Time in Memphis

I just got back from Memphis today. I spent a week there at the training center attending classes I used to teach. I was a good sport though and helped others as much as possible. Unfortunately, the day I left I contracted a head cold. Nothing is much worse than getting on an airplane with a cold. I was in seat 20D in the back of the plane and feeling pretty miserable. I was also surrounded by 10 or 11 crying and screaming children. Sweet revenge! Now I'm passing the cold on to them.

Answer the phone

As I sat watching the little kid from Seth and Noelle's couch, the phone rang. Seth was a little bit pre-occupied and wasn't sure where the phone was located. It kept ringing and ringing and he kept looking and looking. I could see it sitting on the coffee table right in front of me, but I couldn't figure out why he couldn't see it. It's was right there in front of him for crying out loud. "What's up with this?" I thought. I reached for the short stubby little phone and handed it to him, saying, "here it is." All the while I'm thinking, "Are you retarded or something?" Everyone looked at me like, "Are you retarded or something?" and started to laughing at me. It was the baby monitor phone. A one week old baby has a phone! In fact there are two of them. One for him and one for the parents. "What's up with this?" I thought. I think the world is passing me by.

To Seth Andrew

Angel of God, my guardian dear
To whom God's love commits me here;
Ever this day be at my side,
To light and guard, to rule and guide.

Grandma's in her element

Grandma can still lull the little ones to sleep. At least she seems to be doing it well in this photo. I know Nancy is in her element right now. I think I'll have to buy her a box of tissues for the drive back to Denver. She's going to need them I think.

Seth called this the "waxing philosophical" look. I think he just has gas, or he's doing his Alfred Hitchcock imitation.


This was taken on the way to the pediatrician's office. He's got this funny smirk on his face as though he knows something we don't. Maybe this is what Seth was talking about? What's up pal? You want to share it with the rest of us? Well, better not...we know what you're really doing.

Seth Andrew

I don't really remember how I felt 24 years ago. I can tell you I'm overwhelmed by it now. Seth and Noelle sent me these photos from the hospital. Of course they took him home in his Bronco's outfit. I promise to get you photos of that as soon as possible. It is so exciting to see this I can't express to you how it feels. How do I really feel? Well, the Broncos are playing the Cowboys right now and I don't really care, so I'm blogging instead. I just want to show you these photos.

If things were a little different now, perhaps I could sleep like this. Seth and Noelle went home from the hospital tonight. I called them at home, and he definitely wasn't asleep! What a set of lungs he has. Good luck parents.

I think they both have a grin on their faces. Seth starts school next week and is teaching a class at the Univ. of Kentucky and taking graduate level courses. How much studying do you think this guy is really going to do? I suppose he could do a lot of reading at 2:00a...

8 Pounds, 2 OZ

I was in Las Vegas with our Regional Office when I got word. 20 of us in the Denver office were awarded this trip to Vegas because we performed well last year. At any rate, I'm sitting by the pool in the cabana when my cell phone rings and it's Nancy. She said, "Noelle had the little guy about 30 minutes ago." Everyone there with me cheered and shared my joy. It was a great day. More on this later as I get new details...

Tyler's off to Kuwait

Today was more difficult than it was three years ago. When Tyler left for Japan three years ago I think I was so excited and happy for him to have his first major job, and a good one in Japan too, well I couldn't wait for him to get there and relish the new place and the new people and begin to see the world. I wanted to know about it too.

This time, I think I was perhaps a little more selfish. I realized how much I value him and really enjoy his company. I don't necessarily want him living with us (we had him for 18 years) and I doubt he wants to live with us, but I think a few more visits now and then would be better. When your kid leaves the country for a year, you just flat out miss him. He takes things pretty seriously and works hard. I know he'll do a great job and the people of Kuwait are fortunate. We are so very proud of him.

It wasn't until he said the final goodbye to his mother that I kind of lost it. I realized how much she loves him and wants to see him more often. But the good news about Tyler is that he makes real efforts to stay in touch by Skype and keep us informed on what's going on. He's been great that way. We wish you the best Tyler.

Tyler getting ready to leave

Tyler spent a fair amount of time at home organizing his files, updating mailing lists, cleaning out his closet, and giving stuff to Goodwill. Here he is pictured at our desk getting caught up the day before he leaves.


Many of our old friends who knew Tyler when we lived her before (Memphis) came by the house to see him and visit and find out what he's going to do next. We have very special friends who care a great deal for us and our kids. We're so thankful for that.

Skydiving

Tyler went skydiving in Longmont today. This has been a longtime dream of his and today he finally did it. And, of course his mother and I didn't worry or think about it at all...right. He made it okay and didn't smash into the ground. The interesting thing about it is, there is really not much to talk about. He told us what it was like, but it's not as though you can go for 20 minutes about this short experience.

Tomorrow he leaves for LA to visit David Hanson and then he goes to Kuwait on Tuesday I think. We're very excited for him and know he is going to have an entirely new experience in a totally new place. I know he appreciates your prayers for him, so please continue.

Broncos Training Camp

The Denver Broncos Training camp is a great place to be. Tyler and I went to the camp for half a day and enjoyed lots of good football and a preview of things to come, including a few "trick" plays. Below is Jay Cutler taking a snap in preparation for a successful throw to Javon Walker. We sat in the end zone and were nearly ran over a few times. It was great!

Tyler saw a Colleague from NAU, Paul Ernster the Broncos punter/kicker. He yelled out, "Hey Paul, Go Lumberjacks!" Ernster heard him and turned around and waved at us. We felt so proud. That's NOT Ernster behind him, it's one of the other several hundred fans present at the training camp.

Below is John Lynch (left) and Champ Bailey #24. Sitting in the end zone we had some interaction with the defensive unit. They were camped right in front of us to go in for the end zone plays and patterns. It was remarkable how organized they were. We liked the play of QB Preston Parsons from NAU. Who knows if he'll make the team. However, he scored the only passing touchdown of the morning.


I did get a chance to tour the Broncos store and bought a couple of baby outfits for Noelle. They were blue and orange. What else?

The back porch

Sitting on the back porch tonight, we watched our favorite birds...the hummingbirds. There are four of them that frequent our back porch. We have three feeders and two of the feeders have four feeding holes, the third has two feeding holes. That's ten places to feed. Yet, they spend all their time fighting and chasing each other. If they would just share, there would be plenty for all. Notice the level of sugar in this one. Nancy filled it last night!


Our view from the back porch is really nice. It's been raining a lot in the afternoons, so we're pretty happy about all the moisture. That's why the sky looks so dark, it was only 5:30p when I took this photo and you can't see the mountains in the background.

My last trip in Washington

Driving from Spokane to Yakima is real exciting. As you can see from the photo below. Not bad eh? I took this photo from the drivers seat at 70 MPH. It was something more than 200 miles to complete this boring trip. Boring. On my last trip to Yakima I came in from the South through Goldendale, WA. There were no less than 7 reports on the radio of sightings of Sasquatch! That's right, Big Foot!! People parked by the side of the road with their binoculars looking into the forest. These are the same people who voted for Gore.

Kentucky Connection

Noelle and Seth have a new place in Kentucky. Here is a photo of the lovely couple behind the house. Of course there will be three of them soon...their family grows. I was at the airport today and watched a young couple trying to manage their little baby. They did an admirable job.

One of the nice things about living in the South is all the trees and the quaint little neighborhoods. I think their house is the white one at the far right. I recall when Nancy and I were in grad school and how much we enjoyed living together, growing together, and just being together. I'm thankful little has changed in this regard.