Yes, we bought one of those 10 dollar ride shots because the look of terror on the boys faces was too hard to resist. I posted two groups of photos up on flickr. One from the Hershey Park and Counting Crows show and one from yesterday in Strasburg and Lancaster County. Nicole and I are really tired now but I guess we are off to the pool at some point today.

Comforting Look

We got home around midnight from the concert on Saturday and all the parking spaces near our room at the Hershey Lodge were full. I dropped Nicole and the kids off at the room and took the van to a spot in a nearby lot. When I got back to the room I opened the door and the boys were in their bed looking all sleepy and Sam gave me this look and smile like he was sooo happy that I came back. I told him I'd be back in a few minutes but I think little things like me actually returning, re-assured him that he could trust my word. We all slept pretty well last night.

We are back in Virginia tonight after a full day of trains and Dutch Amish people. I have a ton of pictures to post tomorrow and some video I will try to add to Google later this week.

Landmine

Ok, I'll try not to mis-spell anything this time but hey, it's tough writing with rug rats crawling all over you. The boys didn't sleep at all last night during the show. They actually behaved fairly nicely during the crows set and were excited to get on stage for Hanginaround. They both got tamborines and did a little dancing for the crowd. Here we are doing a landmine shot with uncle Adam on his bus. We all had a really fun day and will be heading down to Strausburg PA to see a bunch of trains today.

Counting crows

Counting crows
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

The boys are much more engaged now.

Goo goo dolls

Goo goo dolls
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

The boys watched two songs from this band. They are waiting to rock with adam I guess.

The best thing about hotel rooms is bed jumping. Don't get to do that at home. We just got back from the park and are taking a little nap before the show. It started to pour the minute we got on the bus back to the hotel so we lucked out there. We ended up spending three and a half hours at the park and got a lot of ride in. It started getting crowded the last hour we were there and the boys were getting fussy, so we left. On the bus ride to the park at nine this morning, the bus driver was driving past the Giant Center where the concert is tonight and said on the loud speaker that the Calling Crows and Goo Goo Gals where playing there tonight. The bus driver wasn't so hip..

The boys favorite ride

The boys favorite ride
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Go figure, a race car ride is their favorite. That and the coal cracker, a log flume type thing. Its hot here and time to head back to the room.

Made it to Hershey

Made it to Hershey
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

We drove up to Hershey PA at around two and got here at 5:30. We checked in at the Hershey Lodge and took a bus over to the world of chocolate building where we took this weird advertising laden ride that described how chocolate is made and is a super food. Not really on the super food part but it was a fun ride for the boys but sam was afraid that he may get sucked up in a tube like augustus clump from willy wonka. Here we are getting some dinner at the hotel. We are going to hit the park early and then see the crows tomorrow night. Wish us luck, its almost 9 and we haven't eaten yet. The boys could explode.

Dinner and a Show

Jimmy T, or now also known as T Dog took Nicole and I out to dinner and to the Shakespeare Theater last night to see Love's Labor's Lost. I fairly modern redition of the classic play about a king and three companions (in this play, some jiggy rock group) commiting to three years of study and foregoing bodily pleasures and the company of women. Then four french chicks show up and the rest is madness. It was a little slow in parts but the music was a nice touch and got things rockin a bit. We had a couple drinks and ate at IndeBlu.

Kumie and Joseph watched the boys and seemed to have a good time with them. I don't think they got to bed until around 10pm but that's ok, they slept much later this morning. I guess at some point last night, the boys decided to pee in the hallway to show off but it seemed to be all cleaned up now.

Loves labor lost

Loves labor lost
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

I wanna be a cowboy baby


Grandma bought the boys cowboy outfits in Santa Fee a few weeks ago. Here they are sporting the new garb with delight. I don't know why mothers and grandmothers like to see grandsons dressed up like cowboys but the kids sure like it. I used to have cowboy gear when I was the boys age I believe but I never had a horse.

I got home real late last night and I'm dragging today. I was bumped from my original red eye flight from LAX for some reason and my only choices were to get on an earlier 4:45pm flight or take one Monday morning. I didn't like the Monday morning option so I scooted up to LAX and made the 4:45. I missed the beach party but I got back to Virginia around 1am. The beach party would have been fun but I did get a bunch of time to hang with my council friends on Friday and Saturday.

I attended a customer experience council planning meeting on Friday, had dinner with the council board and family on Friday night, went sailing with some council members on Saturday and had dinner with a larger group of council members and some of Phil Terry's high school friends on Saturday night. (Phil is the owner of Creative Good and founder of the Customer Experience Council concept)

All and all it was a good trip and I posted a few photos from it on Flickr. Nothing all that interesting but it gives you a flavor of Oceanside California. http://www.flickr.com/photos/homerclees/sets/72157594210236973/

Hot day in socal

Hot day in socal
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

So i drove down 101 to see some sights and get something to eat this afternoon and then went sailing with some folks from the councils at 4. Just got back from dinner and going to bed soon. I met Rachel's boss at dinner tonight. Kind of ramdom but Phil knows her from when she lived in NY and Room and Board is on one of his associate councils.



This is a shot of the beach in Carlsbad. Its hot here.

Highway 101

Highway 101
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

See, I'm really working

See, I'm really working
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Its been a while and it's a little weird.

Oceanside marina suites

Oceanside marina suites
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

The flight went well and I'm at the hotel. I have a meeting now and dinner later. Beautiful day here. I wonder how cold the water is?

Tower off the wing

Tower off the wing
Originally uploaded by homerclees.

Ive never seen the airport this busy. It's just nasty but i used my United status to get me past all the lines. Their are going to be a lot of people missing flights this morning. The curb side baggage check had a 50 person line and that's never busy because they charge two bucks a bag. Anyway, i'm on the plane and hope to be leaving soon. Miss momma and the boys already.

New Favorite

So the boys new favorite DVD is the Honda Odyssey feature overview that came with the new van. I got back from the gym this morning and Grandma, Dylan and Sam were learning all about the features and functionality of the Honda Odyssey. They probably know more about the engine performance and the eight way adjustable seat than I do. I guess if I can't figure out the voice commands for the navigation system the boys will help me out and set it up for me. It reminds me that the boys also seem to like the box a toy came in more than the toy itself. Think about it, a box for a car would be awesome.

Grandma Linda and Grandpa Gil are both here now and I'm off to Oceanside California in the morning. Should be a good trip. Just a planning meeting tomorrow afternoon, some sailing on Saturday and a beach party Sunday. Oh yeah, a dinner each night as well. Lots of good networking opportunities all weekend long. I'm bringing the good camera, so I hope to have "good" photos from the whole trip.

Ouch!

We went to get the new momma car today at Sheehy Honda and it turned out to be really painful. Not only did they "mis-quote" the residual and money factor, we ended up spending two hours in that pathetic dealership. We ended up going home with the car but if I had more time to spend shopping and we didn't have to have it taken care of by next Thursday, (and I'm gone most of the rest of the week) I would have walked away. Basically, I got the same deal another dealer offered yesterday and basically what a couple people quoted me on the Internet.

I went back to Sheehy because I had a good experience last time and they had a slightly better deal than the others. I'm all about simple buying experiences and if you make it pleasant, I'll buy from you again. Sheehy is dead to me now. The deal ended up costing me a few more hundred dollars and I will NEVER do business with them again. They lost a customer forever for a few hundred dollars. On top of that, they get paid by Honda for positive surveys that they send out after the sale. I have names and examples of poor service, so they can kiss that money goodbye.

It's a really cool car with Navigation, dvd player, rear view camera and all sorts of other techno goodies not to mention all the new safety features to keep the kiddies safe. I just hate that dealership now. If you live in the Northern Virginia area, stay away from Sheehy Honda.

The boys got some Pirates of the Carribean toys from a happy meal or somewhere today and hid in the closet to to scare me. They really like the first movie and talk about Captain Jack Sparrow all the time. They also now love Pee Wee's Big Adventure. I recorded it last week and they've watched it a half dozen times now. They don't seem as thrilled about Pee Wee's Playhouse but maybe they will warm up to it. I like it when they want to watch things that I find entertaining. Even the 20th time I've watched it. Baby Einstien videos were getting a little old.  

My life and the car wash seem to be linked in some very odd way. In this article from the Washington Examiner, you can see me watching the minivan getting its last wash with me being the owner. It seems I'm either taking pictures of and at the car wash or someone is taking a picture of me there. Anyway, we are getting a new mama car tomorrow with better gadgets on it. Should be fun.