Resting my Luggage

So, for the next few weeks I get to sit back and be a normal nine to fiver for once. After seven straight weeks of meetings, long flights, long road trips, and not enough kid time, I'm back. This is the first blog written from my home computer since July. I have logged enough miles to become a Silver Medallion member with Delta and have earned points with Hertz, Marriott, and Hilton Hotels. All this really means is that I'm obsessed with points hoarding and finding ways to get things free. Now, rather than just sitting in Coach class all the time, Delta dangles the hope of me getting bumped up to First Class and I always get so close but oh so far away. When it does happen, it's usually the short flight and I'm too exhausted to look upon the measly "Coachers" with any sort of haughty disdain.

The family continues to thrive. Ness brought home a phenomenal report card and improved leaps and bounds in her first year of soccer. Like with softball, she had her best game right there at the end. Sam has busted out of his shell and is a soccer stud. His moves are lightening quick but with the grace and artistry of a dancer. OK, so that was a bit much but c'mon, he is wicked good! Ol' Camsen (nickname) is talking about everything, but even I sometimes am not quite sure what he saying. He loves to don the Raiders helmet and give the Redskins helmet to whomever he can find that will play some football with him. Now that he's learned how not to put in on backwards, the games are getting pretty intense.

So for the rest of the blog, and for those who have skipped the "reading" portion of this blog, here are some photos taken with my Palm Centro from various trips as well as some pictures of moments I missed while I was gone. Enjoy.

3rd times the charm

Like Costanza in Seinfeld I’m thinking about switching completely over to books on tape. What a great way to rest your eyes on a plane as you let someone else do the talking, well ok the reading. I’ve got the new Bourne Identity novel going and it’s been quite a good “listen” that passes the time well. It got me through a long flight to Fairbanks, AK and some short flights down the West Coast.

I should rename this blog “The Terminal” since the only time I write is when I sit around waiting for a flight. But as I travel from city to city I can’t help wondering what is going on back home. Is Cam eating his customary Oatmeal (cinnamon flavor only) for breakfast? Is Sam sipping on his Orange Julius that he loves for breakfast? Is Ness playing with her group of friends talking about how much she loves Italian food (today is pasta day)? Is Deb exhausted from making all that cash this past week and keeping up with the kids?
This is my third try at getting this blog entry finished and posted. I thought I’d throw in a brief sports report. Sam got another goal as he continues to dominate the Koala league of Springville soccer. I put this out there in case any scouts are looking for a child protégé…maybe the next Freddy Adu perhaps, but without the disappointment. Ness also had a nice night of soccer (after her ballet class…Wednesdays are crazy). This is her first year and she has improved so much in such a short period of time.
One more day on the road then I get to go home to this (see above). I can’t wait.

On the road again and again

The airport is a great place for reflection as there is absolutely nothing to do but sit and wait for a 40 minute flight from Dallas to Amarillo, TX. I've passed every restaurant in this terminal and they all have every Olympic sport except for the men's basketball game vs Argentina. Go Field Hockey...go Ping Pong...and some other obscure sport. As the Olympics wind down and the US medal count goes up I'm not looking forward to the post-Olympic depression. Gone will be the neverending stories of the Incredible Mr Phelps. Gone will be technical dialogue over what makes a good Floor routine. Beijing you will be missed...but hello London!!
Oh my gate just got changed..I gotta run.

Summer Days

Well I’ma gonna raise a fuss, I’ma going to raise a holla….cause this summer is almost over. The kids are getting ready to go back to school already. This has been quite the All-American Summer. Family Reunions, lemonade stands, water parks, Summer Blockbusters, and picnics. We didn’t quite get to all the things on our list of summer fun ideas but we made good strides and had a fabulous time.
Despite all that it’s nice the kids are actually excited about school and getting back to the books. Of course it helps when you have social butterflies like our kids (ok except for the fact that Lil C is afraid of girls his age).
Since the last blog when I missed my flight to San Francisco I’ve hit a couple of more cities. I’ve found wonders in cities I never expected, and the usual frustrations that come with trying to coordinate flights, car rentals, meetings, accommodations, and of course the occasional fun. Unfortunately the frustrations have far outweighed the fun.
I hope you were one of the billions of people who witnessed the awesome opening ceremonies for the Olympics. Of course being the rabid sports dude that I am I can’t help getting all worked up over a Water Polo match or even a two man rowing competition. Of course the obvious Olympic highlight to date was the men’s 4X100 relay race. Was that not amazing? If you weren’t jumping up and down about ready to rip your shirt off by the end of that race you just aren’t American…ok so maybe you are but you’re just not as insane as me. So maybe I see a swimming match a few times every 4 years but there is little doubt that was one of the greatest moments in American swimming in my time, if not one of the greatest moments in American Olympic history. Whew, I’m all pumped up now, gotta go watch another hundred hours of Olympic coverage.
This entry has gotten long and I haven’t even talked Dark Knight yet. That’ll have to wait till I catch it again, this time on the IMAX.

Missing flights and wrong turns

So what better time to blog then after missing a flight by 4 minutes. Note to world travelers, you must check in 40 minutes before on Alaska Airlines if you are checking luggage...not a second later. I'm here in Portland, OR which really is a cool city but has been quite the jinx for me. It doesn't help that almost every street is one way and hotel receptionists can't give good directions. It does help however to have a nice V-8 engine under the hood of an Impala to get you where you need to go a little faster (but not fast enough for Alaska Air).

I'm heading for stage 3 of my 5 stage trip. Eventually I will make it to San Francisco for another meeting with Young Living. I haven't had a chance to see much, as most of my time is spent in my room or an oversized ballroom. But hey..I can still say I've been there.

While I'm away the kids play. Here they are trying out our neighbors High School Musical game on the WII. Aren't they FABULOUS?

I sure miss all of them, but Deb has kept everyone relatively sane and has been very supportive as I try to find my way in this new job. Thanks Deb.

Fab Father's Day

Happy Dad's Day to all. What a lucky Dad I am and I've had a great day. Here are some of the ways my kids have helped me enjoy this joyous day.
- I got to lick the bowl with the other kids "just because it is Father's Day".
- I had a delicious Breakfast in bed with cereal, pineapple and sweet bread.
- Five extra minutes of sleep...mmmm sleep.
- Wonderful presents including Indiana Jones trading cards and a high powered flashlight.

Here are some notes from questions asked to the kids about me.
V's Interview
So, what do you think of your daddy? He’s nice! He’s funny.
What does he do for his job? Calls and types on the computer.
Does he remind you more of a tiger or a dinosaur? Dinosaur, ‘cause he wrestles us like a dinosaur!
How do you feel about Daddy? He helps me with my homework. He’s nice. I loooove him!
S's Interview
So, what do you think of your daddy? I’m glad that he wrestles with us. I like it when he plays with us. I like it when he eats with us.
If he could travel anywhere in the world, where would he go? Salt Lake.
What’s his favorite thing to do? Throw us on the beanbag.
C's Interview
What’s Daddy’s favorite color? Boo (Blue). Peek (Pink). Boo.
What’s his favorite thing to do? Peek.
Does he remind you more of a tiger or a dinosaur? Raaah! (Dinosaur noises)

DG's ramblings

As promised here is the other stuff.
- My first day of my new job kind of felt like a first day of school. Thankfully this time I didn't lose a contact, miss a train, or get lost on campus (all very true and very traumatic).
- Between Ironman, Indiana Jones and What Happens in Vegas I have to say Ironman was my favorite...go see it! (is anyone looking forward to Batman the way I am?) (anyone?)
- Like Dwight Schrute in the Christmas Party episode of The Office I am now a user of the handy Netti-Pot. My first experience was quite scary (hint...too much salt) and I nearly blew my ears out. But after I got the hang of it I enjoyed the experience thoroughly.
- Nothing better then seeing one kid round the bases in kickball on the same day the other goes 2 for 2 in her first softball game. Oh yeah!
- How did anyone stay motivated to run before the I-Pod? Oh yeah..the Walkman.
- If every week of summer is as crazy as the first I'm not going to make it.
- I should have waited to start watching LOST when it was all over and I could crank out
each season in a couple of weeks. Did that with ALIAS, watched five years worth in a few months..nice.
- Nursery can be frightening for a poor boy who has been couped up all winter.