Happy Birthday Mom!!!!

Or is it Happy Thanksgiving?

Oh ... it is actually both!

It does seem appropriate ..... we are very thankful that you are here for us and very thankful for all you have done over the years. You have always tried to guide us, sometimes with the little push, but more often with your wisdom and sensible view on life.

Thank you for everything you have done and we hope you have a wonderful birthday week in Ottawa.

Love Gary & Laura

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is the 91st anniversary of my Dad's birth. 90 of those years the world got to be part of his life but that doesn't mean we have forgotten.

We miss you ... and still love you

Happy Birthday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY .... to me :-)

So my birthday this year started out with a bunch of surprises .... a wonderful bottle of bourbon and a birthday cake that Laura had made for me but I was also told that we would be going away for the weekend.

Well the hard part of going away for the weekend was not knowing what I would be doing or where I would be doing it .... all I had been told was to pack a bag and be ready to load up the Jeep.

Friday morning came - I was packed and the Jeep was packed and I was told to drive north ... myself Laura and Chris were going to Ottawa to spend my birthday weekend with Sam and Tika. Having done this drive so much I could almost do it blindfolded.

Chris spent the weekend with her sisters and Laura had booked a two bedroom apartment that was owned by a Cordon Bleu chef for us. The apartment had the kitchen to uphold that standing. We had everything we could possibly need - from a beautiful Italian made gas range to every pot, pan, knife etc imaginable. Laura had found a perfect spot for us and the outdoor grill just added to it. It also made our arrival on Friday night easy as I could just grill up some supper :-)

Saturday morning the girls came downtown and we spent the morning and early afternoon in the market and visiting the Ottawa U campus and having some traditional Ottawa food (now that is shawarma). Saturday evening myself and Laura spent having dinner with Malcolm and Lynne. Great food, great company and great wine - it was a fantastic evening. Sunday myself and Laura did some shopping and just relaxed - Laura knew Monday would be a busy day.

Monday was the day that Laura and the girls had planned. We had packed a picnic lunch and we headed up to Camp Fortune to the Adventure Aerial Course. The course is set high in the trees in Gatineau Park and you spend 2-3 hours negotiating sets of obstacles and then zip-lining in between other trees. At times it was challenging but we all got through in one piece and I think all of us learned that we can do it if we put out minds to it.

The picnic place

After the course we stopped in the park for the picnic lunch before heading to Nordik - a Scandinavian Spa in Chelsea where Laura had booked massages for us and we set the kids off to the saunas and pools. After our massages we joined the kids and just relaxed for a couple of hours - soaking in the saunas, pools and the sun. After a quick cleanup we headed home and out to dinner. We had walked by this restaurant on Saturday and myself and Tika commented on it so we decided that it was a good place for a birthday dinner. We were right - Brothers Beer Bistro had the perfect combination of great food, great atmosphere and great service. Even though we were all a bit full we waddled over to Spin after for dessert. Well - Sam, Kris and I had dessert - and I did not finish mine - I was at the point of food coma .... but it was a good food coma.

Tuesday was the drive back ... yes it was hard to leave as Laura and the kids made the weekend wonderful but all those great memories will be with me forever. After we got back - it was just two days later that we heard that Sam had gotten her first job ... maybe we were her good luck charms :-)

I wanted to thank the kids and especially Laura for arranging the trip - it was a great birthday and one I will always remember.

Happy 50th to My One and Only!!!!!

Happy Birthday Honey!!!!!!!!!

You have been such a blessing in my life. You truly are my best friend. Now lets celebrate!!!!! Pack your bags, throw the kayaks on the Jeep,and get ready to par'tay. We leave at 7am Friday..........many surprises are planned to mark this milestone :-)

Love you- Laura

A Fun Weekend

With Sam getting ready to head off to college I wanted to do something with her that would just be fun. One day while I was looking at the race results for the Marine Corps Historic Half I saw a notice for registration for Run Amuck, another of the Marine Corps Race series. I asked Sam if she would want to do that. Well Sam has never really ran but I think she figured I would like to do that ... and it was Father's Day weekend so she said yes ... and so I registered us.

Pre-Run Amuck

Well little did she know what she was getting into. The course is an all trail course with 18 obstacles. The first couple are just introductions ... inflatable tubes and walls, slip and slide and a few a-frame walls and pull-ups. When it got to the first mud pit ... actually 3 pits in a row with no way to know how deep they were ... she was ready to go and she jumped right in. The Marines that were monitoring the pit told everyone to attack it like Sam did and to be like her and not use the ropes for support.

Post-Run Amuck

Eventhough she hit the energy wall she did not give up and kept going and attacked those obstacles one after another. At the last mud pit, one
you have to army crawl through, she was laughing and just enjoying herself ... and so was I. Neither of us was worried about time or anything else and we just enjoyed the 4 mile course.

At the finish line you are treated to a very cold shower, courtesy of the Quantico Fire Dept. It was great to get a layer of mud off but IT WAS COLD!!!!!!

After our run we headed home for lunch and then we had a relaxing afternoon. While myself and Laura went out to pick up a few things the girls decided to bake me a Father's Day cake ... which Sam decorated ... and that is another funny story.

All in all it was a great Father's Day Saturday.

Sunday Laura decided to treat me .... a wonderful bottle of Scotch as a Father's Day gift and then she took me to the Alamo for a movie. The Alamo is a great place for a movie as I can have a beer and pretzels as I watch a great movie. After the movie she made me supper ... and I had to enjoy some more of the cake that the girls made me.

Lots of great things to make my Father's Day weekend memorable.

BTW .... I did mention the Marine Corps Historic Half but I did not really do a race update from it. Well the weekend before the race I pulled my back ... it was bad enough that I went to the doctor and a chiropractor who both sort of laughed when I told them I had plans to run a half marathon 6 days later. The Saturday before the race we went to packet pickup. I still was not sure I could run a race but decided to go just in case. Sunday morning came and I felt good enough to start and would decide on the course if I needed to bail.  It was hard not to go run as the temperature was great for a run, it was sunny and very little wind ... a great running day. Well once I started I found the run was actually very helpful and I finished in 1:48:52, about 52 seconds off last years. It put me as the 713th finisher of the 6647 who finished the race. Which given that I debated running even that morning made me feel pretty good.

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

I wanted to make sure that everyone knows that I have the best Mom!

OK - I know what you are thinking .... everyone says that .... but my Mom has always shown that no matter what she is there for the people she loves. Whether it is her children, my Dad, her friends, her family ... she is always there for them. It does not make a difference if she has had tussles with them, or if someone has offended someone else ... when they are in need she is there. She will go beyond what she should be doing for others at time ... pushing herself too hard ... but that is who she is.

I guess not everyone sits back and thinks of how much someone has given up for others so when she does all these wonderful things people will say "What a nice person Audrey is." But if they sit back and look at what she gives up at times to do these things .... well I say "Best MOM .... EVER"

We love you Mom .... and hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day

The 2014 Race Season begins

The start of my 2014 race season kicked off with a bang ... it started with 3 races over a 2 week period, over 3 weekends.

The kick-off for me is always the Van Metre 5 miler whose proceeds go to the Children's Hospital. I thoroughly enjoy this race. It always has great community support and a good group of runners. This year seemed a bit smaller with 366 runners but the Saturday weather was perfect for it ... dry, cloudy and in the low 40s. I knew I had 2 more races coming up so I pushed but not too hard, and of course this year I am carrying a bit more "baggage". The run was great ... I did push and felt it near the end but not hard enough to know I went over the edge. I finished in 60th place with a time of 38:10, about 40 seconds off my PR but I was very happy with the run.

Post-Cherry Blossom 10 miler

The following Sunday was the Cherry Blossom 10 miler. This was the 5th year I ran this race, 5 of the last 6 runnings. Again the weather was great, it was sunny and in the low 40s to start. It was interesting to note that I have never run this race with a full bloom of cherry blossoms, either they are past full bloom, blown off from storms or, as was this year, not yet out. I think I saw 6 trees with blossoms. This race was a very comfortable one. I did not push. I know this because I did not have a single sip of anything during the entire race. The run felt great though - I was passing people and did not have a lot pass me. This is a big race, 15,462 finishers this year, and I managed to finish in the top 13% at 2359th at a time of 78:23. Again, shy of my best Cherry Blossom, but only 50 seconds shy of it. I was very happy with the run knowing that I had one more big run coming up.

The next Saturday, only two weeks after my first race, was the important one, the Marine Corps 17.75K race. Finishing this race meant a guaranteed entry into the Marine Corps Marathon. I had looked at the course profile but I was not sure how hard it would really be. The registration of this race was limited to 1775 runners - it sold out in 9 minutes so I was lucky to be here. The weather again worked out. Sunny, no winds and low 50s. The start was a bit slow, almost 1800 people heading up and down a 2 mile single lane logging road. The hills were tough and there were LOTS of them. We did have a couple fo miles of flat but over an 11+ mile course there were more hills than anything. The last two miles we were back on the logging road single lane but by then it had thinned out so I could go at my pace. It was one of those races where I had no idea where I finished since I had not seen a lot of people pass but because of the layout I could not tell where I was. The tougher part was my bib did not register at finish. So based on my Garmin it looks like I finished around 265th of the 1740+ finishers, at 1:33:40. Certainly not my best pace but given the course, the 2nd toughest I have ever run, I was happy.

Overall in all 3 races in a two week period I finished in the top 16% or better. For an old guy that was carrying an extra 10 or 15lbs this year I guess I should be happy.

I hope everyone else is having a good start to the running year.

Next up for me ... the Marine Corps Half-Marathon in mid-may and then onto some serious training for the Marine Corps Marathon.

Happy Birthday Chris!!!

It is hard to believe that 2 decades ago I was driving to the hospital and would be welcoming you into the world in a very short period of time. You made a dramatic entrance and you have certainly kept the interesting elements of life going. Trust me when I say that I am not complaining. You have become your own person ... very few people are brave enough to take the steps you have. I hope you continue to keep an open, caring and honest mind about things and show all people the caring soul you have ... even when they struggle with understanding ... they sometimes need your caring more than others.

I am also very proud that you have been a stand out student. I know that I did not make any Dean's list. Well I might have but it was more likely to be for the guy to kick out for skipping class. I know that not many people know how much your professors see in you. Your recognition within the English department at GMU and the making of the dean's list along with the great marks. You are a stand out student. I know Laura is as proud as I am.

We both hope that this decade brings you as much satisfaction as you can bear. We know you deserve to be happy and that means making choices and decisions that may be hard but know that we will always be the net to catch you if you need to be caught. We know you will be your own person and we will stand beside you to help and support so that you grow to be the person you are meant to be.

We both love you and hope that you have a wonderful birthday and a fantastic 20th year.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

It has been a busy few weeks ...

It is amazing how time flies ... already mid-way through February ... at least that is what all the displays in the grocery store tell me (of course they have been telling me it is almost February 14th since January 2nd.

The last few weeks have meant some travelling ... had a few days in Miami at the end of January and a few days in Dallas last week. In two more weeks I head out to San Francisco. This time of year always seems like this but I guess I noticed more this year.

All the travel has meant that I have not always been in town to have dinner with the girls on Thursday ... so we have been doing some extra things on the weekends. For 2 weekends we kept trying to go bowling but things always seemed to get in our way ... a big private party at the lanes one week and a very busy weekend there the next. Finally we did get out and myself, Laura, Kris and Sam had a lot of fun bowling. It is definitely not something we do very often and it can be entertaining to watch.

After we went bowling two weekends ago we stopped by the cupcake store and got a couple of treats for Kris and Sam. Kris enjoyed eating hers while Sam decided to be Dyson and sucked the whole thing in in one bite. She did not notice the candy heart on top until after.

This past weekend Laura and Kris went to lunch and then went to see the Oscar nominated short films. I hear they had a great time.

We will do a bit better in keeping everyone up to date ... and when it gets warm enough even get out and get some picture.

Keep warm ...

Happy Birthday .... to my Wonderful Wife

Today is a unique birthday celebration .... no it is not any of the big ones like 35 or 40 .... but today is the fifth year I get to celebrate Laura's birthday with her ... and really that is more a gift for me then it is for her.

Yesterday myself, Kris and Sam took Laura out to the movies. We went and saw American Hustle ... a great movie. We were all talking about how well Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence played their roles ... and then they walked off with Golden Globes last night as did the movie. Laura must have been their good luck charm.

This year does become an interesting one as we will have a few changes throughout the year ... including Sam's graduation from High School and her deciding where she wants to go after high school. We will have to wait and see what the summer brings as that adventure unfolds so this birthday is the start of another new adventure.

For today is a day to celebrate and the first part of that is to say .....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Love you baby!

Happy Birthday Sam!

Today my youngest becomes an official adult.  There are lots of reasons why I could say she has been one for awhile .... She is very mature when it comes to her money and driving and also with her attitude about things in the world around her.  But today she turns 18 so she is officially an "adult".

When I sit back and think about this .... the first thing that comes to me is that this was the last Christmas where we would have a child in our house. 

Yes this Christmas we got to have all of our children, as well as my Mom and sister, at the house but next year it will be a houseful of adults.  I would say that means people will be up late morning rather than the crank of dawn but myself and Laura are always the first up anyway and waiting for everyone else to rise.  

I guess even if Sam is now an adult we can still keep our little piece of childhood .... and I hope Sam keeps her remaining childhood ways as well ... and enjoys them.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAM!

We love you!