TWENTY-SIX BUCKS, POP-POP, and the MEXICAN WAR....

I filled up the Taurus today on the way into work. I ventured into South Carolina, because they have much cheaper gas than us here in NC.

I got done filling it up and the pump read: $26.15

I did a double take and made sure the pump didn't accidentally cut off 1/2 way through the fill up.

Nope. $26. Wow!

What a great way to start off the day.

Last night at dinner, we got to talking about the kids having off tomorrow, due to it being Veteran's Day. Emma proudly told us what the holiday meant. "It's to honor all the soldiers that fought and died in wars to help keep us free." Aidan then proudly piped in, "Pop-Pop fought in the war." Emma (again proudly told Kelly and me, "Yeah, he fought in the Mexican War...."

I was too busy picking myself off the floor from laughing so hard to hear Kelly correct Emma in saying, "It was the Korean War Emma. Korea."

I had tears in my eyes....And then, just to be sure, I looked up the Mexican War online. It was fought between 1846 and 1848... The kids were only 105 years off. :)

Kids.

YO-YO's LIVE ON ANOTHER GENERATION

A few weeks back, Emma and Aidan got a "toy" yo-yo (about the size of a quarter) as a birthday party gift bag set. They were having a hard time "playing" with the "inexpensive" yo-yo's though.

"That's not the kind of Yo-Yo you learn on," I told them. I'll get you guys REAL Yo-Yo's.

So, yesterday, while out food shopping, I picked up 2 yo-yo's. Aidan and Emma were jumping out of their skin in excitement.

They both played with them all day (Until Daddy broke Aidan's....)

So today, I'll be going back to get Aidan another one.

It's fun seeing your kids play with a toy you grew up with.

CRAZY WEEK

What a crazy 10 days it has been. Kelly ruptured her Achilles tendon and had surgery 5 days ago. She's slowly mending here at home. It was a rough surgery. I think the worst of the pain is over for her, but now comes the fun of rehabbing the old leg. Not a fun predicament.

Emma and Aidan have been wonderful in helping me maintain the homestead. They help clean (begrudgingly, but they do help.).

Emma's latest thing is helping me make dinner. She grabs my apron as she enters the kitchen and helps me with the vegetables and the setting of the table. Aidan, on the other hand won't lift a finger, unless of course that finger is ANYWHERE near his Nintendo DS video game system. Such a boy. :)

Kelly's fighting boredom, pain, and more boredom. Hopefully later this week she'll get the green light from the Dr. to be able to drive.

Our Thanksgiving this year may be spent right here in NC. Not sure yet. We've got a few weeks to hem and haw on that decision. It all depends on how well Kelly's leg is healing.

Hope everyone is doing well.

ARE YOU MY MOTHER....

My favorite book as a child was P.D. Eastman's "Are You My Mother?" I would sit for hours it seemed and read this book over and over again. I drove my sister, Deirdre, CRAZY with this. That much I remember.

Last night, Aidan read that book to me. I sat and listened to him read it aloud and a rush of memories came over me that I haven't felt in 35+ years. Wow!

Aidan asked me if we could keep this book downstairs so he could read it to me again each night.

"Sure, son..."

GUITARS and TV's

Aidan's latest thing is that he wants to learn how to play guitar. Seeing that I do, I guess he wants to be just like his old man... (minus the male-patterned baldness....).

Problem is, I don't know how to teach him. I never took guitar lessons. I picked it up on my own. I taught myself. I used to spend 2 to 4 hours a day practicing. *(I should be WAY better for the amount of time I put in on that thing!)

So, here is Aidan just absorbing ANYTHING and EVERYTHING I'm showing him. Cute as a button to see him wanting to play this thing.

I really hope he sticks with it. I'd love to have someone to "jam" with. :) He is also showing interest in the piano. (That I may be able to assist with....) Piano just seems a bit more "methodical" than the guitar. Guitars are chords... Piano is notes. ??

If the GUITAR GODS and the RITE OF PASSAGE descend upon Aidan, he should be able to play "Stairway To Heaven" by next week!


Emma on the other hand (with her creativity sky high as usual) has created a TV Station from an old moving box we had in the garage. She cut out the bottom to act as the "screen" and the frame of the box is the frame of the tv.

Daily, she puts on TV shows, or stage reenactments of ANYTHING and EVERYTHING. Her imagination is her only limit these days, and that allows her to show off her creativity in new ways day by day. She cracks me up with her animated antics. She "goes into character" for certain things and uses funny voices for certain figures/characters. Quite the show to behold.

So there you have it. Some new pics of the kids with a short blurb letting you know what they're up to....

Camera....

I've gotten really bad in the past 3 or 4 months in taking pics of the kids. I rarely even take my camera out of my work backpack any more. Not even sure why it's in there. I used to go out at lunch time and shoot whatever I saw in Uptown Charlotte. Haven't done that in a while either.

Today I'm taking my camera out. I'm putting it on the coffee table and my goal is to take some shots of the kids today.

I'll post them here hopefully by late today, early tomorrow.

:)

AIDAN HAS DISCOVERED BOOKS...

Aidan comes up to me last night, "Daddy, can I read to you?" Nothing makes me happier than having either Emma or Aidan read to me. It's fun to see them get into the whole reading thing. I wish I was more of a reader. I love magazines and newspapers. Books though...not so much. I used to read a lot.

I think part of it for me is that if I sit down to read, I'm going to fall asleep. That, and I feel there's so much other stuff to do, I should be cleaning, or organizing, or doing laundry, or .... you get the idea.

So, Aidan has totally latched onto reading. His confidence is growing as well. He's really starting to realize how cool it is to be able to read stuff. TV ads, road signs, toys, etc... Everything has words on it, and he can now figure out alot of them on his own now.

I love seeing kids experience "self discovery." A fascinating thing to experience. I remember being 6 years old and learning to read. Learning to spell. It has stuck with me these last 34 years and to this day, I'm a great speller.

Not so much a reader, but spelling? Oh, yeah. I've got that.

Last night, Aidan read to me (enthusiastically) "Because A Bug Went Ka-Choo!!" A Dr. Seuss book. I love Dr. Seuss books. The drawings are sometimes even better than the book.

We'll see what he grabs tonight for our daily reading.

CLEANING = THROWING STUFF OUT

I have, ever since I was a kid, loved to re-arrange stuff around in the surroundings I'm in. As a kid/teen I would always move stuff around in my room about every 3 months. At work, I go through phases and move stuff around as much as I can every 3 months or so.

At home yesterday, I got the bug to clean stuff around the house. There's too much clutter at home. In talking with Kelly, we both decided that Emma and Aidan just have TOO MUCH STUFF!!

When Kelly and I "clean" we actually throw stuff out. It's a very liberating, therapeutic exercise for me.

Last week, I started with the shed. Chucked a ton of stuff, and.... you guessed it... re-arranged things around in there.

This weekend, I focused first on the garage. Kids have a tendency to TRASH all areas they touch, and the garage was not spared their wrath.

So, I got the 3-ply HEFTY trash bags out and just started tossing stuff. Oh, I also re-arranged some things in there too.

If I haven't used it in 6 months, I'm not going to need it. That's my mantra. It works well for me.

Next, I focused on the kitchen. Not so much chucking there, but I did clean it HEAD TO TOE....(minus the TOE...) I didn't mop the floor.

The biggest challenge this weekend was in the form of Emma's MONSTROUSLY disorganized room. I really should've taken a "before" and "after" pic. It's amazing how much stuff this sweet little girl can amass so quickly.

4-5 HUGE Hefty bags of CRAPOLA later, and her room actually now sports a carpet you can notice. I forgot it existed.

Aidan's room was next. His was the easiest. It was more just picking stuff up in there.

What a weekend though. I definitely got a workout with all the cleaning (and re-arranging) I did.

I wonder how long Emma's rooom will stay clean?

I gave her a new rule: If I find it on the floor, I'm throwing it out...

I mean it too.

AGE to A CHILD

The concept of time is a difficult thing for most kids to grasp. For the longest time, if it didn't happen yesterday, or was going to happen tomorrow, Emma and Aidan had no clue what "2 weeks from now" meant.

It has been quite a while since they have been at that stage in life. They both understand time a whole lot better these days.

As I was giving Aidan a bath tonight, the question of AGE came up...

"How old is Pop-Pop?" Aidan asks me.

"Pop-Pop is 77 years old Aidan, why?" is my response.

"Oh, OK. I thought he was only 47..." piped in Aidan.

(He was only off by 30 years....) (Does that mean I'm 10?) :)

IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS IN LIFE...

As some of you know, the Charlotte NC region is having a bit of a gas crisis. Hurricane Ike affected the pipeline that we use to get out gas to the stations here.

Huge interruptions followed the storm and for about the last 10 to 12 days, getting gas has been as hard as finding new hair on my head.

Yesterday on the way home from work, I noticed the van had 1/2 a tank left. Usually I wouldn't worry a wink about that amount. Not these days.

Just yesterday morning as I was driving in, I passed probably 10 gas stations. Only ONE OF THEM had gas....

So with 1/2 a tank, I have been keeping an eye on stations. I happened to pass a Shell station yesterday. Pulled right in, right up to the pump and filled up. What a feeling. What a rush! No 2-hour wait (like last Saturday) to get gas.

It's the little things in life.

I now have another place to go to (besides Taco Bell) to get gas!!

"DADDY, I LOVE YOU."

Whenever I'm home, Aidan will occasionally need to know where in the house I am. He is a bit skittish, for some reason, to be the "only" one downstairs, or upstairs. He gets a great deal of internal comfort knowing that either Kelly, Emma, or myself is on the same level of the house he is on.

So, every once in a while, he will call out to me. "Daddy?" I answer, "yeah bum-bum?" He will reply, "I love you."

He now knows I'm right in the other room. All is well in the world.

Kids. :)

AIDAN

Aidan has had a rough start to the new school year as a 1st grader. His first week went OK, but then he started telling Kelly and I that he didn't feel well and that he didn't think he should go to school the next day.

Right away, Kelly and my "parenting" senses went off the charts. We tried to figure out what was going on. Aidan wasn't forthcoming in why he didn't want to go to school.

Long story short, we found out there were a few boys in the class picking on Aidan (and picking on other boys as well....)

Aidan's teacher was not aware of this, and upon Kelly's observation of her classroom management, we met with the Principal and discussed our concerns.

Aidan is now in another class (starting tomorrow) and all will be well once again. His teacher was not a good fit for Aidan's personality, and we'll leave it at that.

We're looking forward to meeting Aidan's new teacher and we have heard some great things about her.

What a fun week it's been....

NOT!

A FIRST for EMMA & AIDAN

Today marks the 1st day that Emma and Aidan will take the BUS to school.

Kelly and I sat down and we both figured "why not?" We talked to the other parents in the cul-de-sac and they seemed to be at ease with it.

That, and we know ALMOST EVERY KID on the bus, and the bus driver has a daughter that is friends with Emma.

So, OFF THEY WENT this morning.

When I asked Kelly, "How'd it go?" She said both Emma and Aidan had the "Mom WHO?" look on their faces as they boarded the bus....

Kelly said that when Aidan saw the bus round the corner in its way to the stop, he started jumping up and down in excitement.

My boy!

KELLY DOTH PISSITH OFF THE AUTO GODS

Ever have one of those weeks when you think "It's not worth chewing through the restraints?"

Kelly did. This week. It started bad. Got worse. Stayed there. Then the week ended. Badly.

To begin with, she had the glorious task of getting both cars inspected before the end of the month. It's an NC thing. It's like Emissions testing, only worse. (And more expensive).

So, she is all set to get the Taurus inspected. She picks up the kids from school on Monday (first day of school). She picks the kids up and heads to the grocery store to get a few things. She comes back out, groceries in hand (some frozen), and the car won't start. Dead. Nothing. Turns the key.... ZILCH.

Here she is in the middle of the parking lot. It's hot, hazy and humid. She has frozen groceries, 2 tired kids, and 1 dead car.

1 tow-truck trip later (with a trip to the auto mechanics place) and we get the bill for that car. Ugh! New battery. Not bad, but the tow job was expensive. Great.

So, I go to pick them up at the car parts place. We get the car fixed. Kelly forgets to get it inspected though. Kinda had other things on her mind. (Wasted groceries in the back of the Taurus......etc. etc.)

So, Tuesday, Kelly gets the Taurus inspected. All is well.

Wednesday she plans on getting the Van inspected. No such luck. Too much going on at home that day. (We have 2 days left to get the van inspected at this point....)

So Thursday rolls around. Kelly gets the van inspected and with the installation of a new tail light, the van passes. Later that afternoon, she is IN LINE at the school picking up the kids. She has them IN THE VAN, and it DIES on her. Several teachers had to push the dead van out of the car pool line. (At this point she starts looking throughout the van for CAMERAS to see if she's getting PUNK'D!! (Think "Candid Camera if you're over the age of 41...)

DEAD. ZILCH. NOTHING. The van is stranded.

So,...... (here we go again....)

1 Tow truck call. 2 grumpy kids. 1 EXTREMELY @#$@# off Wife, and 1 dead van....

Optimisticly, Ray thinks "Battery...." we'll get off easy.

Oh no.... that would've been too easy. Something about computer sensors and some fancy "auto" talk that converts this problem into a $650 issue.

I'm not sure what Kelly has done to the Auto Gods, but boy, they sure have her number.

It's been one HELLUVA week.

Can we be done already?

SO FAR SO GOOD

The kids are enjoying their 1st week in school here. Emma is well on her way in regards to having homework.

Kelly and I have made a schedule that seems to be working really well. At 7pm we turn the TV off and the kids get their PJ's on and we brush teeth at this time. When they come downstairs, it's homework time.

Aidan (for now) only has to read to us for 10 minutes. He gets a kick out of picking a book to read. He's come a long way with his reading. He has a ways to go, but I'm impressed on how he works to sound things out.

Emma has reading HW too. We're working on comprehension skills with her right now. She gets it.

The 1st week has gone well, but it seems to be moving very SLOWLY. Snail's pace here. Please speed up. I'm ready for the 3-day weekend.

ONE DOWN....179 to go

School days that is.

Yesterday was the first day. All went well. Emma loves her teacher (We knew she would), and Aidan is enjoying his class as well.

Recess was still the best part of the day for Aidan. That's OK. :) He learned he hs GYM on Monday, along with Gymnastics after school. He'll sleep well on Mondays.

Emma got to meet up with a lot of her classmates from last year during recess, so it was a good day for her as well.

Kelly is slowly adjusting to not having the kids home after spending all summer with them asking "What are we going to do today?"

We're getting some glorious (and much needed) rain here. 2-4 inches are in the forecast. We hope.

THEY'RE BACK.... (in school.)

The kids enjoyed the "last" weekend of freedom. We rode bikes, went swimming, played outside, did some gardening, hit the Farmer's Market, you name it.

Done.

Today they're back in school. Kelly walked them to class this morning. Emma had the "Mom who?" look 2 seconds into getting into her new class. Her best friend, Kayla, was in the class. All is well.

Aidan got to his classroom excited to finally have a "real desk" to put his supplies. 2 of his good friends from last year are in his class, so that will ease Kelly's "maternal" instincts for her "baby." :)

All in all it went well. I think Kelly was the only one crying when it was all done.

BUT HEY,.... IT'S FRIDAY

It's Friday. Amen. Timesheet Friday,not payday Friday. It's still Friday though. We get 52 of them a year. Wish we could get more of them though. I'll take all 52 though. Trust me.

Today is the last Friday for the kids before school starts back up.

Kelly and I met Aidan and Emma's respective teachers last night. It was not as crazy as it was last year where the teachers must've been pressed to put on a dog and pony presentation type show.

We simply went in and met the teachers. Filled out a few forms, and said our "hello's" and headed home.

Both Emma and Aidan have some familiar faces in their class, which made them both happy. We LOVE Emma's teacher. The jury is still out on Aidan's.

This is the last weekend of NO HOMEWORK, no TIMEFRAME, no SCHEDULE.

But hey, it's Friday.

IT'S a BREAD DAY

Tuesday. Market day. While it's not up to par with Saturday's Market, the Tuesday outing is still worth doing. I see it as a chance to plug Flanagan's bread and to drum up business and get some exposure to folks that may not know we are around.

We're only making 12 loaves for today. We also have bread crumbs and croutons. Garlic Rosemary, Parmesan Oregano, Country White, and Onion Dill bread will be featured. I was going to do Cinnamon Raisin, but that's more of a breakfast item and it sells like hotcakes on Saturdays... Not so much on Tuesday.

The kids have swimming today, so they'll stop by afterwards, I'm sure.

At last Saturday's Market, I handed out coupons for $1 off bread for Tuesday's market. We'll see how that goes today.

Ya never know.

COUCHES, CHAIRS, and LAZY BOYFRIENDS

Kelly and I wanted to get out of the house yesterday. So, around 2pm, we head out to look at couches. Ours are getting old and faded and it's time for new ones.

There's a mall nearby that has a strip of furniture stores behind it. Haverty's, Ashley Furniture, Rooms to Go, Broyhill Furniture, BOYLE'S, and Thomasville were all stores we hit yesterday.

Lastly though, we hit, as Emma called it "Lazy Boyfriend...."

She misinterpreted Kelly and I saying "Lazy Boy Furniture...."

Lazy Boyfriend??? As Aidan said, "Good one Emma!"

Ha!

BUSY WEEK WITH FAMILY

So, last weekend we zipped up to MD for a quick trip to say hi to everyone. Had a blast seeing the fam, that's for sure.

Kids handled the trip really well too. The long drive is still long, but there was far less complaining this time around. There were very few "How much longer?" inquiries from the peanut gallery. Nintendo DS is a WONDERFUL thing...

Got some great pics, some of which I posted here. I need to put some up on my homepage I have for the kids pics.

This weekend we're hosting Georgia, Kelly (college), and John and Mike. Aidan is all excited to finally have our nephews down to play with. "When are the boys coming?" is a constant question these days for Aidan. He can't wait to show John and Mike all his stuff. :)

In between all of this, we have 2 Markets to do. Yesterday, I did the Waxhaw Market. Had a record day for the number of loaves sold, so that's a good thing. Slowly but surely, the crowds are starting to come to the Tuesday market. I'm going to create/print a coupon for my Saturday folks that they can use for Tuesday. We'll see if that increases traffic.

Saturday of course is the BIG market. 50 loaves on slate to be baked. Have some new ones too.... Black Olive Fougasse is one of them. Salty Garlic Knots is another. Maple and Oatmeal loaf rounds out the menu for new breads...

I'm also going to use some fresh tomatoes from the backyard (along with fresh basil) and do a Tomato-Basil bread.... Mmmmm!!!!

We're looking forward to seeing the relatives. Now we just need to clean the house. Ugh! :)

OUR TRIP TO MARYLAND

So, we're up visiting family and having a great time. Yesterday we spent the day at Kelly's parents' house. What a great time. It was nice to see all the in-laws and the nephews and nieces. Emma and Aidan of course loved seeing their Grammy and Pop-pop and all their cousins...

Afterwards, we came back to my parents' house for a wonderful "Chinese Take Out" dinner. Ah..... good stuff

Here are some pics from our visit so far....

AIDAN "RIGHT-HOOK" FLANAGAN

So, over the weekend I finally re-hung my heavy punching bag. I dusted the treadmill off and actually used it for something other than a coat rack/towel drying device.

I ran for 30 minutes and actually did it with ease... I guess all that biking IS paying off.

Anyway, after hanging the bag back up, Aidan saw it and asked if he could "play" with it. I love how 6 year-olds call everything "play." "Daddy, can I play with the chainsaw?..." "Daddy, can I play with the gasoline can and matches?"

This is of course after asking me if he could "play" with the Treadmill. I got him up on the treads and got him running a good pace before he asked me, "How fast will I go if I turn THIS knob all the way??" "Too fast for your legs, little man," was my response. That wasn't good enough. He needed to see HOW fast that was. So, I switched places with him and hit the treadmill at FULL-SPEED....

The look in Aidan's eyes at my "amazing" feat made me feel like I was wearing a cape in his eyes... He stood there, mouth agape.... "COOL!@" was his reply, eventually.

So, Aidan dons the gloves and starts working the bag. His handiwork ain't bad, but his bobbing and weaving leave A LOT to be desired of. We'll work on that next session.

TOO MUCH FUN?

So, Kelly's up at the Jersey shore with her good friend, Melissa.

I'm home with the kids having fun. We're going here, as well as there. Lots going on. The kids helped me yesterday at the Market and they were pretty good. Aidan complained that he was bored (and hungry). Emma played cashier and Marketing Manager for me, plugging away with the different breads that we offer. That girl can talk it up, I'm telling you. A chip off the ol' block, as they say.

Aidan is more the "silent partner" in the bread business. He just sits back, takes it all in. (Not sure what's he's doing with it all, but he is taking it all in....)

Yesterday, Emma got a bit of a tummy ache though. We were at the pool, and she asked if we could go home. Poor girl. About an hour after we got home, she threw up a bit. Fortunately, she hit the porcelain Goddess, and that was it. She was still under the weather though the rest of the afternoon. This carried on into the evening. Poor girl...

Fortunately, she slept through the night. I'm hoping that was it and she just had a bit TOO MUCH FUN with Daddy being home for 4 days. (We did NOT go out for Ice Cream last night, and I doubt we will today...) Lots of veggies and fruits today....

A WEEKEND WITH DAD@!

Kelly is headed to the Jersey Shore for 3-4 days of some R&R. I'm happy for her. She is going to enjoy herself and catch up with her best friend, Melissa.

That leaves me here with the boy and girl. I'm actually quite excited about it. Weather pending, I think we're going to have a lot of fun.

Pool, fishing, hiking? Maybe? Carowinds? Not out of the question...

Ice cream? ABSOLUTELY!

I also have a 3-day week here at work! (So, I got THAT working for me!)

:)

A "BURP" OFF??

We had a long great weekend down here this past weekend. Emma and I had a nice "Daddy/Daughter" day at Carowinds, which is similar to King's Dominion/Six Flags. Wonderful time going on the rollercoasters, carousels, bumper cars, you name it.

After a nice dinner, the kids played outside with their friends til dark.

As I'm putting the kids to bed, I'm chatting with Emma about our upcoming visit to Bowie. I start running down the list of everyone we'll see when in town. "Aunt Georgia, Uncle Rich and the kids, etc...."

I run through the whole list and when I'm done, Emma asks me "Is Aunt Erin the BURPING one?" "Why yes, she is," is my response. Emma's eyes grow WIDE as she says, "Picture this! 1 table, 2 chairs, and a whole LOTTA root beer! We can have a BURP OFF!"

So, Erin... come prepared. She is MY daughter and she DEFINITELY inherited my abilities to lose body pressure at will!

Kids...

ha!

THE HONESTY OF AN 8 YEAR-OLD

Yesterday was Thursday. "Market Day" in our house. Wednesday night I baked 12 loaves of bread and 12 "mini" loaves. Thursday, Kelly baked 19 loaves.

I got home around 3:45pm and was getting ready to head out and sell the 31 loaves (and 12 minis) when Emma asks me, "Can I come?!"

"Absolutely," was my reply. Aidan was heading to Gymnastics with Kelly, so I didn't have him in-tow. Just Emma.

Emma LOVES the market. She loves telling folks about the bread, the process, the ingredients and "how to order off the website." She is definitely a "shadow" of me, in the "talkative" department. The girl can talk! :)

As it's slowing down a bit, she asks me, "Daddy, can I sell the next loaf all by myself?" Now, what that means is that I was to "go away" and let her say "Hi" to the customer, answer any question(s) the customer may have, and take the money, bag the bread and hand back any change "all by herself." Emma is VERY capable of all of this.

So, here comes a customer. The nice lady asks about the Egg bread we have for sale. Emma says, "Oh, that makes the BEST sandwich bread, or you can use it for French Toast for breakfast..." The customer commented on how cute (and knowledgeable Emma was)

Next, the lady asks about our Poppy Seed loaf. "The poppy seeds give the bread a bit of sweetness to it. I would put butter or jam on it for a delicious snack, if I were you," say Emma without missing a beat or a breath.

I'm in the background holding my sides, I'm chuckling so much. The customer is enamored with Emma and is being VERY SWEET to her. I'm eating it up.

Next, the nice lady asks about our Homemade Croutons we have for sale. "What is in this?" she asks.

"Oh, that's all the bread we DON'T sell" is what Emma tells her with the confidence of knowing that's EXACTLY what it is!

I laughed so hard, I thought I was going to crack a rib... The customer laughed even HARDER!! I had tears coming out my eyes I was roaring so loudly....

The best part of the story...?

The customer DID buy the Croutons....

Way to go Emma!!!

I could never pull that one off.

STUFF

Summer is plodding along down here. Weeks are going by and the kids are enjoying the time away from school, although I think they subliminally miss it a tad. Emma (the social butterfly) loves the interaction and chattiness that comes with a school day.

Aidan is a fan of homework. He didn't inherit THAT gene from me, that's for sure. He loves to sit with Kelly and practice his sight words, or do math problems, or pretty much any type of school chore.

Both kids are enrolled in swimming lessons. Emma has really improved this year. We now go together into the deep end of our pool to practice treading water, or for the kids to have fun jumping in from the edge. Aidan still needs his arm floaties on for that. Emma though is a strong enough swimmer to manage the deep end (ONLY when I am with her....) We talk about the importance that rule EVERYDAY. No deep end w/o either me or Kelly. Emma gets it.

Aidan... well that's a different story.

He CAN swim. He chooses NOT to practice with me though. He has no problem when he's in class, but when he's with his "old man," all he wants to do is have fun. I'm such a terrible parent... "PRACTICE!" :) He doesn't realize the severity of the deep end, which honestly scares the remaining hair I have left on my head into growth submission. Scary.

Fortunately, we watch them like hawks while we're at the pool, and they're both taking lessons and getting pretty good. Whew!

Emma learned the wonderful power of Visine the other day. We went to Carowinds (like KIng's Dominion) and had a blast at "Kookaburra Bay" (a big swimming pool.) Problem is they put so much chlorine in that thing, you can smell it in the air.

Aidan was smart and had his eyes closed while swimming. Not Emma. She got home and you could see the RED creeping into her eyes.

It took Kelly and I about 20 minutes to talk her into taking some VISINE drops in her eyes. She fought it though, but then decided to try it. W/in 2 minutes, her eyes returned to a white color and she was touting "how easy" that was and that she was glad she was 'brave' enough to take the drops.

Such fun.

Hope everyone is doing well. We are doing just great down here.

FRIDAY AGAIN?

This week went by quickly, I think.

The kids are in full "SUMMER" mode. Sleeping in, staying up late, going outside alot. They saw a movie this week ("Wall-E") They loved it. Kelly wasn't so easily impressed.

The weekly trip to Carowinds got placed on hold this week. We have been getting HORRENDOUSLY dangerous T-storms each night this week. The rain is much needed and very welcomed, but it's not the kind of rain you want to be driving in. I did that on Tuesday and it was a bit scary.

Yesterday's Farmer's Market got cut short due to yet another thunderstorm. More is on slate for today, but that's OK. Today is a baking day. Easy-peasy. :)

Hope everyone is doing well.

JUST STUFF

Hope everyone is having a good week. For a "short" week at work, it sure is LONG!

We have the Monroe Open Air Farmer's market this afternoon. I'm not expecting much, with it being a holiday weekend, but maybe I'll be surprised. That would be nice.

This is my "early" day at work. I got here at 6am. I like that time of day. So quiet.

Tomorrow is a "sleep in" day. No market. No church to wake up for. I may actually sleep in til...oh, I don't know.... 6am!

I want to do a nice bike ride to get some miles under me this week. I'm at 45 so far for the week.

Tonight, after we get the kids to bed, I'm looking forward to a quiet night of TV and a few cold ones...

Oh, if I could've seen me "now" 20 years ago....

:)

Emma and Aidan had a "Carowinds" day yesterday. Emma hit some pretty big coasters yesterday. She calls herself the "daredevil" of the family. One of the words in that phrase is dead on... I'll let you guess which one.

Aidan is a little more cautious in his approach to the unknown. He may "analyze" a ride the WHOLE summer and THEN give it a try once he convinces himself that it won't be that bad. We'll see how that all pans out in September.

Today is a quiet day around the house. The kids are tired, as is Kelly. She's been playing "Camp Director" 24/7 for 3 weeks now since the kids have been home from school.

That's about it from here. Anyone doing anything good for the 4th?

DOWN TO THE POND

Aidan last night, after dinner asks me, "Daddy, can we go bike riding around the neighborhood?" "Sure," is my reply. Emma decides to join us as well. Aidan is much more the fan of cycling than Emma is. It's not that Emma's not a good rider. She really is. Aidan just loves going out for 3-4 mile rides every day if time allows.

So, we head up the street toward the pool. Both kids ask "Can we go to the park?" I sense that I've been rooked into a "playground" day instead of a "bike riding" day with them.

"Let's ride by the pond first, then we'll go to the park," was my reply.

So, off we went. Emma and Aidan racing each other on the sidewalks of the neighborhood. Emma passes Aidan, only to pass her back once again. We eventually make our way to the pond.

"It's really drying up," Emma says. She's right. We need to go no further than our neighborhood pond to see the very real effects of the drought that has gripped a good part of the state for close to 2 years now.

"Are there any frogs?" Aidan asks. "Let's look around" I tell them.

So we're off on a frog hunt. None to be found, which is odd. Usually, there are quite a few to be found on the shore, if not in the water. Not today.

I go to pick up a rock and I'm instantly brought back in time to Allen's Pond Park with my Dad and my siblings, seeing who could skim a rock the farthest across the pond with the most "bounces". Good times.

I show Emma and Aidan this, and they're HOOKED! Off goes Aidan to find the flattest rock around. Emma does the same. They return to try their hand at the fine art of stone skipping.

You know the old saying, "practice makes perfect?" Well, they have A LOT of practicing to do.

I can see more bike rides to the pond in the near future.

Ah... back when life was simpler.

Being a parent allows you to (everyday) see the world through the eyes of a child. A time when life was easier. A time when the littlest thing can just make your day.

Such was the case yesterday with Emma.

After a morning out of running errands, Kelly brought both Emma and Aidan to Walmart. Emma picked out a plant. She says it's a cactus, but it sure resembles an aloe plant to me.

Anyway, I get home from work and Emma is excitedly telling me about her newest and latest acquisition. "I named him TEXAS Dad!" she tells me. "I'm going to keep him inside in my room. At night he'll be right by my nightstand table. During the day I'll have him by my window so he can get some light."

Her world is a better place since 2pm yesterday when she got "Texas."

Ah... back when life was simpler.

WE'RE NOT GOING TO THE POOL....

Those were the words I heard from my precious Emma as she EXCITEDLY called me on my cell phone at work.

"What?," I asked her. "We're not going to the POOL! Mrs. Fanning (neighbor) called and invited us to CAROWINDS!!"

So, the kids' day was made right then, right there. A day of water rides, rollercoasters, and amusement park food.

What more could a kid want on a warm summer day?

GONNA GET POUNDED!

We are still in a drought here in the South. We can only water the lawns 1 day a week (we don't... but boy, the neighbors LIVE for that day.)

We are in the heat of the summer it seems. Temps nearing 90 if not higher. The daily threat of thunderstorms lurk around each afternoon.

Today is no different. BIG, HUGE lines of weather coming our way. Doppler radar is a cool thing to watch.

We need the rain. We're going to get POUNDED!

Hooray!

Ice Cream

Yesterday, Kelly and I took the kids (once again) to the Dollar Cone place.

Earlier in the week, while discussing hanging some of my photos, the owner also expressed interest in some of my bread that I make.

So, I needed to stop by and drop off some business cards to hang next to my photos. With that trip already planned, Kelly and I decided to make 2 of our favorite breads for this owner to "try out." A "gift" so to say to hopefully drum up some business on our side.

Kelly made her famous "Beer" bread, and she made my favorite, "6-seed" bread.

Both loaves were still warm when we arrived at the Ice Cream Parlor.

Emma and Aidan enjoyed a nice treat, while Kelly and I schmoozed the owner.

Hopefully something will come from it. If not, it's still good ice cream and a nice family outing. :)

Hope you all have a great weekend. Any good plans?

WHEN A $1 CONE = $1,200

As I was out cycling one recent morning, I passed a building I rarely pay attention to. Over the 2 years we've been down here, this building has been a mish-mosh of businesses. It reminds me of the building that currently houses JASPER'S restaurant in Crofton, MD. That building was a new restaurant every other month, it seemed, for a while.

Jasper's has been it's longest reincarnation. I helped open that place over 15 years ago.

Anyway, as I passed the aforementioned building, I noticed it is now an Ice Cream Parlor.

As I finished my ride, got showered, made breakfast and sat down to a delicious cup of coffee, I read the morning paper that happened to have an article about this new Parlor.

Seems all cones are $1. Free toppings. Did I mention all cones are $1? Granted, they only have vanilla and chocolate soft serve, but the toppings are free. They must have 20-25 different toppings.

So, for $4 ($4.28 after tax), Kelly, Aidan, Emma and I can enjoy a nice outing and a nice dessert. Not too bad.

We recently went to a "Cold Stone Creamery" and spent over $16 for all of us to have ice cream. Sticker shock hit me as I handed the cashier a $20 bill and got very little back. Honestly, the ice cream wasn't that good either.

Back to the dollar cone place. It seems that the owner is a big fan of photography and artwork. She has plenty of room on the walls of this parlor to hang artwork and photos from the local artisans, all for sale, based on what the Artist/Photographer wants to charge.

So, I brought in 5 of my best framed shots and they are now proudly being displayed in this parlor.

In pricing out my framed work ($20-$30), I noticed a $1,200 painting hanging on the walls. Next to it was a $800 painting.

The pessimistic side of me finds it hard to believe that folks visiting this place for the value of a $1 cone will "splurge" for the $1200 artwork.

Call me crazy, but I don't see that happening.

All those high prices just make my work look that much affordable. :)

If I sell some of my photos, great! If not, well, they're not taking up room in MY house.

BACK!

Yes, the blog is back. I caught enough flack from Family members, so here we are.

:)

Hope everyone is doing well. Things here are great. The summer is in its early stages and Emma and Aidan have been busy going to the pool, roller-skating rink, movies, etc... Kelly's keeping them busy. It makes the day go by.

Emma and Aidan have both begun Summer Gymnastics. For Emma, this is a continuation from her Spring class. She's getting VERY strong and can do the best back arch in her class. Her cart-wheels are top notch, too.

Aidan enjoys the trampoline and balance beams.

The other day, Kelly took them to see "Kung-Fu Panda." The kids really enjoyed it. Kelly, I'm not so sure. Aidan actually sat and paid attention through the whole thing. A first for him.

I'm still cycling like a mad man. I'm on pace to top over 400 miles this month. I'm in my 3rd week of 100+ miles per week. All of this should help my July 25-26 charity ride go smoothly. (In theory, right?)

We've got a trip to Bowie in the works for the near future. Amen. It will be nice to see everyone. (That, and we're out of "bowie" sauce....) We haven't had spaghetti in MONTHS!... The spaghetti sauce down here is NASTY! Too acidic.

How are things with you all?