The Grammy's

This is a show I always look forward to. I don't know why, because I'm always disappointed, for the most part. Taylor Swift won big. I'll never understand this. She is not meant to be a live performer. As much as autotune is over-used by the R&B community, it should be required for her. She sang a duet with Stevie Nicks and Stevie had to quit because, as Sara said, "you can't harmonize with off-key."

Heating things up!

Earlier today, we went out to go sledding at our "not-so-secret" secret sledding spot and they locked up access to the hill. Thanks, SG County! But we found a much better, less popular spot that will forever be our new and improved "not-so-secret" secret sledding spot. We had a lot of fun over there, but after two hours, we were ready to come home and warm up. We got the fire going, relaxed in front of the TV and watched the Kansas Jayhawks fight their way through 40-minutes of basketball to defeat the K-State Wildcats in overtime in Manhattan. It was an intense and exciting game, but this family is happy for the Jayhawk win! K-State has this deal where they say "EMAW" and it's on t-shirts and everything. It stands for "Every Man A Wildcat". We changed it to "Exiting Manhattan After Winning". Isn't that fun? K-State fans probably won't like it, but they have a list of things for KU so it's all fair and all good in my book. The next game in Lawrence is guaranteed to be even hotter! KSU will want revenge, and KU won't want to lose at home. We're already excited for that one. Win or lose, these match-ups are always fun!

If a woodchuck could chuck wood...

...he wouldn't be able to do this. We went out to eat tonight, because it's Friday and that's what we do. We enjoyed the mexican cuisine of El Azteca. The entire place is decorated in hand-carved and hand-painted wood decor reflecting the Aztec culture. This was the backrest on the side of the booth that Andrew and Sara sat on. Sara and I may have to go as "a booth from El Azteca" for Halloween. I'm not sure she'll go for it, though.

CO-2mobile

Whew! I thought I was gonna be inside taping a basketball game again, but the game ended before 7:15P! Thank goodness! I had no idea what to take a picture of that hasn't been taken already. I packed up quickly so I would be somewhere else by 7:15P and made it to the car in the parking lot. Andrew made it just in time to be my subject tonight.

He made this car in his Introduction to Technology class. After all of his classmates had created their own car, the class went into the gym, loaded them up with CO-2 capsules and raced each car against the clock. The car that made it to the other end of the gym the fastest was the winner. Andrew's car got 4th in his class, but 6th in the school, so a pretty good showing. I expect General Motors to be calling him up to their design division very soon.

Dad Glass - Double Shot

Every man has a favorite drinking glass. I learned that from my dad. He had a big drinking glass (which was actually plastic) that he would use during his meals...and after his meals. He likes to chew on ice and shake his glass when it's full of ice. It used to drive my mom crazy! Not sure if she's learned to deal with it or not. I moved out many moons ago so I haven't heard her complain; and Dad doesn't have any of his teeth left. Just his dentures. Hope he ordered the industrial strength dentures for chewing on his ice. Dad would put ice in his water (normal), ice in his soda (normal), ice in his milk (questionable), and...I think, even ice in a dad glass of buttermilk with pepper sprinkled in it (SO not normal!). I know! My dad did that. Probably still does! Crazy, huh? Back to the "Dad Glass". I have three glasses of the same design; and it's not actually glass, but plastic, like my dad's. Anyway, the neighbor girl who was our waitress at a local restaurant knew how much I liked them so she hooked me up with several to enjoy at home. Yeah, that's how I roll. Remember kids, it's not who you know, but who knows you. So, if your dad doesn't have a large glass to drink out of, now you know what to get him on the next gift giving occasion. He will use it and he will enjoy it.

What's cookin'?

Guess who got dinner started tonight? After an afternoon and evening of running errands and moving kids to and fro, Andrew and I made it home first...just in time for the OSU WBB game against Missouri. So, mac & cheese and hamburgers were on the menu. So was this cool picture of the heating coils on the stove...and so was a Cowgirl victory!

Up by 20

"B" team basketball. Valley leads by twenty in the 4th. It didn't get much better. Valley won. So did the "A" team...in overtime! That one was a nailbiter! That's the "A" team sitting against the wall on the wrestling mat. This game though? Well, as you can see, I'm snapping photos while shooting video at the same time. That should tell you something.

Golden notes

Tomorrow, Andrew has a chair test in band to determine who gets to sit in first chair. First chair is important because it means you're the best in your section. It also gets you "first part" in a performance which consists of higher, more difficult, notes. It also means you could possibly land a solo during a performance. He practiced for two hours today on his test song, the first section (Basse-Danse) of "Capriol Suite" by Peter Warlock. (Don't ask me what any of those words mean.) He thought it was a pretty easy piece so feels he'll do well.

A quick trip to QuikTrip

I'll be honest. I was worried about tonight's picture. I so didn't want to take another picture of food or people eating. Well, by God, I moved dinner along just fast enough to escape Applebee's and on to a different activity and setting. Sure, it's a picture of a gas station, but the lights up above and the way they shine off of the car make you feel like you're in HOLLYWOOD...or VEGAS...or just a well lit gas station.

The Fishery - Dinner of Champions

Amber had a late game tonight at 8:30P. She wanted something special for dinner to prepare her to play like a champion. She chose "The Fishery"...aka Long John Silver's. You know what? It worked. She played the game of her life tonight! She took shots when she had the opportunity and made several. She caused jump balls, she defended her opponent like white on rice and really hustled. By the end of the game, she was all smiles and several people came up to her (and us) to say good job. We celebrated after the game with ice cream all around.

On the road again - Double Shot

Another night of basketball. An away game in Hutch. Tonight, at 7:15P I'm driving back home. Amber is in the backseat reading the road signs to me so I'll know that there is a passing lane coming up in 2 miles. She also let me know what towns we were passing along the way and wondered where we were going to eat dinner. Just a few minutes after these pics were snapped, we were inside Burger King enjoying their flame grilled meat. BONUS! Amber had the entire play area to herself! It's the small things in life, isn't it?

Smart Cookie

You gotta love this time of year. Not just because it's winter (my favorite) or that it's basketball season (my favorite) and awards show season (so much fun) and all of my favorite shows have new episodes, but it's time to sell Girl Scout cookies! What's not to love? Amber is ready to sell a million boxes...most of them to us...and to both sets of grandparents, probably. I love the Peanut Butter Patties and the Thanks-A-Lot. So good!

Audiovision

Something I've been doing for the last five years is editing the music for Kapaun Mt. Carmel's pom squad. If you know me at all, you'll know that this kind of thing is right up my alley. I'm always eager to see what songs the girls want to put together. Sometimes it's quite a challenge to make it sound seamless, but somehow, it always comes together in the end. It's a lot of fun, I enjoy it, and I'm glad they keep asking me to help.

Las Vegas pages

As far as activities go, this week is moving along a little slower. Today is Martin Luther King day so no activities are planned. Sara and the kids got to spend the day at home. I had to go to work. Spending tonight dubbing off video for the basketball project I'm working on. While that task rolls (at 50 minutes per game), I'm finally able to catch up on some reading in the magazines I picked up while in Las Vegas last month.

A self-portrait of sorts

A rare night off. Relaxing...enjoying the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards with the carcass of a Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal in the background. Sonny is not always the tidiest of dogs.

Behind the bench

What an exciting basketball game this was! The Oklahoma State Cowgirls hosted the Kansas State Wildcats...two pretty-much equally matched teams. Good reason to be a little nervous for this game. OSU won the game 66-56 and are now 3-0 in Big XII conference play!

A family member provides these tickets for us whenever we want them so it's a nice perk and ALOT of fun to sit behind the bench. I couldn't decide which picture should be tonight's picture so...you're getting a triple-shot!

These were taken during a time-out midway through the first half. Above, we have the coaches talking to the team just to my left...

...then there's the OSU Pom Squad and cheerleaders over to my right. That's the amazing Kevin Gum & remarkable Casey Kendrick, radio voices for the OSU Cowgirls, sitting down at the media desk on the left.

Then there's my trusty Zune, right by my side, giving me all of the exciting play-by-play action.

Final piece

Believe me, I tried everything in my power to avoid another food or basketball picture. Thus goes the life of a family with two children who are active in sports. This is the funk we're in right now and I have to roll with it. All I can do is change perspective of the same 'ol same 'ol. At least I have that. Oh, and one more piece of pizza.

REDUNDANCY ALERT!!! Fair warning...tomorrow, we'll be at another basketball game. But this time, it's the Big XII! The Oklahoma State Cowgirls vs. the Kansas State Wildcats. It's gonna be a barn-burner! Check back. We'll be wearing some of that new orange.

Up, up, on your feet!

If you guessed tonight's picture would consist of either food or basketball, you're right. Tonight it was basketball.

Standing behind the video camera, I'm running out of options of what this cell-phone camera can do. And it's difficult to take too much time to capture an interesting perspective or something new to click a photo of. So tonight, you get the 7th grade cheerleaders performing a stunt while they cheer. The other half of the squad is to the right of the picture. Couldn't get them all because my back was literally against a wall and I was surrounded by parents who were ready to go home by this time. I'm sure they didn't want the weird camera guy taking pictures of them after a day that had fallen into the "too long" category.

My friend, Fair Weather Runner, requested a crowd shot with someone eating popcorn, but I just couldn't get it done tonight. Maybe next week. Hey, we're only half-way through the season. There's still a chance!

Cornbread and a smile

So I'm only 13 days into this and you're probably beginning to think that all we do is eat and watch basketball. Well, it kind of feels that way, too. With two kids in the sport and a Big XII team to support (it's a family thing), shuffling between practices and games only leaves time for two other things...eating and sleeping. Since we're not usually sleeping at 7:15PM, that leaves eating and basketball this time of year.

Tonight, Amber helped out in the kitchen and made the most amazing cornbread muffins. They were dee-lish! So, tonight she is the star of the blog! I would buy a bag of them and pay 25¢ a piece. That's quite a profit when the mix cost less than a dollar.

Cincinatti-style Chili

Sunday night, we were watching a show on the Travel Channel called "101 Tastiest Places to Chowdown". At #65 was this place in Ohio called Camp Washington Chili. They kept talking about Cincinatti style chili, and all it is is chili on top of spaghetti noodles. If you get cheese on it, it's called a three-way. Add beans to the chili, it's a four-way. Add onions, it's a five-way.

We realized we had some leftover chili in the fridge, so instead of putting it on top of a hot dog, we thought we'd give spaghetti a shot. It wasn't bad! It was a nice departure from the old frank. Sadly, Sonny was only able to gaze upon our italiany-cheesy-chili goodness. Poor puppy.

Through the viewfinder

Another night of recording 7th grade boys basketball. I'm trying to mix it up on the POV with this shot. Tonight was vs. Newton. We lost, but not as bad as last time. I guess we've improved. Hopefully, this 7:15 project will improve my photography, too.

Sonny's nightly ritual

Every night, like clockwork, if we're at home, Sonny will begin looking at the mantel over the fireplace. That's where we store his chewy sticks/rawhide bones. We hide them inconspicuously behind a picture frame. Tonight, he tried to get a little closer by jumping up on the kids' school desk. I guess the closer he gets to what he wants, the more we'll understand what he's trying to tell us, as if we don't already.

Orange & Black Attack!

After watching the #23 ranked OSU Cowgirls defeat the #5 ranked Baylor Bears, we stopped at Walmart in Stillwater to pick up some more OSU merchandise. Ended up getting a couple of shirts, a license plate for the car, and an OSU wallet for A1.

Like manna from Heaven!

It's not the best picture, but I'll be darned if this isn't one of our favorite places to eat. Great mexican food can be found right here, at El Azteca. The white queso on the left is...to...die...for! If you live anywhere near Wichita, it's worth the drive north to PC.

Hornets defeat the Eagles

A cold January night (13º!) and I'm recording video of the 7th grade Valley Center B team game at Maize. The gym was small and cramped so I had to position myself on the corner of the court. Not a great perspective for the coaches to analyze the video. The B team won by 1 point.

Chilly on the outside, chili on the inside!

Sara got a new, much larger crockpot for Christmas this year. She picked the perfect day to break it in. There is an arctic blast heading our way bringing snow and a high temperature of 9º tomorrow. What better way to keep warm than homemade chili!

DOH-nuts!

The FOX network sent some promotional DOH-nuts to celebrate the 2oth Anniversary of The Simpsons. Sara picks out one for her dessert. "Thank you! Come again!"

Tearing it up!

Watching the Oklahoma State Cowgirls vs. Sam Houston State. At every home game, they have a contest for the best sign created by a fan. If you win (voted on by crowd applause), MidFirst Bank gives you $100! Here's tonight's winner.

Tennessee vs. Oklahoma WBB

Watching two of the better teams in NCAA Women's Basketball. I consider it scouting for Oklahoma State.

Redbox Rocks!

We rented a movie last night at McDonald's for Amber to watch. The Hannah Montana Movie. It's almost showtime!

Starting the new year with McDonalds

This is a project where I take a picture every night at 7:15PM. It's a great way to document my life, my activities, my memories, etc. I'm hoping it will breathe new life into this blog.

This is picture 1, on day 1, in month 1 of a new decade...January 1, 2010...7:15PM. We wanted to go out and eat dinner at El Azteca to celebrate the new year but they were closed. McDonalds is where we ended up. I think it's the first time I've ever spent just $3 for my portion of the meal. That dollar menu is the best!