Quiet Weekend

April 30, 2018 by Adam in Family

We didn't do anything particularly exciting this weekend, which was nice after our Friday adventures.  We went down to Roosevelt to watch Duncan play assorted percussion instruments, which he did with grace and honor.  Or at least with rhythm.  Then it got a little Lord of the Flies with kids running around in packs, with the usual screaming, cake throwing, and general mischief.  I did run into my old friend Jason, which was nice, and it was neat to see the new school which I hadn't been into until then.

We accomplished a few things over the weekend.  Joanna and I did a big cleaning of the craft closet and the downstairs craft dresser.  I think Joanna just kept going until she collapsed, though she still wants to clean off her desk for Guillaume to use.  I did manage to convince Guillaume to play Skyrim VR for a long while, which he assured me would make his brother jealous for a change.

Saturday was a hang-out day.  Benny had a friend spend the night.  Duncan had Flynn over Sunday.  I took Sam for a drive around the DMV.  I was feeling a little poorly Sunday morning, so I ended up taking Advil and playing a lot of my new Mechwarrior game and having robots fight it out.

I have some interesting things to work on at work today.  Sam's working at my mom's house, presumably getting her ready for her trip.  Everything is generally doing okay.

Zipping Through The Week

April 26, 2018 by Adam in Family

The weather continues to be beautiful, with everything in bloom.  We've resorted to turning on air conditioning a few times, despite it still being April.  I think we're all generally doing okay.  Mom graciously cosigned Sam's rental agreement, so he's on track for moving out late summer.  Emma finished her class planning for next year - we encouraged somewhat challenging classes, as I think she's smarter than she gives herself credit for.  Summer trip planning is coming together for Duncan and Benny, though I think Benny feels it's longer than they want.  Hopefully it all works out.

Joanna and I went out last night and after a few mixups, ended up having a pleasant meal in a quiet Sam Bond's Garage - the new brewery and not the old place in the Whitaker neighborhood.

Sam and I went for a few drives this week, including a very long drive in the country out to mom's farm.  I think he liked the long open road, which is often easier than driving around in traffic.

I got a new board game for our next family board game night - Forbidden Desert.  I've also been playing Skyrim VR and a new Mechwarrior game.  I do manage to entertain myself a fair amount.

Mocha Friday

April 20, 2018 by Adam in Family

I just finished my last gulp of mocha, a bright spring day peeking through my office window.  Life's pretty good.  Various small crises keep coming up, but I feel like I'm surrounded by a veteran support team, helping us get through the trials and tribulations of life.  There's something vaguely miraculous about competent people taking care of business and getting through problems.  This morning I'm heading down to South Eugene to talk to Emma's counselor and hopefully get her in the right classes for next year.  Benny's name issues are getting sorted out.  Sam and Guillaume's housing situation is on the way to being fixed.

Work's going along nicely.  We're dedicating a two-week sprint to getting our code cleaned up and putting automated testing in place.  It's like when I drink a lot of coffee and go on a cleaning spree.  The end result is very satisfying.

I'm slowly hardening off my tomato seedlings, putting them on my shed porch for a couple hours to harden them off.  If the weather holds I'll move them under the cloche pretty soon.  I predict some yardwork in my future too - the sunny weather has me enthusiastic.

Russian Orthodox Weekend

April 17, 2018 by Adam in Family

I slept ten hours last night, something that never happens.  I had been going non-stop without a break from the time I woke up until after I delivered Emma back to Jamie's house.  My body decided that was enough and I lay down in bed and conked out around eight.  Now everything this morning has a bit of a dreamy feel, though I feel much better.

Joanna and I went out for dinner at Laughing Planet last Friday and then used the Onsen's hot tub gift certificate I gave Jenny for her birthday over a decade ago.  The person behind the counter didn't blink an eye.

Saturday was Benny's birthday, complete with Off the Waffle takeout for the birthday kid.  I went with a horde of people to see Ready Player One in the afternoon, followed by cooking pizzas I made earlier in the day and watching Adam Ruins Everything.  Benny really enjoyed the pile of prezzies they got afterward.

Sunday had Kevin arrive, whisking Duncan and Benny away for a day of VR and escape rooms.  I think they generally had a good time.  Sam and Emma went over to my mom's to help setup and cook, along with Jamie who assisted and ate with us.  I helped Joanna make delicious cake and ran errands, then the Easter festivities began in earnest.

Monday was fairly busy, with work being interesting.  I ended up driving Sam to a thing and getting Emma so she could hang out with my dad for dinner.  Cooking was a little frantic and dinner was late, but it turned out pretty well.  Kevin had a final hang out with the kids.

Now it's back into the normal routine, as least as normal as it gets these days.

Mocha Friday

April 13, 2018 by Adam in Family

I finished my mocha and am working away in my little backyard shed, reflecting on life.  I feel very fortunate to have such a great family, good health, and interesting work.  There are so many wonderful things in my life.  Thank you all for making it happen.

We've all had a bit of a cold this week.  Sam was sick, asking for movie recommendations.  I suggested Hunt for the Wilderpeople, which he thoroughly enjoyed.  Benny finished Ready Player One in time for the movie tomorrow, along with Jenny, Jordan, and assorted family friends.  Poor Guillaume had his big paper rejected, the one he's been working on all year.  I feel really bad for him as he's poured all his free time into it - he's meeting with his professor to see if it can be salvaged.  Emma's enjoying her cooking class and they're making pizza today.  Joanna and I have date night tonight - I think we're going to see if we can use a gift certificate from over a decade ago that I originally gave Jenny for her birthday.

Lots of fun things coming up for the weekend, including Russian Orthodox Easter.  Emma wants to help cook.  I'm sure the rest of us will cheerfully eat our way through the afternoon.

Middle of the Week

April 11, 2018 by Adam in Family

The rain in Spain falls mainly in Oregon, apparently.  It's wet here, though the plants all love it.

The week has been moving along at a steady pace.  There's a cold going around, with Emma missing Monday's school.  I'm trying to sort out Sam's online class - apparently everyone was having problems logging in, so he wasn't alone.  He drove over to his meeting last night, feeling a little rusty.  We need to get more practice in.  My dad came over on Monday and chatted with Sam about manufacturing, which I think inspired him some.

Benny's been reading Ready Player One so that we can all go to the movie for their birthday weekend.  It's going to be quite the crew, with Guillaume, one of Duncan's friends, and Jenny and Jordan.

As for me, work is moving along nicely.  Our QA guy is taking a job as a cryptocurrency developer, so we're focusing on automating our various tests before he leaves.  I'm also spending my free time in virtual Skyrim.  I finally scraped together enough money to buy a horse, so I'm galloping around the snowy plains doing assorted quests.  Eventually I want to build a house to stash all my loot. Occasionally I come out of VR long enough to kiss my real wife and children.

Windy Weekend

April 09, 2018 by Adam in Family

It was a wet and windy weekend, the last hurrah of winter before spring appears in full force.  It was a good weekend, all-in-all, playing Dixit with the kids, several rounds of Jackbox, and playing Magic the Gathering with Sam and Emma.  I snuck in a lot of Skyrim VR time, which after some serious modding is starting to look and feel pretty amazing. I'm playing an archer, plundering ancient ruins and exploring the world.

Joanna and Benny made a birthday cake, and then went to lazer tag with some of their friends.  Joanna was worn out by the experience, but Benny had a great time and told me all about her lazer prowess.  Emma was feeling sick, so we watched the latest Thor movie.  It ended up being really funny.

Sunday we all went for a walk in the woods near Hendrick's park and ate at Humble Bagel like old times.  Sam was with us, more of a rarity these days, and it was nice to visit.

Mocha Friday

April 06, 2018 by Adam in Family

It's a wet spring morning, with kids just starting to get out of bed.  I await my mocha - I haven't decided if I'm going to "take the kids to school" (a.k.a. swing by Hideaway Bakery for a mocha and almond croissant), or make my mocha at home myself.  I'm strangely excited to get started with work this morning - I have some interesting problems to solve today.

Emma's feeling under the weather, likely a cold, though allergy season has started as well.  Benny's doing their first birthday events, lazer tag with friends tomorrow.  Joanna went to the Willamette Wordcrafter's group last night, which I think reinvigorated her desire to write more.  Sam's taking another martial arts class after talking to the instructor.

I broke down and bought the VR version of Skyrim.  Fortunately it's an older game, so it runs decently with the more demanding VR requirements.  There are also a ton of mods for it that people have made over the years, so I was adding better looking trees, improved sound, and other non-official things.  It looks pretty good at the moment and I haven't played it for years so much of it is still new.

I'm looking forward to the weekend, hanging out with kids.  We have Thor: Ragnarok to watch, it's board game night tonight, and we're all muddling through this zany thing called life.

Date Night

April 04, 2018 by Adam in Family

Every week, Joanna nicely schedules a sitter so we can go out, followed by a last minute discussion as to where we're going to go.  Sometimes it's sushi related.  Other times we go somewhere they make cider.  If the meal goes quickly, we'll go for a walk or sneak over to Sweet Life for dessert.  It's been a great tradition and something I appreciate about my lovely wife.

Everyone's doing well as the week moves along.  Sam drove over to his meeting last night, his first time doing it at night.  Emma's making cookies in her International Foods class this week.  Benny is reading like a maniac, as always.  Work's doing fine - I'm fixing bugs and cleaning things up.  All is well.

Springtime Tuesday

April 03, 2018 by Adam in Family

It's a little cool after our semi-warm weekend.  Sam and I drove around a bunch, both in my automatic and with mom's manual up at LCC.  Yesterday we drove over to Jamie's house after work.  Mostly I'm trying to get him as much practice as I can manage.  Sam's also kinda sorta setup for classes, just one at the U of O and an online one at LCC.  There are still a few hoops to jump through, but hopefully we can get them sorted out.

Joanna helped coordinate Easter festivities with the Easter bunny, and Duncan, Benny, and Emma ran around looking for eggs.  I ate way too much Easter chocolate and chocolate covered espresso beans, once again proving to myself that I have little self control if something's right in front of me.

Emma returned Sunday, bringing stories of her trip to the beach and some of her art and photographs.  We played a bunch of Terraria, which I think she was missing out on.  Duncan played a bunch of video games.  Benny hung out with friends.  Joanna kept working away at writing projects.

Sunday night was family dinner, with mom, Bob, Guillaume, Jenny, Jordan, and Yayoe showing up.  We ate delicious food and chatted through the night.  Jordan's lost a bunch of weight.  I managed to get Yayoe in VR for a little, with Bob promising to come back with Eric to try it out.  Emma chatted with Jenny and Jordan for a long while.  

As for me, the weekend was generally quite pleasant.  I mowed the yard, played various video games, and started in on a new book.  Now I'm working away, generally enjoying getting things taken care of and cleaned up.