What Can I Say? 2005 Was A Good Year!

Your 2005 Song Is

Feel Good Inc by Gorillaz "Love forever love is free. Let's turn forever you and me." In 2005, you were loving life and feeling no pain.

What Hit Song of 2005 Are You?

A Trip To Charlottesville

Yesterday my wife and I decided to take a nice drive out to Charlottesville to visit Babies 'R Us, just to see what they had and get some ideas. Unfortunately, it wasn't a Babies 'R Us, just a regular Toys 'R Us with a regular baby section. We were misinformed, and it turns out the nearest Babies 'R Us is 2 hours away in Richmond. Still, they had some nice stuff in their baby section, in particular a cherry wood changing table my wife really liked. Here's the subtle difference between my wife and I: As excited as I am, I am not yet at the "changing-table-buying" level of excitement. Glad to have one? Most definately. Excited about it and the purpose for which it exists? Not as much.

Afterwards we traveled across the street to Applebee's for lunch. They changed their menus a bit, and the ham and turkey on sourdough that I enjoy was no longer an option. I settled for the bacon cheeseburger while my wife enjoyed a BBQ chicken sandwich.

Next stop: Sears, where my wife was tipped had a decent maternity selection. Although not showing very much, my wife has progressed enough to the point of needing some stretchy jeans. Sears turned out to be a small letdown, as their materity section was essentially one isle, containing no plus-size materity wear. Onward to the baby section, wher I found something that cracked me up to no end - a baby stroller equiped with its own Ipod docking station! Does that not scream "teenage mother"? Seriously, how many parents-to-be are out there downloading Raffi? I got quite a kick out of it, although to be honest, if I owned an Ipod, I'd probably want to start influencing my spawn to the musical stylings of They Might Be Giants. Not that I won't anyways...

Fortunately for Meredith, the mall where Sears is located also has a store specifically for maternity clothes. Meredith found her plus-size stretchy jeans, as well as an assortment of sweaters and blouses. Even I found something - a book on fatherhood that is quite humerous. I'd been looking for a book that helps us guys figure out what to do and expect and I think I found it. Yay.

Otherthan a quick stop for lemonade and warm pretzels, and another quick stop at Waldens bookstore, and our trip was complete. Back home to Staunton to relax and watch the World Series.

October 15 Revisted

Hard to believe it's been a year already! It still seems like it just happened. It was such an incredible day, and I'm glad so many people were there to share it with us. This has been a great year for Meredith and I, and we're looking forward to celebrating many, many more. I love you Mer!

Back From Our Mini-Vacation

Just got back from Busch Gardens. It was a lot of fun. Being that it was October, they were in full Halloween theme. We went on a boat ride, saw a cheesy music show about a mad scientist, and painted some pottery. Oh, and we got carictures of ourselves done. If you've never been to Busch Gardens here in VA, it's well worth the trip. The park is set up with sections representing different European countries, and each country has food and entertainment reflecting that country. It's a shame we couldn't stay longer in Williamsburg. There's so much to do! I've been there 3 times and I still have visited the Colonial Villiages. Maybe next time.

Off To Busch Gardens!

Meredith and I are traveling to Williamsburg for an overnight stay. We're celebrating our 1 year anniversary by visiting a place we've visited early in our courtship. Be back tomorrow night!

Me? Quick and Agile?

You Are Spider-Man

Quick and agile, you have killer instincts (literally). And that kind of makes up for the whole creepy spider thing.

What Superhero Are You?

Thunder Snow in NY

Wow, when I woke up this morning and put on CNN, I wasn't expecting this. Thankfully, my hometown of Dunkirk got spared, but to all my family and friends in Buffalo, I hope you are all well and safe. Stay warm and enjoy your 3 day weekend!

I'll admit, I'm a little jealous missing out on a thunder snow storm. For anyone who's never seen lightning during a snow storm, it's surreal. Still I'm glad to be here in VA where it's sunny with the crisp fall air my wife and I love so much.

Heartbeat

Meredith and I got to hear the baby's heartbeat today! It was really cool, even if it was only for a brief time. I was expecting something similar to those stuffed animals that they sell now that make the heartbeat sound, but this was a bit faster. Things are good so far. Meredith is feeling better and slowly getting some of her energy back. Next appointment isn't for another month, and the appointment after that will be the next sonogram.

Visit To A Movie Set

I was reminded this past weekend of pictures I've been meaning to put up here for awhile. Over the summer, Meredith and I had the opportunity to visit a movie set. Evan Almighty, the sequel to the Jim Carey flick Bruce Almighty, was being filmed in our little neck of the woods. Unknown to me, they even filmed at the city park blocks away from where we lived. Anyway, part of the set was this gigantic ark that they built in Crozet, about a half hour from us. Meredith and I decided to take a drive out that way to it. It was incredible. It obviously wasn't a fuly built, functional ark, just a side view, but WOW! Even cooler, there was a film crew set up working when we passed by. I don't know if they were filming at that exact moment, but they were obviously planning to that day. We even saw them lead what was either a dog or a wolf off the ark. All in all, it was a fun little adventure, and I look forward to seeing the movie when it comes out next year.

A Family Reunion

My Uncle Paul, Aunt Janice, and Cousins Heide, Kate, and Gail came down to Staunton for a visit on Sunday. They were in DC for a mini-vacation and decided to make a brief side trip and have lunch with me and Merdith. Unfortunately, the weather was miserable all weekend, but in true family fashion that didn't stop them from having a lot of fun. It was great seeing them again - last time was the wedding.

Can anyone explain to me what makes Cracker Barrel so popular down here? Every time we go it's packed and the wait is close to an hour long. OK, Granted it was a Sunday and just around the time people got out of church, but seriously, an hour? That was too long of a wait for my uncle so we ended up going to the Texas Stakehouse next door, and promptly seated I might add. I think Cracker Barrel does it on purpose so people kill time looking at and buying all that junk in their store.

An Excellent Reason To Visit Me

News Virginian: Gas Backwards

Sometimes, life is sweet. I mean really sweet. Last week I went to fill up my car, and for the first time in a very long time, I spent under $20. As the above newslink states, gas price here are incredibly low, most places hovering around the $2.00 mark and most often below. I honestly thought I'd never see gas for under $2.00 again. So to all my family and friends, come for a visit and save on gas!

Catching Up: The Job Situation

As previously stated, I quit my job last week. With a baby on the way, Meredith and I decided that the best thing for the baby would be if Meredith could stay home to take care of it. It just didn't make sense to drop our newborn off at a daycare and then have Meredith go to work at another daycare. (No, they don't take newborns at GARCS.) Besides, we believe there's a mold problem there, which has been affecting my asmastic wife. Problems that cannot be solved by a Catholic school teacher's salary. So I resigned in order to re-enter the technology workforce, where the pay and benefits are significantly better.

Will I miss teaching? Of course, but I have to do what's best for my family. Plus I plan on eventually returning to teaching once I've completed all the necessary coursework for licensure. Besides, the truth is I had major reservations in the direction the school was going in. A new principal came on the job last July, and although he's a bright man with big aspirations for the school, I can't agree with a lot of his philosophy and actions. (Elementary students don't need to learn computers? What?) To his credit, he made my resignation very pleasant by paying me an extra month's salary, ensuring that all our bills will be paid through November.

So far I've had some good prospects, and I feel my unemployment will be a brief one. In the meantime I job-hunt, clean the house, and watch the baseball playoffs (Go anyone but the Yankees!) I'll keep you all posted!

Catching Up: The Baby FAQ

Ok, so for anyone interested, my wife is pregnant. Just to summarize:

When did you find out?
We found out in August, the day before Meredith's birthday. Immediate family and friends found out that very same night.

How's Meredith?
She's doing alright. Morning sickness was kicking her behind, but she's not having it as much now. Currently fighting a bit of bronchitis to boot, so she's been taking more than her fair share of pills and vitamins. Very tired, as to be expected.

When's the due date?
April 17, although I hope it comes just a bit early and ends up being born on Easter, like I was.

Do you know what you're having?
Nope. Right now it's too early to tell. When we are able to know the gender, we're going to try and hold off until the delivery. Meredith isn't very good with surprises, so we'll see if that lasts.

Any names yet?
We've tossed a few around, but nothing has been decided yet. I'll hold off listing actual names for now, but I will say that it has been much easier coming up with girls names than boys names.

Are you excited?
Of course! This is something Meredith and both wanted at some point, and although this particular one wasn't planned, it's a welcomed event.

6 Months

What a difference half a year makes! Much has changed since my last post, so obviously some updates are neccessary.

Major Life Change #1: I am no longer employed as a teacher. I resigned last week Monday. The reason being that I want a significant improvement in financial security, one much more secure than what can be earned by an Catholic School teacher. Why, you may ask? See...

Major Life Change #2: I'm going to be a daddy. We found out in August and both my wife and I are incredibly excited. Due date is April 17th.

Basically, the plan is to find a job that will allow my wife to be a stay-at-home mom. More details on both life changes will be posted later.