A Month of Winter Fun

Our family has been busy over the last month preparing for Christmas. It seems every weekend there is something to do or somewhere to go. While the ladies shopped on Black Friday (and every weekend afterward), Father Dearest had to set up Christmas decorations and keep kids busy at the same time. But I'm not complaining....
We went to the Phoenix Zoo with our neighbors to view the lights and enjoy some rides. The kids really enjoyed it....
We went to McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park in Scottsdale to ride the train and see Santa Claus. Danny, Sherrie and the kids came with us...
Oh yeah.....apparently we've adopted another *&@# cat. Joshua has named her sprinkles. Guess who feeds her?

Fond Memories of a Golden Anniversary

Last evening, Cheryl, the kids and I attended a 50th Anniversary celebration for Joe and Karen Sipe (Cheryl's Uncle Joe). It was very nice as such celebrations go. A nice slideshow of their time together; speeches by the children and grandchildren; watching the happy couple cut a beautiful cake made by Karen's sister, Judy (Judy made our wedding cake). I couldn't help thinking back several years to the Grand Shindig we hosted for Mom and Dad. The nice trip to Williams; followed by a scenic tour on a steam train and guided tour of beautiful scenery of the Grand Canyon. I looked at photos that I took of that illustrious and memorable weekend. Here are a few great shots for your enjoyment, with commentary to boot.

  This is a nice shot of the Canyon in all its splendor. You might ask, "Tom, why didn't you shoot any family in here?" Well, at the time, Michael was confronting the bus driver, red-in-the-face and yelling incoherently at the man. At the time, the scenery looked much better. I am proud of the fact that Michael could use so many colorful four-letter words in one breath.


I liked this shot. Amazing how nature can create such formations of rock. What was happening here? Dad approached Michael and the bus driver. Michael slapped Dad's hand, clearly signaling that Dad could enter the ring. For the next 5 minutes as fellow tourists watched in horror or disgust, Dad continued the vociferous vocal assault. Now, mind you, Dad has a deep voice and alarming facial expressions when angry. This more than makes up for the disparity in size between the bus driver and Father. A modern day David and Goliath if you will.

It took my Father and Brothers about 30 minutes before the other passengers became convinced we were a dysfunctional family; oh well, that's their loss. Michael soon rejoined the vocal conflict in full support of his patriarch, who's white hair contrasted nicely with the scarlet face and scalp. Bobby threw in a few words as well, just to show his spirit of comradery in this monumental War of Words.

Now that was an Anniversary Gala to remember...

Joshua's Graduation

Josh will graduate from Kindergarden next week (I refuse to use the stupid PC substitute "Promotion"). He has come a long way in one year from a sporadic recitation of the ABC's to reading words and sentences, as well as adding and subtracting.

Here is an example of his writing. This letter was written in late April. As you open the file, you'll be able to see the nice picture he drew as part of the letter. Let me translate for you:
JOSHUA
DEAR MOM I LUV MOM HEART DAD HAS A ARROW AND LUV DAD AND LUV MY ZACH

Here is another letter. It was written shortly after Easter, thanking Mommy for the little gifts he received. On this letter, I'll need to translate the best I can:
DEAR MOMMY THANK YOU FOR THE TOYS CARS THANK FOR ZACHARY TOYS CARS THANK YOU SHAF RN RS (transformers) THANK YOU FOR THE PLANIT LI (unsure what this means; may be Planet Earth DVD) DEEN LOV MOM AND LUV DAD
Here is one of my favorite pictures he drew within the last few weeks at school. The picture shows our house with a green lawn, flowers, and a blue sky. I'm on the right with the hat, Mom is next to me, followed by Josh and Zach on the far left kneeling down. Also shown is Sugar (dog) and Blackie (cat).

Before and After

Cheryl decided it was finally time to get Zachary's haircut. Trying to get tangles out on a daily basis had become an impossible chore, particularly with a crying and whining child...He looks completely different now, just like Joshua did after his first cut.