3 Days to Go!

3 days to go and one of our challenges this week became bigger. Lauren went for an ear recheck this morning and the doctor has decided that she needs new tubes. This is now her 3rd set of tubes in 3 years. Hm... 3 days to go, 3rd set of tubes in 3 years. I wonder what that means? Anywho, so Thursday we are headed to Carle for surgery. I guess I am just thankful that we had the chance to have her checked before we get on the plane bound to Florida. I can't imagine having a screaming 2 year old on a plane for 2 hours.

So tonight we are packing, tomorrow night we will still be packing and Thursday we will be... packing. I've decided that I'm sleeping in the Tribute Thursday night just to insure that I don't forget to pack myself.

7 myths about the Challenger shuttle disaster - Space News - MSNBC.com

It is hard to believe that it has been 20 years since the Challenger disaster. I still remember standing in the lunch line when Mr. Meherry came in and told us the news. I guess it is my generations Kennedy assassination. 7 myths about the Challenger shuttle disaster - Space News - MSNBC.com

Itinerary Complete..

Well, I finally got the itinerary complete. I'm actually glad I did the itinerary since everyone's idea of vacation is either eating or spending all our time lounging around the hotel. The hotel itself sets the mood to relax and since we are there for 7 days I don't think we will go home exhausted. Everyone can do as they please. Lauren and I plan to get in all the parks, walk our legs off and soak in some sun. Speaking of sun, I am pale as a ghost. I think I need to tan before I go, or should I say burn.

Live from the Apple Store...Part 2

Stuart and I came up to Chicago for a security conference and had an hour to kill so.... :-)

These new Intel Macs are great. They are very fast and look great!! I must have one!

10 Days & Counting...

Tickets are purchased, video camera purchased and camera charged..bags not packed yet, but we are getting close. Brad and I did some serious shopping on Sunday. We shopped from 2 to 5:30. We were exhausted and we exhausted all of our Christmas gift cards. It was a lot of fun. Bill and Rita graciously took Lauren home after lunch. It was fun just to spend the day with Brad. We were shopping for warm springy clothes since we are headed to warm climate. I believe Lauren got the most even though the gift cards were given to her mommy and daddy. Since she has grown like a weed we figure it was more important to have her clothed than us just restocking our summer stuff to allow room for our growth this past winter.

We also got Lauren's favorite music put on a CD: Mary Poppins tunes. Brad downloaded several songs from itunes so now she will be able to sing along to her favorites. I have a feeling that the iPod will be used a lot in Florida. I believe our children will never experience one favorite toy that is not ran by a chip or computer and they will never have the boredom syndrome while traveling hours to arrive at a the vacation destination. So sad...

Too excited to work!

I am just horrible. I have not worked much over the past few days. All I can do is focus on vacation: Florida, Sea World and Disney. The excitement is just too much... I keep jumping over to websites to check out maps, prices, etc trying to get an itinerary for our trip. Nooooo, I didn't say that word "itinerary"... Unfortunately I have to admit that I have taken over the role of getting things organized for vacations. Brad use to be the one who did all of that...and it drove me crazy! Now I understand why he was always excited a month before we would go on vacation. Doing all the planning and looking at stuff would drive someone to focus only on the trip. So, it's his fault. :-)

I do have to comment on Brad's chocolate blog. Lauren is 2. Most of Lauren's character, personality, etc is just like her mothers. She will learn soon that chocolate is a necessary staple. And hopefully she will marry some day to someone who doesn't like chocolate so she can enjoy it by herself as I have the past 10 years.

Lauren is growing up right!!

A couple of nights ago we went out to the Deluxe in Danville with Dad, Mom, and Grandma and had a really nice meal! As you all know I am the only American in recorded history that isn't a huge fan of chocolate. I am convinced that there are now 2 in recorded history!!!! After we finished eating they asked us if we wanted ice cream. Lauren said' "I want strawberry not chocolate. Chocolate is yucky and dirty. Only birds eat it." I think it was my proudest moment as a Dad!! :-)

Vacation is 4 Weeks Away

It's official that the pounds that I happily shed after Lauren was born is coming back. Eating almost a pound of chocolate just to get it out of my sight probably wasn't the best thing to do but today is a new day and I'm now watching what I eat. My goal is to lose at least 8 pounds before vacation so I will have to go buy new clothes for our trip. (hee, hee) Anyone who sees me eating junk, be sure to hold me accountable for my failing to reach my goal.

Lauren is very excited to go see Mickey and Goofy. I think every day this week she has mentioned our upcoming visit to Disney World. If only my mind could stay focused on Mickey and Goofy and have the excitement of a child's anticipation at all times. That's her world...Of course we built it that way.

Still awaiting adoption...

I can't stop checking up on Tucker. My heart breaks everytime I think about him cooped up in the kennel at the Champaign County Humane Society. When I last called the CCHA they told me that he is doing great except that he is really nervous. Please put the word out to your friends (with no children) that Tucker needs a home. I want so bad to go play with him but it would just be too hard on me. He is on the CCHA website now for everyone to see him.

Hamachi : Stay Connected

I just found this great new tool! It allows you to setup a VPN between any 2 or more computers connected to the Internet. I think this will be really handy to pass files back and forth and the best part....it's free!!

Hamachi : Stay Connected

Funny stories

I thought I would start posting a few things to the blog besides family stuff. Mainly this will be stuff from sites I like to read, or stories that amuse me. This story was pretty wild. Hopefully they at least get a refund.

Parents Fume: Kids, Swingers at Same Hotel - Yahoo! News

Lauren and her new puppy

We started taking down all the Christmas ornaments tonight and while Chris and I were working on it Lauren and Jessie played on the floor. Lauren had a good time and we really enjoyed hearing her giggles while she played with Jessie. A couple of times I told Lauren to be careful and Chris finally told me to take it easy. I am so used to watching her like a hawk when she was around Tucker that it was tough not to be worried while they played. Hopefully it is a sign of things to come!

Jessie

We picked up our new Jack Russell Terrier Saturday morning from Chris and Bob Bolser in Westville and she has been great so far. She is 12 weeks old and semi potty trained. Jessie is full of energy and loves to play, but she will also curl up and take a nap with you.

Jack Russell Terriers have an interesting history and they have been kept out of the AKC to help limit the number of genetic problems that are found in other pure bred dogs.