Matthew's Opinion

January...

2012-01-28T21:23:00.003-05:00

I'll take it...

Taylor loves it too... :)

Genealogy...

2012-01-26T17:31:00.003-05:00

Anyone else research their family tree? I find it so fascinating... Thus far though, I have only been able to go back to about the early 1600's... I don't spend a lot of time on it though, but would like to... This is as far back as I have been able to go thus far...

Tanner shooting

2012-01-17T17:12:00.001-05:00

Chance shooting

2012-01-17T17:12:00.000-05:00

Willie Nelson...

2012-01-13T17:15:00.002-05:00

Taylor and I headed downtown today to get our tickets for the Willie Nelson concert, it is a beautiful little theatre, kind of reminds me of the Fox in Atlanta... We were hoping to go in and look around, but everyone was too busy setting up for a concert they were having this evening, but oh well, we got our Willie Nelson tickets, and I cannot wait until February 8th!

Taylor in front of the theatre...

Jacksonville Beach...

2012-01-08T14:51:00.006-05:00

Have I mentioned how glad I am we moved down here?? Yeah, January 8th, shorts and flip-flops, it was warm enough to not even wear a shirt!! Of course I do realize that it is unseasonably warm in a lot of places, but hey, I'll take it!! :)

Carolyn, Taylor and I decided to head down to the Jacksonville Beach Pier, it was a gorgeous day out too!

Big bird of some sort we happened across... Yeah, that was about as close as I would get to it...

Bird or fowl of some sort again...

Taylor making the sea gulls fly...

Taylor and Carolyn with the bird...

So yeah, a nice lazy day of sorts, went and strolled down the Jacksonville Beach, went to the pier and checked out a few shops along the shore... Nice Day!

Downtown Jacksonville...

2012-01-04T15:14:00.003-05:00

Andrew Jackson statue...

The Jacksonville Landing...

Downtown Jacksonville...

Winter?

2012-01-02T11:36:00.003-05:00

I'll take it... :)

My camera doesn't really do any of these shots justice, but whatever, it's beautiful... :)

Happy New Year!!!

2012-01-01T07:20:00.000-05:00

Christmas Day...

2011-12-25T18:34:00.005-05:00

Have I mentioned how much I love Christmas? Yeah, I do! I love the fact that my family is so excited about it, I love watching my children as it approaches, I absolutely love the "Christmas lists" my children give to me in the months prior to the actual day, so yeah, I LOVE the Christmas holiday!

Yeah, we also know the reason for the season, all of my children do, which is why we normally have a cake for Jesus... My children are getting older though, so the "surprise factor" is pretty much gone as we let them choose what they want, why waste money getting things they either don't want or don't need? Yeah... Anyway, we had a great day...

If you saw my previous post, yeah, I got up at 5:15AM and waited, and waited, no one got up... Carolyn finally got up around 8AM, but the kids did not get up until around 9AM, but I figured they had stayed up late, trying to "stay up all night" as they had told me they were going to, so I did not wake them, let them get their sleep I figured... :)

Me passing out the presents...

This is the kids first thing once they finally got out of bed...

Tanner and I putting his mountain bike together, and yeah, that is my "makeshift office" in the background... There was no room for it in the house, so I just took over the garage... ;)

Carolyn got a bike too! She wanted one to go riding on the beach while I am at work and the kids are at school... Now I just need to get Chance and I a bike, which I will, and we will all have one and can go tooling around...

So, our first Christmas in Ponte Vedra Beach, and it was great! We had a fabulous dinner, ribeyes of course, Chance's favorite... Now for the New Year and getting more settled in here in Florida. I am SO glad we moved down here, I cannot wait to see the things that unfold next year, looking forward with great anticipation for 2012!

Hope everyone had a great day! Merry Christmas! Live each day as if it were your last, because you never know... ;)

Merry Christmas!!

2011-12-25T08:11:00.002-05:00

The kids had said they were going to stay up all night, but I see that was not the case... I got up around 5:15AM, and here it is 8:17AM and no one is stirring, but me... :) So yeah, already on the second pot of coffee, and just waiting on everyone to get up...

Merry Christmas!!

Tick Tock...

2011-12-23T06:30:00.002-05:00

Two more days! Hopefully everyone gets as excited about Christmas as we do here! Although it does not seem like Christmas as it is in the high 70's and I suppose I'll be laying on the beach later in my swim trunks reading a book, but I would much rather be doing that than freezing! ;)

Now, off to get a few last minute items prior to settling in on the beach somewhere...

Sunrise...

2011-12-20T08:33:00.002-05:00

Rough Surf...

2011-12-11T08:06:00.003-05:00

Headed down to the ocean this AM, surf was pretty rough, and of course the only reason we went is I forgot to buy coffee yesterday, so HAD to stop at McDonald's and get some... Yeah, it is supposed to be pretty miserable here today, overcast, chance of showers, etc... Will still be in the 60's though, so I can tolerate it... :) Funny thing is, last week it was 80 degrees and I was laying on the beach getting some sun... Oh well, should be back up in the 70's by Tuesday or Wednesday, hopefully it is, as we still need to get our Christmas pictures done...

Surf this AM...

Ditto...

Other than that? Pretty much all settled in here at the house, the only thing left to complete is my "office", although it is pretty much all setup, I just need to run a new circuit in the garage so I can plug in all my computers, etc... Will probably get that done this week... Kids have one week left of school, then they are out for the Christmas break, although I'm sure the school calls it the Holiday break, whatever. The kids are also making friends, and are constantly outside playing with them. They are all boys thus far though, but Taylor has now found a friend at the front of the community, so we will take her over there today so she can play with her new friend, they are in the same class together. I'd say I have Christmas shopping to do, but I don't, the kids all want $$, so $$ they will get. They all decided they just want the $$ so they can take advantage of any after Christmas sales that may be going on, we'll see if that works out in their favor, it probably will though judging from retailer reports thus far this season... Now for more coffee... :)

Take Two...

2011-12-04T15:46:00.007-05:00

Went back down to take photos again, and yeah, when we left the house it was sunny, but when we got to the beach the clouds were already moving in, so I guess it will be take three sometime next week, oh well, we have fun going down there! :)

And of course we all kind of clash anyway...

Random shot of Tanner...

Chance and Tanner up on one of the dunes...

Racing up the boardwalk...

Driftwood we came across...

So yeah, we'll try again next week, supposed to be back up close to 80 degrees next week, we'll just have to hope we find a time when it is sunny... :)

Pictures At The GTM Reserve...

2011-12-03T16:37:00.007-05:00

We were going to head down and take some pictures for our Christmas cards this year, but by the time we got down there the clouds had rolled in, but we took some pictures anyway... :)

Kids on a piece of driftwood...

All of us, obviously, at one of the beach access points in the Guana Tolomato Matanzas Reserve just down from where we live...

Kids again...

Overlooking the dunes...

Again...

So yeah, we will head back down tomorrow or next week when the sun is out, it was out earlier, but by the time we left the house to head down there, it was no longer sunny... Yeah, all that seaweed washed up on the beaches earlier last week. Also, starting anytime now, we should be able to start seeing Right Whales, as this is where they calf from now until March, hopefully we will get to see them...

Nope...

2011-11-28T09:19:00.004-05:00

I will never tire of the ocean...

Sunrise this AM...

Taylor and I taking a stroll before she has to get ready for school... Chance and Tanner? Yeah, they are not morning people... :)

Yesterday morning, it was amazing how warm the water was this late in the year!

So yeah, that is pretty much how it goes, catch the sunrise in the AM and then head back in the afternoon to lay in the sun and read a book...

Let The Christmas Season Begin...

2011-11-25T10:07:00.006-05:00

I just love the Thanksgiving/Christmas holidays! We actually decorated a few days ago as there was no sense in putting all the stuff up I brought down from Atlanta last Sunday just to drag it all out again today...

So the tree is up...

The stockings are hung...

All the other decorations are out as well...

Somehow I have managed to hang onto this sign Titus and I made years ago, forget exactly how many...

Then of course there is always the fabulous walks on the beach in the AM with a huge cup of coffee, nothing like it, I love it!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2011-11-24T06:51:00.000-05:00

Again...

2011-11-15T18:33:00.002-05:00

I'm at home, can you tell? Yeah, you will find me here anytime I have free time!

A Day In Ponte Vedra Beach...

2011-11-13T16:43:00.006-05:00

Yeah, we are finally settling in, just have to go fetch the rest of our shit next weekend, other than that, this is the life! I love my new office, the kids all seem to like their schools, and life is grand!!!

This is where you can find me when I am not working, reading a good book on the beach while the kids play!

Chance and Taylor found a horseshoe crab, it was a little smelly though...

Kids being kids...

Ditto...

This was the stuff Carolyn and I found just laying on the beach this AM when we went out early... It's stunning the stuff that is just laying on the beach...

So yeah, this is HOME! We love it! The kids are adjusting, but are making friends, Chance is as I type playing basketball with a few friends he has made across the street, and all is well... Will be glad when next weekend is over though and all the rest of our stuff is down here, but soon, it will be just a way of life, and I love it!!!

Ponte Vedra Beach...

2011-11-13T09:54:00.005-05:00

I just LOVE this place, SO glad we decided to move down here...

One of the best things to do is go catch the sunrise at the beach, it's beautiful!

I was trying to figure out what kind of animal this was, but have not yet identified the tracks...

The hazards of going to the beach at the crack of dawn, once the sun comes out, it starts getting warm! The shirt can come off of course, but the jeans? Yeah, from now on I'm bringing a pair of shorts with me as well!

Absolutely beautiful views...

We also only saw three other people all morning at this particular beach, there were a few more at the first one we went to though...

So yeah, we are loving it down here, although the kids aren't too keen on getting up at 6AM just to go to the beach, we don't even wake Chance and Tanner up anymore to ask if they want to go, because we know the answer... :)

Finally!!!

2011-11-08T18:21:00.006-05:00

Of course we are not quite done yet, I had to leave some stuff behind as I ran out of room, but we are nearly there! It's been kind of tiring, but man, I am so happy to finally be here in Ponte Vedra Beach!!!

Moving day! Luckily Zac helped, he towed one of the cars down, I towed the other down with the U-Haul, and yeah, that thing got 5.7 Mpg... ugh!

Our new home!

Kids hopping on the neighbor's WiFi, well, at the moment we are using it until Comcast gets out here next week, sigh...

Living room from the kitchen/breakfast area...

Back patio...

So we are nearly settled in, everything we brought with us is unpacked and put in it's place, I just have to go back next weekend, fetch Zac again and then get another trailer and get the rest of the stuff, although, about the only things I left behind is our Christmas stuff, the furniture in my office and a few other things, so yeah, once that is done, it is over and we are done!

Chance and Tanner start school tomorrow, went and got them all checked in today and Taylor starts on Friday. Not sure they are looking forward to that or not, but I'll bet within a week they will all have new friends and be fine. Chance is at the moment outside playing football with some new friends he has and all is well... :)

Ugh...

2011-11-03T05:41:00.001-05:00

Update? Yeah, I'm busy... I'll soon be relaxing though, VERY soon! Two minutes and 37 seconds from the ocean...

Home Sweet Home...

2011-10-22T20:19:00.007-05:00

You know, I have wanted to move to Florida for some years now, and it is finally happening! I can't believe it, picked up the keys today though. Taylor and I are the only ones down here, and the only reason we came down, is we found the house on Craigslist, and we read so many stories about people conning people out of $$, so I just came down to meet them in person, they are legit and the home is fabulous and in a great community with pools, workout rooms, spa, tennis courts, etc, etc, but the best part is, and Taylor timed it today, it is 2 minutes and 37 seconds from the ocean!!!! Yeah...

Taylor at the ocean today...

You can walk for miles if you choose, I LOVE it!!!

Yeah, like I said, 2 minutes and 37 seconds from our house... :)

Ponte Vedra Beach baby! Can you tell I'm excited? I am!

Yes, this is our new home! The guy we are getting it from is such a nice guy, we had a great time meeting him today and his kid. Yeah, the van, they are cleaning it up for us. The guy is so nice, it was very great to meet them...

So yeah, dream come true... I am so stoked, and luckily my company let me do it... Now to just get all of our shit down here, 13 days... I don't care... A few more days to toil, then we will be down here. So from now on, instead of watching Imus in the Morning, I will be at the ocean, each and every day, strolling through the surf at 5:30 or 6ish, then will head home to wake the kiddos up to get them ready for school, did I mention that the ocean is only 2 minutes and 37 seconds away?? :)

Rodeo...

2011-10-16T09:37:00.002-05:00

Yeah, these are in no particular order, but we were driving back from lunch yesterday and saw a sign that said the rodeo was in town, so we decided to go. I guess the last time we went to a rodeo, we took Cory and James when Cory was about 10. So off we went...

Carolyn and I, obviously...

Taylor and I, Taylor with her new hat on, Tanner decided to go for the bullwhip instead... :)

Tanner trying to win $100 for going up that side of the rock wall, he did not make it... :)

The start of the rodeo...

Before it started. Chance isn't with us because he decided to go to his friends house instead of join us, although he did tell me he wants to go to a rodeo, but he had already made plans for this particular evening... :)

So we had a good time, and LUCKILY I wore jeans as it was a bit chilly the later it got. First time I have even worn jeans since Spring, sigh... Also, I REALLY need a new camera as out of the 45+ pictures I took, only these really turned out, oh well...

Let The Final Leg Commence...

2011-10-06T18:27:00.000-05:00

Jacksonville, here we come!

Happy Birthday Tanner!

2011-10-01T18:20:00.006-05:00

So my boy turned 13 on Thursday, but of course did not want to celebrate until today! So we did! We went to the fair from about 10 - 4, then came home and had the pizza party and opened presents! A good time was had by all...

The birthday boy!

Chance got a laptop for his birthday, Taylor got one for Christmas, so Tanner was the only who did not have one, he did have an old computer of mine, but I do not have ethernet run here, so he could not use it really, so he is finally glad to have his own!

Opening cards and presents!

Of course I only took about 5 pictures at the fair, not sure why...

Taylor and her friend Victoria! All of the kids took one of their friends, and my co-worker and his family met us there, so we all had a good time.

The fair just about wears me out though, just walking all over the place. I of course wore shorts and a t-shirt, and it was freezing! I just have a thing about this time of year and dragging my jeans out, because once Spring hits, I put them up and only wear shorts until about now, sigh, I guess I need to break them out... :)

Jacksonville...

2011-09-21T20:50:00.003-05:00

So, back to Jacksonville again, trying to pin down the home we are going to move into. I think we have found it, now to just get down there for good, I'm tired of going back and forth as it is a LONG drive! At first I almost did not think it would happen, but it is... Now just to get all our shit down there, sigh...

This is the view from the boardwalk at Mickler's Landing in Ponte Vedra Beach, which is where we will be living... The home we are getting is not far from there, about 3 minutes, so I will be out there most mornings, along with Carolyn and Taylor, the guys prefer to sleep, they do not like getting up at 6AM, I ALWAYS get up at 6AM, and Taylor is most of the time up before me, good to have a morning person in the family to hang out with... :)

Taylor the other morning, strolling in the surf, which is what Carolyn and I LOVE to do, and we mostly do it with only Taylor when we have been there as Chance and Tanner would rather sleep... :)

Sunrise this AM, a bit cloudy, but I could care less... I've wanted to move to the beach for years, now I AM!!

Carolyn and Taylor at the hotel we stayed at last night. It was a nice hotel, I probably am one of the few people who stayed there who got it on Priceline for a fraction of the price they normally charge, there were SO many snooty people there, yeah, them and I don't mix well, we had fun with them, the kids and I... :)

So yeah, we are nearly there, in Jacksonville! I CANNOT wait! :)

Yikes...

2011-09-17T21:39:00.004-05:00

Yeah, I can now confirm with first hand experience how people flip their SUV's... Lightly holding the wheel, texting, etc... It was all I could do when the tire blew out, and it didn't just blow out, the tread came off, and I thought the road was bumpy for a while, but when it blew, the wheel jerked so hard to the right, I was lucky I had both hands on the wheel, wow...

The tire...

Me thinking, yikes, and thanking my lucky stars that there had not been much traffic on the road as I had been in the fast lane doing 85...

Yeah, could have been much worse, but we are all still here, and there was a Walmart a few exits up, so once I put the spare on, I went and bought a new tire... :)

9.11.01

2011-09-11T09:23:00.000-05:00

Yikes...

2011-09-01T08:29:00.002-05:00

Wow. Has it been that long? I suppose it has, I'd say I've been busy, but I really haven't been, although I am about to be as we get ready to move again... :) I guess we will head back down to Jacksonville the week of Sept 19th and try and figure out which house we want... In the meantime, here are a few more pics from our last trip to JAX...

Taylor's sentiment about Jacksonville... :)

Carolyn and I at Castillo de San Marcos...

Taylor and I at one of our favorite spots...

Kids at Castillo de San Marcos...

Ditto! Hopefully we will be down there for good soon... :)

415 Grist Mill Drive...

2011-08-13T19:01:00.005-05:00

So I decided to go through all of my digital photos and make a picture book chronicling our ten+ years at 415 Grist Mill Drive. Turned into quite the project, but it is now complete. Can't wait to see the hardcover version once it arrives. Feel free to peruse it you want to:

The Money Pit Project...

Happy 15th Anniversary Carolyn!!

2011-08-10T06:12:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday Carolyn!!

2011-08-05T07:08:00.001-05:00

Update, huh?

2011-07-30T21:40:00.002-05:00

Yeah, just got back from a BBQ at my old neighbor's house... Have a house FULL of kids, and life goes on... :)

We are still trying to find the right home/area to move to down in Jacksonville, but making progress... I suppose we will be down there in the next month or so, and I cannot wait!

I will be glad when this is all over though so I can just concentrate on my career and other things, I'm tired of moving, but I am SO glad we decided to move out of that other house, that house drained me for ten years, time to start doing something other than building and remodeling. Whew!

So yeah, not much of an update, but I'll have one soon... ;)

Jacksonville Bound...

2011-07-23T19:41:00.007-05:00

Well, back from Jacksonville, long drive... :) We had a great time though, and are planning to move there, so let the fun begin! I AM glad we moved here first though, because it took us months to sort through all the crap we had accumulated living at 415 Grist Mill Drive for 10 years. SO glad that is over! Now just have to find a house in Jacksonville, we have found many we like, and now we'll start the process... We are all very excited about it though, and can't wait to be down there to be honest, I have wanted to move to FL for years, now I am finally going... The GE facility I will be working at down there is in a very quiet and nice office park, so the work accomodations, they already have me a cubicle down there, will be nice. The school district we are looking in, good schools, so that is great...

Now we just have to move basically, after we find the house we want, so I'm sure I'll be busy over the next few months. We plan to be down there in the next few months, hopefully the sooner the better... :)

A few more pics from our trip...

Taylor and I on the beach this AM, we left the hotel at about 6:30AM to get out early, spent about two hours out there looking for shells and riding the boogie boards... Taylor loves it down there, the boys? Yeah, they wanted to sleep, so we left them at the hotel, they were still sleeping when we got back... :)

Carolyn and I this AM, there is nothing better than strolling on the beach in the AM, we LOVE it!!!

Sunrise on the beach the other day, it is so beautiful!

We were out yesterday, and this guy was trying to get that contraption going, it is a kite basically that hooks to a ski of sorts, and you skim across the water with it, he had brought the wrong pieces, I tried to help him get it launched, but it wouldn't work. I'm getting one if we move down there... :)

This was me for two whole days out there, I mistakenly started a Sidney Sheldon novel, and I cannot put his books down, so I read it in two days, and of course, the next day, I started a Jack Higgins novel, and could NOT put it down and finished it in one day! I think that is the first time I have ever started and finished a novel on the same day, ah, the beach... :)

So yeah, we are moving again, but we all are looking forward to it, we are tired of the area we currently live, time to move on. I'm amazed I have lived here as long as I have, I have the "rambling fever"... :) Yeah, time to move on... Keep reading, I'll keep posting details... ;)

Jacksonville...

2011-07-18T08:59:00.007-05:00

I think we have all decided that this is the place to be, as opposed to where we currently live anyway... :)

Taylor and I on the beach yesterday...

Chance and Taylor on the dunes...

Tanner at the end of the pier...

Carolyn and I this AM out for a stroll in the surf, which is quite nice I might add...

Me, after a swim in the ocean...

So now, off to do more exploring and bask in the sun on the beach...

415 Grist Mill Drive...

2011-07-11T15:45:00.003-05:00

Several of our neighbors called us this AM and said it looked like our mail box had exploded... So I came home from work and wow...

Yeah, pretty much obliterated...

I'm surprised that was still intact, the one on the other side, the 4, 1 and 5 were halfway down the street...

They must have been going pretty fast, notice how far down the street on the other side of the driveway the bricks are...

So anyway, we called the police, while waiting on them, we found several car pieces that identified the vehicle as a Volvo, one of our neighbors stopped by and said he saw a white volvo going back in the opposite direct with extensive front end damage... They could have left a note! Oh well, we have half of the neighborhood on the lookout for a white volvo, as well as the Paulding County Sheriff's office...

Lake...

2011-07-10T18:34:00.002-05:00

Well, I didn't go, but the kids went with our old neighbors to the lake for some fun and relaxation in the 93+ degree weather, while they were doing that, Carolyn and I were busting our asses over at Cory's house helping him get a few things done he needed help with... :)

Taylor at the wheel of the pontoon boat...

Relaxing on the boat...

Chance, Tanner and TJ, buds hanging out at the lake...

Ditto...

Happy Independence Day!!

2011-07-04T06:22:00.001-05:00

Six Flags...

2011-07-03T05:15:00.002-05:00

I really am not a fan of amusement parks, but my kids LOVE them, so I go... :) This is what Chance wanted to do for his birthday, so off I went with six kids in tow...

The guys all ran off when we got there, so it was Taylor and I together...

Taylor LOVED it, the last time she went was for my company outing in 2003, so she does not remember it, but of course now she wants to go back every day... :)

We did occassionally run into the guys during the day, ran into Chance and two of his friends at the Scream Machine... I remember riding that thing when I was a teenager, I think it was built in the 70's though, so it has been around a while.

And of course we ran into Tanner and Nate twice during the day, this time at Goliath, which was Taylor's favorite ride, she dragged me onto that thing at least 5 or 6 times... :)

We had a good time though, now off to help a friend of mine cut up a tree and install a sink. Fireworks tonight and a picnic and swimming at the lake tomorrow, I love long weekends!

Happy Birthday Chance...

2011-06-27T20:54:00.002-05:00

Today was Chance's birthday, I love doing things for these kids on their birthdays! So first stop was Texas Roadhouse for dinner, Chance and his love for steaks... :) I actually bought him one for lunch too, which Carolyn made for him... That boy LOVES ribeyes smothered with A-1 sauce, so had it he did...

Trying to take a pic at the Texas Roadhouse, Tanner wasn't cooperating... :)

Once we got back to the house, the people who came over for the cake... Just missing Carolyn and myself... I'm sure we were taking pics, well, I wasn't, but Carolyn was... :)

I just love to see their faces when they open their gifts...

Yeah, these are not in order... Chance about to blow out his candles... :)

Everyone at the birthday dinner, well, except me, but I had to take the pic... :)

Great day!! I just love my kids birthdays, they make me happy. We will go to Six Flags with his friends and us of course on Saturday for the finale... Should be fun, I really am not a fan of Six Flags, but Chance is, so, yeah, that is where we will go... :)

Father's Day...

2011-06-19T18:39:00.005-05:00

What a wonderful day! A continuation of Taylor's birthday celebration and Father's Day! We had a great time once again. Now that I no longer will be remodeling, we will have many trips such as this. We had a great weekend together as a family, and we will have many more, God willing... :)

Me and my fabulous children at the top of Stone Mountain! I love these kids more than life! The only one missing is Cory, and I love him just as much!

My lovely wife bought me a new iPod for Father's Day, which is great because my other one died, and who can be without one?? Thank you Darling!!!

I just LOVE the notes my children write me in the cards they give me, who could ask for more wonderful children than the ones I have?? I love them all dearly!

My first born son, I love that boy! I love them all though, what a wonderful life I live!!

Me and my wonderful, lovely wife Carolyn! I lucked out snagging this woman! She is my soul mate, my friend, my confidant! There are not too many people who could deal with me, Carolyn not only does, but we are perfect for each other! We were meant to be together! I love you honey!

Stone Mountain...

2011-06-19T07:15:00.002-05:00

So Taylor decided that instead of having all her friends over for a birthday party, she wanted to go to Stone Mountain and spend the night. LUCKILY they did not want to camp, so we stayed at the Marriott inside the park instead. These pictures are not in any sort of order as blogger is not copperating... :)

The guitar Taylor wanted for her birthday...

Cookie cake Taylor wanted instead of a regular birthday cake... I actually ate a piece of it, I normally do not eat cake...

Birthday cookout and party... It started pouring down rain right as we were finished! Whew!

The "grill" was a challenge to say the least, luckily the hotdogs were precooked... It was good anyway... :)

Our lunch picnic, which was the first thing we did when we arrived at the park, which was also rather tasty, and a LOT cheaper and better than the food you buy at the park itself... :)

Now, off we go to do some swimming, mountain climbing, riverboat cruise, etc... Oh yeah, and also a Father's Day picnic lunch somewhere, wherever we happen to find a free picnic table I suppose... :)

Happy Tenth Birthday Taylor!!

2011-06-15T19:53:00.003-05:00

I can't believe my sweet little angel is ten!?! Where did the time go? It does fly by though, that is for sure. I suppose I'll blink again and be walking her down the aisle... sigh. I can say that it has been a WONDERFUL ten years watching my baby grow up, and I am looking forward to the next ten with great pleasure! Happy Birthday Sweetheart! I Love You!

She was going to have a birthday party, but decided instead she wanted to go to Stone Mountain for the weekend, so go we will. We will be staying at the Evergreen Marriott Conference Resort located inside Stone Mountain Park, so I'm sure we will have a great time this weekend doing that and doing all of the activities there are these days at the Park. Luckily she also wanted a new digital camera, so I might actually have a few decent pics to post next week... :)

Chance and Tanner are still at Tybee Island and return tomorrow, so today we took Taylor out to Longhorn for dinner...

Taylor and Carolyn

No, my kids no longer order off of the kids menu, and I usually have to tell the host or hostess that we all need adult menus, or just grab them for the kids myself... :)

Me and my Princess!

The Grand Finale, for today anyway...

Carolyn and Taylor are watching the Justin Beiber movie right now, yeah, I had to pass on that activity... I don't think I have ever watched a kid movie with my children and I don't understand people who do. But that is just me... :)

Last Day Of School...

2011-05-27T15:19:00.002-05:00

Taylor and her teacher...

Taylor wrote this note on the whiteboard in her classroom, and I agree! Her teacher was GREAT!

Easter...

2011-04-24T11:54:00.002-05:00

Taylor looking for eggs...

Kids with their loot after the hunt...

I'd put more pictures up, but my camera SUCKS! Sigh...

School Pics...

2011-04-14T09:29:00.000-05:00

Chance

Tanner

Taylor

Spring...

2011-04-07T08:46:00.002-05:00

I think Spring is FINALLY here! Of course it is still rather nippy in the AM, which means I have to change from jeans to shorts around lunchtime... Oh well, I still love it, but I am looking forward to 90 degree weather! :)

We decided to modify the little patio area out in front of the house, looks great I think. Yes, Carolyn did the vast majority of the work, including transplanting those leylands from back by the pool where they were getting smothered by the other plants back there...

This corner as you pull in the driveway was a constant nightmare, we never have been able to get grass to grow there, so decided to just make the entire corner a bed... Also turned out great, and yes, Carolyn did all the planting there too... :)

It is too bad that the dogwoods and azaleas only bloom for a few weeks, but they are pretty when they are in bloom... What is the wheelbarrow doing there? Next pic... :)

Some jackass ran over the drain I had installed there years ago, of course it very likely could have been me... :) Anyway, I finally dug it up and put in a new one. Without it, that area becomes a muddy mess when it rains... So back in business there...

Yes, we also have more puppies, sigh. Of course last night someone came and bought them all but one and that one we are giving away to one of our friends, so thankfully getting rid of them this time was super easy... :)

Stone Mountain...

2011-04-02T15:59:00.004-05:00

So today Taylor and I went for our "outing", Taylor decided she wanted to bring her friend Victoria with her, so off we all went to Stone Mountain... Walking up the mountain first thing in the morning is not really what I like to do, although I'm pretty sure I was the only one going up that had a coffee in one hand and a cig in the other...

Taylor by the Grist Mill...

Ditto...

Taylor and Victoria by the covered bridge...

Us in front of the mountain. Taylor spotted a pretty good sized snake in that bush on the right.

Taylor on the way up the mountain.

So we had a great time, climbing the mountain, riding the train and just walking around...

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah...

2011-03-22T16:33:00.002-05:00

Wow, has it been that long?? Yeah, well, I have a LOT going on... :) Still continuing with the one on one outings, that is fun. Packing, which I hate, but I probably should not complain about that as Carolyn has done most, okay, all of it thus far... The thought of living anywhere else but in this house makes me nearly giddy.

I took the kids for a picnic and to the park on Saturday, we had a good time.

Tanner and William decided that climbing on the playground was the best idea...

Poor Chance broke his hand, so he was happy just swinging...

This is what moving looks like, trying to be smart about it this time, same size boxes, label everything, etc... I HATE moving, but am glad to be moving THIS time!

So yeah, work, packing, etc... That is the life right now. The funny thing is, I'm not even sure we will get the house we want as of right now, but we do not care, we ARE moving, anywhere BUT here!! :)

One On One...

2011-03-06T08:47:00.002-05:00

So a few weeks ago, I decided we did not do enough, not that we don't do enough things, because we certainly do our share, but I thought more! So we decided to start going out on some one-on-one excursions... It all started with me and Tanner going to see 'The Mechanic', then Taylor and Carolyn went shopping, then it was off to Sparkles for some roller skating with Chance and I. Then it started over again with Carolyn and Tanner going shopping, then Taylor and I went bowling, etc at US Play and today Chance and Carolyn went and had lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse...

It works out GREAT! Carolyn and I swap it out each time, I'll go with the boys, she'll take Taylor, next time around, vice versa... We'll just keep it going from now on, along with our normal family excursions of course... :)

Taylor the day her and I went bowling

So yeah, we love it! The kids get some quality one-on-one time with Dad and Mom, and everyone gets to do whatever THEY want to do, because we let the kids choose what the "activity" will be... Everyone knows there is X number of dollars that can be spent on each excursion, so whatever they pick, that is what gets done... We LOVE it!!

That Day Again...

2011-03-04T06:43:00.000-05:00

I Love These People...

2011-03-02T08:53:00.001-05:00

I Want It...

2011-03-01T17:53:00.002-05:00

Spring Is Near...

2011-02-27T08:12:00.002-05:00

Of course I do realize that there could still be plenty more cold, we've had snow here before in April, but who cares... It is supposed to be close to 80 degrees here today!! What is up with no blogs in nearly two weeks?!? Sigh. Oh well... Yesterday a friend of ours and I took the kids to the AMA Supercross at the Georgia Dome, Carolyn was going to go, but changed her mind as she decided she did not want to mingle with 55,000 other people downtown at the Dome, and really, who can blame her, I didn't either, but the kids wanted to go, so...

First stop was to our friends house to have a party for Lucas and pick them up, so we hung out, grilled hot dogs and had cake...

Yes, I left my camera in the truck, but managed to "steal" these from Kevin's FB page. The kids loved it! Me, yeah, it was okay... I did enjoy the "Main Event" where the pros were racing, the kids were a bit bummed that their favorite lost, but it was an exciting race.

Sitting in the nose bleed seats, but still a good view. The kids thoroughly enjoyed it. The thing I hate about events like that though, is when it is over, trying to get out of there along with 55,000 other people... Luckily we had gotten a good parking space in a church parking lot across the street from the Dome and managed to get out the back and avoid the interstate and most of the traffic, whew!

So yeah, that is what is going on. Still no final decisions on anything else. Hopefully within the next few weeks. :)

Sigh...

2011-02-16T17:23:00.002-05:00

Well, still no final approval on relocating from my Corporate HQ... So yeah, still in limbo. I've resigned myself to the fact that I'm stuck here, for now... ;) Who knows, more on that when I find out...

What else is going on? Life. Tanner is going off on a ski trip this weekend with my neighbor and TJ, Taylor is having five girls over for a slumber party this weekend and Chance wants me to take him roller skating... Ugh. I suppose I will, but wow, I really don't like skating. I guess the trade off will be I'll make him go see True Grit with me... :)

Pictures?? Yeah, I don't have any because I haven't taken any in a month or so, I need to work on that. So yeah, there is the update from me for now... :)

Happy Valentine's Day Carolyn!!

2011-02-14T07:24:00.001-05:00

They Keep Opening...

2011-02-11T16:23:00.003-05:00

The door's that is... :)

I think the thing that amuses me the most are the people who aren't accustomed to change... This isn't even a "for sure" thing yet, but there are people who actually get an attitude that we MIGHT be moving... Mind boggling. Oh well, one thing I never did was care what anyone else thought, I could not imagine living my life that way. So anyway, we still don't know one way or the other, and we are fine with whatever happens, but like I said, another door opened today, two more to go...

I would add that we as a family, if it all works out, are VERY excited about it and as far as I'm concerned, that is ALL that matters... ;)

Limbo...

2011-02-09T22:06:00.001-05:00

That kind of sums it up really... ;)

The Birthday Bash...

2011-02-05T20:02:00.002-05:00

Marci threw a party for Joshua's birthday today, so we loaded up in the truck and headed to Buckhead, something we never do... :) We don't venture far from Acworth, but we had a GREAT time and got to visit with everyone. Was GREAT to see Tori, haven't seen her in years, I was trying to figure out when we last saw each other, and I believe it was when she was over here for Christmas, which was years ago. Sorry my camera SUCKS, but it does, so none of the photos came out all that great, sigh...

Marci had the party at Truffles Cafe, which is right next to her office in Buckhead...

Taylor at the party...

Carolyn and Taylor...

Tori and Marci, and yeah, like I said, my camera sucks, need to get a new one sometime... :)

Marci and Gideon, he is SO adorable!!

So that is how we spent our day, now going to watch a movie, unless my neighbor calls and wants to do the P90X stretching tonight, he had to work late, so we'll see... :)

New Home...

2011-02-04T22:18:00.002-05:00

Or actually work place, still have to locate the home... :) Nothing is completely final yet, but the doors are flying open at an amazingly rapid pace for even me, funny how things work out when it is "the thing to do"...

That "A" on the map is where the GE facility is where I would be working...

We'll soon see if it all works out, but so far, as I said, the doors are opening before I even arrive practically... I'll keep you posted... ;)

Digital Photos...

2011-01-31T18:55:00.002-05:00

Sigh... As I'm sure everyone does, I have tons of digital photos, and over the years of switching PC's, rebuilding my PC, etc, many of them are duplicates. Every time I wipe out Carolyn's or my PC, I back the data up to my server, so there are nearly 100,000 digital photos on the server, but if you were to eliminate the duplicates, there are probably only about 20,000 originals, if that. Anyway. I decided to use Picasa's facial recognition feature to catalog them all, so nearly four days later, it is mostly complete. It is nice now to just pick a name and see every photo I have with that person in it, but wow, what a chore... Why would I want to do that you might ask? Well, take this video for instance:

I just clicked on Tanner's name, "starred" a handful of pictures, clicked make a movie and upload to YouTube... Of course you could make a much better "movie" if you spent more time on it, but that is why I wanted to do it, I am ALWAYS looking for a 'certain' photo and can never find it, or I spend a while looking for it. Now I don't have to do that... So now that that is done, I can get back to doing something useful, like finishing that drywall in the downstairs kitchen... :(

Day 18...

2011-01-22T17:50:00.002-05:00

Of the whole P90X thing that is... I'm about over it to be honest, but will continue on... :) Other than that? Yeah, just life. Still working on that kitchen downstairs, but these days, I do not do any remodeling during the week, only during the weekends. Too busy with work, family, etc during the week. I'm currently home alone, which is rare. Tanner is ice skating with friends, Chance is at his friends house, of course that is why I am home alone, Carolyn, Taylor and her friend went to pick up Chance and his friend, so I will soon be NOT home alone... :)

I did go get the rest of the drywall today to finish that kitchen, took out the sink and cabinets there and took down the drywall behind them. Yeah, I'm already over it, but continue on I must... :)

Of course at this point I said screw it and quit, I did get it hung on the other wall you can't see though, I suppose I'll finish it tomorrow and try to get the first coat of mud on the new pieces and the second coat on the ones I already had hung, we'll see how that works out...

Taylor and her friend with one of the puppies, I think Carolyn has them all sold already, and they won't even be ready to go to their new homes until February 14th. Of course Chance's dog, Brianna, is pregnant now too, sigh... Yes, that is a mouse trap under the cabinet there. I do believe we have finally eliminated them all, but WOW, what a chore that was!! Started when Chance got a male and female to breed for his snake. Then they "escaped" and now 39 mice later, we are hopefully mice free, what an effing nightmare!! Sigh...

So yeah, that is basically what is going on here. I'm still starving all the time, I eat all day long. I'm about over it to because I really don't like to eat. What can you do? Keep eating I suppose.

This is AWESOME!!

2011-01-18T09:59:00.002-05:00

I have tried to use several online sites over the years to print my blog in book form, but never found one I liked until now...

Blog2Print...

This one prints comments, and is semi-customizable, the only thing I didn't care for was it didn't allow page breaks to be inserted, not a show stopper though...

Fairly reasonable too, from January 2010 until today, I had 63 blog posts, who knows how many pictures and it was 121 pages. Hard cover was $60.45 and soft cover was $50.65... You could also download the PDF for like $7.95 or have it printed in black and white for $20 I think... It would not allow me to do 2007 in one book though as there were 378 posts, actually, it wouldn't allow me to do it online, said to call, so I guess it still might be possible... So I shall start blogging more now... :) Then just print copies of each year for the kiddoes...

I Forgot...

2011-01-17T18:13:00.002-05:00

How much I absolutely DETEST mudding drywall... Of course I'm really not all that good at it, so it takes me about four coats, so that might have something to do with it as well.

I really should have just finished it since I just had that one little wall there left to do, but I reach the point where I am just done, so I quit, no matter where I am in the process...

There is always tomorrow... :) Day 14 of P90X here in a few! I made it two weeks!! Hard to believe, particularly if you realize how much I really don't like working out. I really can't remember ever actually working out to be honest.

Kids go back to school tomorrow as well, they are kind of bummed because their Winter Break got canceled to make up for the snow days. I'm sure there will be a lot of parents who actually had trips planned, etc, so they might be a bit bummed as well, oh well, it is what it is...

Sigh...

2011-01-16T18:09:00.003-05:00

Yeah, I thought I'd get that drywall done today, but the problem with this house is:

Every time I remove sheetrock, without fail, I find crap like this... Who does that?? If you aren't going to use a long enough piece of wire or a junction box, at least wrap it with electrical tape?? Wow!

So I said screw it, went to Home Depot and got new boxes, outlets, switches, etc and just replaced everything. From now on, whenever I gut a room, I am just going to do that so that I know it is wired correctly, etc before I cover it back up...

So needless to say, that is all the drywall I got hung today, oh well, I'm off tomorrow, so hopefully I can get the rest hung and get the first coat of mud on it... :)

Now it is off for the P90X workout... I'm tired of working out too, I actually hate working out, but continue on I will, at least for this 90 day program, after the 90 days? Who knows, time will tell...

Oh yeah, here are three of the puppies, they are getting bigger and are way too cute...

That Didn't Take Long...

2011-01-15T21:14:00.002-05:00

So yeah, if I'm going to gut the upstairs kitchen, master bath, etc, Carolyn has to have somewhere to cook for the month or so that it will take me (being optimistic there :)... So I decided to "quickly" redo the kitchen downstairs as it needed it...

Of course I did not take a before picture, but I found this one from a few years ago... :)

Let it begin...

So I basically just ripped the entire thing out, I did leave the sink there until I've got the sheet rock hung, once I get around the window there, I will toss that sink and cabinet at the dump...

So that is basically all that is left in the downstairs kitchen...

So there you have it... Let the games begin... I am really optimistic about this, but we'll see how it goes. I am going to take that floor up too and put down slate, I already have the slate for it, so who knows, may do that next week. Going to hang the sheetrock first. Yeah, I ripped it all down because it had wallpaper over wallpaper on it, and it will be easier to just hang new sheetrock than to mess with trying to get off those layers of wallpaper and try to get it smooth enough to paint... Who knows, my next post may have pics of the sheetrock up... :)

Somebody Stop Me...

2011-01-13T12:09:00.002-05:00

I'm thinking of gutting half of the upstairs and redoing it...

Before...

After...

The layout of this house sucks!! I am determined to correct it though, as best I can anyway... The first thing I will have to do though is gut the downstairs kitchen and redo it, because that will be Carolyn's kitchen for the few months it will take to do the upstairs... We'll see how that works out.

Day Ten...

2011-01-13T06:34:00.003-05:00

Of the P90X thing that is... Doesn't seem like it has been that long, but I suppose it has, time flies. I'm not following the nutrition part exactly, but that is because Phase I of the nutrition part is the "Shredder", and I have ZERO fat to shred, I'm actually trying to gain 30 - 40 pounds. I do eat what is on the "list", I just eat LOTS of it! I've only actually deviated from the "list" once, when I had to go over to fix Marci's garage that she ran into, I stopped for gas and bought a custard filled donut, which was pretty tasty I might add... :)

P90X Program...

Even though I feel like I eat 24/7, I am literally starving ALL the time! I eat about 6 - 8 times a day too, I guess I need to start eating more each time... Sigh. Have I mentioned how much I hate eating?? Oh well... 80 days to go...

Of course the kids have been out of school all week as well, so they are having a blast! They are out again today, and I'm sure will be out again tomorrow as well, I suppose we shall find out this afternoon. Having lived up north, it is amazing to watch these fools here in the Atlanta area when there is a little snow and ice... Not sure what they would do if they lived in an area where there is snow and ice on the ground for 3 - 5 months of the year??

Tanner playing in the snow...

Taylor on the back deck...

Not sure why there isn't a picture of Chance, oh yeah, he is inside playing Black Ops on his PS3 trying to get to some 'extreme' level or something... :) He does play in it, the snow that is, it's just that no one was out with the camera when he was out in it... Myself? Yeah, I prefer to look at it out the window, I DETEST the cold! Oh well, January is nearly half over and Spring will be here in a few months. I suppose Spring will be here about the time we are done with the P90X program. That is another thing, every night we have to trudge over to my neighbors house in the snow because he is the one with all the equipment, DVD's, etc and that is where we do our hour to hour and fifteen minute workouts each night. Of course he lives next to the house right behind us, so it's not like it's THAT much of a walk... :)

Well, I suppose I should go eat my first meal of the day before I die of starvation!! I am literally famished as I type this...

Snow, Again, Sigh...

2011-01-10T09:31:00.002-05:00

Let's see, what is it? 70 more days until Spring? Sigh... This is what we woke up to this AM...

Carolyn in the front, obviously... :)

Front shot, and of course once the kids get up and start sledding, making snowmen, etc, this will all be a huge muddy mess...

So far, only about 3", and of course it really all depends on where you insert the ruler, 4" was the most I found, but it is a bit higher it seems in some of the drifts...

I do like the snow, for a VERY brief period of time, and luckily, since we live in Acworth, this will all be gone by the end of the week... :)

Back area... The dogs aren't quite sure what to think of it all, although, I am sure they are GLAD I put a heater in that garage for them, although they really don't need it with the dog house I built for them last year...

I'll post some more pictures once the kids get out of bed and start playing in the snow... Until then, I shall just attempt to stay warm, and now, I better go make more coffee, because the first pot is long gone...

P90X...

2011-01-05T14:05:00.002-05:00

Is what I'm up to... Of course last night was the first actual night of excercising, so we'll see how that works out. You have to replace habits you are no longer interested in with something, so I'm sure it will. Chance and Tanner are doing it with me, along with our neighbor's Jimmy and Nate. We'll see how long everyone lasts... :)

Sigh...

2010-12-26T11:57:00.002-05:00

Supposedly, the last time there was snow on Christmas Day in these parts was 1882, I haven't actually verified that, but have seen it in enough news stories that I'll assume it's true... :)

Taylor, a few minutes ago, trying to find something for her to use as a sled...

View from the back...

Pool, yeah, that thing runs 24/7 now, and likely will until March... :(

Back area we recently cleared out...

Taylor trying out the various items we tried to use as a sled, when I say "we", I mean Taylor, I have zero interest myself, it's all I can do to be outside to take a picture... Oh well, the kids LOVE it, and with any luck, the next few months will fly by and then it will be Spring!! :) In case you are wondering, a trash bag appears to work the best...

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-25T18:12:00.004-05:00

Sadly, my digital camera situation is not good, I need to have my good one repaired, so note to self: get that done soon!! So yeah, not many pictures were taken, and the ones that were aren't all that great. Of course I've been sick for the past three days, so didn't really care much... Hope that everyone had a fabulous day with friends and family!!

Getting ready to tear into the "loot", the kids have been anxiously awaiting this morning, as I'm sure kids all over the world have... :)

Cory spent the night last night, so was here this morning for the festivities, Jessica came over a little later to enjoy the "Christmas feast" with us. Taylor (I think) made those ornaments for Cory's tree...

Chance wanted some dumbbells for Christmas so he can start working out, and yeah, that's one of the few pictures of Tanner that even turned out, sigh...

This has pretty much been me for the past three days, hopefully it is nearly over... :(

Merry Christmas Eve...

2010-12-24T08:15:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone is doing well, we've been passing around a bug of some sort here, I've felt like shit the past two days, starting to feel better now though. I got it from Chance, hopefully no one else gets it... :) Although, Tanner, sadly, isn't sounding too good... Marci called earlier and was going to come over, yeah, I told her to STAY AWAY! :) Everyone is still in a good mood though, and we all have the holiday spirit going, the kids are all about to go to bed, because they cannot wait until tomorrow morning...

Carolyn's sister Linda, and her husband Mike came up a few days ago, we had a great time. Exchanged presents, Cory and Jessica came over and we had a good dinner.

All the kids... This was when Chance was feeling like crap, hopefully no one else gets it!!

I'm sure you can tell from this picture just how GREAT I feel, but whatever, I try not to let sickness kick my ass, but it's been a struggle. I AM feeling better now though as I am typing this, thankfully!!

Uncle Mike and Aunt Linda with the kids...

A good time was had by all, always enjoy the fellowship with Mike and Linda. Now, it is time to get ready for the morning... Although, I think the only thing I have left to do is go to bed, we've been done for some time now. Looking forward to the AM, it is GREAT watching the kids on Christmas morning... Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!!!

I Love Christmas...

2010-12-15T05:52:00.002-05:00

Such a fun time of year, especially with excited children running around, of course the older the kids get, there really isn't all that much of a "surprise" element as the kids knew exactly what they wanted, so they kind of know what is in each and every box under the tree... Oh well, it's still fun! I would rather they get what they want, than something we 'think' they want... :)

Attempting to take Christmas photos with my pos camera... I REALLY need to either get a new one, or get my other one fixed...

Ditto!

I'm not even sure I got all that good of a shot, we shall soon see... :)

What else is going on you might ask? Or maybe not, but whatever... Work the rest of the week, then off Christmas week. Got company coming this weekend, and other than that, just trying to stay warm. Which isn't working out all that well, but Spring is right around the corner... (I hope!)

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas...

2010-12-13T06:26:00.002-05:00

Well, I'm not, but my children are... They did get a taste of snow yesterday, and you never really know in GA, week before last I could still get in the hot tub and it was 70 degrees, here barely a week later, it's cold and there are still snow flurries out there... Sigh.

Oh well, I am excited about Christmas, it's a great time of year, particularly when you have children, it's so exciting watching them, and even when they get older and know EXACTLY what is in each box under the tree, it is still quite exciting... :)

Yeah, I'll try to take some actual pictures to put up here, we'll see how that works out... :)

I do hope everyone is enjoying the season, as well as remembering the actual reason for the season... Speaking of the reason, the next person that tells me Happy Holidays, I shall tell to piss off...

I Love The Holidays...

2010-11-29T21:30:00.002-05:00

Except for the cold, and really, I was just tired of looking at that Happy Thanksgiving post... ;)

Happy Thanksgiving...

2010-11-25T07:22:00.001-05:00

Again...

2010-11-21T08:48:00.002-05:00

So yeah, I had about six or seven more trees to cut down, but I was too scared to do it as they could have easily crushed the pool house I've spent three years building, so my friend said he would come do it...

Luckily he knew what he was doing... :)

This is the mess we were left with...

Zac clearing some of the debris, there is still a lot of it out there, so perhaps this time tomorrow I'll have a picture of it all gone. Although we burned most of it yesterday. I guess I better get off of this PC and get out there and get to work... :(

Kids LOVE Fire...

2010-11-15T15:54:00.003-05:00

Yeah, we've been clearing the area behind the pool house, and burning the trees we cut down, so the kids all had to have their "own" fire, which was fine with me, because the more kids running around finding sticks and whatever to burn, the less I have to pick up... :) (I'm getting rid of all the pines back there and clearing an area for a garden next year - in case you were wondering :)

So we have basically burned everything there is to burn back there now, grading it is next... :(

Oh wait, I have about six or seven more pines to cut down back there, but am too scared to cut them myself, so my neighbor is going to drop them for me next weekend...

This Is What I've Been Up To...

2010-11-11T21:14:00.002-05:00

Cooking chili... A fine meal if I do say so myself, I make so much of it because I do not know how to cook in small quantities having grown up in such a large family and how can you cook chili in small quantities???

Anyway, that's my post, the chili is AWESOME and everyone loves it. I made so much of it though, two days, two pots that size, we have a freezer full and have shared plenty of it with neighbors and friends. Still have a freezer full. The stuff is excellent after it has been in the freezer for a few months...

Halloween...

2010-11-01T13:11:00.002-05:00

Taylor cleaning out her pumpkin for carving... Yeah, I didn't take any other pics for some reason... :(

Trailer all set and ready to go once darkness arrives... Everyone's pumpkins they carved are attached (obviously), the "mummy pumpkin" didn't used to be a "mummy" but somehow the face got smashed in, yeah, I'm sure it was an accident, but anyway, the cloth strips came in handy... :)

Nearly ready, yeah, I was basically the same thing as I was last year, to be honest, I'm not even sure why I "dress up" since I rarely get out of the truck... :)

Shot right before we left...

Sigh...

2010-10-23T07:26:00.002-05:00

Has it been that long?? I suppose it has... Oh well, life, you know? I really have nothing to post, but I'm tired of looking at that last post, so I'll give you some pictures of the Air Show we went to last weekend... :)

Tanner in one of the helicopters on display...

Taylor and Carolyn...

I think this was inside of a C5, massive planes I might add... Believe it or not, I used to repair hydraulics on these...

The kiddoes...

Our intention was to stay and watch the Blue Angels, but you couldn't park on the base and had to take a bus to the show. The Blue Angels performed last of course, and we decided we did NOT want to wait in the massive lines once it was over to get back to our vehicle, so yeah, we stayed for about two hours... Now it's off to breakfast and to pick up something Tanner is buying off of Craigslist with his birthday $$, hopefully that works out...

Before And After...

2010-10-03T20:56:00.002-05:00

This is the before shot... :)

This is the after shot...

Kids trying to see who can build the biggest fire... :)

So yeah, that's what we have been doing all day. We are going to have a garden next year, a BIG one! Carolyn will can some green beans, and whatever else we grow, so hopefully we will be eating like kings next year! I'll have to build a fence around the area, but we are excited about it! I've already ordered the seed catalogs, the soil is rich, so here's to a good harvest next year after our work... :) Now it's time for bed!!!

Day At The Fair...

2010-10-02T16:48:00.002-05:00

Left early this AM (well, if you call 9:20 early) so we could get in free (saved $30 by doing that) at the fair... The kids were so excited. I keep hearing about the economy being bad, and I know it is, but there were a boatload of people there just throwing money away on everything that goes along with most fairs, rides, games, food, etc, etc... Must not be as bad here in North GA as some places... Luckily! Anyway, the kids had a blast, and Carolyn and I did as well...

Taylor with her face painted...

Chance, Tanner and Taylor... This is the only pic I have of Chance and Tanner, because the moment we got there, they ran off with their friend Cody and I never saw them unless Tanner called me because they needed $$... :)

Taylor and I on a ride, and yes, I am well aware of the fact that I look ridiculous in a hat, but I won it and got tired of carrying it around... :) I gave the hat to Tanner the next time I saw him...

Taylor at the petting zoo. This year, they had all sorts of animals there, including elephants and tigers. We were going to stay for the tiger show, but the kids were ready to leave by 3:00 (thankfully!!)

Taylor and I riding the carousel... Which is why the boys went off by themselves... :) Taylor is not interested in riding all the "scary" rides, so I rode the rides she wanted to ride with her. Carolyn rode a few rides in the beginning when the rides were free, but she isn't much on riding them either. All in all, had a good time. Glad to be home now eating and watching the UT game with Carolyn, which is something I don't normally do... :)

Happy Birthday Tanner!!

2010-10-02T15:56:00.002-05:00

The party participants!

If you are wondering where all the presents are, Tanner wanted a dirt bike, a new helmet and a new Xbox 360, so none of the presents are here yet... :) So Tanner is anxiously awaiting next week when he gets it all... :)

Taylor's 'New' Bedroom...

2010-09-21T20:04:00.002-05:00

I hate to think how many times Carolyn and I have "redone" these kids rooms, sigh...

Finally finished the headboard, and realized yet again how much I detest painting...

All setup, kind of hard to take a picture in an 11 x 11 room... :)

Taylor LOVES her "new" room, which is why Carolyn and I keep redoing them I suppose... I'm sure it wouldn't have taken two days to do it, but I ended up having to repaint the room... :( Oh well, Taylor is happy, I'm happy... :)

Taylor's New Bed...

2010-09-20T19:27:00.003-05:00

Our neighbor gave Taylor a queen mattress set and frame, but no headboard... So I decided to make her one... :)

There is my "board" I got at Home Depot this AM...

In progress, just making it up as I go along...

There you have the finished product... Of course tomorrow I'll have to paint it and put it and the bed in Taylor's room... We'll see if I have that picture up tomorrow night... :)

Not Much...

2010-09-12T11:01:00.002-05:00

Going on that is, well actually, there is a LOT going on, but I don't have any pictures or anything of it... ;)

Carolyn and I did go garage saling (is that even a word??) and got all of those pots for $10, love garage sales!! They really look great there by the pool, it was missing something, that was it!!

Our neighbor's son is getting married tomorrow, so we downloaded a bunch of pictures of him and his girlfriend from FB and uploaded them to Walgreen's to print, then stuck them all in frames. The idea is to put them all over the place where the reception is at... Now I think I want to do this anytime anyone gets married that we know...

We also made them this candle, someone made us one for our wedding and we loved it, so we figured they might as well... :)

Now I've got to go reclaim my garage... Hope everyone is having a good day (no matter what day you may read this... ;)

Always Remember...

2010-09-11T06:32:00.001-05:00

Before And After...

2010-09-06T13:24:00.002-05:00

Yeah, I stopped working on the "sidewalk" and moved to the stairs because they were getting on my LAST nerve!! :)

If that mess isn't enough to get on anyone's LAST nerve, I'm not sure what is... :)

Finally finished around 8PM, and nearly stopped quite a few times actually, I was glad this AM that I didn't... :)

Now to get myself inside and start cooking before all the company arrives...

Let The Games Begin...

2010-09-04T20:45:00.002-05:00

So yeah, the poll... the slate won. Now I just have to actually lay it. Wow. It's complicated, why did I have to make that walkway so curvy???? Oh well, getting started...

Laying out the slate and cutting it, I HATE doing this I might add. No one else is going to do it though, so do it I must...

Yeah, it's a chore. It will look nice though, and I think it will complement the flagstone. I'll put pics up tomorrow of the finished product.. I HOPE!

Chance, Tanner and TJ contemplating what to do... :)

Poll Time...

2010-08-29T19:15:00.001-05:00

So... I'm thinking of putting slate down around that flagstone instead of finishing with the flagstone. I'll cut a straight line on the flagstone, then make the slate level with the flagstone. What do you think? Why you might ask? Because I'm a cheap bastard, and I rather like the thought of slate at $.99 a sq. ft. as opposed to flagstone at $6 a sq. ft. :)

Lightly Matt, Lightly...

2010-08-29T16:29:00.002-05:00

So I decided to "lightly" sand that bar today and give it another coat of stain... Sigh. I ended up sanding, sanding and sanding some more... Oh well, I'm always of the opinion, do it right... :)

So let the three day process begin... Tomorrow I will give it another coat of stain, and then Tuesday will put the spar urethane coats on it to protect it from the weather. Looks pretty good if I do say so myself, it will look like a piece of furniture in three days... :)

Yesterday I went over to my neighbor's house for a BBQ (Jimmy's), but dinner wasn't ready yet. One of Jimmy's friends has a kid who has MD and he was dying to get in the water, so I took him over to swim while they finished cooking. Anytime you think you have 'issues', just go visit a family who has a child with a disease like that, it will make all of your 'issues' seem quite small... Great kid btw!

Chance with his snake yesterday, yes, he still has quite a LOT of pets... Yes, I AM aware that he needs a haircut... :)

This picture is for you Brittany! It is our sunflowers. Our neighbor gave us some when they were about 3 inches tall, it hasn't flowered yet, but I'll post another pic when it does... ;)

This IS The Life My Friends... :)

2010-08-24T15:38:00.004-05:00

Yeah, even though I have toiled on this thing for three+ years, I LOVE it!! It's exactly how I envisioned it when I planned it and started building it... I'm sure everyone is tiring of the pool house blogs, but I'm SO stoked to almost be done with this thing, it's about the only thing on my mind these days... :)

My "workspace"... :) Once I have completed everything, I will sand that bar down again and put another coat of stain on it and about four coats of spar urethane on it... I did that before, but obviously I didn't put enough coats of the urethane on it... ;)

My neighbor Zac's kid. Zac has helped me over the past three years do a lot of the building of the pool house. I'm pretty sure he is also glad it is almost done! :) Carolyn was watching Cylee today, and she LOVES the water!!

I'm Always Glad When The Weekends Are Over...

2010-08-22T19:59:00.002-05:00

Most people live for the weekends, I actually prefer the weekdays... :) Don't get me wrong, I DO like the weekends, it's just that my job requires zero physical exertion, only mental, and on the weekends I wear myself out...

I FINALLY got the gas run to the hot water heater in the pool house!! That thing has been sitting there unused for about three years... :) Another milestone down!

Carolyn saw these chairs on Craigslist for free! I was skeptical at first, but went and got them this AM. We put this one in Tanner's room so he can recline and watch TV if he is so inclined... That chair is SUPER comfortable! Nothing was wrong with it either except the piece on the bottom needed a screw put back in it... Gotta love Craigslist!

We also got two of these leather chairs! Super comfortable and they recline! Nothing wrong with them except one needs to have the piece on the bottom reattached. No holes in the leather, nice leather too! Not sure why the guy was giving them away, but give them away he did, so we took them... We'll put the other one like this in Taylor's room...

So after I got the gas run to the hot water heater yesterday, and after I made the 'chair run', I decided to build a little deck to get back to the hose because Carolyn did not like tripping over all that crap on the way to get the hose. I basically had all this wood just laying around from building the deck. I had to buy three boards I think...

The finished product! Worked out quite nice if I do say so myself... LUCKILY my neighbor Jimmy had an extra deck board laying in his basement, because otherwise I would have had to go to Home Depot for the sixth time this weekend! Whew! Thanks Jimmy!

That pretty much sums up my weekend, and I'm GLAD tomorrow is Monday! Many people hate their jobs, I love mine! Hopefully everyone else had a great weekend as well! Is it nearly September ALREADY?!?!?!?! Sigh. The cold is coming...

I Can Taste It...

2010-08-18T15:47:00.005-05:00

Yes, I can!!! As most of the viewers know, I have been working on this damn thing for over three years now... I am SO close to being done I can taste it! Literally! ;) Still a lot left to do, but the major things are nearly almost done... I LOVE it too I might add, the pool house that is! :)

(Although, if I DID have it to do over, there would be a swing set there, without question! :)

So I do have wireless out at the pool house, but I MUST have hard wired ethernet!! I have run this cable out there now three times!! Third time is a charm, so they say... Of course the problem now is I got so fed up with it not working that I just ran an ethernet wire out here outside of the conduit! Whatever, it works, I'll duct tape the wire to the conduit and bury it anyway... :) It's FINALLY working now, don't mess with a good thing!

The switch I installed at the pool house, so essentially I have seven hard wired connections up there... :) The more the merrier I ALWAYS say when it comes to ethernet connections... :)

Works GREAT I might add!!!

Yes, I did finally get all the towel holders, toilet paper holder, towel rings, robe hooks, etc, etc, etc all installed!!

So yeah, this is a great moment for me, particularly since I've been screwing with that hard wired ethernet connection for about three days now... :( Whatever, I am so motivated to get this done you can't make it up, I have many, many more things to concentrate on... So yeah, major milestone in this project from hell... :)

The Project From Hell...

2010-08-15T14:00:00.005-05:00

I call it the 'project from hell', but it is something that I have done of my own choosing, so I guess I should really stop bitching about it... :) Anyway, it is actually nearing completion, even though I've been saying that for about two years... This time I mean it! :) A few pics of what it looked like as of this AM...

The shower/sink room... Kind of small, but it works quite nice!

Shower/sink room again... I only actually have some paint touch-up to do in that room believe it or not...

Toilet/sink room... All that's left in there is hanging the towel rod, toilet paper holder and a robe hook... (All of which I've had for about two years... :)

Kitchen... I think the only thing left in there is putting the end on the laminate countertop...

Kitchen, different angle...

Ditto...

My new hangout! Satellite, Internet, phone, fridge, microwave, shower and shitter; what more does a man need??

Front view...

All in perspective...

I've been working on this thing since June of 2007... At the time, I was under the impression that I could build it all in six months, yeah, three years later... :) Anyway, other than the items I mentioned, about all that is left outside is: finishing the flagstone on the walkways and stairs; finishing the fire pit area (which you can't see in this view, but it is going to be about where I'm standing to take the pic if you can picture it... :); finishing the slate on the back and sides and a little trim work on the outside, so all in all, not bad since I did it all myself... :) It is, however, time for Matthew to relax for a while!!