New Entertainment Center

Boring Wall.

In the third-level of our house, "downstairs," is a room that Mom and I have ignored designing from day one of move in. We haven't been pleased with its 'boring' appearance but at the same time we haven't been inspired to change it - due to the fact that we're not good at designing rooms.

To make matters worse, neither of us have the same taste in design/layout, etc. Which is the main reason that room has not changed in four years. I take it back, we did hang a small clock (off-centered on the wall) via screw that the previous owner left behind.

Last fall, I had a vision to finally tackle the downstairs room. I had planned to buy furniture and a television, paint, and put up bookshelves. Instead, we went off course and bought a piano.

In June, the itch was back and motivated to start the project. Both Mom and I scoured the internet for types of bookshelves and entertainment centers. She looked at Pinterest and I looked at both prebuilt and cabinet manufacturer's examples. It was a challenge to find something in our price range that would fill this sizable wall. After some discussion, we both agreed that a simple bookshelf and large tv wasn't the right approach. We had to go the custom-design route.

I then contacted four local cabinet manufacturers. Four companies came out to our house but only one responded with a bid and design. Isn't that crazy?!? Unfortunately, the only company to respond was booked until October. I suppose that was a good thing because it took us a couple of months to decide on the type of wood, stain, and final design.

Last week I was notified that the entertainment center was finished and ready for installation. Today, two guys installed it in about 5 hours. So, here it is, our brand new, custom-built entertainment center. We love it!

All that remains are two cabinet doors, television, pictures and books!

The next phase of the project is to redesign the fireplace to match the entertainment center, apply a fresh coat of paint to the walls, and conclude with new furniture.

Laura Loses Her First Tooth

Laura lost her first tooth at dinner. I must say that we were all ready for it to fall out. This tooth has been on center stage at both school and home for at least a week.

At conferences, Laura's teacher had mentioned that her classmates have been jockeying for position for who will walk with her to the nurses office if it should fall out during school. At home, Laura has been constantly rocking it back and forth in our faces - reminding us that it's close to coming out. Neither Mom or I want any part of the extraction process. Just the thought of pulling it gets me weak in the knees.

Like I had mentioned, the tooth fell out at dinner via caramel apple. The grossest part was hearing the sound of it clinking onto the table. Uffda! Laura's initial reaction... like many "first times" in her young life, was immediate shocked/scared but quickly came to be excited/happy!

Can you tell what's missing?

Tooth Fairy

Cue up the Benny Hill theme song. This ordeal did not go according to plan.

Laura placed her tooth, wrapped in Kleenex, under her pillow. At midnight, I watched "The Tooth Fairy" get on her hands and knees to make the switch. She turned around and said it's not there. So, I went in, moved blankets, removed pillows and searched with a flashlight. 

Suddenly, Laura woke up and I froze. She opened her eyes and said, "Dad, what are you doing?" I said that I was placing the the tooth toward the edge of the bed so the tooth fairy could find it easily." She fell back asleep. 

The tooth was gone! We assumed that Laura probably had played or looked at it in the dark and it dropped somewhere by her bed. The next morning, she ran into our room and was excited to see the present. Both Mom and I took turns to go into her room and look for it. Still not there. 

Pretty Smile

Fast forward five days. Laura was playing in her room and I walked in to see what she was doing - because it was awfully quiet. I sat next to her on the floor in the middle of her room. There it was! Embedded into the carpet, right behind from where she was sitting. In haste, I quietly grabbed it and showed it to Mom. We don't know if Laura hid it or it was sitting there the whole time. Nevertheless, the whole ordeal and mystery was finally solved.

King Kong Castle Playset

Never saw this day coming but we now have a gigantic playset in our backyard. We are the owners of a Rainbow King Kong Castle, a twelve-year old hand-me-down from our neighbors.

Getting this big piece of equipment was not easy or simple. I'll try to summarize the twists and turns of (a) convincing us to buy it, (b) actually buying it, and (c) dismantling/moving/and erecting it in our yard.

Here it is. King Kong.

Last year, the Pribbles sent subtle hints that they were ready to unload the playset. At that time, I didn't want it and showed no interest.

This spring, they approached me and suggested that "King Kong" would look good in our empty backyard. I replied with a laugh and a "maybe." A few days later, I brought Laura over to see if she had interest... and of course, she immediately LOVED it, wanted it, and begged for me to buy it.

The next time I saw the Pribbles, I asked how much $? He shrugged his shoulders and gave me the runaround. I thought, "Oh no, the roles have reversed. I now want this darn thing and he is no longer selling."

Two weeks later, more determined than ever, I coincidentally bumped into him on a walk, asked again, and he replied that they were now offering it to a family member. For several weeks, I stewed in bitterness that I didn't act faster.

Fast forward to late July, about two months from the initial discussion, I decided to go to their house with cash in hand and tell them I'll buy it. And just like that...SOLD.

Now was the issue of getting that thing into our yard. I asked a buddy to assist and we gave it a go for about 10 minutes. It was apparent that this task was way too big for us novice handymen. I leveraged the online directory of Craigslist and found a guy who used to work for Rainbow and does installation on the side. I paid him $200 bucks and he dismantled, moved, and installed it in less than 4 hours. Money well spent.

That's the story in a nutshell. The end result is what matters most - Ryan and Laura absolutely love it and play on it daily! That's the point, right?

Ryan's favorite thing to do is the swing and slide, whereas Laura digs the monkey bars, trapeze and rings, and swing. In fact, we have had a couple of picnics and a number of snacks on it. Fun times.

Late in the fall, I put in a sandbox for Ryan. I would say that he enjoys playing in the sandbox but has more fun throwing sand out of the sandbox...stinker!

Typical evening - hanging out on the playset

"Underdog, Dad"

Laura loves the monkey bars. "Catch Me!"

Ryan fell through a few times but determined to climb again

Coming at ya!

Ryan wants Dad to trap him on the slide

The playset is complete with sandbox and all

Garden Recap 2014

Alas, the garden season has come and gone, and it's time to reflect on the season that was. Some of the stand-out moments were watching the kids' excitement to pick and eat veggies, and seeing some of the new plants grow.

In every growing season, there are surprises and frustrations. This season had more frustrating moments than any other year - record rains, disease, low yield, etc.

Here is a garden 2014 recap...

What was planted?

This year's crop had the usual staples - cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, kohlrabi, onions, cilantro, and peas. After a two year hiatus, garlic was reintroduced. Making a first-time appearance were sunflowers, califlower and carrots.

Harvest Results?!?

The Best - Sunflowers and Peas

Good - Onions, Tomatoes, Cilantro, Garlic

The Bad - Cucumbers, Peppers, Carrots

Non-existent - Kohlrabi and Califlower
Note: There were a couple of factors that resulted in the low yield - record rains in June led to rot/disease, and the tree roots next to the garden appears to have stole important nutrients for growth.

Changes in 2015

• Smaller Garden
• I have had enough of dealing with tree roots. As a result, I trimmed 5ft of the garden closest to the tree. 
• The garden will be 60sq ft smaller next year. Tough decision but had to be done.
• Sticking with the Staples
• There will be no more sunflowers or kohlrabi. The sunflowers took over the garden and may have stole nutrients from other plants. 
• Kohlrabi has never done well, so that experiment is over.
• Going back to the basics - cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, garlic, carrots, onions, peas, and cilantro. Considering giving califlower a second chance.
• Experiment
• Adding mulch to the bottom of tomato plants. The rain splash has caused blight the last two years. Mulch will absorb backsplash.
• Buying a trellis for cucumbers. The cucumbers haven't produced because (a) its leaves touch the ground, thus more susceptible to diesease, (b) its leaves block sunlight, causing vine rot. A trellis will prevent all that from happening - I hope.
•  Not sure what to do with peppers - just praying for a better year.

Highlights

Once again, the best moments of the season were the kids picking and eating produce. 

• Ryan and Laura 
• Totally consumed the limited supply of cucumbers. We ate in our usual spot - on the dining room floor.
• Gobbled up all of the peas.
• Found a fascination to dig for worms
• Laura 
• A super-duper helper by carrying tomatoes and cucumbers into the house.
• Told me when the wind blew over the sunflowers.
• Enjoyed eating carrots. All two of them. :)
• Ryan
• Wanted to help with digging.
• Enjoyed eating peas so much that he begged me to "find more!"

Pictures

The Sunflower Harvest

Gigantic Sunflowers

The first carrot

Where is Ryan? Must be behind that carrot!

Days before the sunflowers bloomed. Sad looking garden

Picking peas for Ry-Roo

Where are the worms?

New addition...Tulips in the front yard.

Laura's First Day of Kindergarten

My little girl's first day of school

You're probably asking yourself, "Why is kindergarten starting so late in the year?" The district installed new HVAC units into several schools and the project needed extra time for completion. As a result, Laura's first day of kindergarten begins on an unseasonably cool (48 degrees at the bus stop), breezy, and rainy Wednesday, September 10th, 2014.

She was awfully excited this morning to pose for pictures outside and show off her new backpack, shoes, and Frozen chain (attached to her backpack). 

A few minutes in, she had enough of pictures. The rain was wet, the cold was freezing her 'fingers off', and the wind was ruining her hair. We ran in the house, got her jacket and then took the short walk to the bus stop. 

At the bus stop there were about 8 kids that Laura didn't know, so she stood next to me. I could tell she was excited to go but with her, you never know. Her emotions and feelings sometimes change on the dime.

When the bus arrived, Laura walk to the line. Before she took her first step onto the bus, she turned around and said in a cheerful voice, "Goodbye Dad." 

Mom and I emailed each other throughout the day stating how much we're thinking about her and hope that everything is going OK.

At the end of the school day, Mom, Ryan and I waited for her at the bus stop. In fact, Justina and Miranda were waiting for her as well. The bus approached and Laura was the second person off and she walked to Mom and gave her a big hug. 

Laura showed signs of sadness, didn't want to talk to anyone on the walk home. We feared it didn't go well. After an hour at home, she opened up and talked about her day. Laura had a great day! She made a friend with classmate Zoe, learned about the library, ate most of her 'cold' lunch, and shared a couple of funny things that happened during the day (a joke she heard from the teacher and someone's unexpected toot!).

All in all, chapter one of day one in her 16 years of public education is now the books. I suppose we can title it 'A Great Beginning!' 

"Make sure you get my shoes"

A shot of the "Elsa" key chain on her backpack.

Had to stand in front of colorful flowers on a dreary day.

Too bad the tulips aren't around.

"THE WALK"

Crossroads of emotion. Both happy and sad.

Welcome New Cousin

Hello, my name is Lucas.

Congrats to Uncle Scott and Auntie Lynn!
This morning Laura and Ryan have a new baby cousin. Everyone in our house thought the new addition would be a girl but Dad predicted boy...and I was right!

The Name
I asked Ryan if he knew what the baby name was going to be and replied, "Puppy Truck Bauer." Laura didn't provide a name - only hoped the baby would be a girl.

Nevertheless, we are excited to hear that Mom and Lucas are happy and healthy.

Ryan is Happy!

Mom had mention in an earlier post that Laura has immersed herself into pop music. She sings along and dances to the music. Little Observer Boy has noticed his big sister and joins in the fun!

In fact, when Mom broke her toe, the kids and I had to kill time while she was getting assistance in the ER. We went to Old McDonalds for a shake. Ryan and Laura both put on quite the performance by belting out "Don't Go Crying To Your Momma.." aka Ain't it Fun by Paramore. They turned quite a few heads.

Here is an example of Ryan singing "Happy" by Pharrell Williams.

A Princess Quiz for Ryan

A short clip of Laura quizzing Ryan on Disney Princesses. I was absolutely shocked to hear him identify them all. Impressive. Way to know your women, Ryan!

Face-name recognition is a clear cut trait from his mother!

What We Did on Our Summer Vacation, Part 1: June

Summer break started early for us this year!  By the first day of June, we were already "on vacation."  This summer, no one is taking a morning nap, so we have a lot of free time to go out and about and do some fun things in the morning.

Face painting from the park party

In June, some of the things we did were: pool visit to Champlin, story time at Barnes & Noble (Laura listens to stories, Ryan plays at the train table), neighborhood park party, penny carnival at the park, Kids Concert at the park, soccer on Saturdays for Laura, road trip to WI with Grandma Barb, "Baby" Joey's 1st birthday party, Musikgarten class for Ryan, and swimming lessons for Laura.  Wow!

Party at Joey's!

The road trip was our biggest undertaking, 5 days in Wisconsin visiting Great-Grandma Mason, the Olley Greats, Auntie Annie & Daniel, and Great-Great Auntie Carol.  Good thing Grandma Barb could come along and entertain in the back seat!  The kids were great riders and adapted well to being shuttled all over. Laura particularly liked eating at Panera (three times!), twice polishing off giant cinnamon rolls, sharing a bed with Grandma Barb, looking at Auntie Carol's jewelry collection, and climbing up the pole in Grandpa & Grandma Olley's basement.  Ryan enjoyed playing with cars and trucks in Grandma Mason's basement, bonding with "Papa Woh-wee" (my Grandpa Olley), visiting the airport restaurant with Grandma and Grandpa (he still tells me "Papa Woh-wee...helicopter") and driving Matchbox cars around in their basement.  Always fun to see the WI relatives, which we don't get to do often enough.

Pit stop at Grandma Mason's for dinner!

Trucks in the basement

Visit to Auntie Carol's

Made it to the top!

Playing in the backyard with Papa Woh-wee

We've only been to Musikgarten once so far, but Ry exceeded expectations by staying seated in my lap, and following commands about taking/using/returning musical instruments.  He participated, sang along, and generally had a good time.  Yay, Ryan!  You may recall when I took Laura to ECFE classes that she stood in the corner at music time and WOULD NOT join in.

Laura had a good experience at swimming lessons the last two weeks, made even more fun by the fact that her daycare buddies CJ and Grace attended lessons at the same time!  This year she was in Guppies (step up from her 2 year stint in Tadpoles) but did not pass yet because she "just needs to get bigger and stronger."  Story of her life!  She also forgets to keep paddling and kicking when she wants to take a breath so there is definitely a little room for work there.  Soccer went through June and wrapped up at the end of the month.  I think she liked soccer, but was frustrated when she didn't score, it was "too hot" or she had to face off against kids that were better/bigger than her.  She certainly learned some skills she put into action on the field and it was fun to watch her try something new.

Soccer girl

So there's June.  Other current info is that Ryan continues to be obsessed with playing "cars and trucks" with Matchbox cars, and we are constantly toting buckets of his favorites up and down three floors of our house. It keeps him very focused and busy!  Walks are still a favorite and most days we make the loop around the block with Laura on her bike and Ryan walking or riding in the stroller.  Finally, Laura is growing up and enjoying pop music on the radio immensely and has several favorites (she will blast out of her room to announce what's on the radio).  Some are a little older and others more recent - here's Laura's "playlist":

* Ingrid Michaelsen "Girls Chase Boys"

* Katy Perry "Roar"

* Magic! "Rude"

* Sara Bareilles "Brave" and "I Choose You"

* Paramore "Ain't it Fun"

* Lorde "Royals"

Ryan's still digging The Muffin Man and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  Glad I still have my "baby!"

Fishing Trip 2014

This year's fishing trip to the Lake of the Woods had cool, rainy days. In fact, the entire spring has been rainy, so much so, bringing water levels to flooding heights. See the dock submerged in a few pics below.

This year will be noted for the amount of northern pike caught. I caught a number of them, including a 31" and 37". 

Once again, I didn't hit my goal of a 25" walleye. The closest I got was this 21 incher. Maybe next year! :)

21 inch walleye

31" northern pike

37" northern pike

Massive rains this spring raised the water to flooding heights

Our last year at Sportsman's on Oak Island. Next year we're staying at Redwing Lodge.

Ry-Roo Turns 2!

Our adorable little buddy turned two last Saturday.  Such a big boy now!  We celebrated with a "cars and trucks" party and lots of family members were able to come and be with Ryan on his big day.  This year he did like to sit and open his presents, although he got distracted by playing with them along the way.  My sweet tooth son was very excited about cake and painstakingly ate every single bite of cake and frosting with his fork, long after all the big kids left their half-eaten pieces on the table and were off to other things.  He also loves singing "Happy Birthday" and was pleased to hear everyone singing it for him!

Ryan at Age 2:
Likes: Puzzles - has specific favorites, in particular the "Fox pussle...Yak" which is an animal/alphabet puzzle.  He can do a lot of them by himself and starts by announcing "Dump!" as he shakes out the pieces.  Still loves going on walks whenever the weather is nice.  He always wants to hold my hand on walks and right away offers his hand and announces "Hand."  We have our "usual loop" and certain things he likes to point out on the way: 1. "Circles" (manhole covers)  2. Slide on swingset  3. Flag (without a doubt his favorite landmark..."Flag coming!")  4.  Another flag  5. Another flag  6. "Ding dong" (chimes on somebody's back deck).  Cars - has certain favorites here too, loves to drive them on the "nap" which is a ramp/track he got for his birthday.  He continues to love books and singing at bedtime.

Dislikes:  It is easy to know Ryan's dislikes right now because he announces "Yike it," which really means "I don't like it."  Or sometimes just "Yuck." Things he says "Yike it" about: cars he doesn't like, freshly washed blankies, noodles, veggies, cheese.  Also says "Stop it Daddy" to anything he wants a person to stop doing (generally because Daddy is the offender).  It's funny to hear him say it to Laura when she is wrestling him or whatever.

We love this picture...a classic Ryan "look."

New Tricks:  I can't think of too many new tricks...he has finally had some new molars break through in back, but true to his teething fashion, you wouldn't even know it.  He can nap on a mat at daycare now and doesn't have to be in the pack and play.  There are a lot of books he's familiar with and can "read" them when he sits down with them by himself.

Love you little Rooster!

Soccer-girl

The highly anticipated soccer practice!

This little girl couldn't wait much longer to get outside and try out soccer. We've been kicking the ball around in the basement and backyard for two years-but it's not the same as an organized event.

Today, she happily attended her first organized soccer league. Not only did she learn techniques but she also scored a goal during 3-on-3 competition. Congrats, Laura!

Excited about practice!

After 30-mins of drills, time for 3-on-3

A little tired after her first shift