Rainy Start

The boys flag team got a win in the first game of the season. Coach Dylan and Sam did a nice job against a good team.

New Season

Preliminary workouts for the 18-19 rugby season have begun.

Sophomores

Summer vacation seemed kinda short.

Eagle Football

Neither boy is playing this year but we went to see their friends scrimmage Mount Vernon last night. Dylan switched to Rugby over the summer and Sam is still recovering from an ankle injury last spring. Sam missed the action, Dylan has found something he enjoys more. I'm sure Sam will see the field next season.

Last Days of Summer

The house repairs are progressing with the kitchen floor basically done and the hall bathroom getting close with some hiccups. They determined they have to move the plumbing a bit to make the new cabinet work. Could be done today. In the mean time, the boys and I went to top golf to hit some balls and have lunch. Perfect late summer cool air made it a great afternoon.

It’s a Kick

Kicking is part of rugby and Dylan loves to kick.

South Station

Been in Boston the last couple days. Spent a bunch of time in hotel meeting rooms but got out and walked to Chinatown for dinner tonight. It's a crisp 65 degrees and feeling like fall. I'm looking forward to fires back home.

Sam Cheeks

Sam in similar shape after the surgery. He was a little goofy after waking up from the anesthetic. Dylan was a lot more thankful. He must have thanked the dentist and nurse 3 times each.

Ice Cheeks

Dylan is recovering well from his wisdom teeth extraction. They seem to have gotten pretty lucky so far. Not too much pain.

Runnin the Woods

Ragnar was a big success last weekend. No one was eaten by a bear. The ladies had fun too.

Ragnar

Nicole is in the West Virginia wilderness sleeping in this tent and taking turns running 7-8 miles every few hours. Her team of four has to run 150 miles over 24-30 hours or so. That means in the middle of the night on trails. Sounds like fun, right. The boys and I are cheering from home.

Hangin Around

Adam was in town with the band on wednesday and the Lorenger's John Ned us for the show. (Ava too). Good night but I was tired yesterday.

Santa Fe 2018

He's a link to all the Flickr photos from last weeks trip. Having a quiet weekend. 

https://flickr.com/photos/76997459@N00/sets/72157693656728890

Smart Appliances

My dehumidifier has an app and can be controlled by my Alexa and by Echo devices.  It also sends me an email when the bucket if full.  How cool is that?

Dear Customer,

Your Water Bucket is full. Please empty the bucket.

Appliance Name: Dehumidifier
Serial: KN81710831
Model: FGAC7044U100

Thank you!

Frigidaire Support Team
email: smarthelp.us@frigidaire.com
phone: +1-800-311-4667

Training

The boys are not playing any heavy sports this fall so they are working with trainers at our gym to become beasts. I bought a years worth of sessions to get them in a place where they are stronger and understand how to workout for a lifetime of fitness.

Sam isn't playing football because of a nagging ankle problem but needs to work hard to get in shape for basketball in November and football in 2019. He's bummed about football this year but understands he needs to concentrate of Healing right now.

Dylan isn't playing football because he discovered that rugby is more fun and inclusive. The rugby season starts in January but they start training in October. He also needs to get in shape for basketball in November.

This was day one but they already seem to like it. It made me smile to see them getting expert direction on how to get better.

Familiar Spot

We took a picture in the same spot outside a restaurant we ate at when we were in New Mexico back in 2010. The boys are much older now. Grandpa and I are the same.

Step One

Kitchen and basement ceilings being repaired. Floors and bathrooms are up at some point in the future.

Golden Meadow

Glad to be on Top

Lake Nambe

Top of the mountain

Selfie Attempt

We got up early and drove up to Ski Santa Fe to hike up the Nambe Lake trail. The parking lot was at about 9,000 feet and the lake was 3.5 miles away and at 11,250 feet. This was a tough hike that everyone was able to manage pretty well. It had some really steep parts and pretty rocky at times. We followed a steam up for about a mile and a half of the hike and came out into a beautiful mountain lake. Coming down was dicey at times but we all felt like we accomplished something when we got down.

Dylan on top

Tough vertical to get up here.

Sam on top

Great views at tent rocks.

Top of the Trail

We got there early and had the place to ourselves.

Tent Rocks

From yesterday's fantastic hike in the Tent Rocks National Monument.

Boy and his phone

Linda and Gil's backyard before dinner.

Training

4 mile trail hike may help Nicole with the upcoming trail Ragnar.

Shades

Great hike this morning on a trail starting at about 8900 feet in the Santa Fe national forest. Tree covered and cool with a little stream at the bottom of a 900 foot elevation change. The boys are wearing the shades they bought in Minnesota.

Big Sky

Another great sunset out west.

Out and About

A museum stop to see an exhibit that Linda helped curate and a visit to Loretto Chapel before walking the plaza.

Watching the storm

Dylan watching the storm roll in at Linda and Gil's place. A ton of rain just fell.

Long Day

Got up at 3am to catch our flight, hung out at O'Hare for a few hours then drove up from ABQ to Santa Fe. The flights both arrived early and the drive up was easy. Nicole and I did a quick nearby hike to stretch our legs a bit. I'm going to bed pretty early tonight.

Soggy Saturday

The Fort Hunt Warriors take third in the Virginia state rugby 7's tournament. It rained during all 5 games, at times, torrentially. That's how rugby is done.

Hints of Fall

Found a nice 3 mike wooded hike at the park where Dylan is playing in the state 7's Rugby tournament. They won their first game and I found the first Leif of fall.

Trail Running

Seems like trails were meant to be walked on.

Rugby Nights

Tuesday and today were basketball games and rugby practice back to back. Dylan is getting a good workout on these days. His second 7's tournament is Saturday. It was supposed to be in Norfolk but was changed to a park a few miles away. That's a nice break.

Shorts

Dylan will have to get used to the short rugby shorts after many years of long basketball shorts.

Boys of Summer

Dylan got his first taste of rugby and play with the Fort Hunt Warriors today. He scored in his first appearance and played well in each game. He looks happy out there.

Family Photo

The whole crew.

Minnesota Summer

Just got back from another great trip to Minnesota and lake country. We had decent weather and tons of fun fishing, swimming and going out for dinner. I hope we can make the trip up north work next year. The boys sports schedules are getting complicated.

Bobbers

Great day to swim in Sylvan.

Tree Monkies

I played golf with Marsh and Finn while the rest of the clan went zip lining. They had fun, as did we.

Man Catch Fish

The boys caught some fish. Small fish and Dylan's could have been bait for a bigger fish but they had a good time. Karen caught a big northern and Finn caught a really big bass. Good day on the lake.

Mae

The last snow up north was eight weeks ago.

Gull Lake Selfie

Very good dinner last night at Maddens Lodge. Perfect first night up north.

First Night Dinner

We tried a new restaurant at Maddens. Very good with great views of Gull lake.

Healing Waters

I think it's important to swim in natural bodies of water every so often. Lake Sylvan was cold today but refreshing and recharged my Minnesota mojo.

Warriors

Dylan is working out with the Fort Hunt Warriors Rugby Club tonight and appears to be loving it. One could argue it's a more civilized game than American football.

Bye Bye Freshman

Last tests and the beginning of summer.

Finals

The boys start finals next week and then freshman year will be over. They both had a good first year as Eagles.

Search for he Source

Woke up to water coming down from the ceiling, on to the kitchen floor and onto the basement. We have not found the source yet but Servpro has been here to deliver fans and dehumidifiers and contractors are coming on Tuesday.

Last Orchestra Concert

Sam's last hurrah on viola.