Chasing balloons

The kids got all excited when this floated over our house this evening.

It was having a hard time gaining height and we thought for certain it was headed for the soccer fields. We jumped in the car but by the time we got on our way it got away...good for them bad for us.

J put some new shoes on...

After weeks of searching I found a killer deal on a pair of Chucks @ sheikhshoes.com. Jaisen waited, not so patiently at times, a week for the good people of Sheikh to locate a pair in their stores since their warehouse was out. Then another week for them to ship ground from Cali. Nearly 2 weeks later and we are all singing, "I put some new shoes on and suddenly everything's right" Now to go get some sharpies and add some color.

Oh, the anticipation. How do you cut a box open anyway?


Yeah, free socks!

Jai's new high tops. She's so proud.

Trying them on

They fit great.


All pics were taken with Jai's new camera.

Amy

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Thoughts

On my way out of town last night I was thinking about being separated a few days at a time from the wife and kids. although they did not seem to be bothered that Daddy was leaving for 5 days and were not very interested in saying good bye. I was thinking about more than just the separation. i was thinking about Amy getting to appointments this week and getting the VW worked on. I was thinking about the money it costs to do a round trip and how those would eventually become farther and farther apart. My thoughts were also on selling the house, having a calling in a ward somewhere at some point. This was all of course accompanied with thoughts about my academics and time management and the work I am doing for the GA. I guess what I am getting at is this; I keep this record on here and elsewhere, so that one day far from now, When my children struggle, they might know that they are not alone. that when they become excited, encouraged, or inspired by something, that they should do whatever it takes to accomplish that thing. whether it be limited to this life or if it be pursuits that affect the life to come. I want them to read this someday and know that they can do whatever it is that they want. And when they read this, I hope that however much they may, they remember the struggle that we encountered when I left every week and went off to move our family forward. Most importantly, I want them to realize the centrality of the Atonement in all our lives. How we are able to accomplish our work so long as we set out to do His. I am grateful that this son of a type-setter is able to get a PhD. That he may do justice to the struggles of his forebearers that only sixty-five years ago were tenant farmers.
It has been said “If There Is No Struggle, There Is No Progress”. T'is true. If we expect to reap any sort of reward, we must undoubtedly sow the seeds that will produce said reward. We shall struggle in this life from time to time. However, we have a promise, unmovable that is affixed. We shall prevail. I am glad that this chapter in my life is teaching me a lesson that is so very plain. God be thanked for his never ending mercies. God be thanked for the infinite gift of his Only begotten Son.

Camping at Lake Hope

We took advantage of the kids day free from structured education to drive Mik's camper down to Athens. Making good on a promise we made the kids at the beginning of the summer we stopped at Lake Hope State Park (the closest one to Athens w/ electric hook-ups) and camped for two nights. It is a very nice park and I am feeling somewhat guilty that we didn't get to take advantage of all the activities they offered while we were down there. But we will be living half an hour away and as I told the kids repeatedly "we will come back."


I know you are liking Mik's new digs, and yes all six of us and the dog slept in it...cozy.

Their is a very nice very clear lake with beach there. We could see the fish swimming around us and no goose poop in the sand. I have to say that was the best part.


And here is a lovely pic of Mik, just because he is so rarely on the receiving end of the camera.

Recent burger exploits and a tale of two cars.

I took Amy to this restaurant in Yellow Springs because we have always wanted to go there and we won't live here soon. It is a really cool looking place and very cozy.


Their burger=previously frozen=poop. The best part of this place was the exit. 'nuff said

Two doses of Five guys a while back. Same day...I was hungry.

Today I went out with my buddy Aaron. He took me to "The best burger in Cincy." they have awards for it and stuff. It is in a rich neighborhood in Cincy looking over the city.

Great view. except for that dude staring at me.

Great burger. I know I have only ate burgers in two place in Cincy, five guys and City view, (not counting Whitecastle after a Pantera concert one time) But, MAN ALIVE this has to be the best in this area.They have a secret seasoning or rub or something they fry it in that is UNBELIEVABLE! Very savory and juicy. The burger was cook medium rare and even the lettuce a tomato tasted good. Quite possibly the best burger I have ever had. Definitely a top 5.

Then we went to Five Guys on Calhoun Street:
As always, very good. The guy that cooked mine threw some fries on it for me w/o having me pay for an order. Very nice. We definitely had a great time. I think we are both feeling a little sick. I could not get rumors of a Beavercreek store confirmed or denied. They just said that it was not their market so they did not know. I think i need to take a trip out there cause I have heard there are already signs.
Also...

I recently acquired the Benz pictured below on an even trade for my motorcycle. ($700 is all I had in it) With Winter coming on, and me going to OU, I needed something that held to the road better.

1976 MB 300D Diesel engine. Pretty sweet! Except it is a heap and all kinds of problems associated with a 33 year old car. i put it up on craigslist.

That is when I got an offer to trade it for this beauty:
1985 VW Vanagon. Better shape, less miles and it also qualifies as Graduate student housing in the event I am unable to sell the house before school starts. The kid that wanted the Benz was so pumped that he looked past the fact that after I took it to his house, the key got stuck in the ignition and it would not start back up. I gave him $90 for a new ignition and then we swapped.

So that is about all that is news in burgers and cars on this front. What's up with you?

Quick visit from Grandpa

We were very pleased to share our FHE with the Hendel Family and with Grandpa Tolman last evening. With a quick trip to the base, he was able to join us and treat us all to dinner at the park. Following dinner, Michael asked if Grandpa could come home with us and participate in the blessing I gave each of the kids before the school year. Since we go to a year round school, the kids started today. Tom agreed and we were happy to have him. I am sure that Michael will have fond memories of his Grandfather and I exercising the priesthood on his behalf.

my more recent creation

My mother in law asked me to make a cake for a baby shower she was throwing. So I borrowed this idea from the wife of one of Mik's former co-workers. She got a pretty neat food blog you should check it out. http://www.deliciousmeliscious.com/ It was my first attempt at using fondant. It was really easy to use. I might do it again although I have to say fondant doesn't taste all that good. What is the point of making a pretty cake if it taste like blah?

what we DIDN'T find

We spent a few hours combing the field behind the National Air Force Museum on Saturday morning after the Tattoo event (flyovers, fireworks and Aaron Tippin concert) they held on Friday night. And here is what we found...



bracelet
2 ball chains
sunglasses
lighter
Gerber knife
Blackberry
pen
plastic coin
$ .32

Items not pictured...
2 dead field mice
used diaper
AA battery
a pair of flip flops
an abundance of trash located within feet of a trash can, I mean come on folks how lazy can you be their is a trash can right there.

But what we DIDN'T find was the key , that's right we only had one, to our van. So thank you Guinthers for your help and Uncle Mike for rescuing us. And the 2 airmen who had some intelligence in their head and took some time to help us, instead of just standing there with their hands in their pockets, thank you.

One tow and two very expensive keys later we where back to normal.

Later that day we tried to make someones day better than ours and took the blackberry to the local Verizon store. We figured the phone is a total loss but the info on the Sim card and the SD card might be of great value to the owner. The other stuff we are keeping, souvenirs for the kids. If for what ever reason you happen to be reading this and know the where abouts of my keys, don't tell me it would be to painfull to see them now.

happy birthday Forrester!

Forrester turns 1 today. We celebrated the big event 2 days earlier. I don't think he minded. I finally used a cake pan my mom got me back a few years ago. I used a ramekin to make Forrester's cake. I do believed he enjoyed it. Of course he enjoys all food.

Columbus Zoo or bust!....BUST!!!

With Mik only having 2 work free Fridays left we decided to plan a fun filled weekend with the fam. It was to go along the lines of Friday at the zoo (half price admission if you ride the zoo bus in). This was to be followed with camping at Heuston Woods. The kids were so excited. Hadassah was gonna pet the sheepys, ride on a city bus, what more could a kid want from life? I pack us all up, snacks, Nalgenes filled with frozen water, frozen milk in the baby bottle, sunblock. We were ready for a 90deg day at the zoo.

Here we are waiting for the bus.

Turns out we waited on the wrong side of the street. Watched the zoo bus drive right on by us. With 50min to kill before the bus made its round trip back, we tapped into the free wifi at the park and ride. Only to discover it was going to rain most of the morning and would defiantly rain that night at the camp ground. We opted for a climate controlled trip to COSI. And yet we still ended up drenched getting from the car to the door.


We still managed to have a great time at COSI. Jaisen finally got to ride the suspended unicycle (the last time she was too short).

Here are some other pics of the good times...



Below are Michael's thoughts about the Egypt exhibit.


We opted to not camp that night, which was a great choice, but the next morning we got up and went to Heuston Woods for a dip in the lake.

E-I-E-I-O

Went to the farm today with Michael's school class. Their were cows and goats and chickens and sheep and even "a surrey with a fringe on top." My allergies thought they were gonna get the best of me, but I showed them by chugging down some children's clariten this morning. See pics below...ahhh how cute.

In other news...

Amy and I drove down yesterday to Athens for an interview with faculty in the Department of Counselor Education and Supervision. The interview went well and they have decided to admit me into their PhD program. It looks like (much to Jaisen's chagrin) we will be moving to Athens in Aug/Sep. We checked out the town and surrounding area, bought the kids a bunch of OU shirts and headed home. We absolutley loved the area and although it may be a wee bit expensive to live there, it is going to be a great place for our family.

On the way home and more importantly, we went to Max and Erma's (My first time) in Chillicothe. Following inspiration from a post on Hamburger America , I had them dress my burger up with Bleu Cheese, Onions and BBQ sauce.

It had to be one of the BEST I have ever had. this is they way I will be eating them for a while. I should have got the bacon on it but I was trying to replicate from memory. I will have to go to schnippers and try theirs.

Overall, It was a great trip out for a burger and I enjoyed the news from OU as well.

Yee Haw Dinosaur!!

After taking Michael to school the other day, we went into the city to get a part to fix our washing machine. Apparently, if you keep puting too much clothes in at one time it does not like that. $20 fixed. We had some time to kill between geeting the part and getting my TB screening read for the new job so we took Hadassah and Forrester to a park in the Oregon District for some early afternoon playtime. Springtime is great!!

New look for Hadassah and new look for family collage..

One of the gifts Hadassah got for her birthday was a set of parents that finally got off of their butts and got her glasses. (it was recommended that he have them by her 4th b-day.) She loves them very much except for when "they hurt me". Timing allowed for a new photo around her birthday which will hopefully be the standard for the other kids as well. We put a new one up of Forrester since he has changed a little since the present one went up when he was less than a month old. We have done a lot of things since the last post and will hopefully have some updated pics soon. Bear with us.

If I were a superhero...

While Amy was taking an nap with Hadassah and Forrester and Jaisen was over at a friends, Michael and I went over to Marvel's website and made our very own Superheroes. If only they would make action figures for us too. Enjoy!




Pretty cool huh?

Happy Birthday (Delayed)

Last evening we celebrated Amy's Birthday. I kinda dropped the ball by not telling her that I was getting her tickets to a concert she wanted to go to. But I think last night made up for it. We went up to the Newport in Columbus to see "the Old Crow Medicine Show". We got a free download fromiTunes about a year or more ago and Amy really digs them. Before we went up we hit Thurman's Cafe as seen in Hamburger America (a book Amy's sister got us/me for Christmas) for a dose of the Thurman Burger. There is an attached map for Thurman's. It was great.
So finally we got around to celebrating the birth of my love. Sans kids.