Househubby Diaries

Left Lane Drivers

2008-10-23T13:10:00.003-05:00

My family drove to Florida last week for a holiday. What ever happened to the rule where you drive in the right lane until you come to a slower car, use the left lane to pass, and then get back over? There are more people than ever before that like to stay in the left lane of a 2 lane highway. I don't get it. It's like people merge onto the freeway, and scoot all the way over to the left lane regardless of the traffic. Rush hour? they scoot over to the left lane. No traffic on the road for miles? They scoot over. When we got to our destination, I mentioned how this phenomenon bother me to my father-in-law. He snickered and asked me to mention it to his wife. They had also made the 800 mile journey and I guess (I'll call her K to keep her anonymous), I guess K is "one of those" that loves the left lane. I used this opportunity to find out what makes her tick. I first asked her "Why?". Her response was that if she is in the left lane then she doesnt have to worry about all the cars getting on and off the freeway like she would have to in the right lane. She said there is too much jostling around in the right lane. Yeah, I know! I told her that maybe because she is blocking the left lane that is why people have to "jostle" in the right lane. I asked her if she knew that cars that travel faster than her have to slow down and pass her in the right lane, which can be dangerous. She said that she does it to slow faster cars down... she felt like she was doing her fair share to make the roads safer. What! Sure, people have to slow down because you are blocking traffic... I dont get how this is safer. She loved the fact that it bothered me. I think that is another reason that she failed to mention. I think she likes making other drivers go around her. I think it is a power thing for K. She also told me that it isn't illegal so she isn't breaking the law, but speeders ARE breaking the law. I finally told her that she was right it isn't illegal (in most states), but is wasn't a driving issue, it was a common courtesy issue. I told her that I thought it was disrepectful to other drivers, and although it quite possibly was NOT illegal, it shows her arrogance.So that is a little insight into a left lane driver's head. Are you a left lane driver? To find out, count how many vehicles pass you on the right. If it is more than 1 per mile, YOU are a left lane driver. We took different interstates home.

The Election

2008-10-03T20:41:00.002-05:00

I make no secret that I am for McCain/Palin. I hold traditional conservative ideals, and I believe this ticket best represents my beliefs. However, I won't be too upset if Obama wins the election. Don't get me wrong, I will be upset. But the way I think of it is that if Obama wins, it will be easier for a republican to win in 2012. Another thing happens if Obama wins in '08; Hillary will not run against Obama in 2012. At least I don't think she will. I have been wrong before. I mean when Bill Clinton won in 1992 and 1996, I was very very upset about it. I wont feel that way if Obama wins in 2008. Speaking of Hillary, I wonder what she thinks of Governor Palin. I bet she secretly cannot stand the sight of her.

Another thing about Sarah Palin. I personally enjoy the "you betcha"'s and "darn right"'s and "gosh darn"s. But I must admit I can certainly understand why these phrases get her in trouble. I also must say that Tina Fey's portrayal of Palin on SNL was right on. I mean at one point Fey used Palin's words verbatum... and it was funny. I hope Palin is our next V.P., but if she isn't, watch out for this lady. Is she ready to be V.P.? Darn right she is ready.

Television Judges

2008-09-24T16:24:00.002-05:00

It's the beginning of the new television season and just when I thought there wasn't enough room for another half hour TV court show, it seems there are even more on TV this season.

Current Courtroom shows:

Judge Judy
Judge Joe Brown
Judge Greg Mathis
Divorce Court (Judge Lynn Toler)
Judge David Young
Judge Alex
The Peoples Court (Judge Marilyn Milian)
Eye for an Eye (Judge "extreme" Akim)

I think the following have been cancelled:

Texas Justice (Judge Larry Joe Doherty)
Judge Maria Lopez
Judge Hatchett
Judge Mills Lane

That's a bunch of court shows!

Some other judge TV tidbits:

Judge Judy makes $30 million per year. More than Katie Couric ($15 mil.), Bob Barker ($10 mil. his last season), and Ellen DeGeneres ($5 mil.) combined!

Judge Wapner was the best and started it all on The Peoples Court in 1981.

Here's another thing, it seems to me that all the baliffs in these shows are the opposite gender of the judge, and of a different race too. hmmm weird.

The Mortgage Crisis and how George Bush tried to fix it 5 years ago

2008-09-21T21:12:00.004-05:00

My take on the mortgage crisis is simple. People were allowed to get into homes they simply could not afford. When T and I bought our first home, there were many, many different types of loans we were offered. 30 year fixed, 3 yr ARM, 5 year ARM, Interest only loan, even a loan where you could pay whatever you felt like. I'm serious. We were actually told about a loan where you could decide what your monthly payment would be. T and I decided that some of these loans were gimmicks to get people into a mortgage that was beyond their means. We opted for the 30 year fixed, got a great rate and have been happy since. My point is, back then (in 2003), these gimmick loans made home owners out of EVERYONE. Anyone could buy a house. Now, these people (that maybe should not be given a loan in the first place) got into a mortgage that they could afford in 2003 suddenly cannot afford it, and boom! Mortgage crisis! I hear and read news reports about how we are going to fix this problem. Well, I have always believed that in a free market economy, things will work themselves out by themselves. I told T that unfortunately, some of those people that got in over their heads with those gimmick loans might have to sell their homes (at loss probably) and move back into an apartment, or with family. After all, for the most part, people should take ownership of their decisions. As for these companies that offered these crazy loans to people, they too should be held responsible for their business decisions.

But these gigantic banks (that have trillions of dollars of loans out there) going bankrupt isn't good either, so I believe our federal governement should have tighter reigns on them. George Bush believed that too. In fact, in 2003 he recommended an overhaul of the housing finance industry. Read the story here. According to the story, the Bush Administrations plan included a new agency that would supervise Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Their supervision is currently the job of the U.S. Congress. Democrats in Congress killed this proposal.

Here is a quote from Barney Frank (D - Massachusettes) ”These two entities — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — are not facing any kind of financial crisis,” said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. ”The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.”

All they were concerned about is making housing affordable. Well, I for one, don't like the fact that I, Joe Taxpayer have to pay for bad decisions by other people or businesses.

And, another thing, I know George Bush isn't perfect, but I don't think he deserves all the blame he gets. This story proves that.

Sarah Palin - My thoughts

2008-09-12T20:26:00.003-05:00

"John McCain has chosen Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his V.P." When I first heard that, I said out loud, "Who?" I thought, "What was he thinking?" And, for a candidate that has been saying that "experience matters" to choose a person that really nobody in the lower 48 states had ever heard of. I thought "that is odd". I didn't like the pick for that very reason. I mean how can he (McCain) claim that experience matters when she really has very little? If he wanted a woman, surely he could have chosen one with more credentials, and that shares his ideas. Some questions that I have wondered since Governor Palin was introduced to the rest of the country...

1. I have heard several people question her dedication as a mother because she decided to run with McCain instead of stay home with her family. For example: "How can she leave her special needs baby and her pregnant teenage daughter at home when they need their Mom the most?" or "She is selfish to think of herself at times like this." There is no way that anyone would say that if she was a man. That is offensive to me, and I am a man.

2. Why have people brought up the fact that she didn't write her acceptance speech? No politician running for a major office in a major party has written their own speeches for years... and now it is an issue? And, I think it was obvious that she DID have a hand in writing it.

3. Where are all the womens rights groups that claim to fight for all womens rights? If they really were interested in advancing their idea that women should be treated equally to men, they should back a woman as V.P. right? Maybe they just want to advance liberal womans rights?

What I like about her is that she could be my neighbor. She is my generation. She has kids (ok, just one) younger than my kids. I love that she has taken the media attention away from Obama, and everyone wants to know more about her. I also like when people mention that she has more executive experience than Obama (actually more that Obama and Biden combined).

I asked my wife, "If McCain/Palin win, and a year from now we wake up and hear on the news, that President McCain was killed/died overnight, how would she feel about Sarah Palin stepping up to the podium to address the nation? She said "not so good". I agreed. I then asked myself how I'd feel if a year from now Obama/Biden were in the white house, and I thought to myself... "President Palin has a nice ring actually".

Oh yeah.. this was priceless...

Deal or No Deal

2008-09-02T07:32:00.003-05:00

I, like millions of others, have gotten caught watching Deal or No Deal. Just because I want to see what the final outcome is, I force myself to wait through all the commercials and dramatic parts where NOTHING happens. I always told myself that the show could last about 2 minutes if they just showed the good parts. Well, thanks to my DVR, I just watched the "hour" show where the contestant wins the million. From start to finish I was done in 30 minutes, and that was just deleting the commercials. Imagine if I would have deleted all the dramatic parts! IF you didnt see it.... heres what happens.... spoiler alert! The lady gets down to 2 cases: $200,000 and $1,000,000. The banker offers her around $550,000. At this point I ask my wife... "What would you do?" We both agreed we'd settle for the $550,000 instead of risk getting the $200,000. But in all fairness, I probably would have settled for the $108,000 offer 3 rounds before this. Anyway, obviously the lady says "NO DEAL!" and when they open the case, there is the million... confetti, and cheering and roll credits.

Hurricanes and New Orleans

2008-09-01T12:55:00.002-05:00

I have a serious question. Why would anyone live in a city that averages 2 feet below sea level and as much as 16 feet below sea level AND is in a hurricane area? Does this make sense? I obviously have empathy for anyone that lost loved ones or even property in Katrina. But Hurricane Katrina should have been your warning. Get out of New Orleans NOW! Especially if you do not have the means to evacuate in the event of another hurricane. I am hearing all these reports about how hurricane Gustav may be as bad a Katrina, and wonder why it is even an issue. People who rebuilt there I ask "why?". I understand that many people in New Orleans are poor and may not be able to "move". I'd rather donate to a fund that helped people move to higher land, than one that rebuilt houses 16 feet below sea level. I just don't get it. How many hurricanes does it take before people just stop going back? Also, New Orleans is built on a marsh, and is sinking.

Tiger Stadium Demo

2008-08-29T12:21:00.005-05:00

I was in Detroit last weekend for a brief visit and drove by Tiger Stadium. It was about half-way demolished. It was kind of sad for me.

First day of Kindergarten

2008-08-27T09:00:00.005-05:00

C1 had his first day of Kindergarten yesterday. He was pretty excited about riding the bus for the first time. He also had his best friend from Pre-school in his class, so he was excited about seeing him. T on the otherhand was not so excited about him riding on the bus. She was worried about who the driver was, what kids would be on there with him, and wanted to know the bus route. She had talked very seriously about following his bus to school on the first day. She decided at the last minute that she wouldn't. I think some peer pressure from me and my sister made her feel overprotective, so she opted not to follow the bus. I am sure if we would not have been around, that she would have done it. Anyway, we both met his bus driver, and she seems like a very nice lady, so T and I felt very confident that C1 would be safe.

We felt safe until about 12:30pm when C1 was not home from school yet. You see, school gets out for AM Kindergarten at 11:30. His school is no more than 1 mile away. We both were wondering why he wasn't home yet. T called the school, and found out that since most Kindergarteners have never ridden a bus before that they would give them a lesson on crossing the street, and waiting for the driver to wave them, and how to behave on the bus.... all the bus safety things. Well, that was nice to know.... I wish I knew beforehand but... OK. 2 minutes after T gets off the phone with the school, the bus pulls up. T showered him with questions, but all C1 would say is "good". It was a memorable day. By the way... C2 wants to ride the bus with C1.

getting dressed, and Dot Com withdrawal.

2008-08-03T09:17:00.003-05:00

For 5 years I have been waiting patiently for C1 to learn how to get dressed himself. They say, "Be careful what you wish for." He changes more outfits in one day than I can count. Several times during the day, I will notice that he has had a wardrobe change. And a few times, he has woken up in the morning with an entirely different set of pajamas than I put him in bed with. And these changes of clothes seem to happen for no reason at all. Well, no reason that I can tell anyway. I bet there is a reason to him.

Meanwhile C2 is going through "Dot Com" withdrawal. He calls the computer "Dot Com". He would play on the Dot Com all day if you let him. He likes a cartoon character named Ben 10. So he has learned to turn on my computer, click on the boys account, click on cartoon network.com, and then click on ben 10 alien force game. Then of course he plays the game. The kid is 2 years old, and can do all that. At first I thought "Wow, he is pretty smart!", but wait. So, if I go to use my computer after him... it is usually frozen up. He has opened so many windows, that my computer just refuses to function. One day he had more than 20 windows open at once. I had to put a password on the boys account. Dot Com Broke

DVR's are cool

2008-07-22T21:58:00.002-05:00

I just recently decided to take advantage of my cable company's offer for to get a DVR. To anyone who reads this and doesn't know what a DVR is (Mom and Dad), it is a Digital Video Recorder. It's like a traditional VCR except it records onto a hard drive, and is way easier to use. I hardly watch any live television anymore! I don't have to worry about missing a show. Whenever i see a preview for something, I just tell my DVR to record it for me, and I don't worry about remembering to watch it. The best thing about it is that I don't have to try and watch a show while I should be spending time with my boys. Plus, I don't have to watch anymore commercials... I just fast forward through them. Also, shows that are on later at night, after my bedtime for instance, I can just record and watch later. Another cool thing is pausing live TV. My DVR records everything while you watch it. So if I need to get up and use the bathroom, or the phone rings, I just pause live TV and then I can fast forward through the commercials to catch up to where I was. Very cool. I love, love, love my DVR. If you don't have one, consider buying one or getting one through your local cable company.

Turning 5

2008-07-21T07:35:00.002-05:00

C1 turned 5 a couple weeks ago. 5 is huge! 5 years old is when I started to remember things. I can't remember very many things when I was 4, but I remember a bunch of things when I was 5. The things that happen in his life now he will remember. That is a lot of pressure to put on a parent. If I messed up something when he was 3 or 4, I could just say "Oh well, at least he wont remember that". Those days are over. At least I can still make some mistakes with C2.

Elephant Ear at the Carnival

2008-07-03T09:24:00.002-05:00

Our town is having a festival this weekend and we decided to take the boys up last night to ride some carnival rides, play some games, and eat some carnival food. They didn't have the Tilt a Whirl, which upset me. But the boys rode on some bunnies that go around an egg, some horses that go around a pole, and some geese that go around in a circle. C1 played a dart game and won a cheesy toy for both him and C2. Then I decided I wanted our sons to experience an elephant ear. $5 for an elephant ear... can we say rip-off? But what isn't a rip-off at a carnival? Anyway, C1 tasted a tiny tiny piece of the cinnamon, sugar, and doughy treat. Then he decided he didn't want any. I told him to try it again, and that it was really good. "Nope, I don't want any". Dude, I just spent $5 on this thing, I loved it when I was a kid, and you are going to eat it and love it! Nope. He didn't have another bite. And since C1 wouldn't eat it, C2 would have nothing to do with it either. I have never been so upset over an elephant ear before. July 2, 2008... the day I learned that my 2 boys don't like elephant ears. A date that will go down in infamy.

The Baby Borrowers on NBC

2008-06-26T16:54:00.002-05:00

There was a new TV show on last night. It is called The Baby Borrowers. The tag line is, "It's not T.V., it's birth control." It is a reality based show where parents let teen-agers see what it is like firsthand, to care for a baby. I admit I didn't watch it, but the idea is a little scary to me. I mean the babies are as young as 6 months old. And the parents just hand them over to a teenage couple? I thought that the first months of life were the most impressionable on kids. And these parents decided that this social experiment was best for their new babies? Odd, to say the least. I am sure that NBC's deep pockets had an influence on the parents choice. I personally would not hand my baby boys over to a couple of kids to see if they could handle it.

Thoughts Running Through my Head

2008-06-24T15:42:00.002-05:00

Don Imus... I case you didn't hear, he made a comment on his radio show Monday that could be perceived as racist. Newsflash!!! The guy says things that some people might see as racist. Why is anyone surprised? His listeners and his sponsors should all know by now that he says things that could be offensive. Nobody should be complaining. If you don't like it, don't listen, or don't buy advertising on his show. I see that WABC-AM says they have no plans to discipline him for his remarks. Good... they knew what they were getting when they hired him. End of story.

Tim Russert and George Carlin... Wow, these 2 will be missed. I have read Tim Russerts books, and watched him on Meet the Press. He was a great journalist. This political season won't be the same without him. George Carlin was a ground breaking comedian. Not too many comedians make me luagh out loud like he did. I often steal his joke about "fine and dandy".

"Fine and dandy. That's an old-fashioned one. Say to a guy, "How are you?" He says, "fine and dandy." Not me. I never say that. You know how come? Because I'm never both of those things at the same time. Sometimes I'm fine, not dandy. I might be close to dandy. I might be approaching dandy. I might even be in the general vicinity of dandyhood. But not quite fully dandy. Other times, I might indeed be highly dandy. However, not fine. One time, 1978. August. For about an hour. I was both fine and dandy at the same time. But nobody asked me how I was. I coulda told 'em, "Fine and dandy!" I consider it a lost opportunity."

Playing Outside

2008-06-12T15:52:00.004-05:00

The boys cannot get enough of playing outside. They love the squirt guns I got for them. The squirt guns came 6 in a pack for $1.47. One of them doesn't squirt at all, and one squirts out at a 45 degree angle. But for a quarter apiece, what do you expect? I also bought a tiny bag of water bomb balloons. I loved water balloons when I was a kid. Every time we go outside, I just face the fact that all 3 of us will be drenched when we come back inside. Especially C2. The object of playing with water balloons and squirt guns is to try and NOT get wet right? C2 is the opposite. He fills up his squirt gun and shoots himself repeatedly until he is out of water. With the water balloons, he will either throw the balloon down at his feet so it explodes on him, or throw it at some inanimate object, like a tree, the sandbox, or our house. C1 loves to try and hit me with balloons, but since he is only 4, he doesn't have quite the arm that one needs to chuck a water balloon hard enough to explode on impact. In other words, I catch every balloon he throws at me. The reason I get wet, is because I am all-time water ballon maker. Oh, and we also got the oscillating sprinkler out too. I just loved that as a kid. It sure helped to cool us all down the past week or so.

M.I.A.

2008-06-10T18:10:00.006-05:00

Ok, I guess it's time to make an appearance. A weird thing for me about blogging is that after I wait too long to make an entry on my blog, I feel that I need to come up with a really good entry. Then, the longer I wait, the better my next entry has to be. I have waited so long, I feel like I need to announce that I won the lottery or something. I have not won the lottery. But, I have had some things to say.

Gas prices! Holy Cow! Obviously gas prices have made me change the way my family drives. I think it will get way worse before it gets better. In fact, I think gas will get so outrageous that people will eventually abandon their cars. Gas is so bad, that I have been checking out gasbuddy.com. It is a site that allows people to enter local gas prices in that they see while driving around town. I use it to tell my wife to fill up while she is at work at the Speedway near where she works. I know the lowest prices all the time. It also tells me when gas prices are about to go up. I usually can get a fill-up before the prices rise 20 cents overnight. It also helps me figure out my gas mileage. It's a cool site, I have no affiliation with it, I just think it is neat.

My kitchen is done. I have been working the last couple of weeks on my kitchen. We decided to re-do it. We wanted a new counter-top because the one we had was... well, kinda junky. And since we got a new counter-top, we wanted a new floor. Well, you can't get a new counter and floor without painting, so we painted. It made a huge difference. the counter came with a free stainless double sink, so that was good too. Our old sink was only one compartment and without an automatic dishwasher, a one compartment sink kinda stinks. I did all the work myself, wich was kinda fun. Here are some before and after pics. the first one is before, and the second is after.

the pictures don't really show much, but T and I are very happy with it. I wonder what her next project for me will be.

March 2008

2008-03-28T23:08:00.003-05:00

I have been procrastinating. I keep telling my self that I need to write down some thoughts on my blog, but have always said, "I will do it tomorrow". That tomorrow never comes. So, for some reason I decided to log in and jot down some things.

I lost my grandma at the end of February. She was 4 months shy of her 100th birthday. She was my last grandparent. We took the boys up to Michigan for the services. The boys have never seen the farm in the winter, so one bright side of the trip was watching them play with Granny and Gramps in the snow. Granny and Gramps asked if they could have C2 for a week. We planned to spend our vacation the following week in South Carolina. So, my parents offered to take C2 a week early, and we'd get him when we went down on our trip. That meant that C1 and C2 would be seperated for a whole week. It also meant T would be seperated for a week too. By the time we left for S.C. we all missed C2 tremendously.

We left on vacation in the middle of the largest snow storm Ohio has seen in 30 years. If we didnt miss C2 so much, we may have waited it out. There was NO way we should have been driving, but we were determined. At one point, there was an electronic sign that said "LEVEL 3 SNOW EMERGENCY - EMERGENCY VEHICLES ONLY". We drove on. We finally got out of the snow in Tennessee somewhere.

When we finally got to my parents house, C1 and C2 gave each other big hugs. We spent 5 days in S.C. Most of those days were in Myrtle Beach. Granny and Gramps took us there again this year. We all had a ton of fun. C1 could touch the bottom in the pool, and C2 learned to say "BEACH". Oh, and Granny got in the pool! I think that might be the first time in my life I saw her in a pool. The lowlight of the trip was when I got kicked out of a timeshare sales presentation. It's a long story... If you want the details, you'll have to contact me. Let's just say they threatened to call the police on me! Oh, and another thing, the people at Westgate Resorts are deceitful, and their sales tactics are unethical, bordering on illegal. The highlight for me was seeing the "lazy river grin" on my sons face when he was in the pool.

We spent Easter morning here at home. Then the boys and I went to their Nana's and Papaw's for Easter dinner. It was a fantastic meal. And the Easter Bunny was very good to the boys... as always.

That was March in a nutshell... here are some pictures...

C2 making a snowball

C1 and his snowman

Look out Tiger woods!

The Lazy River Grin

C2 at the beach

Vote for Hillary!

2008-02-21T12:37:00.003-05:00

You may quote me... I want everybody to campaign for Hillary. I want people to vote for Hillary in the upcoming primaries and caucuses. Don't get me wrong, I am not a Hillary lover, but I just want Hillary to win the Democratic nomination. I have been dreaming about a Hillary/McCain debate for awhile now. If Hillary doesn't win Texas and Ohio in the next 2 weeks, I expect her to concede the nomination to Obama. I would enjoy an Obama/McCain debate as well, but not nearly as much as Hillary/McCain. Another reason I want Hillary to get the nomination is because the polls say that McCain would win against Hillary in the general election, but would lose to Obama (If you trust the polls). So for the next 2 weeks it's Hillary '08!!!

American Eagle, Hurley, Hollister, Aeropostale, and Abercrombie & Fitch

2008-02-20T18:52:00.005-05:00

I subbed again yesterday. This time it was for 9th grade World History, and 10th grade American History. I didn't learn too much about history while I was there, but I did decide that I was going to start investing in American Eagle, Hurley, Hollister, Aeropostale, and Abercrombie & Fitch. For those of you who don't know what these companies are, they are men's and women's apparel companies. The reason why I say I should invest in these companies is because there were so many students wearing these clothes. You might ask how I knew who the manufacturer of their clothes were. I knew because they advertise their company name right across the front of the clothes. These kids, were walking billboards for these companies. I am sure these clothes are not cheap either. So basically the kids are paying to advertise for the company. That's a nice deal for the clothiers. I am sure it is a status thing for the students too.

Price of Stamps

2008-02-13T17:30:00.002-05:00

I heard today that the price of a first class U.S. Postal stamp was going up. From 41 cents to 42 cents. This bothers me. I must say, in no way am I bothered by the cost of a stamp. 42 cents is chump change. I could find 42 cents in my couch right now. Think about this... a roommate of mine from college asked me this one day. A person comes to your house. That person takes a letter from you and will take it to your friends house, anywhere in the United States. All that that person asked for is 42 cents. Is that a good deal? Of course it is. That is the best deal around today really. 42 cents to do that, and they will do it 6 days a week, rain or shine. You seriously cannot find a better deal in the world. What bothers me is... why do they raise it a penny so often? They are just going to have to raise it again next year. I don't go through too many stamps. I never know if the stamps I have are the current price stamp. If I was the Postmaster General, I would raise the price of a stamp to $1.00. 1 buck to have a guy/gal com right to your door and deliver a letter anywhere in the US? That is a deal. But part of the deal is... I wouldn't raise prices for 20 years. I would probably be the first Postmaster General impeached. Isn't most correspondence done electronically nowadays anyway?

Most Important Lessons

2008-02-12T17:27:00.000-05:00

As most of you know, I am a substitute teacher. I usually teach 2-3 days a week for various grade levels. I have taught lessons from counting 1-20, to Trigonometry. I have read books to my class from Clifford the Big Red Dog, to The Illiad. There are 2 lessons that I wish parents (and Teachers) would focus on more. It isn't Math, English, or Science. It isn't Physical Education, Music, or Art. 2 lessons that I feel need way more attention are:

1. Following Directions So many kids just don't follow the directions. I repeat myself too many times. Kids do not hear or read directions. I can say them 100 times, or I could write them out. They just don't follow simple directions. Even after i get 99% of the class on task, I usually get a hand raised from someone asking a question that was covered in the directions. Here is an Example: Imagine 23 6th graders. I ask them to sharpen pencils, and to turn in homework. I then ask them to quietly sit at their desks, and that I am handing out a worksheet. I ask, "Please put your name on the top of the worksheet where it says NAME". When you have done this please stop and wait for further directions. I repeat these directions a handful of times. I ask if everyone understands my expectations. No one answers. After a few seconds, a hand goes up... "do we need to turn in our homework?"... then "I don't understand number 5". Then, "Are we supposed to start?" So I repeat my directions a few more times. Then I get... "Can I sharpen my pencil?" and "I have to leave at 11:20 to help in the cafeteria". Teachers and Parents, PLEASE teach your children the importance of following directions. For the first time in my life I realize why they put those large pictures of Stop Signs at the end of a section of standardized tests.

2. Don't worry about others, worry about yourself So many kids are concerned about what other kids are doing or not doing. They usually do this while they could be getting their stuff done. examples just from today: Mr. S, so-and-so needs to do cafeteria duty. Mr. S, so-and-so just went to the bathroom. Mr. S, jimmy and jason aren't supposed to sit next to each other, and my favorite, Mr. S, David is supposed to mind his own business. Each time, I responded with "Don't worry about him, worry about yourself"

One more thing, while I am at it. Please teach your kids/students the correct way to ask for permission. So many kids ask me, "Can I go to the bathroom?" or "Can I get a drink?" I usually say to them, "Well, you are (fill-in-the-blank) years old, I bet you have the ability." They don't get it. I explain to them that by saying "Can I...", that they are actually asking me if they have the ability to get a drink. I continue by telling them that they should ask by saying "May I..." I usually get a weird look.

I guess it all comes down to what is accepted in their lives. If it is acceptable to not follow direction, then they will. If it is acceptable to be concerned about others, then they will, and if it is acceptable to use improper grammar, they will.

The Grammy's, Fergie, and Alicia Keys

2008-02-11T21:56:00.000-05:00

The Grammy's were on last night. Reminds me of a funny thing that happened to a friend of mine on grammy night a few years back... but anyway...

I am not a big fan of this Fergie chick, but she said something last night that freaked me out. She said something like... "I learned alot from Kids Incorporated, Wild Orchid and Black-eyed Peas". No biggie right? That's what I thought too, but then I started thinking about Kids Incorporated. It was a really badly produced TV show from the mid 80's that I remember my sister and I watching. It basically was a kid sitcom, and occasionally they would break out into a song. I have long since forgotten about it. Until now. Why would Fergie say she learned alot from that crappy show? Unless she was on it! So I researched it, and found out she was on it! She was the cute little girl on it! No Way! If I am the last person in the world to realise this, then I am sorry, but THAT is weird. Then I realized that that cute little girl developed a meth problem. Here's a pic:

Ok, some of you may think I am weird, but oh well. The song "No One" by Alicia Keys does something to me that I have very rarely felt before in a song. If you haven't heard it before, you are missing out. I posted the video so you can see/hear it. The first time I heard this song was around 1am. I had left my TV on and fell asleep. I awoke to this song on my TV. I listened to it while I was half asleep. It made an impression with me. The next day I couldn't get this song out of my mind. I really don't know why. If you know me at all, you are probably thinking that this isn't te type of music I listen too. And you'd be right. I don't listen to urban/soul/R & B music. But, this song makes my skin tingle, my hairs stand up, and my eyes water. I guess it is because the way she sings. You can hear in her voice the way she feels. She isn't singing lyrics off of a music sheet, she feels these words. Maybe that is why she won 2 grammy's last night for this song. Take a listen:

Alicia Keys Lyrics

I am a Genius

2008-02-04T07:35:00.000-05:00

After struggling with nap/quiet time with my boys for years, and bedtime ranging from difficult to a downright nightmare, I have found a solution. I took C1 to the library last week, and had him help me pick out a bedtime book that I would read only at bedtime. I was initially thinking about a "Little House on the Prairie" type book, but was open to ideas. I wanted a chapter type book that would leave the boys wanting more. The librarian suggested any book in the "Junie B. Jones" series which is about a first grader. She also mentioned the "Goosebumps" series. C1 picked out 1 from both series of books. He wanted to start with the Goosebumps book. Goosebumps are scary stroies for kids, which worried me somewhat. I wasn't sure that reading a scary story before bedtime was a good idea, but C1 insisted, and I thought we'd try it and see how it went. I told the boys that the books were for bedtime only. We have been doing this for a few days, and it is working perfectly!!!At about 7:30, I ask the boys if they want me to read from the story and of course they say yes. We go in and brush teeth, get drinks, use potty, and jump in bed. Even C2 will climb in bed on his own. My only rule is that they must have their heads on their pillows. C1 likes to sit up, and my goal is to get them to nod off. By 8:00 their eyes get droopy. I stop at a cliffhanger part, and call it a night.

This also works for quiet time too. After lunch, I ask them if they want to hear from the story and they both run off to bed! It is crazy I know. The best part about this is that they take naps at the same time now. before, C2 would get sleepy between 11:00-12:00 for nap, and C1 wouldn't get sleepy 'til 2-4:00 for his nap. Which means a couple things. 1. C1 sleeps through dinner, and gets up around 6 (which is impossible to get him to go down again at 7:30) and 2. They both sleep at the same time (which as any parent of multiple kids knows, is so important).

I am sure I am not the first parent to come up with this idea, but until I hear otherwise, I will take credit for it, and I will declare myself a genius!

Hillary, Superbowl, Kwame, Brittany, Economy and other Stuff

2008-02-02T09:25:00.000-05:00

I want to blog. I have been wanting to write down some things, but I really haven't had anything funny or interesting to blog about. So, I will just jot down some things have been thinking

1. How in the world does Hillary Clinton have any support? She seems like a grouchy, vindictive, power-hungry and angry woman. How is it that Bill campaigning with her is helpful? I never would have thought that an impeached ex-president would be a beneficial supporter. Here is a funny picture I found...

2. Superbowl... Go Giants! I'd love to see the cocky Patriots lose their perfect season. I am watching the big game at home tomorrow with C1. C2 will be at the game of course. Here is a pic of C2 from media day...

3. Kwame Kilpatrick.... The mayor of Detroit (if you haven't heard) was busted for lying under oath about an affair he had. His lie cost the city 9 million dollars, and ruined the careers of 2 police officers. I see that he apologized (he didnt say what he apologized for) and basically said that he has talked with his family and worked it out. Of course he didn't mention anything about costing the city 9 million dollars or apologizing to the cops that he fired unlawfully, or to the jurors in the case that he called racist for finding him guilty. Why aren't the citizens of Detroit lined up at his home demanding that he resign? I just dont get it. He won't resign, in fact, I bet he runs for mayor again and gets re-elected.

4. Brittany Spears... are you serious? who cares? She has problems obviously, but a top news story every day?

5. Economic stimulus package... So the government is sending us some money? Don't we have a national debt or something? When these checks start coming out, Wal-marts are going to be packed with people buying tv's. Car dealerships will be offering to double your checks if you buy a car. I guess it will stimulate the economy in the short term, but by September, we will be right back were we are now... in a recession. My advice (if you care), invest it... pretend like you never got it and stick it away somewhere in an investment.... buy a long term CD, or even a savings account. That wont help the economy much today, but I gaurantee you'll be happier long term.

6. My boys are training to be boxers... when they wake up, it's like the first round bell going off. Ding Ding Ding!!! 10 rounds later, it's bedtime. They fight over toys, food, couch space, and floor space. They fight over Mom time, Dad time and even bath time. I spend a large amount of my day playing umpire when I should be doing laundry or cooking dinner. I know, I know it's all part of being a parent, but can anyone give me any advice on making these boys play nice?

I guess that is all for now.

New Pants

2008-01-23T09:25:00.000-05:00

I picked up C1 from pre-school yesterday. He was wearing different pants that I sent him to school in. I thought, "uh-oh". His teacher whispered to me that he couldn't get his pants unbuttoned fast enough, and wet himself, and that he took it pretty hard. I felt bad for him, and knew that I should be careful how I handled this. As I was putting him in the truck, I commented on his different pants. He said "yeah". I asked him if they gave him dry underpants too, and he said, "Yeah, I was afraid that was going to have to go commando!"

Time to Blog

2008-01-13T11:09:00.000-05:00

The holidays have come and gone. It flies past so quickly as I get older. The boys had a wonderful Christmas. Santa was very good to them. They also have many family members that care about them very much and were also very good to them (Thanks!). T worked a bunch, and the week between Chistmas and New Year's, was rather boring. The boys spent New Year's Eve with their Mamaw, and I think I was asleep before T got home from work that night. We Also celebrated C2's 2nd birthday! We met with family for dinner and a birthday party. C2 had so much fun! Now C1 is back in school, T isn't working SO much, and I am back subbing. Everything is back to normal. Here are some pics from the festivities...

My Niece

2007-12-20T12:25:00.000-05:00

I have been without my computer unexpectedly for a week or so. I have not been able to post (obviously). But I am back. On December 4th, my niece, Kenzie, was born to my sister and her husband. We cannot wait to see her!

Family Elf Dance

2007-12-08T09:18:00.000-05:00

I heard about this crazy thing and had to give it a try. Click the link below to see my our crazy family spreading some Christmas cheer.

See the Family Elf Dance HERE.

Holiday Puzzle

2007-12-06T18:09:00.000-05:00

C1 has been working on Jigsaw puzzles online. He wanted to see how some of my friends and family might do with the same puzzles that he tries. So, I included one here. He finished this puzzle in just under 29 minutes. Try it and respond with your best time.

International Harvester

2007-12-03T13:15:00.000-05:00

A few months ago, T and I (along with the kids) took a trip to town. We take the back roads. Well, it was during harvest time and we got stuck behind a gigantic piece of farm equipment that farmers call a "combine". This enormous piece of equipment took up the entire width of the road and most of the shoulder. And I think the max speed on a combine is about 5 M.P.H. Needless to say, a large back up of cars gathered behind this thing. I would say at least 15 cars were being "inconvenienced" by this combine. Now, we were the second car back so I could see the driver very well, and I knew that he knew the traffic chaos he was causing. I told T, "That guy is just being rude by not pulling that thing to the side and letting all these cars pass. Who does he think he is?" Well, eventually, he made it to his cornfield and pulled off the pavement. I thought that any other person would have let those cars pass and not held them up, and that this guy must just enjoy hearing horns beeping and getting the one finger salute. Then just a week or so ago, I turn on the radio and hear a song about this exact same thing! Yes, a song about how this guy drives a combine and if he gets in anybodys way they can go ahead and cuss cause he aint movin' any faster! It is called International Harvester, by Craig Morgan. And yes, it is a country song. After listening to this song, I realised that this guy that I encountered probably wasn't in the minority. I bet there are a bunch of combine drivers that enjoy making others wait. And I for one don't care for them. Click HERE for the audio.

Thanksgiving Weekend

2007-11-26T09:06:00.000-05:00

Our family had a great Thanksgiving weekend. We spent Thanksgiving Day at Nana and Papa's and we had dinner there. Everyone brought something to share. I made a homemade lemon meringue pie, which I thought was sensational (toot toot! <--- my own horn). Of course we had turkey and all the fixings. We played Scrabble, Boggle and watched football in the newly decorated entertainment room. We also stopped over to see Mamaw Buelah and that side of T's family. The boys were whipped and fell asleep on the way home. On Friday, T worked in the morning, but came home early because Nana and Papaw had invited us and the kids to a hotel with a water park and bowling alley. We all went bowling. It was great family time together. C1 enjoyed bowling, and C2 enjoyed watching. On a side note, yes that is Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video playing in the background.

Window Film and Kindergarten

2007-11-20T15:44:00.000-05:00

OK, I just started putting up that crazy window film that prevents the cold air from your windows from getting in your house. I hate doing this. As I stand there at the window with neighbors walking by, I wonder just how much energy I am saving by doing this. I mean I don't really feel a draft before I put up the film. Then as I stand there with my wife's hairdryer melting the film so it is taut, I think about that silver wheel that spins on your electric meter. I imagine it spinning really fast as I turn on that hairdryer. I think to myself... "self, is this really worth it?" I mean do we really save enough in gas over the course of a winter to make up for my time and electricity it takes to put saran wrap on my windows? Hmmmm.

I subbed today for 2nd Grade. While I was waiting for my students to come in from recess, I watched the P.M. Kindergartners walk into school. 10 minutes after they get to school, they go to lunch. Kindergartners go to lunch? When did that start? If your kid starts school at 12:10, why do they need to go to lunch? Anyway, 1:15, I line up my 2nd graders and walk down to the gymnasium for a safety assembly. As we walk in, I notice the same Kindergartners already sitting there waiting for the assembly. I start thinking to myself, If the Kindergartners got to school at 12:10, and headed to lunch at 12:20 then spent 20-30 minutes at lunch, then were at an assembly at 1:15, how do they ever get to learn anything? You follow me? So, we all get back to our rooms around 1:55 from the assembly, which gives us about 1 hour before school ends for classwork. Except, we had a fire drill at 2:15. I don't know how Kindergarten teachers (or any teacher for that matter) can get anything done sometimes.

Deer Statues in the Yard

2007-11-15T09:53:00.000-05:00

I don't know if it is a country thing, or an Ohio thing, but for whatever reason I seem to be seeing more and more yards with those lifesize concrete (I assume concrete is the material) deer lawn ornaments. I have come up with a basic safety and maintenance checklist for anyone who has these on their lawn.

1. keep them away from the road. I have slammed on my brakes on at least one occasion when I saw one of these statues near the road and thought it was real.

2. If its antlers, ears, or head breaks off, it is time for a new deer statue. Deer statues without heads don't look real.

3. If the paint is chipping off in large chunks, it is also time for a new deer statue or possibly a paint job. half painted, and half concrete colored deer statues are not very realistic.

and

4. For goodness sakes... mow under them. 10 inches of grass growing up underneath them is a dead giveaway for a deer statue.

In the News

2007-11-10T16:35:00.000-05:00

Dog the Bounty Hunter
Did you hear the tape his son made of him and sent to the National Enquirer? WOW! If you didn't hear, he made some very racists comments regarding the girl that his son was dating. And, he dropped the N word a few times. A&E Network have dropped him from their lineup for the time being. He has since apologized. My opinion.... if you don't like him don't watch. Which I bet a bunch of people will do if he ever comes back on TV. Which means I bet A&E ceases production of his show. Kind of like Don Imus did. Seriously, the guy is like a cartoon character. Huge mullet, feathers in his hair, holds hands and prays before he goes out to nab the bad guy, and then says (paraphrasing) "Let's get the MF'er!"
He was mildly entertaining, but I think Dog is gonna be euthanized (figuratively speaking). Vote in my poll please ----->

Aqua Dots
When these first were seen on our TV months ago, C1 said he wanted some. I thought to myself then... "those things cannot be safe". Not for the chemical make-up of the product, but the choking/ingestion possibility. Plus cleanup has got to be maddening. I wanted to tell C1 that they were bad, but deciding that explaining the date rape drug would be overkill, I told them they were found to be poisonous. He has been telling people that aqua dots are poison ivy.

Cow falls on Car
In Washington state, a 600 pound cow fell 200 feet from a cliff onto a hood of a minivan. Police chief says the couple inside were inches away from being killed. The couple were from Westland, Michigan celebrating their 1 year anniversary. The driver kept saying "I don't believe this, I don't believe this!" The cows owner says the heifer had been reported missing.

OK, some jokes I came up with:
It must have been raining cows and dogs.
Got milk?
I thought the traditional first year anniversary gift was paper, not beef.
or I heard they were issued a traffic ticket for a Moooving violation.... ba-da-bum!

I am a bad Dad

2007-11-08T20:37:00.000-05:00

Halloween has come and gone. T handed out candy and I took the boys... I mean the caterpillar and Spiderman out trick-or-treating in our little red wagon. We came back and helped T hand out the rest of the candy and said hi to many kids. Sounds good huh? Why I am a bad Dad? No pictures! I know. It has been bothering me for a week now. And to top it off, I had to send C1 to his room mad today for hitting and whining and carrying on and he said to me, "You ruined my life dad!" The kid is 4! First no halloween pictures, then the realization that I singlehandedly in one afternoon ruined this preschoolers life.

Proposed New Law

2007-10-22T12:04:00.000-05:00

Michigan lawmakers have proposed a law that would ban sex crime parolees from "participating in any way" in Halloween. Here is the story. Excuse me? This means they cannot hand out candy, or even leave their porch light on on October 31st. They cannot be serious. Believe me, I dont want sex-offenders around my kids, but preventing a person from celebrating halloween? And telling someone it is against the law to have their porch light on? I have no sympathy for any person convicted of a sex crime, but this is getting crazy. I have a great idea... If you are concerned that your children's safety might be compromised by ringing the doorbell of a convicted sex-offender. 1. Check on-line for sex-offenders that live near you. If you have kids, you should have done this already. You can do that HERE. 2. Don't let your kids go trick-or-treating by themselves, and 3. Only take them to houses of people you know. Take some responsibility for your kids safety. Lets let people leave their porch lights on if they wish. Also, vote in my poll please ------->

My Son is a Transformer

2007-10-22T10:12:00.000-05:00

C1 told me today on the way home from school that he can transform into 3 different things. I was puzzled. He asked me to guess what he transformed into during his pre-school class today. I said "A truck?". He said no, he can only transform into Sharp Claw, a Lion or Spiderman. So I guessed that he had transformed into Spiderman during class. He said "nope, it was a Lion". I have no idea who or what Sharp Claw is. He showed me how he could "transform" into each character. It was very impressive (for me maybe, but probably very anti-climactic for others). You see, he has a transformer toy or 2 at Granny's, and we saw the Transformer cartoon on TV the other day, and the movie just came out on video, so he is being bombarded with "Transformers... More than meets the eye!" I wish he would transform into a maid, cook, or landscaper.

Best Weekend Ever

2007-10-17T08:26:00.000-05:00

T and I had a great weekend. First, We left Friday morning and we dropped the kids off at Granny and Gramps. We went to Mt. Pleasant to see Loretta Lynn at the Soaring Eagle Casino. She was AMAZING. Seriously, We both agreed that we were witness to a living legend. If you have any interest in music, especially country music, I suggest you look into seeing this woman. Ok, that was Friday night. We stayed in Mt. Pleasant, and Drove to East Lansing Saturday morning. For my birthday, T had gotten me MSU football tickets for that evening. T fell asleep on the way down, which gave me a chance to drive around East Lansing and to check out my old stopping grounds. I knew she would have no interest in that, so I let her sleep. When she awoke, I promised her we would do some shopping. So, we went to Okemos to the mall. I wanted to get to campus, so I was very antsy while shopping. Finally, we left the mall, picked up a sandwich from Subway, and some beverages from Tom's, and found a parking spot on campus. We had our little picnic, and then took a walking tour of MSU's campus. I was a freshman at MSU 20 years ago, and it seemed like yesterday. I showed T all the spots that I had classes, or visited for whatever reason. We watched the marching band practice, and walked by Sparty. We finally made it to the game. It was a night game, so it was very energetic (that means everyone has been drinking all day). We had seats right next to the student section. The game was chock full of offense, and MSU won, so we had a great time. We went back to Granny and Gramps for the night. On Sunday, we spent the morning with Granny and Gramps, and drove home with the kids in the afternoon. We stopped on the way and picked up T's Mom to watch the kids, because T and I had a double date that evening. Yeah, I know! We met a friend of Teresa's and her husband for dinner. We then went to a haunted house. I haven't been to a haunted house in I don't know how long. It lasted about 45 minutes! It was very good. It was in an old run-down prison. The same prison that they have used to film many movies at (Shawshank Redemption for one). The scariest part was when they told me tickets were $15.00 apiece! Now, THAT was a 3 day weekend! We had a blast!

Full Circle

2007-10-08T16:46:00.001-05:00

I think I have made a complete circle when it comes to my history of going to concerts. My first concert was when I was around 10-12. I went with my parents to a local county fair (Jackson or Hillsdale). Coincidentally it was the same evening that Loretta Lynn was there so my parents coughed up the cash to see her. I was less than thrilled. I sat through the performance. My next concert was The Jacksons Victory Tour at the Pontiac Silverdome. I was 15. I often tell people that The Jacksons were my first concert, maybe because I was too embarrassed to say Loretta Lynn or maybe I didn't count it because it was with my parents, or maybe it was because it wasn't my choice to go. Anyway, I have been to several concerts since then, including: New Edition (my second concert ever), Bon Jovi, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Def Leppard, Bruce Springsteen, Technotronic, DJ jazzy jeff and the fresh prince, Milli Vanilli (I had free tix), Rick Springfield, Elvis (Costello, not Presley), Shania Twain, Alan Jackson, George Strait, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, John Michael Montgomery, Martina McBride, Carrie Underwood, Third Eye Blind, Jimmy Buffet, The Rolling Stones, Billy Joel, George Michael, KC and the Sunshine Band, Sinead O'Conner (pre-Pope ripping), Lonestar, LeAnn Rimes, JoDee Messina, Eddie Money... and these are just off the top of my head. My point of this post is this... I am 38 years old and just booked tickets to see Loretta Lynn for my wife's birthday. We do not do the concert scene much anymore... with kids and all, our priorities have changed. Maybe this will be the last concert I make it too. My first concert and my last concert may be Loretta Lynn.... I have become my parents. I am OK with that. Loretta Lynn was old when I saw her 27 years ago... geez, I wonder what she will be like now.

Wow, I need to update...

2007-10-03T18:37:00.000-05:00

I have been subbing a bunch. I am on the list for a few different school districts, and have been getting way more calls than I expected... especially at the beginning of the school year. The highlights: Gym class... I had a 1st grader tug on my shirt and call me coach.... I teared up. I had a 4th grade boy beat me fair and square at PIG. I had 2 7th graders throwing hay makers at each other and I escorted them to the office. I taught high school choir.... yes you read that correctly... High School Choir.

Me and the family spent last weekend at my parents in Michigan. My sister and brother-in-law (that sounds weird) had a gathering celebrating their surprise wedding and the upcoming arrival of my future niece (that sounds weirder)

funny story... My mother, had a bowl of fruit sitting out. It had bananas, apples, peaches, and pears in it. During the course of the weekend, several members of my family picked a fruit from the bowl to snack on. One day while my sister was slicing up a peach, C1 decided he would also like a piece of fruit from the bowl. he carefully looked over all the selections of fruit and decided he would have a fresh apple. I asked him what he chose, and he said, "an apple". I said, "why don't you try a pear?" After a moment of silence and obvious thought, C1 responded,
"No, I think I just want one."

That kid cracks me up.

Tiger stadium

2007-09-16T22:10:00.000-05:00

The contents of Tiger Stadium are up for auction. This makes me remember the many times I went to that ballpark. Mostly, I went with my Dad. I remember he would always make me carry a jacket... even in the hottest part of the summer, because at night it "might get chilly". I remember my Dad getting sweet tickets from Geoff Zahn when the Twins, and later the Angels, came to town. Nothing was cooler than my Dad asking the batboy to grab Geoff during pregame, and my Dad talking to him as I stood there. I felt like every kids eyes were watching me. I hung out in the bleachers with the Kuras' once and spent a very memorable game in the tiger den once too. The last time I was there was when I won tickets to opening day in 1999; the last opening day there ever. I didn't know how great that place was until I couldn't go there anymore. Almost every piece of the stadium is included in the auction. From seats, to signs, to those portable hot dog steamers the venders would carry around. The most interesting thing I saw on the auction, is the trough style urinal from the home clubhouse. The bid is currently only at $200. What a steal! Check out the auction HERE

Subbed for 1st grade

2007-09-07T15:38:00.000-05:00

OK, I subbed for 1st grade today. I am not sure it should be called 1st grade yet because these kids are basically 1 week out of kindergarten. It certainly felt more like full day kindergarten without an aid. Basically this is how my the first hour of my day went:

1. "Everybody put book bags away, sharpen pencils, get a drink, and use the potty, then sit down at your desks quietly for announcements please."
2. Repeat number 1 twenty six times
3. "Class, please follow directions"
4. Repeat number 1 eighteen more times
5. "Please write your name on the paper I just handed out"
6. Repeat number 5 twenty two times
7. "Class, please follow directions"
8. Jimmy shouts "I need to sharpen my pencil!"
9. Tiffany shouts "I don't know how to do that"
10. I say "If you have a question, please raise your hand"
11. 25 hands go up
12. "OK class, please follow my directions they are very straight forward. Write your name on the top of the blank paper I just handed out"
13. I say "if you do not understand my directions, please raise your hand"
14. one hand this time.... "yes Esmeralda?" and she says, "Mr. S, may I please use the potty?" I respond "of course, please hurry"
15. then I ask the class "why are we talking? Remember my directions? Did I mention anything about talking to your neighbor?"
16. me: "Rudolph? where are you going? I didn't say anything about getting out of your chair in my directions"
17. me: "OK I need everyone to be quiet for me please... I am looking for quiet hands... who can tell me and the rest of the class what my directions were?"
18. No hands this time
19. "Mr. S, My brother has a pet lizard. It eats bugs."
20. Potty break

I wish I could say that the rest of the day got better, but it really didn't. I wish I could spend a whole day in there teaching them the meaning of "follow directions"

First Day

2007-09-05T06:27:00.000-05:00

C1's first day of school was yesterday. He has been talking about going back to school for awhile now. He actually got dressed and had his shoes on 30 minutes early. When I told him it wasn't time to leave for school yet, he was disappointed. When we got to preschool, C1 walked right in and said "Good morning" to his teacher just like a pro. C2 tried to follow him into class and got quite upset when he couldn't stay. I have been substitute teaching too. I had Kindergarten last week, 2nd grade yesterday, and a 1st grade class this Friday. I wondered how quickly I would be getting calls, but it seems like right away.

College football season is underway

2007-09-02T08:40:00.000-05:00

When I talk to people about my interest in college sports, I often tell them that my 2 favorite teams are the Michigan State Spartans, and whoever is playing the University of Michigan. Well, yesterday was a dream come true. Michigan State won handily against a weak Alabama-Birmingham team. Although the UAB Blazers are not a powerhouse football squad, the Spartans looked half-way decent in Coach Dantonio's first game. (if you remember, I asked A.D. Ron Mason to terminate last years head coach John L. Smith, and of course he took my advice) On the other side of the coin, my other favorite football team (the Appalachian State Mountaineers) handed the Wolverines what I, and many experts, call the biggest upset in the history of sport. I know it is not very sportsmanship-like to root for a team to lose, but now I don't have to listen to Michigan fans talk about a National championship for 12 more months. And who knows, MSU can still go undefeated and win the national championship. I know they have no chance, and they may very well go 3-9 this year, but it looks like we may have a chance to beat Michigan this year for the first time since 2001. Oh, and another thing, if U of M is looking for another head coach, I hear that John L. Smith is available.

Floods and Jelly

2007-08-25T10:09:00.000-05:00

Ohio has had a bunch of rain lately, and due to its terrain, some flooding has occurred. We have had no problems here in Willard, but a few communities near us have had some devastating issues. Shelby, the town directly south of us had major flooding. In fact, some residents were evacuated by a coast guard chopper. The schools there were flooded, and they expect to open school on time (next week). I am on the substitute list for that school district, so I wonder if I will get any first hand experience with this. Our basement is dry, and I was told there is no reason to worry because there aren't any rivers near Willard.

Normally, when I run across a product that I like, I make a mental note of it and move on to the rest of my life. But this product is so great, I feel that it is my duty to get the word out. Smuckers Black Raspberry Jam (seedless) is simply the best preservative ever marketed (this excludes all of mom's homemade jelly and jams). If you have not had this product spread across a piece of warm toast, or on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, I suggest you make this a top priority. Now, don't get me wrong, I realize it is just jelly. There is no need to stop what you are doing and run to the store this second, but before you go to sleep tonight, get a jar of Smuckers Black Raspberry jam (seedless) and make a sandwich. Now I know I will sleep better because I got this secret out. And remember... With a name like Smuckers it has to be good!

Happy Birthday Mom

2007-08-19T21:45:00.000-05:00

It was my mothers birthday this past weekend, and we wanted C1 to call and talk to her. First, let me give you some background on C1's phone etiquette. Sometimes he wants to talk on the phone and will occasionally have a very lengthy dialog with a family member on the other end of the line. But, more often the case is that he doesn't want to talk, and will just say loudly, "I don't want to talk to so-and-so". This is usually said loud enough for whoever is on the phone to hear him, which obviously embarrasses us. So, we have been working on this particular issue lately, and when we sense that he will respond this way we remind him about the consequences of not doing what mommy and daddy ask of him, and he will usually comply. He is getting better. Anyway, back to my Mom's birthday. We wanted him to talk to his Granny on the phone, and wish her a happy birthday. So, before I called, we discussed with him our expectations. Well, to say the least, he did not meet our expectations. When we reminded him about the consequences, he ran by the phone and yelled "hi!" As steam shot out my ears, I as politely as possible told my mother that he would not be getting on the phone, and I needed to go. This bothered me on many levels. First of all, my mother does so many great things for our boys, and I want her to hear from him how much he appreciates what she does. So, when my son doesn't acknowledge all that she does, I feel as a father, I am not teaching him to be respectful and grateful. Second, I do not like my son misbehaving. I warn him about consequences, but it isn't helping. He went to bed early tonight. He chose going to bed, instead of apologizing to me and his Granny. I feel like I need to start him in my own little boot camp in the morning so he realizes and accepts who is in charge. Thirdly, I want my parents to see that we are capable of raising a great kid. After tonight, I am sure they aren't quite as confident as they could be.

I know my Mom reads this occasionally, so I will say Happy Birthday Mom! I hope your birthday was great, and I am sorry for how C1 acted today. T and I appreciate everything you and Dad do for these boys, and I promise to teach my sons to be more respectful in the future. We all love you!

shooting stars

2007-08-12T08:34:00.000-05:00

I heard last night on the local news that there would be a meteor shower in the early morning. I Googled "meteor shower August 12" and confirmed that there should be fantastic viewing for a meteor shower between 2am and 6am. I set my alarm for 4:45am. When my alarm buzzed, I turned it off and decided that I was too tired to get up and go outside... then, I had to get up to use the facilities, so I decided to throw some shorts on and take a look at the free light show. If you have never seen a shooting star, you are missing out. I sat outside for about 30 minutes and counted approximately 10-12 shooting stars. It was amazing. At first you see something and say to yourself, "was that one?" especially when you have just awakened from deep sleep. But then when you see more and more, you realize what you are watching. I saw a meteor shower when I was in high school. My sister and I were waiting for the school bus before sunrise, and counted several shooting stars. I am not some sort of astronomy geek or anything, but I think meteor showers are cool. Oh, and tonight should be good viewing too because of the new moon. Check it out if you can.

Severe weather

2007-08-10T02:21:00.000-05:00

OK, what is the deal with local T.V. breaking in to regular programming to inform us/me/we about "severe weather"? All I need to know is that it is coming, whether I should expect high winds, hail, or a tornado etc., then please get me back to Dr. Phil. They spend 20 minutes using their newest weather forecasting software (that I am sure has cost them many thousands of dollars) and draw a map of the weather cell's and determine what time they will hit Main Street, in some city I have never heard of. They even will tell you number of lightning strikes, and size of hail these cells can produce. Who cares really? All I need is "Attention, we are interrupting regular programming to give you this special weather bulletin... There is a tornado warning in XYZ county... we now return you to regular programming." I mean, if I am watching television, I am already inside and safe right? And it is also acceptable to have that little map in the corner with XYZ county colored in so if you forget, you can just look at the little reminder map. Or even the small scroll on the bottom is ok. But the 20 minute lecture on weather that I do not consider to be THAT severe, is ridiculous. I think the stations around here, must have a competition about who can talk about the weather the longest. There I feel better now. Oh, and can anybody re-hash the last 20 minutes of yesterdays Dr. Phil episode for me?

July

2007-08-02T12:54:00.000-05:00

July 2007 is over. I am a bit thankful. You see, my lovely wife and I had a small disagreement towards the beginning of the summer about how we should spend the summer. Things like vacation, garage sales, new windows, camping, remodeling, birthday parties and zoo trips were all discussed. We decided that we did not want another summer to fly by and feel like we didn't get a chance to do the things we wanted. So, we looked at the calandar (and the checkbook) and made some plans. Well, July was chock full of most of these things. C1 finished t-ball, and we celebrated his birthday at the zoo the first week of July. After that we went to Warriors Path State Park in Tennessee camping for 4 nights. Camping was great. We were happy to get home though. When we got back, we had our garage sale that we have been planning for at least 3 years. It was a success! While T was running the garage sale, I was tearing apart 1 of our bathrooms to remodel. We took a break and went to Michigan to see my parents, and oh yeah, I had a birthday in there too. I have been working on the bathroom since. When I say remodel, I mean total remodel. I tore out all fixtures, floor, and part of the drywall. And, I must say that these projects NEVER go as planned. But anyway, the bathroom is almost finished, no major plans for August, and school is just around the corner!

Happy Birthday C1!

2007-07-11T14:01:00.000-05:00

Sunday was C1's birthday. He turned 4 years old. We cannot believe our son has been with us for 4 years now. Time flies. He wanted to go to the zoo for his birthday, so we visited the Toledo Zoo for the second time in 8 days. We were a little worried about the heat, but there was a nice breeze and it wasn't too bad. After the zoo, we went to mamaw's and papaws for cake and ice cream. On our way hame we stopped by Nana and Papaw's. C1 opened his birthday cards and gifts and was very very happy! He received a remote control truck, a cool jigsaw puzzle, and some drawing paper with magic markers and magic paper too. He also got a bike. It was a busy day for all of us. Even C2 had a great day. C2 is really getting a personality and the 2 of them interacting is priceless. When I asked C1 what the favorite part of his birthday was, he said, "EVERYTHING". We are so lucky to have these boys in our lives. with C1, we have the terrible 2's out of the way, and the even worse 3's are history... what is next? The back-talking 4's?

Online Cornhole

2007-07-08T12:07:00.000-05:00

For those of you who cant get enough cornhole in your backyard, I found an online cornhole game for you. Happy cornholing!

CornHole

Grab bean bags and take aim in this tailgatin' favorite.

66 hot dogs

2007-07-04T19:41:00.000-05:00

Today was the annual Nathan's International July Fourth Hot Dog Eating Contest. The winner (Joey Chestnut) ate 66 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes. Sixty six! That is more than 5 a minute and over 12,000 calories. Believe me, there have been times when I have eaten what some would consider a bit too much food at one sitting, but 66 hot dogs! That amazes me. Where in the world does a pile of food that big go to? The winner gets $10,000 and a very bad case of indigestion.

Cornhole game

2007-07-03T11:18:00.000-05:00

Ok everyone, I was a wee bit leary to post this entry for fear that my city boy image being tarnished, but it has to be done. The game of cornhole is sweeping the nation, and I got my first introduction to it last weekend. If you haven't heard of it, it is called cornhole, softshoe, corn toss, bean bag toss, or even baggo. It is basically a bean bag toss game played in your back yard. T and I had never heard of it up until a few days ago. We found out that we are very very good at cornhole-ing. This is not a joke. It is actually a game. If you do not believe me, click this link to American Cornhole Association. I promise, this is not an adult only website. T and I are in the process of building our own cornhole set. And right now you may be laughing at me, but before long you will be e-mailing me for plans to build your own. I understand this is primarily a midwest thing, played in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. Oh, and there is a huge cornhole tournament at Soldier Field in Chicago later this month. Who knows, maybe you'll see T and I at the World Championship of Cornhole, in southern Ohio later this month. Now, when someone asks you to play cornhole this summer at your next bar-b-que or family reunion, you can think of me! Happy Cornholein'

The word "NO"

2007-06-28T22:42:00.000-05:00

no - (noh) adverb, adjective, noun, verb

1. to reject, refuse approval, or express disapproval of.

It seems to me, that half of the members of our household have NO understanding of this word. NO matter how I say it, I always get "the look" or NO response what-so-ever. Whether it's climbing on the furniture, or throwing a toy, when I say NO, I seem to get the same result. "NO NO!" is not twice as effective either. I spend way too much time saying NO to these boys. I wonder how many times I say the word "NO" throughout the day? And, in case you are wondering, it's the boys that don't respond to the word "NO". T and I are very clear of it's meaning.

Modern Language Association (MLA):
"no." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 28 Jun. 2007. .

Van-up

2007-06-24T11:50:00.000-05:00

I saw it! Some say it doesn't exist, but I saw it with my own eyes. The infamous van-up! A cross between a full size van and a pickup truck. It has the roominess of a full size van and also the convenience of a truck-bed. This vehicle has been talked about for ages in coffee shops, barber shops, and in chat rooms. The Van-up was seen in Ohio (imagine that). The exact location is top-secret for obvious reasons. Only a few have claimed to actually see it, and nobody had any photographic evidence....until now! I have proof that the van-up exists. The mystery has been solved!

pink is for girls

2007-06-07T20:25:00.000-05:00

I never noticed how national marketing has made everything for girls pink until we started doing baby boy shopping and could always see the "girls" section of clothes a mile away because it was a sea of pink. Since then, I am amazed at how companies market their items toward girls by making them pink. I often wondered what it would be like to have a baby girl, and despise the color pink. My thinking usually stops after a few seconds when I decide I am wasting my time since I have no girls, and won't ever have any girls. I have seen hundreds of items that were pink, but most recently, at T-ball, I have seen pink baseball gloves, pink batting helmets, and of course pink bats. Even this week, I saw this advert in my local paper for a pink rifle. I have nothing against anything pink, or guns either, but a pink gun is very very weird to me.

Random thoughts.

2007-06-03T08:44:00.000-05:00

School is out. C1 will graduate 14 years from today... C2 in 17 years.

I feel sort of bad for Cleveland/Ohio sports fans. No major sports championships in decades, they lost 2 national championship games within 3 months and are about to lose another to the Spurs.

Gas prices are ridiculous. And people are paying it with smiles on their face. How much does it cost to build an oil refinery? I'd like to get in on these profits.

Jack Kevorkian just got out of prison. He is wearing the same light blue sweater he wore in his infamous video 9 years ago. I guess he hasn't had a whole lot of time to stop by Old Navy for a $19.95 hoodie.

I still don't care for Rosie O'Donnell.

I don't think you can completely appreciate your parents until you have kids. I took for granted a million things my parents did for me. Now that I am responsible for the same things when it comes to my boys I realize what wonderful parents I have. Thanks Mom and Dad! I also realize that it will be a very long time before my 2 boys will completely appreciate me and T.

Memorial Day

2007-05-28T11:24:00.000-05:00

Happy Memorial Day to all! To me, Memorial Day means the beginning of Summer. It means driving to Indianapolis, and it also means raining at the Indy 500. It means basketball playoffs, auto racing, and baseball games. It means staying at my sisters, and cooking out at my other sisters. It means parades, shorts, sunscreen, and making sure both my camera and video camera are charged. It means fighter jet flyovers. It means silly string (or crazy spray), bubbles and tractor rides. This year, it meant birds... hummingbird eggs the size of a pencil eraser, 3 baby house finches, and 3 unlucky baby robins. It meant family... immediate family, extended family and future family. I think it means a great deal of things to most people. But, please remember why our country celebrates Memorial Day. Stop for a moment to remember the thousands of men and women who have sacrificed their lives so we could enjoy ours.

Mohawks

2007-05-14T11:49:00.000-05:00

Mohawk haircuts. During my childhood, when I saw another kid with a Mohawk haircut, I thought to myself... "wow that kid is a rebel". As I grew older, and saw a kid with a Mohawk, I thought... "wow, that kid is begging for attention". Then a few decades pass by and the only place I saw a Mohawk haircut was at Pine Knob/DTE Music Theater (the Mohawk was not in the crowd, but on the stage as part of The Village People act). Well, at least here in Willard, the Mohawk is making a comeback. Last week, while subbing, I saw a Kindergarten boy with the crazy hairdo. I wondered why his parent(s) would do such a thing. Obviously, a 5 year old didn't ask for the ridiculous hair stripe on his head. At that point I thought I had seen it all. Until today... as I walked up to C1's preschool to drop him off, I see a classmate of C1's with that darn Mohawk haircut. Another parent said (very politely I must say), "That is a cute hair cut". The mother of the Mohawk preschooler said "Thank you, it is a tradition." On a side note, the kid is 3 years old... NOTHING IS A TRADITION YET! Anyway, she also mentioned that all the kids on his T-ball team were doing it. OK, C1, is on a T-ball team, and my son will never get a Mohawk haircut until at the least, he can decide for himself that he wants one, and more likely he is 18, and I am not legally responsible for him. I mentioned the "do" to C1's teacher when I picked him up and she mentioned that they had sent the Kindergartner home due to his distracting hairstyle. No word on whether C1's classmate will get the same treatment. I am all for self expression, but the kid is 3 years old. Now, when I see a Mohawk on a preschooler I think... "That boys parent(s) must be begging for attention". And if by some chance, the parents of the Mohawk boy happen to Google "Preschool+Mohawk+Willard+ridiculous+irresponsible" and see this entry in my blog, yes, I disapprove of you cutting your 3 year old's hair into a Mohawk.

Family restrooms

2007-05-13T19:23:00.000-05:00

I love Family restrooms. C1 is 3 years old and although he IS potty trained, he is still working on his ability to.... well, how do I say it... hold it. When I am shopping, in the mall, or a store like Wal-Mart, I get excited when I see a Family Restroom. First of all, they are huge! plenty of room to park a stroller, or even a shopping cart in. And it is just me and the boys, bigger restrooms are better. Another advantage to Family restrooms is that they are 99% of the time very clean. I guess because nobody uses them. I don't care why, but it is nice. The 3 of us were on our way back home from Granny and Gramps and had to stop at a turnpike rest stop/ food court plaza for a potty break. I basically had to carry both boys into the place, and when I saw the Family bathroom, I got all excited. They had a little fold-down seat to buckle C2 into while C1 used the facilities. And of course they had a changing table. We were in and out in just a few minutes, and we had no issues with nasty restrooms or safety of my kids wandering around the community men's room while another was "busy". Whoever invented the Family restroom deserves a trophy.

Dinosaur Toys

2007-04-29T21:52:00.000-05:00

Ok, C1 recently finished a week of learning about dinosaurs in preschool. He learned a lot about the prehistoric animals. He can tell you about plant-eaters and meat-eaters. He also picked up some plastic dinosaur toys at the drug store recently. Well, he loves these pieces of plastic! He has them talk to, and fight each other. Evidently all the dinosaurs put aside any hard feelings between them, because they look awfully comfortable sleeping in C1's bed together! C1 decided to sleep on the floor tonight.

Another Funny Comment

2007-04-27T11:24:00.000-05:00

C1 and I were playing and I spun him around by his arms several times. When I let him down he tried to stand up but he couldn't. He said, "Whoa! I'm Disney!"

Parent/Teacher Conferences and the Bud Club

2007-04-26T18:03:00.000-05:00

T and I went to Parent Teacher Conferences for C1's preschool on Tuesday. We were told that he is a very good student and in most areas he is doing great. Not to sound conceited, but we expected that. C1 is a great kid. Well, we also were informed of some areas for improvement. Mrs. L said that he needs work on his writing of numbers and letters. We thought... OK that is something we can work on him with. Then she told us even more unexpected. C1 sometimes disrupts class with talking while the teacher is talking, not following directions, and not keeping his hands to himself. That was disappointing to say the least. His teacher mentioned that she has recently had to put him in Timeout because of his behavior. This is not good. We had a sit down conversation with C1 and explained to him what our expectations were. He seemed to understand and his teacher said Wednesday was much better. Then today, when I picked him up, I asked his teacher if his behavior has improved, and she said "not today, I had to put him in Timeout again for being disruptive". We just got finished with the "consequences" conversation. We'll see how that works.

C1 informed T and I yesterday that he has formed a Bud Club. I said "what?" He said that 3 other boys in his class were in his Bud Club. I then asked who came up with that idea and he said he did. Then he told me the names of the boys that were in the club and a couple boys names that were not in the club because they were "mean". He also mentioned that girls were not allowed because they didn't have muscles. I asked him what exactly a club was and he said he didn't know. So, I am not sure exactly how much of this was his idea, but it sure made T and I laugh.

New Game

2007-04-21T19:14:00.000-05:00

C1 came up with a new game he wanted to play. I don't know the name of it, but he calls it "you be me and i'll be you". We role play as if I am C1 and he is me. It started out quite funny, but has turned into a good tool to see how the one person sees the other. I would say something like "That's it!!! I am not playing with you!! My Daddy's mean!!!' and he would say "Daddy I don't act like that". Well, he does and now he can see what he looks like when he acts like that. It works both ways because he would act out the way he sees me. I wont give you any examples, but it was a real eye opener to see how my 3 year old views me. I would suggest playing this game to anyone with kids... who knows, you may learn something playing as adults as well.

Spring School Pictures

2007-04-14T08:06:00.000-05:00

A while back, C1 brought home a note about Spring School Pictures coming up. "What is that?" T and I thought. We already had school pictures done in the fall. When we were kids we only had school pictures once a year. T mentioned that this was probably just a way for the photo company to get more money. I agreed and we decided we didn't need any more pictures and we laughed at their attempt to get us to buy more pictures. Picture day came and I dressed C1 in a nice spring shirt and dropped him off at school as usual. 6 weeks later... T and I had forgotten about these school pictures and when his teacher told me he had pictures in his bag I assumed they were some random pictures they took in class. Well, I get home and open these school pictures and was floored! Our lttle boy is SO DARN CUTE!!! They didn't do the traditional head shot pose, they added an outdoor background and have him standing up with his arms crossed. The way the program works, is that if you do not want the pictures just send the envelope of pictures back to school and owe nothing. We sent back the envelope but instead of the pictures inside, we sent back a check. Again, T and I laughed. This time at ourselves for falling for their marketing, but seriously, he is SO DARN CUTE!

American Gladiators

2007-04-10T10:42:00.000-05:00

Ok, attention everyone with cable TV. ESPN Classic has bought the rights to American Gladiators and is now airing the show Monday through Friday at 7:00 pm (and 9:00am Saturday and Sunday). Why is this important? I loved this show. Please don't ask me why because I have no idea. It might be because I wrote a 10 page essay about it (and other syndicated shows and their effects on local programming) for my broadcast law class at MSU. Or it might be because all my college friends said I looked so much like Malibu. Tune in and decide for yourself.

Something I overheard

2007-04-03T16:17:00.000-05:00

Today during Quiet Time, I overheard C1 and C2 talking amongst themselves (even though C2 cannot talk much yet). I heard C1 say "Pick your own nose". Hmmm

1st graders

2007-04-02T22:22:00.000-05:00

I subbed for a class of 1st graders all last week. Wow! What a difference from 2nd graders. Keeping their growing minds on task was a big challenge for me. They were always doing and thinking other things than the lesson I wanted them to. Now I know why the lessons for kids are disguised into an art project or some type of game. Another challenge I had was the restroom break. We would all walk down to the restroom for a restroom break. 5 minutes after we would get back to class, I would feel a tug on my shirt. "Mr. Smith, can I use the restroom?" I told them we just went and they would have to wait. Then, they would go back to their desks and do that "gotta go wiggle" in their seat. I would have to let them go because I certainly didn't want a puddle in the classroom. One day, 5 students asked me to go, within a half hour of going on a restroom break. And this was AFTER I told them everyone must go, no more restroom breaks until lunch. It made me crazy.

I tried to play games with them when we had a minute or two. One day I decided to play Simon Says. I have never been the leader of this game, and was somewhat reluctant to play because I wasn't sure if I had the skill to eliminate the kids. First, I said "Simon says put your right hand on your head". 5 kids out right away using the wrong hand. "Simon says put your left hand on your head". 5 more out for taking the right hand down when they put the left hand up. I was beginning to think I would do ok leading this. So half the class is still in it and the other half is sitting down, so I ask all the kids "If you are still in the game, raise your hand" and all the kids still playing raised their hands. All out! Simon didn't say!
Wow, that was easy.

C1 got a new camera

2007-04-01T19:16:00.000-05:00

C1 got a camera for christmas (thanks aunt J2 and uncle B!). He didn't like it because it didn't have a LCD screen to see the pictures he just took. So we returned it and finally replaced it with another model that has a LCD screen. He tested it out this weekend. First picture is of his "best friend" Wormy. The second picture is of me cleaning up the yard.

Laundry Idea!

2007-03-25T08:37:00.000-05:00

Ok, today is laundry day. I try to catch up on laundry on Sundays. The last person to do a load of laundry in our home was T. She turned on the "signal" on both the washer and the dryer. So today when my loads were done I hear BUZZZZZZZ!!!! I thought... gee that could be a useful feature, but that buzz is annoying. So, I got to thinking... If I worked for Maytag, what would be a better "signal" to indicate that your loads are done? Here are my ideas:

1. Ding Dong Ding (like a doorbell) and then a nice lady's voice says "Your clothes are done, I am ready for the next load. Your clothes are done, I am ready for the next load."

2. How about music comes on like your clock radio set on music instead of alarm. A good option might be "Dirty Laundry" by Don Henley.

3. This one is out of the box, but I think it would be neat if when your laundry was done, the machines would release an aroma of fresh baked cinnamon rolls or maybe even a flowery smell like plumeria! What a pleasant way of letting me know my clothes are washed/dry!

Since my washer and dryer do not have these options, I chose to turn the "signal" off.

MSU Telemarketer

2007-03-17T18:39:00.000-05:00

Last night I got a telephone call from a telemarketer from Michigan State. Basically they were asking for donations for various on campus improvements. When the caller told me they were trying to make all residence halls wi-fi compatible, I had to laugh. I told her she would not get any sympathy from me. I told her t when I went to MSU, I was happy because my residence hall was the only residence hall that had cable t.v. I think she felt sorry for me for being so old. She got a modest donation from me.

2nd Grade and Recess Duty

2007-03-15T15:46:00.000-05:00

I have been asked to substitute teach 4 times this week all for 2nd grade classes. I learned alot about 7 year olds this week.

For one, they love to help. I was moving the overhead projector, and a box of rulers fell off the bottom shelf. About 5 students jumped from their seats to pick them up for me. I learned to use their generosity to my advantage. I now get a "special helper" to pass out papers, pick up papers, erase the board, and write down lessons on the board. I have a quiet leader that is in charge of keeping the room quiet by turning out the lights when it gets too loud. Most all 2nd graders love help. One bad thing about this characteristic is that because they like to help, most 2nd graders are tattle-tales. Most kids seem to try to get other kids busted. Now I know why my teachers in grade school frowned upon this. It gets very annoying.

Another thing about 2nd graders is they will tell you what is on their mind. Whether it is the appropriate time or even an appropriate story at all. In the middle of story time, one little girl raised her hand. I called her name because I thought she had a question about the story. She proceeded to tell me about how her great grandmother had just passed away and that the viewing was that afternoon, and that her parents would not let her go to it. Well, normally, I would cut her off because it was off topic, but I couldn't bring myself to do that considering the subject. I have also learned about students father in prison and a dog and cat card collection.

I also learned alot on the playground. One day while at a small outlying school, I was told that I was on recess duty. I have never been on recess duty. I didn't think too much of it because I figured that there would be another teacher or adult that would also be on recess duty with me, that would "show me the ropes". Well, As you probably guessed, I was the only "adult" on recess duty. As I took the kids outside, a little girl asked me where my whistle was. I decided I must need a whistle and went back inside. She wanted to show me where I could find it. I began to walk back out and the 1st grade teacher asked me if I had a key. I did not. As I started to walk back to her she told me to head on out and she would send a student out with a key. Well, I had 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders on recess. Total of about 70 kids. It was absolute mayhem. There were kids running everywhere. They were climbing on snow piles, jumping in puddles, throwing those red rubber playground balls at each other and girls I have never met come up and hug me. The ground was messy due to the recent thaw so I decided that all students were to stay on the mulch or blacktop. So, I spent the first part of the recess rounding up kids on the grass and informing them of my new self imposed rule. Then I saw about 20 boys jumping horizontally feet first into each other on the snow pile. New rule... "everyone off the snow piles!!!" Then a girl told me another girl called her the "B" word. I told them to separate or I'd put them on the wall (do they put kids against the wall here I thought). Next crisis was a boys hat came unbuttoned from his coat. This is easy I thought... as soon as I started to re-button his hood to his jacket, a bunch of girls run toward the fence. I hear them say "blah blah blah fight blah blah blah". Yeah, the girls that were calling each other names evidently didn't separate. There wasn't any fisticuffs, just yelling. So they were on the wall seperated this time. ok, I look at my watch and it is time to go in. I assume this is what the whistle is for. I blow the whistle. The whole world stopped! balls stopped bouncing, yelling and screaming was silenced, and every student lined up quietly in rows of perfectly straight 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders. Thank goodness I had that whistle! I unlocked the door with my borrowed key and went back to class! I still think about how recess would have went without my whistle or key.

Hoops Tournament Challenge

2007-03-11T22:35:00.000-05:00

Hey, I invite all 5 of you who read this to join my group on espn.com to enter your bracket picks for the upcoming Mens Basketball NCAA tourney. I will be having 4 entries, so I will probably win, but if you want to give me a run for my money, please enter a few picks of your own. You can enter up to 5 different brackets and best of all, it's free! I thought it would be fun to watch and see how bad I can beat everybody. This would be all for fun. No money involved. That would be gambling, and that is illegal! You can join my group at ESPN Househubby group

Please someone join. Invite others if you wish. I dont want to have to be talking trash to C1 and C2 this weekend because I am the only one who entered.

C1 doesn't like rainbows

2007-03-07T17:12:00.000-05:00

Today while I was making dinner, C1 asked me what the dots on wall were. I wondered what on earth he could be talking about. As I turned around to look, I saw spots on the wall that were coming from a beam of sunlight coming through our storm door and refracting off a mirror magnet on the side of our refrigerator and making spots on the wall. The spots were colored like little rainbows. I said "oooh, they are coming from the sunlight bouncing off the mirror". I said, "these are little rainbows, aren't they cool?" C1 scrunched up his nose and shook his head. He said, "I don't like rainbows". I asked, "why not?" To which he replied, "they are kinda girly".

Back from vacation

2007-03-06T07:21:00.000-05:00

The family and I were on vacation last week. We rented a mini-van and drove to my parents place in South Carolina. We then all jumped in the mini-van and went to Myrtle Beach for a couple of days. The weather was great for February. It was 70 degrees while we were there. The kids loved the beach and pools. We also went to a show called The Grande Cirque. It was sort of like Cirque De Sole I think (although I have never seen that show). Basically it is acrobats, jugglers and contortionists that do amazing, amazing things. C1 was on the edge of his seat, while C2 slept through it. We all had a great time at Granny and Gramps and at the beach. Now, back to reality... I have to take C1 to school before we are late! Check out the pictures from our trip...

C1's I.D. Card

2007-02-23T23:11:00.000-05:00

C1's preschool offered I.D. cards for the students for a minimal fee. It was at the same time as school pictures so T and I assumed that they would use his school photo on the I.D. Well, you probably already figured it out... they didn't. So we are getting ready to leave on a road trip for vacation and we packed a wallet for C1. We put a few dollars in it and I decided to put his I.D. card in it to make him feel grown up. T and I had to laugh again. The picture is just horrible. It looks like a mug shot.

Frolicking in the snow then and now.

2007-02-20T00:06:00.000-05:00

It snowed. Well, It snowed alot! The snow has made me think about playing in the snow when I was a kid. When I was a young boy when it snowed, I remember my Dad would take out his Ford tractor and plow the driveway, and then drive around the neighborhood and plow out other peoples driveways. I can still see him in his greyish blue coveralls and grey knit hat (I don't think Carhartts were around back then). Meanwhile us kids would get bundled up in snow pants, insulated boots, and mittens hand knitted by my Mom, and play in the snow for hours. Most of the time we went sledding on this gigantic hill in our backyard. I dont ever remember getting too cold or tired of playing in the snow. I remember my toes getting cold and coming in to warm up with hot chocolate that mom made from scratch. But we always went back out and slid down that hill way past sundown and into the night.

Well, Santa brought C1 and C2 2 sleds for Christmas and it was time for C1 and his Dad to hit the slopes. We went to the Willard reservoir. It has some very large hills to slide down and convienient steps and handrail to climb up the hill. C2 stayed home with Mom because it was too cold for him to be out. I was expecting to have so much fun, that we would have to drag ourselves away from the hill. Well, don't get me wrong, we had fun, but it didn't last too long. Plowing the parking lot at the reservoir was not a top priority for the city so it remained almost impassable. The snow was so deep that C1 had trouble walking in it so I carried him almost everywhere. And, have those disc type sleds gotten smaller over the years? I felt like I was sledding on an inverted frisbee. Crossing my legs on that thing and trying to sled down the hill without my feet dragging was not as easy as I remember. We went down 2 times in about 30 minutes and called it a day. C1 was cold, I was tired and the sun was setting. Afterall, you cannot sled after sunset nowadays. To top it off, we got stuck in the unplowed parking lot and had to be pushed out by some high school kids. Sledding isn't what it used to be. But T did have some hot chocolate for us when we got home.... with marshmellows!

Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful

2007-02-14T08:32:00.000-05:00

We had a blizzard yesterday and last night. There was alot of blowing so it is hard to measure how much snow we got, but if I had to guess, I would say we got close to 2 feet. 3 days ago, my snowblower wouldn't start, but luckily due to fact that I am mechanically inclined, I disassembled and reassembled the whole engine and got it to start (Actually, I just changed the spark plug). I was so happy because I would be crying right now without my snowblower. I spent about 2 hours outside yesterday, and this morning, you couldn't even tell I had done anything. When I woke up this morning, I looked outside and there was snow up to the handle of the car. I spent another 1 1/2 hours out this morning just to get the car free so T could go to work.

Because it snowed, C1 thinks Christmas is coming. Last night he told T what he wanted for Christmas. Take these at face value, because T and I have no explanation for some of these things.

C1s Christmas list:

1. Trumpet
2. Nest
3. Snow Monster
4. Baby Truck (for C2)
5. Batman Sheets
6. Trashcan
7. Butterfly Net
8. 2 Cages for Dog and Cat (we have no pets)
9. My own Bathroom
10. My own tape (He loves scotch tape)
11. Gravedigger Monster Truck
12. My own Flowers

I tricked my son

2007-02-12T23:06:00.000-05:00

Sometimes C1 doesn't want to take a bath. Instead of telling him it was bath time and getting him upset, I decided to try and trick him into taking a bath. So, I told him that he and C2 had to take a bath, and he had 2 options. So I asked him if he would like take a bath first, or would he like C2 to go second. He thought about it and decided he wanted C2 to go second. I said "ok, let's go get you in the tub, C2 will come in when you are done." He said, "I was just kidding, I want to go first." So I said, "ok, let's go get you in the tub, C2 will come in when you are done." And C1 ran of to the tub. T was cracking up at C1, or was she laughing at me due to the fact that I am smart enough to trick my son into the tub? I owe the idea of this trick to my father. He used it with me with the "heads I win, tails you lose" routine for a coin flip.

Amish drying clothes

2007-02-09T15:18:00.000-05:00

Ok, on the way to town we drive by an amish community. There are several amish homes, a school with outhouses, and sometimes you see a horse and buggy or kids riding their bikes to school. It is like driving through Walnut Grove. Anyway, today I noticed one home had several lines of laundry hung out to dry. At first I didnt think too much of it until right at that moment, the announcer on the radio said it was 7 degrees outside. Is it me, or do I not understand why you would hang wet clothes outside in sub freezing temperatures? Wouldn't they just freeze stiff? How does anyone dry clothes without a dryer and freezing temps outside? By the fire? I would hate to be that amish guy who just spent 14 hours outside in 7 degree weather feeding the horses, cleaning the pigpens, and milking cows and then come inside to find out my union suit was frozen stiff as a board. Thank you Mom and Dad for not bringing me up amish. Although their gas bill probably wasn't $165 this month.

Harlem Globetrotters come to Willard

2007-02-05T19:20:00.000-05:00

T, C1 and I went 4 blocks away and saw the Globetrotters play at our local H.S. gymnasium. The show was spectacular. This sounds so cliche, but it truly was fun for all ages. C1 had a blast. I would encourage everyone to go if they have a chance. We have only resided in Willard for just over 1 year, but I would bet that that little gym has never seen so many dunks in one day. C1 got C2 a T-shirt and has been trying to spin a ball on his finger for 2 days now. In case you were wondering, The Globetrotters beat the N.Y. Nationals by 20.

A Convenient Truth

2007-02-02T20:57:00.000-05:00

I recently saw the Al Gore film "A Convenient Truth". For those of you who are not aware of this film, it is his view of global warming. Now, without getting into the details or opinions of global warming, I must say that I thought the flick was incredibly boring. The reason for this post is that I saw a spoof of this movie on youtube, and wanted to share it with you. Regardless of your feelings on global warming, I think you will find this video amusing. I am just learning how to post video to my blog, so if the layout looks weird, I apologize. Enjoy... "A Very Convenient Truth". Oh, and as a side note... Willard, Ohio will be flirting with record LOW temperatures this weekend.

Super Bowl

2007-01-29T21:28:00.000-05:00

Ok, T did NOT win tickets to the Super Bowl, so we will be staying home this weekend. Although I would love to see a Super Bowl live, I will enjoy it at home as well. I actually enjoy the commercials as much as the game. By staying home, it allows us to attend the Harlem Globetrotters who play at our local High School Gym on Superbowl Sunday. So we will have a jam packed sports Sunday this week.

I heard about some crazy Super Bowl bets that you can make and thought some of you might get a kick out of them as well. For example, you can wager on who will have more on Feb 4th LeBron James total points or Indianapolis Colts total points? Or who will have more on Feb 4th Bernard Berrian Total Receiving Yards or Tiger Woods 4th Round Score. Here's another: Who will have more? The Dixie Chicks Total Grammy Wins or Peyton Manning Total Rushing Attempts. but my personal favorite has got to be... How long will it take Billy Joel to sing the National Anthem? The over under is 1:44 minutes. I'd take the over. See the complete list at Bodog.com. Go Colts!!!

The Colts and my MP3 player

2007-01-22T08:31:00.000-05:00

First, How 'bout them Colts? I (like most Colt fans I'm sure) was worried when they were down 21-3. To see Manning and the rest of that team shake it off and come back was very satisfying to me and I am sure very exciting for the city of Indianapolis, and the team. I am happy for Peyton Manning... I love that guy!

Ok my MP3 player... I, like many others, received an MP3 player for Christmas. It doesnt hold 4 million songs like some, (more like 120) so i have to fill it up, and then erase it and fill it up again with different songs when I am bored with what I have on it. My point is, that the following list of songs on my MP3 player is not a representation of my entire music collection, just what happens to be on my MP3 player at this moment. ok, hit shuffle and the top 10 songs are:

I Can't Wait - Nu Shooz
Somebody's Watching Me - Rockwell
No Myth - Michael Penn
Cassanova - LeVert
Tunnel of Love - Bruce Springsteen
Pump Up the Jam - Technotronic
Wait - White Lion
Cum on Feel the Noize - Quiet Riot
Did it in a Minute - Hall and Oates
Material Girl - Madonna

and A, yes, Nenah Cherry is on here somewhere and thank you N for the idea.

I am back in the work force

2007-01-19T15:50:00.000-05:00

During the past several months I have been keeping my ears open for the right part-time job to come around that would help me A) Get out of the house, B) Contribute to the family financially, and C) Feel like I am making a difference in this world. Well, I had my first day today as a substitute teacher for the local schools here. I got the call at 5:50am and luckily T was off and I was able to fill in for the Industrial Tech teacher. Industrial Tech is better known to most of us as wood shop. I had 7th and 8th graders today. Wow... talk about stepping out of your comfort zone. I wrote "Mr. S" on the chalkboard so all the students could remember my name. After all, isn't that what all subs used to do when I was in school? The kids actually called me Mr. S... that felt weird. The day went great and most kids were good. I had to seperate a few kids for being disruptive, but overall it was a good time. I do not know how often they will need me to substitute teach, or how often I will be available to teach, but I hope I get to fill in alot more. Now, stop laughing, sit back down in your chair and get control of yourself... Yes, I got paid to teach 12 and 13 year olds wood shop... it is true.

C1ism

2007-01-17T09:56:00.000-05:00

C1s favorite toy right now is (I'm not sure of the actual name of it, but...) the large rubber ball with a handle that you sit on and bounce around on. We call it the bouncy ball. He loves it! He bounces more than he walks around. He fell asleep with it in his bed last night... awwww. Another thing... The boys and I were going to the store yesterday and it was snowing big huge snowflakes and they were whizzing past C1's window. C1 said, "Dad, who is throwing snowballs at us?" I tried to explain to him about snow but he didn't understand, so I said "C1, Mother Nature is throwing snowballs at us." As you can probably guess, his next question was... "Dad, who is Mother Nature?"

I have just been informed the correct name of our "bouncy ball" is a "Hippity Hop".

On my mind

2007-01-14T21:19:00.000-05:00

Here are some random things running through my head. I am cheering for the Colts. There is a small chance T will win tickets to the Super Bowl. I do not care for Rosie O'Donnell. I am addicted to Line Rider . A winter without a flake of snow? And, I still love George W. Bush

Christmas

2006-12-29T12:16:00.000-05:00

Wow! Santa was very very good to the S family. The morning started out around 6AM. C1 snuck out to the living room and noticed Santa had been there. C2 went right for the piece of cookie that Santa had apparently left behind. C1 didn't take long to open the gifts that Santa had left. C2 was more interested in the pretty bows, ornaments and lights. T and I opened a few gifts ourselves and then we all got dressed and went to Papaw and Nana's. We had a great dinner there, and the boys opened more presents. We finished up by playing a dice rolling game where you could win presents. I ended up with a portable DVD player on the last roll. We packed up our kids and presents and food and headed to T's Mamaw's house. The kids opened more gifts there, and nibbled on some more food. The kids were getting cranky so we packed up and came home. The kids were asleep before we were on the highway. T'was a great holiday for all. T and I must say a heartfelt "Thank You" to everyone that helped make our sons Christmas a special day. They received way too many cool things from family and friends. We can only hope that you and your family had as special a day as ours had. Merry Christmas!

Santa and the chimney

2006-12-20T08:32:00.000-05:00

So, we all know the story... Santa comes down your chimney with his bag full of presents and puts them under your christmas tree. Flashback to 1977. I'm 8 years old, and we have a fireplace and therefore a chimney. The story made sense to me. Santa comes down our chimney pops out of the fireplace and puts our presents around the tree. All is good. Back to present day. C1 is 3. He asks me today on our way to preschool, "do we have a chimney?" I immediately knew where this was going, but was in no way prepared to have this discussion with him. See, we do NOT have a chimney. How do I answer his question? I respond with "yes C1, we have a chimney!" D'oh!!!! Why did I say that? I was afraid I was digging myself a hole that I might not be able to get out of. I decide that I'm not in that bad of shape and that I can still talk my way out of this in a way that will satisfy his curiousity. Until..... "Daddy do we have a fireplace?" Ok, I am treading water now. I need to change the subject before this gets bad. I ask him if he is excited about singing Christmas songs at school today. He said, "No" and was distracted. I was relieved. But this is obviously going to come up again very soon. Then I got to wondering, if I am having trouble with the Santa and the chimney story, then the birds and the bees story will be a nightmare.

If the two's are Terrible, what on earth do you call the three's?

2006-12-18T14:47:00.000-05:00

In my opinion, the Terrible Two's have nothing on the Three's. Age 3 for C1 is much more of a challenge for T and I than the 2's were. Conner has always been the most pleasant kid I have ever met. I admit I probably haven't paid much attention to others kids, but C1 has been a true sweetheart from day 1. We have always received many compliments on how well behaved he is. Then came age 3. Tantrums, yelling, 2 hour bedtime routines, kicking, hitting and even being afraid of his bed. This "househusband" thing isn't so stress free. T and I often wonder what we are doing wrong with discipline and have changed tactics more than once. Maybe that is part of the problem. Maybe he needs consistent discipline standards. At one point we thought that maybe he had a medical condition, and another time T and I were sure that we were just the worst parents ever. Things changed a little last week. We started having "Quiet Time" between 1:30 and 3:30 in the afternoon. It is my way of giving C1 a nap without saying "nap". Sometimes he naps, and sometimes he doesn't, but he seems to be in a much better mood at night. We have been rewarding him for good behavior too. He earned a toy truck last week for staying in his bed all night every night for a whole week. He also has a sticker board. When he earns 5 stickers he picks a reward from the "reward bear" he has earned a puzzle, toy car, and crayons so far. He has gotten better, but we have a long way to go. He isn't allowed to stay overnight away from home for awhile. Mostly because we want him to learn what our expectations are at home first. I was also told by our pediatrician, that most kids go through this stage, and not to worry too much and he will grow out of it. Whew! That's a relief. Just a couple of days ago, I overheard a lady at the grocery store say to her kids, "look at those boys and how good they are being". That made me realize T and I aren't the worst parents ever. I just hope C2 learns from watching this first hand and doesn't express his individualism as C1 is. T and I will be professionals by the time he turns 3. Or will we? If any parents have any suggestions please feel free to comment. And if I can give any advice to parents of kids yet to reach 3, fasten your seat belt, and hold on tight.

Ohio Smoking Ban

2006-12-07T08:39:00.000-05:00

Today the entire state of Ohio goes Non-Smoking. T and I have been talking about this for awhile. Even in Michigan we were proponents of banning smoking. We never heard much talk about it in Michigan, but after we moved here last year, we found out it would be on this past November's ballot. T and I were excited. What this means is: Absolutely no smoking in any public building or place of employment... with the exception of tobacco shops, designated smoking hotel rooms, and designated resident only smoking rooms in a nursing home. This means no smoking in bowling alleys or even bars. While in Ohio, you will never be asked "Smoking or Non?" again, when you go out to a restaurant. I know, I know, people say smokers have rights too, but studies have proven time and time agian that second hand smoke can be very unhealthy, and non smokers have the right to go bowling or into a bar and not subject themselves to smoke. One day, I bet every state will ban smoking.

Willard Police Log

2006-12-01T16:32:00.000-05:00

One of the first things I did when I moved here to Willard was to subscribe to the local paper. The Willard Times-Junction is a great place to keep up on all the happenings each week in Willard. Sometimes the number of "happenings" are very few. On occasions where not much is happening that is newsworthy, I always get a kick out of what I read in the Willard Police Log.

Here are my favorites from yesterdays paper:

November 20, 4:46 AM Caller from Kington Apartments came in station and reported that his son had robbed him. Officer spoke with the male who had an odor of alcohol on him. The male had advised that he had given a check to his son to cash at the first of the month and his son had not given him the cash. Officer further advised the male had not asked the son for the cash. He was advised to ask his son for the cash.

November 21, 6:16 AM Caller from the 300 block of Park St. reported the interior of her van had burnt. Officer advised the fire appeared to be old.

November 23, 9:00 PM Caller reported a strong smell of lighter fluid in the 600 block of Wessor Ave. Officer advised the smell was probably coming from a charcoal grill.

November 24, 1:02 PM Caller reported while driving on Walton Ave. he found a coat lying in the roadway. It had a cell phone in the pocket. He hung the coat up on a pole. Officer found the coat and it was placed in found property.

November 25, 4:57 AM Officer reported being out with occupants of a vehicle that had ducked down when they saw him in the 100 block of Motson. Officer spoke with the occupants who were listening to the radio.

November 25, 8:48 AM Caller reported a substance had been thrown on the front door of Central School. The custodian would clean up the substance.

"F" word is M.I.A.

2006-11-21T12:09:00.000-05:00

So, it has been a couple of weeks since we heard C1 use the F word and variations of it. He hasn't used it since (unless you count the time at the pediatricians office). I have seen "Floyd's" parents a couple of times in passing, but I obviously didn't say anything regarding the bad word.

Koala Bear Drawing

2006-11-14T16:32:00.000-05:00

C1 was drawing today and told me he was going to draw a koala bear. This is the first time he has drawn anything that resembles anything whatsoever. The attached picture is his final rendering. I had to label some things for you. These are what he told me all koala bears have. I asked him about arms for his bear, and he said koala bears dont have arms. Oh, and yes it IS red and green (with a brown unknown object).

Parent/Teacher Conferences

2006-11-10T11:29:00.000-05:00

T and I went to Parent/Teacher Conferences yesterday. C1's Teacher was very pleased with his progress. She said he does a very good job for a 3 year old. Most of her students are 4 years old and sometimes she forgets he is only 3. She was surprised when we told her about the potty mouth incident (see previous post). She wasn't surprised when we told her that C1 accused "Floyd" as the alleged classmate that directed him toward mischief. She assured us she would keep an eye on that and let her assistant and aids know as well. T and I left the classroom very happy with C1's progress and behavior in pre-school.

C1 a potty mouth?

2006-11-08T23:06:00.000-05:00

My jaw dropped to the floor. I couldn't believe what I just heard out of my son's mouth. Maybe I was imagining things, so I listened again a little closer. I wasn't imagining it. C1 is 3 years old and today November 8th, 2006, he said the "F" word! Somehow I imagined his first swear word being poopoohead, not the F word. I had not prepared myself for this. I thought I had a few more years to plan my reaction. He must have heard this in school I thought. I know he didn't learn it from T or me. I had to think quickly. Do I freak out and yell at him and spank his bottom and send him to his room and demand he never talk like that again? No... that is too extreme and I didn't want him to get a big reaction because of this word. I wanted more information, and I knew I had to do some professional interrogation to find my answers. My goal was to get my answers from him without him realizing how much attention he would get (albeit negative attention) from this one word. So, I calmly asked him what he said. He put his face in a pillow, so I knew that he knew he shouldn't be using it. I asked him who he heard this word from. At first he wouldn't tell me, but after a small amount of coaxing, he told T the boy's name that taught him this word (we'll call him Floyd to protect his identity). We told him this word he was using was a bad word and that Mommy and Daddy didn't like him using this word. We told him that if Floyd ever used this word again to walk away. He seemed to understand, and hopefully we didn't teach him that saying this word will get him all kinds of attention. So, T and I have Parent/Teacher conferences tomorrow. I am interested to hear what his teacher will say about this. T hopes Floyd's parents are scheduled immediately after us for conferences.

Halloween pic's

2006-11-08T22:34:00.000-05:00

Yes, I know... I am a little late with Halloween Pic's. And for the record, Conner is a lion, Clay is a Clay-o-lantern, and Baby Jordan is a Bumble bee. It was a very fun night. Granny, Gramps, Nana Kim, Aunt Sandy and Baby Jordan all came over for the festivities. The highlightof the night (for me) was watching Conner look in the mirror after his makeup was on and growling at himself. He was amazed at his new look. Trick-or-treating was from 5-6:00 (perfect!) We walked up the street with the kids and Conner went to every house and said "trick-or-treat"... "Thank you" and then roared. We came back and handed out candy for another 1/2 hour or so. Our town of Willard had a costume parade and magic show downtown, so we all took the mile trek to the downtown area of Willard. Wow! tons of people. Actually, tons of princesses, firemen, spidermen, and witches. All the kids were down there for the parade. The parade was sort of lame, but all in all good fun. We didn't stick around for the magic show or the cider and donuts. I know I had had enough of crazy unsupervised kids, and didn't want to stick around to see them high on donuts and cider.

Jack-o-lanterns

2006-10-23T13:26:00.000-05:00

We did the jack-o-lantern thing last night. It isn't quite as much fun at 37 as it was at 7.

Fall weekend at Granny and Gramps

2006-10-23T12:35:00.000-05:00

Well, we spent last weekend at my Mom and Dad's in Michigan. T, the boys and I look forward to this every fall. It is a time for our whole family to get together one last time before my parents head south for the winter and to celebrate J2's and T's birthdays. We went to an amish pumpkin patch and picked out a couple pumpkins. The only difference between an amish pumpkin patch and a regular patch, is you have to drive through cow manure to get back to an amish pumpkin patch. As always, my Mom's cooking is fantastic, and we talk about her pies for the whole year until we go back again. C1 practiced his golf with Gramps, and had a silly string fight with his Aunt J2. One tradition is to let the boys play in the leaves. Gramps gets out the leaf blower and blows the leaves into a big pile. C1 had a blast. I think it gives us adults an excuse to romp around too. We all had so much fun! Thanks Mom and Dad.