Two years old!

Amanda turned two years old today. We are so proud. I'm not sure where to start to summarize the past two years. Joy, pain, sleepless nights, love, pride, tears, fun. It's been great seeing her develop from a little newborn into this little person who has become like a third roommate. She adds to the conversation on her own and dictates the flow of the evening.

She plays make believe with her tea set; stirring the pot and then delivering a cup to us to have a drink properly. She sets the dinner table under Katie's command and has become helpful around the house. She says "nugget" when she has pooped in her pants and we are still working on potty training. All in due time. I'm in no rush to force her to use it.

She still likes to rough-house with me as I toss her into the air or attack her with a tickle fight. She defends herself, runs away and then says, "Again!". Wash, rinse, repeat. So fun.

23 months

Amanda's newest additions to her personality:
-Has learned about possessions and says, "Mine!"
-Is expanding her vocabulary and can say, "More, please", but is usually limited to one word at a time
-Has become fickle from time to time and loves an activity and them immediately hates it
-She regularly drinks out of a small drinking cup, but still has a great deal of love for her bottle particularly when it comes to milk and the morning. She seems to bypass sippy cups altogether except when driving in the car
-Is starting to excel at potty training with a portable toilet
-Exercises her vocabulary by saying out "car" and "doggie" and the like when she spots them out her window
-She can now point to her pelo (hair), ojos (eyes), dientes (teeth), boca (mouth) and nariz (nose) when you ask her in Spanish

(F)UNemployment

So far my first two weeks of funemployment has been very productive and rewarding. I've been able to spend more time with my family and also knock out a few projects around 'this old house' of mine. I've been a good house husband and have accomplished the following:
-Installed new attic ladder
-Built a new coat rack in our mud room
-Cleaned the gutters twice
-Raked the lawn twice
-Cut the grass twice
-Winterized the outside of the house
-Hung (but did not turn on) Xmas lights
-Run various errands
-Got my hair cut
-Did many loads of laundry
-Helped my mother sweep out her garage
-Went grocery shopping
-Caulked a leaky gutter
-Scanned in old 35mm negatives

You drink, you drive, I lose? revisted

It took 19 months, but our case finally settled and we have received our deductible back from our insurance company. What a nightmare that was. Three court visits and countless months all to get the money we were owed...

22 months

Here we are; October. I've been blogging for nearly two years now. Even though my posts have dwindled as I have been more of a facebook person, I still feel this is a valid place to share my thoughts. Motivation is lacking, I must admit. Back to my topic at hand. My little girl is 22 months old and we are already starting talk about a 2nd birthday party. Fun times. Let's recap where she has changed/grown since we last spoke.

-32 inches tall
-30-ish pounds
-picky eater; she has started becoming really picky about her diet while at home. Somehow, she eats everything on the menu at daycare. Go figure.
-she speaks the names of her classmates (Carter, Megan, Aiden) over and over...until she meets them face to face each morning. It's really funny to watch little ones interact at breakfast. They are in their own little worlds and just happen to be cohabiting the same space.

First dentist visit

Amanda had her first dentist appointment today. She is approaching two years of age and we heard that it would be a good idea since she has all her teeth now. Turns out, it wasn't such a good idea. I wasn't able to attend the appointment because, you know, I have a job. Well, I don't have a job for much longer, so in hindsight I should have been there. Either way, Katie filled me in on all the good details.

Amanda was friendly with him (after all, he is a pediatric dentist) and giving him high-fives right up to the point where he put on the latex gloves and mask. It all went sideways. She stopped smiling and locked her jaws. He was not allowed to check anything. DENIED!

The moral of this story is...wait until your child is three years of age. In the end, everyone parted ways with a good-natured laugh.

21 months

Wow, today is 09-09-09 and Amanda is now 21 months old. 21 is not easily divisible by 9, but it is divisible by 3; and so is 9. Anyhow.

I failed to mention this in the previous months' posts, but we no longer have a need for gates on the stairs. She is able to go up and down without a problem at all. We let her roam the house freely and she has never had any falls or slips. I think she has a healthy respect for the stairs. She now weighs about 30 pounds and is 32 inches tall and is a proud member of the 30-30 club. She has almost outgrown our changing table.

New skills:
-Able to buckle herself into car seat
-She announces poop prior to its arrival
-She tries to produce on the portable potty
-Shoulder shrugging for no reason

I have to imagine she picks up a great deal of "ticks" from her daycare classmates. The shoulder shrugging is probably one of them. Her "parroting" skills are well refined and she can repeat most words she hears these days. That makes it extra tough to express one's self...

Momentum part 2

I am 8 weeks into my 16 weeks of being retained as an employee here at WNG. These two months have flown by. Since the announcement, 21 employees have been let go (in stages) and 3 or 4 of them have found a new job. I suppose that's uplifting. Three more are leaving today; including my manager. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with Don over the past 18 months and will miss his wit and supervisory skills. He taught me a great deal and I will take that with me.

Needless to say, morale in the office is at an all-time low and my workload is at an all-time high. I have pressures and deadlines and plenty to keep my occupied. I suppose that's better than the death sentence others have received where they have to sit at their desk and look for tasks to keep themselves occupied for 8 more weeks.

I plan to take Labor Day to finalize my resume so I can hit the ground running searching for new employment before I have to reach out to the government for the oh-so-tantalizing $375 a week unemployment pays.

Scam

I started using Craigslist as a buyer within the previous year. However, this past month marked my first foray into selling items on Craigslist. I have received a few responses to the items I have for sale, but the below is the most interesting e-mail I have received. Enjoy.



Hello

How are you doing today? Well i really thanks for your mail and i love the description of the item i wish to come and view the item and pay for it in cash but I'm very busy to do that right now.I'll like you to remove the advert from web and consider this item sold, I'll be paying via cashier check in US dollar.You will not be responsible for shipping or pick up of the item. where the shipper agent will come for the pick up at your location upon your confirmation of receiving my check after you have cash it in your Bank .I need your name to be on the check:

Physical Address:

State:

city,: and Zip Code along with yours

phone number to overnight mail the check to you without any delay.

Thanks and waiting for your urgent reply today.


Best Regard

Eny.

20 months

Another month goes by. It seems that I'm not so interested in blogging these days. Maybe I have little write about. Well, a few things have happened (such as I'm losing my job in October, but that's not my topic today) over the last few weeks. Back on topic.

Amanda is progressing. Let's see, what new has happened over the past month? She repeats most words that Katie speaks to her in her books. The books have photos and words like "girl", "boy",
"ball", "baby", "cat", "dog" and all sorts of other common items in her world.

She sits at the table with us now. She no longer uses the tray on her high chair. Success of this has been hit or miss, but in general it's good practice for her.


She can correctly identify when she has poop in her pants by saying "poo poo" and tugging at her shorts. She's right practically every time. If you break wind in front of her, she'll call you out by pointing at your pants and saying "poo poo". :-)

Sears Tower ==> Willis Tower part 2

Transformation complete.

Sears Tower ==> Willis Tower

19 months

Amanda turned 19 months old today. 19 months old really has the feeling of 19 years old. The date really isn't all that monumental. We are really starting to see her make her mark and advance with speech and skills. She knows when her diaper is dirty and pulls on it. She can verbalize and recognize several colors like red, blue and yellow. She is picking up a few of the Spanish words and commands that I have introduced such as leche (milk), sientate (sit down) and levantate (stand up).

She is still a very picky eater and probably derives most of her nutrition and calories from hot dogs and whole milk.

Momentum

It's been a long time. To all (three) of my followers. I apologize for that. Every now and again something happens in my life which is not meant for Facebook and requires a more thorough dialogue --> Blogger.

I found out today that my company is shutting down operations in Chicago entirely; dumping 40+ employees on the street. That's right, a company the size of about 30,000 could no longer foot the bill for our salaries and the rent for the office space. What a shame.

It's chilling how quickly this announcement takes the wind out of one's sails. You go from feeling like your efforts are kicking ass to wanting to kick someone's ass. It really is not fun.

I will be retained for a while to transition my knowlwdge to whoever is going to take on our jobs. It's going to be a rough road ahead. Lots to do.

18 months

Amanda added a few new tricks to her repertoire this past month
-loves to kiss goodbye or hello or goodbye or hello
-gets excited when we pull into the parking lot at daycare
-eats her food with a fork, drinks with a straw
-loves Flo Rida's Right Round
-took her first trip to the Holy Land known as Notre Dame
-learning to open doors
-says please, hungry and more (old hat)
-shows her belly button to anyone who asks and is very proud of it
-took her first ride in our bicycle trailer, smooth sailing

Crawl space update 3

The space is now populated. The world is right as rain.

10 years...goes by so fast

Ten years ago today, I received the worst news of my life.

I was a 22 year old senior at Notre Dame and at a beach party on Lake Michigan with friends. It was "Senior Week"; the one full week of free time allotted to seniors after final exams (when all the underclassmen go home) and before graduation. It's supposed to be the best time of your life. There are many scheduled events, parties, etc. You just finished four years at a very competitive university amongst some of the best and brightest of your peers and are ready to step out into the world and make your mark.

Over Thanksgiving weekend 1998, I found out that my father was diagnosed with pancreatic and liver cancer. Each on their own is terminal. He was given six months to live. The family was in shock. The rock of our foundation was shaken. How do you react to news like that? If you are me, you don't believe it and you stay focused to finish strong. If you are my dad, it takes away everything you spent your life living for: family, friends, a home, a career, being a grandparent, retirement.

I still don't speak much about that day - the 12th of May, 1999 - the day my father lost his battle with cancer. It was four days before I was to graduate. All my own plans and dreams were washed away in an instant. I had everything I worked so hard to get, yet I lost so much.

17 Months

A few updates to Amanda's progress.
-She uses sign language to communicate (more, bye and hi are her favorites)
-She likes to be tickled/tossed in the air
-She hates bathtime; this has become troublesome

Crawl space update 2

Insulation, drywall and lighting are compelte. I need to clean up and start moving items into the space.

Crawl space updated

Crawl space project/vacation day 5

Ahh, the last day of my vacation. It's been nice knowing you. I did no work on the house. It was going to be 85 degrees today, so I knew this day would need to be spent on other topics like family. We went to the zoo in the morning which was great. After Amanda woke from her nap, I took off on the moto to visit my newborn nephew William. He's so tiny, but weighed in at an astounding 9 pounds, 6 ounces. That's a big boy. He's gonna be a linebacker.

On my way home I picked up dinner from Paul's and tucked it into the saddle bags. They have the best Italian beef sammies. I get it with cheese and on toasted garlic bread. It's the only way to fly. It really hit the spot.

Shortly after we finished with dinner, we received a call from my cousin Brian and his wife Jen who were out walking around the neighborhood. They stopped over, we had some drinks and a great time. Always nice to have drop-ins.

Crawl space project/vacation day 4

I wasn't so productive today. I did work on getting some electrical planning staged. Once our contractor comes over to seal up the opening to the outside world, I can finish off the insulation and drywall. Then I'll hit the electrical. After that, I need to seal the concrete slab and paint (??). I feel this project will never end. I know why people hire professionals. I'm not one of those people, but I do realize they exist and what their motivations are.

Otherwise, I started to get burnt out (yeah, I know only after a few days) so I took it easy and watched some TV that I had saved up on the TiVo and stopped by my mother's to have Amanda visit with her more.

Crawl space project/vacation day 3

I'm not too excited to blog today. Here is what I accomplished in the morning:
Breakfast
Safe deposit box
Beverage
Work support call

In the afternoon, I monkeyed more with the crawlspace and then picked Amanda up from daycare and headed over to my mother's for a visit. It was a good day.

Crawl space project/vacation day 2

Day two was great. I started out by wishing Katie a fun day at work (ha ha) and then taking Amanda to day care. It was still cold outside, I didn't want to get to work just yet. I decided to spend some time watching morning news programs such as the Today Show. I'm so out of touch with current events. After that, I took a walk to 7-Eleven for a 32 oz soft drink to kick start my day. I talked to a buddy on the phone and then called my cousin to make plans to meet up for lunch. By this time, it was already 9:45; time was flying by and I hadn't really accomplished anything yet - what's a guy to do?!

Once I had my day set, I headed up into the attic and poked around a bit. Our bathroom ceiling exhaust fan really does not do a very good job at keeping the humidity level down so it warranted a little investigation. In the end, all I did was determine the make/model/capacity (cubic feet per minute), clean the intake grill and shake out the exhaust hose that is in the attic. It seems to be running smoother now. We'll see as the week continues.

Once I was done in the attic, I headed into my dungeon better known as the crawl space. I was in the middle of indecision. You see, there is only one piece of conduit that enters the space that provides all the power. It's in a particular spot that won't be accessible once I put in the insulation and drywall. Why is this a big deal? Well, should something go wrong or I need to change out the wiring, it won't be accessible and I'll need to tear out the drywall to get at it. That's no good; why not make it accessible before going forward? I hate it how some companies or individuals put more emphasis on ease of installation over ease of maintenance. I digress.

Now that I have my direction on that particular topic, I could move on. I installed more insulation on the ceiling and walls where I could and also used Great Stuff to seal up some openings around the seal where the crawl meets the house/foundation. That will keep out any small animals or rodents in the future.

By this time, It was lunch and I headed out to meet Brian at Palmer Place for a nice burger; hadn't had one of those in a long time. Even though I just saw him on Saturday, it was nice to actually meet someone for lunch instead of just eating a sandwich in your own kitchen. We had a nice, long lunch and I got up to speed on his current schooling efforts so he can get into Chiropractor school. I wish him all the best with his studies and hope I don't need his services any time soon.

Lunch lasted 90 minutes. I hit up 7-Eleven again for a refill on my way home. I relaxed a bit before getting back to work. I only had about two hours to accomplish anything before I would have to head out to pick up Amanda from daycare. I measured up some drywall and placed one full sheet on a side wall which is no small task when the sheet is exactly the dimensions of the space you are working within. I got that into place and devised just how I am going to drywall the ceiling of this space. That's not easy to do alone.

Each sheet of 4'x8'x1/2" drywall weighs 55 pounds and is very difficult to maneuver inside the crawl. I determined that the smartest thing to do was to cut the 4'x8' sheets into two pieces of 2'x8' sections and then cut them to the 7'2" that is required by the dimensions of the ceiling. That's less than 25 pounds and I can manage that with much less effort. In order to get the piece up and on the ceiling, I am going to attach a small ledge on one side for it to rest on while I attach it on the other side. I think I just might fashion an inclined plane like the Egyptians to get this crap on the ceiling. I don't know, but it's worth a shot. More to come.

Crawl space project/vacation day 1

Today was a good day. It was the first day of my week off. I plan to stay home, no jet-setting this time around. I want to spend time with family and accomplish some projects around the house that just cannot get done with the 90 minutes of free time I have during the week. Weekends tend to turn into family gatherings where I cannot simply check things off a list. That said, this week will be different. I'm off to a good start; good balance.

I started out the morning as usual, but felt sluggish getting out of bed. Amanda was ever so gracious and let us sleep in. She woke up at 7:00 AM (!!!) which is 60-90 minutes later than usual. That was nice. After waking and spending a typical family morning together (getting dressed, breakfast, cleanup, etc.) we all went for a walk to the bank to have a look at our safe deposit box. It's already 9:00...

I had this feeling that we were not backing up our important family photos onto DVDs frequently enough. I was right. In all that, I determined that it would just be easier to keep a portable hard drive in the box and take it out once a month to freshen up the files that are on there. And so starts yet another item to keep track of on a monthly basis.

After visiting the bank, I can home and started preparing for my day in the bunker; better known as the crawl space. I have such lofty goals. I want to insulate, drywall, electrify and light the space all this week. If I'm efficient, it will happen. If I get sidetracked; it won't. What happens to me is that I'm so afraid to make a mistake (some can be fixed, others...not-so-much) that I get paralyzed. I call it "paralysis through analysis" and it happens to me all the time when I'm in over my head.

That said, I was able to make progress today. Since I will be enclosing this entire space on all 6 surfaces and I won't necessarily have access to all the wiring after the fact, I want to make sure I get everything lined up. Case in point: the doorbell.

Months ago, our front-door doorbell quit working. Having no time to evaluate what happened or really care since no one comes in through our front door these days, I have put off the investigation. I took this on as one of my to-do's since the wiring for the front doorbell runs right through the ceiling of the crawl. I took apart the doorbell and ran all new wiring. Good news: that fixed our front doorbell issue and I could move on. Bad news: it took me about three hours to get it all done from start to finish.

Other progress, I installed several more feet of insulation bats in the ceiling and side walls today. The space is getting larger as I start using some of the materials that are stored in there. I am starting to see progress.

Additionally, I found time to play with Amanda and help Katie feed her lunch and dinner. It's nice when she behaves and not so nice when she misbehaves and throws her food on the floor. Today was a mixed bag. Considering she is getting over pink eye (oh yeah, she hooked herself up with that yesterday, sending us on a trip to a "Take Care Clinic" inisde Walgreens) she is doing quite well.

16 months

Amanda turned 16 months old today. Good times. She has enhanced her skill set to include:
-hide and seek
-high-five
-blowing kisses, gives kisses
-completely lost her morning nap
-no words just yet

Crawl space

A few months ago, Katie and I decided that we needed more storage space. We always knew that we had storage space under our front porch; there is a crawl space under there about 18'Lx8W'x4'H. The issue is that it was simply a dirt floor and had no weatherseals preventing small animals and debris from coming into it. That was a big problem.

We decided to hire a contractor to install a concrete slab for us. It was finished last week. We are happy with the results. Our next task is to insulate and drywall the exterior walls. See below for before/after photos.

Tire pressure

Do any of you know what the actual tire pressure in your tires should be? I bet most folks don't. I also bet most folks expect that their tire pressure is properly checked when their car is in for service (oil change, tire rotation, etc.). I certainly expect that my oil change place would do this for me and they do. However, I am not certain that everyone knows that tires require different pressures.

Most automobile tires that I have come in contact with require about 35 psi of air pressure for a proper ride and long life. I recently cleaned out my car and found my automotive tire pump and air pressure gauge (thanks to Joe H's father) and checked my tire pressure. My tires were low and read about 30 psi. Normally, this is not a big deal and tires tend to heat up when rotating on the road with that friction and all.

However, after reading the sidewall of my tires, I realized that my tires require 44 psi! Yeah, I was 14 pounds low. That's a big deal. For a while, I thought that I needed a front-end alignment as the car would drift to the right at lower speeds. That has all gone away with properly-inflated tires.

That said, check your manufacture's suggest tire pressure, buy a gauge and get checking! And if you expect your services to do it for you, make sure they know what it should be.

Neighborhood conformity

I just got this e-mail from my village today. I can't believe these signs are such a big deal, but I guess this could get out of control if a stop sign is obscured or a speed limit sign cannot be seen...

POLITICAL SIGNS

As we approach the Consolidated Election on Tuesday, April 7, 2009, the Village would like to remind residents that political signs (and any other message signs, including business advertisements) are prohibited by the Village Code from being placed in the public right-of-way.

The public policy reasons for this regulation include: when such signs are placed within the public right-of-way, they become attention-getting devices which can result in an accident; such signs, especially when grouped en masse can compete with existing regulatory signage; and the Village needs to be uniform and consistent with the application of this regulation.

Signs which are observed to be in the public right-of-way will be relocated by Village employees back onto private property (behind the sidewalk).

Signs whose ownership is not readily-identifiable will be confiscated by the Village and stored at Public Works where they can be picked up. You may also report the presence of such signs to Public Works for removal.

If you have any questions concerning this regulation, please do not hesitate to call the Community Development Department.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

15 months

Amanda's abilities continue to evolve. She now does the following:
-Eats food with a spoon on her own
-Walks all around the house; stomp, stomp, stomp
-Manages stairs on her own
-Has two upper pre-molars
-Spent her first long weekend away from Mom and Dad (with Aunt Melissa and Uncle Jeff)

Times are certainly becoming more and more interesting. Just the other day, she "gave me five". I never expected her to do anything other than to look at me funny. Sure enough, she slapped my hand. Good times.

Welcome home, Eric

METRA BNSF INBOUND TRAINS TO UNION STATION AND OUTBOUND TRAINS TRAVELING TO AURORA ARE OPERATING 10-20 MINUTES BEHIND SCHEDULE DUE TO SWITCH PROBLEMS.

Why does that stretch of track always have switch problems?

I'm trying this workout; running is getting old

Circuit One:
Air squats (20 reps) Feet shoulder-width apart, squat deeply with weight in heels.

Stationary lunge (15 per side) Hands on hips, feet staggered, slowly lower back knee until almost at floor level, then press up to straighten legs.

Core-band rows (15 reps) Wrap a resistance band around a post; bring handles in to ribs, elbows pointing back.

Bent-arm plank Hold a pushup 20 seconds,then bend elbows to lower body and hold for 10 seconds.

Circuit Two:
Side lateral lunges (12 per side) Step to right side; bend right knee 90 degrees. Repeat on left.

Core-band chest press (15 reps) Wrap band around post, turn away from post, extend both arms straight and shoulders height.

Chair dips (12 reps) Sit at chair’s edge, hands outside hips; slowly lower and raise body.

V sits Raise arms and legs into a V position, balancing on tailbone. Hold 45 seconds. Rest. Repeat.

Circuit Three:
Fit-ball hamstring curls (15 reps) On your back with heels on a fitness ball, lift hips off floor into plank position. Pull ball toward you, then push back.

Knee pushups (12 reps) Lower chest while sliding shoulder blades back and down toward spine.

Core-band tricep extensions (15 reps per arm) Stand on one end of a resistance band, grab the other end; with band behind you, extend arm up overhead. Using elbow as a hinge, lower hand down toward back, then up to full extension.

Rotational oblique crunches (10 reps per side) On floor, put right hand behind head and extend left leg straight from hip. Crunch right elbow across and draw left knee in.

Very much looking forward to this...

San Diego 10-day forecast

Feb 26

Mostly Cloudy

65°
52°

Fri
Feb 27

AM Clouds / PM Sun

66°
53°

Sat
Feb 28

Partly Cloudy

77°
56°

Sun
Mar 1

Partly Cloudy

73°
55°

Mon
Mar 2

Cloudy

66°
52°

Tue
Mar 3

Cloudy

65°
53°

Wed
Mar 4

Partly Cloudy

63°
52°

Thu
Mar 5

Partly Cloudy

63°
52°

Fri
Mar 6

Showers

61°
50°

Sat
Mar 7

Showers

66°
51°

Vacation is approaching

We haven't been on a vacation (I mean a real vacation not just a weekend wedding trip or a 4-day weekend to nowhere) since our honeymoon three and a half years ago. We are headed out to San Diego to visit Brian and Laura.

We really need the time off and a change of climate. While my S.A.D. has eased, I still crave some sunshine on my face and the ability to run out of doors without four layers of clothing.

Do I want to relocate? Hell no, all we need is a little break. Even those that have relocated to the Southwest (I often hear Phoenix and San Diego) are no happier. They always find something to complain about. Phoenix has deadly heat from April to October and San Diego has wildfires that consume homes every year. I like our seasons. I like being close to family and culture and good food and entertainment.

Facebook controversy

It looks like they caved to the pressure. This was posted at the top of my page this morning. Funny, they didn't post the modification to their TOS two weeks back. Amazing what bad publicity can do for you.

"Terms of Use Update
Over the past few days, we have received a lot of feedback about the new terms we posted two weeks ago. Because of this response, we have decided to return to our previous Terms of Use while we resolve the issues that people have raised. For more information, visit the Facebook Blog.

If you want to share your thoughts on what should be in the new terms, check out our group Facebook Bill of Rights and Responsibilities."

Downturn?

I don't know what everyone else is experiencing with their own budgets, but it seems that Katie and I have been spending MORE money ever since the recession hit. Maybe it's because we put off purchases of common items such as clothing, shoes, home repairs until we shook out our new budget after buying our house or we just need more goods.

Anyone else experiencing this?

14 month old

Amanda can now walk on her own, pretty much sleeps through the night and makes attempts at talking. Her pallet is now more advanced. She will eat pizza, cheese, bread, meats (chicken & beef), pancakes and more. She also likes to play "boo". She screams, laughs and runs away. She then comes back for me.

I think I have SAD

Or Seasonal Affective Disorder.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/seasonal-affective-disorder/DS00195/DSECTION=symptoms

I have the following symptoms from their web site:

• Loss of energy
• Social withdrawal
• Oversleeping
• Loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed
• Appetite changes, especially a craving for foods high in carbohydrates
• Weight gain
• Difficulty concentrating and processing information

Which means I really need a vacation to some place warm and sunny!

My new project at home part 2

Completed. This was a fun exercise. One week from conception to completion.

Night out

Last night we went out to a belated Christmas party. My mother was sitting and we expected to spend maybe three hours away. We attend this party (hosted by one of Katie's high school lady friends) each year and while I usually enjoy my time there, I never really have anything much to bring to the table as I don't have much of a history with anyone but the host and hostess whom I like a lot. This year was very different.

The party started out like a typical couples party. We talked about kids, napping, scheduling events, balancing work and family, etc. It was just like any other party where we are introduced as "EricandKatie" and everyone has their conversation revolve around family, work and kids. That changed eventually.

We met a couple that lives just a few blocks away from us and the conversation quickly changed to home improvement (equally suburban stereotypical) but a welcome departure from diapers, soccer and sleeping schedules. We had a great time sharing stories back and forth about projects we all did to our homes and the struggles within those projects.

After exhausting all stories, there were only four of us left in the living room and I had thought that the party was winding down. I was mistaken. The party was just hiding in the other rooms of the house. The four of us decided to move into other parts of the party and mingle. Katie and I landed in the kitchen near the kitchen table where the real party-goers were camping out around the hard liquor.

This maneuver was a game-changer. These people were a great time; not your typical attendees. They were city folk who are married and have children, but also know how to party. Not only were they partiers, but they were a hell of a lot of fun. Everything that came out of my mouth was like gold, Jerry! They loved every joke, every line. It was a great night. We ended up leaving sometime after midnight.

We arrived home to find my mother sacked out on the couch, having no idea what time it really was. That's great news, we were concerned we wore out our welcome. Hey, we don't get out much, give us a break. She made it home safely and we went to bed.

My new project at home

My next project is to fill in this space with a railing. Wish me luck. Amanda is now climbing the stairs and wants to jump off. As anyone can imagine, that's less than desirable.

Jury duty

I had jury duty today, it was a unique experience. For those that have not been through it before, here's what to expect.
-arrive early
-wait
-read
-be corralled by a sheriff into a court room
-answer questions
-possibly get selected for a jury
-collect $17.20 for your services
-go home

Transportation woes

And so ends one of the worst weeks to commute to work in recent memory. From frozen switches to derailments, it was bad.

Amanda walks

Amanda finally took he first steps today. Although they were very short (maybe two or three), we see good times ahead. I think what made her successful is that she has started to realize she has calf muscles and has started to stand up on her toes. That makes walking so much easier. Until then, she had been walking like Forest in those leg braces.

I Think I Love My Wife

I recommend this movie to anyone; particularly those who are married...
Chris Rock plays a suburban husband and father of two who is a major broker at a Manhattan firm. He gets into trouble when and old "friend" who was his buddy's girlfriend 8 years ago comes back into his life to shake things up. In certain ways she tries to break up his marriage, but I think she really finds him as safe and he really has no spine to say no. Ridiculousness ensues and he nearly loses his job, his wife and his life. Great fun. Netflix this.

13 months old

While young children start to accelerate in their learning ability, they don't make as many leaps and bounds month-by-month. That said, here is what is going on in Amanda's world. She is desperately trying to walk and talk her way through things. She has begun to eat more table food such as toasted breads, cheeses, chicken, sweet potato fries and even some pizza.

I've been cheating on you...

...Blogger. Now that I have met Facebook, things just aren't the same. I'm sure you realize that, too.

I tend to hold on to my long diatribes for Blogger and my quick hits for Facebook, but it's become harder and harder to care about writing a (comparatively) long dissertation on my blog instead of using FB. I'm sure I'll come back around. I have a whopping two (two!) followers here, but over 120 on FB. So, in the long run, who reads these posts anyhow?

Happy New Year