Introducing our Goddaughter!

Adro and I had the honor of serving as Godparents to Lydia this weekend! I even got to light a Godfather candle!

We are so proud of Lydia.... Thank you Brent and Rosalina for asking us to have this honor!

Congrats Evey, newest member of drama club!

Evey's 11th birthday party

Great news here at Casa de Jones... Evey tried out for, and made the cut, for Eudora Elementary Drama Club!

It was really a foregone conclusion... if you saw her perform the try-out speaking part, you'd know. She had it down, with the memorization, the body language, her tone... we were all really impressed with the preparation she did.

We'll let you know when there is a performance!

Congrats Evey!!!

Happy 11th birthday, Evey!

Happy birthday to my Evey Jones!!!

Sounds like she had an awesome day. The 5th graders sang "Happy Birthday" to her at lunch... she had a try-out for drama club that sounds like it went well... then we ended the evening at Tres Mexicanas, who only had one waiter while we were there... but we still got the sombrero and fried ice cream! (Surpassing our low expectations!)

Happy birthday Sis! Proud of you.

Evey addresses... SCHOOL BOARD

As a fifth grader, Evey and her class has started a newspaper... and they're doing great! Evey's teacher (Mr. Stadlaman) asked Evey if she would address the school board regarding this project. Watch and see. I can't even begin to tell you how proud I am. Evey is more business savvy at age 10 than many 30-year-olds!

A JLA weekend

Pretty good weekend here. Lervik came and visited for a few days. I took the kids to see JLA Saturday morning. 

Boyd loved it, Evey and I weren't real happy with it.

Got a good photo with the team, though.

***

I'm trying to write something for work right now (not having much success) so I'll turn the blog over, for the first time ever... to Boyd Atticus!

Take it away Boydee!

***

Dad is weyrd

Dad has weird toots

Evey is luvubul

Coco is crazy

Mom is th best

Boyd is umazenr then dad

Boyd & Dexter

These two dudes were happy to chill at Vail's 2nd birthday party... And they are looking forward to bigger birthday partys soon!!

Yeah buddy

Moment in time

Happy Halloween, 2017

Really fun Halloween here in Eudora... despite the cold, cold weather (snow flurries around 5 p.m.)

Evey went as a Day of the Dead person... Boyd was Dash and I was Mr. Incredible... and Regan hung out with us again this year and she was a unicorn.

I was excited to open the garage for trick or treaters, then less excited when the weather was lousy. But when Judy and Virginia came over, I tried to make it happen... got the space heater, a few blankets, and you know what? It wasn't that bad in the garage! Adrianne played Halloween music on the bluetooth speaker, had an animated Halloween movie on the flatscreen... it was a cool spot!

I think everyone was happy. An abbreviated evening, based on the weather. I wonder if Evey will participate next year? This might have been my last year taking both kids... how crazy would that be? But I get it.

I know Boyd will be excited for Halloween next year, as a 1st grader. But I wonder if Evey will be interested...?

Hello? That you?

Busy weekend here. GOOD WEEKEND HERE.

Saturday we barely left the house but were busy all day. Just chores and such. Finished the day with Uno in the garage, then movie night.

Sunday, kids went to church with mom while I worked around the house. The to-do list was DESTROYED but now it's 830 and I can barely keep my eyes open.

(I did take time for a quick cruise in the Impala, to the Lawrence Brewery. Good beer, great atmosphere, bad service.)

Tomorrow, I'm doing my first 'Watch Dog' volunteer service at EES. All day long. Literally took a day of vacation.

Wish me luck...

GOOD WEEKEND

Celebrated 11 years of marriage... end of soccer... round of golf, hit the pin on No. 2, ended with a birdie on No. 9... KU vs. Mizzou with Rockhold... hanging with Teresa and Ted... big storms... lunch in the garage... Buckhunter with Boyd... haircuts... science experiments... dinner at Free State... grilled steaks...

GOOD WEEKEND.

Big kid

Came with me to a friend's little league football game... got in trouble for opening then truck's tailgate on his own.... volunteered mom and Evey to come with us to see the haunted yard....

While we were walking downtown, a parent whose kid we used to coach saw Boyd and said, "Wow, he's getting big!"

He gets in trouble sometimes. But he's a good big kid.

Show me the world as I love to see it

Attention people of earth: there is no good reason for the photos in this post other than as a reminder to my own self (and ego) that I once caught a 5-foot barracuda deep sea fishing off the Atlantic coast of Florida.

I would like to go deep sea fishing again someday. Someday I will.

***

Do me (and yourself) a favor: put on good headphones (or find a good sound system, where you can turn it up) and put on the third track of Radiohead's OK Computer, "Subterranean Homesick Alien." If you don't get Radiohead, this track will not only help you see the light, but it will lift your entire spirit. 

No drugs needed. The music itself is all you need, to take you away from this planet.

If you are ever at my house and would like me to help you with this, we can do it in person, we'll play it on the jukebox and just be quiet for a minute. It's the kind of peace we all need in our current America.

(A lot of the rest of the album is terrifying, btw.)

***

I'm going to see the Gordon Hayward broken leg injury in my mind for the rest of my life. Dammit, I was really looking forward to seeing how that kid was going to play in Boston. He's an ideal Celtic... and just a great player, playing for his old college coach. That Butler team almost upset Duke. Hayward almost hit that half-court shot to pull off the upset... I hope it's not a career ender.

That's the rough part of sports, when the big storylines get interrupted by reality. This rarely happens in pro wrestling, and happens even less often in the telenovellas.

***

So we had the kids' parent/teacher conferences today.

Evey again was raved about. Straight As. Excellent reader. Attentive student. Demonstrates the proper "life skills" needed to succeed.

So proud of her. I don't know how a 5th grader can be so studious and mindful, but that's Evey. Happy that she's doing so good!

Boyd also had a really good review. Academically he's one of the best in the class. His counting and reading is beyond the kindergarten level.

The teacher reluctantly mentioned that there has been a time or two that Boyd wasn't good at sharing... but that didn't bother me (or her) much because as she mentioned... it's a bunch of boys in the class, and sometimes it gets a little competitive. 

Glad Boyd isn't passive. We'll work on the politeness later, when the rest of the boys have learned it as well.

***

Billy Corigan saw a shape shifter.

***

Adrianne is really excited to read a book she saw reviewed in the LJW this week, called "The Hole." We asked Alexa for some direction on who wrote this book, but we weren't real clear on the author's name...

Anyway, Adro got it figured out and saw that she could order the book for $25, or buy it on the Amazon Kindle for $2. "Which one was is the Kindle 2?" she asked me.

Well, that's tough to answer. I mean, it turns out our Kindles have Kindles. Perhaps we're not as literary here in the Jones household as we like to think. Or perhaps we're related to an Amazon employee. Or maybe it's a combination of both?

But, good news, babe. I found "Kindle 2" and it's charged. Let me know how the book is.

Perhaps you'll listen to Subterranean Homesick Alien with me soon?

  

Celebrating Jett & Boydee b-days

We had a great weekend and a highlight was going to my sister's place and celebrating Boyd's 6th birthday and Jett's 15th birthday!

If you don't mind... here's a recap of my stellar weekend...

Bart and I at QOTSA

QOTSA in action

Pixies at Midland

***

Friday started off with perhaps my most anticipated concert of the year... Queens of the Stone Age at the Crossroads in KC. 

I just battled with thousands in Chicago (at Riot Fest) to see them, and I bet I never got closer than 150 yards away. At Crossroads? I was maybe 30 yards away, and comfortable. Tickets were $40 plus service fees.

Bart and I hit the show and had a blast. Royal Blood opened. 

***

Saturday Boyd had a soccer game at 9 a.m. 

The other team had a lot of kids... and we had enough to field a team. But we dominated most of the game, and the kids played great. We even got Julian, the baby of the team, to play for a little bit.

Boyd was kicking the heck out of the ball, he's got a big foot and he's starting to enjoy using it. As coach, I'm encouraging him to let it fly. While he didn't score any of our three goals, he was arguably our best player on the field, as he's a defensive stopper.

Lip and I at Midland

Came home, Adrianne made an awesome breakfast. There were storms all over, but none of them materialized so Boyd and I hung out in the garage and outside. Eventually I got the courage to mow, and got the front and back mowed before the storms came that afternoon.

Judy took the kids to a play that afternoon. Adrianne and I chilled out at the house, eventually watching family YouTube videos in the garage while it dumped rain outside. I left the garage doors open... felt cool to be sitting in the garage enjoying TV while the weather was stormy right outside.

I got so sleepy Saturday night, I fell asleep while changing channels on the TV. Literally dropped the remote while my arm was outstretched. That woke me up and I went straight to bed. 

***

Sunday Adro and the kids went to church. I relaxed, then got busy.

Adrianne got Boyd a new bed, and the boxes had been sitting downstairs for almost a week. It was time to take them on.

Got the bed assembled (Pottery Barn, I think, and I give them a thumb's up!) and was picking up the tools when the family pulled up. Adrianne was excited that BJ's bed was done and wanted to work on his room... I chilled and watched NFL football in the garage.

After a little bit, we all went up to my sister's house for a FEAST, Mexican style. Celebrated Boyd and Jett's b-day. Drank a couple lime-a-ritas, which were better than I anticipated. Went on a little test drive with Jett, which was more harrowing than I anticipated. Then got dropped off at Johnny's to meet Lipford... and we were off to Pixies!

That was my third time seeing Pixies, fourth time seeing QOTSA. Both were great. 

Tough to compete with a weekend like that!

Garage sale!

Lemonade stand photo from October 2016.

Lemonade stand from October 2017.

Happy 6th birthday Boydee!

It was busy but we celebrated on Thursday AND Saturday. Boyd was so sleepy at the end of the day on Thursday that he fell asleep without even opening his gifts! We did it on Friday!

Happy 6th birthday Boyd!

My cool, curious, crazy little buddy!

Brain freeze!

Photo from Pier 39 at Fisherman's Wharf in San Fran. There's a quiet wine bar there, and while only Judy is a wine drinker, we enjoy the atmosphere there...

***

Feeling pretty awesome today. I got a TON of stuff done today, including laundry, string trimming, sawing out some weedy shrubs, lots of Golfdom work and most exciting... I fixed the DirecTV satellite! 

I hate getting on the roof and I avoid it when I can. But we got a new roof this last week, and the resultant re-install of the satellite was no bueno. DTV said we would have to wait until 10/7 (and pay $50) to get it fixed.

Well, I went to YouTube, then mustered up the courage... went up there with some tools... and now, we're watching TV again, people!!!

***

Garage sale AND lemonade stand. This Saturday morning. 

See you here, people.

***

Boyd has stretched out in the last few weeks. 47" tall all of a sudden. He outgrew a bike I never even opened and assembled. 

POOR FORM, DAD!

***

Can you believe it's Oct. 1st? Me neither.

***

Koko sleeping like a good dog nearby. Good dog.

***

Boyd's team got a big W on Saturday, 2-0, against a team coached by Evey's 5th grade teacher.

Our kids were a little out of it, but we still played well. Boyd is our defensive STOPPER, and when we put him in at goalie in the 4th quarter, all of a sudden our defense was lousy. Lots of shots on goal. But he did a great job and kept a clean sheet.

He also had one of the highlights of the game: a heel pass that no one saw coming, right to a teammate, for a breakaway.

Too bad he admitted to us later that he didn't even know that player was there!

First camp out

Boyd likes to catch things mid-air, Evey pointed out today. He likes to pop bubbles in the air,
 and he also likes to catch leaves, like he did here. I do like this photo, very "Call of the Wild."

Well these photos are all a few weeks old — they're from that first camp out Boyd and I did for the big solar eclipse — but I haven't posted them yet. So here they are, finally.

Boyd and I saw this beautiful black butterfly flying around the campsite. Boyd was shouting, "Dad, LOOK!"
 and then it landed on the truck... Boyd was playing inside the tent, and I caught it with my hands. I took it
inside the tent and let it go. Boyd freaked out at first, then saw it was the
butterfly... he got up close and personal with it. I caught it again and let it go, unharmed.

Boyd enjoying his ham sammich as the eclipse was just getting started.

Boyd with Mr. Lee Wake, John's dad. Virginia (John's mom) told me it's been 14 years since John passed. Hard to believe.

Two photos to add to the collection

Ok so I'm a little sweaty & sunburned in the Tom Kite photo, but I'm fresh as a daisy with Nicky Price!

Fresh pics

Boyd scored his first goal of the season today! We went to "the secret lair" to celebrate.
We also both got fresh haircuts so he'll be ready for picture day on Monday! 

This photo is a few weeks old by now, but wanted to share the SWEET door poster Evey
and I (and the Bubster, a little) made to celebrate Mom's big day. HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADRO!!!

LOVE

Camping with Strawberry Cake

Oh wow, what a weekend! I started off the party early by going to Buzz Beach Ball on Friday, seeing LOCAL H and the TOADIES... then on Saturday we had Boyd's first soccer game, followed by breakfast/chill at the house/nap, followed by CAMPING at the Wake farm... then on Sunday we went swimming at Rod and Lupe's!

***

Boyd suggested we go camping again this weekend, and I was actually thrilled because I had a great time last time, and I was hopeful to take Evey with us on round two... and maybe show mom the campsite as well.

We accomplished both! Evey was way in for camping, and Adrianne was cool with coming up early and seeing the campsite before she went to pick up Grandma Judy from the airport.

The weather was perfect, the fish were biting and we all had a blast.

***

Early on in the trip, I was getting the camp site set up while the kids were playing in the tent. Boyd yelled out to me, "DAD! Camping is more funner with Evey!"

I agreed.

That's me with Scott Lucas, lead singer/guitarist of Local H,
one of my all time favorite live bands. 

***

The first night went fast again, and we got set up, fished a little, then Mom got there and we showed her around (she loved it and even said she'd camp with us!) We did some sparklers and just enjoyed the evening...

Mom had to leave to get Grandma... Dinner was late at the campsite... hot dogs and corn on the cob, followed by s'mores (which I burned a little). The three of us sat around a torch for light and chatted, laughed, hung out.

When it was time for bed, I again read from a Greek Mythology book I bought specifically for camping a while back. Since Boyd and I recently finished the Tale of Heracles, we moved on to read about Perseus... which was good but not as fast moving as the tasks of Hercules... Boyd fell asleep and Evey asked me to keep reading.

The moon was so bright, when it was shining right above us, it was almost obtrusive! The kids slept hard, I slept with one eye open all night. The temperature got pretty cool so I was worried about the kids being cold and sore throats in the morning... turns out I was worrying for nothing. Should have just got some sleep! the kids slept great and woke up feeling great, too.

***

We fished a bunch in the morning and the kids were catching bluegill like crazy. The only delay was when the fish took the hook a little harshly and I had to, you know... work the hook out a little. Which drives me crazy (I hate harming animals and want to do catch and release like the smoothest criminal in the world, if possible.)

Boyd's hook took a little work, then he said, "Dad! Can I go play in the tent some more?"

Of course you can buddy, do whatever you want. So he ran back to the tent to play with his dinos.

Evey stayed back to fish some more. Then there was another difficult hook... she asked, "Dad, can I go play with Boyd?"

Of course you can sissy, do whatever you want! She ran to hang out with Boyd, I released Mr. Fishy (eventually) and then I started breaking down the camp site. Easy cheesy,  there were so few times any of us were bored or inactive...

The kids were playing a "doctor" game in the tent, using a toy laptop Boyd brought along to "check in" the patient. Evey started laughing, then she called out to tell me why -- Boyd's name for the doctor check-in...

"Dad, Boyd told me his name was Strawberry Cake. I asked him, 'Why did your parents name you that?' He said, 'Because it RHYMES!' I told him it didn't rhyme, then he said, 'Well, my middle name is SNAKE.'"

Talkin' Tracks, episode eight!

The season finale!

Shot at the beautiful Wake Family Farm in Leavenworth, Kan.

More San Fran fun

Boyd on the flight out to Oakland. Bubster had a GREAT
flight. He slept a good part of it, then watched a little TV,
then chilled out for the landing. Good traveler. 

This is one of the rooms at the Exploritorium. The Expolritorium was "alright,"
probably not something we'll do again though. The kids preferred the aquarium
for sure. But it wasn't too crowded, some of the exhibits were interesting.

Oh man, the ferry cruise through the bay... I almost lost my $hit a couple times.
First, the line was two miles long. Then, some family cut in front of us right at
the last second... and then made a fuss and held up the line because not
all of their cousins knew where the cut spot was yet! This was my fault, I
was the first one in line and they caught me not paying attention. But then,
they overcrowded the boat BIG TIME compared to the last time we did this,
I think it was a different company. I stayed downstairs to get drinks for everyone
and the family went to the top to get a good spot. That "good spot" eventually eroded
into a bad spot when the boat was so beyond full that it became standing-room-only.
I was frustrated but once we got going, Boyd fell asleep (again) and I was able to secure
Evey and I a good standing spot where we could actually see.

The kids on the beach in Pacifica. We originally tried to hit the beach in San Fran
(just for the heck of it) but the crowd was so ridiculous, we ended up turning around
and taking the drive down the Pacific Coast Highway to Pacifica. Stopped and
got our feet wet, then grabbed a snack at some fancy restaurant. Unscripted, but fun!

Let's start sharing some of these San Fran 2017 pics!

I took selfies with both kids. I think those two photos
(included in this post) are my favorite photos from the
trip. My son is going to be a handsome man, like his
Grandpa Boyd, I can tell...

Well we've been back for a few weeks now... guess I need to start sharing some family vacation picks before they get lost in the fold!

(I mean, really... I posted photos of the garage before I posted pics from San Fran? Poor form.)

It was another great trip to San Fran. This was our second trip as a family, the first coming in 2015. We stayed at Uncle Rick's house again. (Need to get that thank you card in the mail ASAP!)

I love this photo too. Evey looks so happy, and Grandma Judy is just chill, happy
to be along for the ride... even though she's done this cruise tour who knows how
many times!

This is the selfie I took with Evey, from the top of Twin Peaks. I proposed doing
a "Talkin' Tracks" from there, but Mom nixed it, maybe because the spot I proposed
had a shrine to someone who had died up there not too far away...

I'm not going to lie, I was not excited to go to HIRO SUSHI for dinner, and I
did point out to Adrianne that if we were in, say, Wheatfield, Ind., and I told
her that we were going to meet my cousins at a sushi place... Adrianne would
have stayed home (not that Wheatfield would have a sushi place, ever.) But it
was a fun experience and while not my preferred spot to eat ever, great to see
her cousins and happy that they were excited to see me and the kids...

We were there for seven days. Direct flight from KC to Oakland. Left Friday morning early, arrived at Rick's by 3 p.m. or so (if memory serves) and then on the way home, a comfortable trip... on the road by 8 a.m. PST, direct flight, home by 7 p.m. CST.

We went back to Golden Gate Park by Evey's request (I think that was one of her highlights of the trip again) and we also returned to the California Museum of the Sciences.

We never took a trolley ride last time, so we fixed that this time. It was interesting
enough. Don't really need to do it again. I like getting where I'm trying to get.
But it was fun to do as a family. Boyd fell asleep on the last five minutes...
he had a knack for falling asleep at everything we did. I think Judy has about ten
photos of him asleep at various locations. Last time we came, we brought a stroller,
this time I was Boyd's human stroller...

We also took a trolley ride for the first time, visited the kid's museum, the Exploratorium, for the first time, and spent a day driving down to Pacifica and hanging out with Adrianne's cousins.

Adro and I also snuck in a date, we went to a bar called Holy Water that had a religious theme. That was a highlight of the trip for me!

Oh, and we caught a Giants game. Versus the Cubbies, reigning World Series champs. Because you know how we do.

More photos to come!

The east wing (or Batcave)

So I've been working in a new office the last few days... the weather has been so nice...

Yup, the garage is being converted to a GAMEROOM! If this doesn't excite you, then you are no fun.

And if you worry that this is really a plot to move me into the garage on a permanent basis... you aren't the only one! At least my exit will be (mostly) comfortable... Boyd's knees, elbows and toes seem to be getting sharper by the day.

Still to come: a flat screen on the far wall for football season. I can grill and watch football at the same time. Heck, I can MOW and watch football at the same time! Why not?