Christian and Reagan Attend Their Friend Emily's 2nd Birthday

(April 19, 2009) Our neighbors across the street, Jeff and Ashley, daughter Emily had her 2nd birthday party much to the delight of the kids. Any time there is cake, ice cream, and toys to play with, the kids are all about it. The kids would dress nice and head over in excitement. Christian, who had just got his first watch earlier that day, couldn't stop looking at it, even on his way to the party.



When they got to the house, the kids were a little in shock, because there was a lot of people, mostly grown up, that they didn't know.



It wasn't until there friend Hunter from next door showed up that they felt relaxed and started playing.



They would go outside and Reagan would get a fun ride on Emily's brother Chase's tractor. She really enjoyed this as you can see!



They would go back inside, play with some toys, and watch Emily blow the candles out on her cake (with a little help from her daddy).



Christian and Reagan would sit a little kids table and eat their cake. It was so cute watching them sit there.



Christian would get a new friend.



The kids would go back outside to play; swing on the swing, play in the sand box, climb the jungle gym, and ride the tractor.





Christian and Reagan would also learn (or at least try) to throw and catch a frisbee.




CLICK HERE to view all the pictures.

Easter with the Sharp's

(April 12, 2009) The Sharp family here in Georgia has had a tradition of having an egg hunt every Easter for the last 40 years, dating back to 1970. (CLICK HERE to see Video of 1970 Egg Hunt) Last year we started a tradition of having an egg hunt at our house earlier in the day, then have one at my parent's house later in the day.
We would invite our neighbors from next door and across the street to join us in the festivities along with some friends of Karen's and their kids.



We would have 2 egg hunts at our house; one for the the kids under 5, and one for the kids over 5. All the eggs were filled with change by Mom the night before, along with 2 "big money" eggs that would have $20. There was also a prize to the person who won the most eggs. There would be plenty of competition in the egg hunt, and Christian was already showing the egg hunting tenacity that he learned from his cousin Kyle.



Kyle would help Reagan learn the tricks of the trade.



Our neighbor from across the street, Jeff Johnson, is a Henry County Police officer, and was on duty during the egg hunt. He would arrive in time with his partner to insure that things didn't get out of hand (and to perhaps watch his son and daughter participate ;o) )



The kids had a great time counting their eggs and the rewards they found inside.

We would go to my parent's house later in the day for yet more egg hunts and then dinner. There would be two egg hunts again, one for all the kids (Kyle, Khadija, Christian, and Reagan), and then one for Karen and I. Kyle was the overwhelming favorite to find the most eggs, since he was essentially playing on his home field, having done an egg hunt in his Pap Pap's yard every year since he could walk. Kyle was quoted as saying "I know this yard like the back of my hand".



Well Kyle would walk away with the most eggs and everyone would walk away happy once again with the eggs they found and the rewards they would find inside. The big competition would involve Karen and I. There would only be two eggs, the "big money" eggs. Once one found one, then the other would be allowed to find the other one. I was of course the overwhelming favorite, having spent all the time living in my parents house doing yard work, and as Kyle said, knew the yard like the back of my hand, even though I don't know it that well. ;o) Well there was plenty of competition just before the start of the hunt, as Karen would try to trick me and have me look in the wrong places, and I would jockey for position once the race had started.



Well the odds-makers would be correct, as I would find my egg first, and I would even spot the other egg before Karen would find it. She would eventually find hers, and we would both end up as winners, as each egg would contain a year's membership to Gold's Gym, courtesy of Mom & Dad. :-D



We would have a wonderful dinner with lots of great food, and this Easter Day would go down as "The Best Ever". ;o)

CLICK HERE to view all the pictures from our house.

CLICK HERE to view all the pictures from my parent's house.

Reagan's New Bed

(April 10, 2009) Reagan finally got a new bed, after we decided that the crib was too small for her, as she would constantly climb out of it. While shopping for a new bed, she picked the bed she liked, and was so happy when it was put together and she was able to lie on it. Her cousin Kyle visited that day and couldn't wait to show it to him.



Later that night, she would fall asleep quickly and sleep soundly, as if this had been the only bed she ever had.

Easter Egg Hunt at Christian's School

(April 3, 2009) Since Christian's school was going to be off Easter week for Spring break, his school had an Easter egg hunt for all the kids before the break. Each child was asked to bring in an egg carton and a dozen plastic eggs. All the eggs were filled with a piece of candy. For the hunt, each child would use their egg carton to collect eggs.Once their carton was full, they were done, that way, nobody would have with a bunch of eggs and others would have little or none. (Competition and the concept of winning an losing can be learned when the kids are older) :o) The 2 year-olds would have their egg hunt on the playground since it is small and confined. The 3-5 year-olds would have their egg hunt in front of the church, since there would be more space for them to run around. Christian liked the candy he got, and Reagan quickly made friends with anyone who would give her candy. :o)


Each child was given a bottle of bubbles to blow. All the kids would go to the playground to eat their candy and blow bubbles. Christian would be the star since he was the only one who could consistently blow lots of bubbles. His Pap Pap taught him well!



Reagan would give bubble blowing a try as well.



CLICK HERE to see all the pictures.

Armstrong State College Soccer Reunion/Eddie Aenchbacher's Retirement

(March 27, 2009) Every year the former soccer players of Armstrong State College (now Armstrong Atlantic State University) try to get together and have a soccer reunion, where the former players and families get together, hang out with each other, and perhaps get together and kick the ball around. Armstrong had a men's soccer program from 1980-1986, and with today's technology, some of the players have reconnected and stay in constant contact through emails, and recently Facebook. I attended my first one 2 years ago and it was so much fun seeing the guys after 22 years. I had many fond memories at Armstrong, so many that Rhian finds it hard to believe that I only attend Armstrong for 1 year, and really looked forward to this one. It's tough getting all the guys together, since lots of us have spread out across the country, and not all have the fond memories I had, but we usually get a dozen or so players together, usually the same ones, and have lots of fun.
This year was special, because our soccer coach, Eddie Aenchbacher, who went on to be Athletic Director at Armstrong, was now retiring. I had taken it upon myself to organize the reunion, along with putting together a video slide show of Eddie's career as soccer coach. Having only played there for the '84 season, I had a limited amount of pictures in which to use, but lots of fond memories. Fortunately, with the help of a couple of players, and a lot of help from a good friend of the soccer alumni and recent graduate of Armstrong, Steve Chaffee, I was able to get a decent selection of pictures in which to use and put together a nice 30 minute slide show.
We would leave early Friday in hopes of getting into Savannah early, so that the organizers of the retirement ceremony could have the video in hand, and be assured that everything would work properly in time for the ceremony, which began at five that day. We would get to the hotel around 2, get checked in, and head to Armstrong, where everything checked out, then for lunch. Rhian and I for our last several visits would always visit a nice vegetarian restaurant called the metro deli. We reached there at four, but unfortunately it had closed at three, and was now nearly four, and being VERY HUNGRY, spotted what looked to be a Chinese restaurant close by called Super Buffet, and decided to eat there. Well everybody got to eat what they wanted, Christian got his favorite, macaroni and cheese, and I would load up on one of my favorites, shrimp. (Yes, shrimp is vegetarian). We would leave there with full bellies and head back to Armstrong.
The first half hour of the ceremony was a social. When I got to ceremony, I got to meet the president of Armstrong along with the registrar, with whom I had been in close contact for the previous month coordinating the video for the retirement. To my surprise, the president had invited me to sit at the front and be a guest of honor for all of the work had done on the video. I was very honored, but I wish I would have known this ahead of time! I would have dressed better, as I had been told this was going to be a VERY casual event, since a lot of athletes from the school would be attending. I would still dress casual in polo shirt and a new pair of jeans, but hardly the dress of a guest of honor! I almost wore a pair of shorts! lol Thankfully, they didn't ask me to speak, as I had nothing prepared, which means that I would have ad-libbed, and would probably still be there rambling on. lol



The social would be lots of fun, as I would get to see a couple of guys whom I hadn't since since I graduated. The ceremony would be great as well, as I got sit next to Coach Aenchbacher. As the president was touting his accomplishments as Athletic Director, one being the percentage of athletes graduating with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher, Eddie would lean over and say to me "Didn't you graduate with a 3.0?"



See, this is funny for a couple of reasons (funny now, isn't it dad?). Long story short, I went to Armstrong on a soccer scholarship after high school, and would lose it a year later by falling 4 quarter hours short of maintaining my scholarship, leave with a 1.8 GPA, end up in the Air Force 6 months later, and wouldn't graduate college until 2005. All the former soccer players who were in attendance would come to the front, and former player and graduate Alan Shepard would share a few words about Eddie as coach. Eddie would give a great speech, with tears welling up inside, as he had been a student, coach, and AD at Armstrong for 30 years.



We would all pose for pictures, finish conversations, and finalize plans for the weekend.




Most of the guys would get together for indoor soccer at The Super Goose later that evening, as well as the following evening. Rhian and I would take the kids to Tybee Island, as Christian loves it at the ocean and Reagan and never been.



We also took the kids swimming in the indoor pool at the hotel. Christian is still a little shy about swimming; he hates getting water in his eyes. Reagan doesn't care, and both had lots of fun.



Later, we would also meet some of the guys and their families for dinner at the Mellow Mushroom in downtown on Saturday night and enjoy some beer and pizza before our indoor scrimmage at the Super Goose.



On Sunday, some of us got together for breakfast at a small place in a town outside of Savannah called Pooler before head back from whence we came.




Overall, the trip would be lots of fun, as it's always fun for me to reminisce about the old times as it is to catch up with what everybody is up to.

CLICK HERE to see all the pictures of the retirement

CLICK HERE to see all the pictures of the family @ Tybee Island, swimming in the pool, and dinner @ Mellow Mushroom.

CLICK HERE to see all the pictures of the Sunday breakfast.

2009 Women's 5K

(March 21, 2009) Once again the Atlanta Track Club sponsored the Women's 5K at Candler Park. This year, Rhian would pick up my mom and take her to the race, and I would let the kid's sleep in a little and take them to see their mom and grandma at the finish. The goal this year was to not let Christian push Reagan in her stroller, as there were dire consequences as a result last year. (Click Here) We would arrive close to the time Rhian was finishing, but being the speed demon she is, would finish in a record time of 27:04, and we would miss her in anticipation of her coming in later. My mom would finish about a minute slower than last year, but would look good at the finish. Both would receive their traditional carnations at the finish. The most important thing was that Christian WASN'T pushing Reagan. Unfortunately, due to the fact that I had a girls soccer game to coach at 9:15, we weren't able to stay around for the awards ceremony and socialize with friends. Rhian did get to see her friend Tammi for the first time since she had given birth.

CLICK HERE to view the pictures.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

(March 17, 2009) All the neighborhood kids got to hang out on what was a beautiful St Patrick's Day. Christian and Reagan got to hang out with their friend next door, Hunter, and their friends from across the street, Chase and Emily. We also got to meet another neighbor's grandchild who is 2, but being that I'm bad with names, I don't remember her name. Needless to say, it was lots of fun watching the kids playing as the parents and grandparents hung out together and marveled at them. It sort of reminded me of growing up and playing with the my friends and having our parents hanging out together. What's amazing is that a little over 4 years ago, none of these kids were in the neighborhood.

CLICK HERE to view all the pictures.

Kids Brushing Their Teeth

(March 16, 2009) Rhian and I (mostly Rhian ;o) have been encouraging the children to brush their teeth since they were babies. Thankfully, they enjoy it; Reagan enjoys it so much she walks around the house with a toothbrush and toothpaste brushing her teeth and sucking on the toothpaste bottle. Christian usually reminds us before he goes to bed. Let's hope they continue this great habit.

Uncle Jason Visits for Christian's Birthday

(March 15, 2009) Christian's Uncle Jason (and Godfather), who has a big heart and bigger schedule, passed by the house to wish Christian a belated birthday and bring him his gifts. Jason brought him a GI Joe action figure and a race car that is propelled by mashing your foot on a pump. Christian enjoyed his gifts and getting play rough with his Uncle.

CLICK HERE to view all the pictures

Kyle's High School Soccer Game: OLM vs Aquinas

(March 14, 2009) I finally got to see my nephew Kyle play in a high school soccer game after missing all of his freshman season as a starter. I met my parents and Karen on a cold, dreary day and watched my first high school soccer game probably since Karen starred as a sweeper in the Georgia state high school all-star game back in 1985.



It is amazing how far youth soccer has come since I played. The speed and talent that high school players have, including Kyle, is amazing! As I have mentioned before, Kyle has come a long way since watching him standing on the field crying as a 3 year-old. ;o) He handles most all the free kicks and does the throw-ins from his side of the field. He is REALLY GOOD!...and to think he's only a sophomore!




Needless to say, I was a very proud uncle watching him, as was Karen being the proud mother and Mom and Dad being the proud grandparents.

CLICK HERE to view all the pictures. For the pictures that are burst shots, click fast to simulate motion picture.