Happy Halloween

Halloween was fun. Ava and Guy were both dressed up pretty. I threw on some Wal-Mart make-up. Guy was the perfect big brother and helped Ava get to the doors and hold her candy. She doesn't know how good she has it.

I delivered pizzas with that make-up on. I was going for the Cobra Ki look. It helped with tips.

We are on the way out the door to watch Vikes vs Pack.

BT Kids

Some pictures of the kids. My daughter the Princess and my son the football player.

Guy is still really enjoying football. He keeps getting moved to different positions. Last game he played mostly on the line. Stephanie and I really love watching his games. Ava is OK for a while and then she wants all attention on her.

Nothing much new here. I am breaking in a new officer at work and Stephanie is still cracking the books.

BT Update

Not a whole lot going on down here. Guy is playing football. He plays safety and tight end. He has improved each practice and it is a lot of fun to watch him. He got an interception in practice and ran it all the way back. I REALLY enjoyed it. There is enough for him to do between football, chores, homework, and violin to keep him busy.

Ava is her usual diva self. She likes to take pictures and have her picture taken. She is a little ham. Ava also has been getting really annoyed when she is not the center of attention. She hates it when I kiss or hug Stephanie. She also gets obnoxious when Steph and I talk. Bottom line….Ava is high maintenance.

I have had the motorcycle up for sale on EBay for a couple of weeks. No sale yet. I am on the pistol range this week. That is always fun. I love shooting and I am pretty good at it. My new officer is coming to work next week. I know him and am looking forward to working with him. I have recently become obsessed with owning my own pinball machine. I looked to see how much they cost and have come to the conclusion that I am going to need a part time job for about six months in order to get one. I put in an application at Pizza Hut yesterday. Hopefully I get hired and then in six months I will have my very own Adams Family pinball machine.

Hey….everyone has to have goals right?

Leave a comment (if you can figure it out).

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

I have had a really great summer….so much so that I have forgotten to update my blog in two months. Getting back from Iraq and going on the Midwest tour was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed going to my Mom’s and seeing everyone. Plus the food is always the best. I couldn’t thank Gary enough for cleaning my truck. It hasn’t looked that good since I bought it.

From there Guy and I went to stay at Shawn’s house. That is always fun. I can’t believe how much Shawn and Coleen support Katie’s softball team. I am not looking forward to expending that much energy when Guy and or Ava get into a sport as much as Katie. I was surprised how much Meagan has grown up. She was a lot of fun when we all went to the Aquarium at the Mall of America.

Guy and I got to spend the night at Sheila and Jeff’s house. I hope that we get invited back because the entertainment there was outstanding. Amelia singing Sponge Bob (perfectly) on Rock Band, Otto chasing toys in the living room until he got tired, and talking politics with Jeff were just some of the highlights of a great evening.

Guy and I had dinner one night at Great Grandma’s with My Mom and Jenny’s family. The food was great and I really enjoyed listening to Grandma talk about where she grew up in Minneapolis and other family history. I am anxiously awaiting Grandma’s memoirs. I hope she finds the time to get some of those stories on paper. I also got to see Jenny’s kids act up a little bit….that was cool because I was beginning to think that they were absolutely perfect.

Guy said that his favorite time was going to meet my friends from Inver Grove Heights. It was great to see Jason, Chris, Pete, and Lisa. I really enjoyed spending time with them and catching up. Guy really liked my friend Pete a lot.

The drive to Indiana was pretty easy. I had the best time at Rick and Mary’s that I can remember. I had a ton of fun playing with my nieces and nephews in the pool. It had been several years since I had seen the Rowlett or the Rollins family. That was definitely a treat. I also got to sleep over at Jeff’s house and spend some time with my man Robbie. I can’t wait to buy him a drum set. Jeff’s house is so cool and the rates he charged me were fairly reasonable…..the check is in the mail Jeff.

Coming home and settling in was comforting. What wasn’t comforting was getting on the scale and seeing how much potato salad, brownies, and tunnel of fudge cake had stuck to me. It was worth it though.

Dad and Aunt Eileen came to visit last week. We had a really great time. I think the last time I had seen Auntie Eileen was when Meagan was brand new. We had a lot of fun cooking out with a friend of mine and his family, who was on leave from Iraq. Stephanie was worried that we got to loud and rowdy for Dad and Auntie Eilleen. I assured her that they had seen / done much worse than us.

All and all it was probably the best summer that I have ever had. Too bad it’s over.

PS – Mom can you send me the pictures from up north?

Happy Birthday!!!!

It was Stephanie’s birthday today. She turned 29…. We went out to eat at a little place in New Bern. A little seafood place. It was cozy and the people were very friendly. The food was pretty good to. We went to the park, fed the ducks, and swung on the swings. Guy and I made her a fudge cake with Vanilla frosting (her request). Ava really liked the frosting. She cleaned it off of the cake like a jackal on a zebra carcass. It was a good day. Everyday home is a good day.

Stephanie’s parents are coming in this weekend and staying through the week. Then Guy and I are off to Minnesota to pick up the truck and visit. We are going to spend the first weekend up at Mom’s lake and than we will be based out of Shawn and Colleen’s basement. I am really excited to see everyone. I am not sure what we have going on the second weekend. We may be going up to Grandma Kate’s house, or driving back so we can visit with Stephanie’s family for a day or two. We SHOULD be back by the 10th because Guy has football practice, violin camp, and a possible visit from Dad and Auntie Eileen.

There is a lot going on over the next couple of weeks. I can’t wait!!!

Done with Iraq.

I am home. I am really happy to be back.

The flight wasn’t too bad. We flew a 767 back and had to make a lot of stops. We stopped in Germany, Iceland, Newfoundland, and finally Cherry Point. The flight went on to Indiana. We had some soldiers on there and I am guessing that they were reservists from Indiana. I wonder if they trained with Rick. Every time we stopped the Marines would get out and drink as much beer as possible before returning to the plane. I was happy that no one acted too stupid. The Army wasn’t allowed to drink….I knew I picked the right service. I had to go to some “warrior transition classes” this week. It was kind of silly….the only thing I fought over there was boredom. I don’t think that I am at risk of post traumatic stress disorder. That is all done and now I am off until Wednesday.

Ava was scared of me for about a day. When I walked into her room she looked at me and said “Where’s Mommy?” She let me pick her up and take her to Stephanie….then she didn’t want anything to do with me. She finally warmed up to me and we are getting along fine. I can’t believe how much bigger she and Guy are. Guy looks the same…but Ava looks and acts like a different Kid. She talks a lot more and her hair is so long and curly. I am looking forward to being home with them for a while. I don’t think I will have to deploy again for about a year and a half.

I am going to be here until August. Stephanie’s parents are coming down to visit. I look forward to spending some time with them. When they go back to Indiana I am going to fly up to Minnesota with Guy to get my truck and visit. I think I will be up in Minnesota for about a week to ten days….or until Shawn throws us out of the basement which ever comes first. I am definitely going to stay a night or two at Mom’s lake in the weekend. Mom should start peeling potatoes now because I am ready to eat my weight in potato salad. Jeff should start stockpiling key limes…..since you shaved off the beard I am going to need some pie to get over the trauma.

I put some pictures up that Stephanie had on her camera.

I have my phone….the number is 252-571-1608.

Happy 4th of July!!

Wow…..the fun never stops in the cradle of civilization. I got to watch a moron scrub a wall and sweep a parking lot in a sandstorm today. One of my Marines got caught taking a piss on a wall. He got caught by the Commanding Officer……who is female. Needless to say the punishment was swift, cruel, and ridiculous. So the Marine spent a couple of hours scrubbing a wall, outside, with a toilet brush and bleach, during a sandstorm. When he was done with that he washed the rocks that he pissed on…..then he swept the parking lot. He got to do all of this and have a heart to heart about the pros and cons of indoor plumbing with……yours truly. If they would let me have a cattle prod I have been requesting, this would never have happened.

I got some great news the other day. I am coming home VERY soon. I told Stephanie and she is on her way home tomorrow from Indiana to greet me. I am really excited to see her and the kids.

It looks like I will be coming up north in August. I will be bringing Guy and I am hoping to catch the State Fair. I am guessing that I will be in Minnesota the first week of August. Is the Fair going then?

I am looking forward to seeing Jeff’s beard in person. That thing is epic.

No picture….my camera is packed.