Day 2

Hello all,

It was a great day to be in Dallas. Jennifer and I learned a lot of great ways to improve our business. The best help will be realized as our team grows in size and more of the people on our team are working the business as a business.

-Andy

Day 1

Hello all,

What a great day at BeautiControl's Leadership conference. Jennifer and I are learning a lot and looking for a LOT of new hostesses! If you are interested, give Jen and I a call.

-Andy

Last Day

Hello all,

It is about time to go to Dallas. Jennifer and I are leaving for the Leadership conference for BeautiControl tomorrow morning.

-Andy

Long Day

Hello all,

Today I was in a meeting all day. It was for a new product that will be provided by Embarq that has a lot of attention. We had vendors in town to discuss how they would be working with us to make it all work. From 8:30 - 5:00 we looked at an overhead projection on a white wall. I have a headache. The words were fuzzy with my glasses on so I took them off to read better. Not a good start to a project...

-Andy

Cleaning the House

Hello all,

Tonight was yet another exercise in picking up all of the stuff that makes it way out of the kids rooms and putting it back to where it belongs. It didn't take long and the house looks much better after the kids completed their chores.

-Andy

Oscars

Hello all,

I wish I had more to write about today. Jennifer and I did some laundry and then watched the Oscars on TV tonight. It is nice to just have a day to relax.

Good night,

-Andy

Happy Birthday Jennifer!

Hello all,

What a great day with the family. Today Jennifer and Diane went to Beauty Brands to get their hair styled. I talked Jennifer into getting her hair colored and cut to something she had not had before. I wanted to have her step out of her comfort zone and try something new. SHE DID IT. It looks great. She described it as a reverse bop. She chose the color of Carmel which looks great on her. I am very proud of how Jennifer let go.

After the color, cut and style, the ladies returned home just in time to get ready for diner. I treated my wife to a restaurant that she had wanted to try for some time. It is called Trezo Mare. It was great. I went in to make reservations in person so I could talk to the staff about Ali and Zac eating tonight. They assured me that they could accommodate the children. They put us in a circular booth on the top section of the restaurant. We had a great view of everyone. Diane, Jennifer and I all enjoyed Lobster Bisque for our appetizer along with jumbo shrimp cocktail. It was excellent!

For our entree, I had North Pacific bass while the women had a pasta dish with crab. For the life of me I can not recall the name, but it was delicious! Zac and Ali split an order of chicken fingers with french fries. Ali tried some of Jen's pasta which she thought was really good. That is a high mark from my daughter!

For desert we went back to our home for ice cream cake from Dairy Queen. Everyone loved it. Zac through it was the best thing ever. Cake and ice cream all in one.

Good night,

-Andy

Winter Weather

Hello all,

The schools are closed today and Jennifer is still recovering upstairs. It seems that today will be a very full household today. Ali and Zac will need to be on their best behavior with Jennifer still recovering upstairs.

-Andy

Recovery

Hello all,

Jennifer is recovering slowly today. She is home with me and is trying to stay comfortable. I hope she starts to feel better soon.

-Andy

Jen's Surgery

Hello all,

Just a quick note to let you know that Jennifer had a minor surgical procedure performed today. She is resting comfortably now in bed.

-Andy

Gymnastics

Hello all,

Tonight Zac and I had a great night at gymnastics. He had a lot of fun flipping over the bars and tumbling. Jennifer and I are very glad he is enjoying his classes.

-Andy

Coffee

Hello all,

This morning I tried a new coffee from the grocery store. It is from Milestone and is called Breakfast blend. It smelled good to at the store so I purchased half a pound of the raw beans to grind at home. Upon first taste, I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe now I can stop going to McDonald's for coffee every morning before work.

-Andy

Folding Laundry and Watching the Daytona 500

Hell all,

You know you are having a good day when you are watching the Daytona 500 in High Definition TV. Wow, what a difference HD makes when watching a race. Everything is so much clearer than on regular TV. I just can't believe it. I almost forgot that I was folding laundry for most of the race.

-Andy

Rain all Day

Hello all,

Jennifer and I did some laundry today while it rained outside. Not a lot else happened other than that. Looks like tomorrow will be another round of winter weather!

-Andy

Love Friday's

Hello all,

I love Friday. I love everything about Friday. I get two days away from Embarq to recharge. I love the thought of getting some fresh air this weekend. I love the fact that my ankle is starting to feel better. I can't wait for the weekend!

-Andy

Happy Valentines' Day

Hello all,

It is Valentines' Day and the world is alive with love. Tonight Jennifer and I had a wonderful crab dinner with rice and vegetables while the kids ate spaghetti. It was very nice to eat a well prepared meal and enjoy each other's company. Thank you for 12 wonderful Valentines' Days Jennifer. You are the love of my life.

-Andy

Deep Breath

Hello all,

You better take a deep breath before you walk outside today. When I walked into the office it was 12° F with the wind blowing out of the North. Wow, I was hoping that Winter had started to ease up. I guess I was wrong.

-Andy

Wireless Router

Tonight our Linksys Wireless Access Point dropped dead. I had to run out and get another one and set it up before I went to bed. It had been running non-stop for 3 years and 12 days. I think we got our money's worth out of it.

-Andy

Round #2

Hello all,

Yep, by 1:00 Zac was in our bedroom saying he could not sleep. We went downstairs to have another breathing treatment, but this time I turned the TV on and did not cover up with a blanket. Twenty minutes later, we were back upstairs and in bed. He returned to our bedroom by 2:00. He was having a bad dream and wanted to cuddle with mom and dad. Seeing the night quickly pass, I said yes and returned to sleep until 6:00. The night was over, but at least I slept better last night than I did the night before.

-Andy

Sleeping in the Chair

Hello all,

You know you had a bad night's sleep when you wake up at 5:30 in the morning in the recliner with a kid in your lap. That is how my morning started today. At 1:00 this morning I brought Zac downstairs to give him a breathing treatment. I was using an old mask, so it took longer than normal so I got comfortable. After the treatment was over, Zac was still coughing so I held him until he fell asleep. Little did I know that I would also. The next thing I remember is looking at the time and reading 5:30 AM. Where did the last four hours go? I took Zac back to bed and crashed in my bed for 30 minutes until the alarm went off. Jennifer got up and let me sleep for a little bit longer. It was soon time to start the day.

I stayed home with Zac today and worked on SENDSOD for the Calix upgrade. Zac played on nickjr.com and was feeling pretty good by noon. He would not settle down to take a nap in the afternoon, so I had a good idea it would be an early night.

He was asleep by 8:00 on the couch. As expected, his coughing did return... It may be another late night for the Dad again...

-Andy

Sunday with Zac

Hello all,

Well, the girls went to Iowa for Danna's baby shower so it was Zac and I at home to ruff it. We had pancakes for breakfast. Then had a little sandwich for lunch. We ran an errand this afternoon and had to get ice cream to reward ourselves for a job well done. When we returned home it was time to do some chores. We cleaned the kitchen and then mopped the bathroom floor. Zac was a big help. He thought we were just playing. Little did he know we were working hard!

-Andy

Busy Day

Hello all,

Well, this morning Jen and Diane went to the Gladstone community center to get a workout in before I brought the kids to play in the pool. It was a great day to swim laps. It was nice to have something to do that was easy on my ankle and allow me to have some freedom of movement. The kids loved playing in the kids area. Ali loved the water slide, too!

After 2 hours in the pool, it was time to come home and get them cleaned up and ready for the rest of the day. This evening we went to Jena's house for Bunko. The kids had a great time and Jen won a prize for winning "Last Bunko".

Everyone was tired and ready for bed when we pulled into the garage.

Good night,

-Andy

Five more hours

Hello all,

The weekend is almost here. I can feel it. I had a good conversation with a friend this morning and I hope that things will start to turn my way soon. I can't wait to see my family tonight and have some fun playing Wii with the kids.

Steve, I am glad you are OK in Arkansas after the storms went through your area. Give Mary a hug for me.

-Andy

First Day Back

Hello all,

I walked into work for the first time in two weeks. What a day it has been. I'm tired. This is the most I have walked in weeks. I can feel my leg becoming heavy and I am worried about over extending myself on my first day.

-Andy

Ice and Snow

Hello all,

The winter weather moved in fast and hard last night and caused schools around town to cancel classes for the day. I stayed home with my foot elevated while Ali and Zac played and did some reading (very little). It was nice to have the day with them, but by bedtime, I was glad to see them head to bed. I was exhausted.

Good night,

-Andy

Torn Ligament

Hello all,

I have a torn ligament in my right ankle. I have an appointment today with an orthopedic surgeon to discuss my options.

-Andy

Still Waiting for the MRI results

Hello all,

I am still waiting to hear the results of my MRI. I am home today with my daughter Ali who is running a fever. I hope that the clinic calls today to tell me what I have to look forward to in regards to my recovery.

-Andy

Super Bowl Party

Hello all,

Well, we had a few friends over to our house to watch the super bowl and catch up on what has been going since we last talked. It was nice to have Vanna and Cyndi over. Toffer and Brett came to play with Ali and Zac. For once the boys outnumbered the girls in the playroom and Zac was thrilled to have boys who can play a little more ruff than normal. They had a ball running around upstairs while the adults watched the game in the living room. Thank you all for coming over tonight. Sorry that I had my foot elevated for most of the evening.

Good night,

-Andy

Oil Changes

Hello all,

It had to be done. Jen's car was over miles and so was mine. I took both cars to get oil changes today at House of Lube off of Antioch. They are normally not very busy on Saturday and I was correct. Jen's car was in and out in 20 minutes. Dad's car took a little over 30 to get flushed and filled again. Now I can be confident that at least that has been taken care of while I am laid up.

Good night,
-Andy

Hopeful about my MRI

Hello all,

Yesterday was my MRI and the technician who administer the test said my results should be evaluated by a physician in the next two days. I hope to hear something today rather than waiting until Monday. I would like the peace of mind associated with a diagnosis.

-Andy