I caught some sort of bug yesterday

May 31, 2007 by Adam in Adam

I caught some sort of bug yesterday. I ended up staying at work for a long meeting, and my stomach started to hurt towards the end. Later on I watched the kids while Jamie went to work. Fortunately they played really well together while I sat quietly and tried not to move.

This morning I feel a little better, though only a little. I'm at work, sitting still, and taking my mind off my tummy by typing away at the keyboard.

It's been a fine week so far, very warm and sunny

May 30, 2007 by Adam in Family

It's been a fine week so far, very warm and sunny. Last night the kids broke out the giant chalk from Emma's birthday and proceeded to make a huge, colorful mess on the patio. Jamie gave me evil eyes in the morning for permitting such an activity.

I picked up Jade Empire, which is competing w...

May 28, 2007 by Adam in Adam's Games

I picked up Jade Empire, which is competing with all my other games for free time. Fortunately it's quite good in a lot of ways, well worth the $20 it cost on Amazon. The good and evil choices are a bit obvious, and occasionally the graphics are a little dated. Still, the art direction is excellent and I love the sense of style. It's like playing a kung-fu movie, with all those great Asian themes.

Embarrassingly enough, I did have to tone down the difficulty all the way to "Student". I haven't gotten the hang of combat, which is fine. The most interesting aspect is the story, after all, plus I don't have lots of free time to spend punching and blocking over and over again.

Emma's birthday party was a success, despite ...

May 28, 2007 by Adam in Family

Emma's birthday party was a success, despite the weather. Everyone in the world seemed to come, from Emma's French teacher to Seraph, Robbie, and Isabell from Portland. Emma was gleeful about the loot and spent the day announcing that she was four to everyone. She does seem so grown up.

Saturday went well, with a hearty breakfast and going to the library with Emma. I ran into Jason and Bridget, who are expecting a second daughter. It's strange running into old friends, and they seem pretty much exactly the same as always. Sam and I hiked in the afternoon, but generally took it easy.

Sunday was spent preparing for the party and generally hanging out. Jamie gave me lots of time to myself, perhaps to balance going to Portland next weekend. It was luxurious to putter around doing my own thing quite so much.

As for today, I'm hoping to continue my laziness. Somewhere in there I want to go to a movie with Sam. Good times.

Emma turned four yesterday

May 28, 2007 by Adam in Emma

Emma turned four yesterday. She was a wild girl all morning and finally settled down once guests arrived. The party itself was a bit of a blur, tearing into presents, basking in Hello Kitty paraphernalia, and watching small children gorge themselves on cupcakes and ice cream.

Afterwards she and I played with tiny animal dolls with massive heads and eyeballs. There was some beauty parlor thing going on, though I added a mad scientist twist. For bedtime, I read her Goodnight Moon in French. Her teacher came to the party and got that for her. It's fun relearning a language, as I haven't used French in over a decade.

She continues to do amazingly well with her school. Fortunately Jamie speaks French pretty well too, as otherwise Emma would be the one teaching me the language. Strange things come back to me, though. Last night she was being bad and I asked Jamie. "Is méchant the right word?" She laughed and agreed. It means "naughty".

Sam and I climbed Spencer's Butte on Saturday

May 28, 2007 by Adam in Sam

Sam and I climbed Spencer's Butte on Saturday. We had a great time and Sam had a tremendous amount of energy. He hardly took breaks and by the time we got to the bottom, he stopped to climb a tree. Once we got in the car, though, he was suddenly exhausted. By the time we got home, he very much needed some food and quiet time.

Sam's class presentation on the Wolverine went very well. Everyone liked his comparison to the X-Men wolverine. He also excels in his math, reading, and spelling. At this point, most of his tricky school issues involve interpersonal relationships with his friends, making sure people don't feel left out and reminding him he's not responsible for everyone's happiness.

I'm going to see if Sam and I can go to the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie today. Fun, fun!

Well I'm back home! It's been really nice to...

May 27, 2007 by Seraph in Cortez

Well I'm back home! It's been really nice to have the long weekend to recover. Most of Friday was spent in a sleepy daze, but yesterday we went downtown for a Chinese day (as Isa coined it). We went to the Chinese Gardens, had Chinese food for lunch, and did some shopping in China Town!
In the afternoon, I caught up on gardening, and generally enjoyed the non-humid weather.
We will be heading south in a few hours for Emma's birthday. It will be nice to catch up with everyone for a few hours, and generally enjoy the festive mood!

Hi, I'm really okay, looking forward to Sadie...

May 26, 2007 by Sue in Wielesek

Hi, I'm really okay, looking forward to Sadie's arrival. You kids might want to look up, on ancestry.com, free until 6/6, all the members of your family who fought in the
Civil War. Only one Stahlschmidt family (Dad, maybe mom, and two or three sons,) came to the US, in 1750, and the family quickly changed the spelling to Stallsmith, so you're related to all those people who were in the Civil
War. Look up Joseph Stallsmith; he was the one killed at the Battle of South Mountain. Let's not do any more wars, though...

Barbara, Emma's teacher at the Little French ...

May 25, 2007 by Adam in Emma

Barbara, Emma's teacher at the Little French School, pulled Jamie aside as she picked up Emma yesterday. Barbara said that Emma was the best student she'd ever had, which was nice to hear.

Of course, it may have been that Emma was playing and exclaimed "Zut Alors!" Barbara started cracking up and asked Emma what she thought it meant. "Oh my gosh," she replied. I think that was the explanation I gave her when chatting in French a couple weeks ago. Of course, it's closer to "Damnit!" which probably makes it extra comical for a three year-old to say.

It's Mocha Friday and I'm cheerfully sipping ...

May 25, 2007 by Adam in Family

It's Mocha Friday and I'm cheerfully sipping away at that wonderful beverage. It was another gorgeous day, riding in to work with just a t-shirt.

I took Sam and Emma bike riding at the park last night. Emma lasted maybe 60 seconds. Sam's still learning, so it involved a lot of getting up, falling down, and repeating. Fortunately he's very tenacious, if not very good at balancing yet. I also ran into a woman I knew in high school who was there with her kids. It strangely made me feel old, a long ways from the kid who wandered the hallways of my old school.

I'm horribly excited about this weekend. The kids and I go swimming tonight, I plan on hitting the library tomorrow, and we've got Emma's birthday party on Sunday. I'm also thinking of taking Sam to see the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie on Monday, so if anyone wants to come along, let me know.

We had a weird thing happen at work today

May 24, 2007 by Adam in Adam

We had a weird thing happen at work today. At one of our Bellingham offices where some coworkers live, someone reported a man with a rifle entering the building. The SWAT team was called and rumors flew everywhere. I got a call from a coworker in the parking lot, asking me for home phone numbers of other people so he could let them know.

It turns out that it was a man carrying his prosthetic leg in for a tune up. The floor above our team does work on prosthetics and I guess someone thought the leg looked like a rifle.

I guess it's another case where people have a hard time dealing with risk.

It was a beautiful ride into work today, all ...

May 23, 2007 by Adam in Family

It was a beautiful ride into work today, all the flowers in bloom. I hardly needed my windbreaker as it was so warm.

The week has gone along nicely, with not much excitement. On Monday, Jamie went bowling with Victoria, coming back a tad late, but having a great time. Sam's been getting ready for his presentation on Wolverines at school. I helped him make a "3D Diorama" (when I was a kid, we called it "stuff glued in a shoe box"). Emma is starting to get birthday presents, including a dress from Angie that she wants to wear all the time.

Patrick and I, met up with Meg, Dick and Mika...

May 21, 2007 by Betsy in Betsy

Patrick and I, met up with Meg, Dick and Mikayla in Oberlin, Ohio on Saturday. We had a brief lunch before Dick and Mikayla hustled off to do end of year school things. Meg, Patrick and moi drove into Cleveland to get the lay of the land and see some of the sites, returning to check out Mikayla's dorm room and head home as we had left Will at a job for the day.
It was the typical lush green Northern Ohio spring day and it was really nice to get together with family. Take care of each other and much love, P.

The weekend is slowly drawing to a close

May 20, 2007 by Adam in Family

The weekend is slowly drawing to a close. We had a great Friday, though I suspect Sam scraped his head on the bottom while swimming. No one noticed anything until the next morning, when he woke up looking like Harry Potter.

On Saturday, Jamie made a wonderful breakfast of pancakes and sausages. We drove to the library and headed off to Saturday Market. The kids liked all the odd things there, from Dreamcatchers to home-made honey. Afterwards we hung out at home, with Jamie and Sam picking up a plastic weasel for a school project.

Unfortunately, Sam tossed his weasel into the bushes upon exiting the car. We spent over a half an hour looking for the thing, finally giving up and making him get a new one with his own money this morning. A cheap lesson, as it goes.

There were other high points, like making bread with Emma. Jamie made baked beets, of all things, and it was surprisingly tasty. Good times.

I'm here in Hong Kong, and smack in the middl...

May 20, 2007 by Seraph in Cortez

I'm here in Hong Kong, and smack in the middle of monsoon season. We've had strong rain the last few days, but it's still nice and warm.
Work has been busy, but I think FM will make it through another season!
I miss everyone like crazy! Travel is fun, but more so when the family is along.

Sam made his first video game today

May 19, 2007 by Adam in Sam

Mocha Friday, yet again

May 18, 2007 by Adam in Family

Mocha Friday, yet again.

It's been a good week and I'm loving the spring weather. Last night I mowed the yard, some simple manual labor to ease my brain. Afterwards, Emma threw about clumps of cut grass like a flower girl and Sam rolled about on his back. What a quirky family I have.

I think we're mostly taking it easy this weekend, a short lull between trips, birthdays, and vacations. I really want to take the kids swimming tonight and go to the library tomorrow. The older I get, the more I come to cherish these little traditions. I'm sure I'll start hiking my pants up to my waist and telling the neighbor kids to get off my lawn any day now.

It seems like it's been a long time since I l...

May 17, 2007 by Adam in Adam's Games

It seems like it's been a long time since I last played a computer game. There was a recent deal on some older games and I broke down and bought three: S.T.A.L.K.E.R., Quake 4, and Destination: Treasure Island. I've only played the first at this point, a post-apocalyptic sort of game set in the area around Chernobyl. It's got mutants, anomalies, and mysterious artifacts. So far it seems like a big sandbox sort of game where you can wander around and explore, coupled with a loose storyline that slowly gets you towards the main reactor. Pretty fun, so far.

The most amusing gaming story was from last week. Sam's really enjoyed playing Garry's Mod for Half-Life 2 again. I think he likes the freedom of just messing around, creating objects, playing with physics and spawning in monsters for me to battle.

Emma has been ditching her Nick Jr. games, crawling into my lap and demanding that she control my character. She can sort of move around and fire whatever weapon I have handy, though her aim needs some work. At one point she spawned in, and asked for a big gun. I created one of the biggest ones for her and got it ready for her. "Rock and roll," she whispered, and proceeded to wildly empty the magazine.

Hello from Singapore! I made it in last nigh...

May 17, 2007 by Seraph in Cortez

Hello from Singapore! I made it in last night, and am writing this from the offices here. It's really warm, but there is a huge storm passing outside. Mom - it would remind you of Normalville. Time to work again - love to all.

Out of the blue, Emma decided she wanted to r...

May 15, 2007 by Adam in Emma

Out of the blue, Emma decided she wanted to ride her bike. We got her all geared up and we went down to the park. Though she was tentative at first, Emma was quickly zipping around the basketball court and enjoying herself immensely.

Sam was strangely excited to watch her, so he rushed through his homework and asked that Jamie take him down to the park. They played "zombie" where Sam chased Emma around in slow-motion. At one point, Sam got on his old bike and rode it around, looking like a clown on a tiny bike.

Emma continues to excel at French, teaching me new words all the time. It's a treat to listen to her sing in French around the house, with me picking up every other word.

We had a wonderful weekend visiting with Mom ...

May 14, 2007 by Seraph in Cortez

We had a wonderful weekend visiting with Mom and Adam, and just puttering about.
I am mostly packed and ready to go tomorrow, and Robbie is getting off work early to take me to the airport.
We had some exciting news on Friday. Isa was chosen from all the Kindergarden classes to recieve the Outstanding Citizan award! Apparently she's a pretty cool kido. They had an awards ceremony on the 24th, and Robbie has promised to take a lot of pictures. If we ever get a faster internet connection I'll post them!

Our lovely Portland trip is coming to an end

May 13, 2007 by Adam in Family

Our lovely Portland trip is coming to an end. The kids just came home from lunch with the grandparents. Jamie and I drove to downtown Portland to have dinner at Mother's and go to Powell's. It was great and I felt very cosmopolitan.

Yesterday we mostly puttered about, the kids doing fairly well on the drive up. It was leisurely, playing in the backyard or fiddling with my computer (which is a required packing item, like toiletries). Emma loved trying on all the various princess dresses in grandma's dress-up box. Sam and Judy played with toy soldiers and pirates. It's all good.

This weekend has been absolutely beautiful, a...

May 13, 2007 by Sadie in Sadie & Greg

This weekend has been absolutely beautiful, and I moved half of our living room furniture to our enclosed porch yesterday. Eating breakfast on the porch this morning felt like a summer vacation without the packing. I also had the good fortune of coming into a pair of English riding boots, courtesy of the Women's Exchange down the street, which I am breaking in today. Consignment shopping on a May weekend is my kind of heaven.

I hope that everyone had a perfect Mother's Day!

HI Everyone, I'm off to Honolulu on Monday a...

May 12, 2007 by Yayoe in Yayoe

HI Everyone,
I'm off to Honolulu on Monday and will return on the 24th. I'll have a chance to rock the newest member of our family in my arms while consuming large quantities of delicious island foods and pasteries. I've been busy working at Reliant Behavioral Health and seeing clients. It's very rewarding work. Lohring is working at White Bird and at the LCC HIV dental clinic. The dental clinic is slowly coming together despite not having a full inventory of supplies. Last week the feds did a site review of the project...they wanted to protect their large grant investment and choose Lohring's project because of it's unique model of care involving not only 3 community agencies but the assisting and hygiene students at LCC.

I'm still playing my 2 ukes and enjoy jamming with two local groups in the community. I sold my beautiful Harpsichord after 35 years of playing. I've transitioned from my chamber music phase to my uke phase. My playing is brilliantly mediocre but hey...it's still fun. Aloha

We made it up safe and sound here in Portland

May 12, 2007 by Adam in Family

We made it up safe and sound here in Portland. Emma got out the princess dresses. Sam and I played various sports in the yard. Dinner has been served, I'm tired, and hope to take it easy for a couple hours.

Congratulations, Robbie! Some of the most pow...

May 11, 2007 by Sadie in Sadie & Greg

Congratulations, Robbie! Some of the most powerful political movers and shakers of our time began in the PTA. I hope we get first dibs on school gossip! Today is the last day of classes for students, and I've already started to say goodbye to many of them. Sigh. One chapter ends, another begins.

We're looking forward to a fun weekend! Mom ...

May 11, 2007 by Seraph in Cortez

We're looking forward to a fun weekend! Mom and Bob will be here tonight, and Adam will be over for breakfast in the morning. Tomorrow afternoon is the St. John's parade, in which Isa's school's marching band will be playing. Saturday night we have a friends concert at the MAC club, wich will be a fun "grown-up" event. I don't know that we have plans for Mother's Day yet. We might try to hit the zoo after church.
Robbie and I went to the PTA meeting on Tuesday, and Robbie walked out as next years VP! I think this just means he'll know all the good school gossip.

It's Mocha Friday, though the last of my frot...

May 11, 2007 by Adam in Family

It's Mocha Friday, though the last of my frothy drink is long gone. I was up at 4:30 this morning for some weird reason, though I wasn't truly awake until recently. I rode to work in a vague haze, fortunately arriving at the right spot.

We're heading up to Portland as soon as I get home today. I'll be leaving early so that we can drive up. I think I have a breakfast date with Seraph and her crew, which should be fun. I got to see her house on Google maps, though I suspect it looks bigger in person.

Last night was Sam's last soccer practice. His last games are this weekend, which we'll sadly miss out on. There's a tradition that the last game is parents against the kids. Like last year, I carried Emma on my shoulders the whole time. She laughed and giggled, cheerfully running her muddy hands through my hair. Some of the parents were a bit too serious, leaving a trail of tiny bodies in their wake. Though we were twice as big as the kids, their elbows are at groin height, as I found out the hard way. All-in-all, it was a fun evening.

The week is slowly moving along

May 10, 2007 by Adam in Family

The week is slowly moving along. I'm starting to get excited for our weekend Portland trip and visiting Seraph and Robbie's new house.

Jamie and I had a fairly low-key date night, basically staying home and watching the BBC show Coupling. I've decided it's the funniest television show ever.

I did have the kids for a little before my mom arrived. The kids were wild and wacky out in the backyard. I gave them a bit too much freedom and they both ended up drenched in mud. Emma in particular was completely soaked, a huge splash from Sam causing her to have her face coupletely muddy and gross. Needless to say, showers and a stern look from Jamie followed.

I spent last weekend in Meadville helping Dor...

May 09, 2007 by Danica in Danica Miller

I spent last weekend in Meadville helping Dorothy celebrate her 89th birthday. If she would only act her age, the rest of us might be a bit more reverant! She's as busy and involved as ever and lucky for me most of her friends are too. I planned a birthday dinner and brought all the ingredients, but forgot that there were plans for practically every meal every day I was there. First a luncheon at the Iroquois club on Friday and then a Derby party and birthday dinner on Saturday. We squeezed in my birthday fruit tarts for Saturday lunch and the stuffed pork loin at noon on Sunday before I hit the road. A lovely weekend weather-wise and great way to start to the 90th year!

I'm reading Harry Potter five and so far it i...

May 08, 2007 by Sam in Sam

I'm reading Harry Potter five and so far it is really exiting. I've been reading a lot of Harry Potter lately. I'm typing about typing now so read Harry Potter you'll enjoy it.

In preparation for the Magical Tea Party (are...

May 08, 2007 by Jamie in Jamie

In preparation for the Magical Tea Party (are we having brownies at this thing?) Sam and I have been power washing the patio. Sam has really enjoyed it...I have a feeling that like me, it appeals to his obsessive compulsive tendencies as much as his masculine love of anything with a motor. We have done a great job, and I appreciate the team effort (Emma scrubbed the chairs and table, Adam blew bubbles ;-)

Emma decided to paint her tongue with a water...

May 08, 2007 by Adam in Emma

Emma decided to paint her tongue with a watercolor pencil yesterday. She feels pretty bad about it, and was appropriately scolded. Of course, having a bright blue tongue is pretty shocking. Just in case, I looked up the MSDS sheet for the brand of pencil and it said it probably wasn't horribly toxic. Lovely.

I have lots of fun talking French to Emma these days. Sam was doing homework yesterday, so Emma wanted to do some too. I asked her to draw her family. "Grande mama!" she cheerfully exclaimed as she drew Jamie with a massive head. "Oui, elle a une massif tête." I smirked.

Emma and I also had fun in the backyard yesterday, watching bugs and playing Frisbee. Good times.

This weekend was particularly beautiful, and ...

May 07, 2007 by Sadie in Sadie & Greg

This weekend was particularly beautiful, and I got to plant my beans and spinach in the ground. Williamstown is at its best in May and June, which is too bad for all of the students who are buried in the library with finals. I am incrementally preparing to leave the college and community, and am almost excited by the prospect, though not by the idea of moving in August. Mom has hinted that she may help me move, which would be fun. I hope that all of you are well- I am so excited to come home for my birthday!

I'm back at work after a lovely weekend

May 07, 2007 by Adam in Family

I'm back at work after a lovely weekend. The bike ride in was nice as well, warm and sunny with all the flowers in bloom. I'll miss my bike rides after work moves across town.

We didn't do anything terribly important this weekend. Sam's on the mend and went to both his soccer games. The kids and I hung out quite a bit, going to parks and playing in the basement. Sadly I missed swimming and next weekend we're out of town. Maybe we can go out during the week some time.

Emma took a picture of me during Sam's soccer game this weekend. We were out in the sun, and very hot. I think I got a little pink, even through the sunscreen.

I've been at sixes and sevens the last couple...

May 06, 2007 by Sue in Wielesek

I've been at sixes and sevens the last couple of weeks. This is a sad time of year, of course, but somehow all the
usual things which need to get done seem more burdensome as well. I go in to the shrink for my annual mental health check up next week, and maybe I should get him to goose up my meds. So if you see me grinning foolishly, you'll know.
On a bright note, welcome to the new baby. This is supposed to be a really good year for babies, I think The Year of the Golden Pig. Golden Dragon? Help me out here, folks....

Sam's lip has finally healed, which makes him...

May 04, 2007 by Adam in Sam

Sam's lip has finally healed, which makes him quite happy. For a week he was going around like a chipmunk, trying to protect his cut. Of course, now he's got assorted ills, from stomach problems last night to ear aches this morning. Poor kid.

Sam continues to do quite well at school. He gets great scores on every spelling test. He was telling me how he won the respect of another kid by successfully pronouncing "Rayman's Raving Rabbids" (his latest Wii game). Last night we were brainstorming on his homework, trying to come up with a game for his math class. It's fun watching him grow and learn.

I've downed my Friday Mocha and am feeling so...

May 04, 2007 by Adam in Family

I've downed my Friday Mocha and am feeling somewhat caught up after my trip earlier this week. There's still things on my "to do" list, but they're not as pressing as yesterday's frantic catch-up.

Sam was sick last night with some stomach problem, though he recovered soon enough. Towards the end of the evening he and Emma were leaping from the stairs on to the Foof. I took a few in-progress pictures to preserve the moment.

This morning Jamie was up early. Evidently Sam had an ear ache, so she stuffed him full of Tylenol. He may stay out of school if he's feeling lousy.

Tonight Jamie and I are going out to dinner and tomorrow is Sam's soccer game. I'm not sure if I'll be able to take the kids swimming, which is one of my favorite activities for the week. Next weekend it looks like we're going to Portland, though I'm not sure of our plans there.

All-in-all, it's nice to be back home.

I'm back home

May 03, 2007 by Adam in Family

I'm back home. Emma and Sam gave me a huge hug upon my return. I got to tuck Emma to bed last night and chat with Sam for awhile. Sam got an Academic Excellence award at school. Jamie seemed happy to have me back, in her normal subdued way. All is good.

I haven't learned any Manderian yet, but I th...

May 02, 2007 by Seraph in Cortez

I haven't learned any Manderian yet, but I think a lesson or two might be a good idea in years to come!
Robbie is home sick today, so I'm trying to leave work early to help out with the kids after school. There are very few parts of my job I can take home so this is a bit tricky. I think I'll try to get Issac and Isabell out of the house so Robbie and sleep some more. It's amazing how things fall apart when he's down!
Robbie has agreed to assist 2 mornings a week at Hillside next year. They were ttrying to sucker him into 3 days, but I think he really wants to stay flexible. Still it will be nice for him to stay connected with his co-workers.
Isabell is starting to get the summer vacation itch. Lately she's taken to sleeping in, and it's hard to get her to wear anything but summer clothes. She keeps asking about swimming lessons and the library summer reading program.
Sigh... I too am ready for a little R&R. Although we work like crazy, our trips to HK do include very nice accomidations and warm weather.

It's the last day on the road

May 02, 2007 by Adam in Adam

It's the last day on the road. We have power this morning, but our main data center lost power. We're scurrying about trying to get things working again, which doing remotely is loads of fun. In any case, I'll be going to the airport in a few hours and heading south. Can't wait to be home.

Well, we made it to the meeting room just fine

May 01, 2007 by Adam in Adam

Well, we made it to the meeting room just fine. After being here for 10 minutes, the power went out. It turns out that power's out in much of the city, which could make today's meetings exciting.