Merry Christmas 2008

We had a nice time opening gifts today. Sam was very interested in his presents and enjoyed tearing them open. Nora & Hanna got what they wanted and were very surprised when they opened their final gift. Click here to view the video of them opening their gift. Click here to view photos from the day.

UNC Basketball

My neighbor Brad had an extra ticket to the UNC Men's Basketball game and I jumped on the opportunity to go. UNC played Oral Roberts University and won 100 to 84.

Duke Basketball

I went to the Duke Men's Basketball game with my friend Greg who has season tickets. Duke played Montana and won 78 to 58. It has been a long time since I've been to a college basketball game and I really enjoyed it. In the photo next to this blog post is Greg (far right) and "The Crazy Towel Guy". Click here to see a video of him getting the fans into the game.

Halloween 2008

We had another great Halloween this year. Nora dressed up as a Scary Fairy, Hanna dressed up as a Witch and Sam dressed up as a Monkey. We had a pot luck dinner with the neighbors and then all the kids went Trick or Treating with the moms while the dads stayed home and handed out candy.

Phil - Phil - Gates Y'all

We had an unexpected but pleasant (for the most part) visit from Sam's Godfather - Phil Gates. Phil blew into town from Seattle and spent the weekend. The girls loved seeing him as well as my neighbors;-) Phil actually raced the neighbor kids in a footrace. The races were close but according to Phil he won.

Camper of the Week

Hanna was on track out for a week. She spent her mornings at the YMCA with about 75 other children. Hanna was awarded Camper of the Week.

Orlando, FL

Kristi and I went down to Orlando for a few days to relax. Grandma Kim flew to Raleigh to stay with the kids. We stayed at Matt & Stacy's. The best part of our trip was spending the day at Epcot.

Academic Progress Report

Nora received her first quarterly report card as a sixth grader. We are very proud of her scholastic accomplishment. Here are her results:

Math: 100%
Healthful Living: 100%
Language Arts: 98.837%
Advance Science: 94.286%
Visual Arts: 93.15%
Advance Social Studies: 92.222%

SparkCon

SparkCon was this weekend in downtown Raleigh. We all drove down to look at the display of chalk art on the street. Nora's art teacher was there and pointed out that four students from her school participated this year and she encouraged Nora to do so in next year's SparkCon. Here is a link to some of the picture we took.

Stone Brewing

Tyler's Taproom in Durham, NC hosted a release party tonight for Stone Brewing Co. My babysitter bailed on me so I took the kids and went with two friends to enjoy some of the best micro beer you can find. Stone is based in Escondido, CA and their beers are only available in limited states at this time. Fortunately this release party marks Stone's availability in North Carolina. Click here to view some pictures I took. I apologize that several of the pictures didn't turn out that well.

Durham Bulls 08

The last regular season game for the Durham Bulls was tonight. We took the kids and met all our neighbors at Tyler's Taproom for dinner before the game. After dinner we headed to the game and watched the Bull's win 7 to 2 over Charlotte. There were fireworks after the game.

Nora's First Day of 6th Grade!

Nora started sixth grade today at East Millbrook which is an International Baccalaureate school. She had a fever last night and was not feeling well today plus she was very nervous. I had a chance to walk her to the auditorium where she was assigned a home room teacher along with 400 other kids. We are very excited for her as she begins her journey through middle school.

Journey/Heart/Cheap Trick

Last night we went to the Journey/Heart/Cheap Trick concert at the Walnut Creek Pavilion. Our neighbors Vince can Sandy went with us. Here are some photos I took.

Digit Update 3

This morning I went into the Raleigh Hand Clinic for my check up. The first thing I did was place my hand into a machine that had ground corn husks in it. The mulch was heated and the machine churned it so it moved around your hand. The purpose is to warm up the muscles in your hand before beginning therapy. Next, the took measurements of my flexibility which are on track for a good recovery. From this point I went to see my Dr. who removed the button and wire from my finger. He used a device that looked like a needle nose pliers and untied the wire, slipped the button off then yanked from one end of the wire until it pulled free from my the inside of my finger (which was actually threaded through my bone (he drilled a hole during the surgery) and ligament). I go back in one week for a therapy checkup and in three weeks for x-rays. I am still restricted from basketball and other impact activities. If all is well at my three week appointment I will be cleared to play basketball again.

Sam's Chompers: Update 2

We took Sam into a pediatric dentist this morning. The dentist's office is pretty cool with a water/beach theme (sorta like being in the movie Finding Nemo) - very kid friendly. Sam sat with Dad to take his x-ray and did a great job - he didn't move at all. Dr. Dave had on a Spiderman scrub shirt and examined Sam. As Sam was noticing all the Spidermen on his shirt he saw the black Spiderman from the last movie and said "scary". Overall Sam did great but did freak out some when Dr. Dave was in his mouth with his dentist tools. The x-ray shows how far Sam's teeth are pushed up.

The prognosis is to let nature run its course for now and hope his teeth come back in. Dr. Dave will look at his teeth again in a month to measure the progress. If Sam gets an infection in his gums or his teeth then they will need to be removed.

Overall Sam seems to be doing fine. He occasionally gets bumped in the mouth and cries saying his mouth hurts. The worst thing is seeing your child in pain and going through something you can't make better. The idea of him having surgery is awful. We are hoping for the best.

Sam's Chompers: Update 1

We took Sam to a dentist here in Raleigh to have his teeth looked at. Sam would not sit still so the attempt to take x-rays failed. The dentist looked at his teeth and said he thinks Sam will need to have his teeth pulled. This would require surgery and an overnight stay in the hospital. The reason for surgery is they need him to sit perfectly still so when they remove the teeth they don't' damage his permanent ones. We have been referred to a pediatric dentist who will make the determination regarding next steps.

Hanna's First Day of 4th Grade

Today was Hanna's first day of school in the 4th grade. She is very happy with her teacher and excited to get back into the swing of learning.

Hanna's 9th Birthday

Hanna celebrated her 9th birthday by having three neighborhood girls spend the night. They ate pizza and ice cream cake and watched the Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus concert/movie on television. They all spent the remainder of the night in Hanna's room. In the morning everyone got up, had breakfast, played some more and went home around noon.

Digit Update 2

I had another follow up appointment today regarding my finger. The doctor removed the pin from my finger which was an eerie feeling and somewhat painful. It seemed like it took forever for him to wiggle and twist the pin out from my knuckle bone. I choose to not watch him remove it but Nora & Hanna looked on with curiosity and awe. I began therapy on my finger and go back in two weeks to have the button and wire removed.

Pandora

Hanna found an Eastern Box Turtle and has taken it into our home as her new pet. Hanna named her (Nora can tell if it is a boy or girl - go figure) turtle Pandora. We left Pandora with our neighbor when we went to Minnesota. When we got back we were surprised to find that Pandora has laid 5 eggs in her aquarium. This story is to be continued...

20 Year Class Reunion

Norman County West High Panthers' graduating class of 1988 seems like yesterday and feels like a lifetime ago. I guess when I think about it, we have been away from each other (20 years) as long as we knew each other (18 years). We all met at Bennigans in Moorhead, MN and had a very nice evening.

We had a good turnout: Denise/Kelly/Kristi/Jessica/Becky S./Stacey/Cristy/Lainya/Shane S./Shane T./Phil/Jeremy/Tom/Tim.

We certainly missed everyone else who could not make it. A thank you to Mary/Becky H./Darci/David C. for providing updates that were shared over dinner.

Of course I can not resist poking some good hearted fun at Randy a.k.a. "Buckshot" since he didn't show up. For those of you that don't recognize the picture at the beginning of this blog, that is Randy when we were living together our first year out of high school. Perhaps if he sees this he will come out of hiding;-) Click here for more pictures from the reunion.

125 Year Celebration

The 125 Year Halstad Celebration was conveniently over the same weekend as our 20 year high school reunion. It was nice to see our family and friends again. Here is a link to some photos we took.

Stillwater, MN

Kristi and I flew into Minneapolis and stayed in Stillwater, MN for a couple of days. The new company I work for is based in Stillwater and the annual company meeting and picnic were Thursday and Friday. We had a great time and learned a new game at the picnic called Polish Horseshoes (see picture in this blog). We also had the opportunity to see our friends Denise and Mark. We had dinner together and took the kids swimming at the hotel pool. See photos here.

All Sam wants for Christmas is...

One evening at Nana & Papa's, Sam was playing with his sisters before bedtime. Sam was jumping off the bed onto an air-mattress. Everyone was having fun until Sam catapulted himself across the room and hit a chair sitting at a desk. As you can see in the photo, there are marks in the chair that Sam made with his front teeth. After what seemed to be a significant amount of bleeding and crying, we learned that Sam had jammed his two front teeth back up into his gums. We were fortunate to have the dentist look at Sam over the weekend and we found out that he also broke the bone above his teeth. The diagnosis is his teeth will come back down like before (possible discoloration) or they will fall out. If they fall out he will be toothless until his permanent teeth come in. Regarding the broken bone above his teeth, that will heal and when he sucks on his fingers or milk glass it will help keep the shape so the bone forms correctly.

Heading to Minnesota

Grampie (Tom) came out to Raleigh to fly back to Minnesota with Nora & Hanna. It was nice to see Grampie and of course the girls and Sam loved having him. I did have a chance to sneak out with Tom for a beer at Horniblows Tavern.

Digit Update

Today I went in for my post surgery check up. I had 15 stitches removed and new x-rays taken. Everything is coming along fine. I do have a rod that runs through my knuckle to keep it in place while healing. There is a yellow ball at the end of the rod I can touch (click here to see a photo). Also, there is some very thin wire that runs from the underside of my knuckle around to the top side of my knuckle that comes out of my skin through something that looks like a button. This wire is holding the ligament in place while it heals. I will have the rod removed in two weeks and the button a week after that.

Jer's Digit

I was playing basketball at the YMCA over lunch and my left hand ring finger was kicked. At first I thought it was dislocated so I tried using my self-taught "pull on it until it goes back to normal" technique. I thought I corrected the problem until I bent my finger and had to squeeze really hard to get it to bend past 45 degrees. In doing this it actually made a clicking noise on my middle knuckle. I went to get x-rays and the initial diagnosis was my knuckle was broken. I was referred to a hand specialist and learned I had also severed the ligament on the bottom of my finger (this is what enables you to bend your finger). My knuckle was not only broken but dislocated because the tendon on the top of my finger was pulling my knuckle out of socket since the bottom ligament could not provide any counter resistance. I had surgery on July 2, 2008 to have the portion of the crushed bone removed and reshaped along with reattaching the ligament.

Summer Fun

We have posted some photos from the pool we go to during the summer. There are also some pictures from when the kids were playing in the yard with the water.

Last Day of School

The girls finished their second year of school since we moved to Raleigh. They have adjusted very well and made many new friends. The pictures associated with this post are from the end of school celebration.

Hanna's Fall

Hanna has bunk beds and when she was climbing down from her top bunk, she slipped and fell backward hitting her head on her toy chest. Thankfully, she ended up needing just one stitch. She was allowed to pick out a color for her stitch which was blue.

Nora's Birthday

Nora turned 11 on May 29th. She is having a small birthday party at Frankies this weekend. Nora also had her annual eye appointment this week and was fitted for contact lenses. The picture in this post is from this morning when she left the doctor's office wearing her new contacts.

Memorial Day 2008

This year Kristi's sister Emily came out to visit for the holiday weekend. We went to dinner with our neighbor's one evening with all the kids. The next day we went to the dog park in the morning so Magnus could get some exercise in then we spent the afternoon at the pool. Monday, we packed up the van with all our kids and headed to Wilmington to spend the day at the beach. The weather was perfect and the surf was very refreshing. We closed out the day by taking a tour via boat of downtown Wilmington's waterfront.

Potter's Parody Phour

Nora played Fred Weasley in her second play at the Durant Road Musical Theatre. She did an outstanding job and really enjoys acting.

Our Neighbor Turned 40!

Our neighbor Kimberly McGhiey turned 40 and her husband Mark rented a stretch Hummer limo for the occasion. Our other neighbor Jenn set up everyone with a babysitter and the adults hit the town. We had a great time and all were home by 12:15 a.m.

Mudcats

My neighbor Brad had extra tickets for the Mudcats game and invited my neighbors Vince and Mark along with me to the game. The Mudcats are owned by the Florida Marlins and play in the AA league. The Mudcats were down late in the game and due to some special heckling from Brad, were motivated and rallied to win 9-7.

Father & Daughter Dance

I was honored to be Nora & Hanna's date for the Father & Daughter Dance at their school. There were numerous fathers there who had the same look on their face as I did - "prom is coming too soon"!

Frankies

To celebrate the end of Girl Scouts this year, Hanna and her troop went to Frankies. I brought Sam with to drop off Hanna and once he saw the video games he lost his mind and ran around to each machine and climbed on to it so he could play.

Crash

On a damp night on March 31st at approximately 7:45 PM, a guy driving an Audi slammed into a parked trailer rig at the dead end behind our neighbor's house. Here is a link to the pictures - the car is a mess but the guy managed to walk away: http://vincekowaleski.homeunix.com:2112/crash08/crash08.html

Dad's New Hammock

I received a hammock for my birthday this year. I enjoy taking a break and relaxing in it. Sam likes to have his milk break in there with me from time to time.

Sam is 2 Years Old!

Sam turned two during Josie's visit. We had a party for him and invited the three families we have become friends with on our block.

Auntie Josie

Kristi's sister Josie came out to visit us. Nora & Hanna were very excited to see their aunt. We went to dinner at Shuckers one night and Josie ordered steamed oysters and both Nora & Hanna each ate one. I didn't snap a picture of them eating it but you can imagine they don't plan on ordering them again;-)

Easter 2008

This year we combined families from our block to have an Easter brunch. Similar to Thanksgiving last year we joined up with the McGhiey's, Wolborski's and Kowaleski's. Mark and Kimberly McGhiey hosted the celebration. After brunch the kids went outside to hunt for Easter eggs.

The Next World's Strongest Man: Part 2

While Kristi and I were watching Nora's first soccer game this year Sam and Hanna played a modified version of hide and seek. Hanna would sit in Sam's stroller pulling the shade visor open so it was hard to see her. When Sam would peek around the side Hanna would push the visor up surprising him. This lasted a short while until Sam was distracted and began pushing the stroller from behind while Hanna was still sitting in it. Since we were facing the playing field it didn't take much of a push to move the stroller onto where the kids were playing soccer. I moved the stroller so it ran parallel with the sideline and thought nothing of it until I turned back to check on Sam and Hanna. Sam had pushed Hanna nearly 20 feet and was still moving. It looked like a reverse truck pull from The World's Strongest Man competition.

Hanna's Soccer Team - Florida

This is Hanna's first year playing soccer through the YMCA in Raleigh. She has the same coach that Nora did last year.

Nora's Soccer Team - Breakers

This is Nora's second year playing soccer through the YMCA. She is on the 5th through 8th grade team this year which is much more competitive.

Girl Scout Cookies - Final Count 228

We want to thank everyone that supported Hanna and her goal of selling more boxes of cookies this year over last year. Hanna's goal was to sell 140 and she sold 228!

Kanki Birthday Party

Nora and Hanna were invited to a new friends birthday party that was held at Kanki, a Japanese House of Steaks and Sushi. Albeit an unconventional location for a kids birthday party, everyone had a blast.

Derby Car

Hanna and Dad built a derby car for the Girl Scout race this year. Needless to say, Mom's craftsmanship was missing;-) Hanna and Dad had a good time and look forward to building a faster car next year.

Handy Manny

Handy Manny is a cartoon on the Disney channel that Sam really likes. Sam received the Handy Manny tools for Christmas and likes to sit under the sink in the bathroom and fix.

Nana & Papa Visit

Gregg and Pam visited for the first time. We enjoyed seeing them of course and their grand kids were ecstatic. Aside from taking in some local adventures, including the Flea Market, Farmer's Market and setting off alarms, we all fought off a nasty flu bug. Gregg and Pam took the flu home with them;-)

D.A.R.E.

Nora completed the D.A.R.E. program at school. She learned a lot and has taken on a posture of responsibility regarding the topic. We are very proud of her.

Hanna's Baseketball Team - Storm

Hanna is playing in her second year of basketball through the YMCA. There are a couple of girls on her team that she played with last year. We are looking forward to watching her this year.

Girl Scout Cookies

Hanna is selling girl scout cookies again this year for her Brownie Troop. If you are interested in buying some cookies or donating some to the armed services, please email me her your address and the number of boxes you want at hanna.melting@gmail.com. Cookies will be mailed out in mid February and the following choices are available.

1) Thin Mints
2) Carmel deLights (similar to Samoas with new name)
3) Peanut Butter Patties (similar to Tagalongs with new name)
4) Shortbread (similar to Trefoils with new name)
5) Peanut Butter Sandwich (similar to Do-Si-Dos with new name)
6) Lemonades (shortbread cookie with tangy lemon icing)
7) Thanks-A-Lot (similar to All Abouts with new name - shortbread with fudge icing)
8) Cinna-Spins (New - crispy cinnamon swirls)

New Years Eve 2007

This year we collaborated with our neighbors on how to celebrate the new year. We agreed to a progressive party where each family would host a segment. The entourage was 9 adults, 13 kids and 2 babysitters.

7:00 p.m. - We started the evening at the Melting's where we had appetizers and housed all the kids for the night.
8:00 p.m. - We moved to the Wolborsky's for nice sit down dinner.
9:30 p.m. - We all walked across the street to the McGhiey's for desert and watched YouTube on their new Mac.
10:30 p.m. - Everyone dispersed to gather up their kids and send the babysitters home (they had to leave by 11:00 p.m.). The goal was to put the kids to bed and meet again for a final hurray.
11:30 p.m. - Everyone met in the Kowaleski's garage where we had cocktails.

Unfortunately for us, Sam was not cooperating so we spent most the time trading off trying to get him to bed and finally gave in and called it a night. For those of you who know I can't stay up very late, I did sneak a cat nap in between 11:00 and 11:30, hence I was able to be awake when the new year arrived. Here is a link to some photos from NYE07.