OUR LIFE IN 3D

12 Sep 2014

Hot in Labor

“I’ve traveled all around the world
And there are places that still stand out to me
But none can really quite compare
To my Isle of Palms by the sea

My personal Utopia
A place to run to where I can hide away
Where I can truly reign supreme
Somewhere Hot yet clean and where a man can dream”

I’m king…

And true to form the week before this for your Majesty had to get fitted for a brand new crown!

Exciting, huh?

Every King of Someplace Hot should have a shiny new crown for his adoring subjects, right?

So the Tuesday before Labor Day I had a Hot date for my royal fitting. I was escorted back to the royal ‘Crown Fitting Chambers’, told to put my feet up, as I awaited my fitting and crafting of my brand new crown.

It was so majestic!

Ah, but it wasn’t all fun and games. My new crown required intricate craftsmanship! But it was guaranteed to enhance the smile on my face!

I hate getting old…

Later that Labor Day weekend, I had news that my alma mater was going to play my other alma mater in a college football game on Saturday. Yes, Coastal Carolina (my 4 year school) was going to take on the Citadel (6 year school). The Coastal alumni courted their king’s presence more than the local Citadel alumni so I attended a fun little pep rally under their tent, complete with food, beverages, and FREEBIES!

It was my first college football game in some time, and the first ever for our girls. The Citadel starts off every home football game with a parade it turns out. When all the enrolled Cadets enter the stadium of this military type university, they all must fall in line and enter as a unit, complete with a bag pipe procession to announce their entry. It was kinda impressive on this Hot Labor Day Saturday night!

Yes, I have been King of Somewhere Hot again. And it has been Hot here this past week. The thought of September always brought thoughts of moderate temperatures but not this year.

So Labor Day we loaded up the car one more time and headed out to the beach. It was lots of fun again. The ocean temp was VERY nice after the Hot weekend. it felt very tropical and refreshing. But I didn’t get to spend much time there as I had a job working with my loyal subjects building sand castles!

And, like any great scenic resource, the sea always brings new and extremely curious and interesting discoveries each time we visit. Last weekend we discovered they really do exist! They are not mere folklore but actual, living sea creatures.

I am talking about those ever elusive

mermaids…

We had a great time at the beach Labor Day and you couldn’t help but break out the Pineapple Song and do a little tropical jig there on the beach

I love it when it’s Hot! It’s so much fun….

“…..Someday I hope to find my queen

I know she’ll come my way
I’ll give her all my love
It’s not a complicated thing someplace I can swing
And she treats me like a King

I’m King
King of Somewhere Hot”

PS: it is due to be a bit cooler this weekend.

In fact, the kids say it might just get Frozen outside!

“you like it…..Hot?”

Posted in Archives and tagged Coastal Carolina, I am the King, I hate getting old, I hate the dentist, Pineapple Song, thanks Jimmy Buffett!, the Citadel, the king of somewhere hot, the Servant

23 Aug 2014

20 Comments

First Grade for the First Week

Or is it, “First Week in the First Grade?”

I am in the process of finishing up the planning our ~~summer~~ family vacation coming in September. Yes, I know. I am late. We were busy…

Its more like ‘Cheap’ as the prices and crowds / lines go down after every other 6 year old is on school. Right? And since planning a Disney Cruise in the Caribbean during the height of hurricane season is kinda like planning Russian Roulette (you just can’t reason with hurricane season), I opted for ~~Dad’s~~ our girl’s tried and true vacation spot of summer vacations past, Ocean City, New Jersey.

Do you remember Skylar’s first adventure on a miniature golf course there…

So on the way to school today I was trying to see how stoked Dylan was about making this trip up to a kid’s magical Wonderland again.

So I asked, “Dylan, have you thought much about our trip up to Ocean City, NJ yet?”

She replies, “No. Not so much, I would rather go to school instead.”

Wait! (sound of brakes screeching!)

Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?

Yes, it is the first week of school around here this week. Dylan started her first day of First Grade on Tuesday. She was a trooper!

Dressed for her first day of First Grade; complete with her favorite Tangled Diary

Even though all of her friends, I mean every last one of ’em, was in a different class this year, she still was eager to start. And you know how hard making new friends can be sometimes for kids on the first day of school.

Sure enough, she did not even make it until 1:00pm on that very first day before I received an email from her teacher. It read:

Hi Dylan’s Parents! I wanted to email you and let you know that Dylan is having a great first day! She is such a helper! There was a child outside that was very scared to start first grade and apparently she knew him. She told me she knew him and asked if I would like her to talk to him. So sweet! I’m looking forward to teaching her this year! I’ll speak with you soon!

Looks like she is starting the school year off on the right foot. (Mommy was a teacher’s pet too. Not Daddy…. but Mommy sure was). I do hope she decides to join us on our trip I am planning to Ocean City and not stay in stinky ol’ school instead. Her grandparents will be so disappointed if she doesn’t join us.

“But Daddy, how else am I going to get to the second grade?

And get that college scholarship you keep talking about me needing?“

I love school thiiiis much

So next stop is Ocean City, New Jersey. I will let you know what she decides to do and what surprises I may have in store for her and her sister along the way.

I have an important 1 year anniversary coming up too.

Stay tuned…

Posted in Archives and tagged big helper, boardwalk, I love school, Nothing but A's, ocean city new jersey, vacation, Wonderland

05 Aug 2014

12 Comments

Celebrating 3’s in 3D

Hey, it’s me again! Remember me?

I hope everyone is having a great summer. We have been staying busy, having fun, but, unfortunately, not too many blog worthy things. We have become so average here lately. Average?

Ahhhhhh!!!!

I hate average

Yes, it’s been that kind of a ho-hum life lately. Forgive me! I will do better in the fall.

Have you ever noticed things travel in 3’s?

I guess that’s what the saying is.

Well this past weekend I had 3 quick things happen worth celebrating.

First, after years of my belt getting tighter and tighter, and using one more belt hole after another, this past Sunday I was able to comfortably us one less belt loop when getting ready for church in the morning.

(yes it’s come to that…celebrating victories in belt loop loss ~ so sad)

Anyway, this past Sunday I was able to easily use one less belt loop when putting on my Sunday best, instead of sucking in the gut, holding my breath, and working up a sweat wrestling that belt to get it latched. It was very gratifying!

I thought maybe, just maybe, I have arrested this aging issue I have had over the past 10 years or so of slowly but surely gaining weight. For the first time in many years I went back on a belt loop instead of forward! It felt great!

Maybe I lost some weight? Maybe I was looking more youthful? Maybe I wasn’t getting older after all? All that hard work was finally paying off!

So I was all smiles as I strolled downstairs to the kids to get them in the car. In fact, I felt GREAT!

I felt invincible!

I attribute this waist of a waste to my training the past month of Saturdays for this Stairclimb I was doing for the American Lung Association, which happens to be celebration number two this past weekend.

You see my second celebration came the day before this victory with the belt, I was the third fastest overall male to finish the Climb For Air Stairclimb!

That’s right!

I had a good time. While the overall amount of participants seemed to have gone down this year, I was quite proud of my accomplishment after a year of ups and downs with my health and cancer treatment. Yes, I was all smiles last Saturday.

some of the medals

Ok, you had to be pretty slow not to get a medal on Saturday…

So…..

After church was over, and I had given thanks for some completely selfish reasons, we all went out to eat for brunch. We tried a new restaurant in our area, the Bonefish Grill, which as it turns out, is part of the Outback / Carabbas chain.

The place was nice; it looked upscale and boasted of fresh fish from our local seas. The brunch menu was amazing with so many great things I wanted to try. And so, once again, I was paralyzed by alternatives, not able to decide on which brunch entrée to pick. I selfishly considered my conquest with the belt that morning and then my placing in the stairclimb the prior day and so asked the server if I could have TWO entrees?

Yes, I couldn’t decide. I wanted to taste them all! And so I chose a well written Western Omelet in the menu and some fabulous French Toast, served with Grand Marnier crème brulee and sliced strawberries.

complete with a Grand Marnier Creme Brulee topping…..oh my goodness!

The server said, “Oh yes I could chose two entrees” as her check average climbs but challenged me to finish them both.

Oh no she didn’t!

Yes, I am such a pig!

So Third, not only did I finish them both, I was actually the first one done at our table.

I am such a pig!

Take that you unbelieving restaurant server!

Score another victory for the ‘garbage can man’, as I am loving known at our dinner table for my propensity to finish the kid’s plates each night. (I had Depression Era parents and nothing was wasted at our dinner table).

And so that’s why I haven’t blogged much lately when a mild grooming victory, coupled with a mediocre athletic feat and my ability to make a pig of myself are the top events this summer in our ho-hum life.

But when you have wonderful kids, that’s all the magic you need! Right?

We have a 5 month pregnant nanny. She is quite pronounced in her belly right now. And yesterday Dylan asked her, after thoroughly analyzing her situation, “How was the baby going to come out of her?”

Our nanny politely responds, “She will have to ask mommy that question to explain it to her. That mommy could explain it better than she could.”

Dylan chimes back, “but mommy got us a different way. They wanted a baby so bad that they asked God and they got me and my sister and they love us so much.”

it was God’s stork…

Yes Good News like that fills my summer up. Ho-hum ain’t so bad.

Say what?

School starts when?

Posted in Archives and tagged american lung association, bonefish grill, eating my weight in french toast, I am such a pig!, I love brunch!, I'm so ho-hum, keep it up!, keeper happy, Kept trying harder, my belt is too tight, nobody said anything about school, pin it on me, pinned, Stair Climb, the hulk

19 Jul 2014

5 Comments

Hey, this ain’t easy!

If anyone has followed me for awhile this may be a bit of a repeat post for you all.

Sorry!

You see its that time again. Every year, this time of year, I try to take a deep breath, enjoy the Oxygen flowing in my body, and thank God that I am able to do so.

You see there are many people out there who have difficulty or discomfort breathing in. And that’s why I dedicate each Saturday in July to raise money for the American Lung Association through running in our local “Fight For Air” Stairclimb, taking place this year taking place on Saturday July 26^th.

Yes, a ‘sensible’ person might opt to stay in bed on hot Saturday mornings, but that adjective has always eluded me somehow. So this Saturday, and every Saturday I hang out at our local Coliseum, where our stairclimb takes place at and run up and down some stairs to get ready for this event. Sound like fun? Take a look:

Its not always easy at first but the Saturday practices slowly get my legs in stairclimbing shape. And true to its name, this event really effects your lungs, compared to other 5K or marathon races. You really get a new appreciation for the need and the work that your lungs do after running some 1500 stairs! Oh there is a monster 5000 stair climb event, but I am not that crazy!

And, even at my old age, and a bout with cancer, I am still in this to win it! I run hard on those stairs on Saturdays.

I am watching my weight so these old legs don’t have so much weight to lug up and down those stairs; meaning no more of this:

I even have taken to riding my bike to work to help with my goals.

…..and I am doing all this for you….and your money.

(you knew it was coming didn’t you?)

Yes, I am trying to raise money for Lung Health. I am busting my butt so you might feel sorry for my cause, feel I am committed, and hence, cough over a dollar or two to help those unfortunate young and old people that are tragically affected with poor lung health.

I will spare you the details or the facts you have seen every year. If you are interested in them you could click here.

Lung Cancer kills thousands each year. It is not the same uninvasive Cancer (it’s a word I just made up) I had.

This cancer is for real!

And did you know Asthma is the number one reason for children missing school? It is.

So these are just but a few reasons I am dedicated to raising money for improved Lung Health each year. I appreciate what my lungs have done for me over the years and I hope other young kids get the same opportunity to enjoy running and biking like I did.

In fact, part of the money raised at this Stairclimb goes to a week-long camp, Camp Puff-n-Stuff, for kids that teach kids how to deal with their asthma. Rebecca Balitsaris, the Area Director for the American Lung Association told me this good story on the success of this camp:

Rebecca told me, “I do have a good story from this year’s camp. A school nurse shared with us that one particular child used to visit her room 2 or 3 times a week due to his asthma the year before he attended camp. The child attended camp last summer, and he only visited the nursing room 2 to 3 times the whole year last year!”

So the money you and I donate actually does visible results each year. And I think that is part of the great intrinsic feeling of ~~running~~ climbing in this event each year: It actually helps real people and deserving kids. And, hey breathing with asthma Ain’t easy!

How many people with asthma do you know?

If you are interested in donating a few dollars or would like more info on our stairclimb please click here.

So instead of doing this, this Saturday and the next….

Picture Compliments of the incomparable Steve Jordan

I am going to make my lungs burn so that others can breathe easier.

And if you can help (please, please, please), or participate in other charitable causes to help others, give yourself a high five!

You Rock!

Posted in Fun Family Fitness and tagged American Lung Asssociation, blessings, breathing with asthma ain't easy, climb with me, fight for air, Glorifing God, God is great, Hitting Publish now, I was meant for this, its only a state of mind, no more settling for second, PLEASE DONATE TO ME!, stairclimb, what do you mean no more donuts?

05 Jul 2014

6 Comments

King Of Somewhere Hot

This past week somebody reminded me I was the King!

Yea, the king of someplace hot!

The king..

like every man should be!

The king..

the king of someplace hot!

Cause I am melting right here in my spot….

the King of someplace Hot!

So its the weekend of the Fourth of July and I wanted to take you on a tour of my Kingdom….

My Kingdom is adorned and kept with my favorite Wild Flowers to surround me with beauty….

Actually this is the path on the way to our beach where we spent the better part of the morning on the 4th of July. I know, we must be CRAZY to go to the beach on such a touristy weekend. But I was off and so was she. So we loaded up the sled and we drove to the beach at 9am.

We love mornings on the beach. The sea and the weather are more peaceful. We can often beat the traffic and the crowds. And can often find a front row, ocean side seats to the great big blue sea.

Our youngest, Skylar, had a great time playing in the sand and tidal pools

She may be a Princess but she is not afraid to get her hands a little dirty..

This past week she had just ~~finished~~ graduated her first swimming lessons. (Hurray!) Accordingly, she had no fear tearing off to the much larger and louder waves armed with new found confidence and her old reliable floaties…

She had buckets of fun! She even humored Daddy and danced a little jig to his Pineapple Wine Song (she thought she could dance to it better than Daddy)

When it comes to dancing, or looking cute or just being silly old Skye is a natural!

We spent about 3 hours or so along the edge of the continent and when the beach started to shrink with the incoming tide, and Dad started to get a little crispy (no lotion for this beach bum) and the crowds started to fill in we decided take our ‘turn key’ beach gear and head back to civilization

I saw this South Carolina Gamecock tent on the way out. I mean, Really? A tent, tables, chairs, bartenders? Geez? Even the the tourists at the rivaling Clemson Tiger tent had to give them a stare an a “What’s up?”