Turtle

October- Rob asks “wanna go to the Steelers/Browns game”  I say, absofuckinglutely.  Reminder, in the beginning of October it was still pretty warm- maybe jeans and t-shirt.  One week before the game it was, I believe 50 degrees.  By the time the week of the game rolled around…not so much.  Heavy wind advisories, cold, cold, cold.  Add to this Cleveland- the dump of Ohio- Lake effect winds on top of a day in which the high would be 20.

No matter- we’ll be ready!  Layers are the key- WRONG.  I don’t care how many layers- if you didn’t have an arctic snow suit you were going to be cold.  God bless the fans that made it to the end.  We made it until half-time.

As we entered the stadium, hand came out of glove to get ticket to enter- that hand never recovered.  We finally make it to the TOP of the stadium- 8 rows behind us- and then no more seating- we decide to grab a beer then grab seats.  2 feelings as we were waiting for beers- hurry the hell up old man- and sorrow.  This guy looked to be 65, one glove off to open and poor the beer (that hand never stopped shaking) and he was freezing- top of the stadium- open air behind him, cold beer in hand- wind howling!  OMG- high praise to him for not telling them the next day to suck it- from the warmth of his home.

Find our seats- couple drinks of beer (2 min. pass) go to finish last inch of beer… what the H?… slush?  now that’s cold…

Not many people around us- no wind blockage- top of stadium…

Browns fan behind us and Steeler fan beside us going at it a little- I, ahem, thought the brownies fan made the best point when the Steeler fan pointed out their record, and previous season ending status- brownies fan “well, your the ones getting beat by the team that has only won one game”. Nuff said- Steelers sucked-

Glad I went- great experience- hang with good friend I haven’t seen for a while (thanks again Rob)- — do it again, sure- after I hit Dick’s and buy some snow boarding gear and goggles!

Final thought- hope the gal that almost knocked us over on the way to our seats (beginning of game) stumbling, rumbling, bumbling from drinks- is not still frozen to her seat and made it home without frost bite…

Read a good book-

So, no school Monday. Hannah had, a month ago, with Mindy’s help, decided she wanted to start a book club. Awesome!!
We planned it out, knew who we were going to invite, and knew what book she wanted to read.
I think the day was a total success. 5 friends came over- the activities were: discuss the book (we had questions plannned out), go online- the book had a web site all about the series- we were also fortunate through borrowing that each girl had a laptop to use-then they would decorate a poster board each, however they wanted. All went well. We provided lunch and snacks.
Great group of kids. Next month a different girl is in charge. Hope they all stick with this. It was a lot of fun.

Gotta go read James and the Giant Peach.

Going Stag

A long running tradition is that on the Friday after Thanksgiving it is time for Coley’s Reunion.
What’s that? What is Coley’s?! Ok- Coley’s was:
A dive of a “stag” bar that my dad and his friends would hang out. No women, no poles, no viewing booths- not that kind of stag. Like a modern day “He-man Woman Haters Club”. Minus Buckwheat.
Eat chili, burgers, bean soup. Swear, bitch, moan- be guys.
Since Coley’s closed some 20 years ago the boys just haven’t been the same. So, now they have a warehouse space- decorate with memorabilia, cook up the secret chili and bean soup recipes, add a (little) beer and there you have it.
They also hold an auction that night an the money raised goes to charities and scholarships. Good causes.
The men responsible for this kindness were- years ago Jaycees, they are now the Civic Club. For a glorified He-Man Woman Haters Club, they are very generous to the community and do a lot of great things. As a side bonus they get to hang with their buddies, eat, drink and act like kids.
Glad I’m a small part of it.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving pretty much same as every year. Start at my older sister’s house. The crowd changes somewhat- mostly on m brother in laws side. This year my younger sister and her family couldn’t be there. Missed you Howell’s. I wasn’t the same.
Then off to the inlaws! Thi always goes good as well. Very fortunate in the family I married in to, in that we all get along. Nothing exciting, nothin out of the ordinary.
This simple post is just a reminder to myself, that on this day of thanks… I am truly blessed and thankful to be living the dream.

Thank you

A personal goal of mine has always been to be mindful and appreciative of the life that God has blessed me with- hence, the title “Living the Dream”.  I truly believe in what really matters in life, and to that end I am, living the dream.  Between my family and friends I am truly blessed in the things that matter.

I am blessed with a loving family, happy and healthy… The friends I have are true friends- thank you.

Please try to take time and in some small way be thankful for the life you have- friends and family.  Take time to let them know- they will appreciate it more than you could ever know.  Just an honest “thank you” to the people in your life will make a difference in theirs.

When you find yourself getting down about how your life may be going try to remember, it could be worse…

For any situation, I believe there is something that, could be worse.  Take the time to try and find the positive- not always easy, but you will feel better for it and so will those around you.

Run Rabbit Run

Tues. right after Columbus weekend- Board Meeting…
Wed.- ran to Cleveland to have 4 screws put in H’s skates. Yes, Cleveland- only an hour from work, then about 2 hours home. Screws took 10 minutes.
Thurs.- skating- met and picked up H, so didn’t have to run home, then skating then home. Arrive home about 7:30.
Sat.- Busy day- Hockey and Skate Competition. Had to split up with Mindy for this one. I took E to hockey from 9-11, Mindy took H to competition- Cuyahoga Heights- about 1 1/2 hrs. from home. They had to leave by 7, we had to leave by 8 AM.
Soon as E was done (10:30) we headed to catch up with the girls and have a picnic in the van.
H had to skate at 9 AM and then again at 3:30…
E and I spent couple hours in the library, luckily, right next to the rink.
Mindy and H watched other girls skate. My parents made it up which was nice- this was Hannah’s first compulsory competition.

How did it go? 6th out of 7, and 3rd out of 4. The 3rd got her on the podium and a metal!
She wants to do every competition from now till May- one each month.
Guess I better keep eating carrots.

Joe & O’Charley

As part of the Celiac Conference in Columbus, I stay the weekend. Couple reasons- I have a good friend, since high school, that actually lived with me and my now wife, when we lived in FLA and another high school friend that now lives back in Columbus. I also have a school board conference that I attend on the following Monday.
On saturday, after the Celiac Conference I went to my friends and hung with him and his family for a few hours. Then we went to watch THE Ohio State University Hockey team. I had never been to a college hockey game- what fun. Great seats- bout 6 rows back from the glass. Gotta be honest, 1/2 way through the first period, thought we’d be leaving early. Buckeyes fought back and it was a great game. They won in the end!
Left the college hockey game, headed back to Chris’ house- couple beers and watched the Pens play… that game could have gone better. 3 or 4 to 0, when I went to bed. Woke up next day 5-0 Pens lose (glad I went to bed).
Had a great time visiting, but the most fun was playing with their son, Ian. What a great kid. Non stop talking and playing. He let me wear his pirate hat and he wore Woody. Countless times that boy made me laugh!
Sunday we were headed for Trader Joe’s, so I could grab some GF (Gluten Free) food for Hannah and some wine. All weekend I had left my keys on their kitchen counter- why not?- I didn’t need them… Well today, when I grabbed my skates from trunk- in case we had time- I put keys in my pocket. BIG mistake. We no more got to Joe’s and his cell rang… wife needed out of garage and guess whose car was in front of the garage door? OK it MIGHT have been mine. Trader Joe’s 20 min. away, and now we had to run back. We were also sposed to meet another high school friend for lunch (near Joe’s). Luckily Phil was able to meet us somewhere else. O’Charley’s for lunch it is. Never been there before. Not too bad. I got the mini burgers- more about them later.
Just like old times- smartassedness, sarcasm, and bustin’ balls! Always good to get together with like minded friends… Didn’t take long for the 2 on one to kick in- I was the one- bustin me cause I couldn’t finish my 4th mini burger and I got a “to go” box for it. By the way- it really hit the spot, cold, about an hour and a half later-

Monday the board conferences went well- heard some good information, which is not always the case- as you know if you have ever attended a conference where it is up to you to choose from 10 topics with only a brief description to go by.

Looking forward to the same weekend next year- Phil hope you are available for lunch- maybe the Jackets or Buckeyes will be playing hockey too.

Celiac Conference

Since our daughter was diagnosed with Celiac Disease 5 years ago we have attended a conference at Nationwide Children’s Hospital Conference in Columbus, OH in November.

Celiac Disease, if you don’t know is an immune deficiency in which the body, intestines, can’t process wheat, barley, rye, or oats- or any variation of…

This means no “traditional”- bread, pizza, pretzels, some chips, or pasta- just to mention a few.  Luckily- celiac has come a LONG way and there are gluten free options to all of these.  Most of which are really good- as in, you wouldn’t know the difference.  Except for bread- that is a tough one- that goes for buns too.

As a family, we eat gluten free- probably 90% of the time.  We have all done Hannah’s diet with her at different times.  Especially in the beginning.  2 reasons: she wanted us to and so we could see what it was like through her eyes, or stomach.

The conference is great- my wife and I get to stay up to date on new info. and Hannah gets to hang with other kids with the same disability.  We eat gluten free food- so does Hannah- which is great for knowing what she does and does not like.  The credit card does take a hit though.  FYI, in general Gluten Free (GF) food costs 3 times as much, if not more than “regular” food.  For example- bread- let’s say is $1.00… GF bread is $6.00-$8.00.  Yeah, exactly.

Since our daughter was diagnosed- we are very fortunate- labeling laws have changed- which make determining if food is ok for Hannah to eat or not.  It now has to be on the label if the food, ingredients, etc. contain any form of gluten.

Also, food you buy is so much better- for example there is a pizza crust we buy that is awesome- I like it to also make sandwiches- when I do her diet with her.  Pancake mixes=awesome.  Still looking for good bread to make a sandwich!

A great blog and podcast can be found at: http://holdthegluten.net/ if you are interested.

When we first found out it H had Celiac Disease, was due to a great pediatrician, (Dr. Hoffman- thank you!).  How did he know?  Hannah wasn’t thriving.  She was the same weight as she was the year before- looking back at photos, it now seems so obvious…. her shoe size was also the same as the previous year.  Our baby wasn’t growing and we had no idea.  She had the bone density at age 5 as a 3 1/2 year old.

Once she started the GF diet she put on 20 lbs. and grew 6 inches in 6 months.  And she had energy!  What a difference.

If you have been following this blog at all you know Hannah is doing well and thriving- if not… read on.  It is a lifestyle change- not always easy, but necessary, for her long term health.  She knows what will happen if she doesn’t follow her GF diet- 2 1/2 hours of vomiting and diahrea… no fun- I’m sure.

BIG weekend in Columbus…

I have to get caught up, but that will take a couple posts.  Once these are done I think it will make sense why there has been a couple weeks between posts…

In the name of health

Around May I decided, enough is enough… Tired of the 20 extra pounds I was carrying around and the lack of energy I had.  My solution was to take up running.  Nothing crazy mind you, just a way to try and get into better shape.  I needed a motivator so I got a friend to agree to do a 2 mile run with me.  First run was the Hall of Fame 2 mile race.

I don’t believe I have ever actually run a 1/2 mile let alone 2 miles.  So, for me this was quite a distance.  I started my training on the ellipto that was sitting in the basement.  First time, 3 minutes- thought I might die!  Slowly, but surely I was able to up my time.  I soon found out that there is a bit of difference between an ellipto and hard pavement.  The Hall of Fame run went well and I was actually able to get my 2 nephews into the run.  We won’t discuss how they did…

This time was to be a 4 mile run on Halloween.  Would not have been a big deal if I would have kept running and training.  However, I got sick, my son got sick, my wife got sick, and life in general, so… short version I hadn’t run in at least a month.

On the Monday before the run my sister calls and asks if I was still running because her son, one of the nephews from the 2 miler, was planning to run.  Well, since I had asked him to run, I couldn’t back out…could I?  So, I ran that Monday night- 3 miles- my legs were sore till Friday (run is Saturday).

I wake up early Saturday morning.  Cold, raining, and WINDY!  Would we still run?  Phone never rang with a nephew wanting out, so off I go.  It actually stopped raining by run time, but was still cold.  Off we go.

In the first 1/4 mile- I thought I was done… breathing hard, legs hurt a little.  Kept going- now feeling pretty good.  At the 2 mile mark- I swore it should have been the 3 mile mark… man, that will mentally send you back.

Coming around the last turn (1/4 mile to go) there was a man down, 2 people around him, and an ambulance… My sister tells me after the race, he broke his ankle and she could hear the snap!  I honestly did not think I would finish- running- at least.

I did finish.  4 miles 35 minutes, a little better than front half of the group… Very happy.  Now I need that next carrot in front of me to keep me going.  I got a long way to go.