Girls got fresh cuts!

Here they are At Barbwire BBQ in Eudora… I was in Cleveland at the time. 

This post also noteworthy for another reason: first appearance of Bub Jones in his contact lenses on the blog! 

I'm at Chicago Midway waiting for my flight home. I've been in San Antonio, Orlando and Cleveland over the last three weeks. I'm ready to stay put at home for a few weeks! 

Thanksgiving 2023

 Great photo Evey!

Rod, next time we'll ask you to put the fork down so you can actually look at the camera!

Halloween 2023

You're gonna have to look hard to see Bub's costume…!

He went as a 'Gamer.'

They all had fun! 

Evey's PopwerPoint presentation, junior year

 Every year Evey gives us a PowerPoint that updates us on her school work, goals, plans for after high school, etc.

This was the opening slide for Evey's presentation. It was a GREAT presentation! It fills me with pride to see all the good work she is up to!

Back from Italy

Never thought I'd write that sentence! 

Fajitas on the flattop!

Evey and I fired up the Blackstone on Saturday! I drove to the Mexican market in Olathe and loaded up on chicken, fajita steak and steak. Everything turned out really good EXCEPT for the steak, it is way too salty.

Homemade refried beans too! 

AYE AYE AYE AYE AYE!!!

Happy 12th birthday Boyd Jones!

 

Happy birthday to this guy!

(Boyd Atticus... not that fish!)

((Unless it's also that fish's birthday and if that is the case, happy birthday to that fish, too!)) 

Late September camping trip

 It was very cool to take the kids camping again recently. Evey brought it up a while ago… when was the last time we went camping? 

It might have been… OK, it probably was… when I took Bub to the Wake Family farm to see the eclipse. That had to be five or six years ago!

Before that, the three of us had camped a few times together at the Wake Farm in Leavenworth. Since then, we started playing more fall soccer, COVID, etcetera. 

I was happy Evey suggested it. Bub likes to roll along with Evey ideas, so he was in. Plus, we had no soccer that Saturday.

**

I eventually committed myself to the idea. We don’t like leaving Mom out of family plans, but really… how many more years do I have to camp with the kids? She’s 16, he’s 11. He turns 12 tomorrow; she turns 17 in December.

LET’S GO CAMPING!

The weather forecast was for HOT weather even though it was the last weekend of September. It did get up to the low 90s that day. But we didn’t arrive to the lake until 6 pm, it was calming down fast…

So I chose Eisenhower State Park, which resides on Melvern Lake. About an hour south of here. I tried to pack up everything in the afternoon so we could just drive off when Evey and Boyd pulled up (Evey and Boyd pull up!) but I got a little bogged down and was running late. We were wheels up by 4 pm with a tent, two air mattresses, a cooler full of food and drinks and two bicycles.

Emergency PB&Js

As we drove off, Bub asked if we could stop for a Wendy’s or something, on the drive. I said, “Good idea!” But I really didn’t know if we would drive by such a place. 

Turns out, we drove by two Casey’s (Boyd declined pizza) and one Mexican restaurant that looked really good. No other options. When we made the turn on the last 5 miles to the lake, I told a hungry Boyd, “Sorry, man, look outside… there’s no Wendy’s out here!”

Thankfully I packed peanut butter, jelly and bread. As soon as we got settled, Evey made them both sammiches for a snack. Replete with milk in Wonder Woman Solo cups.

***

Important note: When we arrived at Eisenhower State Park, I paid $5 to enter the park. I was directed to go to Ike’s Cabin, to pay for my tent.

Channeling the Progressive commercials “home owners turning into their parents” commercials, I told the lady — Oh, no, I brought my own tent. 

She said, yeah, I know. You have to pay to spend the night.

OH! OK.

We went into the shack and the kind woman gave us the layout. We chose our campsite. Went back to the shack. As we pulled up, Boyd asked me, “Dad, can I stay in the truck? Something in there made me SNEEZY.”

Sure enough, Bub was sniffly the rest of the trip. He hung tight and never complained, but something in there changed him and frankly, he was sick for about two days afterward. Bummer.

***

We chose a spot as remote as possible, but still with a view of the lake.

And of course, as soon as we got back to the campsite… someone was parked there.

It’s OK, they were just fishing, apparently on that day pass (no tent fee for them!) and moved out of our spot once they saw us setting up.

I told the kids that I could set up the camp; they should bike ride while they could because the sun was going down quickly. 

They went on a short ride then they had to return almost immediately to report they saw four deer, and the deer were not scared of them… they got really close! They went on another short ride, then they came back to help me set up camp. With their help (especially Evey) we were done in no time. 

I sparked a nice fire using the Solo Stove Adro got me for Father’s Day, and the wood I’ve been hoarding at the house. Before I knew it, we were cooking hot dogs as the sun went down.

We called Mom to let her know we were safe and sound. Then Evey went, “Is that THE MOON?!?” We looked, and behind the tree was emerging this giant moon, bright pink. We took photos and looked at it through the binoculars. (Yes, of course I brought binoculars.)

Monopoly!!!

After hot dogs and chips were s’mores. Then we went and the kids sat in the bed of the truck and we chatted. Evey asked, “If time froze for 24 hours but you were the only one who could still move, what would you do?” A fun conversation ensued.

Any fish in this ti--

We wrapped up the night in the tent, and played a game of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Monopoly, probably our favorite boardgames. I was kicking so much butt, probably three Monopoly’s…. Then a sudden twist of fate, and I was out of the game. I went and fed the fire some while I watched Evey and Bub duke it out. Bub won based on owning Ego (Boardwalk) and the game was over.

We closed down the camp site then got out a book of Greek Mythology and read the story of the Chimera. It was just an OK story, not amazing. By then it was almost midnight, and the kids were exhausted. “I love you, good night”s were exchanged, and then Boyd was snoring instantly. Evey soon followed.

The moon was so bright, I couldn’t sleep. I stared at the sky, restless, for the next 90 minutes. 

***

Morning arrived and I was the first up. I told the kids to sleep in as late as they wanted. I was up by around 7 a.m. and started working on the fishing poles. The kids were still asleep and I was pretty much done with my chores, so I went fishing by myself. I didn’t get a single bite, but ironically, a 12-inch bass leapt out of the water right by my bobber. It was like he waved.

The kids got up and I made breakfast on the Coleman grill. Because, why not? Ham, egg and cheese sandwiches. They turned out nice. Boyd was still pretty sneezy and groggy, but he wanted to try fishing.

I caught the first bluegill of the day, a little guy. Then Boyd caught one. 

We changed locations to a quiet cove. The sun was coming up and you could tell we were in for another hot day. The shade we welcome.

You can tell Bub is sneezy 

Boyd looked down at a discarded tire and asked, “Do you think there are any fi—“ and before he could finish his sentence, he pulled another bluegill out. We stayed in this area. Boyd probably caught 8 or 9 small gills, Evey caught two or three. I spent most of my time pulling fish off the kids’ hooks.

With every fish, Bub extended his own stay… but you could tell he was miserable. Eventually, we cut it off and started packing up. Poor Bub… he was probably actually sick by by now.

We drove by the same two Casey’s and got home by about noon on Saturday. The kids took an immediate “tick check” shower. I unloaded the truck.

We were all exhausted. But I think we all enjoyed the moon, the Monopoly, the s’mores, the storytelling.

And yes, if any of us are still moving while everyone else is frozen for 24 hours? You’re going to see a really fast car in our driveway afterward. Jones agreement. 

Just a cool photo...

 ...I found recently, on my computer.

We all miss Virginia. 

Trinity Forest

Just a great day… my putter was stealing SOULS… (I could go into detail… maybe later…) 

Excited to fly home, it's been a really great trip but I miss my girls, and Bub Jones. 

The weekend that was, 9/9/23

We had a great weekend here, it was action-packed!

 

This photo was from Labor Day, not this weekend...
but it's a good photo.

It started early, on Thursday, with the Chiefs / Lions NFL season kick-off. Boyd had soccer practice (I’m still the coach) so we ran out and did soccer from 5:30-6:30, then hustled home to open the HOJ. Luckily, I make my chili and queso during my lunch hour, so all I had to do was open up and get things ready for the game.

 

We had a great crew and a ton of food! Both neighbors came over — the Sandstroms and Cathy. Judy and Josh also came over. We had a salad, two different kinds of homemade chocolate chips and a veggie pizza that I refused to touch.

 

It was so much fun having a crowd at the HOJ and seeing everything getting enjoyed… pop-a-shot, Shinobi, the jukebox, the hot dog roller, the Simpsons game, Ms. Pac-Man. Only foosball went untouched. The ladies all sat around the new table and chatted during the first half. Stephen snuck in a nap on the couch, despite me hollering at the TV.

 

It should be noted that Boyd and Kieran defeated the Simpsons game, the first time we’ve ever seen that accomplished. There was a level toward the end that looked very much like a late level of Shinobi, replete with ninjas. 

 

Mr. Burns was the final boss, as he should be. He was in an Iron Man like suit, similar to when J. Jonah Jameson donned the Spider-Slayer armor.

 

As you know, the Chiefs lost 21-20. I know what happened — it involves a jinx — but that’s OK, tough game and no Travis Kelce.

 

***

 

Friday I woke up kinda mad (read: hungover) about the game and wanted to talk to someone about it, but there’s no water cooler talk when you work from home. So I texted my buddy Jimmy and we met up at West Coast Saloon, home of the best cheeseburger in Lawrence. We discussed the game, work, etc. It was fun to catch up.

 

I came home and then worked for a little bit, then the kids got home so I chatted with them. I heated up some leftovers (queso, enchiladas, beans) then got my game face on again because the Jayhawks were playing against Illinois on ESPN2. So me, Adro and Judy came back over to the HOJ to watch. Well, Adro worked. Me and Judy watched. It was a fun game! And beautiful weather. The Jayhawks won… 34-21, I think? Jalen Daniels looked special, extra special.

 

I only called him Jalen Wilson once, and then added I didn’t know where Jalen Wilson was but I’m sure he was playing basketball and not football. This got a laugh from Adrianne, which is always a win.

 

***

 

Saturday came up on me fast! We had a soccer game, the first of Boyd’s 5^th/6^th grade fall season. 

 

We looked good! Won 6-1, and Boyd scored our second and third goals. He took a shot from distance earlier, but it was right at the goalie. He figured out pretty quickly that he could dribble past their defense, so he wove his way up to a point-blank shot both times, and tucked it in the corner.

 

I’m so stressed, and trying to keep the game organized, it’s hard for me to keep track of his goals. I know both were pretty good and showed a lot of skill. I did pull him after the second goal, then put him in at defense for a shift. I let him attack late in the game and the ball never came to him. He wanted the hat trick, but it didn’t happen. I didn’t want to humiliate the other team, we’ve been on the receiving end of that before. Boyd was cool with all of that, he was happy he got a chance late in the game.

 

I think I did a decent job of coaching. It’s intense, especially with such a big group (14 kids today, we play 9 v 9. We’ll have 17 when we’re fully staffed.)

 

I didn’t make anyone cry, and I only got a little curt with one kid, but he didn’t mind.

 

Following soccer, I took Evey to work to Eagle Bend so we could work on her putting. She actually drove me, which was nice. I relaxed and enjoyed the ride. We took country back roads and saw 1) a woman riding a horse, who waved and 2) a turkey vulture on top of a phone pole with its wings fully outstretched. 

 

Evey’s putting looked pretty good, mostly. She might have been aiming her putter a little to the right, but we corrected that. At one point she dropped three five-footers in a row. 

 

It just takes practice.

 

Following golf we went to 23^rd Street Brewery. I didn’t ask, I told Evey, we deserve lunch. She asked me, “do you always get lunch after you play golf?” and I said yes, it’s a tradition, and when we play Eagle Bend, we always go to 23^rd Street Brewery.

 

We sat near the TV with the K-State game on. Evey got a flatbread pizza, I got the chicken tenders with French fries.

 

Honestly, the food was amazing. The setting was great. The company, my favorite girl in the world. It was nice chatting with her and just being there. This was my favorite part of the weekend, even above Boyd’s two goals. (But the goals were also awesome.)

 

Now I’m back from the barbershop, in the HOJ. I caught up a little on work (trying to make good on that long trip to West Coast during business hours!) And now I’m dreading packing… I land in Dallas tomorrow at 7:40 a.m.

 

Dallas this week, San Francisco next week.

 

Life moves fast.

First day of school!

 Evey is a junior, Boyd is a 6th grader -- his first year of Middle School. 

Cheers to Alan from McAllen

 Hello everyone.

Sorry for the long gap between posts. We had a busy, unusual and at times difficult summer. Adrianne lost her dad on July 30th. The kids lost their grandpa. I lost my father-in-law and a good friend. 

He was two weeks shy of his 79th birthday.

Here is a website that pays tribute to Alan, with tons of photos. 

The family was kind enough to ask me to say a few words at the service. Here is my eulogy.

I’m honored that Diana asked me to say a few words about my father-in-law, Alan. Before I speak about Alan… Diana, we’re so sorry for your loss. Thank you for all the hard work you put in taking care of Alan over these difficult months.

 

I’m Seth. About 20 years ago, a beautiful young girl started working in my office, so I changed where I parked, so I had an excuse to walk by her desk four times a day. Now, today, I’m happy to say Adrianne and I have a beautiful family, Evey is 16 and Boyd is 11, and we’ve been part of the Weibel family ever since.

 

I remember the first time I met Alan, was at the Holidome in Lawrence. The Holidome is a fancy way of saying ‘Holiday Inn with an indoor pool.’ I was nervous. Adrianne told me I’d love her dad, but I was intimidated to meet him… his work as a private investigator seemed daunting. This guy was probably going to size me up pretty quick, and did he already do a background check on me and if so, what did he find?

 

Turns out, Adrianne was right. We became friends instantly. How often do we make new friends in everyday life? And I met a friend, a father-in-law, a grandpa and eventually even my dad that day. 

 

I still remember the day I called him to ask for permission to ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage. I was so nervous! I remember exactly where I was sitting, down to the couch cushion. I knew Alan knew something was up for me to call him, and when I told him the reason for my call, and asked for his blessing, he said, “Well, Seth, haha… I think that sounds wonderful.”

 

How lucky was I to have a man like Alan on the other end of that call? I think any married man in this room knows what I mean … Alan was a great father-in-law. So kind, laid-back. I feel like he started most of his stories to me like that. “Well, Seth… haha…” And buckle up because he was such a great storyteller. He was full of great one-liners. 

 

We found some old letters from him recently… they were long, written on rice paper. I didn’t think I’d read the whole thing… but it sucked me in. I laughed out loud multiple time. he was writing about the small town where he lived. He said the town was so small, they didn’t even have a town drunk… they all had to take turns.

 

Alan lived an amazing life, from his time in the Peace Corps, to his time in the Army, stationed in Germany, to his travels around Mexico. Diana found his paperwork for the Veteran’s cemetery, he filled it out ten years ago. He wrote his own message on his headstone: life’s journey is without a map. Well said.

 

I think about Alan and I think of all the things he did, the things he saw, the various places he lived, the horses he owned. He equal was part Indiana Jones, MacGyver and Magnum, P.I. He was an adventurer. He was on a quest to meet everyone and learn about their stories. That’s a rare thing about a great storyteller … many just want to tell stories. Alan also wanted to hear stories.

 

And I have to tell you that Alan was a tremendous grandfather. He loved Evey and Boyd so much! Once the kids came along, we’d see Alan and Di much more often. We’d visit, they’d visit. Evey gave Boyd the nickname Bubba when he was a baby. That was the only name Alan ever used for Boyd, I think he was both loyal to Evey’s nickname, and liked that he had a nickname for Boyd that no one else was using. It always made me feel good to hear Alan ask, “How is Evey and Bubba doing?”

 

I want to thank Alan for the many bottles of tequila over the years. That was a regular thoughtful gift he’d give me, whenever he traveled to Mexico, he bring me back a bottle of Maestro blue. And whenever we were together, whether we were watching football, the Jayhawks or the NBA playoffs, he was great at sneaking in a tequila shot at halftime. “Seth, if the Jayhawks are winning at halftime, we better do a shot to keep it going.” The Jayhawks are losing at halftime. “Seth, we better do a shot of tequila to rally the Jayhawks!”

 

I told Aaron this the other day… there was a strange coincidence about 15 years ago, we lost my dad, and Adrianne lost both of her grandpas, within about 10 days of each other. I’m so grateful I had Alan as a father figure in my life, to fill that void, over these last 15 years.

 

I hope that after we all move along from here, you’ll raise a shot of tequila and do a cheers to a wonderful man, Alan from McAllen.

The Aquarium

The kids and Grandma had a good time at the Cleveland Aquarium. Evey (with an assist from Grandma) made the call; Bub was still asleep and Adro flew to Texas to see her dad.

Evey made the right call, everyone had fun!

The kids got a lot of good photos there. I'll post more. 

Tuesday in Cleveland seems to have been pretty epic! 

Duck pin bowling in Ohio City

Day one in Cleveland we hit this place called Pins / 16-Bit. Free play vintage arcade games + pinball + duck pin bowling.

We had a really good time there, despite being worn out from the 3 am wake-up call. 

I'll admit I took last place in the bowling game! Adro won by one pin, Evey in second.

I'd go back in a heartbeat, plenty of games I didn't get to play. My work hosted an office party there last Christmas. Great spot. Kids are allowed until 8 pm. 

Royals Vs. Guardians

The family added to its roster of Major League ballparks visited!

Royals

Giants

Mariners

And now Guardians!

Saw a win, too… and a Salvie Perez homer!

Edgewater Beach

In Cleveland! 

DON'T GO IN THE WATER. SEWAGE EVENT. 

Bub's look says "Only in Ohio."

4th of July

It was a HOT ONE in Eudora but we still had a little party… we had Rod + Lupe and their grandkids join us, plus Ben, Cathy for a little while (who coincidentally know Judy.)

The biggest firework of the night misfired. Only half of it went off, and all at once. So I stuffed a punk in there and eventually it caught fire… and eventually the rest of it went off!

We had lots of fruit, plus dogs, some sides, and I grilled a few chickens. 

It was fun! Weird having the 4th on a Tuesday. Work the next day was ROUGH! 

I like your style

Judy, Bub and I all wore the same 2018 shirt to the St. John's Fiesta tonight!

I messed it up… I almost wore black shorts, but elected to wear a favorite pair of shorts that Judy has been repairing for me for at least 10 years (seriously, those shorts have seen at least five Lollapaloozas, and I only went every three to four years.)

Food was good. Temperature was hot. Judy, Adro and Evey volunteered again. Me and Bub showed up late. 

Fiesta is a nice tradition.

Bub and I were even stopped by Father John, and he chit-chatted with us…

But Adro tells us we still have to go to church tomorrow…

Next year Bub will probably wear my shirt, the way he's growing… 

If the hat fits…

Wear it! 

And that hat DOES NOT fit.

Good day today in the RGV. Bub and I got haircuts. Good breakfast, leftover burrito stuff I made the day before. Said goodbye to Alan. Quick (!) stop at What-a-Burger. Short drive to South Padre Island.

Tons of seaweed in the ocean, but good news: there's no one here. Traffic is light. Was able to get a table at South Padre Island Brewery right away and the service was good, food was excellent. 

Kids rode boogie boards for two runs, I just did one. The seaweed does suck, and the waves were weak. Water was warm, though… almost too warm! Spent 2.5 hours on the beach… 

After dinner me, Evey and Adro went for a short walk while Bub showered. We walked down the pier, checked out the lighthouse (they were projecting a movie on the lighthouse, it was cute. Almost 1/3rd of what our projector movies look like…)

There's no cable tv in the room so I walked to Shark Tank Lounge to watch the Nuggets win game one of the NBA finals. Nuggets won but it got a little close in the 4th quarter.

A good day! A very good day. 

We'll be on the beach all day tomorrow. We'll see how that goes. I just kinda like the beach, I don't love it. Then we head home Saturday morning.

I am looking forward to the breakfast burrito at Pirate's Landing tomorrow!!! 

Also: HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA JUDY!!! We'll celebrate soon, we love you! 

Memorial Day in McAllen

One fine cake maker

 Evey made a deluxe-o cake for the party... it was double-layer and everything!

Funny note about the cake: for the following few days, Judy came over every day around 10 a.m. and had some of the cake with milk. It was her breakfast for a few days. A breakfast of champions!

Celebrating what would have been Virginia’ 96th

At the HOJ! 

Happy Mother’s Day!

Also! Fate would have it… this was our last meal at that old rickety table!

New table now in place at the HOJ and it is FANCY!

***

Mom's day was good. Me and the kids made Mexican food and we ate next door, abnormally cool day, and even ate while it sprinkled outside.

The jukebox was rocking the new National CD! 

Evey got her braces off!

 This photo was taken the morning she was getting them removed (5/4/23)... I'll post an "after" photo soon.

Her smile looks amazing!

Eudora Cardinals 5th/6th soccer, that's a wrap!

That's a wrap on Bub's soccer season. Evey still has a few games to go.

Pictured are 8 of the 12 kids on our team. Clockwise lower left to right: Lucas, Aidan, Boyd, Greyson, Caidence, Leo, Tony (Leo and Tony are brothers) and Lyla. Not pictured: Kaleb, Eli, Owen and Tyler.

We won our first game of the season then lost the next five. We were "in" all but one of the games. Trouble scoring and also a hesitance on defense, once the other team broke through. 

I'm pretty sure I cost us two of those games, based on bad substitutions. But we also lacked soccer common sense at times. The kids that were good were GOOD and then some of the other kids lacked awareness. I'm talking handballs, bad positioning, lack of effort, etc.

We had some highlights, that's for sure. Boyd tied for the Golden Boot, with three goals on the season. Lucas also had three goals on the season.

It was a good team, better than their record reflected. I've got a million excuses why... short-handed at times, slow-starting at times... 

Still I'll say they were a better team in practice than they were in games. I was that same person in my sports career. 

But I'm trying to teach them that it's fun to play, it's good to be competitive, to be teammates. And it's awesome to win while losing sucks.

Boyd LOVES soccer. The best matches we have are between him and Evey, here at the house. They're going to keep making each other better, the more they practice against each other. 

Spring photo

Here is a photo that is a repeat of one I took a year, or two years ago. 

Last night was a Monday night and I almost took the magazine to press. I got as close as we could then we stopped. 

Went next door to the HOJ and opened it for business. When Adro came home she joined me and we both chatted about our days. We both had good, productive days. She had her performance review and that went well.

And then the kids came running out! Boyd talked Evey into a 1 V 1 soccer match. The kids play over by the HOJ and use two imaginary goals. There are a lot of hard fouls and even some tackling. And this is after Evey had her high school practice, mind you.

Eventually we had to go in for dinner. Boyd set the table, a little begrudgingly. Evey and Adro made salads. I cooked cheese ravioli with a red sauce. It was good! We ate at the big dining room table, second night in a row.

The neighbor came over to tell us their goat had three babies, so the girls went over to see them. I stayed back since Boyd was in the shower. Sent a few emails and watched the Bucks choke down the stretch and taking $45 out of my Draft Kings account (it was a $5 bet.)

Now I'm on a plane headed to Portland, Maine. Gonna be there for a few days. 

I turn 46 tomorrow! Gonna be weird not being with the family but we'll be together again soon.

Bub’s first Burger King

Today we went to Burger King, it was my first time going and I got the bacon double cheeseburger.It was good except for the ketchup, it was very wet and watery.we stayed away from that Witch made the meal a lot better.

Taco Bell's delicious Winterberry Blast Mountain Dew

 I don't know what those sodas are actually called but it sounds like something Ricky Bobby would say, so I'll go with that.

The other day we decided to try Taco Bell for breakfast after church. The kids were THRILLED. It's a place we never go, but it seems like they consider it a magical, "special" place to go for food. While in my mind, it's a place you only go after the bars close at 2 am, and you regret it the next morning.

It was a decent breakfast! The crew in there on Sunday morning were all bright and kind. We were the only people inside the dining room. The manager even gave me Evey's soda for free, rather than ringing me up a separate transaction as we were wrapping up.

The kids like the commercials and they always go "DONG!" when we drive by Taco Bell.

I would go back for breakfast sometime. I would order the taco wrap, or whatever it is called, next time... 

Hamilton 2023

I think they all had a good time! I heard good things about the food.

I played 18 holes of golf, and I only had three pars. UGH 

Happy the fam got to enjoy some arts though! 

Letter from Commissioner Bill Kentling

 3/27/23

Coach Jones,

 

 

Congratulations on the 3-2, come from behind win against the other Eudora team on Saturday.

 

 

Since you won the only head-to-head match-up with the other Eudora team this season, that earns your team the right to adopt the team name of our high school teams… your team will now be known as the Cardinals.

 

 

Continue to represent our fine town as you play against De Soto and Baldwin the rest of the season!

 

 

All the best,

 

 

Bill Kentling

Commissioner

Youth Soccer Leagues of America (YSLA) 

Cleveland, Ohio

Let’s kick it!

Evey got some more time in the varsity game today! They won 3-1.

Congratulations on being inducted to

National Honor Society, Evey.

We are all so proud of you! 

Spring Break 2023

 

Boyd kicked it off with this group of jokers over for a sleepover. They stayed up until 5:30 am!

Otherwise we're just chilling. Adro and I are both working, the kids just hanging loose. 

We did watch Elvis as a family on Monday night... it was decent. Both kids made it the whole way through. Evey liked it, Boyd thought it was OK.

I liked it... it was a little too long and kinda sad, in general. The actor who played Elvis did a nice job though.

SEAMUS MCDONOUGH!!!

Literally caught it a split second after it happened! 

Seamus McDonough goals are worth two at the HOJ. A Seamus is an untouched strike from the goalie, into the opposite goal.

Named after the old Wichita Wings goalie. 

The weekend that was, 2/24/23

 

Photo from President's Day, kids had the day off,
weather was beautiful, and Evey made homemade
pizzas for all of us!

It was a good weekend… let’s recap.

Friday I got home early after three days in Cleveland. Landed around noon. Drove to Lawrence and grabbed lunch at the Mexican restaurant near Set’ Em Up Jacks. It was good. I tried Johnny’s (OG) and West Coast Saloon before that, but the parking lots were so packed, I just said, nah.

I surprised Bub when I picked him up from school and he gave me a somewhat excited hug. That was nice because he’s pretty stoic most of the time, but he was happy to see me.

Came home, chilled out. I was exhausted. But Bub and I watched Aliens Vs. Predator while Mom napped, and we really enjoyed it! Fish sticks and the usual Lent stuff for dinner.

We had an ice storm that night, so Evey’s friend Payton/Lindsey gave her a ride home after the basketball game, which was nice. 

We hung out with Evey for a little bit and heard about her experience at Topeka Hayden (sp?) and had a few laughs. Then we all packed it in. EXCEPT Adro, who was now wide-awake and chose to watch 3.5 hours of Dateline NBC, up until 2:30 in the morning.

***

Saturday morning, woke up and discussed the possibilities. No soccer or basketball games. No chores to run. What should we DO?

Adro and I decided to run out to the casino, leaving the house around 10 am. Bub was up, Evey still asleep. We communicated the plan to Bub: You two hang out for a few hours, then we’ll be home the rest of the weekend.

After a complicated stop at Casey’s, we were on our way. Walked into the casino doors at 11 am. 

I did pretty good, I’d say, playing $5 hands of video poker. Turned $20 into $105, cashed it out and stashed it in my pocket. Adro and I played some Willy Wonka at the end of the trip, got destroyed, and decided to leave. In all, we left on the losing side of the ledger, but not too bad, accounting for the 2.5 hours of entertainment value…

Went to What-a-Burger. Ordered one (1) meal + a milkshake. Literally waited in the lobby for 23 minutes. The most painful part of my weekend, even over church.

Got home, finally, around 2:30. Freakin’ Speedway What-a-Burger. 

While we were gone, the kids got the waffle maker down and made themselves some gourmet giant waffles. Looked good!

I opened the HOJ and got ready for the KU/West Virginia game. The weather was really pleasant, so it was ideal. Adro started working on the yard, first clearing out the vegetable garden beds, then going Medieval on the big bush in front of the front window. 

I sparked up the grill and threw on a slab of ribs, some baked beans and a few chicken breasts. The ribs turned out pretty good!

Bub had a friend over, Nolan, and they were hanging out. Evey was chilling, watching a Netflix show called “Overwatch” or something. About a treasure hunt. She really liked it.

Jayhawks pulled out the W, barely. I won $20 by betting on Kevin McCullar hitting +0.5 three-pointers (he hit two!)

Grandma awoke from her nap (wait, I supposed to record the game and wait for her? Shit!) and hung out with all of us. After taking Nolan back to his house, we all got into chill mode. I played both kids in Simpsons Bowling (STILL UNDEFEATED) and the family watched TV. I then went into kitchen cleaning mode, and maybe got Medieval on the kitchen dishes.

Zonked out to SNL with Woody Harrelson and Jack White. It was a good episode!

***

Sunday morning, CHURCH DAY! Oh yeah. Rocked a sports coat this morning, lookin' good.

The family all rolled in and got our St. John's on. It’s Lent, so buckle up, buttercups. Evey rocked a purple jacket for the occasion, maybe unintentional, but she looked like she knew exactly what she was doing. We understood about half of what the Father said (he’s English-second-language, and I only speak one language, so I won’t hate.)

Afterwards I was ravenous, so we hit Perkins. Second weekend in a row. The guys cooking at Perkins know what they’re doing, they nail their eggs! It was an excellent breakfast, back-to-back weeks. A lot of fun sitting around, reading the paper, Bub reads everyone’s horoscopes, the kids nervously order for one another (because Evey wants to order off the kid’s menu and is too old, but Bub wants to order off the adult menu) and we just enjoy each other’s company while someone else cooks for us. Come home and the kitchen is STILL CLEAN.

Following that, chores, chores, chores. I did recycling (Koko’s favorite part of the week) then added to the burn pile, while Adro did laundry-palooza.

The weather wasn’t as nice as, so I didn’t get as much yard work done as I had hoped… but spring is near!

We wrapped up the weekend early so everyone could get some sleep. We have a BIG WEEK planned. I’ll tell you about it soon. 

I hope your weekend was as awesome as ours!