Grandpa Hall of Fame

It is another outstanding start for this FLU Season, no doubt about that. And with each FLU Season there are certain individuals that repeatedly rise to the occasion for their team, each and every year. This year's First Most Valuable Person for the 2004 Flu Season is...

(drum roll)

Pa Gene! For his outstanding performance tonight, in his driveway!

An ill four year old girl was sleeping in the back seat of her mother's car after being picked up from school today. As the mother was inside the grandparents' home retrieving the second child, she unknowingly left a gurgling gut full of salami and grapes sloshing inside the sickened child.

Pa Gene, our hero, had a feeling, a sick sense, if you will, and ran outside to catch a glimpse of his first grandchild strapped into the car seat. What he encountered was a barfing fiasco. The child had begun spewing chunks of her lunch all over the back of the automobile. Pa Gene called for back-up. The mother carried the limp cookie-tosser into the house, while the fearless veteran vomit collector cleaned the vile-drenched interior.

Because of his strong stomach and immediate reaction, the car upholstery was saved and the girl was quickly cleaned and returned home. Both the hero and the victim are doing better at the time of this writing.

Here's to you Pa Gene, our First Most Valuable Player for the 2004 FLU Season.

Break Dancin'

Ellie, just busta move!

Great new band name

Just an idea we came up with at work, a great new militant feminist rock band called,
"Mary Cheney and the Bush Twins"

- talk amongst yerselves

Never a Straight Face

In keeping with the Ellie Rae Grace tradition of not holding one emotion longer than her breath, here are the Sisters' Birthday photos of my girls prior to the big Cinderella play.

Make a Wish

As a kid, I "loved" Disney films. As a teenager, I was too old and too "mature" for them.Then I became old enough for it to be "cool" to appreciate their vast library of films and extensive history. Then I began to hate the conglomerate and their textbook hero/heroin story-lines. Now, I have two young daughters, and the cycle begins again.

There is a reason why Walt Disney's vision became and remains successful, and that is because of the founded family values and lifelong morals they represent. Sure they have their ups and downs, so does everyone, but it did not take a multi-million dollar movie or a world-renowned theme park to make my daughter's Fourth Birthday "The Bomb!" (maybe I am dating myself); all it took was a group of people that still hold that true family and community value to heart and openly share it in a wonderful public setting.

I am talking about the Northern Arizona University cast, director, and audience of the matinee performance of Cinderella on October 16th. To me, the matinee performance resonated the truest form of "One Community" to date. ("One Community" is a marketing campaign to unite the businesses of Flagstaff with the University's functions). It was, by far, the greatest example of kind-hearted and fun-loving individuals that softens me to the core and reminds me why my family and I sacrifice so much to remain here.

My daughter, Emma, loves all of the highly marketed Disney princesses. She owns numerous toys with the wide variety of races and beauties that Disney has created over the years. It was one of those special coincidences that on the weekend of her Fourth Birthday, the University was performing a rendition of the well-known story, Cinderella. We immediately purchased tickets and planned her special event around this matinee showing. Emma's two best friends, Lilly and Olivia were invited to attend the showing and were encouraged to dress as princesses.

With a crazy idea, I contacted a theater student, who got me in touch with Barbara Jo Maier, the director of the performance. I just wanted to see if, maybe, my daughter and her friends would be able to get some photos with Cinderella on stage after the show to commemorate the special event. What all of us got in return is something this community should be made aware of and applaud openly. Barbara Jo arranged for one of the most rememberable moments in my life and definitely in my young daughter's life. We arranged for Emma to meet the Cinderella. I thought it would be best if we saved it as a surprise at the event. When we got there, all the girls got their tickets



and found their seats.



The Director came over and wished Emma Happy Birthday, then told her that she was going to meet Cinderella after the performance. This is what a four year old girl looks like when they receive such great news.



The play began, and Ellie and I quickly darted to the lobby. This is what Ellie and I did during the play:


then we



and lastly, we



Until we heard the roar of the audience, and then we snuck inside with the camera and some flowers for Emma to give to Cinderella. Grammy Sally was close at hand to grab the baby. I took to the stairway, camera and bouquet in hand. The cast bowed to the clapping crowd. The Prince announced our celebration at hand and then asked for Emma to come down to the stage. Emma put her shoes on. The Prince asked if there was a Birthday Girl named Emma. She waved to the Prince and scurried down the aisle, with Lilly aiding her. Olivia said that she was afraid of the "pink guys", two of the cast members and decided to stay with Gina. I handed off the flowers to Emma and led her to the stage. Emma gave Cinderella the flowers...



...and started to walk off of the stage before she was stopped so that the song could be sung. The entire audience and cast serenaded her. She hid the best way she could in the open space.



Afterwards, the Director presented an awesome present to Emma, Olivia and Lilly, silver bracelets with a charm with the letter "C" engraved on them.



We were ushered to the lobby, and everyone got to get photos taken with the cast members. We got the girls with the Fairy Godmother (who Lilly was dressed as)



as well as with the main attraction.



Other girls were dressed for the occasion.



It was a fantastic experience. Then we headed for the second best part of the party...


... the cake!

I asked Emma later that night, "What did you think was the best part of the play?" She immediately replied, "When I got to go on stage with Cinderella and they sang 'Happy Birthday' to me."

Thank you Barbara Jo Maier, all of NAU's cast and staff, and the wonderful participating audience for an amazing song, one which will always be cherished in my and my family's heart; for at least on this night, we did live "happily ever after."

... and Eat it Too!

To celebrate the birth of our Ellie Rae Grace, we had cake. Ellie did not let us down. You should feel like you were there.


Here she sits, completely amazed that everyone in the room is actually standing around watching her without her having to scream for it. "It's good to be the Queen," she's thinking.



"What the El is going on here? Whatcha gonna do with that thing. Its on fire! oooo! FIRE!!"



"Well, if you insist, maybe I'll just try a taste."



"Wwwr. Wris wis grwood wruff!"



"What are you looking at? Haven't you ever had this before?"



Even Casey got into the action. Casey is really happy that it's Ellie's Birthday!



"I think I am full now."



And here is Emma duplicating her eating her first birthday cake without hardly a crumb on her.

On the Road Again

This has been posting I have been wanting to place for so very long. Pardon the tardiness, but it should be worth the wait.

So you might of caught my rant about the road signs in Phoenix, on 5/16/04 "One for the Road." I have a sequel now, but even better, I have photos to prove this madness of a rat-race town and how it melts the minds of its members.

Seems that Arizona Department of Transportation, affectionately dubbed ADOT got wind of my blog site and decided that I might have a good point on their hazardous electronic signs. July 1st we had to go down to the ever-burning city in the desert for a doctor's appointment for Ellie. On the road to the heat pit, we noticed that all of the electronic road signs had changed. Instead of tempting the speed racers to slam into a cement wall while looking for their cellphones in the cabin of their fiberglass coffins, ADOT feels that a website would better assist the hi-tech traveler. Here is proof.



As I was capturing the evidenced of their heat-warped thinking, our car passed this lady at 65 mph. Yes, she is calling someone... at 65 miles an hour.... oh boy, country boy in the city...

Lend me your Year
Well, it is official. Ellie Rae Grace Weien has survived one full year as of tonight. My beloved youngest daughter is officially one year old today, er this night, uh this morning. Abbie and I have prevented ourselves from giving the Child Protection Agency ammunition to arrest us, and she is a healthy, growing, and developing child.

Our toddler is growing up so fast I can't believe it. She has been standing for a month or two now. She is interested in walking, but wise enough to kneel down and crawl when needed. She is smart. The type of smart that you know you are being manipulated. She understand that clapping her hands means that someone will provide a new color and textured piece of food for her to either gobble or toss violently to the floor for the circling dog. If you don't she will scream. She has teeth like an alligator. I don't remember Emma having so many sharp oral tools at this age?! She has more hair than me and weighs over half as much as her sister, who is ALMOST four years old too! Oh man, I feel the time melting like a cheap Wal-Mart candle.

My two girls relationship is a love-hate textbook example. By themselves they are immaculate. Together they are the fine swirling mixture of oil and vinegar - not real great by themselves, but combined with a little bread, ¡Magnifico! And the dog agrees. At bowling someone had Goldfish they were nibbling on. They offered it to the group. Many hands dove for the dry cheesy crunchies. Mine stayed still. I can't even look at them or Cheerios. I am afraid that the vacuum dog will soon agree.

I love this little critter and can't believe a year has passed so quickly, yet if I stop and think of all of the whining that she produces, then I become amazed that it has only been one year.

You know that scene in Forrest Gump?
"You're momma sure does care about yer schoolin'" the principal said to the young boy.
Forrest responded, "uh uh uh uh uh".
That is my one year old when your face is not staring at her every moment. She is like an audio hologram. If you move your head too far to one side it goes off.

"But Jake, she is so cute!"
So are baby mountain lions at her age.
"But Jake, you have to be exaggerating!"
She can swipe a hunk of flesh from your leg or arm or face if you show fear. Gawd Forbid! Don't stare into her eyes!
"But Jake, isn't she so amazing?"
Amazing that she can't sit still.
"But aren't you proud?"
Sure, especially when she will go limp for an undetermined amount of time when I hold her upside down. Like a kitten held from the scruff of the neck, she is the safest when held that way. I don't officially know how long she would allow me to drain all the blood from her body to her head, only because it scares me how much she may be enjoying the free buzz.

WARNING! Don't leave a beer unattended. She can smell a vacant opportunity from across the house to grasp her tiny fingers around a brown bottle of cerveza fria.

Later today/tonight we will celebrate her birth. I expect the birthday cake photos are going to be classic. Casey will be fat from endulgance too. Check later for photos. For now enjoy this classic photo of the sisters. Grammy Sally and Pa Gene had the girls photos taken recently and the poor photographer had a hell of a time trying to catch the picturesque angels seen in parenting magazines. This one is true to life, I think.