Christmas 2008

We had lots and lots of Christmas and Kids this year. We start on the 20th with Christmas at Oma's with Sean, Kelly, Tara and all of Elda's Grandchildren. It was fun, load and exciting. The kids all had a good time and get along great together. The little one's got a bit over tired by the end of the day but that's all part of the experience.

After that Christmas day was amazing with Gavin. He got a Little Tykes Car which I though he would have no idea what to do with it. Surprise he climbed right in (through the window) couldn't wait to find the door and opened all the rest of his presents from inside the car. Teddy's gift of a child's DVD player with a YoGabaGaba DVD was a huge hit. He watches it 2-3 times a day and returns to it frequently.

Then it was off to Grandma's house for Christmas dinner and more presents. Mike, Gayle, Erin and Shannon were there with Sue and Kate. There Gavin got a Tricycle with a cool handle for the parent to keep it all under control on the road. Dinner was a wonderful Roast Beef, good wine and the usual stimulating conversation.

Last but not least it was back to Oma's for a quieter present giving session with Elda, Oma, Tara and Nathan. Gavin had given up the ghost by then and we let him open his last presents the next day. Nathan still going strong loved his new Fire Truck from Aunt Barbara.

On Saturday we celebrated Dorothy's birthday with not one but two rounds of tennis with many of our friends and teammates from our mixed doubles team. At night the boys and I took her out for dinner at Bittersweet here in Aptos. Dinner was very good, and it was very nice to have some alone time with the two boys. We have missed that as Teddy has Gavin a lot of the time. We love our Gavin but miss alone time with Teddy.

On next Saturday we are off to San Diego to our timeshare club site there for a week. Looking forward to wandering Balboa park, the Zoo, maybe take the trolley to Tijuana. No real agenda just some relaxation and getting away from home.

Holiday Lighted Train

Last weekend it was Lighted Boats yesterday we did the Lighted Train ride from the Boardwalk through downtown Santa Cruz and part way up to Felton. The Hospital offers discounted tickets to this each year and this was the first year we took advantage of that. Edward had a great time singing carols and walking around the train talking with my co-workers and their children. I think he told everyone on the train that the tunnel in Santa Cruz is 900 feet long.

New things in the Blog

I have a list of sayings I like at the right side of the blog. Not sure that everyone sees these so I wanted to share two new ones I have added that are particularly appropriate to the somewhat crowded and chaotic life we have at home these days.

"Be careful the light at the end of the tunnel may be another train"

"Due to the current economic crisis the light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off"

The other new thing I wanted to share was a listing of Audio Books that I have finished. Revel and I walk 2-3 hours per day. I have a new Zen X-Fi MP3 player and have loaded several books from LibriVox. The list is just above the listing of actual books that I have finished recently. Well that's about 5 new posts so I will stop there.

Harbor Lighted Boat Parade

On December 5th we went to the annual lighted boat parade at the Yacht harbor in Santa Cruz. Edward really loves this event and in the past we have been rained on, its been 35 degrees but we got lucky this year. No rain, temps in the mid 50's and some great entries. I hope that you can load and view the entry that I have at the left here. I am very pleased to see that video does justice to the boats. Still pictures just end up blurry and have never worked out well.

Projects Update

Those of you who know me will understand this post. For the rest of you skip to the next entry. There are two things in the workshop that bring me great joy. One is creating something like the trucks from scratch. The other is taking an existing project that has weathered, and looks down at the heels and bring it back to its original luster.

We spent a small fortune for solid teak furniture for the new deck. This is part of the reason. When you sand off the grey weathered patina, get a smooth surface and then apply a few coats of teak oil in 2-4 hours work you get an almost new chair, that now has a cover over it for the winter. (I don't really want to do this yearly). I love the results but the work is tough.

We love these chairs in summer and they are very much worth taking care of.

49er's 24 vrs Jets 14

Wait we won? We actually won? Ok so I won't get any metals for my being the most faithful fan but come on the 4-8 9ers taking on the 8-4 Jets. The team that stopped the Titans from being undefeated. Of the 42,000 fans there I am willing to bet that less than half thought we would win until about 5 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. At that point the 49er defence took over the game and stopped Farve (4) from completing anything. He had time but could not find a man open.

It was a wonderful, somewhat chilly afternoon. Mom, Elda and Tara joined me. We had a great time.

Had by a Virus

On Friday after thanksgiving, possibly secondary to our Internet shopping we were infected with several extremely nasty viruses. Our virus checking system was very much incapable of dealing with it.

I was able to fix our main computer only by formatting the hard drive and reinstalling everything. Fortunately our backup system was very good. Edwards computer was unfortunately also infected and I could not fix it. I spent 8 hours working on it then called in the pros. Geek Squad spent 6 hours fixing his computer, he lost nothing and the machine works great now. They were wonderful and worth the cost.

Thanksgiving 2008

We all went to Mike and Gayles for a wonderful dinner. We all really enjoyed Gavin who wondered from person to person all evening. Not sure that he ate much but he sure slept well on the way home.

I have to say that the sausage stuffing was my favorite by far. Gayles Turkey was really wonderful.

It was fun visiting with Erin and Shannon, amazing how they and Teddy have grown and starting to be adults. Erin has her own place now, everybody's driving. We are getting so old.

Weekend in Windsor, CA

What a relief, we spend the weekend in one of the sites of our new timeshare club at Windsor, CA.  The club, which is Worldmark, has over 80 sites that

 we can choose from, so we have a lot of possible vacation sites.   We did not do a presentation or stay in any of the sites prior to purchasing our shares. I am very glad to say that the site at Winsor was beautiful.  We had a one bedroom unit, with a living room, and full kitchen.  There was a Murphy bed in the living room for

 Edward. He thought that was very weird. We had a gas grill on the patio outside our room, and this particular room had a hot tub spa just 20 feet outside the back patio.  The grounds were beautiful

 with full pool, rec room, and everything looks brand new.  

We arrived late Saturday afternoon and decided to check out the town of Winsor but later discovered that the downtown we were

 looking for we missed by two blocks.  They are still working on making this a nice tourist spot.  So we hit the road up to Healdsburg were we found a wonderful little old downtown with wine tasting bars, art and crafts shops and fancy deli’s.  We shopped for about 10 minutes and it started to rain, and then it started to rain hard.  We didn’t really anticipate this and had no umbrella so we ran from store to store for 10 minutes then ducked into a wine tasting place to keep dry and find a bottle for the night.  We got the bottle and a dinner recommendation within one block so we didn’t get drenched getting there. We ended up at Bistro Ralph, next to Scoppa’s

 both were recommended but Scoppa’s had no tables for three hours.  Dinner at Bistro Ralph was very good. 

On Sunday we had reservations for the Napa Valley Wine Train, where we met up with Edward who spent Saturday at Aunt Sue’s. He was very

 excited, but as usual a little bit cautious, when he doesn’t know what it’s like. By 11:30 we were seated in the Silvarado car where we had a menu waiting and managed to select some things Edward would eat and drink.  We ordered lunch and by the time we reached the first winery we were into our first course.  The food was very good and the service was great. I think the portions were a bit large and we ordered a little too much bu

t we took a long time with lunch while we watched the beautiful countryside go by.  The grapes provide the Napa valley with a fall season display that is spectacular.  The vines were all changing to red and yellow, the display was spectacular.  At 1pm we reached St. Helena the end of the tracks and the spot where you start returning to Napa.  Edward and I were able to walk to the front of the train and watch the engine move from the front to the back for the return trip. He was very excited watching this.  When we returned to our car for dessert Edward stayed on the transition between cars so he

 could look out the open windows.  He really likes being outside in a moving train.  Kelly and Richard our servers were wonderful, even going out of their way to provide me with a Birthday dessert even though my birthday was a week ago. The trip was so comfortable and I enjoy watching Edward getting to do what he wants and enjoying it. 

We left the train about 3pm and headed over to Traintown in Sonoma.  This is a miniature train display. The train is about 1/5 scale and there is a miniature town as well as a petting zoo.  Edward and I rode that train as well.  Dorothy waited in the car.  That ride was only 30 minutes, The train is about 1/5 scale and there is a miniature town as well as a petting zoo.  Edward and I rode that train as well.  Dorothy waited in the car.  That ride was only 30 minutes but Edward enjoyed every minute. We took a few minutes in Sonoma to pickup some cheese, salami and bread for dinner.   When we finally got back to the timeshare we were very tired and it was nice to just enjoy a quick snack, watch a movie (we always travel with our Netflix) and get an early bedtime. 

In the morning Edward wanted to walk around the grounds and check it all out.  I showed him the donkeys that lived in the next field and across the street we had sheep, geese and ostriches. There was even a golf course we watched the guys tee off or a few minutes and Edward explained to me the different clubs how they are shaped and what they are used for.  I have no

 idea where he got this information, I was not even aware he knew anything about golf.  We had a quick breakfast in Winsor (finding the real downtown this time) and then off to Aptos so I could be to work by 4pm.  It was really a wonderful weekend and I will definitely keep in mind the beauty of the fall colors when planning future trips to this area. 

 

Gavins Truck is Completed!

Both trucks are now finished.  The truck in the white background is Gavin's, and the one I just finished, the dark background is Nathon's.  Gavin's truck is lower by about 1/2 inch and I used a different technique to cut the boards down to 1/4" stock.  I have learned a number of new techniques that will translate to other projects in the future.  

The wheels were cut with a circle cutter, on the drill press.  Worked great but requires a ton of sanding using the drill press to get them to look like they do.  All of them turned out really beautiful in the cherry. 

The back of Gavin's truck is made with 1/4" stock.  To get that I used the Jig saw then sanded off the saw marks.  Turned out better than using the Table saw which did not produce a true vertical surface.  Both techniques should have worked but I was happier with the jig saw results

. It helped that I purchased a new 1/2 blade and tuned up the saw when I installed it.  

The finish on these trucks is Toy Makers finish(from Rocklers)  which is an oil based finish that was painted on and rubbed in with a lint free cloth.  It took five coats to get the finish I wanted but the results are outstanding on the cherry. 

ARG! Give us your Candy

Our little pirate hit to the streets tonight, well really all afternoon he starting visiting friends and family.  Tonight is a little rainy so he didn't actually do much more than the local neighborhoood.  He looks adorable as a pirate.  His long hair fits right in with the costume.  The girl in the Robin costume is Lena she is a friend of Teddy. 

Weekend in Monterey

1 and 1/2 year ago I left AdvantaCare and started a new job that allowed me to work from 1:30pm to 10pm. The provided me with a lot of time for walking Revel a commitment that has been extremely beneficial to both of us. It wasn't long after making that commitment that I realized we were walking distances that my feet could not do in tennis shoes. I needed more support and Dorothy (who knows shoes better than many) recommended Merrill hiking shoes. I purchased this pair of Merril Moab's and now approximately 1200 miles later ( we do about 25 miles a week) they are not cutting it any longer. The bottoms have held up very well but the insides are warn out badly. So being as happy as I was I ordered a new pair the only change I made was the color the new ones are Navy and Grey. Today we did the diabetes walk no great distance but we stretched the entire walk to about 6.5 miles and they were as comfortable as I remember the previous pair being when they were new.

Today we took the dogs, and Nathon and hiked the Juvenile Diabetes walk from Lovers Point to the Aquarium. Not a long distance, so we started at Mom's house and walked the "Long way" to Lovers point and back. It wasn't the most beautiful day but despite the huge number of people

 both dogs did great. Edward and Oma joined us at the start but then drove home for some quiet time. Revel

 attracted his usual amount of attention from many of

 the children and some adults. Libby showed off her better social skills with other dogs as she

 plays with all other dogs (Revel is more particular who he will associate with). I

 think 

everyone had a good time and got lots of fresh air. 

We are looking forward to our first trip to our new timeshare on the weekend of November 8-10th to Napa. We will be staying in the city of Winslow and having lunch on the Napa Valley Wine train. More on that when we get back.

Saturday afternoon with Gavin

Gavin and I got together on Saturday afternoon while Grandpa watched the baseball game Gavin played on my desk. So with the camera handy and Gavin in a cooperative mood I got these pictures. His vocabulary in increasing by leaps and bounds. While we are not having major conversations he follows simple instructions fairly well and if you know his meaning for the word he can convey his needs. Currently "UP" can mean a number of different things. His ability to run and walk is well developed. It is very fun to spend the afternoon with Gavin but it can be exhausting. 

Teddy is 18!

Teddy is 18 years old today. He is back at school a Freshman at Cabrillo College, working 20 hours a week at the Yogart shop and raising a wonderful little boy. He is to say the least staying out of trouble. It is hard to believe its been 18 years since we were at CHOMP waiting to go into the OR for the C-Section that would bring him to us. After his birth I spent the better part of the day in the nursery with Teddy. That day comes back to me very easily as one of the proudest, most enjoyable afternoons of my life. Not every moment over the 18 years has been as blissful as that but for the most part he is a wonderful young man with enormous potential that I can only hope I have the longevity of life to witness what he does.

Nathan It's Finally Ready!

The rumor in our house is that Dad spends many hours in the workshop making things out of wood that never come out of the workshop.  Well that's not entirely true.  In 1988 I made a 3 year old Edward a toy dump truck.  My skills at that point were marginal at best but in typical Edward fashion he still has that 20 year old truck.  I recently found the plans for the truck and decided to make a set of them one for Nathan and one for Gavin.  The first of the two is completed based on the time envolved I would guess that the second is going to be done in about a month.  These trucks are made from Cherry, we had some scrapes from another project Teddy is working on.  There is not a single screw or nail in the entire project.  I would love to hear 20 years from now that Nathan and Gavin still have the trucks and are giving them to their sons.   By the way next time you see one of these in a crafts fair and cannot believe the price, let me just say that there is perhaps 20-30 hours work in this. Thank goodness I really love working with wood and creating.  

Help me please!

Hello! On October 26th, Elda and I will be taking part in JDRF's Walk to Cure Diabetes, along with one-half million other walkers across the country, as we try to reach our goal of raising $100 million. You can make a donation to my fund here just click and fill out the form.

Type 1, or juvenile, diabetes, is a devastating disease that affects millions of people—a large and growing percentage of them children.

There is some good news, though. For the first time, scientists are predicting that we CAN expect to see a cure well within our lifetime!

Now, more than ever, you can make a crucial difference. Won't you please give to JDRF as generously as possible? Together, we can make the cure a reality!

Always Something New

On Friday Revel and I walked to Captitola and back just under 10 miles. We had a wonderful time and Revel is very quiet today. When we walked into Soquel on the way home Revel stopped to check out a Squirrel, which he seeks out and watched intently when we are out on our walks. Never chases them but loves to watch them especially if they are walking on power lines.

What made this particular squirrel interesting and quite a surprise to me was that it was Black. Until yesterday I would have said all squirrels are the same tan to grey color but today after checking with some people who know these things and then searching the internet for facts. Here are the pictures. You really do learn something new every day.

Teddy's first car

Look out everybody, the boy purchased Elda's 2000 Nissan Sentra and is on the roads in his own car now. He spent the better part of the summer evaluating, thinking and worrying about if he could afford it but today he got it registered in his name, he has a AAA card and he has insurance. He is a very proud owner tonight.

Elda thanks for waiting all summer for him.

Nathan's First Birthday Party

This weekend we got together to celebrate Nathan's first birthday. The kids all had a lot of fun and the presents and the cupcakes was wonderful. All of the children went home very tired and happy after a fast paced day. Think even Oma was a little tired after having a house full of little ones.







Cool presents, the bigger the better. Thanks guys!






Cupcakes, whats that?
Oh, wow that's great can I have more! How many points did you say these were??






Nathan buddy your the best to share this feast! Lets see who can stuff the most in at once!










Boys are just disgusting.