Fathers Day fishing!!

 

All Tom wanted for Fathers Day was a day out on the lake, fishing with the kids. And, boy did he get it!  The 1st 4 casts, for both him and Billy, OFF THE DOCK, landed them a fish each time. It was crazy! Large mouth bass, sunnies and blue gill galore!  The weather was perfect, they fished, Tracy drove the boat and read her book and it was an amazing day.

The kids even stuck around for dinner (a random sampling of BBQ items from Cub Foods) and Kay made the most killer egg bake for Sunday morning. AND...extra bonus, family dinner on Sunday night as well!  He got a VMI flag, new red converse sneakers and tickets to Springsteen on Broadway in NYC.  

I'd say, this Fathers Day goes down in the history books as epic.  We missed Jimmy but talked to him, on Facetime, twice on Sunday. (He spent the day lounging at his pool apartment in DC - not a bad life)

Sending out love, peace, health and gratitude for ALL the fathers in our live...Tom, Jeremiah, Jim, the kids birth fathers and their foster fathers.  They are all loving, kind, generous, funny, smart and our biggest cheerleaders. SO grateful to have them in our lives.  Much love to all forms of fathers today and all year. XOXOXO  TTJKB 

Year 27 done!!

 

We did it! My 27^th MS150 in the books and what a great MS150 year it was!   I’d like to thank you for the collective thoughts that brought the ‘cold wave’ to us for the ride!!  (“cold” being relative. It was < 90 degrees😊)

 With lack of training this year, we didn’t push the speed at all…..and discovered that we still did a pretty quick job of it anyway.  Ned, Wendy and I are a good team.  Lots to talk about, reminders to drink water and stretch, fun and cheering each other on.

 My fundraising is ALMOST there, just shy of $5k….If any of you were waiting to see if I’d really do the ride before you donated. NOW is the time!! Please show me some love. my site 

 If you are one of the generous friends that already donated, THANK YOU!! It truly means the world to me….

 Some highlights below…(keep in mind breaks are included in the stats – a BIG thank you to Wendy for tracking these!)

 Until next year … Peace, love and tailwinds,

T.

 This year’s theme;  Ride where no MS150 has ever been before………

 Friday:

• A quick individual spin by each of us.  Goal => 25 miles. I did 2 12.5 mile loops before 10am…
• Tradition of camping Friday night in a tent and eating Mexican food- Yes!  Wendy and I enjoyed El Jefe and glamped in the big tent in her backyard. (having access to an indoor toilet was WONDERFUL!)
• The ride reserves the 1^st 150 rider numbers for top fundraisers from the prior year. I was # 29 and I think Ned was #14 with over $7k. Not too shabby!

 Saturday:

• The only organized ride as part of the MS150.  Up and at ‘em!!!  Needed to meet Ned in Blaine and have butts on bikes by 6:30am for our scheduled start time!!
• 75 mile route in a loop from Blaine to Stillwater and back.  Who knew you could even do that?!  The 1^st ½ of the ride was delightful (no wind, cool), the 2^nd ½ was up hill, 22 mph headwinds and steadily climbing temps. But we DID IT!

Sunday:

• A 50 mile ride ‘out and back’ on the Dakota Trail.  Flat, shaded and lovely. My perfect ride.
• Butts on bikes at 7:00 am, we checked off another MS150 tradition; “lunch” at Subway (10:30am) and my yearly back bend.
• Done and driving home at Noon, it was a super relaxing morning ride.  Started at 62 degrees, ended at 88 degrees and I took an afternoon nap in the shade with Maui.

Jimmy goes to DC

The day finally arrived with Billy being out of school for the summer the boys were off to DC for a long boys weekend and moving Jimmy into his summer home.

We arrived late Friday night and wandered into a place called Circa at Foggy Bottom. We barely slipped in before the kitchen closed and we were super glad we did.! The food was fantastic and Tom had one of the best chicken sandwiches he has ever tasted. Perfectly grilled with pickles and a dill picked aioli the boys had killer burgers and we were all impressed. Plus this place is literally one block from Jimmy's new digs.

Saturday we headed over to Jimmy's place and started the unpacking and putting away process. We staged everything figured out what we needed and then we headed off to the local Target to fill the fridge and cabinents. We were laser focussed and had the shopping done and put away along with all of Jimmy's stuff by noon!

Then we headed out to become tourist for the day. The Lincoln Memorial, the reflecting pool, The Washington Memorial, World War 2 Memorial along with several other cool sights we had a full day. We were super excited that the Spy Museum was open however when we arrived it turns out you needed to purchase a pass, so we left disappointed. Saturday against his wished but according to his coaches wishes Jimmy got a Covid vacinne. After all the touring Jimmy headed home and Billy and I the hotel for a nap before heading out to dinner.

The Founding Farmers restaurant was a Tracy recommendation and it was fantastic. Chicken sandwich for Jimmy chicken noodle soup for Bill and top notch fried fish for tom it was all killer. Jimmy ordered a chocolate shake saying may is well since it's the last meal on mom and dad.

Sunday morning Jimmy had a work meeting so we slept in a bit then headed out via the subway to show Billy the Capital and where Jimmy will be working and then we headed over to the White House. Then all of a sudden it was time for Billy and Tom to head home.  It was a whirlwind but we got to see a ton of DC, spend some great time together and give Jimmy a hug and send him off to the next chapter in his life!

More to come = as he says "I'm living the dream!"