Last Day of November

Hello all,

Where has this year gone? Really, it has flown by faster this year. I think about all of the stuff that Jennifer and I accomplished this year and I am proud. We made it through our first T-ball season as well as soccer. Now we have 30 days to go before 2009 will be in the books for good. I hope you have had a productive year so far. If you still have things left un-said, and un-done, please do them before it is too late.

With that said... Good night and Good Luck.

-Andy

Watching a Movie

Hello all,

Tonight we watched 17 Again with the kids. They chose the movie for family night. Next week it is the parents turn.

-Andy

Christmas Shopping

Hello all,

Jennifer and I bravely went into the throws of the Christmas shopping experience today and found a few gifts for the kids. We made it out of Toys R Us with ease. I'm glad I we didn't try to get out and about Thursday night at midnight. The madness had already abated. We found the items we were looking for and made it home in time for the MU/KU and NW Bearcat game.

-Andy

Short Day

Hello all,

It was hard getting up this morning while the kids and Jennifer slept, but I managed to drive into downtown and make it through my half day. I'm heading home to watch the Huskers play this afternoon. Go Big Red!

-Andy

Happy Thanksgiving

Hello all,

Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends and family! Tonight was my first venture into cooking the turkey myself. The frying went smoothly once the bird thawed. I did such a good job I was given the opportunity to fry the Christmas turkey as well!

Good night,

-Andy

Cold Outside

Hello all,

It feels like winter today! I took a walk around the block at lunch today and it reminded me of the walks I once took with Steve and Chris while we were working for IBM. The wind was blowing briskly out of the Northwest. With all of the buildings downtown, I would have thought I would have been able to find somewhere that the wind was blocked, but it did not exist. I made it around the block three times and then headed back inside.

-Andy

Lunch at DST

Hello all,

Something happened today at lunch that would never have happened at Sprint/Embarq. The management catered lunch in for the entire group. Each member of the team was asked to either pay $5 or bring a side dish/dessert. We had PLENTY to eat. It was a great two hours of eating and talking to co-workers about what they were doing for Thanksgiving. It was a nice change of pace. I really enjoyed it.

-Andy

Back to Work

Hello all,

Now that Zack is officially seven years old, the world can continue to spin on its axis and life can continue. Zachary is in a great mood. He is again only a year younger than his sister. The bad news for Ali is he is almost as tall as she is and he is 22 months younger than him. Another bad sign for Ali is he is in the same shoe size as Zack. They will be eye to eye by July.

-Andy

My Son is Seven

Hello all,

Happy Birthday Little Man, Zachary! Thank you for filling my life with so much joy! You bring a smile to my face every day. I hope that you enjoy your new books and toys. May they bring you as much excitement as my gifts brought me when I turned seven.

-Dad

Zack's Party

Hello all,

Cake - check
Goodie Bags - check
Camera - check
Kids - check
Parents - check

We are ready to roll to AirZone for Zack's party!

Zack had a great time at his party. Sixteen of his friends were able to come and play and celebrate his day. After the kids played, it was time to open presents and eat cake.

-Andy

Family Fun Night

Hello all,

Tonight we started Zack's birthday weekend. For dinner we went out to eat at O'Charley's in Liberty and then headed to see the The Blind Side at 7:00. Unfortunately, the movie was sold out. So we went back to Diane's house to play some games and make the most of the night. Zack played with some cars while Jennifer, Diane, Ali and I played Apples to Apples. It is a word association game for kids 8 and up. Jen and I BARELY qualified. Ali enjoyed being able to teach us a new game.
It was fun. I won the game with my ability to trick the judge into thinking my answer was one of Jen or Diane's. I am so sneaky!

Good night,
-Andy

Flash Cards

Hello all,

Tonight Zac and I worked on addition slash cards for his 1st grade homework. The cards are all "2 + X" where X is the number zero through twelve. He has been working hard on them and it is showing. He doesn't have to use his fingers on the small number. Nice job tonight Zac!

-Andy

Taking the kids to McDonalds

Hello all,

I decided I would treat the kids to breakfast at McDonalds this morning. We don't do it often, and getting out of the house for breakfast was a nice start to a rainy and cold day. Both kids ate pancakes. I had a sausage, egg and cheese McMuffin with coffee and a hash brown wedge. Soon our breakfast was over and I escorted them to their schools. It was a great way to start my Wednesday.

-Andy

Snow

Hello all,

Can you believe it? It snowed last night. The kids woke up to the site of fresh snow on the grass this morning.

It rained most of the day which caused the snow to melt. Jen won the pool this year. I didn't think it would snow until after Thanksgiving. Great guess Jennifer.

-Andy

Raining

Hello all,

It has rained for most of the day. My leaves are still piled up next to the big maple tree in the back yard. Maybe tomorrow I will be able to get them bagged and ready for the curb.

-Andy

Huskers Win / Chiefs Win

Hello all,

It was a great sports weekend. The HUSKERS beat up on KU! The Chiefs beat the Raiders. It will be a good week in the office for sure.

-Andy

Dinner for 8

Hello all,

Tonight our family went to dinner at Jim and Cyndi Dunlap's house for Good Shepherd's November small group Dinner for Eight. There were twelve in attendance. I enjoyed meeting several new people. I seem to forget that there are more people that go to Good Shepherd than the people I see at the 9:30 service. Jennifer and I were some of the longest members. There was one couple that joined the church this week! I love our church and hope it continues to grow.

-Andy

Friday

Hello all,

Congratulations to everyone who made it through another week of work! We can celebrate with two days of relaxation. I am looking forward to the Huskers game on Saturday and the Chiefs game on Sunday. Maybe they can both win and my friends and I can all sing our coaches praises next week. What do you think?

-Andy

Homework

Hello all,

Zac's homework - Done
Ali's homework - Done.

Time to read some books and relax for the night. I love it when a plan come together!

-Andy

Getting back into the flow...

Hello all,

I am still recovering from being up all night Saturday. Tonight I fought off falling asleep in my chair while watching TV after dinner. Uh, how I hate having my schedule all screwed up!

-Andy

Reading with Zac

Hello all,

Tonight Zac read me several chapters in his level #2 books. I greatly enjoy listening to him sound out the words and celebrate when he figures it out on his own. Way to go Zac! I am very proud of you.

-Dad

Day off

Hello all,

I've cleaned the bathrooms.
I've swept the basement.
I've moved the treadmill downstairs.

This is my day off. Why am I working this hard?

-Andy

Very Tired

Hello all,

I got home this morning at 6:00 AM from the Disaster Recovery exercise. I slept from 11-3 this afternoon and then went to Cheeseburger in Paradise with the family for dinner. I'm very tired. I'm glad I am off tomorrow.

-Andy

Husker WIN

Hello all,

The Blackshirts are back! Way to go Nebraska on your victory against the Oklahoma Sooners! Although the team only won 10-3, I'll take a win every time.

-Andy

Weekly Status Report

Hello all,

You know I do dread Friday's. That is the day that my weekly status report is due. I get to account for each of my tasks that I worked this week. I then get to input my time. Once all of that is complete, I get to start on doing what I actually need to work on. Oh, the joy of project management.

-Andy

Happy Birthday Kevin

Hello all,

Happy Birthday Kevin Hamele! I hope that Brett Farve calls you tonight so that you can have another birthday wish come true! The Vikings are not my team, but if they were, Brett would be my favorite player. I hope you and my sister had a good time at dinner tonight.

-Andy

Simple Night at Home

Hello all,

Tonight was a night where the family just stayed inside. After dinner, the kids finished up their homework and then went upstairs to play in their rooms. Jennifer and I caught up on some TV shows we had recorded. I love simple nights at home.

-Andy

Working with Zac

Hello all,

Tonight I worked with Zac on his capitalization, punctuation and spacing on his sentences. I forgot how difficult it was to learn to write a complete sentence. There are somethings that you just have done "forever" and now seem odd to have to revisit. Anyway, Zac and I worked on this last night. I hope tomorrow he remembers the lesson learned.

-Andy

Deer hit my car

Hello all,

A deer ran onto Highway 169 at 68th street and hit the passenger side quarter panel on my car tonight. I tried to evade the charging animal, but the young buck was determined to cross the busy highway. When I stopped to see the damage, I was pleased to see only a small dent where the head had collided with the car. My car and I dodged a fur covered bullet tonight.

-Andy

Mowed the Yard

Hello all,

Well, I thought I was done mowing the yard for the year, but not yet. I mowed in the dark again tonight. It is a good thing that Dad taught me how to follow a line in the dark! Tomorrow night Jen wants to take some pictures of the kids playing in the leaves in the back yard. After the pictures are done, the leaves will be sucked up and mulched.

-Andy