I Would Like To Report A Missing Tree

One of the things I love most about life is that it continues to truck on, whether you are paying attention or not. It is all around and in constant motion. As a habit, I try to pay attention to my surroundings because experience has taught me that I just never know what I may miss!

Take this day, for example:

I drove this little black car – a rental – to visit a company and I spent most of the day there. I chose this spot on a quiet side street because it placed the already-scorching ride into the shade. When I came out, it did not take long to realize the car was no longer in the shade.

In fact, the tree that made this a prime spot was missing entirely! I observed wood chips all around in the street, sidewalk, and grass. There was also a stump midway between the street and sidewalk that had a very, very new appearance to its grains!

All I can say is someone has skills because, speaking for myself, I would not trust even me to cut down a tree, much less a tree with a strange car parked underneath it!

You GO, crazy tree-stealing guy with skills!

Lights! Camera! ACTION! (in our town!)

I love surprises, and it's a good thing too, because they are EVERYWHERE!

Example: We went to the park this evening to get our swing on (you know, because Rocketship is a complete swinging addict!) and were greeted at the entrance by this sign.

I will summarize - it basically just reads:

"Blah blah blah, we are shooting a production called Home Run Derby blah blah blah and putting this sign up is easier than having all you rubber-neckers sign disclosure statements blah blah blah and if you don't agree blah blah blah you can skid-attle yourselves outta here."

A production, huh? Cool. I mean, we don't usually get this kind of action in our little park!

And here it is, a gaggle of crew members, and I DO MEAN GAGGLE! I had no idea it took this many people to "make it all happen". But they there are. A couple of guys on a camera dolly thing. Someone with a script in hand. Some other loudmouth piping orders all over the place. A few taking a break. And what appeared to be a child actor being thrown a ball by an adult actor.

Here's one of their large trucks, complete with generator trailer, catering cart, and another trailer that could only have been a port-o-potty (presumably super-posh!).

Check out all these trucks!

You just never know what's around the corner!

Shapes are Fun!

While visiting friends near Cleveland over the weekend (and showing someone expecting a new baby), Rocketship walked around to the back of this car, stopped, pointed, looked at me and proclaimed the following: “Look, that’s a lot of ovals!”

Completely cracked me up.

Yes, sweetie, it SURE is.

Best. Father's Day. Surprise. EVER!

So....I have a lot to write about tonight, at the end of my most favorite Father's Day to-date! But first, before I begin, Happy Father's Day to all the hard-working dads out there!

You know who you are!

Personally, being a dad is the best thing that has ever happened to me. And because of my little girl and my big girl, I am the luckiest dad I know. I thank God every day for the privilege and the opportunity.

Now, to the surprise!

I was told this morning to be ready to leave the house by a certain time. I had no idea where we were going or what we were doing. Actually, I didn't even really know once we arrived at the final destination because S had played a stellar poker-face hand of "I am lost and don't know how to find where we are supposed to be and we are late and perhaps I should stop and ask for directions here at this Aviation Center..." (sigh) Yes, I am afraid I am that gullible...

And yes, we were going for an airplane ride!

For those that don't know, learning to fly has been on my un-posted and unofficial "bucket list" for a long, long time. I mean, it is still very unofficial, but the idea would be that ONE DAY, when all the pieces can come together, I will obtain my Pilot's License. I guess today was a good day to have a "trial". The idea was that we would all "give it a go" and see how we liked it. It makes sense because there's really no use in going through the training and flight time just to learn that someone in the family get's airsick or just plain doesn't like it.

But, seriously, who doesn't like flying!

Rocketship loved the plane right away and kept proclaiming "That's a BIG plane!"

Because we decided that we MAY begin to work on the lessons, it made sense to make this hangar visit count, so instead of just going up in the plane, the instructor, Mark, treated it like the first lesson. This meant I was included in the usual thorough pre-flight check of the aircraft (that's the instructor on the left. I assure you he really does have 2 legs!).

The girls waited so patiently while the plane was inspected. There was also some instrumentation introductions and basic flight methodology shared. It was sweet! I was digging every minute!

That's the pre-flight inspection list (more like a small book!) in my hands. No stone was left unturned!

Once we were finished, the plane was fueled and pulled outside into the sun. Rocketship's cowmooflage car seat was installed and she was buckled in! As you can see, she was - naturally - very interested in what was happening in the front seats!

She even got her own headset to wear, although she deemed it "too tight", just like she says for anything she doesn't really want to wear!

The best thing about going up in the air with an instructor is YOU REALLY GET TO FLY! That's right, I pretty much had the controls the entire time! He even let me "ride along" during the take-off and landing. It was quite an experience!

That's the airport runway, shortly after take-off.

E loved it! She really had a great time. She kept saying "Higher!" and "Faster!"

The Big House

There was a lot to look at outside the windows. It was a "great day for flying"...we'll, okay, that's what everyone kept saying! I could see why!

We flew over S's workplace. That's her building in the center of the picture.

I think E was getting a bit too comfortable, don't you?

We even flew over our house!

And - alas - we HAD to go back eventually, I guess. Hmph! Here is the runway as we were on the final approach.

Back at the Aviation Center, there was a female bird named Frannie. E loved her and even fed her a green peanut M&M, which was promptly and expertly cracked open (and peanut removed!)

All in all, a GREAT day! And an even better surprise! Thank you S-Bomb!

Best! Father's Day! EVER!

So Many Dynamos!

Happy Palindrome Day!

Lost?

Well, what do you think I am referring to? Have you ever heard of a palindrome? By definition. a palindrome is a word, phrase, number or other sequence of units that can be read the same way in either direction (forward or backwards). It is also important to note that the adjustment of punctuation and spaces between words is generally permitted for palindromes.

Now, perhaps my reference to today will make more sense. It's the date today - 01/11/10!

Want more examples of palindromes? Sure, here you go:

A Santa at Nasa!

Was it a rat I saw?

Name no one man

Madam, I'm Adam

Red rum, Sir, is murder!

A man, a plan, a canal, panama (interesting, huh?)

Go hang a salami! I'm a lasagna hog!

Can you make up a palindrome of your own?

Now, I guess if you want to get technical (perfectly Okay here, BTW), today isn't really a real palindrome day. That is because I have neglected the "20" in the year "2010". If included, the date would read 01/11/2010, and therefore today would not count. Going by this rule, the next palindrome day would fall near the end of next year (11/02/2011). But who can wait that long to celebrate palindromes!

What Is This - Quiz Answer

Okay, it's time to post the answer to the quiz from last week. The question was what is this thing?
Thank you to all who participated. There were many guesses - some serious and some not-so-serious (you know who you are!). The closest guess was made by one of Living with Hope's southern followers.

Congratulations Elsa! Your guess was that the easy-to-manage bundle pictured above was a computer. Technically, this was the closest guess to the actual answer.

Answer: Its a hard disk drive, circa 1956, with the memory storage comparable to 5MB of memory. In September 1956 IBM launched the 305 RAMAC, the first computer with a hard disk drive (HDD). The HDD weighed over a ton and stored 5MB of data. Pretty interesting since most computers today arrive at our doorsteps with a minimum 100MB standard, not to mention weigh much less than 2000 lbs. Gotta love technology!

Quiz: What Is This?

This picture has been sitting in my inbox for some time, and I have been saving it this whole time because; a) I am a self-proclaimed pack rat (virtual electronic pack rat anyway) and b) naturally I wanted to share it here with you.

My intention is to post the picture tonight, as a question and post the answer here in a few days. So, here goes...what is this monstrosity below? Send your best guess to us via email (livingwithhopeblog@gmail.com) or comment below. Prize? What do you mean what is up for grabs? Um, this is a recession, remember? Sorry there is no prize...this time anyway. Good luck!

Also, on deck is a recount of our recent trip down South to Texas. The pictures and videos are downloading currently. Here's a mini-preview: Ellena's first plane ride (her parent's almost had to purchase airplane booze!), a Mexican-American flea market and a Taylor Swift concert (yes, I am comfortable enough with my masculinity to expose that here!)

Mid-Week Question: Television Programs

Needless to say, I've learned many things by staying home with Ellena recently. One of these things is I watch a lot of television! I think it's so easy to get sucked into shows these days! I found I kept mixing it up each day as to not form a habit, okay TOO MUCH of a habit. Here's what we want to know this week.

This week's question: What shows or networks do you watch most frequently? What time of day do you find yourself parked? Do you run the television in the background much?

Alternate question: What shows do you think have run past their prime? If you could cancel ANY program or network, which would you choose?

Feel free to answer both questions.

Mid-Week Question: Olympic Version

Unless you've been hiding under a rock, then you probably know the Summer Olympics are upon us. Like us, you've probably been able to catch a moment or two of the coverage on television each night. After all, who can watch the entire event, right? Because Beijing is exactly 12 hours ahead of us in terms of time zones, it has been more convenient than before to not only watch the games, but to catch the action live. Shown here is the now infamous "Birds Nest" building at nighttime - an unquestionably unique structure that cost over $400 Million dollars to construct. This week's question is centered around the Olympic games. Good luck America!

This week's question: Have you been able to catch any of the coverage? If so, what events do you enjoy watching? What events do you think should be left out of the Games?

Alternate question for readers without television: How have you been kept up-to-date on the progress of the U.S. athletes? And how can that possibly be more exciting than watching history being made live?

Mid-Week Question: What Traditions Does Your Family Keep?

Over the weekend we were discussing family traditions with friends of ours. It seems that everyone I've ever known has a tradition of some sort, whether it's related to the holiday season or centered around a birthday or celebration.

These particular friends, who have been blessed with a beautiful 15 month old girl, have decided to to create a brand new tradition within their family in which they will take her picture in her mother's wedding dress each year. Having observed results from the first year photo shoot, I happen to think this is a fantastic idea.

Being a parent, it feels as though I think about these types of things a lot more than I used to. I am interested in passing something down to my children while also capturing and documenting their growth.

Today’s question is this: What family traditions do you remember from growing up and/or what traditions do you plan on either starting or passing down to your offspring?

Alternative question for readers without traditions: When does the Summer season feel like it has completely transitioned into Fall?

Mid-Week Question: Is It Possible To Kiss A Baby Too Many Times?

So we have just been enjoying the you-know-what out of our little darling. One of my favorite things to do is smell her.

What? Am I normal? Is this a natural part of parenthood or evolution? Have I been pre-programmed to sample and store her scent into my memory for future recollection or reclaiming?

It is enjoyable (especially after a bath), but seriously, I think sometimes I'm going to wear her hair off! What is it about that new baby scent...oh wait, she will 8 weeks old Thursday.

Today’s question is this: When your child/children were small, how often did you stick your nose in there? And when, because I know it is inevitable, does the smell fade away?

Alternative question for readers without children: How does the inside of your car smell currently and what flavor/brand of aftermarket air freshener is your favorite, if any?

A note about commenting: the settings have been modified at LWH, allowing for anonymous comments to be made. This is especially useful if you had a foul smelly baby, but don't want anyone here to know!

Mid-Week Question: Where Did Your Children Sleep?

One of the fun things about having a child is that it’s easier to relate with so many other parents now. As if by magic, their stories make more sense than they used to. And I’ve never met another parent without an opinion or a story about “when their kid was a baby”.

This topic came up the other day and we’ve heard several versions already – our child slept only in their car seat – she liked the dresser drawer (yes, someone really said this!) – I had to drive her around every night, then carefully place her in her bouncy seat.

These memories are great to share, so please do so by commenting below. If you’ve never commented on Blogger before, I assure you its very easy.

That being said -

Today’s question is this: When your child/children were infants, where did they sleep the best?

Alternative question for readers without children: Where do you intend for your children to sleep within relation to your bedroom (i.e. nursery in another room, crib, bassinet in your bedroom, etc.)?