Southern Boiler/Jimmie Johnson Fan

Happy #6

2009-02-02T21:57:00.010-05:00

Last week was Brendan's Birthday and on Saturday was the insane Birthday Party. Fortunately, or unfortunately, our son tends to get along with everybody and by the time his Sunday School, neighbors and kindergarten pals had been invited, we had the 23 kid Birthday Party. Of course, Brendan wasn't complaining after landing all the swag, especially so soon after Christmas. If he isn't taken care of now, Mom and Dad give up. So, we have posted pictures from the party. As you can see, Brendan was more than full of himself.

As for the family update, everything is good. Brent's knee continues to bother, but is better than what it was. Shireen is doing well. Brendan has made the advanced reading class and continues to read at an amazing pace, but like his Dad, has terrible handwriting and seems to be his only downfall. He continues to enjoy his TV and DVD Player he got for Christmas and enjoys his bedtime at night now. Gordie is fine except for Jamie constantly chewing on him. Jamie is up to 63 lbs. in just a year and with the boxers moving back into the house behind us, has something to woof at all day long. Hope everybody is doing well and we will be adding some more posts soon.

I forgot how to type

2008-10-29T13:56:00.009-04:00

Or at least you would think so from as much as I have been updating here. Whenever back to school and football season hit, I do get rather busy and forget to update the blog somewhat. So here goes on the Rice family update over the last few months. Summer was fun. We took in some Braves Games with just Dad and Brendan going to most of them without Mommy. While freaking out at swimming lessons and not wanting to go near the water for a month, Brendan finally got over it and started to not wanting to leave the pool at all. Soccer kicked in (a few pictures here) and Brendan scored 3 goals his first game,(only scored 1 last year) and 4 in another game, so it seems to be the one sport that he is into and is getting better at. Kindergarten started August 4th for Brendan and he goes from 7:45 to 2:45 every day and with him being a night owl, like his Dad, mornings have not been to kind to him. Also, being a total Southern Boy, he has complained all week about how chilly it is being in the 30's and 40's in the morning. We have tried to tell him what Mom and Dad went through growing up, but he looks at us like we are pulling his leg. His reading has just exploded and routinely gets 100 out of 100 on identifying and pronouncing words when 30 out of a 100 is acceptable. He is reading at a 2nd grade level already. He takes a perverse pride on being on green every day, not one yellow yet, but loves to tell us about all of his classmates being on yellow and red for the day. One day he is going to get his butt kicked for being such a brown nose.

Shireen's Dad came out a month or two ago and helped put in our new dishwasher and her Mom came out a few weeks ago and helped us paint our downstairs (a few pictures here of our green walls now). Love putting those grandparents to work. Both were wore out when Brendan decided he had new playmates and decided to have them play every game with him or have them take him out back to play soccer or hit golfballs (see pictures).

That's it for now. Brendan is already putting his Christmas list together, the only good thing, we can threaten him to get to bed and such by telling him that Santa is watching. Shireen cannot wait until the election is over and is beyond happy that I will be in Mississippi next week for the election. She will not miss me screaming at the TV, if the current trend continues. To say I tend to fall on the conservative side of the aisle is sort of like saying the media kind of likes Obama. The only good thing is that conservative economic theory will be shown to be right again like it always does, it just may take another 4-8 years to clean up the mess like we had to do after Carter. Other than that, not much going on. Shireen is doing great and enjoying her free time with Brendan in school and is getting the 2 hour workouts in every day. We are enjoying the mid to high 60's every day, although for us, a little chilly. Take care and I promise to post more often in the upcoming months.

A Midsummer's Update

2008-07-04T14:27:00.009-04:00

Hello All, I know we are way overdue for an update. Summer has been going well. Mom, Dad and Brendan are going to another Braves game tonight which I'm sure will contribute to a shortage of cotton candy at the ballpark. We expect an extreme sugar high tonight.

So far Mommy has survived the summer, although two weeks of vacation Bible school has helped and a week of tennis lessons on the horizon will help her get through July. As we keep reminding Brendan, only one more month until big boy school. He starts extremely early, August 4, and we aren't sure he is totally prepared. As an offspring of his father, Brendan does not like to go to bed early and does not like to get up early. Not good things with school on the horizon, we expect one crabby child come the first week of August.

Shireen's Mom, Linda, just got done visiting with her step grandaughter, Hannah. As usual Mom was overworked by her daughter with a backyard project this time. At some point Shireen will realize that chopping through Georgia clay is no fun, but the lesson hasn't gotten through to this point. Hannah, being a couple of years older than Brendan, does a great imitation of a bossy big sister, which Brendan doesn't quite know how to handle. He likes the company, but somebody sharing his TV time and telling him it's time for bed doesn't go over so well. When inquired if he would ever like a baby brother or baby sister, his answer is "None" and when asked about having a big sister like Hannah, his reply is "No, they are silly".

So we are enjoying our last month of summer by going to the pool quite often. After the disastorous swimming lessons when Brendan decided he was going to freak out and not go near a pool again for a month, we have overcome where we are back to swimming with a noodle at least. Brent's golf game has taken a hit. After the last outing, I was unable to walk well with severe knee pain that has lasted about 6 weeks. After a visit to the orthopedic doctor, looks like at this point a torn meniscus with a probable surgery sometime in August. Shouldn't be major recovery time it looks like, but does seem to be the precursor for knee replacement down the road. Pity on Shireen when I have to go through that.

We have included pictures of Hannah's visit, with a trip to the fountains in downtown Atlanta, a trip to the mall where the have a bungy cord jumping device and a new picture of our not to puppy looking Jamie, who is now somewhere in the vicinity of 58 lbs. or so. She continues to chew on and torture poor Gordie, who just keeps trying to hide from her. Hope you all have a great 4th, we will post some pictures from the game and other pics soon.

Preschool Graduation Program

2008-06-06T12:14:00.003-04:00

After 9 months of Preschool Brendan is off to the 'big boy' school next year. I am putting the video up from his graduation program so everyone can see his performance on stage. Needless to say, I think a career in singing is not going to happen. Enjoy!

An Unbelievable 14

2008-05-21T00:15:00.003-04:00

I know the picture is the same heading as the last post, but I just really love the picture. Tomorrow (or officially today, since it is after midnight) rings in the 14th wedding anniversary. It seems like an absolute dream that it has been 14 years since we said I do in that small gathering in Las Vegas. We have moved 4 times since then, have had 5 golden retrievers and 1 mutt dog (we will never forget Barney) and after an unbelievable effort have ended up with the best little boy a set of parents could have ever hoped or dreamed for.

Through it all has been one constant, my beautiful wife. Many years ago, when I was 9 or 10, I can still remember staring at the ceiling late at night. I had just went through the parents divorce a few years prior and was in the middle of the multiyear fun of custody battles. I can remember swearing to myself that when older, I would find a wife that would be my partner for life, my equal and somebody that would fight through the tough times with me. Somebody who would be by my side for as long as we lived and who would help me provide the stable atmosphere for my children that didn't seem possible at that time for myself. Somewhat unfairly, I judged every girl I dated when I got older with that outlook. Could I see myself marrying this girl, could I live with her and have her be my best friend the rest of my life?
Many times, even when I thought I was dating somebody pretty incredible, there was always a voice in the back of my head saying that this isn't the one. In 1991 that voice stopped when I met Shireen. While we couldn't stand each other the first month or so after we met, it didn't take long to realize how attracted, how much fun I had with, and pretty soon, how in love I was with this girl.

While there have been ups and downs as there are in every marriage, I know I have married the perfect person for me. I feel so incredibly blessed that I get to grow old with the person who I consider my best friend and who to this day I have an incredible attraction to. I have done nothing in my life to deserve being so lucky, but I appreciate it beyond belief.

So, while being way to sappy, (of which I will catch grief for, I'm sure), I will spend the rest of today celebrating my 14 years of extraordinary luck being married to such a wonderul woman. And as wives go, does it get any better? She is letting me play golf in the morning and then I am taking Brendan to a Braves game tomorrow night, while she hangs out at home, all the while claiming that us clearing out of her house is the best Anniversary present we can give her. Many years ago, my friend Scott said he had to explain us to his new girlfriend, who just didn't get our relationship. I think if he reads this, he would still be explaining.

So, look for some video of Brendan's last baseball game (not shot very well by Dad, but that damn hitting the tee 12 times in a row was driving me nuts). Also, I will try and get some pictures tomorrow night at the game. Jamie is now not a true woman, but has passed the 50 lb. mark and is bigger than Gordie, although he refuses to lay her out, even thought she chews on him constantly. Brendan has a week and a half of pre-school and then on to summer vacation before kindergarten starts August 4th, which seems way to early. Shireen is looking to get a job at the gym opening near us and eventually becoming a personal trainer, (might as well since she works out 2 hours a day anyways). Anyways, that's our update for now, dreaded 43 is coming on Friday, (after 40 I think we should just quit keeping count, luckily Shireen has number 40 coming in October, so at least I lose the abuse of being in a different decade until I turn 50). Hope you all are doing well and hope to hear from many of you soon. Have a great Holiday weekend.

Brendan and Shireen's Excellent Adventure

2008-04-18T23:24:00.012-04:00

Once again, terribly sorry for not updating for a while, it has been one of those weeks and one of those months. This week, my computer crashed and burned because it had 54 viruses on it that finally destroyed my main drive. Thank you Norton for taking my money and not doing a damn thing to stop the incoming viruses. So Shireen and I (OK mostly me) have been in panic mode because I can't work or function without my computer and while most of the files have been retrieved and saved, all e-mails, calendar and contact info that was in Outlook is lost in the netherworld at this point and I'm about to put my head through a wall. So between that and being nonstop on the road, with a full week pretty much in Tennessee next week, I think I've hit about all the stress level I need for a while.

So anyways, a week and a half ago, Brendan took his first plane ride (loved it by the way) to Wisconsin to visit Grandma Lynn and Great Grandma Adeline along with the other Grandparents. We mention them because that's who we have pictures of here. So he had a great time, although he now says every time Wisconsin is mentioned "it's cold there Daddy". Thus why we don't live anywhere near there we say to him. So here are the pictures with Shireen (by the way looking at the pictures as I was getting ready to post them, the age old question resurfaces, how the heck did I get this chick to marry me? Thank god that overmarrying is allowed in this country), his Grandma and Great Grandma and Grandma's doggy who was more than happy to see him go. Old dogs and young kids don't always mix the best.

Everything else is going well. T-Ball is continuing. Brendan's golf swing is getting better by the day, I think we are heading for golf lessons this summer, although the baseball coaches don't care for his golf swing in T-Ball to much, (Dad tends to be proud of it though). Jamie is almost bigger than Gordie, another month and she will weigh more. Shireen is mini-projecting the border of the patio downstairs, still planning the summer major project. Brendan this week tested for kindergarten and they are already suggesting a possible advanced class for him. He knew most of things he will need to know by the end of kindergarten, so that was nice to hear. Plus, he doesn't do well with boredom, so we are going to have to keep challenging him. After that all is well except for Brent's computer. If anybody is a computer genius and can figure out how to retrieve lost Outlook files, there's a beer in it for you. Take care.

March Update (aka Could be I any lamer in updating?)

2008-04-05T00:26:00.010-04:00

I keep doing a good job thinking I will update more than I do, but as many of you can tell, I don't. Shouldn't 80 hour a week jobs be more of a thing when you are in your 20's and have the energy for it? Yesterday alone, I had to get up at 7 at the hotel, be at our show in Orlando, at 8:30, work the show until 5, tear down to almost 6:00, and then drive eight hours home and get home at just before 2:00 A.M., completing about a 18 hour day. I am getting way to old for this. Anyways, enough bitching for tonight, here is our last couple week update. As many of you might have heard, we had a nice spell of tornadoes a few weeks ago, of which the Friday night socked downtown Atlanta pretty well. While lucky enough to miss those, the next day on Saturday we had tornado warning after tornado warning with most of family in basement and Dad nervously watching the TV upstairs. While no tornado hit, we did get some of the biggest hail I have ever been through. We have attached pictures for proof, that was not fun watching that hit the house I can assure you.

Secondly, T-Ball has started again. While last year Brendan could hit the ball well, everything else was a complete disaster. Now, all of a sudden, he has become a pretty decent fielder, throws much better (although still some work to do) and is running the bases awesomely, he is probably just about the fastest kid on his team (lack of weight thing I guess), but all of a sudden he couldn't hit the ball again. After a couple of practices and the first game of watching him hit the tee and trying everything we could think of, Dad resorted to outright bribery. (I'm not beneath that by the way). So Dad promised Brendan a train from the Thomas collection if he could hit it by the pitcher. So the first practice he ripped it to the outfield. Just to be contrarian and to bug Brendan, since I was out of town, I told him he had to do it in the game. First at bat, he rips it to left field. Second at bat, knocks it 15 ft. in the air to the pitcher, (first time ever hitting it that high in the air), thus showing the power of train bribery. Needless to say while standing on 3rd base (see picture) Brenadan was confirming there would be a visit to Toys R Us after the game. He is definitely going to be a politician or lawyer with his negotiating skills already. We also put on some pictures from pre-school.

So at this point, Dad is home alone, Brendan and Mom are in Wisconsin and Brendan had his first plane ride, which he just loved. Grandma has been making him cookies and all kinds of home made foods, so Brendan is in heaven, (you can only take Mom's microwave cooking for so long you know). Also, Mom and Grandma took Brendan shopping for more trains today (why he needs more than a hundred is beyond me). So Dad is enjoying his messy house (that will change by Monday for fear of my life), and not having to get up until noon and eating when he wants (instead of OCD wife's time frame), but the house is way to quite and lonely and I am looking forward to getting them back Monday. That's all the updates for now, we will try and get some Wisconsin pictures on the next update if I can get off my backside before May and get an update on here more than once a month. Later.

Spring Ain't good for Blogging

2008-03-11T00:35:00.009-04:00

Heartfelt apologies for no update for a while. My job becomes an absolute killer this time of year with 70 hour weeks pretty much the norm. That and the game of tag we have been playing within the family with colds and the flu (I'm it right now with the cold, thanks Brendan). So there hasn't been much time or energy to do much updating.

So anyways, my job has been crazy. I was in San Antonio most of last week for a show(a couple of pictures with some of my group and Riverwalk, yes I know I look at least 50, thanks again Grandpa for those genes). At least the weather was nice, but, like most shows, more beers were consumed than hours of sleep. Never a good ratio to have, but it is getting closer to a one on one which is much better than 10 years ago, so there must be some maturity kicking in. Business has been great so far this year. The economy never hurts my business, just the unexpected 4-7 football season is when I suffer. Looking good for next year for my Florida and Georgia accounts, that may end up being the game of the year.

Shireen is doing well, although she needs her husband to travel again. She hates this time of year, since when I'm home, I am doing nothing but entering orders and being grumpy with the work overload and am basically no help to her, so she would rather just have me out of the house. No new projects yet, but we have heard rumors about some tiling of the upstairs bathroom. She is already trying to figure out where to unload Brendan this summer. With no siblings and entering the age where he needs the challenges of school, if he is home all summer, she will lose her mind. I see a lot of vacation bible schools and tennis lessons this summer for Brendan. It's hard to believe that he will be in kindergarten in the fall. Down here, they start the first week of August, so it's not far away. With his size and his mouthiness, he better find some big friends quick or practice that sprinting some more. Other than that, not much going on with Shireen, we still have our gigantic sand pile in the woods that she swears will go away, but I may have to make a blog entry of that soon to mock her.

As for Brendan, he loves school, supposedly he is one of the better behaving kids according to his teacher (must just save it for us, because he has all of the grandparents snowed also). He will be starting his 2nd year of T-Ball this week and we have been working to get rid of the dorkiness that was so prevalent last year, although we haven't ran with the batting helmet yet, the true test of how far we have come. Mommy just got him a bigger bike with Spiderman all over it, of which I have attached pictures, so he's psyched about that. A little bit warmer and we will start practicing without the training wheels which should be interesting in that he gets extremely ticked when he can't get something and I foresee a lot of tantrums and timeouts when we tackle that one. Also, Mommy at some point in April is taking Brendan on a plane ride to Wisconsin which should be an interesting trip for Mommy, so I am sure we will have a whole blog update on that next month. Outside of that, Jamie (see picture with Aubie, the mascot at Auburn-where I hope Brendan goes to school, at a parade before we got her,) has become his sister and the two wrestle like crazy, with both beating the heck out of each other. Jamie is up to 38 lbs. now, she has doubled in weight since we have gotten her. She abuses Gordie terribly, why he doesn't fight back we have no idea, but she chews on him constantly.

Spring is finally springing, 70's this week, so we will post some pictures soon of the trees blossoming, if nothing else to mock our Northern brethern, because there is no amount of money that could have gotten me to live in Indiana or surrounding areas this winter. Hopefully, it's starting to finally end, but you can keep it.

That's it for now, we will have baseball and other pictures soon and there won't be as long between updates from this point, I can't be busier than I was this month. Hope you all are doing well and look forward to hearing from all of you soon.

And then he was 5

2008-01-30T22:13:00.000-05:00

Miracously, we have survived another Birthday Party. No easy task, mind you, when you have 15 two to five year olds winging bowling balls around, but all is well. We had a great time Saturday and nobody got a bowling ball upside the head, which was surprising. Brendan got a ton of more presents, which after Christmas has kind of gotten to ridiculous proportions, but when you are the only kid, you will make out quite well. We have posted a number of pictures here showing him on Saturday. Some bowling, some with the kids, one waiting on Mommy to hurry up and cut the cake and the requisite one of our little bugger golden who has discovered she kind of likes the couch now. Thanks to everybody in the family that sent birthday presents to Brendan, he has already been out spending some of his Birthday money, but between the Grandparents and great Aunts he has got quite a bit to go. As usual, we sent Linda home exhausted (Shireen is just merciless on projects for her Mom, I actually feel sorry for her), but the grandkid is to good a bargaining chip. You all take care and good luck staying warm to all of you up north, we are not jealous.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow again?

2008-01-29T21:52:00.000-05:00

Twice in one week? This keeps up, I might have to keep moving South. Mid last week, our second winter blast hit again (for some of you, it might look more like spring), but for us, that was two snows to many. Brendan however, has come to love these unexpected excursions. He never knew what a blast sledding, making snowmen and snowball fights could be and it may be years before he gets the chance again. So we thought we should him enjoying what our Northern brethern take for granted since it may be some time before we show again (65 today) and a new updated picture of Jamie. We will be posting a Birthday post tomorrow which went surprisingly well this weekend.

What a Great Group

2008-01-19T22:49:00.000-05:00

While in almost frozen mode with more snow today and a low of 17 or so tonight, I had the yearning to happily remember a week or so ago with my compadres in the warmth of Orlando (low 80's most days) at our annual sales meeting. I work with just the greatest bunch of people. The amount of sarcastic, good natured ribbing that goes on during these meetings is just incredible. It's sort of like being around your best friends even though we only get together a few days out of the year in January and March. We have an incredible boss in Lisa, (one in glasses seated on couch) and her boss Stu, (skinny guy sitting on floor in front of picture). The rest of the reps from all over the country are just some of the greatest people I have ever known, and we terribly missed Mr. Jackson (although understandable when Durango is getting 3 ft. of snow). Luckily, they put my bald head in the background to keep the flash from blinding the camera, although Dan standing next to me is trying to join me. I just wanted to give everybody a visual of my fellow co-workers. When you work out of your office and most days are spent on the road, it is somewhat unbelievable to work with such great people and to have made such great friendships and I cannot believe how lucky I have been to have had this job. So here's to a great bunch of people and can't wait to see them again in San Antonio next month.

Like a Bad Acid Flashback

2008-01-18T19:11:00.000-05:00

Not that I would know of course what one is, but with the arrival of snow this week, I had to make sure I hadn't time jumped back 25 years to Indiana. This would be our first snow in 4 years here in Atlanta and a whole brand new concept to Brendan. Unfortunately, not so new to Mom and Dad who were tortured continously the first twenty plus years of their lives, with more stops to come in Denver, Kansas City and even the occasional Nashville snow. We thought we had escaped it now, but alas, no such luck. At least however it was gone in a day, but now we are supposed to get another 2 inches or so tomorrow. For some reason, haven't seen a whole lot of global warming stories in the paper. So anyways, here is some pictures to prove that we can occasionally bond with our northern brethren and kin, although 2 days of snow is exceeding our limit and we are ready for the 70's again, which to us is still a little chilly. Good luck all you Northerners with the wind chills this weekend, we are not jealous.

Worth the Wait

2008-01-03T12:38:00.000-05:00

As of this morning, we finally found the dog we were meant to have. While it took us a few weeks, it was worth the wait. Please meet Jamie, our newest golden retriever, in what is becoming a long line of retrievers in the Rice household. We picked her up at her Foster Parent's today and she is just a sweetie. She is a pure bred Golden, who, along with her brother was dropped off at a shelter. Brendan is already playing with her and she has already taken ownership of all of Ollie's toys. It's been about 15 years since we have had a puppy in the house, and we have already had about 3 accidents, so it will take a while to get used to again. Grandpa and Grandma ought to have a whole lot of fun this weekend and Grandma Lynn also in a few weeks over Brendan's Birthday. We will post more pictures as she gets older, but we wanted to let everybody know.

We Gave it the Old College Try

2007-12-31T00:35:00.000-05:00

In our search for a new dog, we took a shot on Junior, a mixed Golden (although where that comes in, we're not sure, see picture) and an unknown breed, although Rot or Pit was the best guess. So yesterday we brought him over to see how he would do with the family. He is 5 months old and already weighs 55 pounds and was built like a linebacker. He had an absolutely great disposition, but was all puppy although built like a full grown dog. He could not sit still. He chased Gordie all over the house wanting to play (that did not go over well with Gordie, who ended up in Dad's lap most of the afternoon). So when he wouldn't play, he barked incessantly at him (annoying to both Dad and Gordie) and then decided he would try to chew everything in sight including pillows, bumper guards on the table, Brendan's trains and DVD's and Gordie's tail (again, not well received). After shopping for a cage for him, Mom and Brendan returned home. At this point, Junior decided since Gordie wouldn't play, Brendan was about the right size and ended up tackling him two or three times and wanting to wrestle. Since Brendan was outweighed by about 25 lbs., it ended up being a one sided affair. After a few times of that, we decided for the sake of Brendan standing upright over the next few months, it was time to call it a day and return Junior back to his Foster Parent. We wish him the best, he will make somebody a great dog, just not us. So it's off to probably trying to find another Golden (they just fit us to well) and we did get a call today from the Golden Rescue fund that there may be some Golden puppies available which we may be looking at. So that's our finding a new dog update for now. Hope you all had a great Christmas and have a great New Year tomorrow night.

The Trials and Tribulations of Winter in the South

2007-12-23T01:42:00.000-05:00

As you can see from the attached pictures, Winter in the Southern States is just brutal. Since most everybody that checks in on this blog is from somewhere north of here (except for the occasional Texas visitor, and that one poor, deranged Laker fan in L.A.), we thought we would show the torture we go through here in the winter, especially in December. Did you see what Brendan had to go through to hit golf balls? I mean long pants and even a mock sweater? We have it so tough down here. Feel pity for us please, it's only supposed to be in the high 60's next Saturday ( also we just needed some kind of blog to get that damn Jimmy Johnson off of the top of the blog, I mean really, could we look more Southern redneck, all credit to the wife on that one). So we added a picture of our Christmas tree to show we actually took these at Christmas. I love when the white on the ground is sand and not snow. On a serious note, we hope all of our friends and family have a great and safe Christmas and New Year. We miss seeing all of you and we are so glad to get Christmas cards and stay in touch with our friends from Kansas City, Raleigh, Manhattan, KS, Los Angeles, Nashville, Indiana, Texas, and many other parts of the country. We cannot be luckier to have the friends that we do and we cherish all of our friendships that we have made over the last 16 years in all of the different cities across the country. We can only hope to be as lucky in the future meeting as many great people as we have over the last 17 years. Our prayers to you and your families and we hope to see many of you before long. Please keep in touch and let us know how you are doing.

Life Is Good

2007-12-12T20:08:00.000-05:00

A Star is Born (Yeah Right!)

2007-12-12T18:51:00.000-05:00

We attended Brendan's Christmas concert last week Thursday. Needless to say it was an adorable disaster. Off key singing, missed words, you name it, it happened. I have attached a video from it for your viewing pleasure. If the camera is bouncing it's because I was laughing so hard.

Ode to Ollie

2007-12-07T23:04:00.000-05:00

As I'm sure countless others of you are aware, the one really bad thing about owning pets is when the day comes you have to put them down. It's a heart wrenching, guilt ridden, exhausting endeavor and no amount of knowing it was the right thing to do makes it any better. For the 3rd time in the last 25 months, we had to put one of our dogs to sleep this last Saturday. We got Ollie, our 3rd Golden Retriever that we have owned, through the Golden Rescue fund here in Atlanta two years ago when our 2nd Golden, Scout had passed away. The day we met Ollie, we knew he was the dog to have. He was so kickbacked and relaxed and had the absolutely best disposition of any dog we had ever had. Brendan walked up and played with the tags on his collar and Ollie just gave him a look of "whatever kid, I ain't moving". He became a permament fixture on our couch almost immediately and we never had any kind of accident or behavior problem. We know we will never have a dog this absolutely good and trained ever again.

About a year ago we discovered that Ollie had a chronic kidney problem. With medicine and a special diet we were able to keep him around for almost another year. We will miss him horribly, he was our friend and companion. No matter how many times you go through it, it always feels like the first time and each time has it's own pain and mourning. Kudos to Shireen for actually going inside and doing the last 3, thus why I think the next one will be a puppy, we need a break from this exercise for a few years and with Gordie being young, obnoxious and in incredible shape, hopefully we won't have to worry about him for the next couple years (although he did learn the couch thing from Ollie, see picture). So here is our tribute to our pal and friend, may we have many more like him.

Whatever It Takes to Get Chocolate

2007-11-16T00:36:00.000-05:00

Halloween has come and gone and we are finally posting pictures, but the candy lives on. For the first time in the last 3 years, Brendaan finally got the concept of Halloween and understood all of the implications of saying "Trick or Treat", carrying a big orange pumpkin bowl and going as fast as possible house to house to load up on even more candy. Going as a pack for the 4th year in a row, the walk house to house has now become a sprint with the parents (Well Mom anyways, Dad stayed home, had a beer and handed out chocolate), running to keep up. Brendan, Mom and Dad are still working through some of the candy from Halloween if that is any indication how much candy Brendan collected and although he tried, he succeeded in not killing himself tripping over his Thomas the Train outfit.

It has become an annual tradition I think for every kid within 10 miles to hit up our neighborhood. By 8:30, Dad had handed out 13 bags of candy and ended up shutting off the lights of which the dogs were eternally grateful. Thanks for all who have been checking out the web site including those in Indiana, California and others who we've heard from recently. Send us some pictures when you get a chance and we will post here to share with the others across the country. For those we don't talk to you, have a Great Thanksgiving with your families and stay safe.

It's a Miracle, but It's Finished

2007-10-30T23:47:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the weeks between blogs, but College Football season will do that. Between traveling and working, I haven't had the chance to enter, but we're back now. October was also a crazy month for the Rice's in that Shireen finally completed her summer long project of redoing the area below the deck and making it into a nice patio for next summer. Of course, she absolutely killed off her Dad, who may never visit again, with 3 plus 12 hour days. Then two weeks later, put her Mom to work doing the landscaping around the whole thing. We cannot express our appreciation enough for their work, if not for them, we might have finished by Christmas and that is probably doubtful. So without further ado, here is some pictures of the before and after and just a really cute one of Fireman Brendan which has nothing to do with this blog, but was just to cute not to post for the Grandparents.

Over the course of two months, Shireen dug about a foot down, which with Georgia clay, not a whole lot of fun. Coupled with the 4 tons to much of sand she ordered, we have enough filler in our woods to last for years. Anybody want some top soil or sand? Come on by.

The outdoor sink was a great touch and soon we will have the furniture, a swing and a shade attached. We will also be adding the underdecking with the ceiling fan. Should be an extremely nice area when done and I have just way to proud a wife after this. She loves to show off to the neighbors, as much to get them to abuse me for not doing hardly anything on it as much as anything, but whatever makes her happy. As you can see, Brendan was a load of help.

After helping Mommy, we donned our fireman hat for Grandma so she could have a good picture to go back to Wisconsin with. This is our second fireman hat since the fire department visited pre-school again. Brendan absolutely loves pre-school, can't get out of the car fast enough in the morning and is picking up way to many things, but he has been so less bored and cranky now. Mom and Dad have been extremely thankful for that. We will be posting Halloween pictures in a few days, look for a Thomas the Train outfit to appear soon.

All is Right In the Universe Again

2007-10-02T23:13:00.000-04:00

Finally, a Steeler loss. After a profanity laced phone call from Todd Sunday night, all seems right in the Universe again. A happy Todd is just way to weird a thing, so to have Todd pretty much proclaiming death to me and everybody I know brought a smile to my face. To make it even better, Richelle was able to rub in the Raiders win and with the Cowboys win and all, Todd was absolutely miserable. I'm sticking to my 12-4 preseason guess for the Cowboys, but a few more weeks like this and I might have to up that. Our Waterloo is coming in a few weeks against the Pats, but until then, I'll enjoy life. Those damn Packers keep playing out of their head, but at least they have to come to Dallas. If they win that one, I may have to change my number, no way will I be able to stand Mr. Van Alstyne at that point, who has strangely not been heard from this week.

Good to see as much as the Boilers tried this week, Notre Dame is so bad they couldn't take advantage of them. Purdue might be the worst 5-0 team to ever take the field and that ranking will go away after this week, but it beats being 0-5 with at least 2 or 3 more losses guaranteed. Keep believing that it is only a one year rebuilding thing Mr. Getty and I'll keep believing my hair will grow back soon.

Shireen has been working her dad to death this week and the outdoor patio project is about half done. We expect to have a whole pictorial posted here by this weekend. Anybody need about 3 tons of sand? My wife, with her wonderful Wisconsin education, tried to figure out the amount of sand needed and realized later that we need about 2 tons and had 6 delivered. Brendan is good to go on the sand box for about the next 7 years.

That's about all the updates for now, I am completely boring during football season, because I all do is work, but we will be posting pictures soon of the patio project, Brendan's Halloween, etc. Hope all of our friends and family are doing well and hope to hear from many of you soon.

How Bout them Cowboys???

2007-09-25T23:58:00.000-04:00

And Packers (crap), and Steelers (double crap). Freaking 3-0 start since God knows when and the damn Steelers and Packers start 3-0 also and ruin the whole fun phone calling on Sunday nights to Raleigh and Nashville. Although at some point the Steelers got to move beyond the whole St. Theresa's Sisters of the Blind, Deaf and Mute that have been their first 3 opponents (don't even give me the whole 2-0 Frisco thing, that team will be lucky to finish 8-8). At least the Packers have played somebody (although it was at home, and they were lucky S.D. didn't get one more first down and then forgot how to tackle a slant, usual Cowboys move there). Starting to look like a battle between Big D and the Pack again come Dec., unless somebody in the NFC wants to wake up and play some football, which doesn't look like it at this point. I think John and I would both admit, we'll stay in the NFC, that AFC thing is brutal. Anyways starting to remind me of the mid 90's when the Cowboys tortured the Pack before the late 90's when the favor was returned. Memo to Jerry Jones: Did you see Grossman? Freaking sign Romo now and for a lot of years. Oh by the way, sign a safety also some time this decade. Freaking Brady may throw for 7 touchdowns against us in a few weeks. You want a sure lock bet, take the over in that game. At least the Steelers play the Patriots also this year. We may need to get Mr. Laskey's comments about Brady at that point on the blog, not sure there would be anything funnier this year.

As for college football season, is anybody starting to feel sorry for Mr. Getty yet? I mean, can the Irish be any worse? I'm to scared of a Purdue let down, but barring that, I may even start to feel sorry for those green idiots. How bare can a cupboard be? Ty forget to recruit when he got there? You know if you can make Mich. State look good, you have hit bottom. As for that, can the Big 10 be any worse? Ohio State lost everybody and they still look the better than everybody else. Watching that Michigan, Penn State game was like watching those teams in the 70's. Guys, it's the 21st Century, don't be afraid to recruit some speed sometime this century. God, it was like watching players run in molasses. I kind of understand when it's 5 below zero, but Jesus when it's 70, try breaking a 5.0 40, especially if you're a receiver or running back.

Watch that game and then watch Florida and LSU in a few weeks or Cal and USC and tell me the Big 10 gets any recruits any more. I had no idea when I lived there how bad football was. As for Penn State and Fla. State. Can Bowden and Joe Pa please make an agreement to retire at the same time (preferably this year) and quit waiting for the other to croak so they can get the most wins title. I have a stake in the whole Fla. State thing, selling merchandise to them and all and if anybody watched that Colorado game, two things became clear. How unbelievably bad the Big 12 except for Oklahoma and Texas have gotten and how far Fla. State has slipped (which Penn State also showed Sat.) Let's see, you are a 17 year old Hot Shot Stud football player, where do you go? To Fla. State or Happy Valley to play for an 80 year old Coach who probably won't be there in a year or two, with a team that has been barely ranked the last few years or to Gainesville or LA and play for a young, aggressive Coach that is winning Natl. Titles and is a pipeline for the NFL. Let's give that one some thought. Name me anyone that does things better in their late 70's than in their 40's and 50's. Good luck with that one (although maybe my golf swing will finally slow down where I can make a square impact).

Also, forgot to mention last week, if you are ever in Vegas around this time of year and you see Purdue and Minnesota playing, bet the mortgage on the over. Check out the scores over the last few years and you'll see what I mean. Defense is not only optional in that game, it's seriously frowned upon.

So finally, WAR Steelers Waking Up, WAR Favre becoming Favre again (e.g. multiple interceptions), WAR Irish 0-8 start, and WAR John's golf game staying dormant (at least until I get through there in October).

Look for more smack talking next week, I will keep going until those damn Packer, Irish and Steeler fans start responding (Sorry Richelle, I just have no heart to rip the Raiders, there's just no challenge in it). Later.

The Sporting Cousins

2007-09-23T00:10:00.000-04:00

Sorry for not posting for a while, but the start of college football season for me leaves little time for sleep, let along blogging. I wanted to post some pictures of the cousins and their sports pursuits lately. While we are still in soccer, Brendan and Dad have been sneaking off to the golf range some and with fall beginning to arrive, Jonathan is deep into football. While Brendan will have to double in size before we let him on a football field (thus the whole golf thing), Jonathan looks like a natural and someday may be wearing that red for Nebraska, although baseball still seems to be his sport and where his natural athletic abilities lie, especially after hitting homer after homer against me with the wiffle ball over the house last year at Hilton Head (sad part was, I wasn't trying to take it easy on him). Anyways here are some pictures of the boys, hope the grandparents enjoy and glad to hear our friends from Indiana and North Carolina have been checking out. Will do a whole football summary tomorrow, although it is killing me that even I am starting to feel like ripping Notre Dame is piling on at this point

After seeing Nebraska's score against Ball State today, Jonathan may be getting a call from Callahan soon to see if he can start at safety. I mean, he already has the uniform ready to go and this proves he can make an interception which is probably one more than Nebraska has this year.

While the whole split hand grip thing is an interesting development and not something usually recommended, he does keep his head down much better than Dad. And also much better balance. Probably best he does it his way, rather than watching Dad which could really screw up his golf swing. Once again our hope and wish is that he gets bigger and more into golf so Dad finally has some reason to convince Mom to let him join the golf course. If Brendan ever wants to see the family car, he will play golf, but we'll leave those threats for later. Luckily, by living in the South, we will be able to send more golf pictures through December, although the bermuda will be a little brown by then which usually, finally brings out John's golf game (inside Nashville humor). As an overall update, Brendan is loving preschool, (Mom and Dad bore the heck out of him), he has been in a great mood ever since school started, although much more of a smart ass talk backer which repeated tickling sessions and tackles into the couch haven't cured. He seems to have taken the sarcasm and general enjoyment of irritating his parents to a new level. The whole turn off football, turn on Sprout and then running around the house with the clickie to keep it from Dad, has gotten especially annoying. I'll remember this next time he wants to go to a game. That's it for now, look for a football post soon.

So Nice to See the Wife in Agony

2007-09-12T01:13:00.001-04:00

Finally, Thank God, Football Season has made it. It's a double bonus this time of year. Not only is there non-stop football now, but it also drives the wife nuts especially since between college and pro, you get about 4 days a week with football on the TV. After years of complaining and still an occasional try, she has pretty much given up that football will get turned off at any point. Although, she has learned to provide me with a back up clickie, something or other about a Florida State loss last year combined with a 20 ft or so toss at about 80 mph that hit a wall and somewhat shattered the old clickie and cost us about a $100 or so to replace. I don't do well when my schools lose, although I broke nothing after Auburn this week which should be chalked up to maturity or just to tired to care, one or the other.

Anyways, great to see the Cowboys get off to a nice win, although that defense better damn well improve or I will be getting way to many calls from Raleigh and how often can you listen to Todd without wanting to throw another clickie? At least I won't hear from Richelle this year, nice loss to the Lions by the way. I would say Congrats to the Steelers, but when you play St. Theresa's Sisters of the Blind, do you really deserve kudos? However, (as much as it kills me), I will give a big shoutout to the Pack, thanks for taking those green and white asses from Philly down. Now just do your job against the Midgets this week and you'll stay in the good column.

And just in case, Mr. Hamler is reading, you are going to disavow all evidence that you might be a Chiefs fan arent' you? If it wasn't for Cleveland, you would have the first pick locked up next year. Might I suggest a quarterback in your first, second and third rounds next year. Although we will give Brodie Croyle props for perhaps having the hottest wife in the NFL (watch Hard Knocks on HBO, you'll agree).

Anyways, just awesome to be able to talk football, although those freaking Steelers need to come back to Earth, no way can I take a whole fall of a happy Todd, the Universe is just out of whack if he isn't miserable and bitching. Get the Beer and chips ready for week two and I'm sure there will be more comments next week, when don't I have an opinion? Later.

A Glimmer of Hope

2007-09-03T20:22:00.000-04:00

In this vast season of darkness (a.k.a. football season-college and pro.) there is some good news. Jimmie Johnson finished first in California and will be seeded FIRST(if the chase started today). Which means, and this gives me great pleasure, ahead of Jeff(pretty boy) Gordon.
. Now, I understand this might not seem like much to some of you. But, when you are subjected to 3+ months of college and 6+ months of professional football this is the one thing that keeps you sane.

Whew.... and Irish Eyes Ain't Smiling

2007-09-02T00:29:00.000-04:00

This would be the first non-picture post of the new season, but with College Football just kicking off, how could one not post a few thoughts and abuses. First of all, thank god for the Auburn Win tonight, WAR EAGLE BABY!!!, Dr. Hamler was just hoping to call me back and abuse me for my phone call from Auburn today telling him he had no shot. Supposedly tonight he had people leaving and couldn't talk to me any longer and obviously had no clue that my wife, who normally would be a morning person, will take every chance to sleep in tomorrow and will not wake me up early. Those of you who have no idea of what I'm talking about should feel sorry his wife, Gabby. After rooming with the freak for about a year and getting the clapping and told what a great day it is at 7:00 every moring, one can only feel what the poor girl did to herself by marrying him. By the way, great effort K-State, but SEC is a whole different ball game.

First abuse is to Michigan. What the hell? App State? As one of the few or only people here that has visited Boone, NC, how the hell a football team from there could beat Southeastern Rhode Island, let alone Michigan, is beyond me. I am sure they get their fair share of recruits that want to be as far from civilization as possible, but to make Michigan look like the inferoir team and really should not have been that close. Hey Michigan, I heard Emory is looking for a game (look it up people, you'll get the joke). Nice $400,000 to get your ass kicked.

Now for the most fun part of the day. Not only did it satisfy my insatiable desire to inflict pain on those green and gold idiots from up north, but it probably made me a lot of money for next week. Nice offense ND, maybe Tim Couch has a year of eligibility left. Could an offense look any more inept at home on an opener? Usually I have no use for the polls, but leaving Notre Dame out was incredibly prescient. And letting Ga. Tech score 33 on your home turf without Calvin Johnson? And a blocked field goal? If your offense was a pitcher's ERA, you might win the Cy Young at least this year. Mr. Getty wouldn't answer any phone calls after half time, so I'm hoping he is still kicking and breathing. I might overnight any apparel I have from those losers, who wants that bad karma around? Purdue might have scored more today than ND will all year. If ND beats Purdue, I may never see Mr. Getty ever again,(I might have to hang myself) but at least he beat John in golf this week which ranks up there with App. State.

Tennessee, did your defense not make the flight to NoCal????

So, to go out on a limb, I'll try my best at college prognastication after 1 week. Their schedule is a joke and how many All-Americans can you get and not be good? So I will pick USC to play the winner of LSU and Florida, who I predict will have one loss each and play each other in the SEC Championship game. One of the Big East teams will probably go undeafeated, but I will guess, because of Florida last year, people will realize that a SEC team with one loss is so much better, they will get the shot. LSU will have played Va. Tech and Florida will have played Fla. State which along with their conference schedule, will be, and should be, so much more impressive than any Big East schedule. This will be one hell of a game and as last year showed, you can't account for speed, which only USC can match these teams in the South.

That's it for tonight. Can't wait for the NFL to start to start abusing the Steelers, Raiders, Packers and all those other favorite teams of friends who read here. That's when I expect the comments to start flying back, if this didn't start some already.

WAR EAGLE, WAR COWBOYS and WAR BOILERS!!!!

All in the Family

2007-08-24T20:45:00.000-04:00

It seems my one and only sister has found a good way to keep everybody in the family updated. Send pictures to her brother and let him do all of the work. As you can see, she was much to busy enjoying her vacation (and rubbing in the ski runs in the background) to e-mail them herself, so this seemed a good way to her. Looks like a very relaxing vacation, although the young one will probably need therapy after seeing that fish. We hope our friends will send pictures soon also so we can share, but this will at least show the other half of our family here. And truth be told, if you lived in Lincoln Nebraska, wouldn't you be vacationing as much as possible? Hope you all have a good weekend.

Does she ever sit still???

2007-08-18T00:08:00.000-04:00

What do you get when you cross a Type A personality (some of us would say anal retentive or obsessive compulsive) with a stay at home Mom? Projects, lots of projects. I thought I would show a few of her bigger ones, although by no means does this cover the whole list. While I am sure to suffer more ridicule on my next golf game in Nashville (although winning money almost every single time takes the sting away from the abuse I receive), I have to admit when it comes to home improvements, I am married to the female version of Bob Villa. Thank god, because unlike those masochists in Nashville, I have no desire to build a deck in the middle of the summer in the South. So let's start down the road. When we moved into our house here near Atlanta in 2004, the inside of the house was pretty awesome, but the outside was a mini-disaster. So, Shireen's projects started with the front yard as the before and after pictures will show here.

Then, out of the blue, came the inspiration that our kitchen should be splash guarded to death. While I have been known to splatter some spaghetti sauce, I don't think I could send it 20 ft. away, but as usual the wife disagreed and for the better part of a month, our garage was filled with the sound of a tile saw and the remnants of tile dust. And while, as usual, Shireen's math was horrendous (are you sure that 7/16 is more than 3/8) with that wonderful Wisconsin education, the project came out extremely well, especially for all of the cursing and mistaken cuttings.

After that her attention turned back to the outside. The back yard and the wooded area has been a constant source of Shireen's obsessive nature (we should buy stock in Roundup) and so we went from just a god awful yard with half of it not even having sod and a woods that looked like it hadn't been touched in 20 years, to sod, to an expanded irrigation system to finally a complete ripping up of dead sod that wouldn't take and the laying down of mulch and plants. Just for the record, Shireen's Mom, Linda, has been pressed into service of all of these outdoor projects and usually heads back to Wisconsin overly glad to get away from her daughter. Even I was pressed into service in this latest venture and had the enjoyable experience of roto tilling the mounds of dirt and dead sod which was an absolute joy. As usual, the yard came out looking great and if we could get a rain shower sometime this year and have a heat index under a 110, we might even get it looking better.

So next on the list, and currently underway is the digging up of the ground below the deck in preparation to lay stone and tile for a patio flooring. This time Shireen is springing the project on her Dad when he comes to visit (last time he got the next fixture for the sink). Luckily we have leverage with the grandkid and are able to parlay that into projects. We will post the completed project when done along with the 2 or 3 more that I'm sure Shireen has added to her list by then.

Bend it Like ......

2007-08-14T22:16:00.000-04:00

Ok, maybe not quite. We have started the first year of soccer, and while getting the rules of the game haven't become quite clear, at least Brendan looks good in the part. Of course, the practices in the 100 plus degree heat haven't helped, (Mommy's water bottle has been of more interest than learning the game). However, while Daddy waits for the golf bug to kick in, this will do.

As you can see we started with our backyard practicing, although the basketball impulse was still strong (those damn Indiana genes). Then came the practices where I could do the cones, but what the heck was this net thing all about?

And lastly came the first game. Whoever decided that 8 A.M. was a good time for a Soccer Game had to be a sadist. All family members were present although less than awake, especially the participating player.

And then came game time. While we ran around after the ball, we had no desire to go kick it with all the other kids kicking at it (thus kind of clueless on the whole goal of soccer, so to say), although our stint at goalie was a perfect shutout (of course, no kicks by the other team helps that stat). However, there was no shame in not mixing it up, did you see the size of those girls says Brendan, when I'm in high school and wanting to date them is one thing, but getting kicked by them on the Soccer Field at this point is a whole other.

So thus ended the first week of Shireen being a Soccer Mom, which of course included a hour and a half stint in the concession area and Brent being a Soccer Dad (is that a voting bloc?). While proud of our only boy, Mom and Dad realize there is much work ahead on the whole concept of Soccer (once again, Dad is really humoring Mom, before the all day golf lessons begin). We especially hope the grandparents and other family members enjoy and we say hello to all of our friends that may be checking this out for the first time.

As a complete side note, congratulations to Amanda Blumenherst this weekend for finishing runner up in U.S Women's Amateur. Bill, her uncle, who was her caddy this weekend was one of my best friends growing up and we still keep in touch especially when I make it back to Ft. Wayne. I have known the family for years and Amanda has led Duke to the Women's Natl. Championship the last two years, was College Player of the Year the last two years, made the Cut at the Women's U.S. Open the last two years and received the Nancy Lopez Award for Top Women's Amateur Golfer in the World this year. Amanda lost by 1 hole in a 36 hole final that was televised on the Golf Channel this weekend. You will be seeing her on the LPGA Tour quite a bit in a couple of years and she is a great person for younger kids to look up to. She is going to stay at Duke for 4 years even though she could be on the Tour now and has amassed straight A's while at Duke. While there are many sordid stories in sports right now, it's nice to see someone have success that is doing it right.

We will be entering a new post in the next couple days of the numerous projects that obsessive, compulsive wife has taken on lately, which will show pictures of the house here in Atlanta for our friends across the country that have not seen it yet. We hope you are all doing well and look forward to hearing from you, don't be shy to post your comments. Later.

Brent

Summer Living in the South

2007-08-07T23:37:00.001-04:00

As we try and get through the multiple 100 heat index days, we have decided to show a piece of our life in the South. Brendan attended his first Braves game and although Mom and Dad sweated to death, Brendan decided Slushies and Cotton Candy were more than enough to get through the heat. Brendan decided to call Grandpa during the game and during the call, Jarrod Saltalamachia hit his second home run of the night. Unfortnately, Salty is now playing for Texas, but Brendan got to see Salty's only two home run game for the Braves. Also this spring, Brendan started his career towards playing for the Braves in 2025. While a hitting machine, catching a ball ( or at least watching home plate) and running to first base (instead of the leisurely stroll) were problems we hope to correct next year.

Ashamed and Embarrassed

2007-07-30T00:13:00.000-04:00

I would like to apologize for any and all references to Jimmy Johnson on this blog. This was not on the original content and only shows what happens when you include your wife as one of the authors. While she was not thrilled to be referenced to Purdue or with anything from Indiana (like Wisconsin is so much better or warmer), did she really have to add the reference Jimmy Johnson Fan or actually go to the web site and download the 48 Picture wallpaper? We are currently scrambling to find a picture that won't be so embarrassing (maybe something like the 24, that can actually finish a race and finish better than 39th.) You would think after today, there would be an urge to take down this debacle, but as usual, stubborness prevails. Hopefully, good sense will kick in over time and this blog will no longer be associated in any way with the 48 car. As some of you already know, isn't Brendan's room enough of a disgrace without adding to it here? Later.

Brent

The Beginning

2007-07-28T00:02:00.000-04:00

Like all new adventures, I expect to learn quite a bit from the first time here. I imagined this driving home across Georgia at 2 A.M. (one of the way to many times) earlier this week. I began to think of all the friends that I have made over the last 20 years or so. From high school to college and then the 3 different times in Kansas City to L.A, and then Denver, Raleigh, Nashville and now Atlanta, I have met and become friends with just some extraordinary people. I then begin to think how difficult it is to stay in touch with everybody. People move, kids come along and before you know it, it can be 2-3 years before you have touched base with somebody other than the occasional Christmas card. I began to think if there was a forum such as this that Shireen and I could post updates about our lives, then our friends and family could get a much better idea of what we have been up to and hopefully through comments and e-mails, we could keep up with them. As somebody who lives on his e-mail and uses the phone very seldom any more, this seemed to be a great way to try and keep up with everybody.

I hope we can keep it somewhat interesting and I hope our friends will participate quite often. I imagine that I will be posting mainly opinions on sports (like the Steelers suck or Karl's golf game is awful), that Shireen will be posting items on Brendan or the general uncleanliness or untrainability of husbands and I'm sure there will be the constant posting by Brendan of what engine from Thomas the Train collection the grandparents can get him next.

If nothing else, this should save Shireen and I time trying to keep the grandparents updated on every aspect of Brendan's life (we don't really count anymore), by making them visit this site to get updated. After I consult the IT department in our house (Shireen), we will start posting pictures on a regular basis and hope you enjoy. We would enjoy any e-mails or pictures from any of our friends to share with our group here. We hope you are all doing well and miss seeing all of you. Hope your summer is going well and look forward to hearing from you. Later.

Brent