Fall Happenings

A lot of minor details to report.  Yesterday, Bode had a swim meet and did awesome.  He swam the 100-yard freestyle, the 50-yard backstroke, 25-yard butterfly, and the 100-yard individual medley.  This was a fairly competitive meet, so Bode didn't sweep the firsts, but he swam best times in all four events including the IM, which he did in 1:46:00.  I tried to take some action photos--I don't think any are all that great, but I'll include them for posterity.  First up we have Bode ready to start the 100 freestyle.

Next we have Bode kicking hard to the finish.

Next, Bode getting ready to start the 50-back.

Last, we have Bode finishing strong in the IM--he won his heat, which was pretty cool.

We recently had a conference with Bode's teacher.  We are happy to report Bode is doing extremely well in school this year.  He has all A's and B's, including an A in math (we should hope so), and an A+ in music.  He also has a B- in PE, so we need to work on his athletics--we'll start the 0500-morning runs next week (only kidding).

I harvested the final carrots today, which means there is nothing left in the garden.  I peeled some for my lunch this week, but I also pickled some--yes, I know, pickled carrots probably aren't the greatest, but I wanted to see what they tasted like.

I'm sorry to report Mike the goldfish is no longer with us.  He lived a total of 3 days, which isn't too long if you ask me.  Bode thought Mike was sleeping but was heart-broken when I told him Mike had died (really--it was almost as bad as when Harley died).  Fortunately, we were able to get him a replacement.  We spent some time at PetSmart and decided on a beta fish (they are supposed to be pretty hardy).  We also had our aquarium water tested to ensure all was well, and it was.  Bode is very good about feeding "Barry" (named after the Flash), and he even reminded me we needed to do a 20% water change today.  Here's a picture of Barry in his environment.

Finally, the other two dogs are doing fine--just as lazy as ever (as is their owner)...

Pleasant week to all.

Yes Club

Bode joined the science club this semester.  They meet every Tuesday after school and are studying fire.  They are learning proper fire safety and also studying wild-fires.  As part of this, they visited a burn area from the 2012 Waldo Canyon fire.  Neither Ashley nor I could go on the trip, but Mr Glisson did take a couple of pictures.  First, the van ride to and from (probably the highlight of the trip).

Next, the group at the burn area.  They were actually at the site of the Flying W Ranch which was completely destroyed by the fire.  Bode said it was very interesting.  They kids helped pull invasive plants and ensured they disposed of them so the seeds were not dispersed.  They also got to wear hard-hats.

The group has to put together some type of project and present some time in December.  Bode really likes science, so this is right up his alley.  Pleasant day.

Happy Halloween

Soccer season is over, and I think it would be poor form for me to say I'm happy that's it's done (I am).  It was lots of fun, but the time commitment can be a bit much--we'd practice twice a week and games on Saturdays.  Of course, it's not like I have an overly busy schedule.  But Bode did have a lot on his plate--swimming, soccer, piano, violin, and he's started doing science club this semester.  Thus, I'm happy for him to have a couple days back to just be a kid.  The season wasn't great in terms of our won-loss record, but we did finish strong with a 3-0 victory.  Ashley took some action shots of the game (I was too busy coaching), but for some reason, she didn't get any shots with Bode in it :-(  She did get plenty of pictures of the boys during the post-game pizza party.

I might have mentioned I did some pickling of my cucumbers from the garden.  I've started eating them and find them to be quite tasty.  I think I might have overdone the dill on some of the jars, as it's a bit potent.

Today is Halloween, and we just finished trick-or-treating.  This morning, we awoke to snow, cold, and ice, and we dreaded the evening.  Fortunately, the weather cleared and it warmed up a tad.  Bode got a great haul of candy, and we all managed to stay warm.

Bode has a swim meet on Saturday.  Sadly, it directly conflicts with the Auburn-Texas A&M game.  Ashley has been hoarding her data so she can watch the game on her phone.  Hopefully Auburn does well; otherwise, Ashley's phone might end up in the pool in disgust.  Pleasant week to all.

Fall Carnival

Bode's school had its fall carnival this past Saturday.  Bode and Ashley both dressed up in their costumes.  Bode's is pretty awesome--he went as Slender Man (Google it if you don't know what it is).  Ashley was going to be a white walker from Game of Thrones, but there was a problem with the delivery of her costume; thus, she had to quickly find an alternative, which turned out to be a pretty cool looking Supergirl.  Here's a good picture of Bode in front of our house.

Next is a good shot of Ashley.

And finally, a picture of Mom and son together.

The carnival was fun.  This was the first time Bode went off on his own with his friends to do the various activities.  I did get a picture of Bode and Eli together.

Ashley and I hung out in the cafeteria, ignoring her smart phone so we didn't know what was going on in the Auburn game (we taped it).  We also participated in the silent auction, which was fun.  There was a pretty good item--tickets to the USAFA-Army game with some jerseys and other paraphernalia.  We put a bid on, but noticed there was this group that kept bidding on the item whenever someone outbid them.  Since all proceeds go to the school, we decided to try to push the price up.  When we started this, the bid was at $50; I think we got it up to $95 :-)  The carnival has various games in different classrooms, and the prizes are usually candy or something along those lines.  This year, one game gave away a living goldfish in a plastic bag as a prize, which I thought was horrible, especially when Bode brings me a bag with a fish in it.  I wanted to give it back, but Bode seemed to really want this fish.  Therefore, today, Bode and I went to PetSmart and got a little tank and other aquarium odds and ends.  Here's a picture of Bode with Mike the fish.

Bode took the below picture of Mike; I'm putting the over-under on how long Mike lives at 14 days, but you never know...

We had a nice weekend--Auburn won, Air Force won, the Steelers won...the only drawback was the Broncos, who played horribly against the Chargers.  We also managed to take Joey and Barkley to the dog wash.  Barkley was filthy--she wasn't really a black dog anymore but more of a dirt-stained brown.  Joey has been to the dog wash a number of times, so he's fine with the bath.  Barkley wasn't thrilled with any of the process, but in the end, we got her nice and clean.

Another week of work for Ashley and me.  Bode has a 3-day week, as Parent-Teacher conferences are Thursday and Friday, which is when we'll get Bode's report card.  Here's hoping it's good! :-)  Pleasant week to all.

Piano Concerto

Bode continues to excel at the piano.  I didn't tell him I was recording tonight's practice (which explains him burping a number of times), but it's obvious he plays the pieces really well.  He practices almost every day (under penalty of no electronics if he doesn't, so he's not quite self-motivated), but he doesn't complain (much) about playing.  The original video was too large, so I had to break it up into two smaller files, but I think I have a future as a movie editor :-)

The pumpkin vines are all dead.  We had a hard freeze the other night.  Fortunately, this was forecast well in advance, so Ashley and I harvested the pumpkins and remaining cucumbers.  I was surprised the raspberry plants survived--we still have about 50 raspberries that are ripening up, and the weather is supposed to be pleasant the rest of the week.

Ashley's new job is going well, I'm at about the mid-point in my semester, Bode's first report card is this Friday, and the ski resorts are making snow.  Bring on winter!

Eighteen Years

Ashley and I have been married for 18 years (as of tomorrow).  We celebrated with a family brunch to the Broadmoor, a place we love to go and make pigs of ourselves.  We all planned ahead by eating dinner the previous night at 6:30 pm.  None of us ate breakfast nor lunch.  We were seated for brunch at 12:30, so we were all famished.  Let the carnage begin.  I think Bode had four plates of food.

We feasted on ham, roast beef, potatoes, shrimp, crab claws, lovely meats, cheeses, and raw fish, salads, fruits, and pastries.  We topped things off with dessert.  Ashley loves the Banana's Foster, while Bode is a connoisseur of the iced creams.

Afterwards, we took some family pictures.  It was rather cold and rainy here, so the weather wasn't perfect, but we did have a wonderful day together especially since Auburn won yesterday.

What a wonderful 18 years together.  The last 10 have been especially awesome since Bode's been around for almost a decade.  Time sure flies.  Pleasant week to all.

The Pumpkin Patch

McGuirk Farms continues to produce.  In the previous post, I showed a picture of my cucumbers.  Well those were probably half, if not less, of the total harvest.  I had close to 30 cucumbers this year.  What to do with them?  I decided to try my hand at pickling.  I now have close to 20 jars in the basement, all in the process of producing (what I hope to be) fabulous pickles.  I'll take some pictures of them when we get closer to eating time.  I'm worried they'll be horrible, and then I'll be stuck with a bunch of jars of bad pickles (Christmas gifts?)

Bode's soccer season is in full swing.  The team has won one game, and lost two.  One of the losses was a tough match--3-2, with the other team scoring in the closing seconds.  We won't talk about the other loss.  I think the boys are having fun and learning a lot (at least I have to keep reminding myself of that fact--it's fun for the boys, and the wins don't matter :-)  Ashley took a few pictures with the camera.  First, a team photo that she surreptitiously took while the photographer wasn't looking.

She took a lot of action shots, but no real ones you can tell that the particular player is Bode.  In the below picture, Bode is the kid holding the ball.

We also have a nice shot of the boys and me at half time.

Bode is also back in swimming, having moved up to Class 2.  He does swim practice twice a week, soccer twice a week, piano lessons once a week, and he joined the school orchestra and does the violin.  While I love soccer, I can't wait for 28 Oct, which is when the season ends, and Bode's (my) schedule will get much easier.

My pumpkins have gone nuts.  They've left the garden and are making their way through the yard.  Barkley also likes to keep an eye on them.

 

I have five or six good-sized pumpkins.  I had another one, but it was growing on the vine in a position such that its weight wasn't well-supported, so it snapped off.  Below is a nice picture--I can't imagine how big it would've gotten if it had continued to grow on the vine.

Not much else going on here...except that Ashley is UNEMPLOYED :-)  This was planned, as she has taken a new job with a different company.  Her last day with Harris/Peraton was Friday, and she doesn't start up until 2 October.  Thus, for the first time in over 17 years, she has no responsibilities whatsoever.  She certainly deserves the rest.  She plans to spend some quality R&R in Breckenridge this week.  Bode and I will keep the home fires burning.  Pleasant week to all.