Daddy Dinner is Delightful

Daddy's cooking brings all the little boys to the table. There's not a shortage on calories, either.

Guitar Fandom

Shane typically says "DADDY! STOP! NO MUSIC! STOP! STOP!" whenever I try to practice guitar.

I think it's a combination of: A) I'm not very good, B) Shane's taste in music is limited, and C) he doesn't like it when I'm paying attention to anything fun that's not him.

I'm not going to get much better unless I practice! I'm still working on switching between chords quick enough to play anything that resembles a song. Mainly, I strum around the chords to Winds of Change, Merri-Mac, Boxer, Hotel California and a few of my own little riffs.

UPDATE: I can play a mean "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," but Shane wants nothing to do with it. Perhaps it's the singing off-key, but if that was going to get fixed it would've happened years ago!

Fun Times = Less Posts

Dan and Shar may have moved out, but Carrie and I have been social! Shane loves company. Meghan (the babysitter, not the aunt) is back from Europe and Carrie scheduled a date afternoon Saturday (we saw Iron Man 3). Then Ryan and Kim came over Saturday night, Dan and Shar came by for a little bit after church, Shane and I visited Daniel Sunday afternoon, and then Genevieve and Chris came for dinner and to spend the night.

Not much time for blogging, but good times!

Kitchen Update

My wife was busy today! She painted the kitchen while I was at work. Genevieve and Chris visited last night and Gen hung around to play with Shane. She stuck around long enough that Carrie and I got to get lunch and do a Home Depot run while Shane napped.

Here's the before pic:

Here are the after pics.

Have I mentioned my wife is talented before?

Carrie painted the whole room, put up the tiled back-splash, grouted and cleaned it. She bought new wall plate covers and spray painted them to save some bash and scrubbed down all the counters and cleared away dishes to make things look neat.

My wife loves a project!

Interviewed

On Friday, I had my interview. I was more nervous and rusty than I cared to be.

I would say it was no home run, but it wasn't a train wreck, either.

I started trying to switch into this position over a year and a half ago. I had my first interview to get into the hiring pool February 2012 and was turned down. They gave me a retry in March. I made it in. A year and a half later, I've applied to almost 30 schools. I've been interviewed 4 times.

Will this time be the one?

Tech Job Update

Last summer, I had applied to 18 schools for three interviews. I applied to more schools throughout this school year, but I limited my applications to schools I felt were in a reasonable driving distance. I love my current school, and I'm not desperate to leave it so much as I would leave if the right opportunity presented itself.

And now there's an opening at my school.

I applied for it.

My interview is Friday.

I'll send my summer school kids on their way and walk down to the main office for my appointment. I have to send in a writing sample soon and prepare a presentation for introducing a new technology to the school for Friday.

Prayers are appreciated.

The Things I Do To Take These Classes

Today was one of those super busy days. A day where every time one task finished, it was time to move on to the next one.

I picked up Shane early from day-care, so that we could go get Subway and diapers before I had to go to class. Carrie works late, so I hired the kids from my tutor family to watch Shane. The mother has watched Shane for us, but I've never let Shane with her kids before.

I was a little nervous.

I do like how things have come full circle: I taught the eldest daughter math my first year at my school, and now she's babysitting my son. Jarrod, my tutor buddy, was there to help too, and he's going to be in charge on Wednesday. The family has a high-energy level that reminds me of my house growing up. I really like them all and I enjoy being around that kind of energy. I did not want to answer to Carrie if Shane got knocked over by one of their dogs or came home with a bruise, though!

I checked my phone throughout class, but I did not call or text to check up on things. I can tell when I'm worrying for no good reason It doesn't mean I can immediately stop the worrying, but I know better than to act on it! Class ended a little late and I jumped in the car to pick up my boy.

Jarrod caught me completely by surprise. He taught Shane a new trick.

"Go COWBOYS!" Shane said.

Jarrod beamed.

I'd have to kill him if the situation wasn't so funny. I'm dressing Shane up in burgundy and gold for retaliation tomorrow!

Chic-Fil-A

Shane loves Chic-Fil-A's playground.

We went on Saturday and Shane had a crap-load full of fun.

That's when we had to leave.

Those tunnels are either a natural laxative, or maybe Shane's just trying to mark territory. Whatever the reason is, I had spare diapers in my car. We're under 10 minutes from home, so I'd rather change Shane on the carpet than in a bathroom stall, though.

High Energy Levels Detected

If I ever seem tired, this is why.

Shane's hard to keep up with. I get tuckered out just watching him sometimes.

You don't need to watch the whole thing to notice Shane is hyperactive. I filmed this five minutes before Shane's normal bed time (8:30 PM). I thought about cutting down the 5 minutes of Shane running in circles into something more easily watchable, but figured "this is how he really is!" It will be funny to look back at!

Smart-Phone Video Dump: Shane at Play!

I took a few more videos here and there of Shane playing around. I figured I'd upload them and let the boy do his own talking this time!

First: Shane loves hiding behind doors.

Second: Shane loves to snuggle with Mommy on the couch. Often, Carrie and Shane lay or sit down together at the end of the day to watch an episode of Little Einsteins, Thomas, or some other show together. 

Normally, it's more of a way to get Carrie some cuddle time and to calm Shane down. 

Not a lot of calming down here.

Tea-Time

Megan brought me tea from India!  My sister rocks! Thank you, Megan.

I got a box of bagged masala (pictured) and a bpx each of  loose leaf chocolate and Kashmiri kahwa tea.

Masala is not new to me, but this is the first batch I've ever had straight from India. The fact that it came in little jewelry bags and mesh means it was probable handmade and packaged.

Kashmiri Kahwa and chocolate tea are new to me. The indelible internet tells me that kahwa is normally drank without milk, sweetened with sugar and honey, and often has crushed nuts in it (walnuts or almonds). I don't have any of those, but consider me intrigued. That's not something I normally think of adding to my tea.

As for the chocolate tea....I guess it will taste faintly of chocolate!

Actually, I think I'm going to go make a glass of kahwa now...

Family Picture Sunday

Nana wanted a family picture. "I don't know when we'll get everyone together again! It's too hard to coordinate!" Stu was in Maine, Billy was in India, but all of my brothers and siblings were around for once!

We gathered at Nana and Pop's house before church on Sunday morning.

It's pretty dynamic when my clan convenes. It doesn't matter if it's the uncle and aunts, the cousins, or just us. There's a lot of laughter, energy, and personality.

Megan at the Airport

Megan flew in from India on Saturday! The whole family assembled to pick her up. Shane's not a fan of waiting, but he does love airplanes!

Lots of Books

Shane's made me read a lot lately. I don't mind the first couple of times I read the same book to him, but when he asks for round three I try to suggest something new. Often that ends our reading time (Shane wants it his way!).

We've been reading and re-reading a bunch of books by the McMullans: "I'm Dirty," "I Stink," "I'm Mighty," and "I'm Fast."

I can't say they're my favorite reads, but the artwork of machines (and maybe my awesome, daddy theatrics) keep Shane highly interested!

Cupcakes Round 2

Carrie took her second entry for the cupcake competition in to work today. Her task was to use Starbursts as her inspiration

They were candy sweet with a melty/twisted Starbust ring in the middle, pink lemonade frosting and a flattened Starubrst 'shard' and sprinkles.

My wife is winning.

Dan Talks

I'm going to miss talking with Dan when he moves out. It's interested hearing about his job as a steamfitter.

He was telling me about how dangerous and corrosive steam is today. I liked the part where he talked about finding a steam leak. "You know those old brooms with the bristles?" Dan said. "You get one of those and wave it around in front of you until the steam cuts it."

Apparently, on the big machines it's like an invisible blade that can cut right through a person (a couple thousand pound pressure washers as Dan put it). There are many ways to die or get hurt or maimed in Dan's line of work and I admit I find it very intriguing.

Then I walk outside, feel the humid 90 degree heat, and I reminded of why I'm glad I work in the air-conditioning!

PS - On a random note: I asked him if his profession made him change any of his views on 'Steampunk.' It was more of a joke, but Dan answered "Steampunk normally makes steam seem low-tech, but it is really hard to manage! It's extremely corrosive and volatile!" He went on to explain how boilers explode and some other fun disasters.

Like I said, I enjoy talking to Dan. I learn all sorts of fun things!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Carrie and I have become gardeners.

The first time my wife pulled a zucchini out of our backyard my first thoughts were "is it safe to eat?"

I mean, the thing just came out of our yard! Our yard! There was no grocery store quality control or plastic wrapping! Besides, I can't tell a good zucchini from a bad one. I leave all the produce selection to my wife.

Turns out it was delicious. My wife made a stuffed zucchini with cheese and meats with the first monster she brought inside. "They don't grow this big in the organic section!" Carrie said.

The second zucchini Carrie brought in became a meal of grilled zucchini for her and a faux apple cobbler I was hesitant about. I took an "I love you, so I'll be brave and try it" bite and ended up eating most of it. I never realized you could substitute zucchini for apples in baking.

The rest of the garden is still growing. I used to weed whenever Shane went out to play, but chiggers suck and I think the weeds need to look out for the vines now. The zucchini, cucumbers, and melons have exploded out of the raised beds!

Early bed with everything growing

The jungle currently there!

Carrie eventually built a third raised bed and transferred the peppers. The strawberries were a wash, but it looks like we're going to be getting plenty of other crops from the vines. I spotted a nice-sized melon or two growing nicely!

In the third bed by the shed, we started growing corn. It started off small, but it's growing larger every day!

   

This year was a good first attempt. The strawberries and carrots failed, but it looks like we're going to have some fruits and veggies to look forward to! I think it's neat.









We're learning, using our land, and growing food. If it wasn't going to be over 90 all week, I'd probably be out working on the yard instead of writing this!

Opportunity?

Yesterday morning, another tech position was advertised.

I started applying for tech positions last March. By the end of last summer, I interviewed for a few. Nothing materialized, and I've been applying to any openings that were within a reasonable driving distance. No new interviews have followed. I'm sure I would have got one if I had opened my search radius, but I don't want to spend an hour in a car.

The position that opened up yesterday is an ideal commute. It's where I work now.

I dropped by the principal's office today to let him know I put my resume in the pile. I'm half nervous, half excited.

I really like what I have going for me now. I like my school, my coworkers, my department...I'm pretty settled in. If I get the job, my hours and my duties are going to radically change. I'll go from being an expert to a rookie around everyone who knows me. If I don't get the job, I'll get to be reminded of it daily.

I figure I have to try, though. The only way to grow is to take risks, be challenged and learn.

Updated Kitchen

While Shane went to the zoo with Nana, Pop-Pop, Jama, Megan, Kathleen and Cole on Monday, I started summer school and Carrie finished the kitchen! I don't think the picture does the wall justice. You don't see the appropriate amount of shine.

My wife has many talents; plaster and grout are two of em!

Summer School Has Begun!

Today was the first day of summer school. I had to report in to work by 7 AM at the latest.

I got there by 6:40 AM to be safe. I didn't do much prep over the weekend, so I wanted extra time in case I hit any snags.

And there were snags!

The building was so hot and humid all of the copy paper was curling. It made the copiers jam and the staff go into "Oh Snap!" mode.

After the initial "nothing is working and we all want to use it at the same time" flurry, the day went smoothly.

Summer programs are infamous for being hectic the first several days. You would expect a school to have all of the necessary supplies for school, but they're always locked up and no one has the right key. Kids who are signed up don't show, and kids who aren't signed up knock on the door. We'll be halfway through before things settle down!

Some teachers can't handle all the constant change. I'm used to it. On some level, I actually like the change. It creates challenges and problems to solve that aren't my fault! I like fixing things.

The job is definitely not the 9-12 that was advertised. I didn't leave work until close to 1 PM. It's not going to be the easy side-job I predicted. It's not going to be full time either, thankfully. I put in six hours today, but part of it was being proactive and making copies and organizing ahead of time.

Good thing Carrie found a new alarm clock app for our smartphones!

Old Pics

My dad handed out a bunch of old pictures to each of the siblings today. My wife thinks the teenage me looks hot.

She's rather blind for someone who got lasik! It helps explain how I landed such a looker (Love ya, Carrie!).

Shane pointed at the boy in the sandbox and said "Baby Daddy!" We have an old photobook that has some of my baby pics in it. The first time he saw 'young me' he thought it was someone else. It'll probably be a while before he understands that I was a runt once (as opposed to the bearded manly-man he knows me as).

Carrie posted all of these pics on our fridge for her future amusement.

Nana and Pop

Nana and Pop are great with kids. They've had a lot of practice! They also seem to have endless energy for their grandkids! We are very lucky to have them so close by to help with Shane.

Some of the activities they come up with are very creative.

Here, we have Pop-Pop stacking toilet paper rolls. Now, why would he do that?

Over here, we have my son accelerating down the hallway.

It's "Baby Bowling." Pop-Pop stacks the pins and Shane charges into them like a toddler cannonball!

After Shane's run himself to (a temporary) exhaustion, the toilet paper becomes a table for an imaginary picnic.

Then they become a tunnel as Shane's energy comes back (and it always does!). Careful, Shane! Tunnels tend to collapse on toddlers when Pop-Pop is around!

Choco-Taco Cupcakes

My wife made an A+ birthday card at work and somehow got challenged to a cupcake baking contest.

Only my wife could do that! 

Her challenge: to revisit the Choco-Taco as cupcake.

Neither Carrie or I had ever had a Coho-Taco. I bought a four pack for Dan and I, but Carrie partook, as well.

I can't say we were impressed, but a challenge is a challenge.

Carrie nailed it. The things were massive. I talked a big game, but only got halfway through one before it felt like I had a bowling ball in my gut.

Last, I heard my wife was winning the competition. It was a two-parter, though. Her next assignment involved Starbursts....

Only my wife! Her passion and zeal are one of the many reasons I love her!

Aunt Zanne

Sadly, my Aunt Zanne passed away yesterday morning. She went through chemo and survived her cancer for years. I remember her as always being quick with a joke and a smile!

She kept a journal at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/suzannehuber/journal. Zanne had a zeal for life and a sense of humor about everything. My aunt named her cancer wigs, referred to a cancer-related fluid build-up as "the stork visiting her," (it makes sense if you read that journal entry) and once up on a time she turned the tables on Jama when Jama was dating. The last story is probably my all time favorite Zanne, epic (you won't find it in her journal though....it's a "told on request" only!).

May God recognize his own. In the meantime, your loved ones will miss you here, Zanne.

No More Dumb-Phone for Me

Thanks to Costco, I am now the owner of a new smart phone: a Galaxy S3. It was on sale for $30. There would have been a $30 upgrade fee if I kept my old phone number, but Costco covers new activiation fees.

I said "goodbye" to my old number without a second beat. Continuity is nice, but $30 is $30.

The first thing I did with my new smart phone is take a bunch of pictures. I took 611 mb worth of pics and videos while chasing Shane around the airport (we were there to greet Megan! She's visiting from India).

The second thing I did was hand the phone to Dan. "Make it play good games, please!" Dan had an emulator he uses to "beat games he never beat from childhood."

I wanted it.

Carrie bought me a toy for my birthday that plays my old SNES games. The problems is they're old. My Shadowrun cartridge broke when I put it in. My Final Fantasy III cartridge (VI in Japan) lost one of my save files randomly. Dan's never had any of those issues since his games are through his phone.

Carrie and I have been trying to run down our batteries since. It's been fun. Learning new things is nice, and our cheap new droid phones are very shiny.

I plan to use my new phone to take many more pictures of my son and post them here.

Poor Shane!

Shane has a new catchphrase. Whenever he doesn't get his way he says it.

"AW! Poor Shane!"

He'll say it over and over if the TV is turned off, or if he doesn't get to watch garbage trucks on the computer.

His baby instincts must have alerted him that I find it incredibly annoying. 

Whenever he says it, I'll think to myself "I may not be perfect, but you have all of your needs met, you get most of your wants, and your parents love you....yeah, you have it really rough kid."

Shane then looks up at me and says. "Poor Shane! I so sad!"

Another Visitor Day

Matt, my friend from work, dropped by today with his little girls. Shane couldn't pronounce "Gabriela," so he kept calling the youngest "GabbyGaba!"

Shane and I love getting the visitors. He hammed it up as usual, but I think the cats were the biggest hit.

Whoever was most popular, Shane tuckered himself out. He takes the best naps after running around with other children!

Teen Mike vs Dad (and Homeowner) Mike

I often wonder what the teenage me would think of the today me.

Tree stumps in yard?

Teen Mike: They aren't hurting anyone.

Adult Mike: I get to whack it with a mattock? Let's do this!

I Was Mistaken for a Landscaper Today. I Was That Muddy

Carrie is a customizer. She likes to put her own touch on things and has a good eye for aesthetics. My job is to help make it happen.

I only have two requests when it comes to yard work: don't spend a lot and make sure it's low-maintenance once it's done!

Shar's Here

Sharlene moved in late Sunday night. She and Dan will be moving out in two weeks to a new apartment in Maryland.

They're going to love it.

The commute from here is killer on both of them. It sounds like Dan spotted a great location for both of their jobs. The rent is the typical "you pay how much!?" for the area ($1500/month I think).

Carrie and I will be sad to see them go. I won't lie, the rental income was nice. Having a friend roaming around was worth more to me. Dan has lots of fun work stories, and we got to talk about nerdy things and jiu-jitsu.

We're working out whether or not we're going to look for another renter. Carrie did let our pastor know we have an open room if a need should arise for an intern or what have you, but nothing is really happening on that front.

Sunroom

The cats have been enjoying the sunroom. We opened it up to accommodate the new litter box.

Shane loves having access to a new room, as well. He's even happier when he can catch Min.

Summer Goals

I finished my 3-credit class on Tuesday, and I'm working on my online courses while I write this. Progress is being made!

Unless I find child care for an awkwardly timed night class, I won't make 30 credits by the start of the school year. I'll be forced to take another night class to get the raise. The income from summer school will exceed what I will miss out on by not making the stipend by the first day of school, though.

It would have been nice to have my cake and eat it to, but at least the cake is not a lie! (Yes, that was a Portal reference...if you have not played it, you really should).

Tavisimo

Shane and I went on a side quest today: we visited my "brother from another mother" Travis and his boys!

It was a 45 minute drive in the rain, but we were opposite traffic the whole way. I got to point at the lines of stopped cars for Shane and say "Glad we're not going that way! Hey, look! A garbage truck!"

Travis has three hyper boys: Ryan (10), Brayden (4), and Noah (2). We spent three hours running and rough-horsing around! I was worried that Shane would take his "whole nap" on the drive home, but he was ready to sleep some more when I pulled him out of the car-seat.

Very nice!

I got a few pics of the ensuing hyper-chaos.

Here, all the boys decided to hide under than same blanket on the couch. Why? They're boys. It's like wrestling, but without wrestling. Travis' oldest, Ryan, was good about being gentle and playing with all of the little ones. He took multiple knees to his nuts. Travis had to remind him "You have to protect yourself! Let them know when you're done!"

It was a little rainy/drizzly outside, but there was too much energy to keep everyone inside. Travis served up breakfast for his bunch (Shane got bacon!) and then we all went outside for the next hour.

I love that Shane got a chance to be around a bunch of boys (of all different ages, too!). There are some things you learn in a pack naturally, that an only child doesn't have a clue about.

Number 1: Toughness! Shane is quick to cry, whine, or let you know he's "hurt." Sometimes it's not so much that he's really hurt, it's that he's frustrated and wants an adult to "fix" things.

That doesn't happen in a boy pack! There's no time. You have to keep moving or you'll get left out of the fun. When the boys were wrestling on the couch, Shane punched little Noah straight in the gut. It looked like an accident (Shane was flailing around), but I said "No hit!" Noah shrugged it off and jumped straight back into the pile. No hesitiation. 

When something similar happened, Shane squealed and told me to do something about it! "Daddy! He hitting me! He hitting me!" I said "You're fine! Go play!" My son got with the program after a little while. 

Later, there were times I told him to "Say 'My Turn!'" and to be assertive if someone grabbed something straight out of his hands. We practiced a trade or two, as well.

Number 2: How to play together! Travis' boys were clearly used to playing with each other. Shane couldn't quite climb up the climbing wall until we got Brayden to help pull him up. Later, it took some doing on the dads' parts, we got Shane to hold hands and try to run around with Noah.  Life is more fun if you can share it!

I don't have a picture, but there was cute moment where Noah and Shane both sat in my lap. They wanted me to read a Blue's Clues book to them.

Fun times! I've had a hard time keeping in touch with many of my friends after moving out from my parents. We all live further away, have jobs, and several of us have families. There's not enough time in the day. Travis said that he'd bring the boys to visit us the next time around!

Shane Monster

Shane did something funny and we caught it on camera!

Genevieve and Chris visited, so Shane was in "Ham it Up" mode. He jumped on the table and started roaring! "ROOOOAR! I'M A MONSTER!" We would all squeal and hide which only made Shane roar some more.

I pulled Shane off the table, Carrie grabbed a camera, and Shane shocked us all by jumping on the couch!

History (and hilarity) were made!

Wuv, Twue Wuv

Carrie was excited Tuesday. She learned she was getting Friday off.  Shane was scheduled to go to Nana Day-care and I had a "Work from Home" day for my class.

My wife beamed. "You are going to woo me!"

How's that for pressure!?

"Does picking up mulch count as wooing?" I grinned from ear to ear.

"No!"

I mentally penciled it in to my schedule: "New plan for Friday: Woo Carrie!"

Alas, it was not to be. Both Shane and Carrie ended being plague-bearers!

I could hear the snot starting in Shane's chest Thursday. He woke up bawling from a short nap. I laid down with him and he spent the next half an hour drooling and snotting on my chest in a fitful sleep. That night, he woke up coughing and vomitted. He went back to sleep after a quick bath (Carrie changed out all his sheets), but he had a fever of 103.2 Friday morning.

Carrie had whatever Shane had. She slept almost all of Thursday afternoon/evening. She would have liked to have gone back to sleep, but she was so congested she ended up doing a "this sucks!" status update on Facebook around 1 AM.

Instead of a day of wooing, it was a day of TV, naps, and meds. I think even Shane was sick of TV by the time his fever broke! We tried to go outside a little midday, but when Shane says "It's too hot. I need go inside" you know something's amiss (One, the kid lives to be outside, and two, it really was that hot!)

Princess Bride references aside, there was no 'wooing.' I'll have to save my master plan for another day.

Stubborn to the Core

Shane jumped on the couch, looked at me and said, "Blanket, Daddy!"

My eyes tracked downward. Shane had stepped on a blanket to vault up moments before.

"Which blanket do you want, Shane?"

"BIG BLANKET!"

That was the blanket he had stepped on. All Shane had to do was roll over and reach off the couch.

"Shane get the blanket."

"No! Daddy, NO!" Shane cried.

If the blanket had been across the room, out of sight, stuck under an end table leg....then I could have understood the need for my assistance.

As it was, Shane was practically on top of the blanket. There was nothing preventing him from picking it up other than he wanted me to do it.

Earlier that day, I read Georgeanne's report from day-care. She wrote "Does Shane whine at home?"

It was not the first time she's asked. Shane has been whiney. I do my best to ignore at, but he hasn't given up.

Back to the couch.

"Blanket, PUH-LEASE!" Some of the fakest crying/whining followed.

"No. Shane get blanket."

"NO! I NOT! I CRYING DADDY! I CRYING!"

The stand off was set.

This was not a battle I had looked for, but here it was.  I figured that Shane would relent after a few minutes. After all, the blanket was right there! I put on my 'teacher face,' and resolved to keep my tone and body language even.

Twenty minutes later, Shane rolled over and picked up the blanket. I put down my coffee (that I had made while Shane protested), told him I loved him, and life went on.

Whew! What a stubborn child!  I wonder which of us Shane gets that from?

It wasn't as bad on me as it sounds, though. Shane refused to leave the couch while he was whining and protesting. I got up, checked my email, made coffee....if anything it was an impromptu break!

Goals Update

I will be teaching summer school. I signed the contract last Friday.

It's also academy class season! I'm halfway done with my Human Relations class, in the first week of one online class and the orientation week of another.

So far, so good.

End of the School Year

I've never been a big fan of the end of the school year.

Call me weird, but it's true.

I want summer. I don't like the last week or two of school that's corporate babysitting (and hoping none of the kids do something they'll regret!) I also don't like the packing up and sudden void when school ends.

Don't get me wrong: I find a way to fill the void soon enough! I love summer! But that first day when my badge and keys are turned in and it's all said and done feels a little hollow or like unemployment.

This school year had an especially difficult ending: another student died.

At the beginning of the school year, there was a murder-suicide that involved a family in our community. I did  not know the student at my school, but I knew the older brother and mother. I was asked by another parent to help break the news to her son (he had yet to hear).

On what should have been the last teacher workday this year, an emergency staff meeting was called. The principal gave us some details about how several of our students were involved in an accident: one died. The other two were injured. I did not know the student who passed away, but I personally knew the others.

Sad times.

I'm not going to relay the bits and pieces I've heard here out of respect. I don't know the whole story and it's not my story to tell. The surviving students will be marked by these events and I hope that the tragedy will be a catalyst that builds character and responsibility instead of weight that destroys them.

My prayers go out for the families affected and that God would turn our mistakes into His glory.

Project Carrie

My wife is big on projects. Sometimes I come home and BAM! Some crazy stuff has happened.

This is what I found on Monday:

Carrie took Shane to daycare so she could add a tile backsplash in the kitchen. She even pulled out the oven so that she could keep everything even.

The project is only half done, but it looks great so far!

The other project I knew about: Operation Upgraded Kitty Pot.

Carrie bought this armoire from an ad on Craigslist for $25 (plus a few mirrors were thrown in for free).

Normally, Carrie likes to do all the dirty work herself, but she allowed me to use the power tools this time.

It would have been nice to have a jig saw, but I only had a circular saw. Definitely not the right tool for the job, but it beat doing things by hand! I chiseled out a few spots and then Carrie worked her magic to build a frame and step combo to mask my mistakes. She's going to add a step shelf on the inside to help the cats jump in and out.

Carrie took a quick video where we threw Min in and shut the doors. We closed Max in a little later. It's important that the cats know exactly where we want them to crap!

They seem to like it so far! They were lounging on the top and the cat tree. 

When I was looking for a wife, I didn't want a helpless 'rescue me' girl. I landed a crafty creative thinker! It certainly makes life more interesting! 

Did This Really Happen?

The hospital called yesterday. They've been billing the wrong 'me' for Shane's last ER visit. 

There is someone else with my exact name and birthday in my county.

The first thought that comes to mind is "Identity Theft," but Carrie asked and our social security number don't match. 

Weird.

I called the hospital back when I got home. One, I wanted to confirm that there wasn't someone trying to fake being me. Two, I wanted to make sure the number my wife was given matched the hospital's number on the web and three, if there was someone with my name and birthday near by I'd like to contact him. 

I'm curious. My last name is more unique than "Smith" or "Chen," but there are a slew of Mike's in the world.  The odds of matching my first name, last name, and birthday are astronomically low. 

It would be fun to meet the other me and see what we have in common.

The Boy Has Skills

Shane is a gross motor skills kid. I've been noticing a lot of development lately. 

It used to be I would roll a ball by him and he'd stand still and watch it pass. Once it was stopped, he run over and grab it. Now, he chases and intercepts. Sometimes he's even successful! Going from passive watching to reacting and sometimes succeeding is big.

Then we went to the park and Shane surprised me again.

Shane's first attempt at the moving steps resulted in a bump and tears. Today, he was a pro. I told Shane to "hold on tight!" and showed how to reach from one pole to the next. 

He listened.

Then he made it look easy.

Big improvement!

I got a few other action shots to post afterward.

Shane's a high-energy boy!

Farewell to State Parks (Jurassic style!)

Saturday, Carrie, Shane, and I went by Carrie's old office to turn in her work laptop and "pickle." Carrie socialized, while Shane ran around causing havoc. Daddy was on damage control.

Genevieve and I watched and laughed as Shane struggled to push open a door. 

Oh, how the boy tried! He grunted! He shoved! He pushed high and low. He even turned upside down to face the ceiling to see if that would help!

I was able to snap a quick picture in between laughing. 

Shane discovered the door handle seconds later. He didn't quite make the connection. He did like banging on it and making lots of noise! Gaston and Carrie joined in laughing.

Shane hammed it up. He started hitting and pushing harder and harder until the door budged.

He stopped.

Little gears whirred and he started to experiment.

"It's like watching a raptor learn to open a door..." Carrie said.

A second later Shane plowed through into the great outdoors. Daddy was in hot pursuit.

I wonder how old Shane needs to be before I can show him Jurassic Park without giving him nightmares...

Moving Around Photo-dump

Saturday morning, a huge moving van made it's way down our street. It was too big to turn around in the cul-de-sac, so it had to use the intersection to flip around and back in.

Little boys like big trucks.

Shane and I were on the case.

 

We met a really nice family with a bunch of kids. The youngest was a three-year old girl (who Shane dwarfed).

Shane and I visited and played all day, but it was not meant to last. By the end of the day, the truck was gone and the kids were off to California. We had our fun for several hours throughout the day. The parents must have kicked all the kids outside while they packed, because there was a party whenever we came by!

It turns out that the little girls from this family were friends with the little girls of the other family down the street Shane and I know. They're all older than him, so other than the "He's a baby!" novelty we don't spend tons of time down there.

Sadly, they were piling into a car for a trip to the beach! Shane had a great time, but it looks like we won't bump into as many kids this week. Harley's owners (a friendly dog that walks past our house a lot) put their house up for sale a couple of weeks ago. It sold in less than 24 hours!

Lots of change around here, but hopefully more kids will be coming in. I'm no Nana, but I'm starting to meet more people up and down the block!