You've just won the super bowl, what are you going to do now?

We're going to Disney World! But not until next June. Have you ever been to Disney World? or Disney Land? Most adults that I know that have been as a kid do not have that desire to go as an adult. But for me, I think i'm more excited than my kids. But we are doing the unthinkable. We are driving our FOUR children to Florida to go to Disney. Yes, I've mapped it out and I think that I will be able to get enough sleep the night before to drive the distance, stopping only for gas, food, and bathroom breaks. We are giving ourselves 24 hours to get there. Sound completely nuts? it probably is, but for me getting there is just as much fun as being there.

So now we have started the massive planning process. Trying to figure out which parks to visit, where else to go, where to eat, and how to do it all fairly cheap. Plus we're organizing with Caryn's Mom, Dad, Sister, and nephew. So as much as it is for our kids, it is for everyone as well. Anyway, so we need ideas. Anyone who has been or knows someone who has been. Let us know where we should go and what we should do. The only certainty is that we will spend at least one day at the Magic Kingdom and that we will be staying in both Orlando and Daytona. We'll be gone a total of 10 days with 2 of them driving so we've got plenty of time to do whatever. Talk to us, let us know.

Its the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

The Sonics are coming, Soon there will be two more Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie clones, and the 4th of July is almost here. The 4th of July is by far my favorite holiday. Most people know my detest of Christmas, mostly because it seems to bring out the worst in people and if you've ever worked in retail or the service industry, then you know this to be true. But the 4th instills so much pride in your country. And yes there are other holidays that are US specific but that don't accomplish this same feeling. Memorial day is great in concept until you realize that you spend the day wandering around a cemetery making sure that everyone is still there. Labor day is also unique but a lot of people work on that day and its really just become a mark for the end of summer. Thanksgiving is great, Valentines day is an evil ploy to point out men's failure at romance and isn't even a paid day off, President's day? Seriously can you name half of the presidents? Anyway, spend one 4th of July in Boston and you'll come around to realizing that it is the best holiday. Everyone including Dick Clark knows that the place to be is New York City for New years Eve and Boston holds the same prestige for the 4th of July.
I mean why not celebrate the holiday where the revolution was happening? Go to the Site of the Boston Tea Party, or the Boston Massacre, or Paul Revere's house, or the Old North Church, or maybe Bunker Hill. Then go to the Park and listen to the Pops perform and then sit back and watch the fireworks go off over the Charles River. Its amazing.
Anyway, its my favorite because its at the height of summer. I mean July is when it starts to get hot and August is usually unbearable. The 4th is just right and the water in the pools and lakes are finally warm enough to get in without the 20 minute process of getting past your sensitive areas. So basically its not too hot to grill, or be outside for extended amounts of time. Plus we usually make homemade ice cream and who out there who hasn't been burned by fireworks doesn't love them? I mean next to bubbles what makes kids happier? Anyway have a happy 4th, enjoy it and be safe.

Also did anyone notice that since my last rant against the NL the Red Sox lost series to both the Cardinals and the Astros? Both of which are the teams of the Whites? Seriously, take the voodoo spell off were about to get swept by the devil rays.

39 pts?

So I guess the finals really were over in L.A. and nobody found out until last night. I mean the Lakers showed up last night, but for only one quarter. And it was fun at first be eventually it kinda became sad. I mean it was supposed to be a good game, it was the finals. Of course watching Garnett after the game was worth the wait. "Top of the World MA!" and "I'm Certified!" were my two favorite shouts from him last night. And before the postseason I was pretty sure I was gonna get a Garnett jersey now I'm torn and have to decide, Pierce or Garnett. Also did you know that Parish, McHale, and Bird won a championship the first year they were teammates? And another thing, there are only 10 or 12 cities with the big 3 sports and Boston/New England almost had all 3 championships at the same time, I mean I'm not a Patriots fan but seriously they were a sack away from winning the super bowl and then Boston would have all 3 titles at one time. There is no better place to be a sports fan right now.

And a special side note to Colin, the AL is beating the NL in interleague play even when they play at the NL teams home. So the AL isn't only better, its better at the NL's game.

Sonics Fever?

So I have been a celtics fan since the early 80's. Mostly because my mom is from Boston and the celtics dominated during the majority of her lifetime. She lived there during their streak of 8 championships in a row and saw numerous great players make their mark on Boston basketball. Anyhow, once she moved to Oklahoma, Boston sports didn't really make it on TV that often but since the Celtics were in the playoffs every year and almost assured a spot in the finals. I grew up watching the celtics-lakers. This is why I hate the lakers. Anyhow, years of futility have made my loyalty wane and I was pretty sure that as soon as the Sonics came to town I could easily switch teams. But now the celts are back on top. What to do? I mean one is eastern the other western so i could split loyalty based on the fact that they will never play each other in the playoffs until the finals. But that would be like supporting a national league baseball team. And seriously, how can you support the NL when its the only level of baseball that doesn't have a DH. Even their minor league teams have a DH. Pitcher's hitting was a thing of the past before pitching got specialized with refief and closing pitchers. Its not the same game, don't pretend. Not having a DH makes baseball weaker. But thats just my opinion.

So...its been awhile.

So a lot has happened and I got a little off track with my consistent updating but here are all of the updates. Firstly, I stepped down as General Manager of the Northwest Expressway store. While I still Love Panera, It was just becoming too stressful to continue to do the job well. This was effecting my performance and wasn't fair to myself or the company. So now I am an asst. at the S. Penn store. Which is a huge change because I went from the busiest store in okc to the 6th. So right now I feel like a rockstar because I have time to get everything done that I need to get done and then I help out the others. Its a positive change that already has me enjoying my job more, like I did in the past.
Bailey is enrolled in Kindergarten at Northern Hills and we found out yesterday that Noah will be joining her at Northern Hills in the Pre-K program. This is really great for us because we can see the school from our back door. Quite literally right now because we recently tore down our fence rather than let it fall down slowly. Anyhow our kids can walk to school if we had to and thats nice. Back to the fence, so we tore down the old fence. When I say we, I mean me. Caryn's dad and uncle helped me in stacking up the pieces onto the trailer though and helped with all of the railroad ties that we got to build our retaining wall. Two weeks later and now the wall looks great and were finishing off the leveling of the yard where we are going to build the fence back. Level this time. This will be the end of phase one of the outdoor renovations. Phase two is the irrigation/deck and phase 3 will be the new roof. This should take us most of the summer but will greatly increase the value of our house. Plus the deck will be nice and we'll finally get to enjoy our back yard after years of drainage issues. Anyhow I'll keep you updated and will get back here more often to limit the number of obsenely large posts.

Were Back!

Well I have never been so excited to get back to freezing temperatures in all of my life. We had enjoyed the 60-70 degree temperatures of the southern california/baja mexico area all week. Although at least once a a day it dipped into the 50's. This would not be so bad but we had packed for the low to be in the mid 60's so we got chilly. We partially doomed ourselves because Caryn had read every single review of the ship and cruise area so she knew everything that we were going to be doing. So basically everything met our expectations. Which is really okay. We just weren't suprised.
Everything was just as everyone said it would be. A lot of food. Good food. The formal night was my favorite and dinner was always the highlight of the day. We met some really awesome people. Josh and Chesney from Tuscon, Arizona and Shelby and Nathan from Upland, California. It was neat how they seat like people together. (Which was really strange for the 1 gay couple on board) Overall we just relaxed a lot and enjoyed the time. Caryn read most of a book and we did a lot of shopping. Not a lot of buying but we shopped the mexican market areas and the shops on catalina island. The one odd thing about the cruise was all of the alcohol. It wasn't just at dinner, it was everywhere and all of the time. Everyone was shocked by their bills and ours was only 220 dollars. And that was with 80 in tips, 85 for a watch i bought, and 30 dollars for the unlimited soda pass. Anyway it felt odd being the only ones not drinking.
So the kids all got strep throat while we were gone. They missed more school in this week than every other time combined. Special thanks to Caryn's family for taking care of the kids. The kids have literally not stopped climbing on me since i have been home. its fun though.

OVerall we had a blast. Im sure I gained at least 5 lbs so it is time to start weight loss plan phase 2. This is where i actually start running again, other than basketball. The pushups and the situps. Hopefully this will help for the Red Bud this year. I am hoping to improve on my 5K time. My best is 28:12 and that was a year ago when i wan not in as good of shape as I am now. So a little running over the next month or so should set me up well. Also If it goes well I am hoping to run the half marathon later in april and just maybe the marathon in Tulsa. That last part is optional but the big goal is the memorial marathon next year. So I guess vacation time is over.

and away we go

Well this is definetely the saddest departure for a vacation that Caryn and I have ever taken. Never before has Caryn left a child this young for more than a couple of hours if not minutes. This will be especially trying for her. All of my employees and friends at work too do not want us to be gone long. I know we will have fun and the next couple of days are going to be a blast but right now we can only think of everything that we are about to leave behind. Look out for our kids while were gone.