus minister at grace which is why doug was there on sunday morning.

terri and emma seem to be doing well over in milan--they did some sightseeing the first days (saw some 'gory' art, according to emma, and took lots of pictures), and now terri is in conference mode. emma is working on homework and watching strange sports on italian tv while hanging out in the hotel.

a new month

hard to believe it is november already. we are definitely ready. emma, always known for her costumes, dressed up as a grocery bag this year. ben as a super hero (photo not yet available).

terri's hockey team had another game on saturday; they lost, but only 4-0 this time. she'll have to miss a couple of games now as she and emma go to italy at the end of the week. (yes, italy: terri has a conference in milan, and is taking emma for a few days in rome and elsewhere after the meeting).

not again

got home from ben's football game this afternoon (the last JV game of the year; he played offensive line for most of the game; did well and felt well--and they won big, 28-0) to discover we had been burglarized again. the broke in the mudroom window. took our TV, Wii and games, some loose change and cash and (worst of all) ben's laptop. also messed up the adult bedroom but didn't find much there. we've now got a plywood window in place. frustrating, disappointing and disconcerting...

weirdest part: with snow flying for the first time this morning (as it had last year when this happened) ben had a premonition that we should have had someone stay home this afternoon.

last 48 hours, a few things

we got back on the red-eye monday morning from a sad but meaningful weekend with friends and family in LA. more on the memorial celebrating the life of terri's mom in another post...for now, just a few updates.

first the weather: it appears winter is upon us. 55 mph wind gusts last night; still with us this morning along with soggy snow flurries.

second: football. ben's varsity had their playoff game last night in the middle of the weather. they were winning (unexpectedly) 6-0 near end of the first half up in Chisago Lakes when the lights to the stadium and that whole side of town went out when a tree feel on a main line. things just weren't the same when the game resumed at a middle school field with natural grass a few hours later. the final score was something like 40-6 and the team didn't get back until 11:30, cold, wet and deflated.

third: hockey. emma's practicing everyday of course and terri had her first game ever monday night. they lost 10-0. terri had fun and came closest to scoring a goal for her team as anyone. best of all (for those of you who worried about it this weekend): no injuries. next game this saturday night.

hanging in there

swartz/hartmann news:

--emma's (and doug's) soccer team lost in the playoffs on saturday, so no three-peat. played well just couldn't get the ball in the net.

--ben worked his last shift of the season at Connie's on friday, with emma helping out a bit at close. he is now officially unemployed.

--ben's concussion lingers on--mild headache, kind of nauseous when exerted. had a workup at the clinic on thursday. now trying to limit cognitive and physical activity for a while. he even has a note that allows him to lie down at school when he wants, do less homework, have more time on tests, and re-do subpar work. no expiration date--we're worried he might milk this for all its worth.

--last week of JV and 9th grade games this week for football; varsity has playoffs next week, though would be a surprise if they make it far;

--hockey getting started: emma got new gear last night. terri's team has her 2nd practice tonite. also, last week emma tried out to be backup goalie. she did good; we'll see how that goes...

--we're all heading to LA later in the week for terri's mom's funeral. it will be on saturday at the Japanese mission in little tokyo. terri and emma leave weds; doug and ben thurs. back on the red-eye sunday night. little school time missed as this weds-fri are minnesota state teachers meetings.

resting in peace

terri's mom died at home last night, Oct 7, early in the evening. terri, her dad, pauline, nancy, and lisa were all there; chris arrived shortly thereafter. it was sad but something of a blessing to finally have peace, after her courageous struggle with cancer. terri will spend the weekend making some final arrangements and spending time with the family, and return to minnesota shortly thereafter. we will all go back out for a funeral scheduled for Oct 23. everyone's thoughts and prayers much appreciated.

busy waiting

terri's been out in LA doing home hospice for her mom. last thursday she went into a deep sleep but her heart has kept going strong. they have a nurse coming in to help but others having to go back to work so terri and her dad holding down the round-the-clock vigil. terri and family have, fortunately, been able to take the time to make some final decisions and plans. eventually the rest of us will go out as well but for now it is wait and see. (we did postpone the book party we were supposed to host this saturday.)

kids doing their usual stuff for the most part. emma had last regular season soccer game (2-1 loss), and started hockey "warmups." tomorrow is her first official meeting with the orthodist, on her way to braces. ben's had football and school. he had a couple of very good, even great games over the past few days but also developed a headache that got worse and gave his some nausea in yesterday's game. he came out and we went to dr. this morning. turns out he has a concussion. don't really know how he got it but he'll be held out of contact for at least a week (and will miss a couple of games along the way). luckily the Cat scan didn't show any serious or permanent damage so he could be fine. he's also happy that he got a note from the doc saying he should be able to retake any tests that don't go well over the period. doug has meetings with his teachers tomorrow--we'll see how that goes.

her name is emma hartmann...

so, mmsa student council election results are in and the new 7th grade representative is, you guessed it, one of our family members! key to her victory, according to all parties involved (even one of the boys she beat, who had brought donuts for the class), was the last line of her speech: "I'm Emma Hartmann, and I approved this message." Don't be surprised if she calls you looking for fundraising, as this is one of the points of emphasis in her new position.

in other news: ben's got the big homecoming game tomorrow night (complicated by the fact that the sophomores have to play in the C game earlier in the afternoon, as well as that the band wants ben to play with them at halftime). on the academic front, he also got the highest score in his class on a recent AP European history test.

also, terri was called out to LA again on Tuesday to be with her mom. she is resting comfortably at home and a priest from the Japanese mission made a visit earlier in the week. not sure if/when the rest of us will go out, but prayers for all much appreciated.

fall flying by

hard to believe it is already almost the end of september. a huge couple of weeks. terri back and forth from LA; multiple football and soccer games; the start of band, school, and choir (ben and doug singing in the hope choir last few weeks.)

today marked the end of fall softball for emma. they had a very good extra season, lots of close, well played games including an extra inning win in the tourney this morning and then a 2-1 loss in the afternoon that knocked them out. emma gave her usual super solid effort at short, and is wishing the season wasn't over. fortunately, she's got soccer still going (team undefeated so far) and hockey starting soon. she's also thinking about running for 7th grade rep on the new student council. (two of her 8th grade friends from softball got Pres and VP this last week).

Ben is getting all the football he can handle--dressing right now for 3 games a week, varsity, JV and C team. Varsity results a bit mixed--2 and 2 at this point with the big homecoming game against arch rival Central this thursday night. a win would get them back into the hunt for the city title. he's also having to play O-line for the C games b/c not enough 9th grade big men are available. he's had some very solid efforts there but mostly seems to be enjoying the JV games now that that unit has come together. they had a big, 38-22 win against Minneapolis South this past Weds. Ben had a real test on the line going up against a kid who was at least 5 inches taller, 25 pounds heavy and probably a little faster much of the time. he more than held his own on offense, as a number of the big plays were to his side in the 2nd and 3rd quarters. of course, not everything is football: he's got a bunch of tough classes (including AP European History), is playing in the band (a small group of them played a fund raiser this weekend at the Park), and still working at Connie's for 3 more weeks (when the season ends). oh, and can't forget his weekly bass lessons which he loves.

what else? oh, today's biggest news is that terri had a tryout for a hockey team this morning. we spent the day yesterday getting her gear. she skated this morning, with drills and a scrimmage. seems like she had a lot of fun, and it sounds like she will play on a C3 ladies team out of Bloomington. they'll play twice a week with games on the weekend. emma is already giving her pointers. also, earlier in the week she took Doug (for his birthday) to see the writer Jonathan Franzen, author of the new book Freedom, to the talking volumes series at Minnesota Public Radio.

School's back in full swing for the kids. Emma seems to be enjoying the first few weeks of 7th grade. She likes spending the days with her friends. As for classes, math tops the list. No school sports this fall, but busy with fall softball and rec soccer. Ben's feeling comfortable in the Como High halls now that it's the second week of school and his second year in high school. He had a great C squad game yesterday against Humboldt, starting and playing most of the game on both offense and defense. He dresses for Varsity tonight. Jazz band has been a bit of a challenge, with the 6:30 am start time and the instructor's high expectations--but he feels up for the challenge. Favorite class right now is AP European History. Here's some pics: Emma on the first day of school, and Ben with his signature flannel at the state fair (Hannah in background).

big sports week

first week of school actually turned out to be a big sports week. started with emma's first soccer game--and a winner. emma had her first legitimate goal ever: she took a long cross right in front of the goal and banged it into the back of the net on one touch. a professional looking effort.

ben dressed for 3 football games, all against arch rival johnson. the varsity won a rain soaked defensive battle on friday night 12-8. JV and C team both lost, but both also had a few exciting plays. ben played the whole game on offensive line in both with his old favorite number #52. he also got in for the last two defensive plays of the game on weds, and made two tackles. not bad.

doug and emma went to the gophers football game on saturday--the game wasn't really worth remembering but we were in the big, fancy 6th floor suite which was lots of fun. free food and drink, and comfy, cushy seats. more fun was emma's softball double-header on sunday: the red hots won one game and lost one but the one they lost was a classic that was decided on a walkoff, extra inning hit. emma caught that whole game. she had some great throw--and though she didn't get the call on any, she did put her fifth girl of the year out of a game in tears when her throw hit her sliding into third.

ben has C game weds after school and then varsity game thursday. perpetual celler dweller Humbolt is the opponent so he might have a chance for action in the big game again. emma's got soccer tomorrow and then fall ball playoffs on the weekend.

from summer time to school time--and football!

Emma with her Spongebob cropart in the background at Fair

(Ben # 68 in huddle with JV team)

(Ben at line of scrimmage)

wrapping up a busy week of end-of-summer activities today wth a trip to the fair (doug, terri, and emma), an afternoon shift at Conny's (Ben), and a BBQ with the Johnson's for dinner. Then, home to pack our bags and get to sleep early for the first day of school tomorrow.

this past week highlighted by ben's first varsity football game. The Como Cougars played Harding on their new turf field friday night. clear but unseasonably cool weather did nothing to slow down our favorite team. they got ahead 22-0 in the first half on the way to a 36-0 victory. the margin of victory was such that some of the sophomores saw action in the 4th quarter including Ben who wore #77 for the game and was listed in the program at 5' 9" 190 pounds.

His first play was at right end on defense. It was emma's favorite play of the night. Ben was in a four point stance ready to engage the big senior tackle he was lined up against. On the snap, he lunged forward as the Harding linemen went backwards for a pass. With force and gusto, his body went straight into the turf, face first. Luckily, the play went the other way and only his buddies on the sideline and his fans in the stands noticed. Soon as he walked in the door at home after the game, he was laughing about it (as was emma)--and explaining how different varsity football felt from all of the other games he has played in over the years.

He played 4 or 5 plays then on offense that went much better. A run and a couple of pass plays. Ben protected the QB well--so well that on one of the plays Terri let out a big cheer for #77 that had the Como fans around us all puzzled because the pass feel incomplete. "I was just watching Ben," she explained. "He had a good block."

This week will be a busy week. Ben will likely suit up for 3 different games--Varsity, JV (on saturday, where he will play a lot--this week's game was a forfeit), and even C squad (which lacks sufficient linemen.)

Emma will have a lot too: soccer on tuesday night (second game; their first was a forfeit too), then fall softball on the weekend.

And the winner is...

the results are in--emma's spongebob got second place in the extremely competitive junior 12 and under crop art division. we're really proud of her, and lots of folks are telling us how great her piece looks at the fair. she celebrated with a sleepover last night. terri, ben, and doug went to the Rush concert at the State Fair. it's a classic rock group terri has wanted to see for 30 years, since 8th grade. it was a lot of fun--they played for over 3 hours in front of a passionate sold out crowd. best overheard line: the forty-year-olds in front of us, inspired to plan their jam session for the next day: "we need the smoke. we gottabreak out the fogger. yeah, man, the fogger."

ben's football team had their big, multi-team scrimmage this morning (all went well!) and tomorrow afternoon emma's softball team has another double header. soccer for her (coached by doug) begins tuesday night. in the meantime, the four of us have tickets for the Vikings 3rd preseason game tonite with brett favre and the starters scheduled to play into the third quarter.

Spongebob Goes to the Fair

Emma finished and turned in her Spongebob seed art to the Minnesota State Fair today. It was a fun summer project. All seeds and plant parts had to be from crops grown in Minnesota. Emma used wild rice for the black, safflower for white, millet for yellow, peas for green, flax for brown, wheat and barley for sand, and dyed millet for the red, blue and maroon.

minnesota summer

things have been busy since we got back from LA. doug went to Atlanta to the annual sociology meetings this past weekend (he's back now); ben started two-a-days for football (and continues to work evening shifts at connie's). emma's back at softball with a fall league team (the red hots) that has their first game on sunday and working on her seed art for the state fair (pic of work in progress here). terri's been trying to keep everything organized and moving forward. the big event of the day? we got two new mattresses delivered and set-up--a new queen for doug and terri, and a memory foam full for ben. sweet dreams, everyone.

wrapping up LA trip

we have spent the last week here in Temple City with Terri's family. everyone here, even julie and keith from georgia. no big events, just lots of eating and swimming and hanging out. doug, ben, emma, and nancy did get to see the dodgers win an exciting, extra inning ball game at dodger stadium--and the two ladies got a good bit of attention with their wigs (see above). heading back to minnesota this evening, with one more week of regular, summer activities before doug goes to Atlanta for the annual sociology meetings and ben starts two-a-day football practices.

society pages and LA

hey, hey everyone: doug and his sociology crew are launching a new website today, a spinoff of the Contexts.org site they've been developing over the past couple of years. This one is called "The Society Pages" and can be found at:

http://thesocietypages.org

The idea is to track social science research that regular folks might find important and interesting. It will still have the contexts.org stuff (doug and chris are still editing the magazine for another year) but will try to go beyond sociology to incorporate work from other social sciences like psychology and political science.

In other news, we leave for 5 days in Los Angeles bright and early tomorrow morning. Will spend the rest of today wrapping up and getting ready. Terri taking a computer training course his morning; Ben works, and has a bass lesson; Emma reading like crazy, and going golfing with Doug later.

oh, and a belated happy anniversary to denise and pete! seems like just yesterday...

super (hot) summer day

title says it all. nevertheless, cooking burgers on the grill as soon as ben gets home from connie's. with bball and softball done, lots of time to do stuff. terri going to an author's presentation at garrison keillor's book store later. yesterday, there was golf and tennis. ben had football. looking forward, next week, to going out to LA to see terri's mom and family. even julie will be there from georgia.

Hagia Sophia Pictures

reverse order: sitting outside after going in; the old christian mosaic uncovered; ben pondering;

terri in front of wishing hole; external view

Summer Ball Pictures

Emma's softball team between games at Tricounty Qualifying Tournament
Ben's team at first playoff game where they won 22-4.

Ben and Emma both making rare appearances playing third base.

summer ball wrapping up and other stuff

emma's team lost two games in this weekend's state tournament (one really close) so softball is over. yesterday, terri took 6 of the girls to the movies and all but one were talking about how they miss it already.

ben's bball team, on the other hand, surprisingly (and decisively) won their first round playoff game last night, 22-4. advance to second round tomorrow (thursday) night over at como park. should be interesting.

had a little world cup party at the house on sunday--most of us happy to see spain win, not only because they played better but b/c we had done spanish snacks for the event.

today's schedule includes drums, tennis and art for emma; bass and football for ben. doug is planning to go to license bureau to renew his driver's license (which has to be done by friday for birthday deadline reasons).

p.s. the instanbul pics are coming slowly but more will be on the way. thanks for your patience.

More Istanbul Pics

Galata Tower (we went up the first day for the great views)

Ben, Terri and Emma at Topkapi Palace (Bosphorus in back)

Emma at a village on the Asian side of Bosphorus.

Doug and Murat in front of posters advertising Doug's talk.

Walking on beach along the Black Sea

Fancy Fish Dinner after Day Cruise.

first turkey shots

first day on our own, in front of Blue Mosque

Summer Palace we went to with Sinan

Ben on Bosphorous Cruise, Bridge to Asia in Background

holiday weekend update

the technology took a bit of figuring out, so we haven't gotten the turkey pics up yet; in the meantime, terri and emma found a good price on plane tix and decided to take a last-minute holiday weekend trip out to LA to see the swartz family. doug and ben played golf this morning, and spent some time at the ball field seeing if ben might have a few pitches up his sleeve if needed in the upcoming playoffs (they begin the tuesday after next; he played short stop a few innings this last week and did well). the old ball team hasn't had a great summer (2-7 right now) but a lot of close games, everyone in the playoffs, and a couple of key kids supposed to be back next week. other big news for the week was the start of summer music lessons--emma's doing her usual drums, and ben started bass lessons (one of his birthday presents).

turkey trip

okay, so we've been back a week from our travels to the city and country that bridges europe and asia. plenty of time to get over jet lag and begin processing and reflecting, right? well, maybe...anyway, over the next few days, our plan is to post photographs, stories, and memories from the trip. today, we'll get started with a basic overview.

most of our time was spent in Instanbul--a modern, cosmopolitan city of some 15 million people, that sweeps across europe and asia where the Sea of Marmara flows through the Bosphorus Straight into the Black Sea (or "African American" Sea, as Ben liked to say). Our days were a mix of historic sites and tourist spectacles along with several day cruises to villages and islands in the area. Some days we were on our own, with only our guidebook and pocket translators to guide us; others, we spent with students and former students from Turkey. Our home base was the apartment of a relative of one of our students in a neighborhood call "Bahcelievler" that was very near the airport but quite a ways from the usual tourist destinations and attractions. We relied upon taxis, trams and other public transport to get around, bought food at the markets, and ate at a wide variety of Turkish restaurants. We also spent one weekend in Bursa, one of the first capitals of the Ottoman Empire and the terminus of Marco Polo's Silk Road.

day 1 (6/13): walking tour of Taksim and Karakoy, on the east side of the Golden Horn, with hosts Murat and Nina (a historian of the Ottoman empire who teaches a course on Istanbul history). Sights included: Galata Tower, several unique and historic mosques, and the financial district. Included a traditional Turkish lunch, baklava, and backgammon and tea at an outdoor cafe.

day 2 (6/14): midday tour of Topkapi Palace (!) and then afternoon of browsing and shopping at the Grand Bazaar. Moses' staff, Abraham's sauce pot and Mohammad's beard; kebap dinner; Ben's Shaq swatch; waiter who wanted emma to dance.

day 3 (6/15): Bosphorous Day Cruise and then extravagent, multicourse fish dinner in Sayrier with Murat and Nina. Ben's ziplock bag.

day 4 (6/16): the big ones and the old ones: the Hagia Sophia; Hippodome; Blue Mosque; Roman Cistern. trying to pronounce "tramway".

day 5 (6/17) Beach, Bikes, and Fish: Day Cruise to the Prince's Islands. bike accidents (not ours), iranian tourists swimming in their skivvies, and a cat named victor.

day 6 (6/18): a day with our student, Sinan: Turkish breakfast, summer palace, and the World Cup. Doug asking for "change."

days 7 and 8 (6/19-20): trip to Bursa, hosted by Aysegul and her friend: iskender kebap, silk shops, chestnuts, monuments and mosques, whirling dervishes, ice cream with a knife, and ice skating back in istanbul

6/21: 3:00 am ride to airport with 14 hour trip back home, through Amsterdam

birthday and ball

you know what today is, right? ben's birthday! (also his first day of summer school; he's taking gym class, a state requirement, so he can still stay in band and spanish during the regular year. he says now he'll know what it is like to a be scholarship athlete at a texas school). anyway, we've got steaks planned for tonite and a few presents, though he says all he wants is a new pair of jeans. he's also got football practice, work, and two baseball games later in the week.

today emma will be playing tennis and golf and recovering from a huge softball weekend. after losing their first game in the year-end league tourney, emma and her teammates reeled off 4 straight wins to earn their way into the state tournament. some really exciting games along the way (along with lots of rain) including several throw-outs of base stealers at third by "hartmann" (as she is called by her coaches and teammates) who wore the gear for every inning of all six games. one of the highlights for us: a bang-bang play at the runner who tried to go through our catcher ended up having to get carried off the field.

coming the rest of the week here on hartmann home: an overview of our turkey trip, followed (hopefully) with day-by-day summary and photos over the week.

we're baa-aack!

actually, we've been back since early in the week but have been so busy catching up and going to baseball and softball games, we haven't had time to write much less give a full accounting of our fascinating time in turkey. that will be coming, replete with photos from the new family camera. but first today, we've got emma's final season tournament (getting started late b/c of severe storms last night), ben works, and then (probably) the annual bbq fest over at our neighborhood spot schroeder's.

ps: two baby robins left the next yesterday morning. it appears we have our front door back.

More Early Summer Sights

The robin has been spending a lot of time on the nest these days, leaving for only brief periods. We see her nudging her eggs around. Here is an updated picture of the eggs--they are looking a bit more round all around. Terri and the kids are hoping to catch a glance at the baby robins before leaving for Istanbul. Also hanging around the house are baby rabbits. Here's a picture of our favorite--this one is brave and likes to hang out in the backyard near the screened porch. The rabbits have really been enjoying our garden this year. Pretty much eating all of our green bean plants and much of our swiss chard. It seems to be time to build a fence. Also decorating the back deck are these purple flowers. Can't believe how many blooms we have this year.

Doug left for Istanbul today. He thought he was leaving tomorrow, but then received the courtesy email from Delta that it was time to check in. Luckily, he was pretty ready to go and was able to pack everything together quickly. We planned on playing golf today--good thing we didn't.

Emma and her team had two victories against South Saint Paul in their double header tonight. First game was a close one at 6-5, but the second was a runaway at 23-9. Emma had a great hit to left field and laid down a perfect bunt. She also had a great play at catcher, picking off a runner at 1st base to end the second game. Guess practiced paid off.

Ben's working hard studying for finals. He has a busy week, final exams, work, a baseball game, playing in the orchestra for Como's graduation, then off to Istanbul after school on Friday. He came home today from school with a huge classroom map of the Soviet Union. His World History teacher thought it was time to purge the outdated map, and Ben offered to take it home. He plans on putting it up in the basement, I guess to inspire him and the band.

Baseball Season Starts

Summer baseball has started for Ben, even if school isn't out quite yet. He's playing for North Dale Gold with some of the kids he's played with over the years, and some new kids too. First base is still his main position, but also trying out some new positions including third base and outfield. He seems to be doing well at bat, with several hits at the start of the season. Doug's coaching the team, after taking a break last year. This week they played a close game against Hayden Heights (on St. Paul's east side of town last week), losing 3-2. Ben had the 2 RBI's with a hit to the left side of the field.

Signs of Early Summer

A robin has decided to call the Hartmann Home a home of her own. She built a nest on our front door wreath and, as you can see here, has laid four eggs.

We are looking forward to seeing the 4 baby robins in a few weeks.

Enjoying other signs of new life that spring and early summer bring. Early plants are starting to grow in the garden. This year we have tomatoes, bok choy, cabbage, peppers, beans, swiss chard, squash, and hoping to grow some lettuce and spinach. Harvested rhubarb for our dessert last night. Gooseberries are almost ready to pick for our favorite gooseberry pie.

Our peonies are in full bloom. They are gorgeous, as

they are every year.

Also enjoying the activities of early

summer, such as BBQing, gardening, walks, and badminton.

We spend the evenings at the ball field. Emma's school softball season ended on Thursday. They lost in a very close, well-played championship game, ending with a 10-9 score, landing them second place in in the CAA 7th grade league. Now Emma's softball efforts will be focused on her city team "North Area." Ben is playing baseball for North Dale, and Doug is coaching that team. They had a debut win last Thursday evening against West Side, 15-6. Both kids are looking forward to getting out of school for the summer. Emma's last day is this Friday, and Ben's is the following Friday. The warm weather makes it feel as if summer is already here.

hot but not bothered

besides record-setting hot weather (95 degrees here yesterday) here's what we've got: emma's year-end band concert tonite (after ben gets home from connie's); north area double-header tomorrow night; caa championship game thursday after school; nana and papa arrive on friday. who knows what all we'll do with them, except we do know that we've got tickets reserved for the dead sea scrolls exhibit at the science museum saturday afternoon.

other news that got lost in the softball excitement last week: a special dinner at Little Szechuan with hannah and her family (their first time there) on saturday; doug and ben singing a couple of african songs with the hope choir at church on sunday; terri and friends discussing "Eat, Love, Pray" on sunday afternoon; garden planting around heat, humidity, and scattered showers.

no way? way! a game for the ages

bottom of the 6th, we're losing by two runs 10-8 to the best team in the league (undefeated two years running including a 13-2 beat-down they put on us last friday), and our first two hitters strike out. not looking good. however, we have already come back twice in this game, have had a couple of two-out rallies, and are at the top of the order.

Stephanie E, our second hitter, comes up to the plate. it is 6:00 sharp, and the church bells start to ring and an emergency horn sounds. (you can't make this up). S.E. draws a walk, her third of the game. the next batter, Katie W., who had just made a game saving catch of a sinking liner to end their rally in the previous inning, hits a sharp single to left, her third of the game. up comes our cleanup hitter, sadie hennen. sadie's a great hitter but has been struggling of late and isn't feeling well (a cold and a collision with first base in the third inning). our own emma hartmann is on deck.

Sadie takes the first pitch for a questionable called strike. (both teams agreed that the umpiring was not a game highlight; emma said the strike zone was the size of a baseball, and that kept bouncing around from inning to inning). she swings at a pitch low and outside for strike two. two balls, and then she fouls off a couple before the count goes full. later, the team would say it seemed like a movie. pressure situation. every one went quiet with everything on the line. produce or go home. sadie, as you should guess by now, chose the former. she got an outside pitch right in her zone and drove it over the right fielder's head. doug, coaching on first, had confidence in emma getting katie home if it had come to that, but it wasn't needed. sadie raced around the bases for a walk-off, game-winning three run homer. and the celebration was on.

over pizza and soda at Abetto's, parents, players and coaches savored the win. it wasn't the cleanest game ever, but there were some great plays and loads of drama. other memorable details that were hashed over: a suicide squeeze dropped down by Steph S. with two outs that scored abbey; several key strikeouts by Hannah K. including one flip change for a third strike past their top hitter that silenced everyone; emma taunting them with dives back to third that turned into an overthrow and run; a near pickoff throwing behind the runner at first; some great at-bats by girls down in the order who forced their pitcher to throw lots and lots of pitches; great catching by emma who didn't allow a single runner to advance on the bases after the 3rd inning.

quite a cap-off to a crazy, hazy, hectic week of tournaments and playoffs. emma and six other girls on the team have played 9 softball games over the past five days. fortunately, the girls get the weekend off to rest up for Nativity Blue--the only other undefeated team in the league (though our game with them was rained out)--on Tuesday the 25th at 4:00. it should be fun and once again we'll cast ourselves as the underdog. after yesterday, anything seems possible.

bring 'em on!

so emma's mmsa team had their first round playoff game today. fortunately, they played their best game of the season and won handily. emma, batting 5th, had probably her best game of the year too: she was 3 for 4 with a double and 4 RBIs (3 with two outs). she also had her usual solid game at catcher including one tag-out double play at the plate. (credit sadie and emily with solid throws). so who's next in the semifinals? the old archrival, st. john the baptist, the only team we have lost to in two years. (the second loss being a season ending blowout last friday that we neglected to mention here in the blog). odds probably aren't the best but we've seen this group of girls rise to the occasion before.

also tomorrow: ben's honor's assembly at school (doug and terri got special invitations) and the final celebratory reception for terri's tenure on campus.

oh and one other thing we almost forgot about: the mmsa safety patrol team--captained by our favorite sixth grader--took second place in the city patrol marching competition this afternoon. (ben will have you know that the team got first and third when he was at mmsa, though failed to place last year when both emma and ben were on the squad).

finally

great spring day: slept late, caught up on gardening and yardwork in the afternoon, ben working an extra shift at connie's tonite. late night, there was a party for the official, final notice of terri's tenure at the Uggen's. (this wedsnesday will be the campus event). terri and doug wrap up grading and the semester this week, emma's school softball playoffs start tuesday.

april in may

apparently we're making up for a warm april. snow in some spots on friday night, cold and windy with flurries and drizzle on saturday; frost saturday night. ben wasn't needed to work the ice cream stand friday night and we nearly froze at emma's softball tournament on saturday. (they won one and lost two but were competitive in all. emma played well--getting a couple of runners out at home (they almost had a triple play), a couple of big hits, some beautiful bunts, and one great dive back to the bag when she was running at first where she was out but looked like a real big leaguer.

had a nicer mother's day though. did some yard work and gardening, including the planting of some blue berry bushes we got for terri. the highlight was going out to the driving range after church and hitting balls with terri's new golf clubs. that's right, we got her golf clubs for mother's day. They seem pretty nice: big oversized drivers, hybrid irons, graphite shafts, and a cool purple bag. Now we've got to get her lessons and a glove (for the blister she developed trying them all out).

week ahead includes softball games for emma (last two games of the regular season for the still undefeated MMSA team), a band concert for ben (thursday night), and a tenure and promotion party for terri on friday. doug and terri will also be spending a lot of time grading the papers now rolling in with finals week.

history day results

a long and stressful day at the U on saturday but ultimately rewarding. ben and wyatt made it through three rounds of competition (including a runoff against another como team in the second round to make it to the finals) and ended up with an honorable mention maroon medal at the awards ceremony at the end of the day. (given that they reached the finals, we think they probably finished 6th or 7th but only the top 5 spots are specified). ben's friend abby and her partner got 4th in exhibits, and a number of former mmsa students at other schools did well also. we had a celebration feast at famous dave's to mark the occasion.

week ahead includes two school softball games for emma as well as a double-header that marks the beginning of the North Area season; ben works three shifts at Connie's and has a couple of tests coming up; and the last week of classes for the two college kids. also hoping to finalize travel plans for our trip to Turkey in June.

news of the week

emma's team won two more games (they are now 5-0; emma had a big double over the center fielder's head this afternoon--one of her best hits even). terri got the letter from the Provost confirming her tenure (for life!). doug had his last lecture of the semester (just reviews and an exam next week). and ben spent the week tweaking his forward pass documentary for the state competition tomorrow on campus at the U. oh yeah, and we got another set of great report cards from both kids.

blue skies and spring showers

its raining this morning but overall we've been enjoying one of the warmest, sunniest and earliest springs ever in Minnesota. it has made for great softball, lots of business at Connie's, and wonderful evening walks.

emma's team now 3-0...but a scary moment in this week's game when our top pitcher (emma's good friend and usual battery-mate hannah kampman, also daughter of doug's co-coach gary) got hit on the side of the head with a line drive. she had to leave the game but turned out to be okay and the girls pulled it together for a comeback victory.

last night was the annual sociology department event. it was nothing special but we were happy that there was no burgalism at our house when we returned (unlike last year, if you recall). tonite is the MMSA school auction. tomorrow night, then, we are all invited to our friend Ann Meier's house for Chinese hotpot--a fondue-like feast that we had a couple of times in Beijing.

oh yeah, and we went to our first twin's game at the new field on Weds night. it was a great evening in a spectacular setting, especially as we've been having fun following the twins's success here in the early season.

a couple of firsts

emma's school softball team (coached by doug) won their first game of the year today, 8-3. emma went 1-2 and did a great job catching as usual. for his part, ben got his first paycheck from connie's this week. its going straight into the bank though he is thinking of getting a new bass sometime this summer. this weekend, emma has a confirmation retreat with her Hope sunday school class at a camp in wisconsin. ben works a couple of shifts. if the weather is nice, maybe we can sneak in some family golf or tennis too.

a good day and a birthday

a wonderful spring day in our neck of the woods yesterday, made all the better for the kids as both were off of school. ben spent the day with the boys in the band, and then had them as well as hannah and her friend over to eat dinner and watch the movie Dune last night. emma went out to lunch (Indian) with terri, did a little shopping with doug, and then went golfing with doug and terri. they also watched the movie "paper heart." ben works the night shift at connie's tonite, but the focus for the day is celebrating t's birthday. presents include: a walking golf cart, watch, book, and (the big one) a Wii Fit. oh yeah, and last sunday's easter picture

happy easter!

kids have both been off of school the past couple of days, emma beginning her spring break (which continues into next week) and ben at the end of his. the timing couldn't be/have been better with the warm, spring weather.

emma happy to get a break from softball and wrap up a big school report and presentation on Posedion. (her oversized trident spear was especially imposing, and the whole thing has prompted us to eat Gyros after church last sunday and her to be surprisingly interested in Clash of the Titans.)

ben pretty active over the period, reorganizing the basement for his band and workout equipment, helping Hannah's family do some spring cleaning, and (the big news) starting his first job at Connie's Creamy Cone. He worked three shifts this week. First day he was nervous and said the cones he made were messy but he came home satisfied. Each subsequent day has gotten easier--last night he came home with some mistakes (chocolate ice cream, and a crunch cone in a cup) as well as four or five bucks in tips! He can't wait to get his first check.

doug was in chicago the past couple of days for the midwest sociology meetings, talking about proposals for new book projects with editors and meeting with former graduate students of his now in positions and careers of their own. everyone, it seems, had trouble believing we've now got a high schooler in the house. terri putting together an easter menu for tomorrow, getting ready to dye easter eggs today, and wondering what kinds of easter baskets are appropriate for our now not-so-little kids. (the rest of us, btw, thinking about birthday presents for her for next week.)

back home

we made it back on this red-eye from LA this morning, and after a few hours of sleep are trying to figure out whose bracket is busted the worst. in between the wedding (which was at the Trump National Golf Club in Palos Verdes) and seeing family (terri's parents and sisters and then chris and kids came yesterday), we did watch a bunch of bball. also played some family two on two at the park (emma and doug versus terri and ben seems to be the best matchup).

on to state!

just back from regionals at minnesota history day. ben and wyatt's documentary "football, the forward pass, and muscular americanism" was selected to move ahead to the state competition (at the U) in May! they got medals and everything. congrats guys, great work. we're technologically challenged here but maybe we can see about getting it posted here on our site or on youtube or something like that. it features teddy roosevelt and is pretty interesting and definitely educational.

p.s. the temps yesterday (and again today) were record highs for the dates.

first signs of spring

sunny and temps in the 60's today--we took a walk around the lake, played catch, and drove by connie's to get ben's uniform while she was getting the creamy cone ready to open tomorrow. we even fired up the grill for the first time this season last night. it must be spring.

a big week ahead with a late week trip to SoCal for the wedding of terri's high school friend terri ann. an adult only affair so the kids will get some quality time with grandma and grandpa.

tomorrow, ben has regionals for his history day project with wyatt. if they win, they go to state (on the campus of the University of Minnesota!)

speaking of the U, did you see that the Gophers men made it into the big dance? be sure to get your brackets in. we're assuming uncle den-o is the commish for the hartmann clan's annual pool.

Contexts and Aging

so the new winter issue of the sociology magazine doug edits, Contexts, should be in your mail boxes and out on newsstands by now. it has several excellent pieces on aging in America--including a feature on age discrimination, a review of Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino, and a piece by our colleague Phyllis Moen called "Redefining Retirement." if you are interested, in fact, there is a whole special package of materials that have run in the last several issues under the title "Aging in Contexts" taht you and anyone you tell can download for free for the next two weeks at "www.contexts.org."

back on a big weekend

back from brainerd and sitting here watching the closing ceremonies. we were up north for emma's hockey tournament--they didn't get a win but played several of the best teams in the state, competed well and had a good time with the great weather. emma had an assist and a penalty in one game. we also had a lot of fun playing boot hockey on the lake and winter golf (with tennis balls in the snow).

ben stayed back home and made great progress with wyatt on their history day project ("Football, Teddy Roosevelt and Muscular Americanism: The Invention of the Forward Pass"). he also played his last bball game of the year--where he actually got to start, scored a basket or two, and grabbed a handful of rebounds. He also got great news--"life changing" according to the person who gave it to him: he landed a job at Conny's Creamy Cone! He gets trained in in a week or two, as soon as the weather is good enough for customers to start wanting ice cream. Spring is definitely in the air...

since valentine's day

so here's some of what's been going on since valentine's day:

--emma was captain of her team for middle school "science bowl;" they went 1-2 while competing against teams that included 8th graders. she had a lot of fun and has a cool t-shirt with einstein sticking out his tongue to show for it;

--ben's had a bunch of bball games. his team is about .500. he's getting to play about five minutes a game and probably averaging a basketball and a couple of rebounds an outing;

--terri's leg is finally getting better. she actually went skating a bit on sunday in fact. now if she can just overcome her cough and not let it get into her chest (like last year) everyone will be happy and healthy;

--ben has been working on his history day project with his buddy wyatt johnson. the topic is innovation and their project is about the invention of the forward pass in football. it was brought in to try to save the game after a series of injuries and deaths. teddy roosevelt was involved b/c he believed football was important for turning boys into men for the country, what ben is calling 'muscular americanism;'

--doug is having fun talking about the olympics in his sport class. also the new winter issue of contexts just mailed: it has a number of pieces on aging in america in it and they are hoping to get some more media attention to it by posting those as a bundle on the website starting the first of march: go to Contexts.org to check it out;

--emma's hockey team finished out the regular season playoffs with a loss this weekend. emma had a really strong second half of the season including a couple of strong shots on goal the last couple of games. this coming weekend the team travels up to Brainard for a season-ending tournament (and probably some fun swimming and hanging out).

--ben will be staying with his friends wyatt and then nick while the rest of us are gone up north--he's got a bball game and then a concert he is planning to go to.

--oh yeah and the weather: despite some 30 degree days of melting and some birds starting to sing, we've still got a lot of snow on the ground and ice cycles like you wouldn't believe off our roof.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Celebrating Valentines with chocolate fondue and homemade cream puffs. We're all headed out for a stroll through Como Park Conservatory, hoping to see some flowers and visit the sloth. It's a nice, sunny day in MN, although temps in the 20s. Doug and Ben sang at church this morning in the "young adult" choir. Ben and his friend, Hannah, are watching Disney videos. Doug surprised Terri with some flowers. Catching some of the Olympics when we have time. Enjoyed watching Apollo Ono skate for Silver last night, and hope to watch some of the US women's hockey game today--especially excited to see some of the players we have met, including Natalie Darwitz and Gigi Marvin who coached Emma this summer at hockey camp. Several US team members came out to meet Emma's team at North Dale, so it will be fun to watch them represent the US at the Olympics. Happy Valentines to everyone!