Smog tests

Today is all about the smog tests. Two of our cars need to registered in February. We were notified by the not so great state of California that they both must pass smog tests to be registered. So this morning, I left the house at 6:40 to get my monthly allergy shot at Doctor Dayton's office. From there I went to the gym to do my interval training on the stationary bike and my abs workout. Then I dropped off the Tercel at a Smog Test Only place in downtown Clovis. It was a 40 minute, 3 mile walk home form there. Later I will take the Avalon to the same place for it's smog test.

It is great to have time off from work to take care of essential business forced on us by the state. Happy New Year!

Eric Away & Cell questions

Eric is happy today I believe. He flew to the east coast to be with his one true love last night. We bid him farewell at FAT around 7:15. We heard from him by text at 6:15 A.M. this morning that he had arrived safely. Hurray!

Now I am trying to deal with the cell phone conundrum. Which provider is the best choice for our family? They all seem to have a few good points, but wow are they expensive. We have Verizon now. It has worked well, but I would like to lower our monthly bill. AT&T looks comparable, but will they waive start up fees. Then there are new phones to buy. T Mobile is even in the running, with lower fees and cool features. But is T -Mobile any good?

Does anyone have any suggestions?

A Sick Day

I finally admitted to myself that I am sick. I have sinus and ear infections. I've been ill for at least a week, but refused to let it stop me from getting things done, visiting family, and enjoying Christmas. Friday I finally started taking meds. Today I stayed in my pajamas all day. I slept and watched an all day marathon of Band of Brothers. Thank you wife for encouraging me to take a day off to rest. You were right again. I hope to be on my feet Sunday.

Larry

Christmas 2008

We tried something new this year. Our newlywed daughter and her husband wanted to have their first Christmas as a married couple together privately. We completely understood. So after dinner on Christmas eve, we gathered as a family in our living room to exchange gifts. In the past we would share one evening gift the night before Christmas, and delay the majority to Christmas morning. This year we shared all our gifts and stockings between the family on Christmas eve so that the newlyweds could enjoy a quiet Christmas morning at their apartment.

This meant we could stay up a little later, and sleep in on Christmas morning. I am happy to accommodate my daughter and her husband. They have many demands on their time with two families to visit during the holiday.

We traveled to my sister's home for the holiday on Christmas. She and her husband prepared a marvelous dinner for all of us. Jessica and David met us there after making a few stops to connect with his family too. It was heartwarming to spend time with my wife, our children (adults now), her brother, my sister and her family. Christmas is for celebrating Christ. And there is no better way to celebrate our Saviour than with family! We had a great day. We even saw a video from our exchange student son and his German family. We even made a lower quality video for Eric to share with his princess when he visits her and her family early next week.

Merry Christmas to all!

Larry

Christmas Eve 2008

We had a fabulous Christmas with our family. Dawn made a delicious Cioppino (fish soup) for Christmas Eve dinner. Jessica, Scott and I helped a little by prepping the fish. Dawn made the base the day before. Man was it fabulous! It was so good with sourdough bread.

Jessica worked with her mom to make stockings for her husband and herself that afternoon too. Then Scott, Dawn, and I took a little break for tacos and beer at the Red Wave Inn. This is a little college bar that Scott and I visited near Fresno State back in the mid 80s. Well, Jessica and Dave rediscovered it recently and shared that it was a great place. We agree. The beer selection was wide and cold, the music was good and the tacos were tasty. And did I mention the the prices were amazingly low.

After our treat, we returned home to host Eric, Scott, Jessica, David, and his parents, Bill and Susan, for Christmas Eve dinner. The company was enjoyable and the food was delicious. In addition to the Cioppino we served sourdough bread, clam chowder, and spinach salad. It was a great evening.

Home Decorating

Jenn is here talking with Dawn about interior design stuff for our home. They are picking colors and window treatments. I am staying out of the way. Colors are better left to the women, as I often cannot tell what looks good together. I trust Dawn to make a good choice in that arena.

We are planning to repaint, and cover the windows in the main room. We also want to finish landscaping the backyard. It will just take money and time.

Troy says he is willing to assist me with roto-tilling and raking the flower beds in the backyard. I need to till in sand, top soil, and humus to improve the ability of the soil to support plants. Then We will reset the irrigation sprinklers and hire my gardener to start planting. Hopefully we can have the interior and exterior of the house done before Dawn's Feb. birthday.

A leadership day

I spent today with 27 of my Leadership students attending a CADA Youth Leadership Conference at the Tulare Farm Show facility. The kids were well behaved, but I was not impressed with the location or the event. I loved the two keynote speakers, but the breakout sessions were a little disappointing. Two of my groups reported that they shared more ideas with the presenter than they got from the presenter.

A highlight two years ago was an excellant presentation on poster making. That session really made an impression on me and the students. This year and last year, there was no mention of effective poster making. A downer man.

The students will present their reactions to the day tomorrow in class. I hope they got more out of the day than I did.

Then a Nephew

When we took our niece back to her parents, we brought her brother to spend about 5 days with us. Peter was fun to have around. He attended a Grizzlies double header with me. He also showed us his interest in and flair for cooking. He spent time in the kitchen preparing food. For our Sunday family dinner, Peter made a yummy caramel sauce to drizzle over apple slices. It was the hit of the meal! Monday Dawn & Peter made California Sushi rolls. They were very good.

I also convinced Peter to try playing Tetris on the xBox 360 when we could not get Guitar Hero to work. It took some perserverance, but I think I got him hooked.

A neice

We have our ten year old niece spending time with us this week. Dawn is enjoying time helping her learn to sew. Nicole is doing amazing work at the sewing table. We love having you here with us. She also enjoyed swimming with her older cousins.

Intro

We are empty nest parents enjoying this time of life. Our children are adults chasing their dreams. We love each other, our family, and teaching.