I’m surprised we never did this before!  On Saturday night we lit a little camp fire in our back yard and roasted some marshmallows.  We’re not camping people, though our friends are always asking us to go with them in the wild, backwoods of New York to sleep under the stars with bears and skunks.  Um, I don’t think so.  We have everything for our own little camping excursion right here in our back yard thank you very much!

Check out the fun around the camp fire.

Here’s the original TV commercial

And…here’s our take. Use the word “price” as the password.

That’s a Low Price! from dennis_h on Vimeo.

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Recently the Boy and Girl finished their T-Ball and Softball season and got their trophies for playing on the teams.  This is the second trophy for the Girl since she played last year and was nonchalant about the whole thing.  The ceremony was extremely crowded and she wasn’t too keen on that.  However, for the Boy this was especially important  as it was his first trophy in anything, ever.  So understandably the moment he heard he would be getting a trophy that’s all he talked about for days.  When his coach handed it to him he was so excited and kept asking me, “Daddy, you so proud of me?”   We couldn’t be more proud of both of them.

Check out the pics below.  FaceBookers can get the hookup here

“I need your help with something today.”  The Wife said a little too cheerfully.
I looked up from my laptop suspiciously, “What?”
“My solar oven!”  She said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“A solar what?”
“Oven.  A solar oven!” She smiled.
“Uh, you’ve been visiting those websites again haven’t you?”
“Maybe…”

And that’s where the Wife’s little experiment began.  She hauled up a large Styrofoam box lined with carefully cut pieces of sheet metal.  Obviously, this has been a secret pet project for some time.   As I looked at the contraption I must admit I was impressed.

“So…what exactly are you cooking in this…oven?”  I asked.
“Oh,” the Lovely Talented Wife said, “I’m going to bake cookies and bread in it.”
“Oookkkk.”  I said.  But what I was really thinking was: cuckoo-cuckoo-cuckoo-cuckoo

We took the contraption solar oven out to the back yard into the 99 degree heat and put a digital thermometer in it and within a few minutes the internal temperature was over 120 degrees!  It got hotter but the thermometer started to malfunction.  As we marveled at the power of the Wife’s creation she came up with the idea to test the oven by cooking an egg in it.  Yeah, a real egg!  Did it work?  Well you’ll just have to check out the picture gallery to find out!

Facebookers can see the pics here

Mr Charisma

If you’ve ever met my son you very likely know that he’s a charmer.  I’m not just saying that since I’m his Dad and a major contributor to his charm DNA, but that’s just the way he is.  The boy is a people person.  The Boy has got…what do the teenagers call it…swagger.   Taking him to the supermarket is like shopping with a politician running for office.  He says Hi to everyone, especially teenage girls who seem to gravitate to his ready smile as if he were a celebrity.  Yeah, the ladies love cool Russ.  The other day I was buying sandwiches at Subway where he immediately struck up a conversation with the cashier.

“Oh my goodness!” the cashier gushes, “He’s so cute!”
The Boy smiles, “Thank you!”
“Awwww,”  she’s practically bending over the counter to see him. “What’s your name?”
“Russell.”  He does a little dance for her.  “I’m four!”
“Wow, you’re a big boy!”
“Yeah, I know…watch this…” He does a cartwheel just for her right in the store.
“Ohhh, that’s nice!”  she says impressed.

I pay for the food and leave before he has a chance to ask her for her number.  Like I said:  swagger.

The Boy feels it’s his job to make people smile and it’s a job he takes seriously.  So what’s the harm?  The challenge with that is the Boy is an Equal Opportunity Mingler.   He mingles freely with everyone…even if he doesn’t know them and there lies the problem.  We’ve taught him about not talking to strangers but Mr. Charisma sometimes forgets.  So the other night I read him a story called  The Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers. It does a good job of explaining in a kid friendly way why it’s dangerous to talk to strangers.  As I’m reading the part where the character in the book is about to talk to a stranger my son interrupts.

“Daddy…”
“Yeah, Bud.”
“You know…I don’t talk to strangers.”  He sounded a bit miffed that I could ever think he would do such a thing.
“You don’t?”  I asked
“No,” he sighed heavily.  “I talk to people.”
“Oh…I see…thanks for clearing that up for me.”  I nodded.
“No problem.”

I put the Boy to bed and placed the book back on the shelf.  Obviously a new strategy will be needed for Mr. Charisma.

Well, it’s that time of year again!  Yep, the Carnival Divas are back as the carnival came back to town.  The girls — and the Boy had a great time and I even make a rare appearance in front of the camera for a change.  Every year the Girl gets a little bolder, trying out the more death defying rides such as the Twister which is not for the faint of heart like yours truly.  Let’s see how bold YOU are.  Check out the pics below:

FaceBookers check out the pics here

I remember flying kites as a kid and seeing the Boy and Girl running around with their kites this weekend brought back great memories.  Ahhh, to be young and carefree…  I can’t help but smile whenever I see these pictures.

The password for the video is: tball

More T-Ball Mania from dennis_h on Vimeo.

Facebook readers can see the slideshow here