March 2019

If it seems like all the pictures this month are of Nick asleep, it could be he's tired from all the moving activity into our new house. Or maybe it's the carbon monoxide coming from our furnace, which has now been inoperable for two months because it was poisoning us. Hard telling.  He hasn't lost his sense of humor, though.  I noticed a shampoo packet on the table from Mr. Bronners, and Nick had quietly scribbled out the 'r' and an 'n' when no one was looking.

He's been somewhat helpful with the move when not being gassed to sleep, such as helping me assemble my new desk.  There were areas so hard to reach, only his thin frame could squeeze in to do the job.  Then he helped me assemble a metal cabinet for the garage. Couldn't have done it without him. 

Nick also had a day at St. Francis, where we have him enrolled to start 7th Grade in the Fall.  They liked him, and he picked the school because they have good chicken nugget in the cafeteria.  Not completely, but so far it seems like a good match, as they have a very career-focused curriculum even starting at grade seven.

A few pics here.

Jason

February 2019

The preparation for moving and finishing the house consumes our time. We did an evening in Detroit again on a Saturday night.  Started at the Detroit Beer Company where we had an amazing dinner, followed by the DSO which played movie themes.  There was a rowdy bunch of guys next to us, even in the balcony, but they didn't ruin the evening... we moved.  The music was captivating, from The Magnificent Seven, to Superman, to Back to the Future.  The last seven minutes was the closing to E.T. which gave me goosebumps.  So after hearing this music, and then seeing Top Gun, Nick decided he wanted to learn the music for piano. His teacher helped him write a solid version, which he can nearly completely play now. I'll sneak of video of him playing eventually.  Along with the war documentaries, he's heavy into planes now.  A coworker sent an old John Wayne war movie, and Nick's watched it a couple of times.

Nick did get some time with friends, from a steak dinner at Blackrock with Jack, to his buddy Aiden who is a little older but has the same passion for trains. He's inspired to Nick to build a train table in our basement.  Soon, but not yet.

Few photos here this month.

Jason

January 2019

Brandi and I attended the North American International Auto Show Charity Preview this year, with Rich and Michelle Clarke. We started the evening at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Party, rode the people mover to the show, then returned to the David Whitney for dinner. It was a good reason to dress up, pull out the tuxedo and coats, and hobnob with the society of Detroit. The champagne is legendarily average, but the party handing out bedroom slippers to the women who attended was a really good idea. It was just nice to get out for an evening with good food and friends.

His birthday was relatively quiet as we recovered from the Christmas holiday. He got a Toledo Walleye jersey, which is kinda cool, but not his passion, either. (Dad thinks it's cool.)

Nick and I took a Saturday trip to Cleveland, visiting the Crawford Museum where they had a Radwood display this month (Radwood originated in California as an event for vehicles from the 80's and 90's.) There was a small war plane display as well, although not enough for Nick. An adjacent museum has an excellent collection of content from WWI, which was impressive. We followed-up the museum with pizza at Citizen Pie, and ice cream at Mitchell's.

Few pictures from here in January.

Jason

November & December 2018

We've been so busy trying to push our house over the finish line that we nearly ignored everything else, including Nick.  At one point he said out loud, "When am I going to get some attention?" It's not that bad, but as an only child, it seems that way.

We had an emergency one evening where we left Nick with Grandpa, so they had an extended bonding experience. Out and about together, Grandpa needed a tissue, which he rarely is caught without a handkerchief.  Nick's advice, "Blow your nose in your sock, that's what I do." I think that goes beyond even a generational gap. Regarding hygiene, Nick discovered the razor, and took it upon himself to shave.  A lot. Places that were not meant to be shaved. Lessons to be learned.

He had a play date with a friend of Brandi's who has a 14-year old son, Aiden (everyone's kid is named Aiden).  Who loves trains. You can imagine the ensuing excitement. The boys hit it off instantly, and Nick got ideas for what he (thinks he) is going to do in our basement for a train table.  We'll set up something for him. He also voluntarily donated all of this small wooden trains, tracks and villages to Carrie's young boys, which I took it all to them for Christmas. Just turning two years old soon, they are coming into the train phase. 

There was a trip to Atlanta for Brandi and Nick, with gifts exchanged, fireworks, and mostly the boys spending time separate from each other on their laptops. We had a small Christmas at home before they drove to Atlanta on Christmas Day, in which Nick got one of the expensive model trains he wanted badly (and then Aunt Megan spoiled him with a second one.) Brandi's cooking and new pajamas, a solid holiday. I went to Cincinnati for two days, which also was mostly eating, Jeff and I anchored at the end of Miranda's bar, watching the action around us. Robin relived her childhood memory with a new inflatable banana, which made for easy commentary the entire day. Finally I had my annual holiday dinner with Donny, but with neither of us in Florida this year, we surrendered the beachfront cocktails for dinner at a cool microbew in Saline called Salt Springs Brewery, built from an old Catholic church. 

Nick and I also practiced more driving before the holiday, and he's nearly ready to go out on his own.  He just needs to talk less and look at the road more. Nick's quote of the month, from the backseat of the car, "Oh God, it's Nickelback!" 

Pictures here, including his school pic.

Jason

October 2018

"Do you agree?" This is Nick's current verbal crutch, uses it in every conversation, drives me nuts, but it's not as bad as some of the stuff I got stuck on as a kid, which I need to remember.  His writing is stronger than his verbals, very strong, in fact.  He's been selected to write a presentation and stand-up in his class, and the content around war planes is well-written, and a good read.

School hasn't been too bad. Too much gym class, says Nick, and I agree. And the usual peddling of crap for Christmas, which I refuse to sell at work. Nick got his first detention after school, for being late to class too many times.

Our activities this month were a bummer, for the most part.  We saw the English version of the opera, "The Magic Flute" at the Valentine Theatre, which we were unanimous in our conclusion, was painful to watch.  Three hours of cackling was too long.  On another weekend, we drove to Alma, MI to ride the Polar Express train to Owosso, MI. The ride was 2 hours each way on the train, 4 hours at the stop, too much time trapped on a train with no heat (just our car) and annoying passengers.  The horrible day of wind and rain toppled a tree over the tracks on the ride back, which cost us another cold hour on the return trip.

Nick intended to skip Halloween this year, then changed his mind and went out in his karate gi at the last minute, realizing it was the best time ever.  The guy who lives on Meadowbrook who grills burgers and hot dogs every year upped his game to ribs and bacon, which was outstanding  Also slipped a photo from Halloween at Morpace in here, as the team dressed up from the move Mean Girls this year, very well done.

He's going to have a beard here soon, with the chin hairs pushing their way through. At least he's consistently wearing deodorant now.

I made a short trip to Cinci for Noah's homecoming, where I watched most of the game in the pouring rain, but the trip was well worth the moments: I helped him tie his necktie so he was ready for the presentation on the field, and saw him with five girls under his umbrella protecting them from the storm.  So proud of the kid!

The picture here is Nick with Amber's youngest, Joey.  More photos this month.

Jason