Wine Country (again)

Well, they did it again. They left the dude at home to go off and swill in the wine country. This time in France. At least the grandparents looking after him allowed him to swill some vino too. After his workout of course. The dude's parents got to visit the Burgundy wine country, the city of love, family in the Alps, and friends for a topless show in the city. Whew. After all that, and a visit to the home of the original cake eater, they were both very tired and glad to be home!

A little "mommy and daddy" time

Mommy and Daddy left town for the weekend and left the dude all alone. He entertained himself by going and taking naps in the nearby pool. Everything was going great, but one little girl wouldn't stop licking his hair.

Just kidding. For the time being, both sets of the dude's grandparents are in town so there is an endless supply of (free) babysitters available. Mommy and Daddy are not stupid, so they are making the most of it by competing in a few races like the Lifetime Fitness Triathlon and the Napa-to-Sonoma Half Marathon. While in the wine country they were able to take in the sights of sunny California with many of their friends from all over the country.

Happy 4th of July

The 4th of July went off without a hitch. Family was in town, the fireworks were great, what more could you ask for? As always though, the week did not end without some injuries. As you can see below, the dude slipped and fell face first into the corner of a bed.

Fishing at the Cabin

The first weekend at the cabin was a great one for fishing (especially if you enjoy catching fish just slightly bigger than the bait).

Iron Roddy's

To pave the way for the dude's future Ironman Championships, his parents decided to see what this Ironman fad was all about. Along with some other former KU swimmers, they participated in the inaugural "Ironman Kansas" half ironman. 1.2 mi swim, 56 mi bike, 13.1 mi run. And despite the rumors, Kansas really isn't all that flat. His parent's performance inspired the dude into graduating from his tricycle. He now stands up on the pedals and charges up hills like a champ.

Walker Sculpture Garden

As you can see, the dude is learning quickly how to impress the ladies. A nice little stroll around a sculpture garden on a wonderful spring day works every time.

Mommy took me to the zoo today...

zoo today...
Mommy is done with her killer semester of school and decided to take me to the zoo. Today was basically mommy's first day off since January and wanted to spend it with me having fun in the sun.

Minnesota Wing Commemorative Air Force

I haven't posted on the blog in a while because let's face it, there are only so many frozen tundra pictures the halfsoul audience can take, am I right? It took a while, but spring has finally arrived in Minnesota. Don't worry, the dude has been practicing inside on his new bike for a while; the way he was charging up hills today to keep up with his older cousin, I might sign him up for a triathlon or two this summer. On the first nice weekend day in a long, long time, we were able make it outside for an air show over the capital building in St. Paul, put on by the Commemorative Air Force, as well as attend wiki's 4th birthday party with a ton of little dweebs running around. How is it that the dude running around like crazy with no naps seems to be more exhausting for me than it is for him? I guess we'll never know.

Back to the grindstone...

After all that fun of vacation, it's time to get back to work, and back to working out.

Spring Break / Easter Update

For spring break and easter, we were able to spend some time away from the endless Minnesota winter. Down in Arizona the day it was "supposed to" storm and have near freezing temperatures turned out to be 6 drops of rain and 55 degrees. So after dealing with that horrible day, we were able to enjoy the rest of the week of 85 degrees and sunny. We went on train rides, got to see a spring training baseball game (the A's vs KC), and even got to meet the easter bunny.

Howdy partner...

Finally got me my first real haircut

Shake Shake Shake...

Random update for negligent posting...

The dude has been busy the past few weeks and so has his dad, so here is a random update. He's 2 now, so that means he's got to start pulling his weight. He helped his dad and grandpa build a stairway hand rail and helped his mom and dad re-paint the entire basement. Next month I'll teach him how to use the hammer drill. The dude also had some friends over and is now officially mobile on his tricycle. Man, he's growing up quick.

Doot Doot Da Doot, Doot Doot Da Doot...

The little guy is turning 2 on Tuesday, so for an early birthday present, mom and dad took him to see his favorite character ever. Every time Elmo had to leave the stage, he would turn to one of us, scowl, and let out a big "ELMO?" Big bird used to be the cool one back in the 70's and 80's. Oh how times have changed.