How was your day today, kid?

This is the first summer that we have not hired a summer babysitter or had one of us home most days of the week. So this is the summer of 10 zillion schedules. Summer gym. Police teen academy. Basketball camp. Boy Scout camp. Theatre practice. Probably Amateur Fireworks Camp -- I can't remember them all.

And I'm left trying to live vicariously through the bits and pieces that my kids tell me about their days.

"So Robbie, how was Boy Scout camp today?"
"Good."
"Just good?" 
"Yeah. Good." 

He's covered in dirt from head to toe, his hair is all jacked up and he smells like little boy, but all he can tell me about the past 8 hours is "good."

Then there's Charlie. He's more forthcoming.

"So how was police academy?"
"Torture. We marched everywhere and people were looking at us funny."
"But did you have fun?"
"Yeah. And they passed around meth, cocaine, crack and weed."

Boy, was he hungry after camp.

Getting information about the day from the teenager is a little trickier. It's an adventure in navigating through stories that must be really funny because she's laughing so hard I can't understand anything she's saying and deciphering grunts that provide the sound effects to the text conversations she's having with 27 of her closest friends at one time.

At least there is one other adult in the family who I can talk to.

"How was your day, Mike?"
"Hmmm? Oh, good. What's there to eat?"

GR-8 Indianapolis Indians ticket giveaway

I don't do a lot of giveaways, but from time to time one comes along that sounds like fun. This is one of those times. The Indiana Family of Farmers has invited me to take my family -- AND ONE OF YOURS -- to the June 11, 2012 Indianapolis Indians baseball game.

A lot of giveaways are set up for families of 4, which leaves someone out if you're in my family of 5. But IFoF is letting me give away 8 tickets to its Family Night at the Ballpark. That means even a big family can have a big night at Victory Field.

Gates open at 5:30pm with the game beginning against the Rochester Red Wings at 7:05pm. In addition to tickets to the game, the winner of this giveaway is invited to join IFoF for an in-game picnic that begins at 7:30pm. You can choose to watch the game from the Coors Light Picnic area or from Section 120 on the first base side of the stadium.

Sounds great, right?  

Here's what you have to do to enter:

Simply leave a comment with your favorite thing about going to a baseball game AND how many tickets you'll need. If you want all 8 tickets, great. If you only need 4 or 5, let me know that too and I can give the other tickets away to someone else. Be sure to leave your e-mail address or make sure your e-mail address is available on your profile.

For extra entries:

1. Like the 4th Frog Blog on Facebook and leave a comment below that you did.
2. Like the Indiana Family of Farmers on Facebook and leave a comment below that you did.

Entries will be taken until Friday, May 25 at 8pm. I'll use Random.org to choose a winner (or winners if the first person doesn't need all 8 tickets).

Good luck! I hope to see you at Victory Field on June 11!

Time to frag, again?

How can it be Friday again? It seems that it was just Friday two days ago. But the calendar says Friday and you know what that means...Fragments with Mrs. 4444s. So here goes nothing...

* Resolve. Willpower. Motivation. Good sense. Whatever you call it, I seem to have lost it when it comes to diet and exercise. I start out the day being really good. Then a few things slip in here and there and before I know it...ka-blooey! I really must start recording what I eat.

*Caralyn -- winner of the Chex Mix prize pack -- has not responded to me yet. So Caralyn, if you're reading this, e-mail me at 4thfrog70 (at) gmail (dot) com by Saturday at 6pm. If I don't hear from you, I'll have to draw another name.

* Annie is going to the midnight showing of the Harry Potter movie tonight. I want to watch Part 1 over again, then hop in the car and go to a showing of Part 2 at a more sensible time.

* There are 5 Amys here at the Bloggy Conference. FIVE. In my sorority pledge class, there were 7 (out of 37 girls). Six in my high school graduating class. Didn't mothers in the 1970s have any creativity? (Love you, Mom!)

* I think this might be the weekend I can kiss this iPhone 3G goodbye. 3G. Not 3GS. Not 4.0. When some college kids I was with recently saw that I'm still using a 3G they looked at me like I'd just sprouted pteradactyl wings.

* We have one month of summer left and I'm finding it very difficult to squeeze in a mini-vacation for the family. Between summer school, high school orientation, parent orientation and work, when's a girl supposed to get away for a little R&R. I mean besides this bed-to-myself-no-cooking-for-anyone blog conference I'm at.

Ok. Brain emptied -- or at least too tired to squeeze out any more fragments. If you're craving more fragments, hit up Mrs. 4444s website.

Fragments, already

It took me 5 long minutes to come up with that winner of a title. I think I've caught writer's block from my friend Insomnimom. Hopefully dishing it out in small doses via Mrs. 4444s Friday Fragments will help shake things loose.

School's out. And back in. The boys finished up on Tuesday. Annie started summer school on Wednesday. Then the next two weeks are camps for the boys -- sports camp, art camp, science camp. Why does everything happen in June? June is when I want to kick back and relax. Offer camps in July when we're all sick of each other again.

This is Charlie on one of the last days of school -- Field Day. Who could resist a charmer like this?

Who knew that my lack of social life would elicit such a response? Lots of interesting comments re: the reality (or not) of Facebook. And one sad comment about the effect of having children on the capacity for fun, which I will respond to in a future post. As far as Facebook goes, I think I'm pretty honest about my life in my comments. If I'm having a fat day or a crummy day, I don't mind putting it out there. The same if something good happens. But I know some people only put the "pretty" stuff on their statuses.

I made a new recipe to take to a pitch-in the other night. It was an easy enough recipe that even a bad cook like me couldn't mess it up:

Guacamole Kabobs

2 avacados
2 TBS lime juice
2 TBS cilantro
1/4 tsp salt
Cherry or grape tomatoes

Cut the avacados down the middle, remove the pit, cut the flesh from the skin. Cube the avacado. Toss with lime juice, cilantro and salt. Put on party pics, alternating tomato, avacado, tomato. The yumminess of guacamole, without the added calories and fat of chips to dip in it.

Question:  Parents of high schoolers -- Does your kid have an internet-capable phone? Why or why not?

I think that's about it for this week's edition of Friday Fragments. Until next time, join the 4th Frog fun on Facebook, where you can see things like this little gal. (Her name's Tootsie and I met her in the nail salon!)

Don't forget to visit Mrs. 4444s for more fragmented folks!

Indiana: Try it. You'll like it.

We interrupt this blog for a brief commercial message about fun and affordable family vacations. Who needs oceans and mountains? Who needs big city traffic and high cost excursions? What you really need is Indiana!

Check out some great Hoosier destinations at The Indiana Insider Blog. Pay special attention to some of the entries posted by yours truly, including:

• Track goers should pit stop at Mug N'Bun
• Spend the day at Karst Farm Park in Bloomington
  
• Mom will be hero for heading to cMoe
• Follow your stomach to Holiday World