Merry Christmas--
It was a great Christmas with our family. The first Christmas for our girls. It was so much better than last year. The only draw back was Aline was feeling a little green -- stomach bug. As far as the gifts go - we where spoiled with not only materialistic things but also the love of family. It was very important to Aline and I that our girls share their gifts with everyone this holiday season.
It was also important to include our son in the holiday plans. Ryan has a stocking which had some materialistic gifts -- but he also allowed us to reflect on the gifts that we have today and everyday.
Have fun....
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Friday, December 22, 2006
The sleeping of babes
Hi everyone-
Well it has been a week of sleeping for the girls at least. Parents are still getting used to the idea of not waking up. And my wife still gets "VERY uncomfortable" in the middle of the night requiring a pumping session. But as some seasoned parents have reminded us, teeth are on the way...and sleepless nights will return.
Having fun....
Well it has been a week of sleeping for the girls at least. Parents are still getting used to the idea of not waking up. And my wife still gets "VERY uncomfortable" in the middle of the night requiring a pumping session. But as some seasoned parents have reminded us, teeth are on the way...and sleepless nights will return.
Having fun....
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Oxiclean vs. Plumbers Putty
Oxiclean wins.
Yes -- not to dis this fine product because let me tell you it works wonders on getting baby stains clean -- it does a number on your plumbers putty. So during those sleep deprived nights we started to have a few blowouts from the girls. Well we would soak the clothing with a little oxiclean and after a few soakings with some of the clothing we noticed that the sink would no longer hold water. Not having much sleep we just moved the clothing to another sink. And the new sink started to not hold water again after several soakings. So onto the 3rd and finally the 4th sink. Well you may ask how many sinks do we have -- 5 bath sinks. Before the final sink was used I put a stop to any more soaking in the sinks -- I think that day I had more sleep. Basically I believe that the release of the oxygen ate away at the plumbers putty. Well no worries - just repack the sinks and we are all good. 2 hours later and the sinks are holding water again. And yes we still use Oxiclean because there simply is nothing else for the money that will get out baby stains -- but now we use a plastic tub to soak the clothing.
Having fun....
Yes -- not to dis this fine product because let me tell you it works wonders on getting baby stains clean -- it does a number on your plumbers putty. So during those sleep deprived nights we started to have a few blowouts from the girls. Well we would soak the clothing with a little oxiclean and after a few soakings with some of the clothing we noticed that the sink would no longer hold water. Not having much sleep we just moved the clothing to another sink. And the new sink started to not hold water again after several soakings. So onto the 3rd and finally the 4th sink. Well you may ask how many sinks do we have -- 5 bath sinks. Before the final sink was used I put a stop to any more soaking in the sinks -- I think that day I had more sleep. Basically I believe that the release of the oxygen ate away at the plumbers putty. Well no worries - just repack the sinks and we are all good. 2 hours later and the sinks are holding water again. And yes we still use Oxiclean because there simply is nothing else for the money that will get out baby stains -- but now we use a plastic tub to soak the clothing.
Having fun....
"By George I think"....
.....they have finally slept through the night. WOW!!! Okay six months and the girls have finally slept through the night. Well the first time was Sunday into Monday. We had to get up twice to replace the binkys to keep them asleep. However last night they finally made it through the night -- well at least they went from 9:30 -> 4:30 -- we get up at 5AM. Ugh just typing that makes me tired. Well this is a great thing. That certainly is a very nice Christmas gift the girls are giving us.....the gift of sleep.
Having fun....
Having fun....
Friday, December 15, 2006
AIM Bot that spells....
Hi everyone-
Well I've finally done it -- I finally have figured out how to spell. Well at least I don't have to pull up Marriam Websters every time now to figure out how to spell something. I also new that there had to be an AIM bot which would be able to spell and stuff. Well there is a such a thing -- or at least this is the one that I found:
SmarterChild
If someone out there has a better place let me know.
Having fun...
Well I've finally done it -- I finally have figured out how to spell. Well at least I don't have to pull up Marriam Websters every time now to figure out how to spell something. I also new that there had to be an AIM bot which would be able to spell and stuff. Well there is a such a thing -- or at least this is the one that I found:
SmarterChild
If someone out there has a better place let me know.
Having fun...
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Halloween Fun -- Two Peas in a Pod
Hi everyone-
Well it was the twins first Halloween. I guess we are having a bunch of firsts this year.....
Aline and I decided that since we had twins and we saw the pea pod costume that we could pull off "Two Peas in a Pod"....
Having fun....
Well it was the twins first Halloween. I guess we are having a bunch of firsts this year.....
 |
Aline and I decided that since we had twins and we saw the pea pod costume that we could pull off "Two Peas in a Pod"....
Having fun....
And the winner is.....
 |
| From My Pictures |
The Toyota Sienna.
Out of all of the cars that we test drove, this car seemed to be the best selection. It really came down to two vehicals -- the Honda Pilot and the Toyota Sienna.
And just to make sure everyone understands -- the twins really like it as Aline also really likes the new car.
having fun...
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Twins declare cars too small -- request parents to upgrade
Hi everyone-
With a headline like that -- who could resist.
After the twins arrived we knew the cars would be fine for a while, but now we are driving longer distances with more stuff and the cars are quickly becoming packed. As such I spent a good portion of the weekend test driving new cars. The list is as follows:
Mini-van category
(1) Toyota Sienna
SUV category
(1) Honda Pilot
(1) Hyundia Santa Fe
(2) Jeep Commander
(3) Honda Highlander
(4) Ford Explorer
Okay the Explorer just sucked. Too truck like and for the money you get more stuff in the other vehicals.
Honda Highlander would have been #2, but the DVD entertainment gets played from the dash -- it would be difficult to see in the second or third row without an after market player/screen -- so what's the point.
Jeep is #2 -- but gas mileage for this vehical is 16/19 and for a commuting vehical that sucks.
The Pilot and Sante Fe are tied. The Sante Fe really surprised me. Hyundia has come a long way reguarding their cars. It had to make you stop and think about the decision. But because it costs the same as the Pilot you go for the Honda.
The Toyota Sienna however is just the people moving machine. As much as we don't necessary like a minivan it certainly has its advantages. Well stayed tuned.
Having fun...
With a headline like that -- who could resist.
After the twins arrived we knew the cars would be fine for a while, but now we are driving longer distances with more stuff and the cars are quickly becoming packed. As such I spent a good portion of the weekend test driving new cars. The list is as follows:
Mini-van category
(1) Toyota Sienna
SUV category
(1) Honda Pilot
(1) Hyundia Santa Fe
(2) Jeep Commander
(3) Honda Highlander
(4) Ford Explorer
Okay the Explorer just sucked. Too truck like and for the money you get more stuff in the other vehicals.
Honda Highlander would have been #2, but the DVD entertainment gets played from the dash -- it would be difficult to see in the second or third row without an after market player/screen -- so what's the point.
Jeep is #2 -- but gas mileage for this vehical is 16/19 and for a commuting vehical that sucks.
The Pilot and Sante Fe are tied. The Sante Fe really surprised me. Hyundia has come a long way reguarding their cars. It had to make you stop and think about the decision. But because it costs the same as the Pilot you go for the Honda.
The Toyota Sienna however is just the people moving machine. As much as we don't necessary like a minivan it certainly has its advantages. Well stayed tuned.
Having fun...
Monday, October 16, 2006
Flying with Twins
Hi everyone-
The girls took their first flight to see nana and papa in Maryland. Also it was a chance to see great-grandmother Davis. Since Rachael has her middle name from Great Grandmother it was very important to us for her to see Rachael. Besides Great Grandmother really wanted to see the both of the girls. Also my cousin had a wedding that weekend - which was the real reason we where going down.
So onto the flight. We actually packed pretty well -- mom and dad (my parents) already had the two pack-n-plays that we would need, the diapers and wipes, plus some toys. So that extra bag that you sometimes need to pack for a trip was not needed. We had a bag for the girls and a bag for my wife and I. Granted they where pretty big bags but hey pretty good considering. Then for the plane -- we had the diaper bag, a small carry on bag, two car seats, a duo stroller, two bases. Checking in -- not so bad with Southwest. The girls did not even need their birth certificates because they definitally looked like they where less than two. Getting through security was the next hurdle. And boy was it a bunch of fun. Okay -- my wife was going to take both children through the metal detector. Make sure the before you go through the detector that you have secured all pacifiers (binks whatever you call them) to the baby or parent -- more later.
We approach the TSA employee and the eyes get pretty big -- so everything goes through the xray machine -- with the exception of the babies. Also with the new travel restrictions you need to show them the expressed breast milk -- more than 3 OZ -- and make sure that the diaper creame is less than a 3 oz tube. Hand sanitizer should also be less than 3 oz. Getting through the xray machine was next -- shoe bin, coat bin, liquid bin, bag, bag, car seat (turned over), car seat (turned over), base, base, stoller colapsed. It was almost like running the gauntlet - fun. Got through and did not notice that we lost a binky along the way -- oops. Turns of the good people of the TSA found it and threw it away. Gee thanks. Well like all good parents you always have a backup.
Through security. Lessons learned: one person deals with the babies, you only need your license not your entire wallet, and secure the binky.
Okay onto the plane. Half hour -- okay so nursing mothers need a constant supply of water to keep up milk production. Going through security they don't allow you to bring a quantity of liquids through to keep that supply up. Just on the other side of security there should have been some water to consume. Well there was if the business had been open. Luckily one was just closing and had some water that they where willing to part with at $2.50 / .5l. At that price we could buy a case of water 4 times over -- oh well. Getting onto the plane. The gate attendant told us that there where 4 seats left and we could use one for a car seat. Great. We did not pay for a child seat (not knowing that there is also an infant seat) so we saw this as a way to give us a little more room. Come to find out they moved other passengers onto the plane from previously flights. So we had to give up the seat -- no big deal it was my wife, myself, our two children and this other passenger. Then the flight attendant come up.
"You can't have 5 people sitting in a row....there are only 4 oxygen masks". What!??! "Someone is going to have to move to another row...and not the row in front of you because that is a bulkhead row." Luckly a nice lady from behind moved to our row making it 4 people and I sat behind my wife. Now we needed to fill a bottle with expressed milk for the child that I was holding whom by now was screaming her little head off because of the new environment, being hungry, etc. I kept my cool, so did my wife and we made it through take off. The child I was holding reacted well to the actual take off -- her eyes did get pretty big and she started sucking quicker for the rotation and climb phase...calmed down a little, then started the same again when we started to level off. It was neat to watch.
During the flight we changed babies -- I had the other child now for landing she just sucked away on the pacifier for landing having nursed. Getting off of the plane was uneventful.
Everything we had gate checked (stroller and two car seats) showed up, our bags showed up, and life was good.
Take away from the flight: (1) buy an extra seat, (2) buy an extra seat, (3) and make sure you get that extra seat.
Our stay in MD was exciting. Saw a bunch of friends and family. Need to seem them more often.
The flight back with the extra seat was what the flight down to MD should have been...relaxing. On board this time the flight attendant gave us water such that my wife could stay hydrated. And remember that even though you fly the babies will have extra gas upon landing so just remember to give them anti-gas meds to help alivate the post flight pain.
All in all a great trip -- will do it again.
Having fun
The girls took their first flight to see nana and papa in Maryland. Also it was a chance to see great-grandmother Davis. Since Rachael has her middle name from Great Grandmother it was very important to us for her to see Rachael. Besides Great Grandmother really wanted to see the both of the girls. Also my cousin had a wedding that weekend - which was the real reason we where going down.
So onto the flight. We actually packed pretty well -- mom and dad (my parents) already had the two pack-n-plays that we would need, the diapers and wipes, plus some toys. So that extra bag that you sometimes need to pack for a trip was not needed. We had a bag for the girls and a bag for my wife and I. Granted they where pretty big bags but hey pretty good considering. Then for the plane -- we had the diaper bag, a small carry on bag, two car seats, a duo stroller, two bases. Checking in -- not so bad with Southwest. The girls did not even need their birth certificates because they definitally looked like they where less than two. Getting through security was the next hurdle. And boy was it a bunch of fun. Okay -- my wife was going to take both children through the metal detector. Make sure the before you go through the detector that you have secured all pacifiers (binks whatever you call them) to the baby or parent -- more later.
We approach the TSA employee and the eyes get pretty big -- so everything goes through the xray machine -- with the exception of the babies. Also with the new travel restrictions you need to show them the expressed breast milk -- more than 3 OZ -- and make sure that the diaper creame is less than a 3 oz tube. Hand sanitizer should also be less than 3 oz. Getting through the xray machine was next -- shoe bin, coat bin, liquid bin, bag, bag, car seat (turned over), car seat (turned over), base, base, stoller colapsed. It was almost like running the gauntlet - fun. Got through and did not notice that we lost a binky along the way -- oops. Turns of the good people of the TSA found it and threw it away. Gee thanks. Well like all good parents you always have a backup.
Through security. Lessons learned: one person deals with the babies, you only need your license not your entire wallet, and secure the binky.
Okay onto the plane. Half hour -- okay so nursing mothers need a constant supply of water to keep up milk production. Going through security they don't allow you to bring a quantity of liquids through to keep that supply up. Just on the other side of security there should have been some water to consume. Well there was if the business had been open. Luckily one was just closing and had some water that they where willing to part with at $2.50 / .5l. At that price we could buy a case of water 4 times over -- oh well. Getting onto the plane. The gate attendant told us that there where 4 seats left and we could use one for a car seat. Great. We did not pay for a child seat (not knowing that there is also an infant seat) so we saw this as a way to give us a little more room. Come to find out they moved other passengers onto the plane from previously flights. So we had to give up the seat -- no big deal it was my wife, myself, our two children and this other passenger. Then the flight attendant come up.
"You can't have 5 people sitting in a row....there are only 4 oxygen masks". What!??! "Someone is going to have to move to another row...and not the row in front of you because that is a bulkhead row." Luckly a nice lady from behind moved to our row making it 4 people and I sat behind my wife. Now we needed to fill a bottle with expressed milk for the child that I was holding whom by now was screaming her little head off because of the new environment, being hungry, etc. I kept my cool, so did my wife and we made it through take off. The child I was holding reacted well to the actual take off -- her eyes did get pretty big and she started sucking quicker for the rotation and climb phase...calmed down a little, then started the same again when we started to level off. It was neat to watch.
During the flight we changed babies -- I had the other child now for landing she just sucked away on the pacifier for landing having nursed. Getting off of the plane was uneventful.
Everything we had gate checked (stroller and two car seats) showed up, our bags showed up, and life was good.
Take away from the flight: (1) buy an extra seat, (2) buy an extra seat, (3) and make sure you get that extra seat.
Our stay in MD was exciting. Saw a bunch of friends and family. Need to seem them more often.
The flight back with the extra seat was what the flight down to MD should have been...relaxing. On board this time the flight attendant gave us water such that my wife could stay hydrated. And remember that even though you fly the babies will have extra gas upon landing so just remember to give them anti-gas meds to help alivate the post flight pain.
All in all a great trip -- will do it again.
Having fun
Thursday, October 05, 2006
3 months and counting
Hi there-
Well the girls are 3 months old today ... wow - how times flies. We have accomplished a bunch of things over the last three months.
(1) Gotten more sleep -- we have moved from 1.5 hours of sleep every three hours to 3 hours of sleep every 4.5 hours.
(2) We have gained more weight 11.1 lbs for Hope and 14 lbs for Rachael.
(3) We have been baptised
(4) We have our first cold (upper respiratory coughing and sputtering)
Having fun....
Well the girls are 3 months old today ... wow - how times flies. We have accomplished a bunch of things over the last three months.
(1) Gotten more sleep -- we have moved from 1.5 hours of sleep every three hours to 3 hours of sleep every 4.5 hours.
(2) We have gained more weight 11.1 lbs for Hope and 14 lbs for Rachael.
(3) We have been baptised
(4) We have our first cold (upper respiratory coughing and sputtering)
Having fun....
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
The Birth Annoucements
Hi everyone-
Well Aline and I have been trying to get the birth annoucements together and finally figured out that people have already done a ton of these so why recreate the wheel again. We could always just copy a design -- but then that bring about moral and ethical problems -- so we found a website that looks like it has a really nice annoucement that we are going to use:
Announcing A Baby-Photo Birth Announcements
Stay tuned for it to show up in your mailbox.
Well Aline and I have been trying to get the birth annoucements together and finally figured out that people have already done a ton of these so why recreate the wheel again. We could always just copy a design -- but then that bring about moral and ethical problems -- so we found a website that looks like it has a really nice annoucement that we are going to use:
Announcing A Baby-Photo Birth Announcements
Stay tuned for it to show up in your mailbox.
Monday, August 21, 2006
Baby Rock -- Metallica
For all of you heavy metal parents that don't get to play "their kind of music" around the kids -- look no further. A friend had this on his blog page -- and I simply had add it to my blog page as well. For instance songs from the band Metallica are now in baby form.
Check out Metallica's
One 
One
Hopefully the band will see the need and not persue legal action against them.
Have fun and rock on....
Monday, August 14, 2006
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Automated Postal Centers are AWESOME!
Hi everyone-
Today I had to mail a package from the postoffice. While mailing a package is not a problem getting to the post office to actually mail it during their business hours is a pain. Now that the post office has 24 hour Automated Postal Centers it makes this such a breeze. Just walk up to the kiosk and the 'ATM like' machine guides you through the whole process. It even handled my box that I was shipping. Talk about convience -- this is something that should be done more often.
Kevin
Today I had to mail a package from the postoffice. While mailing a package is not a problem getting to the post office to actually mail it during their business hours is a pain. Now that the post office has 24 hour Automated Postal Centers it makes this such a breeze. Just walk up to the kiosk and the 'ATM like' machine guides you through the whole process. It even handled my box that I was shipping. Talk about convience -- this is something that should be done more often.
Kevin
Monday, July 31, 2006
Nursing Twins
Hi everyone-
Well it will be 7 weeks (tommorrow) since the twins (Rachael and Hope) have entered our lives. One of the biggest challenges has been nursing the twins. On a piece of advice from a lactation consultant we purchased a twin nursing pillow. Most everyone buys a boppie -- but for nursing two at once you really need something that will support both babies. We highly recommend this pillow.
Froogle Search
Well it will be 7 weeks (tommorrow) since the twins (Rachael and Hope) have entered our lives. One of the biggest challenges has been nursing the twins. On a piece of advice from a lactation consultant we purchased a twin nursing pillow. Most everyone buys a boppie -- but for nursing two at once you really need something that will support both babies. We highly recommend this pillow.
Froogle Search
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Baby Update
Hi everyone-
Well we are 3 week old now...wow how time flies.
Yesterday's doctor visit has Rachael at 6#10oz and Hope at 6#1oz. We are so happy that they have continued to increase their weights and remain healthy.
Picture to be added later tonight.
Having fun
Well we are 3 week old now...wow how time flies.
Yesterday's doctor visit has Rachael at 6#10oz and Hope at 6#1oz. We are so happy that they have continued to increase their weights and remain healthy.
Picture to be added later tonight.
Having fun
Sunday, June 25, 2006
It's 2 Girls
Hi everyone-
We had an online secret -- for the past 35 weeks my wife an I where expecting twins. While I generally wanted to share with everyone my fears and joy -- I decided that it would be better carma to only share with everyone once they showed up. Well on June 20th at 4:42 and 4:43 my daughters where born!!!!!!!!!!
The joy these two girls have brought us are unmeasurable.
Having fun
We had an online secret -- for the past 35 weeks my wife an I where expecting twins. While I generally wanted to share with everyone my fears and joy -- I decided that it would be better carma to only share with everyone once they showed up. Well on June 20th at 4:42 and 4:43 my daughters where born!!!!!!!!!!
The joy these two girls have brought us are unmeasurable.
Having fun
Monday, June 12, 2006
Great Chicken Sates
Hi everyone-
We had a great meal yesterday using a recipe we had found in the latest issue of Gourmet magazine (click the picture for the recipie -- BTW the picture is from the magazine not our creation -- although it was close). It was really quite tasty. We did remove the fish sauce and substitute 1/2 t. of Asian mustard instead. Aline is just not into the fish sauce at all. We also used a stick blender to puree everything together.
Very tasty.
We also made the ginger pineapple fried rice....no modifications.
It was a great Sunday evening meal.
Have fun
We had a great meal yesterday using a recipe we had found in the latest issue of Gourmet magazine (click the picture for the recipie -- BTW the picture is from the magazine not our creation -- although it was close). It was really quite tasty. We did remove the fish sauce and substitute 1/2 t. of Asian mustard instead. Aline is just not into the fish sauce at all. We also used a stick blender to puree everything together.
Very tasty.
We also made the ginger pineapple fried rice....no modifications.
It was a great Sunday evening meal.
Have fun
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Happy 1st Birthday Ryan Daniel
Dearest Ryan,
I can't believe it ... it has been a whole year. Your Mommy and I are still terribly missing you. But for your first birthday we decided to make the most of the day. We started the day by dropping off a case of diapers, a case of wipes, and two containers of formula at the Loves and Fishes food bank. Great new facility which really serves the surrounding community. So hopefully a needy family will get some great use out of those items.
Then it was off to Harvard Outdoor Power Equipment -- definitely a Ryan-Daddy stop. The lawn mower needed new wheels and a general tune up. Well the parts are being ordered and should be here next week. So next weekend it will be time to service the snowthrow and the lawn mower.
Next stop is Cupp and Cupp Nursery. Here Mommy and Daddy decided to get you a hanging plant. Plus we got another butterfly bush. Grampa Sangrey gave us a butterfly bush last year - it did so well that we thought another one would make it all that more wonderful.
Then we went to the cemetery. We did your seasonal change over - from winter silk flowers to the living flowers for the growing season. You had Ms. Jenn stop by before Mommy and Daddy got there. I'm sure she had a touching conversation with you -- probably asked if Ben and you where getting along. I'm sure you are -- he is the one wearing the duck outfit. Mommy and I read you a few books and blew some bubbles. We hope people will stop buy and blow some bubbles.
We have been looking for little signs of Ryan around today -- saw the first dragon fly of the year. That was way cool.
Then it was back home for a quick bite. After lunch we decided to plant the butterfly bush and open the cards people have sent. We did the same thing about this time last year -- we sat and opened cards every night for about 2 weeks straight. A lot of people offered your Mommy and Daddy support -- and they continue to -- last year it was wonderful.
Father Tom from All Saint's Episcopal called and left a wonderful message. We just missed him before he is going off on sabbatical.
Then before Aunt Karla and Uncle Scott comes over for dinner - we went to Kimball's Farm for ICE CREAM. Your mommy and I have decided that we will resist going to Kimball's each year until your birthday. This will be a good tradition.
Your God parents - Ron and Rebecca sent all of us some beautiful yellow roses. They are on the Mother's table.
Dinner tonight will hopefully be Chinese from Bamboo.
Ryan -- we profoundly miss you. Ryan -- we profoundly love you.
Happy Birthday
Mommy and Daddy
I can't believe it ... it has been a whole year. Your Mommy and I are still terribly missing you. But for your first birthday we decided to make the most of the day. We started the day by dropping off a case of diapers, a case of wipes, and two containers of formula at the Loves and Fishes food bank. Great new facility which really serves the surrounding community. So hopefully a needy family will get some great use out of those items.
Then it was off to Harvard Outdoor Power Equipment -- definitely a Ryan-Daddy stop. The lawn mower needed new wheels and a general tune up. Well the parts are being ordered and should be here next week. So next weekend it will be time to service the snowthrow and the lawn mower.
Next stop is Cupp and Cupp Nursery. Here Mommy and Daddy decided to get you a hanging plant. Plus we got another butterfly bush. Grampa Sangrey gave us a butterfly bush last year - it did so well that we thought another one would make it all that more wonderful.
Then we went to the cemetery. We did your seasonal change over - from winter silk flowers to the living flowers for the growing season. You had Ms. Jenn stop by before Mommy and Daddy got there. I'm sure she had a touching conversation with you -- probably asked if Ben and you where getting along. I'm sure you are -- he is the one wearing the duck outfit. Mommy and I read you a few books and blew some bubbles. We hope people will stop buy and blow some bubbles.
We have been looking for little signs of Ryan around today -- saw the first dragon fly of the year. That was way cool.
Then it was back home for a quick bite. After lunch we decided to plant the butterfly bush and open the cards people have sent. We did the same thing about this time last year -- we sat and opened cards every night for about 2 weeks straight. A lot of people offered your Mommy and Daddy support -- and they continue to -- last year it was wonderful.
Father Tom from All Saint's Episcopal called and left a wonderful message. We just missed him before he is going off on sabbatical.
Then before Aunt Karla and Uncle Scott comes over for dinner - we went to Kimball's Farm for ICE CREAM. Your mommy and I have decided that we will resist going to Kimball's each year until your birthday. This will be a good tradition.
Your God parents - Ron and Rebecca sent all of us some beautiful yellow roses. They are on the Mother's table.
Dinner tonight will hopefully be Chinese from Bamboo.
Ryan -- we profoundly miss you. Ryan -- we profoundly love you.
Happy Birthday
Mommy and Daddy
Friday, April 07, 2006
The garter Snake -- Official Snake of Massachusetts
Hi everyone-
I just about fell off my chair when I saw the following:
"The Senate approved today house bill 3453 which made the garter snake the official reptile of Massachusetts."
Wow!
Now that is something that I need my elected officials spending time on....no we don't have a problem funding our school systems, or, or, universal health care funding...or, or, I don't know something other than this must be more important.
Kevin
Update: Here is the article about the introduction of the bill.
Update:Apparently exiting governor Mitt Romney signed it into law January 2007.
I just about fell off my chair when I saw the following:
"The Senate approved today house bill 3453 which made the garter snake the official reptile of Massachusetts."
Wow!
Now that is something that I need my elected officials spending time on....no we don't have a problem funding our school systems, or, or, universal health care funding...or, or, I don't know something other than this must be more important.
Kevin
Update: Here is the article about the introduction of the bill.
Update:Apparently exiting governor Mitt Romney signed it into law January 2007.
Monday, March 27, 2006
Movie Review: The Rookie
Hi everyone-
Last night we watched the movie entitled "The Rookie". It was a very interesting movie -- full of the struggle between a Vietnam era father figure who was in the Navy which moved the family often and the main characters struggle for a passion to play baseball. The struggle continued into his adult life -- trying to realize his dream of play professional baseball. Then what he does when he realizes his dream is also an amazing turn in the movie. The movie was based off a real life story depicted in the book " The Rookie: The Incredible True Story of a Man Who Never Gave Up on His Dream ". I was really hesitant to watch the movie at first, but I found the film to be better than I first thought. A definite watch -- 3 out of 5 stars.
Have fun,
Kevin
Last night we watched the movie entitled "The Rookie". It was a very interesting movie -- full of the struggle between a Vietnam era father figure who was in the Navy which moved the family often and the main characters struggle for a passion to play baseball. The struggle continued into his adult life -- trying to realize his dream of play professional baseball. Then what he does when he realizes his dream is also an amazing turn in the movie. The movie was based off a real life story depicted in the book " The Rookie: The Incredible True Story of a Man Who Never Gave Up on His Dream ". I was really hesitant to watch the movie at first, but I found the film to be better than I first thought. A definite watch -- 3 out of 5 stars.
Have fun,
Kevin
411 on Cingular
Hi everyone-
Well I am certainly frustrated with Cingular right now. Over the weekend I wanted a phone number for my insurance representative -- I knew the city and state and the representatives company name. Well the nice cingular person asked for "What city" -- spoke and spelled the name, "What state", spoke the name -- Massachusetts....not to many other states, "What listing", spoke and spelled the name. "I'm sorry but I don't have a listing in that city but I have one in Wellsley"...Strange their office is not in that city. Can you please check again..."sorry only that listing". Fine give me the number. The number you requested "AG Edwards" ... I asked for Everrett and Sons Insurance -- How did you get AG Edwards? So then I called back and did the same thing. This time I got the right answer!!! Okay to batting .500. Not so good when it costs $1.25 per instance. So that is why I am pushing -- 1-800-FREE411. Granted you have to listen to an ad for a product but what the hell....cheaper than the $1.25 and they got the answer correct on the first try!
Sounds like I need to do an experiment.....
Stay tuned.
Kevin
Well I am certainly frustrated with Cingular right now. Over the weekend I wanted a phone number for my insurance representative -- I knew the city and state and the representatives company name. Well the nice cingular person asked for "What city" -- spoke and spelled the name, "What state", spoke the name -- Massachusetts....not to many other states, "What listing", spoke and spelled the name. "I'm sorry but I don't have a listing in that city but I have one in Wellsley"...Strange their office is not in that city. Can you please check again..."sorry only that listing". Fine give me the number. The number you requested "AG Edwards" ... I asked for Everrett and Sons Insurance -- How did you get AG Edwards? So then I called back and did the same thing. This time I got the right answer!!! Okay to batting .500. Not so good when it costs $1.25 per instance. So that is why I am pushing -- 1-800-FREE411. Granted you have to listen to an ad for a product but what the hell....cheaper than the $1.25 and they got the answer correct on the first try!
Sounds like I need to do an experiment.....
Stay tuned.
Kevin
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Driving -- what's that?
Hi everyone-
Can you say "Has it already been 6 months" and now you can drive again. Yeah. So after 6 months I can drive again. What a relief! Also wow there are crazy people on the road. I guess it give you a new sense of awareness.
Safe driving everyone.
Kevin
Can you say "Has it already been 6 months" and now you can drive again. Yeah. So after 6 months I can drive again. What a relief! Also wow there are crazy people on the road. I guess it give you a new sense of awareness.
Safe driving everyone.
Kevin
Monday, March 13, 2006
Jury Duty
Hi everyone-
Well yesterday I called to do my civic duty -- Jury duty. Yes the famous/imfamous call that is truely a sign of a democracy. Being called to be a juror is sometimes daunting - especially when it is a criminal instead of a civil trial. After the case is decided I will get into what exactly the case was about - but to be fair to everyone going through the process today and for the next several days I will wait for the results.
If everyone thinks that it was a problem to be a juror think again. It is not that bad - yes they do put you in a room and not much goes on - but it is great for people watching. And if you are into people watching it can be a real blast. For me it was a real blast.
So if you get called to be a juror -- just go and people watch.
Kevin
Well yesterday I called to do my civic duty -- Jury duty. Yes the famous/imfamous call that is truely a sign of a democracy. Being called to be a juror is sometimes daunting - especially when it is a criminal instead of a civil trial. After the case is decided I will get into what exactly the case was about - but to be fair to everyone going through the process today and for the next several days I will wait for the results.
If everyone thinks that it was a problem to be a juror think again. It is not that bad - yes they do put you in a room and not much goes on - but it is great for people watching. And if you are into people watching it can be a real blast. For me it was a real blast.
So if you get called to be a juror -- just go and people watch.
Kevin
Monday, February 20, 2006
Friday Night Lights
Hi everyone-
Well we have finally done it -- watched a movie that we found entertaining then relized the next morning that it was about our generation...yikes! Yeah we thought that the movie was done well -- we thought that the interviews on the DVD were great when they started to talk to the real people. Yeah then this morning my wife and I figured out that the football season was Sept-Dec 1989 -- our senior year of high school. We thougth last night that the people on the screen where in the late 30's or early 40's. Wrong they are our age. Wonderful. Anyway a good movie to watch non-the-less.
Friday Night Lights
Well we have finally done it -- watched a movie that we found entertaining then relized the next morning that it was about our generation...yikes! Yeah we thought that the movie was done well -- we thought that the interviews on the DVD were great when they started to talk to the real people. Yeah then this morning my wife and I figured out that the football season was Sept-Dec 1989 -- our senior year of high school. We thougth last night that the people on the screen where in the late 30's or early 40's. Wrong they are our age. Wonderful. Anyway a good movie to watch non-the-less.
Friday Night Lights
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Bose Headphones -- WOW!
Hi everyone
For my birthday I got:
I must say they are simply the best. When I am at work it keeps all of the background noise to a minimum and I can have my iPod playing on a low volume. I don't usually do product recommendations but this is a really great product.
Bose QuietComfort 2 Noise Cancelling Headphones - Headphones and Headsets
For my birthday I got:
I must say they are simply the best. When I am at work it keeps all of the background noise to a minimum and I can have my iPod playing on a low volume. I don't usually do product recommendations but this is a really great product.
Bose QuietComfort 2 Noise Cancelling Headphones - Headphones and Headsets
Monday, February 13, 2006
Taxation inequity
Hi everyone-
I am just getting through my son's stillborn death in May and tax season has brought up all of these emotions telling me how unfair the tax code is. If my son had taken a breath and lived for just a little bit we would have been able to claim my son for just this year as well as deducting the funeral expenses. But because my son was 39.5 weeks into our pregnancy and stillborn we can't claim anything -- not even the funeral expenses. Hell I can claim a car as a deduction....something is really wrong with this. Grrrrrrr...... well time to write my representatives and get this changed.
Kevin
I am just getting through my son's stillborn death in May and tax season has brought up all of these emotions telling me how unfair the tax code is. If my son had taken a breath and lived for just a little bit we would have been able to claim my son for just this year as well as deducting the funeral expenses. But because my son was 39.5 weeks into our pregnancy and stillborn we can't claim anything -- not even the funeral expenses. Hell I can claim a car as a deduction....something is really wrong with this. Grrrrrrr...... well time to write my representatives and get this changed.
Kevin
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
StopBadware.org
Hi everyone-
I know that many of us have to fight ouf adware, spyware, or other things that we really don't want on our computer. The website StopBadware.org is a place for people to come together and collectively fight all of thise bad software hence badware. Check it out.
I know that many of us have to fight ouf adware, spyware, or other things that we really don't want on our computer. The website StopBadware.org is a place for people to come together and collectively fight all of thise bad software hence badware. Check it out.
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Mythbusters
Hi everyone-
My wife and I are huge Mythbusters fans. It is a great show on the Discovery Channel. The basic premise of the show is prove whether an urban myth is true or not. It is a great show and certainly works well with the scientist in both of us.
The just put out some "Lost" material from some of their episodes. Enjoy the material.
Kevin
My wife and I are huge Mythbusters fans. It is a great show on the Discovery Channel. The basic premise of the show is prove whether an urban myth is true or not. It is a great show and certainly works well with the scientist in both of us.
The just put out some "Lost" material from some of their episodes. Enjoy the material.
Kevin
Monday, January 16, 2006
History of Computer Security
HI everyone
I have always like to dabble in computer security ... nothing illegal just facinated how you make these computing thingys protected from unwanted visitors. These are the early papers stem from work done by the DoD and others to protect those computers. Many of the "new" computer security things have come out of these papers.
History of Computer Security
Also for those of you who might want to find the "Rainbow series" look here.
have fun,
Kevin
I have always like to dabble in computer security ... nothing illegal just facinated how you make these computing thingys protected from unwanted visitors. These are the early papers stem from work done by the DoD and others to protect those computers. Many of the "new" computer security things have come out of these papers.
History of Computer Security
Also for those of you who might want to find the "Rainbow series" look here.
have fun,
Kevin
Monday, January 02, 2006
Happier New Year
Hi everyone-
Happy New Year -- and with a new year it means a new outlook on life - or at least putting away last years problems. So with that lets just say that 2005 was a very tough year for myself. The birth and death of my son. The seizure. Lets just say that it is enough to rip some people apart. I would like to look at it as an opertunity for growth both emotionally and spiritually.
So far the year is starting off GREAT!
Looks like we will be getting some more snow today. So far this winter we have gotten an 18" storm, a 12" storm and a 2 inch storm. Today's storm should bring with it anywhere from 3-6 inches. Some are saying a foot -- we shall see.
Today is just cleaning up the office and getting ready for tax season. You know I actually enjoy doing them with the help of some tax software. Getting everything in order puts last year in perspective and starts you thinking about what you need for next year.
I personally would like to see myself get better at investing our money.
So go have fun,
Kevin
Happy New Year -- and with a new year it means a new outlook on life - or at least putting away last years problems. So with that lets just say that 2005 was a very tough year for myself. The birth and death of my son. The seizure. Lets just say that it is enough to rip some people apart. I would like to look at it as an opertunity for growth both emotionally and spiritually.
So far the year is starting off GREAT!
Looks like we will be getting some more snow today. So far this winter we have gotten an 18" storm, a 12" storm and a 2 inch storm. Today's storm should bring with it anywhere from 3-6 inches. Some are saying a foot -- we shall see.
Today is just cleaning up the office and getting ready for tax season. You know I actually enjoy doing them with the help of some tax software. Getting everything in order puts last year in perspective and starts you thinking about what you need for next year.
I personally would like to see myself get better at investing our money.
So go have fun,
Kevin
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