happy birthday dad!

birthday wishes today to my dad! we love you and are proud of you!

numbers game...

when i move to a new work location in june i will be reducing my already short commute by over 2 miles per trip. instead of driving 6.4 miles to work one way i'll be going 4.1 miles. thats a savings of 4.6 miles per day roundtrip, 23 miles a week, 92 miles a month, and 1,104 miles a year. it will be almost like working from home except not really at all.

unwelcome guest...

my wife shot the pic above of a raccoon who was hanging out on our front porch. later on the thing was wandering around the cul de sac like he owns the place. i shot some video but i wasn't about to get too close to this mangy diseased coon so as to avoid any appearances on america's funniest home videos. "grown man screams like a girl as raccoon charges". shortly after i shot the video, 4 deer appeared in our front yard. i was so excited i botched that shoot altogether. what the heck has suddenly turned our neighborhood into a nature preserve? i can be downtown minneapolis in like 10 minutes.

goodbye training wheels!...

owen cracks the code, reduces wheels by half.

all about perspective...

this photo only works from a very specific angle...and not this one.

happy easter!

a couple of more pics here.

gone in 60 seconds...

today was the annual easter egg hunt dash 'n grab. it's 6,000 plastic eggs filled with 400 lbs of jellybeans covering the length of a soccer field. the premier eggs have paper codes that you can redeem for next to worthless prizes. traditionally, the guy with the loudspeaker counts down from 10 and then bedlam ensues. this year some greedy toddlers jumped the gun and there was no turning them around. so it went like, "10-9-8....go!". lame. luckily i have the incident recorded which will no doubt be called into evidence when this debacle goes to trial.

noelle returns!

noelle returned to us yesterday. she had a great time in flordida! they had several adventures including a wedding,(not hers) busch gardens, fishing, and lots of swimming.
above are some pics taken from her temporary cell phone.
we are grateful that she was able to go, that she had a great time, and has returned to us safely.

that's entertainment...

i am a lover of music and despite the fact that i don't get around much anymore this weeks entertainment docket has been stellar. on monday i saw the the legendary morrissey at the state theatre. see youtube footage courtesy jstene.

John Wesley Harding and Eugene Mirman's Cabinet of Wonders Promo


tonight it's another of my faves, this time john wesley harding (musician) or wesley stace (book author) and his cabinet of wonders come to town. it's almost sensory overload!

in other news, noelle returns home tomorrow (yay!).

noelle update...

we've been in touch with noelle every day and it sounds like things are going great. she says there's been plenty of sun and it's hot (mid-eighties) and humid. poor thing. of course this morning we woke up to a couple of inches of slushy snow so i sent her a phone pic of the front yard. i'm sure she feels sorry for us. the family she is with told us that she's been a "joy" to have along, which is very good news for us. she has been swimming in the pool everyday and it sounds like a trip to the beach is planned for this week. i'm glad she's having a good time but we'll be happy to get her back this friday!