You Gotta love it...

I (Dan) have decided to take the family blog in a different direction for my one (and likely only) post for the year. Way too much "touchy-feely" stuff to this point. So in a flashback to the name game at OBX for those that remember, Matt Kenseth dominated at the track this weekend, winning both the Busch and Nextel Series races. My recently converted fellow NASCAR fans (Joe Kewish and Phil Blackburn) will no doubt be eager to hear this news.

I Can't Lift My Arms...

Well, Dan had the weekend off for the first time since.....I can't remember when. Anyway, we got ambitious and decided to tackle the living room. We have been procrastinating this task because of the amount of work involved. The ceiling paint had chipped down to the plaster in places leaving big "holes." To fix the problem we had to scrape the entire ceiling, patch the "holes" with joint compound, sand, prime and paint. We decided to do the walls at the same time so that we would only have to deal with the dust once! This task turned into a monumental event...we ended up having to patch 60% of the ceiling....basically giving it a "skim coat" of compound. I have learned that one of Dan's many talents is patching walls! Of course this required sanding as well. By the time we had scraped, patched, sanded, primed, and painted the ceiling I couldn't lift my arms above my head!!!! (Ok, 4 days with your arms above your head will make most anyone's arms tired!) It looks great now...almost like a real room. Once the moulding is up we will be ready to put the color on!!!

Love Day...

Well, today has been much like the other Valentine's Days of other years. This is not a holiday we celebrate at our house. It began unintentionally, but I think Dan was TDY (on temporary duty for you non-military folk) on V day for the 6 years we were in the Air Force and thus began the habit of non-celebration. I think we have turned it into a "kids" V day because Dan has always been good about giving Erika flowers and we usually have a special breakfast or treat for the kids...they revel in the extra attention! I don't feel bad about our unceremonious day...we usually make up for it later! (Don't you like the hearts...they were one of our new products at Card Co. last month)

Years in the making...

It began as innocent fun on the playground...grew off and on through elementary school years...and took off in high school...and an amazing two years as college roomies. We've shared food, diets, jokes, friends, hobbies, music, clothes, parents, opinions, birthdays, colds, deaths, births, testimonies, laughs, and tears. Since college we have moved away, gotten married, had children, and yet when we all got together in NYC this weekend it was as if we lived next door to each other.

My three best friends Merrilee, Brie, and Jennifer all came to NY to visit for a few days. It has been close to seven years since we have all been together and it was amazing...like recharging some inner battery. I love making new friends, but there is nothing like the relationship you have with someone who knows where you came from. It seems like there is nothing to explain and no excuses to be made. I can't wait till we can do it all again....this time we won't wait 7 years to get together!

Phast times in Philly....

Those of you who know me know that I am generally OK on my own. Although Dan and I are very close and love to be together, much of our marriage we have had to spend at a distance...a totaling over 2 years of the 11 years we've been married. (Ouch, it is hard to see that we have had to spend that much time apart.) We have become experts at phone calls, e-mail, TM, and good old letter writing. Much of this time apart was due to air force commitments and duties. Well, we left the Air Force to be able to persue a career that would allow for a little more family time. Somehow I didn't get the memo on investment banking hours...Ok, I got the memo, but based on my previous experiences I figured I was an old pro at this type of stuff. I figured the 2-3 years we would spend on banking I could take in stride and that in the end we would be in a better position as a famiy. I was only concerned about Dan and his ability to cope with the job.

Well I have realized I am a wimp! Having him gone on air force duties, serving his country, sacrificing for us all...(ok this is a glorified version)...was easier to bear than having him work 18 hours a day. This weekend he had a little time off, but had to go to Philadelphia to conduct interviews Monday at Wharton for his bank and was taking off on Sunday night. We decided to turn it into a family vacation...that is if less than 24 hours in a hotel can be counted as a vacation. We hopped in the car and visited the whole way down. It was fun to feel like we were escaping our lives and heading back to the place we called "home" for a few years. We checked in and I cranked the heat up to 78 degrees and we relaxed together. It was so great to spend the time together as a family. Monday morning he headed off to work and the kids and I slept in and then had a brief visist with a friend (thanks Kate!) I wish we would have had time for more...I am already plotting for a return visit!

One of life's essentials!

Water...the one thing you need to survive! We finally have this life esssential on the main floor of our house - the kitchen. Pure & sweet it magically appears every time I pull the handle...hot or cold!!! Yeah!! I can't describe how great this is. Seven months of paper plates or hauling dishes to the bathroom and dungeon(basement) to clean them. Water truly is one of life's essentials!!!! Clean, sweet, fresh, cold, hot, wet, WATER!!!!!! What do you think of the delivery mechanism?