So my friend Kevin and I are trying to decide if our friend Nathan Larsen is the long lost father of American Idol's Taylor Hicks....
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Larsen vs. Hicks
So my friend Kevin and I are trying to decide if our friend Nathan Larsen is the long lost father of American Idol's Taylor Hicks....
define lonely...
So shanna and jacen left this morning for Reno for the family reunion (her mom's side of the family). I fly out next Wednesday meaning I have the place to myself for a few days. Already several people have asked me, "Are you lonely yet?" Hmmm. Define lonely. Do I wish she and Jacen were here or I was there? of course. I'm I getting all soppy teary-eyed and wishy washy? Well yes, but a man can cry can't he??? I NEEED my woman!
Seriously, I'm okay. Having traveled around for 4Life for weeks at a time I think I can handle a few days. And she is with family which makes it easier on her. Plus now I get to run things around here for once. I'M IN CHARGE. as long as the house is cleaned up before she gets back that is...
Seriously, I'm okay. Having traveled around for 4Life for weeks at a time I think I can handle a few days. And she is with family which makes it easier on her. Plus now I get to run things around here for once. I'M IN CHARGE. as long as the house is cleaned up before she gets back that is...
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Just for you Carolyn
Has it really been almost a month since I've posted something?? Wow! Carolyn was right, I am terrible at this. Well, I'm new so I think that is a viable excuse.
Let me give you a quick rundown of our goings on. Shanna had her surgery on the 21st. For those of you who don't know Shanna tore her ACL in a stake basketball game a few months ago. She waited until the school year ended to have her surgery. She is now on the road to recovery. It has been pretty difficult for her. Not because of the pain or discomfort--those she is handling exceptionally well. No, the hard part for her is the loss of independence and mobility. She feels pretty helpless. I've been picking up the slack (cuz I'm good like that) but Shanna feels like she is a burden.
Anyway, her physical therapists are very pleased with her progress even if she isn't. She is famous for her impatience. She is still on crutches but manages quite well without them but tires easily.
My birthday came and went on the 23rd. Pretty uneventful. I was in Missouri with my dad who was having surgery of his own that day. Shanna and I will celebrate my birthday when she is all healed up. I am a year older but somehow I feel a year less mature. Must be Jacen's influence.
Speaking of Jacen--he had decided he wants to use the big potty. Shanna and I are shocked. He has repeatedly told us "potty potty" but we've felt like it was just a novelty with him. Anyway, when he started saying potty and tapping his diaper we started taking him a little more seriously. We bought him his own toilet and a stepping stool so he can get to the sink so he can 'wash hands' as he is fond of saying. Today is the first day he went to the potty in his new toilet. We are proud yet stunned. Shanna and I talked quite a bit about how we should go about trying to potty train him. We think he is pretty young to be potty training (19 months) so we don't want to push him in any way but we don't want to discourage him either. It all may be just a passing fad for him but if he wants to help out with family budget and not make me buy diapers every week I'm all for it.
School starts again for me this Thursday. Thrilled.
Shanna is leaving for Reno this Saturday. Her mom's side of the family is having a reunion and we are all going. I'll be heading out the following Wednesday. Shanna's mom is pretty excited to show us her old stomping grounds. We will fly back the following Sunday.
I think that's about it for now. Till next time. (good enough Carolyn???)
Let me give you a quick rundown of our goings on. Shanna had her surgery on the 21st. For those of you who don't know Shanna tore her ACL in a stake basketball game a few months ago. She waited until the school year ended to have her surgery. She is now on the road to recovery. It has been pretty difficult for her. Not because of the pain or discomfort--those she is handling exceptionally well. No, the hard part for her is the loss of independence and mobility. She feels pretty helpless. I've been picking up the slack (cuz I'm good like that) but Shanna feels like she is a burden.
Anyway, her physical therapists are very pleased with her progress even if she isn't. She is famous for her impatience. She is still on crutches but manages quite well without them but tires easily.
My birthday came and went on the 23rd. Pretty uneventful. I was in Missouri with my dad who was having surgery of his own that day. Shanna and I will celebrate my birthday when she is all healed up. I am a year older but somehow I feel a year less mature. Must be Jacen's influence.
Speaking of Jacen--he had decided he wants to use the big potty. Shanna and I are shocked. He has repeatedly told us "potty potty" but we've felt like it was just a novelty with him. Anyway, when he started saying potty and tapping his diaper we started taking him a little more seriously. We bought him his own toilet and a stepping stool so he can get to the sink so he can 'wash hands' as he is fond of saying. Today is the first day he went to the potty in his new toilet. We are proud yet stunned. Shanna and I talked quite a bit about how we should go about trying to potty train him. We think he is pretty young to be potty training (19 months) so we don't want to push him in any way but we don't want to discourage him either. It all may be just a passing fad for him but if he wants to help out with family budget and not make me buy diapers every week I'm all for it.
School starts again for me this Thursday. Thrilled.
Shanna is leaving for Reno this Saturday. Her mom's side of the family is having a reunion and we are all going. I'll be heading out the following Wednesday. Shanna's mom is pretty excited to show us her old stomping grounds. We will fly back the following Sunday.
I think that's about it for now. Till next time. (good enough Carolyn???)
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Road Warriors
I'm writing this post from a Holiday Inn Express in Springfield, Missouri. Last Wednesday Shanna, Jacen and I packed up the car and drove to Texas to see my side of the family. We left at midnight and drove all night and day. We took it pretty easy on our drive stopping to stretch our legs, have some eats, and even play in a small park-ish area. We got to Hale Center (where my sisters live) at about 10pm Central time.
We had a GREAT visit with them. It was really good to see everyone but especially nice for me was that Jacen is getting to know his family. He loved playing with his aunts and cousins, especially Nicky-Diana's son.
Nicky has one of those motorized cars for kids. It is a John Deere tractor and he loves it. We thought Jacen would too especially when he would chase Nicky around while Nicky was driving it. We put Jacen on it and he was clueless. We tried to show him the 'gas' pedal but he just wasn't interested. He soon started screaming and almost crying. He just isn't interested in motorized toys.
Anyway, we played the game Apples to Apples a lot and of course lots of Wahoo. We also looked through some old photos and Shanna got to see pictures of my mom. She also saw lots of pictures of me when I was younger and much dumber. I should post a few of those pictures (Glenda gave some to Shanna).
On Sunday night we drove up to Canyon to Totch and Kathy Upshaw's house. Had a great time there too. I got to do a tiny bit of work with Totch around camp. I would like to have done more but there really didn't seem like much that needed to be done. We somehow managed to convince Kathy to take us to lunch at On The Border. I know she hated it but we loved it. The best thing is that at the very end, after me pestering her and her telling me OTB was bad, she finally tried my dish and said, "wow, that's pretty good." Victory!!
Jacen got to go swimming again while we were at Camp Don. He loved it. I was worried that since it had been so long since we went swimming (in Singapore) that he wouldn't like it anymore. I was wrong. He even started kicking his feet.
Anyway, we left Tuesday night at about 7:30 and drove to Springfield, Missouri. And here we are.
Oh, and we are bringing back Glenda's daughters Lacee and Brittney with us to Cincinnati. They are going to spend 10 days with us. We are excited to have them with us. Lacee is 13 and Brittney is 11. I'm not sure what we are going to do while they are there but all I know is that we have cheap labor for 10 days. No washing dishes, no mopping, no laundry. Kids are great. :-)
We had a GREAT visit with them. It was really good to see everyone but especially nice for me was that Jacen is getting to know his family. He loved playing with his aunts and cousins, especially Nicky-Diana's son.
Nicky has one of those motorized cars for kids. It is a John Deere tractor and he loves it. We thought Jacen would too especially when he would chase Nicky around while Nicky was driving it. We put Jacen on it and he was clueless. We tried to show him the 'gas' pedal but he just wasn't interested. He soon started screaming and almost crying. He just isn't interested in motorized toys.
Anyway, we played the game Apples to Apples a lot and of course lots of Wahoo. We also looked through some old photos and Shanna got to see pictures of my mom. She also saw lots of pictures of me when I was younger and much dumber. I should post a few of those pictures (Glenda gave some to Shanna).
On Sunday night we drove up to Canyon to Totch and Kathy Upshaw's house. Had a great time there too. I got to do a tiny bit of work with Totch around camp. I would like to have done more but there really didn't seem like much that needed to be done. We somehow managed to convince Kathy to take us to lunch at On The Border. I know she hated it but we loved it. The best thing is that at the very end, after me pestering her and her telling me OTB was bad, she finally tried my dish and said, "wow, that's pretty good." Victory!!
Jacen got to go swimming again while we were at Camp Don. He loved it. I was worried that since it had been so long since we went swimming (in Singapore) that he wouldn't like it anymore. I was wrong. He even started kicking his feet.
Anyway, we left Tuesday night at about 7:30 and drove to Springfield, Missouri. And here we are.
Oh, and we are bringing back Glenda's daughters Lacee and Brittney with us to Cincinnati. They are going to spend 10 days with us. We are excited to have them with us. Lacee is 13 and Brittney is 11. I'm not sure what we are going to do while they are there but all I know is that we have cheap labor for 10 days. No washing dishes, no mopping, no laundry. Kids are great. :-)
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Sick babies and stuff
Man, is there anything more troublesome than a sick baby? Jacen has been under the weather for the past few days with something called Hand-Foot-Mouth Disease. He had a fever for a few days and got rash-like sores all over his body. Add to all that he has been really cranky. I don't fault Jacen because I get really cranky when I'm sick too. Anyway, it has been pretty tough because Shanna is in the last week of work at AWL and the kids there are getting restless. And I've got finals coming up so I've been pretty busy finishing up papers, projects, and studying. Or at least faking it.
Anyway, Jacen has required a lot more attention than normal. I guess this is what we signed up for when we decided to have kids. Cuts, bruises, chicken pox, hand-foot-mouth, etc. By the way, how great is the name 'hand-foot-mouth disease'? They should name all ailments like this. 'Black-lung-and-dying-soon-because-you-smoked-for-twenty-years' or 'Heart-stopped-working-because-you-don't-exercise-and-eat-like-a-pig'. I think people who name diseases should stop using Latin and start empowering the hyphen.
Pressure
I guess now I have to step up my posting here. Tommy has started blogging and already that guy is showing me up. He has already posted pictures AND video on his blog. I am lucky to be able to log in when I want to write. Always gotta show off don't ya Joseph!! Anyway, it is actually probably good for me. Keeps me on my toes. And Tommy, welcome. Good to have you here.
Anyway, Jacen has required a lot more attention than normal. I guess this is what we signed up for when we decided to have kids. Cuts, bruises, chicken pox, hand-foot-mouth, etc. By the way, how great is the name 'hand-foot-mouth disease'? They should name all ailments like this. 'Black-lung-and-dying-soon-because-you-smoked-for-twenty-years' or 'Heart-stopped-working-because-you-don't-exercise-and-eat-like-a-pig'. I think people who name diseases should stop using Latin and start empowering the hyphen.
Pressure
I guess now I have to step up my posting here. Tommy has started blogging and already that guy is showing me up. He has already posted pictures AND video on his blog. I am lucky to be able to log in when I want to write. Always gotta show off don't ya Joseph!! Anyway, it is actually probably good for me. Keeps me on my toes. And Tommy, welcome. Good to have you here.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Politics
I have decided to again become politically active. I don't mean that I'm going to run for Senate or anything but I am going to become involved again.
In high school I was very well informed about what was going on in the world around me. I could name all the major political figures of the day. I had opinions on a variety of subjects and could back up my arguments. But then something happened. I can't say when or what caused it but I became disinterested. I started to hate politics and politicians. It was so full of mean-spirited back-biting, lies, silly debates, corruption and other things that just sickened me I had to dis-associate myself from it all.
I now realize that was a mistake. I need to be involved for exactly those reasons named above. I need to, in some manner, speak out against that type of activity.
One of the hot button issues here in Cincinnati right now is the policy of Eminent Domain. The city of Cincinnati just stole property from an 80 year old woman who had lived in her home for 47 YEARS. They decided that the rights of a land developer (and the tax $$$ it will bring in) were more important than this woman's right to property. This issue REALLY gets me fired up. I am ALL for capitalism and the desire for businesses to earn profits, that's why they are in business. If they want a particular piece of property then they should offer to buy it. If the person doesn't want to sell, you offer more. And keep raising your offer until it reaches an amount that is either satisfactory to both parties or if not, then you walk away and try to find another piece of property. If you can't find another piece of property then guess what---sorry, no business for you. Explore other options. Businesses should not have the ability to decide that a price for piece of property is too high so we are just going to go to the city council, wave dollar signs in their face, and have them claim eminent domain on a home owner.
I really really hope this comes back to bite the city in the butt. I definitely know who I will not be voting for when their re-election comes around. I don't care what their justification for it is, or any other policies they have that I might agree with, if they cannot respect the fundamental right of property ownership then I can't believe they will respect any other rights.
Now I'm all fired up. I better take a break.
In high school I was very well informed about what was going on in the world around me. I could name all the major political figures of the day. I had opinions on a variety of subjects and could back up my arguments. But then something happened. I can't say when or what caused it but I became disinterested. I started to hate politics and politicians. It was so full of mean-spirited back-biting, lies, silly debates, corruption and other things that just sickened me I had to dis-associate myself from it all.
I now realize that was a mistake. I need to be involved for exactly those reasons named above. I need to, in some manner, speak out against that type of activity.
One of the hot button issues here in Cincinnati right now is the policy of Eminent Domain. The city of Cincinnati just stole property from an 80 year old woman who had lived in her home for 47 YEARS. They decided that the rights of a land developer (and the tax $$$ it will bring in) were more important than this woman's right to property. This issue REALLY gets me fired up. I am ALL for capitalism and the desire for businesses to earn profits, that's why they are in business. If they want a particular piece of property then they should offer to buy it. If the person doesn't want to sell, you offer more. And keep raising your offer until it reaches an amount that is either satisfactory to both parties or if not, then you walk away and try to find another piece of property. If you can't find another piece of property then guess what---sorry, no business for you. Explore other options. Businesses should not have the ability to decide that a price for piece of property is too high so we are just going to go to the city council, wave dollar signs in their face, and have them claim eminent domain on a home owner.
I really really hope this comes back to bite the city in the butt. I definitely know who I will not be voting for when their re-election comes around. I don't care what their justification for it is, or any other policies they have that I might agree with, if they cannot respect the fundamental right of property ownership then I can't believe they will respect any other rights.
Now I'm all fired up. I better take a break.
Monday, May 01, 2006
first post
It's times like these that make me laugh. I remember thinking many many times, "I'll NEVER blog. blogging is for junior high twits." Serves me right that I'm now sitting at my computer figuring out how to blog. So to all the junior high twits out there, i offer you my apologies. You aren't junior high twits after all--you're middle school twits.
But...having said that I have come to realize that blogging is a necessary evil. Having family and friends all over the world necessitates some form of expedient communication. I have neither the time nor the inclination to write emails to everyone I know letting them know how we are doing and to send them all updated photos of Jacen. I do think I can jump on here occasionally and write something. I do want people to know what is going on in our lives. I especially want people to see/know about Jacen.
So I guess what I'm saying is that, yeah I am a hypocrite but I'm doing it for YOU. That makes it okay right?
But...having said that I have come to realize that blogging is a necessary evil. Having family and friends all over the world necessitates some form of expedient communication. I have neither the time nor the inclination to write emails to everyone I know letting them know how we are doing and to send them all updated photos of Jacen. I do think I can jump on here occasionally and write something. I do want people to know what is going on in our lives. I especially want people to see/know about Jacen.
So I guess what I'm saying is that, yeah I am a hypocrite but I'm doing it for YOU. That makes it okay right?
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