Father's Day loot

I've been in the middle of a summer lull, haven't I? We've had some pretty spectacular weather here, leading us into summer, so I just haven't had the time (in the morning) or the energy (in the evening) to post much. I do actually have a bunch of partial posts, but haven't found time to pull them all together.

I had a very nice Father's Day. I got my usual handicrafts from school. Rhiannon gave me a nice, hand framed digital (black and white though) picture, while Adrienne did the same thing her sister did last year and gave me a poster with some "fill in the blank" sentences about me. Let's see how they both did:

• My Dad's name is :
  • Rhiannon: Jonathan
  • Adrienne: Jonathan
  Well, they started off with an easy one, and they both aced it!
• His hair is :
  • Rhiannon: brown
  • Adrienne: black
  Rhiannon got it right, while Adrienne exaggerated the darkness of it. Gabrielle said that many of the kids said their Dad had black hair, irregardless of reality. Wonder why?
• His eyes are :
  • Rhiannon: brown
  • Adrienne: some kind of green
  One again, Rhiannon aced this one, while Adrienne confused me with her mom, who does, in fact, have eyes that are "some kind of green".
• His favorite food is:
  • Rhiannon: Chinese food
  • Adrienne: roasted chicken and potatoes
  I'd have to give the edge to Adrienne on this one, although I do in fact love Chinese food. I'm surprised neither of them said sushi, which is the family favorite food.
• Dad's favorite restaurant is :
  • Rhiannon: The Rainforest Cafe
  • Adrienne: a Mexican restaurant
  Rhiannon's answer cracked me up. I had never visited the Rainforest Cafe up to that point, although it is a void in my life that has since been filled several times since. It's a great place to bring the kids, although I can't for the life of me imagine why we are always seeing couples in there. So once again, the nod goes to Adrienne, who knows just how much I love Mexican food. We had recently been to Mexico Lindo, a very reasonable Mexican restaurant in the neighboring town of Melrose, so maybe that helped. My very favorite one is El Sarape, down in Braintree,but I haven't been there in ages.
• My Dad's favorite T.V. show is :
  • Rhiannon: the Patriots game
  • Adrienne: soccer games
  I'd have to say this one is a draw. We've all been watching a lot of the World Cup soccer games, so I'm sure this is very fresh in Adrienne's mind, while they both know just how much I love to watch the Pats play. I'd have to say if I had to pick a favorite TV show, it would, in fact, be a Patriots football game.
• Dad is happy when :
  • Rhiannon: I do what he says
  • Adrienne: I watch soccer games with him
  Like I said, we've been watching a lot of soccer games lately, and it looks like it has made quite an impression on little Adrienne. And Rhiannon surely gets to the heart of the matter.
• He is frustrated when :
  • Rhiannon: I don't do what he asks
  • Adrienne: I interrupt him
  As you can see, I wish I had more patience with my girls:-( They are good, smart, pretty little girls who deserve a mountain of patience, while I can often only generate a molehill. As John Scalzi says, it is a real bonus when you genuinely like your kids, and I do, and I'm looking forward to many exciting adventures as we go along.
• When Dad is home he likes to :
  • Rhiannon: cuddle with me
  • Adrienne: play with my dog
  Both a very accurate sentiments that reflect their personalities. Rhiannon is a little more self-centered, with a long view of things, while Adrienne watches more what is going on and is more immediate. So the fact I enjoy cuddling with them both strikes a real chord with Rhiannon, while the fact we play with the dog every morning before school resonates a few hours later with Adrienne.
• My Dad relaxes :
  • Rhiannon: on the couch
  • Adrienne: on his computer chair
  Maybe I'm working too much these days? Or maybe my blogging is taking up more time, as it didn't really take off until after Rhiannon's quiz.
• He loves to go to :
  • Rhiannon: the Red Sox game
  • Adrienne: the park with me
  Once again, both are excellent, and accurate, sentiments. Do you think my girls know I'm a sports nut?-)
• Dad cooks ___ best.
  • Rhiannon: bacon and eggs
  • Adrienne: hot dogs
  I'd like to think I'm a little more creative than these answers, but you can also tell which kinds of foods they like best.
• If I were rich, I would buy my Dad :
  • Rhiannon: a waterslide
  • Adrienne: a soccer ball and a video camera to tape him
  Both answers are very cute, don't you think? I've been coaching both girls in soccer now for 4 seasons, and I often video tape and take pictures. I guess Adrienne would like to turn the tables on me.

And I also got a new grill, so I can show off my best cooking! We bought a new grill when we moved in, which was 6 years ago, and it was time for a new one. This one, by Vermont Castings (the wood stove people), was the Consumer Reports top-rated one, and a very nice one indeed. The girls all went out to Home Depot and bought it, bringing it back in a box. I was a little scared about putting the thing together, but it actually was a pretty easy effort, mostly involving putting the legs on.

And we've used it twice since then, with great success. Sunday, we had my mother-in-law and brother-in-law over and I cooked up a batch of salmon steaks and baked potatoes. The salmon were just rubbed with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. And yesterday I cooked up some sausages (both hot and mild), baked potatoes (they work very well if you pre-cook them in the microwave) and some cauliflower, all on the grill. Yummy!

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