Friday, October 16, 2009
22 Years Ago today...
... shortly after 3am we became parents.
For those that have not seen him for a while, Andrew has become less of a man than he was. What I mean by this is that he has lost a lot of weight via a self-imposed combination of food control and lots and lots of bike riding. Way to go, Drew, and Happy Birthday!
This photo was taken almost three years ago. He and I took a "guys trip" to San Antonio to use up some airline passes that I had that were about to expire. We had some time to play on-line games with the free wireless internet at Phoenix Airport on our way home.
Here we are on the same trip at a webcam geocache in front of the Alamo. The rules were to show either thumbs up for "hook 'em horns" to get credit for the cache. I am on the phone talking to the girls at home who took the screen shot.
For those that have not seen him for a while, Andrew has become less of a man than he was. What I mean by this is that he has lost a lot of weight via a self-imposed combination of food control and lots and lots of bike riding. Way to go, Drew, and Happy Birthday!
This photo was taken almost three years ago. He and I took a "guys trip" to San Antonio to use up some airline passes that I had that were about to expire. We had some time to play on-line games with the free wireless internet at Phoenix Airport on our way home.
Here we are on the same trip at a webcam geocache in front of the Alamo. The rules were to show either thumbs up for "hook 'em horns" to get credit for the cache. I am on the phone talking to the girls at home who took the screen shot.
Labels: Andrew, Birthdays, Geocaching
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Sweet Sixteen
On Monday, Bethany had her sixteenth birthday. It was a little bit low key because we had a bigger blowout for her fifteenth birthday, but we still wanted to acknowledge it. A good friend of hers turned 16 three days earlier, so she spent two nights in San Diego last week with a group to celebrate that.
On her return, we surprised her by having several friends spend Saturday night at our house. We setup a projector and big screen to play movies for the group in our large upstairs playroom. On Sunday, we took them to play laser tag and have lunch.
The laser tag games were an interesting combination of younger boys, teenage boys, and the group of 5 girls (and me). The games were supposed to be free-for-all with everyone scoring off of everyone. However, the groups seemed to naturally evolve into teams anyway: the little kids and related adults vs the teenage boys vs the girls. The older boys seemed annoyed by the audacity of the girls to challenge them as a group while the younger boys were happy to have a natural enemy in the girls to skirmish with. The girls seemed to follow the free-for-all spirit of things in game 1, but learned (with a little coaching from me) to work together like the other groups were doing. At the end of three games, the consensus was that it was fun and ideas for future father/daughter events were discussed.
Sunday evening ended with a family outing for dinner at Lucille's, a local BBQ restaurant that Bethany selected.
On Monday, some friends with annual Disneyland passes (the deluxe kind that are not blacked out in August) took Beth for her free Disneyland day that the park offers. She took that chance to renew her annual pass (received on her fifteenth birthday) with a discount from her free ticket. We finished the night of her actual birthday with the family at home watching episodes of Smallville on DVD (we are getting around to watching those which I got for my birthday last year).
On her return, we surprised her by having several friends spend Saturday night at our house. We setup a projector and big screen to play movies for the group in our large upstairs playroom. On Sunday, we took them to play laser tag and have lunch.
The laser tag games were an interesting combination of younger boys, teenage boys, and the group of 5 girls (and me). The games were supposed to be free-for-all with everyone scoring off of everyone. However, the groups seemed to naturally evolve into teams anyway: the little kids and related adults vs the teenage boys vs the girls. The older boys seemed annoyed by the audacity of the girls to challenge them as a group while the younger boys were happy to have a natural enemy in the girls to skirmish with. The girls seemed to follow the free-for-all spirit of things in game 1, but learned (with a little coaching from me) to work together like the other groups were doing. At the end of three games, the consensus was that it was fun and ideas for future father/daughter events were discussed.
Sunday evening ended with a family outing for dinner at Lucille's, a local BBQ restaurant that Bethany selected.
On Monday, some friends with annual Disneyland passes (the deluxe kind that are not blacked out in August) took Beth for her free Disneyland day that the park offers. She took that chance to renew her annual pass (received on her fifteenth birthday) with a discount from her free ticket. We finished the night of her actual birthday with the family at home watching episodes of Smallville on DVD (we are getting around to watching those which I got for my birthday last year).
Labels: Bethany, Birthdays, Disneyland
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Hayley the Teenager
Uh oh, I forgot to post about Hayley's 13th birthday earlier this month. She is offically a full teenager now. She had a good birthday. It was spread over a weekend with various friends and family. The centerpiece of the birthday was having friends spend the night and doing various fun things with them around the house.
One really cool thing about Hayley is that she is willing to play my old boardgames with me. She is really the only member of the family that will do that. For her birthday, I pulled up an older board game called Merchant of Venus. It is basically a game where you fly your starship around the galaxy, discover aliens, buy stuff from some aliens, sell to others at a profit, and try to have the most money at the end. We call the game "shopping in the stars." Anyway, her friends liked the game too which was another bonus.
Overall, Hayley had a good introduction into her teenage years.
One really cool thing about Hayley is that she is willing to play my old boardgames with me. She is really the only member of the family that will do that. For her birthday, I pulled up an older board game called Merchant of Venus. It is basically a game where you fly your starship around the galaxy, discover aliens, buy stuff from some aliens, sell to others at a profit, and try to have the most money at the end. We call the game "shopping in the stars." Anyway, her friends liked the game too which was another bonus.
Overall, Hayley had a good introduction into her teenage years.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Andrew is 21!
Last week, Andrew turned 21 years old. To put that into perspective, Celeste was 21 years old when we got married. I was 24 years old. Life is taking a much different direction for Drew, but it is a path that he seems happy with.
Another difference - it took me a while to take advantage of my 21 year old new rights. Lee called me a couple of months later and said, "Hey, you're 21 now right?" With my positive reply, we agreed to go to a bar since we could. Of course, neither of us were drinkers so we each had a Coke. But it was in a bar where we were carded to get in! I got the gambling in fairly quickly. I think it was a few weeks after turning 21 that my parents took me to Las Vegas for a weekend.
For Andrew, his friends got him to a bar and got him his first drink at the stroke of midnight on his birthday. Beyond that, we had the grandmothers conspire with us regarding the gambling. We needed to know that he did not have other plans and the grandmothers wanted to give him a chance to try out some legal gambling. It worked out great.
The surprise party was a success. After an afternoon at one of the Indian Casinos, the grandmothers were bringing Andrew home. My mom told him that she needed to drop something off at our house (and she actually had a bag to give to us). Andrew was completely surprised. We had a small, but vocal group of people over to celebrate his birthday. Andrew was definitely caught off guard!
Another difference - it took me a while to take advantage of my 21 year old new rights. Lee called me a couple of months later and said, "Hey, you're 21 now right?" With my positive reply, we agreed to go to a bar since we could. Of course, neither of us were drinkers so we each had a Coke. But it was in a bar where we were carded to get in! I got the gambling in fairly quickly. I think it was a few weeks after turning 21 that my parents took me to Las Vegas for a weekend.
For Andrew, his friends got him to a bar and got him his first drink at the stroke of midnight on his birthday. Beyond that, we had the grandmothers conspire with us regarding the gambling. We needed to know that he did not have other plans and the grandmothers wanted to give him a chance to try out some legal gambling. It worked out great.
The surprise party was a success. After an afternoon at one of the Indian Casinos, the grandmothers were bringing Andrew home. My mom told him that she needed to drop something off at our house (and she actually had a bag to give to us). Andrew was completely surprised. We had a small, but vocal group of people over to celebrate his birthday. Andrew was definitely caught off guard!
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
100 Squares
My grandmother-in-law (my mother-in-law's mother) turns 100 years old today. The family went to visit her last weekend. One of the gifts we brought was a quilt that my wife made with 100 fabric squares - 1 per year. Not only was it very cool (as are all of her quilts - she has made over 50 at this point), but she made it from start to finish in 1 week! Normally they take from several months to a number of years to make one.
I don't have a very good picture to share, but I will try to post some later. Here is what I have for now.
I don't have a very good picture to share, but I will try to post some later. Here is what I have for now.
Labels: Birthdays, Family, Quilts
Monday, November 19, 2007
Remote Control Car
Hayley wanted a remote control car for her birthday. I remember getting a remote control car as a kid. Don't get me wrong, it was fun to get one. However, it wasn't what I expected. The car that I got went forward in a straight line and turned to the left when it went in reverse. That's it. Forward = straight, Reverse = left turn. It was sorta fun, but disappointing compared to what I expected.
That experience told me what NOT to get Hayley. While shopping at Costco, I found her gift. Hayley got an SUV-style remote control vehicle with big tires that can roll over grass, dirt, or hard surfaces and that could turn left or right in either the forward or reverse direction. It has pretty good speed too.
I haven't gotten to drive it yet. I'm afraid that I won't give it back when I do.
That experience told me what NOT to get Hayley. While shopping at Costco, I found her gift. Hayley got an SUV-style remote control vehicle with big tires that can roll over grass, dirt, or hard surfaces and that could turn left or right in either the forward or reverse direction. It has pretty good speed too.
I haven't gotten to drive it yet. I'm afraid that I won't give it back when I do.
Labels: Birthdays, Hayley, Toys
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Hayley is 12!
Hayley turned 12 yesterday. Her Girl Scout troop is on a campout, so we took a cake out for her and her troop to share.
She celebrated with her friends last weekend with a sleepover. I took a few of them out geocaching before dinner and then we had the rest of the girls over for dinner and games.
Happy Birthday, Hayley!
She celebrated with her friends last weekend with a sleepover. I took a few of them out geocaching before dinner and then we had the rest of the girls over for dinner and games.
Happy Birthday, Hayley!
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
One less teenager...
Yesterday, Andrew George turned 20 years old. There is now one less teenager in the world.
Andrew was born the same day that 18 month old "Baby Jessica" was saved from a well that she fell into in Texas. I remember writing in the "headlines on the day you were born" section of his baby book. Not many of us have an event on our day of birth that is reviewed 20 years later.
Happy Birthday, Drew!
Andrew was born the same day that 18 month old "Baby Jessica" was saved from a well that she fell into in Texas. I remember writing in the "headlines on the day you were born" section of his baby book. Not many of us have an event on our day of birth that is reviewed 20 years later.
Happy Birthday, Drew!
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
Wii
My family purchased a Nintendo Wii for my birthday this year. I've only tried it a couple of times so far, but it has been a lot of fun. The "next gen" offerings for XBox and Playstation didn't really hook me. Using the motion sensitive controls on the Wii adds something unique. Sure, I can't see a player sweat realistically in my sports games, but who cares. Swinging the controller like a bat to play baseball or using the controller in a motion like rolling a bowling ball is very fun.
By the way, the pitcher does sweat when playing baseball in Wii Sports. It is a cartooney sweating that is fun to watch. Sorry Microsoft and Sony, but I choose innovative play mechanics over improved graphics.
From what I have heard from others, this will be a game that I am more likely to get the family to play too. I remember a skiing game on my old Mattel Intellivision that was a lot of fun for non-gamers. The Wii seems to have a similar appeal. It will be interesting to see if I can get my wife to play.
By the way, the pitcher does sweat when playing baseball in Wii Sports. It is a cartooney sweating that is fun to watch. Sorry Microsoft and Sony, but I choose innovative play mechanics over improved graphics.
From what I have heard from others, this will be a game that I am more likely to get the family to play too. I remember a skiing game on my old Mattel Intellivision that was a lot of fun for non-gamers. The Wii seems to have a similar appeal. It will be interesting to see if I can get my wife to play.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Birthdays
Andrew's 19th birthday came and went in October. He has reached that age where birthdays are not the big deal that they were when you were a kid. We had a good blow-out party for his 18th birthday. For his 19th birthday we had a family get together (including grandmas and aunts) for a nice dinner out, but it was otherwise quiet.
Hayley, on the other hand, turns 11 today. We stop the big parties at age 10, but she is having some friends spend the night. Tomorrow will feature mini golfing at Boomers in Irvine(http://www.boomersparks.com/park/irvine/mgolf.html) and sharing our new fun hobby of geocaching with her friends. We are on the hunt for a cache that had us stumped, but we have it figured out now (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=9108c28d-9292-4835-ac4a-47b048670d76). I forget what we have on the schedule for Saturday, but I'm sure it will be something else fun. This is in addition to a family dinner with grandmas, etc. that we had last weekend.
Overall, I think turning 11 is better than turning 19 in terms of birthday fun.
Hayley, on the other hand, turns 11 today. We stop the big parties at age 10, but she is having some friends spend the night. Tomorrow will feature mini golfing at Boomers in Irvine(http://www.boomersparks.com/park/irvine/mgolf.html) and sharing our new fun hobby of geocaching with her friends. We are on the hunt for a cache that had us stumped, but we have it figured out now (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=9108c28d-9292-4835-ac4a-47b048670d76). I forget what we have on the schedule for Saturday, but I'm sure it will be something else fun. This is in addition to a family dinner with grandmas, etc. that we had last weekend.
Overall, I think turning 11 is better than turning 19 in terms of birthday fun.
Labels: Andrew, Birthdays, Family, Hayley
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Bethany turns 13!
Today is Bethany's 13th birthday. We woke her up a few minutes before 8:39am (her birth time) and joked around about "simulating" the birth process by having her come out of her covers at the right time. We even offered to soak her with water to add to the realism. We didn't take it beyond that. Hayley (the younger sister) was really excited about waking her up in this way, so it was mostly for her benefit.
She is planning several fun events with friends over the next few days -- including a sleepover on Friday night followed by breakfast at a pancake breakfast fundraiser for an older girl scout friend.
I now have 2!! teenagers in the house. Two sources of all information that there is to know. How cool is that?
I was talking to Andrew recently about the "teenagers know everything" concept. I explained that as he leaves his teenage years his level of knowledge will be dropping and instead his intelligence will get to come through unfettered by "knowing everything". I described the "know everything" concept as an eclipse in front of his intelligence. It is certainly driven by intelligence, but it blocks out the full effect of intelligence just as the moon can block out the effect of the sun. I like the eclipse concept and joke around with him about it a lot now.
Anyway, happy birthday to Bethany!
She is planning several fun events with friends over the next few days -- including a sleepover on Friday night followed by breakfast at a pancake breakfast fundraiser for an older girl scout friend.
I now have 2!! teenagers in the house. Two sources of all information that there is to know. How cool is that?
I was talking to Andrew recently about the "teenagers know everything" concept. I explained that as he leaves his teenage years his level of knowledge will be dropping and instead his intelligence will get to come through unfettered by "knowing everything". I described the "know everything" concept as an eclipse in front of his intelligence. It is certainly driven by intelligence, but it blocks out the full effect of intelligence just as the moon can block out the effect of the sun. I like the eclipse concept and joke around with him about it a lot now.
Anyway, happy birthday to Bethany!
Labels: Bethany, Birthdays, Family
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Gardening
My wife's birthday was last weekend. Her request was that we buy plants and clean up our landscaping. Since I did a lot of the yard work growing up, I don't really like doing it as an adult. When we got married we had an agreement that we would only ever own as much yard as she was able to take care of without my help. However, I do break down once in a while and help out. This weekend was one of those times.
I have to admit that the yard looks much nicer now. It was also a family bonding event (both the good and bad, but overall good). Between buying the plants and giving up my time, I consider it one of the more expensive birthday gifts I have ever given my wife. :-)
I have to admit that the yard looks much nicer now. It was also a family bonding event (both the good and bad, but overall good). Between buying the plants and giving up my time, I consider it one of the more expensive birthday gifts I have ever given my wife. :-)
