"Put your money in the bank"

We're still on vacation for the holidays, and were prepared to leave for home tomorrow (Sunday, the 31st). This afternoon we got a call from my uncle that my dad's dad had passed away. This is not even a month after my mom's dad passed away.

We had the opportunity to visit "Pop" over the holidays - he has been in an Alzheimer's care facility for at least a few years now, and we had Christmas lunch with him by the fireplace. He was not very responsive during our visit, and it was pretty evident that he might not have much longer.

We remember Pop for a lot of things:

√ His service in the war flying glider planes. The purpose of a glider pilot was to fly behind enemy lines and become an infantryman. Thankfully, Patton overran his goal in France and Pop's mission was aborted (and led to a leisure trip to Paris, if I recall correctly).

√ His dedication to his family. Pop and Mimi were married for 61 years as of December 26th. I went with Mimi to visit Pop on their anniversary, and it was enjoyable to watch her love on him, though he didn't know her or understand the significance of the day. He cared deeply for his children and grandchildren, and I know he would have adored his three great-granddaughters, if he had been able to know them.

√ His sentimentality (if that's a word). Pop would never let an opportunity pass for a story about the past, a remembrance of an old friend, or a simple hug. He loved to hold us in his lap when we were children, and I always cherished those moments.

√ His slow pace. One time, Chris and I ventured to Wendy's for a dinner. Pop ordered his chili, we got our meals, and we sat down. He said, "Boys, just because it's fast food doesn't mean you have to eat it fast." And there we sat in Wendy's for no less than an hour. That's hard for two boys probably 13 and 10, or somewhere around those ages.

√ His financial prowess. "Put your money in the bank" was a favorite saying of his. Pop grew up one of 9 children, had begun working in a mill as a young boy, went off to war, came back with barely anything, got his degree and master's, taught accounting, began a small accounting firm, lived modestly, and invested wisely. Mimi still lives in the house they built in 1951.

√ His love for the Scriptures and hymns. Pop always enjoyed Psalm 23 as his favorite passage, and you couldn't get away without him humming "In the Garden" or "Amazing Grace." On numerous trips to visit him after his mind had all but faded away, even when he couldn't complete a full sentence, once we'd start singing hymns, he'd hum, sing, and often cry along with us. We knew how much they meant to him, and they touched his heart till the very end.

One last story - Angela, Abby, my dad, and I went to visit Pop while we were in Savannah for my mom's dad's funeral. While there, we sang some Christmas hymns and then I prayed. After the prayer, we all said we loved him, and each gave him a kiss. When I got to him, I could tell he was trying to say something, so I paused and waited. He said, "That was a good one" and that was all. It was the only thing he had said the entire time we were visiting, and I knew it was the singing that gave him joy.

We loved Pop dearly, and his mind has been gone from us for many years. Now his body, too, has faded away, and we will recall with great love and joy the man he was and the legacy he has left with each one of us.

A Merry [Downpour'd] Christmas

Obviously, we have many stories to share and have had a wonderful time with family. We woke up Christmas morning to torrential rain and tornado watches. Oh, and it was 70 degrees at 8 am.

Besides all the presents, time with family, and great food - we are most grateful this year that our baby girl is feeling much, much better. She's been converting to formula and it has greatly improved her weight, sleeping patterns, and her overall demeanor. In fact, she has been the happiest little girl of late.

We look forward to showing lots of great pictures and tales of big toes in the mouth (both at the same time!).

Faster x2

Upon a successful Christmas shopping trip for myself (see below), I got home and jumped online, to see about the clubs I had just bought (do you ever do that - where you investigate your purchases after you purchase them!!??).

To my surprise/excitement/dismay, the clubs were $50 cheaper online, with free shipping and no tax (small wonder!*). I called up the store, and they said they don't honor the website prices, so I'd have to return the clubs and then order them online.

Willing to save $70, I packed them up before church and then hit the mall after church. I lugged the box in, made my case to the "Front End Lead" (I'd hate to see the "back end lead"!) and after some discussions with his boss via walkie, he decided just to give me a $50 gift card to the store (they couldn't rebate the tax, no worries).

I have to give it to Dick's Sporting Goods - they're pretty good folk. AND, I just got in the mail a $10 gift card w/ purchase of - you guessed it - $50. So, I can go spend my "free" money and get not $50, but $60 out of it! Merry Christmas!

* "Small Wonder" comes from a road trip that Ang and I took to Philly, and all throughout Delaware there were billboards/signs promoting the state with the slogan "Small Wonder." Ang and I thought it was so silly and lame that we began exclaiming it at anything we thought slightly amazing. It's one of those "had-to-be-there" inside jokes which I'm desperately trying to explain to the world - and getting nowhere with it....

Faster than a Speeding Bullet

Ang - the sweetheart she is - got me a gift card for a sporting goods store so that I could buy myself a 3-wood for Christmas. Since she and Mia are out of town, I decided to brave the last minute shoppers and headed out to the mall. [Overall, not a bad experience, actually.]

After playing golf with my cousin and uncle over Labor Day, my cousin noted that I'd probably be better off with a new set of irons than a 3-wood, as my irons are my Grandaddy Mac's old clubs (probably at least 20-30 years old, heavy as a brick, and very unforgiving).

I asked the sales assoc. what a good set of irons would be, and he asked if I needed just irons, or a complete golf set. I said just the irons at first, but then remarked that I didn't have a good 3-wood or 5-wood. For the same price as the irons he took me to, he also showed me a full set that were just as good and had everything I needed. I asked if I could hit a couple clubs in the practice area, and he said sure.

Well, sure enough, I pull out the 3-wood, and what do I do but smack it 225 yards (that's a lot, for me). Not too shabby. Then, I pick up the 6-iron, and lo and behold - I hit it 174 yards (I've never even hit my current 3-iron that far). I was sold.

I consulted with Ang, who was on her way to Brian's graduation (yeah, Brian!) and she agreed that I could purchase the set. Now, I have an extra bag, which I may sell on eBay, but I'm ready to play golf (considering it's going to be in the upper-60's tomorrow). Any takers??

My baby is more fireproof than your baby!

While I applaud society's (in general) and as a result our government's efforts to protect the lives and interests of its citizens, it is with great humor, accompanied by disdain and annoyance, that I come across the stating-the-obvious warnings I find on labels, coffee cups, etc. - everywhere it seems.

Take for instance the standard disposable coffee cup at your local Starbuck's: typically printed at the bottom of said cup is the sentence, "Warning: this beverage you are about to enjoy is extremely hot." THANK YOU, Mr. Coffee Cup Printer Man. Usually when I order a cup of coffee, unless I specifically ask for iced coffee, I expect that it will be hot. But just in case there was any doubt...

What breaks the mold is the "guide to children's sleepwear," which I found recently in Macy's at the check-out counter and also on specially marked tags throughout the children's apparel department. On this guide I read: "The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) sets national safety standards for children's sleepwear that are designed to protect children from burn injuries if they come in contact with an open flame, such as a candle or stove burner. Do not let your children sleep in clothing that does not meet the CPSC sleepwear standards."

OK. Soooo...in other words, when I tuck my little baby into bed at night next to the burning candle and hot plate in her room I'll be sure to put her into jammies that meet the CPSC sleepwear standards so that once her jammies light up and I remove them these flame resistant garments will most likely not continue to burn! These will also prove very useful when I move her crib into the kitchen next to the stove.

These warnings scream: you as a common, possibly somewhat educated populace, despite whatever you may say or do probably have either no common sense, are too busy to use what common sense you have, or better yet, have become so sophisticated in employing your common sense that if we don't print this warning you will sue us for liability, negligence, or some other such fuzzy legality that when it really comes down to it was your own fault for not using your common sense!

~ posted by Ang (actually by Dan, but Ang left it as an edit and then went out of town)

A Brave New World

No, I haven't been reading Aldous Huxley. This another story of our brave little girl.

Today, lil' Mia, at only 11 lbs 6 oz, had to get an endoscopy. That involved being put to sleep with general anesthesia, having a camera plunged down her throat, and waking up with a weird lady trying to feed her sugar water out of a bottle! YIKES!

The Doc was really great, he even did this on a 7-week old the other day. Anyway, he saw no visible signs of any problems (except a little irritation of the duodenum), and we'll hear back about the biopsy in 7-10 days. Our little one woke up a little groggy, but after eating and resting in her car seat, and then a good nap, she was no worse for the wear.

Thankfully, we didn't see this, but apparently they couldn't find a vein for the IV in her feet or arms, so the IV ended being put in her forehead. Poor thing!

Scenic Shuttle

While in Savannah, we spent some time at my Uncle's house on the Wilmington River, and it just so happened that the night we were there is when the Space Shuttle Discovery took off. After a couple false starts, we made it out to the dock at 8:47pm (we got fooled by the countdown, and they had a "scheduled hold" at T-minus 9 minutes).

We kept staring towards the south, hoping to catch a glimpse of something (not sure what). While we were debating where exactly we should look, someone exclaimed, "There's a glow in the distance!"

Sure enough, it started almost like a sunrise, with just a reddish glow over the horizon. After about 15 seconds or so, all of a sudden a bright orange ball of flame rose above the trees. It stayed a pretty small ball of orange until (we assume) it rotated, and then we saw the tail (?) of the rockets - like a streak of orange in the sky.

Needless to say, it was pretty surreal. Savannah is about 300 miles from Cape Canaveral, and it was amazing to be able to see it from that far.

"Mac"

Last week, my maternal grandfather went to be with the Lord. One thing
is for sure, he was ready. The report from the hospice room is that when
he knew it was his time to go, he would wake up every 30 minutes or so,
one time exclaiming "what am I still doing here!?" and another "let's
get this show on the road!" He was ready for his time with the Lord, in
a better place, with a whole body.

As we drove from the funeral home to the gravesite, a significant
percentage of the cars traveling in the opposite direction pulled off to
the side of the road out of respect for the procession. I don't know how
common this practice still is in this day's age, but it definitely
remains in good ole Savannah.

Angela remarked that from the day she first met him, she knew he loved
her as if she were his own grandchild. Grandaddy Mac was a family man,
and even those who were "transplanted" into the family were deeply loved
by him. And we all loved him dearly.

For a brief summary of what Grandaddy Mac meant to us, click here. For pictures from our time together as a family, click here.

O Christmas Tree!

A quick little video of putting up our Christmas Tree (and a few extra shots of the little one!).

Click HERE.

Happy Girl!

Despite some continuing reflux problems, our girl is still as happy as ever. The pictures below are from Thanksgiving weekend through today:

My own Thanksgiving feast of sweet potatoes - on a picnic!!

Mommy and Daddy kept throwing this brown, oddly-shaped thing back and forth. I'm not sure who won, but I think Daddy threw the best.

Mommy set out all these small people on the floor. For some reason, I really like the baby. I hope he's warm - I know how cold I get when I don't have any clothes on!

Somehow, all the people suddenly got bigger!! The guy in red is trying to read my bib, but I don't think he can understand English.

Ahh, just chillin' in the big, comfy, round chair. Actually, this is the new outfit that Nana got me for Thanksgiving. Although I've lost some ounces (I'm still trying to find them), this 6 mo. outfit fits perfectly!

Get your squint on, yo!

Closing shot. Yes, I'm just a doll....