We are out of here for a fun-filled week in the Windy City. We plan to hit all the major museums and see all the sites. Plus, we're freeloading for a couple of nights at the Starmack Inn. (Gotta love the rates!)
Photos and description to follow.
Showing posts with label Update. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Update. Show all posts
Monday, March 30, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Where The Heck Have I Been?
Nowhere, really. I just haven't been blogging for some reason.
We're fighting through the last few weeks of winter here. We had four inches of snow last night, which would have been demoralizing if it had been the wet, heavy kind of snow. Instead it was light and fluffy, so the shoveling was easy. We've had some warm weather, so everyone is primed for spring.
The kids are doing well and we are into a nice routine. We have the annual Blue and Gold banquet for Cub Scouts tomorrow and Nick will be earning his Tiger Cub badge, which is exciting. Then we need to get ready for the Pinewood Derby in March.
Xander is a typical four-year-old trying to do everything a seven-year-old does. It's hard on him because he really wants to do more than he's capable of right now. For example, he'll sit down and try to build one of Nick's complicated Lego kits. Of course, this ends up in frustration because it's just too much for him right now. You have to admire his persistence.
We watched The Water Horse with the kids last night. It's a cute movie about the Loch Ness monster. Nick seemed to enjoy it and it was nice to branch out beyond cartoons.
Allison and I have been obsessed with the new Battlestar Galactica series. We've been watching previous seasons on DVD and have finally caught up to the current (and final season). It's a really great show that, despite some weirdness, has kept us interested. They've definitely moved well beyond the initial premise of humans running from evil Cylons. I'm happy that I won't be spending so much of my life staring at the TV, but I'll be sad when it is over. I just hope they manage to give these poor people a break and give them some sort of happy ending. If you like science fiction, it's worth checking out. Just make sure you start at the beginning or you won't have the faintest idea what is going on.
We're fighting through the last few weeks of winter here. We had four inches of snow last night, which would have been demoralizing if it had been the wet, heavy kind of snow. Instead it was light and fluffy, so the shoveling was easy. We've had some warm weather, so everyone is primed for spring.
The kids are doing well and we are into a nice routine. We have the annual Blue and Gold banquet for Cub Scouts tomorrow and Nick will be earning his Tiger Cub badge, which is exciting. Then we need to get ready for the Pinewood Derby in March.
Xander is a typical four-year-old trying to do everything a seven-year-old does. It's hard on him because he really wants to do more than he's capable of right now. For example, he'll sit down and try to build one of Nick's complicated Lego kits. Of course, this ends up in frustration because it's just too much for him right now. You have to admire his persistence.
We watched The Water Horse with the kids last night. It's a cute movie about the Loch Ness monster. Nick seemed to enjoy it and it was nice to branch out beyond cartoons.
Allison and I have been obsessed with the new Battlestar Galactica series. We've been watching previous seasons on DVD and have finally caught up to the current (and final season). It's a really great show that, despite some weirdness, has kept us interested. They've definitely moved well beyond the initial premise of humans running from evil Cylons. I'm happy that I won't be spending so much of my life staring at the TV, but I'll be sad when it is over. I just hope they manage to give these poor people a break and give them some sort of happy ending. If you like science fiction, it's worth checking out. Just make sure you start at the beginning or you won't have the faintest idea what is going on.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Arizona Interlude
Last week Allison had a conference in Scottsdale Arizona. She left on Wednesday. Grandma Johnson volunteered (or was drafted?!) to watch the boys, so I flew down on Friday to join her.
It was very nice to get a way from sub-zero temperatures for a few days. The weather there was about perfect - low to mid seventies every day with plenty of sun. They heat the pools this time of year, so we even got to do some swimming. Very nice.
We spent the first day and a half of my visit in Scottsdale. Allison had sessions to attend, so I was on my own to explore. The two most interesting finds were the Fiesta Bowl museum and hall of fame and a store the sold nothing but Nebraska Cornhuskers gear. I also discovered the Scottsdale 'waterfront.' As you can imagine, I was not impressed.
After Allison's conference ended, we switched to another resort across town. We have tons of Marriott Rewards points, so we splurged on a really nice place and got to see how the other half lives. I'm here to report that they live pretty damn well.
All in all, we had a wonderful time and are planning a return trip for some point in the future. We'd like to plan on doing more hiking and other outdoor activities. I can definitely see why people from Minnesota winter down there.
Allison has another conference at Disneyworld in April, so we may take the whole family down there.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Minnesota History Center
Since there was no school today, I took the boys to the Minnesota History Center in downtown St. Paul. It's a great facility with lots of kid friendly exhibits on the history of this fine state. The boys had never been there before and were reluctant, but I dragged them along anyway.
It was really a fun time. They found lots of interesting stuff to do. Nick loved being able to look through the binoculars out the big plate glass window facing the State Capitol. He also loved Charles Lindbergh's biplane hanging in the lobby. Xander liked the log cabin building area and driving the Greyhound bus.
My favorite part was the recreation of a St. Paul house that was originally built in 1888 and has been home to fifty different families over the years (it was converted to a triplex at one point). Different rooms were about different eras and different families. In the backyard they had a bunch of old school games kids used to play like dropping clothes pins into a glass jar. The kids loved it.
Anyway, I highly recommend checking it out. They even have pretty good food in the cafeteria.
Follow me on Twitter
Friday, January 2, 2009
Post Holiday Funk
Now that the holidays are past, it is time for the annual post-holiday funk. Our house looks like a toy store exploded. There's a ton of Christmas decorations that need to be packed up. The kids are acting like hyenas on crack. And I'm feeling like I've had too much vacation, which is odd because I don't have a job.
I can't wait for school to start on Monday so we can get back to what passes for "normal."
___
Follow me on Twitter
I can't wait for school to start on Monday so we can get back to what passes for "normal."
___
Follow me on Twitter
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Hapy New Year!
Happy 2009.
We had a quiet New Year's Eve. The boys watched some Bionicle movies that didn't make any sense to me whatsoever. (Bionicles are LEGO robots of some sort. They have some kind of back story of some stuff that happens to some of them. If you are above the age of ten none of it makes any sense.) Xander fell asleep around 9 p.m. Nick wanted to try for midnight, but we ruled against him on account of the yawning and the refusal to take a nap in the afternoon. He complained for 5 seconds and then fell sleep.
Once the kids were in bed, Allison and I were free to watch three episodes of the new Battlestar Galactica. It's a fantastic show and after every episode I can't wait to watch the next one. We just started season 2.0, so we have a ways to go.
Battlestar Galactica wrapped up at precisely 11:58pm, so we quick switched to regular TV so we could watch the ball drop. Apparently Dick Clark is still alive and hosting New Year's Rockin' Eve, which was a bit of a surprise. At 12:01am we turned off the TV and went to bed.
The kids slept in a little and after breakfast we hit the Como Park golf course for some sledding. Great fun was had by all. Everyone is kind of wiped out, so I expect a quiet afternoon.
___
Follow me on Twitter
We had a quiet New Year's Eve. The boys watched some Bionicle movies that didn't make any sense to me whatsoever. (Bionicles are LEGO robots of some sort. They have some kind of back story of some stuff that happens to some of them. If you are above the age of ten none of it makes any sense.) Xander fell asleep around 9 p.m. Nick wanted to try for midnight, but we ruled against him on account of the yawning and the refusal to take a nap in the afternoon. He complained for 5 seconds and then fell sleep.
Once the kids were in bed, Allison and I were free to watch three episodes of the new Battlestar Galactica. It's a fantastic show and after every episode I can't wait to watch the next one. We just started season 2.0, so we have a ways to go.
Battlestar Galactica wrapped up at precisely 11:58pm, so we quick switched to regular TV so we could watch the ball drop. Apparently Dick Clark is still alive and hosting New Year's Rockin' Eve, which was a bit of a surprise. At 12:01am we turned off the TV and went to bed.
The kids slept in a little and after breakfast we hit the Como Park golf course for some sledding. Great fun was had by all. Everyone is kind of wiped out, so I expect a quiet afternoon.
___
Follow me on Twitter
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Weekend Update
This weekend seemed to fly by. On Friday Xander's preschool had a Thanksgiving program and potluck for lunch, complete with turkey. Awesome.
Saturday was Christmas wreath delivery day. I showed up early to help unload the truck and then Nick and I delivered wreaths to everyone who ordered from us. It was a lot of work, but it was a lot of fun. I think Nick enjoyed the experience, too. The sale was very successful and our pack is in a much stronger financial position this year than they were last year Thanks to all of you who ordered!
Today we hit Janet's house after church for a wonderful turkey dinner. It was sort of an imprompteau early Thanksgiving. No, we don't mooch food off of Janet every Sunday. Although I am open to the idea.
___
Follow me on Twitter
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Saturday Roundup
Nick had a birthday party this morning up in Coon Rapids and Allison was his driver. That left the X-man and me looking for stuff to do. After a game of baseball and a bike ride, we decided to hit the town.
First stop was the Ax-Man Surplus Store on University Avenue. This an amazing place. You never know what you are going to find there. They have every thing from party supplies to luggage to reconditioned electric motors. Last time I was there they had a consignment of Swedish army helmets. (Allison said I couldn't buy one.)
Today they had Soviet-era gas masks. I spent some time looking at these because I spent a fair amount of time wearing a U.S. Army protective mask back in my Army Reserve days. I gotta say, the Soviet model looked like a complete piece of garbage. I remember in training being told how well prepared the Russians were for chemical warfare. Looking at the actual equipment makes me think that the Russians were fooling us or we were exaggerating the threat to get more money from Congress.
After the Ax-Man, Xander and I hit the McDonalds on University for lunch. Hitting an urban McDonalds is always a little adventure. I tend to watch everyone very closely when I'm at one with the kids - I go into hyper-protective mode.
The highlight of today's visit was this guy who came in off the street carry a grocery bag. He went and sat down at a booth in the back by himself without ordering. Every so often he would laugh out loud. Not just a giggle, but a long, drawn out laugh. He happened to be sitting in my line of sight, so I was looking as close as I could - without being too obvious - to see if he had a cordless headset for a cell phone or ear buds for a radio. Nothing. He was just a real happy guy I guess. (Of course, so was The Joker.)
Eventually the guy got up and went to the bathroom. I couldn't help but wonder if he was hatching some diabolical plan involving whatever was in the grocery bag. (I told you I go into hyper-protective mode!) I started to plan escape routes for Xander and me. The guy could have anything in the bag. Guns, knives, a biological agent... (Damn! I should have bought the gas mask!) Of course he probably had something mundane in the grocery bag like laundry or books or even groceries. Anway, he finally comes out of the bathroom, still carrying his bag, walks to the door and just leaves. Really kind of anti-climatic. (No kidding, I just spent three paragraphs talking about a guy with a grocery bag.)
After our non-adventure at McDonalds, Xander I hit Half Price Books where we scored a couple of kid-friendly Star Wars books. Now we are just hanging around waiting for Nick and Allison to come home. Who knows what adventures the rest of the afternoon will hold??
First stop was the Ax-Man Surplus Store on University Avenue. This an amazing place. You never know what you are going to find there. They have every thing from party supplies to luggage to reconditioned electric motors. Last time I was there they had a consignment of Swedish army helmets. (Allison said I couldn't buy one.)
Today they had Soviet-era gas masks. I spent some time looking at these because I spent a fair amount of time wearing a U.S. Army protective mask back in my Army Reserve days. I gotta say, the Soviet model looked like a complete piece of garbage. I remember in training being told how well prepared the Russians were for chemical warfare. Looking at the actual equipment makes me think that the Russians were fooling us or we were exaggerating the threat to get more money from Congress.
After the Ax-Man, Xander and I hit the McDonalds on University for lunch. Hitting an urban McDonalds is always a little adventure. I tend to watch everyone very closely when I'm at one with the kids - I go into hyper-protective mode.
The highlight of today's visit was this guy who came in off the street carry a grocery bag. He went and sat down at a booth in the back by himself without ordering. Every so often he would laugh out loud. Not just a giggle, but a long, drawn out laugh. He happened to be sitting in my line of sight, so I was looking as close as I could - without being too obvious - to see if he had a cordless headset for a cell phone or ear buds for a radio. Nothing. He was just a real happy guy I guess. (Of course, so was The Joker.)
Eventually the guy got up and went to the bathroom. I couldn't help but wonder if he was hatching some diabolical plan involving whatever was in the grocery bag. (I told you I go into hyper-protective mode!) I started to plan escape routes for Xander and me. The guy could have anything in the bag. Guns, knives, a biological agent... (Damn! I should have bought the gas mask!) Of course he probably had something mundane in the grocery bag like laundry or books or even groceries. Anway, he finally comes out of the bathroom, still carrying his bag, walks to the door and just leaves. Really kind of anti-climatic. (No kidding, I just spent three paragraphs talking about a guy with a grocery bag.)
After our non-adventure at McDonalds, Xander I hit Half Price Books where we scored a couple of kid-friendly Star Wars books. Now we are just hanging around waiting for Nick and Allison to come home. Who knows what adventures the rest of the afternoon will hold??
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Wednesday Notes
1. The frozen Coke drink at Super America is teh awesome. It makes me wish I drank more pop because I would have one every day.
2. I successfully registered for a class this fall - Introduction to Probability and Statistics. This will be good preparation for a variety of graduate programs I'm contemplating. I'm looking forward to math homework for the first time in nearly twenty(!!!) years.
3. The kids didn't want to do the beach or pool again today. Instead they requested that I set up the sprinkler and slip n' slide. Wish us luck!
That is all.
2. I successfully registered for a class this fall - Introduction to Probability and Statistics. This will be good preparation for a variety of graduate programs I'm contemplating. I'm looking forward to math homework for the first time in nearly twenty(!!!) years.
3. The kids didn't want to do the beach or pool again today. Instead they requested that I set up the sprinkler and slip n' slide. Wish us luck!
That is all.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
Posts
