where I talk with my inside voice
We missed a couple of years due to COVID, but we headed down to Powell Hall today to see and hear the SLSO and get into the Christmas spirit. They were pretty heavy on the jazz this year, which is okay, but sometimes I just want to hear the traditional arrangements. Still a great show and they played for almost...
When we went to Meert Tree Farm last year to get our tree, Josie saw this ugly little bush and fell in love with it. It took me a year to adjust to the idea, but when we went back today, it was still there (no surprise). Dixie and Josie both think it’s adorable. My only requirement was a red...
The kids wanted to set up the garage again this year for Halloween, and this time I posted a short video clip on Nextdoor to try to advertise and generate a bigger crowd than we had last year. I guess it worked – we had more than last year, but still not a ton. We still had fun.
Although they both said no when Dixie first asked them if they wanted to go, I managed to talk them into it, and in the end they were both glad they went. Dixie and I volunteered to chaperone, and spent the whole night sitting in the hallway watching the endless procession of girls headed to the bathroom, but it was...
I sure wouldn’t have predicted a 3-game sweep of the Yankees, but that’s exactly what the Cardinals delivered this weekend and we got to see the last and most exciting game of them all. I’m glad the kids will have memories of such a notable game. The Cards won 12-9 and we got to see Yadi make his 1000th career...
I took the family to the St. Louis Airshow this weekend. This was a good year to go because the Blue Angels were performing and in addition to all of the other aircraft they had on static display, the C-17 was there. It was hot and crowded, but not unbearable, and the kids enjoyed seeing all of the planes flying....
I took today off work to extend the already long weekend, and I took the kids on a staycation trip downtown. We made a quick stop at the Scott Joplin House and then headed down to the Arch grounds. On our way from the parking garage, we also stopped at the marker where Fort San Carlos is thought to have...
Noah took the written portion of his driver’s test and passed on his first try! That means we now begin many hours of practice driving so he can develop his skills before the driving portion. This is a new chapter and I’m very proud of him.
For Christmas, Grandma Linda gave us tickets to see the Beyond Van Gogh exhibit here in St. Louis. It was a really cool way to experience his artwork and learn a bit about his troubled life.
Once again, I missed a couple of years, but our “annual” Christmas Card video made its appearance out on the public site too. Since I’m no longer on Facebook, I’m hosting these on my site again, with the biggest benefit being that the copyright nazis can’t shut me down. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Because I had extra vacation this year, I decided to take off the entire week of Thanksgiving. We wrapped up the week by resuming our annual pilgrimage to Meert Tree Farm because we need a little Christmas NOW!
Noah just returned from two weeks at Philmont Scout Ranch. I am very proud of him for this accomplishment. He had to spend several months in advance going on practice hikes and conditioning himself for the physical challenges. It was an incredible trip and he had a great time. I was happy he got to go (despite COVID), but we...
That’s the look. That’s why parents enjoy Christmas morning so much. On its initial release date Aug 1, the new Lego Grand Piano set sold out within minutes. It took me several weeks of monitoring Lego’s web site and two trips to the Lego store to get one, but it was all worth it to see that look. Can’t wait...
We bought Minecraft for Noah in 2013, not knowing what an impact it would have on our lives. That first Christmas, I remember we spent an entire day playing it, and that eventually became an annual tradition that all four of us engaged in. Yesterday, we continued the tradition – although not for the entire day – with Josie, Noah...
