Happy Halloween!!!!

What a fun Halloween we had this year.
The kids came over on wednesday and we decorated the porch with spiderwebs and skeletons.. and we carved some pumpkins.
Heather and I dressed up as vampires and greeted the 45 or so 'trick-or-treaters'.
Fun was had by all.







Practicing SCARY FACES!


One happy Vampire!

Dentist Visit

How would you like THIS to be your dentist?
No frigging way. No wonder their teeth are rotting out in India!!!

I am ashamed to say I hadn't been to the dentist in quite a while... and I certainly haven't had a cavity in 20 years.
So when I went in for a checkup - and they told me I had a cavity... I was paranoid.
I hate shots in my mouth.
I can handle shots anywhere else - but when they come at me with that honking needle - forget it.
I when ahead and scheduled an appointment and had the cavity filled today - took 30min.
Easy Peasy.
My face was numb for nearly 6 hours... The stuff really does a number on me!
I think I will start flossing again.
=)

2008 Suffolk Swamp Roar

What a great turnout. Approx 1000 bikers roared around in the Great Dismal Swamp during this past weekends festivities - Suffolk Peanut Festival and Swamp Roar.
Kurt and I rode the 90+ miles which had a rest-stop half way thru.
We drank a ton of free Starbucks Coffee and ate some donuts (though the police escort bikers were eating most of them). I was happy for the bathroom at the rest area!
Hah.
Laurel met us there with little Alison (their little tiny shrunken human).
We all ate some food and drink (free lunch that helped the sting of the $25 entry fee), and wandered around a while looking at some cool bikes.
Here below are some pictures to prove we went...

Personal Best - Bike Ride

I just got back from a bike ride and I hit my personal best... this year.
I think when I was younger I could really kick this.. but this is NOW!
My beater mountain bike hasn't been ridden for a month.. so I dragged it off the hook and set out strong - and nearly killed myself - but Hey.. ya gotta die of something.

I biked 5 miles in 19min 30seconds. Avg speed was 15.4 and I hit 19.7mph somewhere on the ride.

Not bad for a slacker that doesn't get out nearly as often as I wish I should.

Connor's Birthday

Connor became a teenager this year!!!
OHMYGAWD!
I figured it was time to get him a GO-KART!
He LOVES it!
He and the other kids were driving it up and down the street (which scared Heather half to death), but all turned out OK.
We took them over to our church and let them go wild in the huge parking lot this past weekend. If you go to Heather's Blog you will see a video!
We keep it parked in our garage and gassed up!
Ain't is great to be a teenager with a coolo DAD!
HAH!

REAL Mountain Biking

I had never been out on REAL mountain bike trails, so I had no idea what I was up against when Heather's friend Mark suggested we go for a ride.

My guess was a cool mountain bike ride thru the trees on a fairly constant rolling hills... WRONG.
The mountain bike trails there in Winona Lake, Indiana (right near Grace Bible College) are nationally recognized. The sheer drops, narrow bridges over streams, logs, low branches and constant root hazards kept me on my toes!
We also almost hit two fawns as they crossed the trail with a doe!

The whole route is about 10 miles and I think we only skipped a small portion - so NOT to exaggerate - we biked 8 miles!!!!

Too fun and I was plenty sore the next day - but am excited to see what kind of trails this area (Virginia) has to offer!

Indiana & Michigan

Heather was talking about an incredible friend of hers a few months ago and said.. "You know... I really miss her."
So... I said..."Let's buy tickets and go see her!"
Heather nearly jumped out of her skin with excitement.
So we went.
And as it turns out - Mary and Mark ARE incredible.
We had tons of fun and many adventures: Clair's first Gymnastics class (their daughter), REAL mountain biking, boating on a lake in Michigan, Geocaching, etc.
Fun was had by all.
Perhaps this will be a yearly visit!

A Motorcyle that FLIES

I saw this bike and had to wonder how fast you have to go to get it to lift off the ground!
AMAZING what you can do when you've got some tools and know-how.... Oh.. and loads of cash!

The Good ol' Days

I remember the good ol' days.
When we were kids we used to make up songs and laugh and sing and play all day long.
Here is a picture of my sister and I when we were younger.
Gawd I miss my sisters.
They both live way out west and I only see them once a year or so.
We are doing better communicating since email and cell phones - but nothing beats a sunny afternoon, a cool breeze blowing in the trees and a song in the air.
I sure miss the good ol' days.
=)

Clearances

I couldn't believe this VIDEO (below) when I saw it.
This guy pulls his trailer up under a cover over what appears to be a bank ATM drivethru.
So... always watch your clearances!!!
I sure hope the guy survived.


WOOF.

Cleanest Garage in the World

OK.. maybe not in the world.. but certainly in MY World.
=)
Heather and I spent a couple solid hours in the garage hanging bikes from the rafters, sweeping, purging junk from my previous life.. and most importantly.. cleaned up my work bench!!!
It took about $30 worth of 'organizer' supplies/hangars from Home Depot.

I can actually WORK on my work bench now!!!
Hooyah!

Shrooms!

A small Fairy ring started in the yard about a week ago.
Within a couple days it bloomed into the biggest Shroom Ring I had seen in a LONG time.
Here are some cool snap shots.
I parked further down the driveway so I wouldn't disturb the fun.
=)

Snuggle Cats

It was a hot July day in Virginia... about 83 or so with a slight breeze.
The cats were relaxing in the cool shade of our new deck umbrella...

Well Pump - Well Water

Dude - You are a genius!!!
A year and a half ago, when I bought this house - the guy mentioned that there was a WELL PUMP, but that it didn't work... so I figured I would just put it on BACK BURNER until I had a day with nuthin' to do.
That day was today.
I got a wild-hair and decided to get it working.
I first located the hose the pump was connected to and also what looked like the PVC intake waterline (white pipe by the fence).





Then I located the pump in the back corner of the garage.
I wiped off the dust and found the found the MFG name and number.
The pump look in pretty good shape despite the spiderwebs and dust.





A quick internet search took me to a zillion websites about how these things actually work.
I narrowed my search to something more specific.."WHY PUMP ISN'T PUMPING".
I used my Secret Squirrel problem-solving-skills and decided it needed PRIMING.
The tiny pixelated image they showed didn't help much - but the step by step instructions did.
1. remove priming plug (if you can find it).
2. fill pump and suction pipe with water (riiiiiight).
3. replace plug
Sounded easy enough - so I removed what I guessed was the plug - added about 8cups of water, replaced the cap... and flipped the switch.

BAHDA BING... I'm watering my lawn now with icy cool fresh well water!
Thank you Thank you - I'll be in town all week.
=)

Jonathan

What a GREAT FRIEND.
Jonathan and I have been friends since JR High School - back in Idaho.
GAWD that seems like a million years ago.
We have really slacked on our communication over the years - but are getting better.
It's good to have a lifelong friend - though I wish we lived closer.

Here are a couple candid shots that were taken in NASHVILLE where he was the BEST MAN in my wedding.


RUN AWAY!!!

Hamsters??!!!

Both Jack and Cammie want HAMSTERS for their birthday!
Ok... that means a cage, water bottle, squeaky wheel, bedding fluff, food, tunnels, little igloo house, Oh... all this TIMES TWO.
Woof.
This is going to actually be REALLY FUN.
I love pets and the kids love them just as much as I do.
Photos will be taken - you will see.

How to Be Bold

I saw this link on my Google Homepage today under the 'WikiHow' stuff.
How to Be Bold - wikiHow
There are always things like "How to make a paper airplane" or "How to Cook an Omelet".
Nice to know kinda stuff... but hardly useful if you know what I mean.
Well, this one seemed cool and somehow worth my time.. so I clicked on it and found it to be pretty accurate.
There have been major changes in my life lately, and I have also decided to be more BOLD as life goes on... kinda like 'Reach out and PICK the ROSES'.

Life is so damn short.. and I will be damned if I don't reach out and grab it while it is passing by!!!!!!

Alien Attack

Jack drew an Alien attacking the village below... Oh my gosh!!!

Another Amazing Sketch

This sketch took my son Connor only 10 seconds to draw!!!
I never could sketch that fast!
=)

Sketch Artist among Us

Here is a wonderful sketch my amazing daughter sketched.
She seems to be getting better every time she sketches.
(She must have learned it from me... ;)

#1 Wife in the World

Can I pick 'em or what?

Appropriate answer is HELL YES!!!

Max the VOLE killer

Just the other day - 15 May or so... I found two voles in the driveway.
Max was nearby and quick to let me know that HE indeed killed them and laid them on the driveway for inspection.
It was cool to see him earning his keep - but I just wonder how on earth he caught them.

Kayaking on Memorial Day

Heather had to work on Memorial Day. It's a good thing we went for a long motorcycle ride yesterday. I certainly didn't want to just sit around the house - so I grabbed my kayak and headed out to Bennet's Creek. There was some wind that made the going tough, but it was a great arm workout.
I got REALLY close to this crane before it flew off - and I fumbled for the camera to get this quick shot.

Mother's Day Flower

I forgot to post this back on Mother's Day.
This is Heather's FIRST Mother's Day flower - and JACK gave it to her!
We went to pick them up in Norfolk (that's where my X lives)... Jack ran over to me and had this flower in his hand and said, 'Dad, I'm going to give this to Heather!' and I encouraged him and sent him on his way... He ran right over and gave it her.
It was sweet.
What a great kid.
Heather is going to be the world's greatest step-MOM!

Banana Sticker

The other day - April 26th or so - I picked up a banana from out of the fruit dish and read the little sticker as I peeled the banana. It read 'Place sticker on forehead - SMILE'. So I did. It made great breakfast conversation for all who had arrived for our wedding.