Happy Halloween!

Hello all,

I'll skip all the stuff from work today. It can wait. Tonight's entry is about the kids Trick-or-Treating. Zac was dressed as Speed McQueen from the Disney movie Cars. Ali was dressed as Snow White. Most of you know who Snow White is from your days as a kid. Anyway, I pulled into the garage at 6:00 and the kids were ready to go -- buckets in hand. I quickly changed clothes and we were off to make the loop around the block.

Ali was on a mission. She was prompt to knock on the door and say TRICK OR TREAT!. We had to remind both kids to say Thank you, Happy Halloween. It is one thing to ask for candy, but they must be polite while doing it.

We made it around the block just in time for the air to become chilled. We turned on our porch light just in time to have the Hermson family drop by. The kids all looked like they were having a blast going from house to house.

After staying home for a few minutes, Jennifer called Diane to see if she wanted to see the kids in their costumes. We were soon off to Gramma's house for pictures and a quick loop around her block with Ali. Let me tell you, the kids had a blast!

We returned home in time for the final round of visitors and everyone was in bed before the night got too late.

Good night,

-Andy

Tuesday...

Hello all,

I'm back at work, but still not feeling the best. It was a long day. I wore a tie today to try to make myself feel better. It did not work.

-Andy

Home

Hello all,

I am home sick today. It seems that if you stay up all night with your kids coughing on you, you will contract the same bug they have. YUK.

-Andy

Back to Good Shepherd

Hello all,

It has been many weeks since Jennifer and I have been to Good Shepherd. We have been unhappy since we were told that we could not teach Senior High Sunday School. Anyway, that is a long story by itself. The service today was nice. I enjoyed listening to Pastor David speak.

Good night,
-Andy

Healing

Hello all,

Not a lot to talk about today. Ali and Zac are on the mend. Jennifer and I are coming down with the same thing bug that they have. Yuk...

-Andy

Home with Zac

Hello all,

It is Friday. Zac and Ali are both ill today. I stayed home with both of them and did not sleep very well last night. These are the days that I'll attribute my gray hair to as I get older.

Good night,

-Andy

No Steve

Hello all,

I want to wish Steve Brown the best of luck today in his procedure. I am thinking about you today.

-Andy

Gymnastics

Hello all,

I am very proud of Ali and Zac tonight. I could not go downstairs with Zac tonight. Mercury gymnastics said it was against the rules for parents to be downstairs. I was very disappointed. On the bright side, Zac and Ali did great. Zac stayed on task and Ali did a great job on the uneven bars.

Great job kids!

-Andy

Pot Roast

Hello all,

Tonight the house was filled with the aroma of warm pot roast cooking. What a wonderful smell on a cool Fall day. I like to make pot roast because all I have to do when I get home is make rice and gravy. Everything else is done! I wish I knew more recipes that cook during the day.

Good night,

-Andy

Getting Chilly

Hello all,

There is really a crisp feeling to the air these days. You can really tell that Summer is over and Fall is upon us. Tonight the kids and I played games in the living room while Jennifer bowled. We were upstairs taking a bath when Jennifer returned home. Nice job tonight Jennifer, 220 is your highest score this year!

Good night,

-Andy

Mowed Yard

Hello all,

Tonight I finished mowing the yard after Jennifer started mowing it on Friday. It took nine full buckets of grass to get it all removed from the yard... I'm glad it is finally done.

-Andy

Birthday Party

Hello all,

Try this on for a day:

9:00 Bowling
10:30 Air Zone
2:00 Birthday Party
4:00 Welcome Home Party
6:00 Sleep over

Are you worn out yet? That was our day today.
Ali and Zac are in a kids bowling league at 9:00. We then went to Air Zone to let Ali have some fun with Zac. We went home for a while and then took the kids to a birthday party at Gladstone Bowl. IMMEDIATELY after that party, we went to another party for a friend of ours that just got back from the reserves. The final part of the day was taking Ali over to her friends house for a sleep over...

I'm tired just writing about it. I lived it.

-Andy

Day with Zac

Hello all,

Today Jennifer and I had Zac at home with us for the day. We started out by taking Ali to school and then going to McDonald's for coffee. Zac played for a while in the kids area while Jennifer and I talked about our day. We then went to Air Zone to let Zac and I run around and get worn out. We had a blast going down the slides and making our way through the inflatable obstacle course. After an hour at Air Zone, we went to Pizza Shoppe for lunch.

We went home for an and waited until 4:00 to pick up Ali from school. She was happy to see me and ran to the car. I took the kids to Oak Grove Park and let them run around for a while. We played tag for a while and then went on the slides. It was soon time to go home and have dinner. EVERYONE was tired and ready for bed!

It was a great day!

-Andy

Persona Day Spa

Hello all,

What a great day to go to a spa! Today Jennifer and I treated ourselves to a day at the spa. I HIGHLY recommend that you try it sometime. Wow, I could go on and on about how great I feel right now, but it is too much to talk about. YOU just have to try it to understand it.

-Andy

Happy Anniversary Jennifer!

Hello all,

I am celebrating my ninth wedding anniversary today! The day is EXACTLY like the day we were married nine years ago. It has been raining all day long and cold. Can you believe that I went golfing in weather like this back then? Yep, my wedding party went golfing at Hodge Park that morning. It is amazing what you will do to stay calm...

I love you Jennifer! Thank you for a wonderful nine years! I can't wait to see what we can do next year!

Good night,
-Andy

Switching to Oracle

Hello all,

Today Steve and I were told that SODS would be converted from INFORMIX to ORACLE. For those of you who do not know what I am talking about, it would be equivalent to replacing the engine in your Ford truck with a GMC block. Yep, it is an engine, but when you try to bolt the transmission to the block, none of the wholes match up. This should be a very entertaining conversion!

-Andy

Short Work Week

Hello all,

Today was my Wednesday.. Yep, this is a short week for Jennifer and I. On Wednesday we celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary. I can't wait to celebrate our ninth anniversary. You are the best JENNIFER!

-Andy

Chiefs WIN

Hello all,

Jennifer and I went to the Chief's game today while Nana watched the kids. It was a great game. The weather was very comfortable and the crowd was into the game. It was a nice game to attend. I'm glad the Chiefs did not disappoint us.

-Andy

Nana in town

Hello all,

Tonight my mother drove down from Iowa for a visit. She had quite an adventure today on the farm. The transformer was hit by lightning last night and it blew power to the house. She had to have Midwest Power come out and replace the equipment on the pole before she left. Here are some of the pictures of that event.



Here is the light by her sidewalk.



Needless to say it was a noisy night for mom on the farm!

-Andy

Laughing with the kids

Hello all,

Tonight we laughed and played with the kids. It sounds simple, but it was a lot of fun to just have a fun night as a family. The kids had a simple dinner while Jennifer and I had steaks from the grill. Steaks are becoming the staple on Friday nights. I guess it is our way of congratulating ourselves for making it through the week.

Good night,
-Andy

Ali's Limo Ride

Hello all,


Something special happened this morning at the Scott house. Alexandria was picked up by a limousine as a reward for her effort with Oakwood Manor's Math-a-thon. She was very excited to ride in a limo with 15 of her classmates. I snapped this picture of the two of us right before she got in the car.

Ali was very happy to achieve this award. I had to hold her to keep her from climbing into the cabin! The kids were having a great time! The chaperon was a little fried by the time they arrived at out home. Ali was the last stop before taking a few trips around the block. Wendy... you deserve a nice relaxing afternoon after being put through that this morning!

Gymnastics

Hello all,

Yet another week has come and gone! Tonight was gymnastics. Jennifer had to work late so I took the kids by myself. Ali did great on the balance beam and uneven bars. She is going to be a great gymnast. Well, until she is taller than the apparatus! Jennifer and I are very proud of you Boo!

Zac had a rough start to tonight's class. He took his time getting to the bottom of the stairs. By the time he reached the floor, his class has already circled the floor. Now he was sad. I gave him a pep talk and walked him over to his class.

Soon it was their turn to jump on the trampoline (one of Zac's favorite things). Life was good for Zac. He jumped up and ran to his position. He had a great time. From the trampoline, he went to the parallel bars. Things got a little out of sequence for a while, but he stayed engaged for most of the exercise.

All in all, I am very proud of my two kids! They did a great job. I know that doing all this will help them later in life when they are faced with an obstacle and know they can overcome their fears and take it on.

LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

-Dad

Love you Jen

Hello all,

I wanted to dedicate this entry to my wife. Thank you for keeping my spirits up when I get down. I know that it is not easy knowing that I'm frustrated with my job. I hate having to worry about if I'll be laid off on the next round of separations. Thank you for being a wonderful wife.

Love you Bear!

-Andy

Work

Hello all,

It is Monday... The weekend has gone. The weather has turned cooler today and the chill has really got me thinking of winter.

I wish I knew where I am going to be in six months. This work thing has really got me worried. I'll keep you informed as information becomes more clear.

-Andy

Grocery shopping

Hello all,

Tonight the family went grocery shopping for the week. We have mapped out what each of the meals will be and our lunches as well. Once we were home, we cleaned out the refrigerator, freezer and pantry and tossed anything that had gone expired! YOU would be amazed to see how much space you have tired up with useless stuff!

-Andy

Mowing the Yard

Hello all,

I have been moving the yard on the same gallon of gas I purchased in April. I shook the final drops out of the gas can this afternoon and finished the yard. I must say, the yard looks nice with the rain we have received recently.

-Andy

Gladfest

Hello all,

Tonight was a great night to go out to a carnival! We gave the children a choice if they would rather go to the carnival tonight or tomorrow night, and they wanted to go sooner rather than later... go figure!

We started slow with the cars and bikes that rotate like a carousel. Here is Zac on his bike.

What a HAM!

Next, Ali and Jen went to ride some of the bigger rides, while Zac and I stayed small. We made our way over to the BIG SLIDE. It had three different shoots to go down. Each rider receives a rug to sit during your ride. I'll let you image how much fun Zac had. Oh yeah, I WENT TOO! We had a blast. Zac would not wait for everyone to be ready to slide. He was always the first one down.

Soon Ali and Mom joined us at the slide. Ali had to try it after seeing how much fun Zac and I were having. They must have ridden it 10 times each.

The final ride of the night for Zac and I was the hang gliders. We had a lot of fun at first, but by the end of the ride, both of our bellies were feeling sick. Going round in circles is not much fun for a 4 year old or his dad.

I was very happy to be home and in bed. Once the room stopped spinning, I was able to get to sleep.

-Andy

No Water Heater

Hello all,

This morning I woke up to the sensation of a cold shower. Yes, the water heater is not working. Nothing says Good Morning like a nice 68°F shower to start your day. I called LBA Plumbing and they are suppose to be here around noon.

-Andy

GREAT NIGHT FOR ZAC

Hello all,

JENNIFER AND I ARE VERY PROUD OF ZACHARY TONIGHT!!! At Mercury Gymnastics Zac stayed focused on each activity that Mr. Mark was leading the class through. He stayed on task and followed directions. He only had to run one lap, and that was more my fault than his. Zac was looking for my encouragement while climbing the rope, and I was not paying close enough attention. I met him at the base of the stairs and encouraged him to KEEP GOING. He made it back to his class in short order and was re-engaged with his tumbling.

He also did great on the rings. He listened to Mr. Mark and swung his legs from front to back and side to side. Zac was also able to climb on the pommel horse and straddle it as asked.

For his efforts, Zac was able to jump on the trampoline and have fun in the foam pit with the other kids. It was his best night EVER! I wish I could have bottled up the smile on his face when he came upstairs from the gym floor. He was SO proud of himself, as he should have been.

I LOVE YOU ZAC! Way to go Little Man.

-Dad

Early to Bed

Hello all,

Tonight was an early night for the family. After getting home from work, Jennifer and I made dinner and then gave the kids a bath and put them in their pajamas. Both kids were in bed by 7:45.

-Andy

Pancakes

Hello all,

Now that the weather is starting to cool off again, I have decided to reinstate Pancake Mondays at our house. The kids love it. Ali helps me mix the eggs and flour together while Zac pours in the sugar, salt, baking soda and baking powder. It is not long before fluffy pancakes are coming off the gridle! It is a lot of fun.

-Andy