Ben slept in the playroom on his mattress last night, and Alek ended up in his own bedroom since the 'sleepover' in the playroom got pretty rowdy. They both slept in til after 8 am, which was nice. I made eggs, toast, sausage, cantelope for breakfast, and Gary made canned soup for lunch. They played Wii, Nintendo DS, and watched TV for most of the day, because we got a lot of rain today.
This afternoon we competed in the first annual Carlson family spring break Connect 4 campionship, and I'm still the Champion. YES!
Then we went to Blockbuster and rented 2 movies ... they are downstairs watching them now, and I'm ready to go to the gym; Gary is still working. Quite a QUIET day ... maybe we'll get outside tomorrow.
Here's a video of the new blue office room ...
Monday, March 31, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Room Swap
Today is Sunday. We started yesterday by being bored inside the house, so we decided to go shopping for a new desk for Ben. His room is small, and he needed a new desk. We went to three stores, and decided it was time to move the boys into loft beds, so they could have desks underneath. Then, we decided it was time to get full sized loft beds with desks underneath. We found a couple options, metal ones we did not like, but the wood ones were nice. So, get got the quotes and measurements and came home to think it over.
This morning we decided that Ben's room is just too small (it's 10' x 11'), even for a loft bed. So, Gary's going to move his office into Ben's room and Ben will move into the bonus room, which is much bigger. We talked it over with Alek first, since now Alek will have the smaller of the boys' bedrooms (although his room has been bigger than Ben's since they moved into them when they were 2). Alek's OK with the move; he's excited to be neighbors with Daddo.
So, after breakfast we went to Lowe's to pick out paint colors, since Gary can't live with Butter Up yellow walls, and the office is two shades of green (bad matching 5 years ago, but covered up with lots of furniture and pictures). Gary and Ben picked out beautiful paint colors, so we came home and the boys started moving Ben out of his room into the hallway (he'll sleep in the playroom this week since it's spring break), and patching the walls, while I went up to N Raleigh to order the new beds.
I ordered the new beds, they are lovely, and two new mattresses (yes, we'll need to get all new bedding too, since these are full size not twins). When I got home at 1:30, I started trimming the new office in a beautiful blue, and now it's 5:30 and almost done - just those high edges under the ceiling trim for Gary to reach. (but I do hear yelling downstairs and gruff talk from the bedroom ... I'll have to check soon).
After the new office is painted, the next step is to dismantle Gary's office, which will take a couple days. The electrician is coming Weds to wire for the new TV in the playroom, and now he'll have to wire up the new office, and the all the router boxes and cables will be moving to my office, because Gary's office will now be the same size as mine, but his will be move crowded because he has more stuff to fit in his. We also need to find a home for the kitty litter (yes, Kahlu has two now that he's 19 years old ... one in the room where he sleeps and one in the garage via the pet door that he's had all along).
I'll take pictures and post along the way. What a fun spring break project!
This morning we decided that Ben's room is just too small (it's 10' x 11'), even for a loft bed. So, Gary's going to move his office into Ben's room and Ben will move into the bonus room, which is much bigger. We talked it over with Alek first, since now Alek will have the smaller of the boys' bedrooms (although his room has been bigger than Ben's since they moved into them when they were 2). Alek's OK with the move; he's excited to be neighbors with Daddo.
So, after breakfast we went to Lowe's to pick out paint colors, since Gary can't live with Butter Up yellow walls, and the office is two shades of green (bad matching 5 years ago, but covered up with lots of furniture and pictures). Gary and Ben picked out beautiful paint colors, so we came home and the boys started moving Ben out of his room into the hallway (he'll sleep in the playroom this week since it's spring break), and patching the walls, while I went up to N Raleigh to order the new beds.
I ordered the new beds, they are lovely, and two new mattresses (yes, we'll need to get all new bedding too, since these are full size not twins). When I got home at 1:30, I started trimming the new office in a beautiful blue, and now it's 5:30 and almost done - just those high edges under the ceiling trim for Gary to reach. (but I do hear yelling downstairs and gruff talk from the bedroom ... I'll have to check soon).
After the new office is painted, the next step is to dismantle Gary's office, which will take a couple days. The electrician is coming Weds to wire for the new TV in the playroom, and now he'll have to wire up the new office, and the all the router boxes and cables will be moving to my office, because Gary's office will now be the same size as mine, but his will be move crowded because he has more stuff to fit in his. We also need to find a home for the kitty litter (yes, Kahlu has two now that he's 19 years old ... one in the room where he sleeps and one in the garage via the pet door that he's had all along).
I'll take pictures and post along the way. What a fun spring break project!
Monday, March 24, 2008
Wild Wolf Cubs
(March 24, 2008)
Tonight Ben and Alek earned their Wolf badge in Cub Scouts. It was a long, but fun, ceremony. Their Wolf pack has three dens because there are so many boys. Here is their den, waiting for the pack meeting to start:
Daniel, Nathan, Evan, Ben & Alek
Alek with his yellow feather (it's in his hat, you can't see it), his symbol of accomplishment.
Tonight Ben and Alek earned their Wolf badge in Cub Scouts. It was a long, but fun, ceremony. Their Wolf pack has three dens because there are so many boys. Here is their den, waiting for the pack meeting to start:
Daniel, Nathan, Evan, Ben & Alek
Cub Scouts ROCK!
Ben with his yellow feather, his symbol of accomplishment.
Alek with his yellow feather (it's in his hat, you can't see it), his symbol of accomplishment.
Sunday March 23rd, Ben mowed the yard for the first time - he mowed the whole thing, all by himself.
Our pretty Easter daisies.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Easter Dinner
Happy Easter!For dinner we had deviled (colored) eggs, ham steaks and pineapple on the grill, and hashbrown casserole. Yes, that is the St. Patrick's day tablecloth and new St. Patrick's day platter - the two holidays were just TOO CLOSE this year.
Hash Brown Casserole Recipe
(adapted from Cooking Light recipe)
- Melt 1T butter and mix with 1t paprika, 1t pepper, 1 bag pepper & onion hash browns & 3/4 cup minced onion.
- Mix together 1 can Campbell's Healthy Recipe Cream of Chicken Soup, 8 oz Velveeta, and melt together in microwave; mix in 5.3 oz container Fage Greek-style 0% Fat Yogurt.
- Pour cheese mixture over potatoes and mix together, spread into 9x13" pan prepared with Pam.
- Crunch up 2 cups Corn Flakes, mix in 1T melted butter, spread over potatoes in pan.
- Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
More Small Tree Service at Work
More pictures from Saturday. Gary and the chain saw in action.
Alek and Bennet in the tree after it finally fell. They hauled the WHOLE tree to the curb. It was huge. And they were TIRED by the end!
In the tree from another angle - it was a BIG Bradford Pear. We planted it when we first moved in 13 years ago, and we knew the lifespan was only 13-15 years, so it was time for it to come down. Better to be cut down than to be blown down onto the house or cars.
Alek sitting on the remaining stump. (We'll need to get a professional in here to grind it out, luckily we have a great tree guy who has removed hundreds of trees from our yard already).
Ben on the stump.
The Small Tree Service is terrific - they even clean up the branches!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Small Tree Service at Work
Three weeks ago Alek and his friend Bennet started a Small Tree Removal Service. After creating fliers, they delivered them to people we know in our neighborhood, and they've been busy ever since! Spring has sprung in Apex, and everyone has trees and brush to remove from their yards. This weekend they are working at MY house!
Gary uses the chain saw to cut the branches off the tree, and into smaller pieces (he loves the chain saw!). He works for the fun of it!
Alek and Bennet carry the branches to the road. The Town of Apex comes weekly to remove lawn waste.
I'm so proud of Alek and Bennet for working so hard, and for creating a business that people need.
They us trolleys and wheelbarrows to remove the branches also.
Bennet's carrying a LONG one!
Alek's carrying a BIG bunch!
Gary uses the chain saw to cut the branches off the tree, and into smaller pieces (he loves the chain saw!). He works for the fun of it!
Alek and Bennet carry the branches to the road. The Town of Apex comes weekly to remove lawn waste.
I'm so proud of Alek and Bennet for working so hard, and for creating a business that people need.
They us trolleys and wheelbarrows to remove the branches also.
Bennet's carrying a LONG one!
Alek's carrying a BIG bunch!Friday, March 21, 2008
"Friday Night Knitting Club"
(March 20, 2008)
I have belonged to a monthly reading group for 6 years now. We have a terrific group of caring, intelligent women, and we've read some great books. We mix it up ... some history, historical fiction, chick lit, adventure, global, business, drama, Oprah books, we read them all. Each month we meet to socialize and discuss the books.
I'm going to start taking pictures of us each month as we discuss the books, so we have an on-line record of the books we've read. As you can imagine, after 6 years, it's difficult for us to recreate our history!
Here's us, last night. We met at Rhonda's house, and we read the 'Friday Night Knitting Club'. We cannot recommend this book, even though the jacket says it was on the New York Times best seller list for several weeks. We found it to be contrived, convenient, and inconsistent.
We're still trying to pick next month's book ... add a comment if you have any suggestions!
I have belonged to a monthly reading group for 6 years now. We have a terrific group of caring, intelligent women, and we've read some great books. We mix it up ... some history, historical fiction, chick lit, adventure, global, business, drama, Oprah books, we read them all. Each month we meet to socialize and discuss the books.
I'm going to start taking pictures of us each month as we discuss the books, so we have an on-line record of the books we've read. As you can imagine, after 6 years, it's difficult for us to recreate our history!
Here's us, last night. We met at Rhonda's house, and we read the 'Friday Night Knitting Club'. We cannot recommend this book, even though the jacket says it was on the New York Times best seller list for several weeks. We found it to be contrived, convenient, and inconsistent.
We're still trying to pick next month's book ... add a comment if you have any suggestions!
Front: Rhonda & Eileen, Back: Sally & Marna
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Sunday Food
(March 16, 2008)
Today has been a big food day for us. First, Gary made everyone eggs-to-order for breakfast (and cleaned up!). Then, the boys fulfilled their last Cub Scout achievement for their Wolf badge by planning and cooking lunch. And for dinner, Marna made her first corned beef and cabbage - and it wasn't too bad!
Here's Alek, ready to grill ...
And Ben, ready to grill ...
Alek grilling the burgers ...
Today has been a big food day for us. First, Gary made everyone eggs-to-order for breakfast (and cleaned up!). Then, the boys fulfilled their last Cub Scout achievement for their Wolf badge by planning and cooking lunch. And for dinner, Marna made her first corned beef and cabbage - and it wasn't too bad!
Here's Alek, ready to grill ...
And Ben, ready to grill ...Alek grilling the burgers ...
And the delicious lunch on the patio ....
St. Patrick Day cupcakes for dessert!
Below is our Corned Beef & Cabbage for dinner, with boiled potatos and fresh strawberries - the boys even tasted it. There are leftovers, so we're going to try corned beef hash and poached eggs for breakfast tomorrow morning.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Alek the Guitar Hero, and our night with friends
(March 14, 2008)
Friday night we had friends over for our monthly game night. Our boys joined us since it was at our house. Here's Alek, the Guitar Hero, performing ... Ben is dancing in the background.
Friday night we had friends over for our monthly game night. Our boys joined us since it was at our house. Here's Alek, the Guitar Hero, performing ... Ben is dancing in the background.
It was a night for celebrating the pig ... we ate BBQ ribs, Derby salad, baked beans, and Pig Pickin' Cake, and played our new favorite game, Pass the Pigs, which can be found at Target:
Here are our friends:
Laura & Dane VanEnwyck
Debbie Goodwin with our dog, Chloe
Shelly Goodwin, also a Guitar Hero!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Waiting Waiting
ok ok I know everyone is anxiously awaiting pics from the exciting 3rd day of the Miami party, but we don't have them yet. I'm trying to track them down.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Race for Success 2008 - South Beach, Florida
Day 2: Breakfast, Eco Tour, Party at Nikki Beach
(March 3, 2008)
We awoke before 7 to get showered and ready for the all-day Eco Tour of the Everglades. Breakfast started at 7, so we ate quickly to be ready for the bus at 8. It was an hour trip out to Johnny TigerTail's Airboat Everglade Tour, but well worth it. We slept a lot on the bus that day!
Here we are loaded onto the airboats for the ride out to the first island. This island has been in the TigerTail family for over 200 years, and they raise turtles and alligators for conservation here. We got to hold the baby turtles and alligators.
Marna holding a baby alligator.We then went back on the boats over to another of their islands, where the family makes native beadwork and clothing. On this island live two adult alligators that Johnny has known all his life. He fed them frog legs while petting them and talking to us about them ...
After the Everglades tour, we drove for another hour over to Everglade City, where we had lunch at Camille's on the Gulf of Mexico. Sorry, no pictures of that, but it was a lovely whimsical local spot with good food. We then drove another hour over to the Cypress Swamp where we tour and artist gallery and his part of the swamp. It was amazingly beautiful, and there were alligators everywhere. We then drove another hour back to South Beach, and we saw many alligators along the 'Alligator Alley', which is a main road through the Everglades.
We got back just before, and needed to be ready for the Beach Party that night by 6:15 - so we showered, changed, and were ready to roll quickly. The Beach Party was at a restaurant/bar called Nikki's Beach, which is open to the beach. It was set up with fires, activities, buffet, really beautiful. Below are some pictures of the things we did that night. We were the last to leave around 1 am, and we did partake in AfterGlow back at the hotel later. Long day!
The custom-made sandcastle with the Race for Success logo
Marna and Gary by the sandcastle
Marna's poor hoola-hoop form, she didn't win the contest
Fire Dancer
Gary's excellent limbo style - he was the last man in the contest, but he didn't win - Nancy did!
Friday, March 7, 2008
Race for Success 2008 - South Beach Florida
Day 1: Travel, Our Room, Lunch, Wave Runners, Dinner at Quinns
(Sunday March 2, 2008)
We left home at 4:30 am on Sunday March 2nd for the airport, and flew 2 hours from Raleigh to Miami. We were met in baggage claim by our event planners, and we made two new friends - Dean and Nancy Parker from Apex - right in baggage claim. We rode together on the bus to the Ritz-Carlton in South Beach, which is located right on the beach. Here's an exciting video of our room ...
After checking into our room, we lounged around the pool for an hour or so until check-in time for the event. Here's Gary by the pool ...
We checked in, and were given two beach bags full of beach towels, water bottles, sand blankets, hats, and sunscreen.
We each got to pick out a new pair of sunglasses which were delivered to our room later that night ... what a treat!
We had a wonderful lunch by the ocean.
Then we went on a wave runner tour of Biscayne Bay. Sadly, there are no pictures of this hillarious event, but Marna got to drive because Gary had to remove his glasses so they wouldn't be lost. The sea was angry that day ... the waves were HIGH! We started on the beach in front of the Loew's Hotel, and made our way around and under the bridge to Biscayne Bay. We toured past Donald Trump's mansion, Gloria Estafon's mansion, and Shaquille O'Neill's mansion, and Marna got up to 37 mph on the wave runner at a calm part of the bay. Then we had to go back out to the ocean and battle the waves back to the beach. In total, we were on the wave runners an hour and a half, and could hardly walk when we got off ... after clenching our legs and arms so hard to stay on!
We headed back to the room to rest and get ready for dinner. Dinner Sunday night was at Quinn's restaurant. We loaded onto buses, and when we arrived waiters were lining the stairs of the restaurant with trays of Mojito's (very yummy) and Champagne. Our group (around 170 people) had appetizers and drinks in the courtyard, while being entertained by the Salsa Dancers. We met our other new friends - Ela and Oral Tuntas from Turkey - at this time.
Here are the 6 of us, from left ...
Marna & Gary Carlson, Oral & Ela Tuntas, Dean & Nancy Parker
Dinner was fantastic ... Marna had crab cakes and the King Crab Legs - which were easily 18 inches long, and over 2 inches in diameter - the biggest we've ever seen! Gary had the lamb, which was delicious too. No pictures of our food ... we were too busy eating and drinking. We followed dinner with desserts and cordials ... tawny port with a flourless lava cake, and Bailey's and coffee with chocolate mousse.
We loaded back on the bus to the hotel around midnight ... no AfterGlow for us this first night, we were too tired from the early morning, sunshine, waverunner exhaustion, and drinks ... we were out by 1 am.