Tick Tock
Nov. 26, 2007 12:16
Where does the time go?
I can't believe that November is nearly over! Thanksgiving has come and gone, and before I know it, I'll be saying the same thing about Christmas. I can remember when I was younger, the time used to d-r-a-g on and on and it was like the holidays would never get here. Now I feel as though I'm still reeling over last holiday season as this one thunders towards me at warp speed. It's been like this for the past several years, but I think it only intensified when we started having kids. It's hard to believe that this is going to be Abby's 4th Christmas! She really seems to be getting excited this year. We have been casually talking about some of the Christmas traditions with her (Santa, Christmas trees and lights, Snowmen, etc), but we plan on ramping up our discussions as the big day draws closer. I think Christmas is really going to be fun for her this year. I look forward to sharing our fun pictures and stories as they occur.
It has been a remarkably busy couple of weeks since my last update. I have been preparing the house and the yard for the big chill that is inevitable. And yes, we have already had snow on a couple of occasions. In fact, we're experiencing a flurry of the white stuff even as I update. The weather experts are calling for an above average snow fall this year, citing a warmer-than-normal Lake Michigan as the primary culprit (but I'm sure if you asked, Al Gore would tell you that it's my SUV!). I finally have all the summer yard implements cleaned up and maintained; the snow thrower is fueled and oiled and ready to be put to work. So bring it on, Old Man Winter! Let's get this thing over with! I'm ready to get back on my bike and we haven't even hit the official start to winter -- This is going to be a long 3 or 4 months!
The family is doing well. Aidan has started smiling. Now I just need for him to pose so I can get some pictures posted! Sometimes he just starts randomly smiling while he's asleep. Apparently your dreams are actually funny when you are a little one. He's too cute! Abby is still loving on baby brother. She has to hug and kiss him every day before school and then again when she gets home. She has been a BIG helper with him. The other day I needed to vacuum the living room while Mom was out shop lifting, err, shopping, and I didn't want him to be in the room while I completed the chore. So I put him in his bedroom in his bouncy chair and asked Abby if she could go sit by him while Daddy worked. She obliged, and when I was finished, I walked in the room to find her patiently tending to baby brother's binkie while rocking the chair to keep him soothed. She has taken to the job of big sister quite nicely and we may have to consider a "raise" for a job well done. Now if only she could start eating her meals half as well......
We attended the wedding of Steph's dad, Steve, to a lovely woman named Florence (Dahlstrom) this past weekend on Saturday. Steve and Flo had a very nice ceremony that was widely attended by the families of both the bride and groom at the Blue Heron. We are happy for both Steve and Flo and we welcome the new addition of Florence and her family into our lives. Congratulations, Steve and Flo! Have fun on your honeymoon!
Coupled with the wedding this past weekend, we also celebrated Thanksgiving at Steve and Flo's house with all the family. We enjoyed a traditional meal with all the fixings, including one of my favorites, pumpkin pie! I honestly love the holidays, if only for all the great cuisine! I worked most of the weekend (one of the few disadvantages of my chosen profession), so I haven't really had much of a chance to update. The remainder of the holiday season promises to be just as crazy -- I know, what else is new?!
Hopefully I will be able to update again soon and with a little more regularity. I have added a few new pictures, including a handful under the Fire & EMS category. Most of you will wonder what in the world we are doing in those photos, so I will solve the mystery for you. Part of our equipment readiness inspections include testing ALL of the hose on ALL of our apparatus on an annual basis. This "test" requires us to extend each piece of hose to it's fullest length and fill it with water and several hundred pounds of pressure to ensure that the hose does not fail under such conditions. We look for leaks in the hose and around the couplings while the hose is pressure tested for a period of 5 minutes. As everyone knows, many hands make for light work, so we share the work load of this task between each of our three shifts, as we are hose testing several thousand feet of hose line. These photos were taken on one of our hose testing days with a few of the members of my shift. As it may not be apparent, I will tell you, this is a lot of work which usually involves the parties conducting the test getting wet -- Not a bad thing if it's warm outside, but as you will notice from the pictures, it was rather cool out, so we looked forward to finishing up on this day!
I can't believe that November is nearly over! Thanksgiving has come and gone, and before I know it, I'll be saying the same thing about Christmas. I can remember when I was younger, the time used to d-r-a-g on and on and it was like the holidays would never get here. Now I feel as though I'm still reeling over last holiday season as this one thunders towards me at warp speed. It's been like this for the past several years, but I think it only intensified when we started having kids. It's hard to believe that this is going to be Abby's 4th Christmas! She really seems to be getting excited this year. We have been casually talking about some of the Christmas traditions with her (Santa, Christmas trees and lights, Snowmen, etc), but we plan on ramping up our discussions as the big day draws closer. I think Christmas is really going to be fun for her this year. I look forward to sharing our fun pictures and stories as they occur.
It has been a remarkably busy couple of weeks since my last update. I have been preparing the house and the yard for the big chill that is inevitable. And yes, we have already had snow on a couple of occasions. In fact, we're experiencing a flurry of the white stuff even as I update. The weather experts are calling for an above average snow fall this year, citing a warmer-than-normal Lake Michigan as the primary culprit (but I'm sure if you asked, Al Gore would tell you that it's my SUV!). I finally have all the summer yard implements cleaned up and maintained; the snow thrower is fueled and oiled and ready to be put to work. So bring it on, Old Man Winter! Let's get this thing over with! I'm ready to get back on my bike and we haven't even hit the official start to winter -- This is going to be a long 3 or 4 months!
The family is doing well. Aidan has started smiling. Now I just need for him to pose so I can get some pictures posted! Sometimes he just starts randomly smiling while he's asleep. Apparently your dreams are actually funny when you are a little one. He's too cute! Abby is still loving on baby brother. She has to hug and kiss him every day before school and then again when she gets home. She has been a BIG helper with him. The other day I needed to vacuum the living room while Mom was out shop lifting, err, shopping, and I didn't want him to be in the room while I completed the chore. So I put him in his bedroom in his bouncy chair and asked Abby if she could go sit by him while Daddy worked. She obliged, and when I was finished, I walked in the room to find her patiently tending to baby brother's binkie while rocking the chair to keep him soothed. She has taken to the job of big sister quite nicely and we may have to consider a "raise" for a job well done. Now if only she could start eating her meals half as well......
We attended the wedding of Steph's dad, Steve, to a lovely woman named Florence (Dahlstrom) this past weekend on Saturday. Steve and Flo had a very nice ceremony that was widely attended by the families of both the bride and groom at the Blue Heron. We are happy for both Steve and Flo and we welcome the new addition of Florence and her family into our lives. Congratulations, Steve and Flo! Have fun on your honeymoon!
Coupled with the wedding this past weekend, we also celebrated Thanksgiving at Steve and Flo's house with all the family. We enjoyed a traditional meal with all the fixings, including one of my favorites, pumpkin pie! I honestly love the holidays, if only for all the great cuisine! I worked most of the weekend (one of the few disadvantages of my chosen profession), so I haven't really had much of a chance to update. The remainder of the holiday season promises to be just as crazy -- I know, what else is new?!
Hopefully I will be able to update again soon and with a little more regularity. I have added a few new pictures, including a handful under the Fire & EMS category. Most of you will wonder what in the world we are doing in those photos, so I will solve the mystery for you. Part of our equipment readiness inspections include testing ALL of the hose on ALL of our apparatus on an annual basis. This "test" requires us to extend each piece of hose to it's fullest length and fill it with water and several hundred pounds of pressure to ensure that the hose does not fail under such conditions. We look for leaks in the hose and around the couplings while the hose is pressure tested for a period of 5 minutes. As everyone knows, many hands make for light work, so we share the work load of this task between each of our three shifts, as we are hose testing several thousand feet of hose line. These photos were taken on one of our hose testing days with a few of the members of my shift. As it may not be apparent, I will tell you, this is a lot of work which usually involves the parties conducting the test getting wet -- Not a bad thing if it's warm outside, but as you will notice from the pictures, it was rather cool out, so we looked forward to finishing up on this day!
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