Moe's, Stow and Bowling: Another Friday Night

The kids were joined by the cousins -- Maddy and Maura -- and the grandparents for a Friday night of burritos and bowling.

Of course, bowling can only be fully appreciated with an over-sized can of Bud Light and a T-shirt that screams, "I'm a D-Bag!"

Nailed it.

Let the hilarity ensue.

One out-of-control Billy Holman-spawn down, one to go.

Thank you, Maura. Maybe there's a reason the kid behind the counter gave us at least two lanes of birth on either side of the Wild Holmans.

Last, but not least. Here's Grandma. To her credit she was up for bowling and was a trooper. If she wasn't sporting a titanium rod in one leg and the fear of running over one of the grandkids on her approach, she probably could have bowled a few more games.

Nevertheless, no one had better body English or use of bumper rails than the G-K.

That's Grandma Kathy, fool. Just listen to the music.


And the rest in still pictures...

Here's a picture of Joey and Mom. The Joester was the handicap and/or trophy that was handed to each of the adult bowlers upon completing their frame.

It was either that or let her get swallowed by the ball return.

The grandparents share a moment after the 10th frame.

The kids took some funny final frame shots. For instance, leave it to Henry to bowl "Commando" (those are swim trunks). The cousins were heavily committed to the bunny ears.

What photo with bunny ears is not funny?

Take two. And this time show me some emotion.

Perfect.

Now dig the follow-through on Grandpa.

And we close with Maddy and Caroline. Burritos and bowling was a good time.

The Third of July!

Hudson was proud to celebrate the dramatic Third of July holiday this past weekend and the Holmans were totally game.

Bring us your glow sticks, your Snyder's Butter Popcorn, your Tropical Dots, and your angry German toddlers!

It is a Hudsonian right to celebrate the day before the day we recognize the independence from Great Britain we actually obtained on July 2, 1776.

Thank you, Indiana University. I finally used my degree for something other than a coaster.



The kids were digging Aunt Judy's popular glow sticks.

There are not enough Erica-Rob photos on this blog. We have hired Caroline as the family photographer in order to make up for this.

Joey is a chip off the old block. Another popcorn-loving Holman.

Henry's Sixth Birthday Celebration

Henry turned 6 on June 24th. The Indians were playing the Pirates in Pittsburgh, PA, so we made arrangements to see his first MLB baseball game -- but in Pittsburgh, not Cleveland.

Unfortunately for Henry, part of the trip called for him seeing the 2009 Cleveland Indians. Not unlike my first Indians game when they were just as bad, if not worse than they are now.

Thank you Dolan Family. Now please sell the team so we can one day stop this vicious cycle.

Here's Henry and his cousin Maura before the big game.

We brought Grandpa, Uncle Bill, and Maura with us for the game because misery loves company. It was uncomfortably hot. Upper 80's and no wind. The kids melted, but held their own.

This was the view from our seats. A perfect location to watch an Indian ass-whipping. The Tribe got smoked by the score of 10-6. But for a five run ninth for the Tribe, it would have been a lot worse.

Realizing the lack of quality product on the field and the lousy weather, I tried my parental best to throw food and drink at Maura and Henry. Hot dogs, french fries, water, cotton candy, popcorn, and dipping dots ice cream. Anything to help them stay for 9. And in true Holman form, we did.

Here's Henry making a mockery of cotton candy on a near-90 degree day.

The best was when Henry and I went into the Pirates Gift Shop and Henry complained that there was too much Pirate stuff being sold.

Even he thinks Pittsburgh sucks!

And he's right. Just look at them with their smug faces and multiple world championships.

Doesn't this photo make you hate everything Pittsburgh? I mean, who is she?

Isaac from the Love Boat?

Seriously, the kid is spot on. There is nothing redeeming about Pittsburgh. Nothing.

Enough about that, though.

Anyway, later that week we formally celebrated Henry's birthday at Pump-it-Up in Stow, Ohio.

For those that don't know, Pump-it-Up is a cash cow disguised as a family fun center where kids are herded into rooms with inflatable petri dishes and crappy Hannah Montana music.

I weep for the days of the Springhill Skate Center or Burger Chef when parties were filled with decisions like how many Foreigner songs does it take to do a complete lap around the skate rink or why does Burger Chef smell like Ronald McDonald's used striped sweat socks.

Those days are so gone.

Anyway, here are a few pictures from Henry's party.

Nothing like having your kids climbing on a wall for a picture under the sign with a rule making said activity a no-no in Pump-it-Up land.

Kids, sweat and dirty feet. Two squirts of Purel and it's off to eat cake and ice cream.

That's Caroline and Josie finding a quiet spot to jump and play.

All in all, another fun birthday for the H-Man. Happy birthday, Henry!

B-Town: The Heat Continues

We made our annual pilgrimage to Bloomington (via Terre Haute) a couple of weeks ago. For those who don't follow us that closely (and why would you?), each summer we make a trip back to the alma mater (Indiana University), drink copious amounts of beer and glare at the college kids who have no idea how lucky they are.

This year, we did 2 nights without kids.

My 5 highlights in short order:

1. B-Town, as in "B" Town.

2. Zach Galifianakis

3. Introducing Yogi Punch to my wife.

4. Bill's physical story. I don't think it's medically possible to check for a hernia in a horizontal position.

5. Another year of talking Jeff down from his quest to take Bill and me camping.

Now the pictures...

Yep, that's my bro' drinking gravy through a straw. That's what two nights without kids will do.

Day 5 from Hilton Head: It Took Me This Long to Get Over Savannah

Just kidding.

It's been a whirlwind since we last blogged and I vow to cover it all or at least bore you trying.

Let's start with the end of Hilton Head Island: Year 2.

We had fun. It was much better than Cats. I will see it again and again.

Quick favorite moments of HHI: 2009.

1. It was less buggy indoors this year.

2. Heart stopped when mother-in-law jumped into five feet of water and found the bottom of pool.

3. Heart stopped during fried chicken meal. I restarted it with Cheeriwine.

4. No good can come of a 94 degree day in Georgia.

5. After fisherman catches shark on the beach and throws him back, Caroline and Owen beeline BACK INTO THE WATER? Ugh. Where's Roy Scheider when you need him?

6. My niece Sydney has a future in sand architecture.

7. My son Henry does not.

8. Amy gets tired when reading.

9. Caroline does not.

10. Scott and Jacob grocery shopping at Publix. We plunked 4 bills down on groceries and still underbought. How is that possible?

11. Josie waking up in the Pak-n-Play with her Pat Benatar hairdo.

12. Telling my mother-in-law that her son Chris was on each plane that flew overhead. The joke was never funny the first time. I must have said it 25 times.

13. The hot tub. Because heat and humidity make hot tubs fun.

14. The rusty nail riddled stairs to the hot tub. Hate to be Guenter when he gets that lawsuit.

15. Caroline's quest to not piss herself on the way home. That little girl tried so hard and if it wasn't for that midnight train in Hudson, she wouldn't have peed all over Erica's Odyssey.

16. The West Virginia McDonalds and the weird vagrants who frequented the place.

17. Kenna's fondness for the beach.

18. Jacob and the Rastafarian wig.

19. Keeping our streak alive not eating at the Salty Dog . In your face tourists!

20. Erica in a pool.

Henry, Josie and Caroline at Harbor Town in Hilton Head.

Here's Caroline and Kenna making nicey-nice at the HHI Outlet Mall. Apparently, they enjoy shopping together. Who knew?

Much like last year, I had my favorite moment in HHI on a low-budget portion of the trip. This year we rented bikes. If you ever get the chance to visit HHI, we highly recommend bike rentals. For roughly $25 a bike per week we were able to eat fried chicken and ride bikes at the same time.

In fact, I filmed, ate chicken and talked to my son all at the same time.

Here's a snapshot of my ride while following Mom and the girls. Henry was on a tandem bike attached to my bike. He's the one doing all of the gabbing.

He likes to talk.

And finally, I must admit that the best food of the trip was had at the Front Porch Restaurant in Richburg, SC. If you visit HHI from Ohio, we highly recommend stopping in. It's off of Exit 65 on I-77.

The food is down home southern cooking. Fried chicken (yes, sir), homemade macaroni and cheese, grits, greens, you name it.

I did the fried green tomatoes this year along with my staples -- fried chicken and mac & cheese.

The food coma lasted until north of Charlotte, NC. Worse yet, I was driving.

In case you find the place, the Front Porch looks like this:

Bikes not included, but certainly a part of the Front Porch ambiance.