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It's Mocha Wednesday for me
December 29, 2004 by Adam in Family
 It's Mocha Wednesday for me. Well, actually the entire week has been filled with Mochas due to a Starbuck's gift certificate, but today is my last day at work this week.
Emma had a hard time sleeping last night. I woke up around one o'clock to hear her say "Mom. Milky. Tissue." It's funny how she just spouts off words when she's half-asleep. They were up when I left this morning. I peeked in through the window at Jamie and Emma in front of the t.v., still waking up.
I have lots of plans for my four day weekend. I'd love to go to the library, take a hike, see Sadie, and of course hang out with my family.
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Well, Christmas has come and gone
December 26, 2004 by Adam in Family
 Well, Christmas has come and gone. It was a little more exciting than normal, with everyone sick and Jamie visiting the ER in the morning. I think Emma's not feeling well now as she had a hard time going to sleep last night.
The trip back from Portland went smoothly and we unpacked all our goodies in short order. Within thirty minutes of arriving, two of our neighbors had given us Christmas cookies. I think we picked a good neighborhood.
Christmas at my mom's was the usual gathering of kids running about and adults trying to chat above the din. Jamie and Emma stayed home to rest while Sam and I jumped right in. The food was good and Sam ate a vast quantity of ham, something of a rarity in our household. Everyone loved the presents. I was particularly fond of my naked mole rat, which Sam insisted on sleeping with last night. We left a little early due to my upset stomach. I'm hoping some tea will settle it this morning.
I think today we're going to hang about the house and try to unwind. There's endless movies to watch and presents to play with. I need a short vacation to recover from my Christmas vacation. Tomorrow it's back to work for a few days at least.
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It's Christmas Eve and we just finished up th...
December 25, 2004 by Adam in Family
 It's Christmas Eve and we just finished up the holiday festivities at Jamie's parents' house. The kids got lots of books, clothes, and assorted toys. I ended up with coffee and a gift certificate to a computer store. It seems they know me well.
Sam had a good time with his cousin Jackson, who's about Emma's age. He alternatively followed and was chased by Sam, which they both seemed to enjoy quite a bit.
I've had a touch of an upset stomach the last couple days, a fitting end to the colds that I've been having. Hopefully this is the absolute last illness of the season. At least it's helping me avoid stuffing myself with all the cookies and other goodies that are laying around everywhere.
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We made it to Portland safe and sound
December 23, 2004 by Adam in Family
 We made it to Portland safe and sound. We opened presents in the morning, a mini-Christmas of just my family. Sam got tons of Legos and the new Spiderman movie. Emma got some Pooh toys and a magnetic building thingie. Jamie ended up with a pencil sharpener, a new Trivial Pursuit, and three cashmere sweaters. I got a piece of paper with the promise that Jamie would redo my office, especially the computer desk that's wobbly and improving the storage overall.
Sam watched his new movie on the way up and put together his Star Wars Lego set when we arrived. We played non-stop with the thing while Emma hung out with Judy. Today is another quiet day. We'll try to get out of the house a little more and perhaps Sam and I can watch the extended version of Return of the King. It's over four hours long so it may be something we finish later.
Tomorrow is the big family gathering, then it's back to town. Busy, busy.
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Well, it's Mocha Tuesday for me today
December 21, 2004 by Adam in Family
Well, it's Mocha Tuesday for me today. I was woken up at five in the morning and handed an extremely awake toddler. Emma was still up three hours later when I finally managed to leave the house and stagger in to work. Now I'm waiting for the hours to tick by so that I can join my family for a little holiday rest.
Sam and I had a good time last night reinacting various battles from Lord of the Rings. I think we're going to have to get nerf swords or something as we keep managing to whack each other by accident. Fortunately no one's put an eye out yet, though not for lack of trying.
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The weekend is coming to a close
December 20, 2004 by Adam in Family
 The weekend is coming to a close. Jamie had a good time hob nobbing with the elite of Eugene last night, telling all about the three fountains, swimming pool, huge kitchen, and big screen televisions. I only hope she's happy living in our home now that she's seen what she's missing.
It was another day playing with kids and managing my cold. I ran out to do some Christmas shopping early in the morning, only to find the store completely empty. I've been wanting to get Jamie something special and it was nice to actually think up a gift that I'm happy about.
Jamie spent some time with Angie, going for a long walk and enjoying the brief blue sky. Angie also charmed Emma and brought excellently wrapped presents for all. Emma wanted to just keep on opening presents after this first Christmas present she opened herself.
It looks like we have a couple more days of work before I have my little vacation. I'm very much looking forward to it.
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The cold has hit in full force
December 19, 2004 by Adam in Family
 The cold has hit in full force. I've been sniffling and snorfeling all day, along with the kids who seem equally goopy. Mostly I played with kids doing art projects, running around in the basement, or watching shows. Emma slept forever around noon and Sam and I watched part of the second Lord of the Rings movie.
Jamie's been getting ready for a Christmas party with her friend Sharon. She went over to Victoria's house this morning to try on clothes and ended up buying some knee-high boots with high heels to finish the outfit. It's pretty rare that she gets all gussied up, so it was fairly amusing to see her put it all together. I made her pose in front of the Christmas tree before she headed out.
Fortunately Dave and Kirsten are helping me watch the kids tonight. Fresh bodies are great for both the kids and I.
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I spent a fair amount of time at 5:30 this mo...
December 17, 2004 by Adam in Family
I spent a fair amount of time at 5:30 this morning trying to track down where a mysterious beep was coming from. It turns out that the fire alarm in the basement that's hooked into the main power also has a backup battery. It was thoughtfully letting me know that it was out of power. I think there's some law of physics stating that fire alarm batteries only die in the middle of the night.
It's mocha Friday, that blissful brew sitting next to my on my desk. My cold is still sniffling away, more annoying than painful. Christmas is sneaking right up on me and I still have a few things to take care of.
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I'm home from work today
December 15, 2004 by Adam in Family
 I'm home from work today. Jamie wanted me to watch Emma while she went to school and taught a lesson on dreidels at Sam's kindergarden. Ironically, I've also come down with a bit of a cold, though it seems pretty mild in comparison to what I had before.
Emma was up for four hours last night. Jamie had the first couple hours and I had the next. Emma was wide awake so we played with toys and read books while I struggled not to fall asleep.
I also picked up a new pair of glasses, my first in a decade. They're pretty tiny and make me look far too intellectual. I suppose they'll do if something goes wrong with my contacts.
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Sunday is winding down
December 13, 2004 by Adam in Family
 Sunday is winding down. It was a bit too exciting in some ways - Sam got another bad nose bleed and everyone was feeling sick. We're getting more serious about Sam, setting up a humidifier and applying petroleum jelly. Hopefully his dry nose will improve soon.
Jamie's dad arrived early and we quickly put up the decorations. He also brought down a few early Christmas presents, mostly decorations for the season. Dave, Kirsten, and Josh also came over and hung out for most of the day. If we weren't feeling generally cruddy it would have been one of the better days of late. Still, I suppose we make due with what we've got.
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Saturday has come and gone
December 12, 2004 by Adam in Family
 Saturday has come and gone. Sam got a particularly messy nosebleed, which took some cleaning up. We had planned to all go out to get a Christmas tree with my mom, Robbie, Hanni, and Isabell, but it ended up just being me. After carefully selecting a couple trees that would fit on top of the car, I cut them down and strapped them on. It was fun to just go out to the farm for awhile. It's quite beautiful in a soggy forest sort of way.
The afternoon was mostly spent watching kids in the basement. I worked on putting together my mom's new laptop - installing patches and such. Jamie went to pick up Thai food, which everyone really enjoyed. Everyone finally got to bed and seems to be sleeping fairly well. It's nearly eight o'clock this morning and they're still not up.
Jamie's dad is coming over this morning to help trim the tree. Hopefully we can take it easy for the rest of the day. Everyone still seems to be a bit sick, so some rest could do us good.
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I started getting pretty sick towards the end...
December 11, 2004 by Adam in Family
 I started getting pretty sick towards the end of work yesterday, feverish and upset stomach. I rode home and entertained kids while Jamie picked up John for the sleepover. Fortunately I never seemed to get too bad and was able to help at least a little with watching the kids.
The two boys had a great time, spending virtually all the time hanging out in the basement and playing. Later on they watched Mulan and ate Sam's dessert of choice, doughnuts.
We have a tentative plan to get a Christmas tree with my mom, Seraph, Robbie, and Hanni this afternoon. It will likely prove an adventure.
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Mocha Friday once again rolls around
December 10, 2004 by Adam in Family
Mocha Friday once again rolls around. I've been a little out of sorts lately. I was really tired last night, slept in pretty late, and was a little snappy this morning. Hopefully I'm not getting what Sam had. He threw up a couple days ago, but has since made a full recovery and even went to school yesterday.
We all went over to see Dave's place, the first time for me since Brant moved out. It looks quite different without the dogs shedding hair everywhere. The kids had a great time playing with Dave and Kirsten, as well as Josh's old toys. The fireplace was cranking out so much heat that I almost fell asleep.
Jamie's tasked me with the job of organizing a Christmas tree cutting expedition, something I've so far been failing miserably at. Hopefully I can get in touch with my mom today and go out tomorrow to bring us back a tree. We also have John coming over for a sleepover with Sam and Jamie's Dad coming over to decorate the theoretical tree on Sunday morning. I can feel the holiday madness already creeping up on me.
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Well, the windows were installed yesterday
December 08, 2004 by Adam in Family
Well, the windows were installed yesterday. It turns out that every single one had a manufacturing problem, so we'll be waiting for replacement windows. Still, Jamie reported that it was exceptionally quiet last night as the windows seem to block out much more noise. I suppose that's one measure of success.
Poor Sam was quite sick yesterday. He spent a lot of time watching television and sitting quietly. I did get him into a long hot bath, chatting about pirates and how I got each of the scars on my body. Hoepfully he's feeling better today after a good night's sleep.
It's hard to believe it's Wednesday already. I think we're going to go cut a Christmas tree this weekend and perhaps organize the last of the presents.
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It sounds like both Jamie and Sam are sick today
December 07, 2004 by Adam in Family
It sounds like both Jamie and Sam are sick today. Sam is proud of himself for being able to accurately diagnose his "feeling bad" as having a headache. It's nice when you can get that level of detail from a kid. With Emma, she just cries and we go through our list of things that might be wrong.
I ended up getting to work late this morning as Jamie handed me Emma, who was up far earlier than she should be. We're also getting new windows put in today. I'm somewhat nostalgic for the old upstairs windows, so Jamie's promised we can use them to make cabinets or some such thing.
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Jamie had a funny thing happen to her today
December 05, 2004 by Adam in Family
 Jamie had a funny thing happen to her today. She and Angie were going for a walk, talking about all the bad people in the world. Ironically, she looked down and found a wallet stuffed with cash. Soon enough they found a driver's license, discovered the address was a block away, and returned the wallet. When Jamie was explaining the story, she said that it was a good thing she was a good person. "Besides, " she added smirkingly, "Angie was with me."
We've had a pretty good day so far. I took Sam and Emma to the park where Sam drove his remote control car around. Emma had fun swinging, then discovered a puddle to get extra muddy in. Soon enough she was too cold and we returned home to throw her in the bath.
I think we'll be letting the rest of the day wind down with kid entertaining and some sweet and sour meatballs that Jamie plans on cooking up. Tomorrow, alas, it's back to work.
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It was a good, uneventful day, filled with od...
December 05, 2004 by Adam in Family
It was a good, uneventful day, filled with odd little moments. Emma dumped a huge amount of water on me when she was taking a bath. Sam didn't get enough exercise today, so we danced around the basement before bedtime. We did a family run to the store, returning with far too many Christmas presents. All-in-all, it was a good day with lots of laughter.
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December already
December 01, 2004 by Adam in Family
December already. I watched Emma for a bit this morning as Jamie took a shower. As I put on my coat and bike gear, Emma frowned and said "Work" in a sad little voice. It's nice to be loved.
I had the kids for a little bit during the day yesterday as Jamie had a short break and took a walk. They were lots of fun. Sam had on his new sweatshirt, the hood pulled down over his head to make him look vaguely like a Jawa or the Grim Reaper. Emma was chatting it up with everyone, dancing to the music in the business school's coffee place.
Work seems quiet for a change. I'm working on "nice to do" things at work, enjoying the peace before everyone arrives at 8 o'clock.
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