She must be ours

About 1:30 in the afternoon on Saturday, Ang mentioned that she wanted to go to Tyson's Corner so she could get the makeup she was looking for to get purrdy for our friends' wedding. Then, it was a decision - go on Sat. afternoon, or go Sunday after church. If Saturday, we risk interrupting Mia's schedule two days in a row. If Sunday, it may just make the day too long.

We decided to go Saturday. We left at 2:15, right at Mia's nap time. As she's gotten older, she hasn't slept as well during our outings, but we went anyway.

We hit the Container Store, Crate & Barrel, Tyson's I, and Tyson's Galleria. Ang fed Mia in between the two Tyson's stops. Then, at about 5:30pm, after we were all finished shopping, since Mia was doing so well, we decided to stick around and eat at the Cheescake Factory in Tyson's Galleria. We had been walking around the Galleria for almost an hour, and she had been in the Baby Bjorn the entire time. We didn't hear a peep from her, as she was too interested in all the people, shops, and bouncing up and down.

Once in the Cheescake Factory, she fell right asleep in her carseat, and almost made it our entire dinner. Right as dessert came (you can't not get dessert at the Cheescake Factory), she started fussing and caused some consternation. But other than that, our little angel is quite the shopper. We got home right at 8:30pm, to make it a full 6 hours out of the house. Made for a very nice date, dinner, and outing.

Just thought I'd brag on our girl...

She learned it all from me

The epitome of cuteness. And yes, I'm saying this about someone other than my own child. Mia will have her moments, all in due time.

But for now, we have this on tape, and you can't miss it. (Be sure to read the description first, it helps explain a lot).

Sporadic

I'm glad everyone is enjoying the video. Work is busy and I've also been caught up watching the playoffs, so I haven't had time to blog anything of much substance (do I ever blog anything of much substance?).

Ang may update you soon on an interesting interaction between Amelia and our cat. It's a good laugh.

8-year old candy man

Who'd have thought that my past would catch up with me?

Check it out.

He who smelt it....

This may be a little inappropriate, but it's a fact of life, so let's be brurtally honest. Remember the last time you walked in a public bathroom, and it - well - smelt to high heaven? Or the last time you were in a porta-potty that needed some TLC?

[Tangent: The most amazing porta-potty I've ever seen was at the half-way point down the Grand Canyon. It was the mother of all porta-potties, with like 8 different stalls, all sharing one disposal point. But, like often, I digress...]

Well, every night on my way home from work, I have the privelege of driving past the Town of Leesburg's waste treatment plant, where they take "waste" and turn it into fertilizer. In fact, the pellets are of "Exceptional Quality" and can be purchased for use on your lawn. (I'm not joking!)

I applaud the town's ability to take a reprehensible product and turn it into something productive. If only they could find a way to cut down on the smell that meanders down to the highway. To top it off, there will be office, retail, and residential developments on either side of this facility. Someone's going to have to be creative to keep the smell under control....

Busted

So, about 7 months ago I blogged about getting a PocketPC phone for work. I was excited to be on the leading edge of technology with a very powerful phone/PDA combo.

I'm still excited about the Cingular 8125. It has a lot of potential. In fact, WindowsMobile 5 is a fairly well built mobile OS, with a few flaws I don't like. (I'd really like a Motorola Q, but that's another story.)

However, it has become painfully clear that the main purpose for getting it (besides having the mobile for work) - which is quick and easy e-mail access - just wasn't quick and easy. In fact, it was quite painful and taxing. There is a solution to allow our GroupWise server to "push" e-mail just like a Blackberry. But, the County isn't going to take the time to implement a new technology for just one guy.

So after some thought and a few e-mails to my boss - I'm ditching the PocketPC and getting a Blackberry. Yes, you scoundrels, start tossing your rotten tomatoes at me (or back at me, as I've tossed them out previously). "But Blackberries aren't as 'powerful' Mr. Techno-Man." "You don't need instantaneous e-mail." "It doesn't have a touch screen."

All true - but what I need now is integration. What I need is seemless synchronization. And that's what I'll get. I'll post my thoughts after playing - **ahem, working** - on my Blackberry for a few days.

Standing Tall

Amelia tried out the Exersaucer for the first time this week! She LOVED it, and even though Momma couldn't quite capture the excitement on camera, Amelia smiled, cooed, and made her latest noise (a cross betweeen a squeal and a shriek - a squeak, as it were...).

All 25 inches of me! I'm aiming to be as tall as Daddy.
=)

"Not while I'm playing, Mom."

Studying hard - must be Momma's girl... :-)

Ahh..."first steps"...ok, so maybe that's going a little far...

-- posted by Ang --

Belated News

Yes, it's true. Just as everyone has suspected....

(hah! made your heart skip a beat, huh?!)

The alumni of Patrick Henry College are definitely superior to the current students. Or something like that.

In an athletic exercise that proved we are too old to be doing these kinds of things, about 14 alumni took on about 35 students in a game of tackle football. And yes, the school made us sign waivers, considering it was played on their property.

The first half saw little offensive action, except for a big play for each side. There were a few turnovers for each side as well, which made it fun.

[Did I mention we had refs, chains, and even mouthguards!]

In the second half, the alums took the lead, only to see it vanish again. With the alums again holding a one touchdown lead, the students began a drive and got down to about the 1 yard line (due to a bad pass interference call by the backjudge). The amazing alum front line held up and on 2nd and Goal, Mark L. stripped the ball out of the running back's arms and Aaron C. pounced on it like a Marine on a...well, whatever a Marine would pounce upon in the line of duty.

Anyway, that basically sealed the game.

Yours truly threw for 2 TDs, caught one interception, threw one interception (it was on fourth down, so just as good as a punt), and escaped major injury.

Props to the front line: Mike H., Jimson, Mark L., and John K. They fought on both sides of the ball for a full hour and won the game for us.

Oh, and the real game ball goes to: The other team, for letting Jesse Brown play - he's not really an alum, but he is a former student and good pal. Jesse ran for a touchdown, caught a touchdown, and laid some hits on the other team that just makes you hurt down deep.

Baking Soda + Vinegar

Q: What do you get when you combine rivalries, human nature, and a few sticks of dynamite??

A: Feuding Miners

Sign of Smart Thinking

Apple Computer thinks of everything.

I pressed the button to begin a videoconference with my family today, and lo 'n behold - iTunes (which had been playing in the background) automatically paused itself. Think about it. Of course you don't want music playing during a video chat. How smart to integrate the programs so well that one thinks for the other.

Another reason I like the Mac OS.

It's all worth it when...

...you walk in the door and get a big smile from your little girl. =)

PhotoBooth

What I received during work yesterday...

"I love you, Daddy!"

I know this guy!!

Matthew went to PHC and was a class behind me. They didn't say this on the show, but he scored a perfect 1600 on his SAT. Makes a little more sense now, eh?

Wheel of Fortune Contestant

Crunch time for Santorum

I thought this was a very insightful column.

Link