The Further Adventures of.....

photo dump

2009-07-05T10:21:00.002-04:00

this is just the beginning of the photo dump, i've gotten really backed up on photos.

hi there

2009-07-03T14:22:00.005-04:00

so we haven't updated this in a while, life gets in the way of things but hey thats life now isn't it.

heres a sneak peak, we have a bunch of pictures from the zoo and the garden and we'll try to get those up soon.

one more picture

2009-06-03T22:19:00.001-04:00

Fern's first oreo cookie - YUM!!

Hola

2009-06-03T22:01:00.004-04:00

We love summertime - pool parties, ice cream, fresh strawberries and blueberries..what more could a two year old want!

Last week Fern and I were in Boston visiting family and this weekend we are off to NJ. The busy social schedule of a toddler - mommy is getting too old for this.

Pleased to report that for now..I get to keep my job, but come end of the year, it might be a different story. I was actually looking forward to 10 months severance pay - just not in the wintertime!

Here are some pics. Fern chillin in the car on the way to a pool party

Ah...summertime

2009-05-29T22:48:00.004-04:00

double-fistin the corn! Oh..sooo good!

Birthdays are so much fun!!!!

2009-05-07T21:45:00.005-04:00

Rainy weekend fun...

2009-03-16T22:31:00.004-04:00

New rain boots for splashing around outside and Daddy's skateboard for inside!

Gasoline Alley

2009-02-08T20:00:00.001-05:00

My pappy said son your gonna drive me to drinkin' if you don't stop drivin' that hot rod lincoln.

2009-02-07T20:37:00.009-05:00

My friend Jay passed on this incredible pedal powered hot rod to Fern, man this thing is just insane. I really wish i could have one in a daddy size. Then we could race.

got milk.

Jay is a Raleigh old guy skater originally from California. The guy rips and is one of the nicest folks I've ever encountered.

We do a blog called Harsh Creak tracking the progress of the City of Raleigh Skatepark at Marsh Creek.

Check it out here.

http://harshcreak.blogspot.com/

where's the skateboard..

2009-01-31T20:11:00.004-05:00

Fern loves playing with daddy's skate stuff. Next she will be trying on his knee braces.

snow days

2009-01-20T13:52:00.003-05:00

its snowing!!

Double ear infections

2009-01-05T18:20:00.003-05:00

Its been a LONG two days as Fern is fighting a fever and double ear infection. I'm finally getting a break and hiding in the office.

Here are some pics from Christmas in FL. Fern was all about her cousin Matt - flirting with him across the dinner table. She would do anything he asked her to do - which came in very handy when she wouldn't listen to me!

Fern was not too sure about Santa!!!

rexmas

2008-12-13T15:15:00.003-05:00

2008-12-10T21:05:00.004-05:00

Howdy. sorry its been so long since we've posted pics. Busy time of the year! I've been home from work for the past two days tending to a sick child. This time its a nasty, very smelly stomach bug. Tomorrow daddy gets to stay home with her and I can go back to work. Luckily the weather was warm today so we spent a good bit of time outside - even went for an evening walk around the neighborhood to check out the christmas decorations.

In two weeks we head to FL for christmas with my family. I haven't spent christmas with my brother's family in 15 yrs - very excited to hang out with everyone. hoping for some warm sunny days on the beach.

Here are some pics.

2008-11-01T20:47:00.003-04:00

Trick or treat

2008-11-01T20:13:00.004-04:00

Fern enjoyed her first Halloween - we went to a spooky party last night. Today went on a hayride to the pumpkin patch and rode a pony! Next weekend Jer is off to Phoenix for 5 days of BBQ and skating boarding with the old many army. YIKES..that means its just me taking care of miss fern for five days. Ooh...daddy is gonna owe me big!

Here are pics of the little bumble bee - she had a wee meltdown at bedtime when she had to take her costume off - either she was totally exhausted or maybe she wanted to sleep in it.

I'm picking up a baby bumblebee

2008-11-01T18:50:00.002-04:00

won't my mommy be so proud of me.

When will I learn my lesson ...

2008-10-24T20:29:00.006-04:00

to keep the car doors locked! I'm such a bonehead. My cell phone was stolen from my car the other night. Over the years I've had my cars broken in to so many times - I stopped counting after 20! What really gets me is that someone has the balls to walk up my driveway and go in the carport with the flood lights on! Hello - its my stuff - DON'T TOUCH IT.

So now I am without a cell phone with no insurance coverage. So I either have to buy a new phone or maybe someone out there reading this blog has an old spare cell phone they can give me ???

Here are some photos. First, is sister Susie at her wedding in Santa Barbara. It was a beautiful weekend!

Fernanda with her cousin Wills on the carousel at Pullen Park.

punk kin

2008-10-16T08:18:00.003-04:00

Oh great pumpkin, how we love thee....

the kid loves to swing.

WOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!

2008-10-04T18:24:00.001-04:00

Nine months gone, coming back strong.

some more pics

2008-10-01T22:30:00.003-04:00

I just had to share pics of the present my mom got Jer for his birthday. If you know jer, you know he loves to cook some pig and eat barbeque. He has been teaching Fern "what does the piggy say..he says I'm delicious"

Check out the new mat in our kitchen. The pig has the most wonderful expression on his face.

Hola

2008-10-01T21:08:00.003-04:00

Its been forever since I've written anything - for some reason its kind of hard to find free time! everything is wonderful (oh except that fact that I might be out of a job in about 4-6 months thanks to the financial crisis!). Fern has been home for 5+ months and is almost 17 mons old. Gotta say - that I am so ready for her to start talking. There is a lot of grunting, squeaking and pointing going on and some mini-meltdowns when she doesn't get her way.

Tomorrow is my mother's birthday and my nephew Wills second birthday - happy b-day to them!

Hi Matt & Sara - miss you guys!

Here are some pics from Fern's visit with Wills and one of her dressed up at a party.

DOOOOOOT!!!!!

2008-08-31T22:08:00.003-04:00

hi ya.

2008-08-24T21:38:00.002-04:00

Siiiiggggghhh......

2008-08-13T13:57:00.002-04:00

Well my ladies are off to Maine. The girls have been gone for only a couple of hours now.

I already miss them. Its going to be a long couple of days.

Here ya go Kate..!

2008-08-12T21:22:00.004-04:00

Sorry it's been a while since we've posted pictures. Fern has been having a great few days - her cousin Sara is in town visiting and tomorrow we are flying to Maine to visit my Mom. Here are some photos taken by Sara.

spaghetti is soooo much fun!!!

2008-07-19T19:44:00.001-04:00

Happy July 4th

2008-07-03T19:37:00.005-04:00

I am so ready for the long holiday weekend.

So I haven't posted in a while..here's the latest:

Fern is now taking long naps at daycare and actually laying down in the crib (for the first two weeks she would only nap for 20 mins standing up in the crib). the big news..Fern had her first smooch at daycare. An older boy named Sawyer - I think she made the first move. Oh...daddy's in trouble when she hits 16!

I'm sad to report that my compost bin is doing better than my actual veggie garden. last night
I discovered this tall green thing growing in the compost bin - turns out we had about 10 huge red potatoes growing in there! Is it gross if we eat food that's been growing in the compost pile!!???

here are some pics. Fern is such an amazing little girl - she definitely keeps us on our toes!

Skater girls

2008-07-01T08:31:00.002-04:00

So last night I was sitting on my front steps, drinking a beer and talking with my mom on the phone. Two girls probably about 10 years old walk up and they're both holding skateboards. They're gesturing to me and pointing at the house next door, I get off the phone and go out to talk to them. They asked me about the neighbors, they're supposed to feed their dogs but aren't sure if they're home or not. I told them they were and they could just knock on the door, meanwhile eyeing the sad excuse for a deck that one of them is holding.

"Let me see that...." I asked

"My dad found it in the woods" she told me, although she didn't really have to say it, it was pretty obvious.

The board was hand cut out of a piece of some kind of trash wood, but it did have some Venture truckes on it and what looked to be some late 80's Santa Cruz wheels. the other one had a Wal Mart board, not great but in far better condition and a perfect starter board.

"Hold on just a minute" I told them, and ran into the house and down to the basement, i grabbed an old board off the wall (I retire my old decks to the basement walls) it was used, but not abused, after checking it for warps I ran back upstairs.

"Here you go, you need a new board" I told her.

"Really I can have this???"

"Yup, sure can, do you guys know we're getting a skatepark here, a big one, all concrete"

Their eyes got as big as saucers, they hadn't heard about the park, they were stoked. I went on to tell them that i was really glad they were into skating, and that the skating world needs more girl skaters out there, but that they might want to try skating in something besides flip flops.

"Should we be wearing helmets?" Wal Mart board girl asked

"Yeah thats probably a good idea, you need to ask your folks for some helmets"

"We will, we really like skating"

"So do I girls, so do I."

daycare report

2008-06-18T18:39:00.004-04:00

20 minute nap on daycare lady's lap
healthy breakfast at home with mommy
and she even played with some of the toys today!!

Here are some pics. It was so super hot last week - 100 degrees for 5 days in a row - Fern and I couldn't play outside. We happened upon this great find at goodwill. Even Rex is enjoying it!

Also, I'm pleased to report that Fern is slowly understanding the concept of sharing...its a great accomplishment even if it is only with her kitty and not with the kids at daycare!

Daycare sucks....

2008-06-17T19:59:00.002-04:00

both Fern and I have had some good cries over the past few days! I feel SO guilty leaving her for 40 hrs a week. She started full time at daycare last Thursday. The last two mornings she wouldn't eat breakfast cause she was upset and she still has not taken a nap at daycare. Needless to say, she's been a bit cranky at night!

I know each day will get better for both of us and it is going to take some time for her to get adjusted to the new routine and environment.

Oh..and I realized Monday morning sitting at my desk at work all bummed and depressed...that stupid me miscalculated my weeks off and came back to work a week early. DOH! Well, now I have more vacation time for the rest of the year.

sharing photos

2008-06-06T11:46:00.002-04:00

Fern had a great time playing with her cousin Wills. Here are some pics.

The pool is open for the summer...

2008-05-27T22:39:00.002-04:00

2008-05-17T22:44:00.003-04:00

before haircut...

stylin' after her haircut..

bring on the water..

2008-05-16T21:36:00.003-04:00

I'm pleased to report that we actually heard a little giggle while in the bathtub today. Fern's auntie susie sent her a bubblemaker for the tub - and it seems to be helping! Of course, Rex is also intrigued by the bubbles floating around the tub! soon we will be posting a pic of Fern and Rex taking a bath together. He's the strangest cat, but the coolest.

Tomorrow morning we are off for our first hair cut with daddy. Poor kid can't see where she is going with those bangs and the hairbow only stays in for all of 5 mins.

Its a love-hate relationship

2008-05-15T21:11:00.003-04:00

Fern loves her kitty and especially loves pulling on his ears and tail. Rex, on the otherhand, is not so fond of it, but has been extremely patient with her.

I can't believe another week is almost over. Time is going by TOO quickly. Only a few more weeks and I'll be back at work.

Somebody had a birthday today.

2008-05-07T22:29:00.002-04:00

Somebody almost slept through her first birthday today, luckily she woke up in just the knick of time to have a little cake. ok, bananna bread, but it looks like cake.

This girl loves the camera

2008-05-06T22:32:00.005-04:00

and Rex thinks all her toys are his toys!!! notice him hanging out in the stroller.

Crawfest '08

2008-05-03T21:59:00.001-04:00

Some friends of ours hold an annual Crawfish Fest with over 400 pounds of crawfish flown in from Louisisana. Very tasty indeed. Crawfest is a ton of fun, with bands, food, kids, the works. Hats off to Gud and "the commitee".

Fern experienced her first Crawfest today.

I Changed a Poo.

2008-05-02T22:00:00.004-04:00

Just thought you'd like to know I changed a poo. Wasn't really that bad. It looked like black bean burger mix before you add the breadcrumbs. I know you really wanted to know that, but I could have taken a fisheye lens shot of it, up REALLY close and posted that. Thats just not appropiate to put up on a public space.

(I'll email everybody a copy)

One week check in..

2008-04-30T21:26:00.002-04:00

Well we've officially been home for one week and next week is Fern's 1st birthday! We've been having a great time. Finally today I cooked something she liked. Our neighbor, who is from mexico, has been helping me with ideas and giving tasty snacks to Fern. I made jasmine rice, cooked down with cinammon stick, raisins and whole milk. Yum...comforts of home for Fernanda.

Tomorrow she is going to help me deliver meals on wheels to the ole folks. gotta teach her about being socially responsible and helping others (never to early to learn those important lessons!).
Unfortunately bathtime is still NOT going well. She hasn't had a bath in 3 days - but she doesn't smell yet!

To all those folks that have called over the past week - sorry I've been SO slack in calling ya all back. I do really appreciate the calls and well wishes, but somehow all my free time that I used to have is GONE!

Marbles and The Conspiracy of Stoke

2008-04-29T12:27:00.004-04:00

Had a fun trip to Marbles Childrens Mueseum today. Very cool Stuff.

Stoke - To be overjoyed, elated, hyped, extremely happy over a really good thing. (The Jer Dictionary of Urban Slang 2008)

You may have noticed that some of the pictures I've been taking are rather large and fisheyed, well thats because they're shot with a fisheye lens. As some of you know I belong to a community of skateboarders called Old Man Army. Old Man Army is a skateboard company based out of Arizona, but not just a skateboard company. A company that solely caters to skaters over the age of 30. The old dudes, the guys that shouldn't be doing this anymore but just can't let it go. Dudes who tear an ACL and require surgery. (HEY DON'T ROLL YOUR EYES!!) Even more than just a company, a community of older guys all over the world that just love skating but don't neccasarily always cater to the "corer than thou" attitudes. I've met some of these guys and skated, and have always been shown nothing but true hospitality. The Chandler BBQ is truly an amazing thing to behold. Young, old, guys, gals, everybody is there for one thing. Skateboarding.

I've shared our story of all our tribulations of adoption with "the army". These guys (and gals!) have given us a tremendous amount of support to Selina and I through this whole thing, and were overjoyed when we finally got home.

Through the web forums the "Conspiracy of Stoke" was born. Basically a way (plot?) for people to help other people, something to brighten anothers day. Someone gets hurt bad, loses a job, has a kid, a way to ease some pain or celebrate a great event. I was on the receiving end of that plot when I found a package on our doorstep earlier this week. One of OMA's owners had told me he was sending me some stickers I had designed for them. Mighty large box for some stickers. When I opened it I was surprised to find a brand spankin' new Nikon fisheye lens, something I've been drooling over for quite some time. I stood there mumbling incoherently for a while before it all really hit me. Folks that I've only met a handful of times, some that I've never met at all chipped in to do this for us. My heart just dropped, I can't really explain how touched I am by this. There truly is good in this world.

Am I Stoked? Yeah, you could say that. Thank you Old Man Army.

Attack of the Kitty Rex

2008-04-28T09:59:00.003-04:00

Rex has gone with the old saying "whats yours is mine and whats mine is yours". The boy got up into the walker on his own and decided that was a good spot to chill in. Rex has been an excellent big brother giving Fern kisses and the occasional full body brush up. Its almost like he's in a protective mode these days. I'm so proud of him.

of course we took photos today

2008-04-26T21:54:00.002-04:00

more pictures

2008-04-26T21:16:00.007-04:00

ok - somehow we didn't have time today to take any pictures but we did overcome a HUGE roadblock - Fern hated the stroller. Well, guess who ended up taking a nap in the stroller today! Maybe tomorrow we can tackle the demons lurking in the bathtub - that girl hates bathtime

Anyway - I am sharing some pictures that were given to us by the Foster Mom. I'm so glad she took pictures of their time together. You can tell by the pictures that Fern has been a very happy and spoiled little girl over the past year.

(look at the book she is reading!)

sharing more photos...

2008-04-25T21:51:00.004-04:00

North Crackerlacker

2008-04-24T19:31:00.002-04:00

Home Sweet Home....

2008-04-24T12:04:00.003-04:00

Ah...the comforts of home - we are so glad to be back.

We had a very easy day of traveling yesterday. Fern was a trooper (ok, little baby motrin helped!). We arrived home around 11:30pm and with all the excitement of being in her new digs, checking out all the toys and books in her room, she didn't go to sleep until 2:30am. Mommy and Daddy were exhausted!

I'm off to unpack and try to organize while she is down for a nap. I'm starting to learn how precious free-time is when you have a one yr old in the house!

Here's Fern playing this morning..she really is such a happy, easy-going girl.

2008-04-22T10:06:00.003-04:00

Sorry we haven´t posted as many pictures during this trip. There definitely is a BIG diffence beween being with a 5 mon old versus a 1 yr old! She doesn´t sleep as much during the day and requires a lot more of our attention.

She slept like a champ last night in her crib, but still has very sad moments in the morning pointing towards the door, longing for Ms. Rosa to come back. I have to admit, she really digs Jer. He has been doing such a great job reading books to her and comforting her (but of course he hasn´t changed any diapers yet!). Today is going to be a very long day -kind of yucky weather so looks like we will be spending a lot of time in the room.

here is a pic of the crazy fountain in the park in Antigua.

2008-04-21T23:03:00.002-04:00

I finally have a chance to sit at the one computer in the hotel (I hate computer hogs - some guy has been using it for the past hour - I finally asked him nicely to share!)

I must admit, yesterday was a very hard day. Fern was definitely very upset with the transition from foster mom to her new family. She cried all afternoon with a big pouty lip - she was breaking our hearts. I felt soooo bad taking her away from Rosa - it was emotionally exhausting for all of us. She ended up sleeping in the bed with us, which meant I didn´t get much sleep.

Today was a MUCH better day. She was a saint at the embassy (ok, she slept through about an hour of it!) and then we had a nice afternoon playing outside. Tomorrow at 3:30 I had back to the embassy to pick up our package and then Wednesday we fly home. I´ve got the baby motrin ready!!! Unfortunately she has a bit of a bacteria infection in her tummy, which means BIG explosions in the diapers. How the hell do you change a diaper in the bathroom on an airplane - there is barely room for one person!

tried to post some pics..but the connection here sucks..will try again manana.

Its official

2008-04-21T16:18:00.003-04:00

Its all official, we had our meeting at the embassy this morning, all thats left is to pick up the paperwork tomorrow. Things are going a little better now, Fern seems to be over her fussiness of yesterday, which was understandable, all of a sudden here she is with these two people who she´s only met once, and she doesn´t really remember that. Last night was a challenge, with little to no sleep, for her or us. I´d like to take this time to issue a formal apology to my parents, honestly I just had no idea things could be this hard. But its all coming together and we´ve had some big smiles today and hour by hour things seems to get a little easier.

Fernanda´s here!

2008-04-20T15:50:00.002-04:00

Fernanda is finally here! The transition has been a little rough, but she´s having a nap now, I think we´re both realizing that this isn´t going to be quite as easy as we had anticipated, nothing in life is easy and this won´t be any different. But like all challenges you just have to accept them and do your best, and like all challenges we´ll probably learn a thing or two along the way. What we have learned so far is that we love this little girl with all of our hearts and we will stop at nothing to give her the best life possible.

Pictures are coming soon, but we need some adjustment time first. Stay posted kiddies.

Greetings from Guatemala

2008-04-19T19:59:00.002-04:00

Well we´ve finally made it to Guatemala City, we had a great time up in Antigua on our "last solo vacation" the area is just beautiful, the picture you see here is the view from right outside of our door in Antigua. Kind of weird waking up and seeing a volcano right outside. We did a day trip yesterday up to Lake Aniticla (pretty sure I just butchered that spelling.)

Tomorrow is the day!! Fern will be here tomorrow around noon (you know she´s driving herself, she´s so advanced) We have our meeting at the embassy on monday and return on wednesday one big ole happy family. Anyway just wanted to post up real quick and let everyone know that things are going well. Tonight we´re going out for our last dinner as a couple, steaks and bourbon all around!!

And we're off to Guatemala..

2008-04-11T23:08:00.002-04:00

Yes, folks our time is up..this is it..everything is about to change (for the good, of course!)

We fly down next Thursday. Our embassy appt is on Monday and we fly back to the US on Wed April 23rd.

Pretty exciting....not sure I will be able to sleep tonight.

more to come..

WHOA...

2008-03-27T22:26:00.002-04:00

can I just tell you that this roller coaster ride I've been on for the past 11 months just picked up speed! I was driving home from work the other day thinking about how things are about to drastically change in 6 weeks (or less!) and I felt like I was going to throw up! seriously.

In the past two weeks: Fern has been issued a new birth certificate and passport. Not sure what her last name is right now..she might have the combo name..Fernanda Isabel Schroer Warren. Yeah, that's a mouth full - that's why we are changing her last name to Schwarren! Yesterday, she had DNA sample taken - which should make its way to the Lab in NC in the next few days. who knows..we might hear from the us embassy with our appt date in the next 2-3 weeks.

oh and forgot to share...stupid cat - Rex drooled on my head the other night. It was like 5 am in the morning (yes, I was sound asleep) and he's near my head "making biscuits" in my hair and drooled right on my forehead. I was horrified!

The Crawdad Hole

2008-03-25T14:00:00.009-04:00

Got to go out to a buddies private pool (a.k.a. 'The Crawdad Hole') on Friday and shoot some skating pictures. It was good to be at a session, even if I couldn't skate.

Yes thats a real, fully plumbed pool, but built for skating, come every fall, they empty it and its a skaters paradise until the next summer. Its funny to be at a session, drinking beer and cheering anytime sometime does something really cool, then completely changing the subject to cribs, adoption and baby things. Man we must be old.

You can see some more photos here

Happy Easter..

2008-03-22T08:42:00.002-04:00

WOW..

2008-03-17T20:29:00.004-04:00

Yes, we are officially freaking out! We are going to be parents - that sounds so weird. Rex has been doing a good job of getting us ready for the big life altering changes that are about to come our way - he likes to wake us up around 4:00am and is constantly meowing at us to play with him. He is so high maintenance!

For those who are interested... we now have to wait for them to issue a new birth certificate & passport (with her new last name!). Once we get the BC, then we can submit a request to the US Embassy for authorization to do the 2nd DNA testing (they check to make sure the baby is the same baby that started the adoption process). The lab results are sent to LabCorp in Burlington NC of all places. Once the US Embassy approves the DNA results - they send us an email - its called the "pink slip" giving us the date of our appointment in Guatemala City!! Then we really freak out. We will have anywhere from 3 to 21 days notice before we have to travel.

Thanks for checking in. I hear jer downstairs doing the dishes..I feel kinda of guilty, especially since he cooked too. But ya know..after those 3 weeks of taking care of him 24/7 - I don't feel so bad!

FERNANDA IS COMING HOME!!!!

2008-03-13T17:21:00.005-04:00

FERNANDA IS COMING HOME!!!!

We got the call this afternoon. We are officially out of PGN.

We still have a few weeks to go, 6-8 weeks for various and assorted documents and what not, but our little girl is finally coming home.

so much to do, I think we're both freaking out a bit, but neither one of us can get these grins off of our faces.

More details to come.

I love when we get to spring forward...

2008-03-12T19:27:00.004-04:00

although I hate losing that hour in the morning ..I love coming home and still having 2-3 hours of sunlight. I'm pleased to report that we have officially started composting. There is this old wood & metal structure at the back of the property line that the last owner left behind - I'm kicking myself that we didn't start 3 yrs ago when we first moved in. We dumped in our first bucket of kitchen scraps tonight after preparing veggies for beef stew dinner.

My rain barrels are full! Jer is already talking about buying a few more and lining them up along the side of the house. When the first barrel is full, the overflow then continues on to the next barrel and then the next and so on and so on..until our house floats away!

We are still waiting for "the call" from our agency to say that we are finally out of PGN. This time around the waiting is really hard. We are getting close to her first b-day. Also, I've seen other families getting out in 2 weeks - crazy fast times. I saw a case that was submitted on Feb 18th that is out. Hello -we went in on the 14th..its so friggin not fair! We are totally at the mercy of these four people at the PGN that must each review our file and sign off on everything. bribery is sounding better and better every day (just kidding!). My friend Belinda was actually just vacationing in Guatemala with some of her friends..she said she would be glad to bring back a little bundle for me - very tempting!!!!

that's all for now..hoping to report good news soon.

BIG SIGH COUNTRY

2008-03-06T11:53:00.006-05:00

(i just had to bump that pic to the top, you know she does get priority here)

Big Sigh 1

Its getting very frustrating waiting on news about Fernanda. It seems like we've been waiting forever now. One of the guys I've skated with in the past is also in the same process, well not anymore he and his wife just did their pickup this month. It just makes us both wonder why? WHY??? Why are they getting out and not us? There's just no rhyme or reason for any of this, we were pretty much on schedule with them, how come they get to come home already and we don't???

Her room is coming along with just a few odds and ends to get together now, Selina has been chuggin along like a mad woman getting all of that done. In the battle of Selina vs. Martha Stewart, my money is on Selina. She'd build the shelf, frame the picture, paint a wall and still manage to knock out Martha's teeth. (granted thats barring prison rules) But then she'd make those cookies I love and we'd all laugh about it later. Its a good thing.

In a week or two, once I'm able to stand for a good while, I'll start painting clouds on the ceiling. The room really is looking amazing. I think we may need Ferns input on a few things though, so she needs to be here. You know "supervising" things. Plus she needs to meet Rex before he thinks he has this pad all to himself, we need to set some ground rules for "the boy".

Big Sigh 2

The doctor has allowed me to go without the brace now, good thing too, I was about to huck that thing out of the window.
Still rockin the cane as a safety device, but getting much stronger, my mom thinks I should get a cape to go along with the cane. I think she's right.

I found this video from palm springs, I do miss the skating, I want to roll again.

and another from our local spot, project 58 (don't make fun of my "jazz hands")

Mock up Smock up

2008-03-03T09:15:00.003-05:00

So this is what I was working on on the couch during my down time.

There will be 4 all together, with 5 of each character so 5 full sets of 4 different folks at the bustop, these are just mockups done on the computer, but the final output will be two color screen prints on finished maple plywood. (not skateboards, but similar construction style, decks are for skating, art is for hanging)

Yeah I'm a weirdo, but I have had this idea of doing regular people in gas-masks for a while, maybe its the world we live in, maybe I'm just insane, but it does let you tell your own story about the folks in these pieces, everyone is going to have their own interpretation of whats going on, I encourage that, make up your own story.

These were all hand drawn, then scanned and taken into the computer to sharpen up the line art, still need to finish up a few things in the basement before i can really start printing, but its getting really close.

Enjoy.

Bring on the rain..

2008-03-02T20:32:00.005-05:00

Got my birthday present today from Jer - two 55-gallon rain barrels!!! They are big and ugly but will be extremely useful during the drought. now it just needs to rain.

Getting excited for my birthday dinner tomorrow night (I'm SO glad I married an amazing chef!)....for those of you interested - jer's playing a little "iron man hef" - he has three main ingredients - rack of lamb, local collard greens and local sweet potatoes.

Here is a picture of Rex - he's such a show cat!

And here is pic of Fern (sure hope she's not allergic to cats!)

P.S.

2008-02-28T22:13:00.004-05:00

I would just like to add (for the schroer family)...did you notice in the picture below that Fern was reading - she's "so advanced!"

New Fernicus Pics!!!

2008-02-28T09:43:00.005-05:00

ok just one picture, blogger is not cooperating with me today.

this is what cari from the agency had to say:

"These were taken last week during our trip. I wish that we had a photo of the grin that she gave us when we put the camera
down, but you will just have to take my word that her smile is contagious!"

A little sigh of relief

2008-02-25T22:01:00.003-05:00

Just learned today that our case was re-submitted back into PGN on Feb 14th. Now we wait some more...

Fern's room is finally taking shape after several different coats of paint. It took a few tries to get the right color - and honestly, I still don't think its right, but I'm not painting that room a third time!

Oh..and thank goodness..Jer can finally dress himself and he actually helped cook dinner tonight. He owes me BIG!

The Bees Knees

2008-02-22T11:14:00.004-05:00

So I'm back up and running, well not running, in fact not really walking, but if i hang on to my crutches I can "pretend" to walk, hopefully be off the wobbly sticks here in a few days, I can stand on my own and even manage to take a few steps here and there but I don't want to push it, so right now I'm still using the crutches just for safety sake.

I'm a lot more stable, and the rehab is really starting to build up some strength in my leg and around my knee. After the surgery all my muscles basically quit on me, so its a long road back to full recovery, but I'll get there. Biggest news, I actually put on my own shoes yesterday. WOOHOO!!!!!

I had my staples taken out yesterday, how do they do that? Well with a big ole staple remover, pretty much just like that one you have in your desk drawer, but you know its all "medical" so it probably cost around 100 bucks for that thing, man i could've done that myself at home, I did get to see the physical therapist though and he gave me a couple of new exercises to work on, I can already tell that I'm getting more flexibility and strength. So far so good, i've been doing some partial days back at work, and next week I'll be back in full swing.

In my down time on the couch (my new girlfriend, we'll call her Sophia, but she's no threat to Selina) I've been wielding the old pencil and paper, trying some new drawings that will eventually be taken into the computer for manipulation and then output for screen printing on either chipboard or stained wood planks. I think the most positive outcome of all this is that I got to get away from the computer and get back to the basics of drawing. Thousands of dollars of computers and software will never replace pencil and paper, its hands on, brain to hand to pencil to paper. Simplicity at its best, its good to get away from the box every now and then. There's probably enough eraser rubber in our couch now to make a set of tires. Draw, erase, draw, erase.

I'll post up some of the drawings soon.

The other saving grace of couch life is The History Channel, they had a continuous running of a show called The States, all about the 50 states in the Union. It was like an instant trip back to social studies class, man I do love the History Channel. If you haven't seen any of this series, you should watch it, very interesting stuff, but then again I'm a nerd. The series on presidents was really intriguing as well.

Selina has been nothing short of a divine angel for the past week and half, I really don't think I could have done any of this without her help, thus securing her title of "best wife ever" for a lifetime. Anybody that will put up with me on the couch for that long has got to have some kind of angelic gift. Rex has also been a source of utter joy, they say laughter is the best medicine, seeing him chase after that fish has got to be one of the funniest things ever, thanks Dr. Rex. (aka: SHOW CAT!!)

Thats the knews on knees for today, stay tuned and maybe I'll do a little dance for ya'll.

Sharing new pictures...she is getting so big.

2008-02-15T14:21:00.001-05:00

The nurse report - day 1

2008-02-12T18:24:00.000-05:00

Well folks - Jer made it through the surgery like a champ and is now the new six-million dollar man! (Steve Austin was so hot) Here is a picture of him two hours after surgery. So far he has been a pretty easy going patient - not too much bitching & complaining. Although the smart ass did say when I first got him into bed, that maybe it would be a good idea if I got him a bell so he could "ring" for me when my services were needed! NOT.

BTW..while I'm here writing - update from Guatemala..things are finally moving along and I think some cases have been able to register with the new Central Authority and have actually been re-submitted back to PGN.

pps. Jon & Kate: I haven't had time to investigate..but there is a for sale sign in front of your old house - WTF???

meet rex

2008-02-11T21:40:00.000-05:00

meet rex. click rex he gets larger.

THE KNEWS ON KNEES

2008-02-07T09:43:00.000-05:00

OK, so no i don't think I'm 12 again, lord knows I really don't think I'd like to be 12 again. I fully realize that I'm 34 years old. This doesn't change the fact that I do really love skating and a busted knee isn't going to change that.

So all those folks out there rolling there eyes and saying "He should really grow up" well, I am a grown up. I have a wonderful wife, a good job, a house, and a beautiful little girl on the way. However I do like to roll around on this so called "useless wooden toy". Skating gets me off my fat butt and makes me sweat a little bit, is that really all that bad? Just cause I nearly cut off a finger back in the day doesn't mean that I'm never going to cook again.

Its hard to describe the feeling I get from skating, granted I know there are things that I will NEVER do on a skateboard, but the feeling of just going fast and defying gravity for that split second is pure bliss. All the problems of the world melt away, when I leave the skate park I always have a smile on my face and day to day stress just doesn't seem as problematic. I can't say the same thing about the "relaxing" sports like golf, thats so frustrating it makes me want to smash little white balls into oblivion, how anyone can get relaxation from that is beyond my comprehension.

I'm actually surprised that this whole knee thing happens now, I spent over ten years of my life slippin and slidin all over those kitchen floors, pivoting back and forth from the ticket line, to the grill, to the saute' line. Run, stop, pivot, kneel, stand up, stand on one foot, stand on one toe, reach, grab, slip, fall, get back up and do it all over again.

Life is all about risk. If you fall off that horse, well you better dust yourself off and get your ass back up there. Otherwise you live in fear of that horse, and you may never take that risk again. If you don't take that risk, will you take ANY risks? Or will you dig a safe hole and hunker down? Doesn't sound like any kind of life to me. If you're not feeling a little pain every now and then, well then you're not living.

Speaking of pain, well I think I'm about to go through quite a bit of it, basically they're going to drill a hole in my knee, and rethread it with a piece of my patella. I've had a ton of help from my friends Ross and Scott, both of which have had this done within the past month, and they've both been great sources of information. With their help I think I'm going into this pretty well prepared. Thanks guys.

I'm just happy that I have someone there to help me out in my down time, to give me support. Honestly I think i would be scared out of my mind if it weren't for Selina. I know a lot of wives would have already had a big skateboard bon fire in the backyard.

Thank you Selina for being the best wife ever.

Updates

2008-02-06T21:39:00.001-05:00

howdy folks..

so we are still waiting to get registered with the new Central Authority - at least things seem to be slowly moving in the right direction. Below is a link to a news article about guatemalan adoptions - finally the media tells it like it is.
click here
Next Tuesday - I get to drive Jer to the hospital at 5:45am and then for three days be his nurse maid. He's going in for knee surgery. Somebody thinks he's still 12 years old riding around on that skateboard!

Thanks for checking in...

Opps..almost forgot

2008-01-25T19:35:00.000-05:00

now that all the grandfolks have received their special pictures - its safe to post some more of Ferns pics from end of Dec.

Nice cheeks!

Kate...wishing you were here

2008-01-25T19:24:00.000-05:00

I'm enjoying a dark n' stormy with the last drops of the Brugal from the DR. I should have brought home more bottles!

Yesterday we booked our next visit trip to see Fern (going in April - she'll be 11 mons). We are very excited, but realize how difficult it will be saying good-bye to her once again, but
its worth a few sad tears just to get the chance to hold her, listen to her laugh, and snuggle with her!

Thats all for now. have a great weekend (I love Friday evenings!)

I want off this rollercoaster - I'm gonna get sick

2008-01-14T16:02:00.000-05:00

We got a call today from our agency with good news and bad news...
BAD: Our paperwork was kicked out AGAIN from PGN court

GOOD: It was a quick fix - something wrong with birth mom's name on Fern's birth certificate. Paperwork is now fixed and ready to be re-submitted to PGN.

BAD: PGN is currently NOT accepting any cases until the Guat gov't can establish the new Central Authority - where we first have to register our case and then PGN will open back up.
Rumor has it the Central Authority will be set up on or about Feb 11th. So we have to wait about a month and then hopefully can re-enter PGN. And then we wait again for them to review our paperwork. I hate to say this..but its probably going to be another seven months until we can bring Fern home.

Needless to say - after I got the call from the agency - I left work to come home and have a good cry. Now I have a headache and puffy eyes. I hate crying!

2008-01-06T19:02:00.000-05:00

Well that didn't take long .. the neighborhood kids quickly discovered the new King Charles Fort.

Look what's in our backyard..!!!!

2008-01-06T14:54:00.000-05:00

and the best part....it was FREE

One step forward...five steps backwards

2008-01-04T18:52:00.000-05:00

Fern update for you all. Sorry, its a little long-winded - every now and then you just gotta do a "brain dump" and get it out so it doesn't drive you crazy.

New laws in Guatemala took effect Jan 1. No one knows where that leaves us - but at least they agreed to grandfather in the existing cases (that's one step forward). Guatemala now has to set up a new Central Authority to oversee all adoptions - no idea how long that will take. And to top it off - they are right in the middle of transitioning in the newly elected administration. So the folks on the way out don't care about our situation and the new gov't coming in will surely require time to get "settled in" (that's five steps backwards).

This coming Monday Fern will be 8 months and we will have officially been back in PGN for 4 weeks. Although, those 4 weeks don't really count since half of the Guatemalan Gov't was on holiday!
We also learned today that the PGN is not accepting any new cases or resubmits until the new Central Authority has been established. PHEW..that was close for us...our case was re-submitted to PGN on Dec 12. But..I have to admit I'm a little worried that the PGN is now going to kick-out all the remaining cases just to put us in limbo land...oh how fun!

We have finally begun working on Fern's room. Lots of prep work - there must be 15 layers of paint on the baseboards (you gotta love old houses). I can't wait to start painting it and making it look all girly!

Well - that's all for now. Enjoy your weekend.

The wait is over...

2007-12-30T20:25:00.000-05:00

for the new bathroom that is! Tomorrow will be my first morning back in the old bathroom - which is now looking new and improved. No more popcorn walls!

Oh great..

2007-12-12T18:41:00.001-05:00

apparently PGN is closed from Dec 20 - Jan 2nd. So not fair.

PGN update

2007-12-11T18:16:00.000-05:00

Our paperwork was re-submitted to PGN court on 12/10/07!

New pictures...

2007-12-10T20:26:00.000-05:00

We just got new pictures..and we got a LOT!!!! I'm going to post all of them on another site in the next few days..but wanted to share a few with you now.
(p.s. check out the bling on her right hand!)

Gettin all artsy on ya'll

2007-12-07T09:55:00.000-05:00

I put up a new portfolio site at coroflot (weird name ain't it?)

click here

Anyway, I'll be updating this every so often, I still need to get a few drawings on there and some paintings, but its a good way to share some work and hopefully score that elusive high paying gig. Haven't you heard? All todays great artists are just in it for the money, fame and chicks. Integrity is for suckers, its all about cashin' in these days.

Today is Ferns 7 month birthday, its hard to believe its already been 7 months, she cannot come home soon enough, we're missing out on valuable spaghetti all over her face time here. I've got piles of spaghetti just waitng for that childs little hands, strained peas too, what is the Guatemalan government thinking, I really need a good food smush with our daughter.

It amazes me that we as humans can obliterate an entire city in minutes, but it takes forever to give a child a home.

The Fern Report - Part 29

2007-12-05T19:51:00.001-05:00

our paperwork has finished authentication process in Guatemala...should be back in PGN in next few days.

but the girl from our agency sent us an email - they were unable to visit with Fern last week (yes, I have my frown face on) - I guess they were just too busy. Now we have to wait and hope that maybe the attorney in Guatemala will take some pictures. This definitely means no DVD..(more frowning!)

That's all..just trying to stay mellow, but as we get closer to the end of the year and possible suspension time in Guatemala- I really start panicking and get bummed out.

So to keep my mind off the Fern crisis - we're heading to NYC next weekend to check out the beautiful twinkly lights, eat some good food, and hang out with my friend Beth that I've known since we were three years old. Hoping for some christmas SNOW..lots of SNOW!

Happy Holidays from the Schwarrens

2007-12-05T19:40:00.000-05:00

Here's some christmas cheer.. remember to relax and enjoy it..don't let it stress ya out!

quick update

2007-11-27T19:54:00.001-05:00

today our paperwork is on its way back to Guatemala! Hope to be back into PGN by Dec 7th.

Howdy...

2007-11-26T19:23:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to say "hi" to those folks who check-in from time to time.

Nothing new to report - our document is still at the Atlanta consulate - its being authenticated. Hopefully they will send it back to our agency this week, then they send it to Guatemala. The document has to be translated before it can be added to our file..then finally we will be resubmitted to PGN.

I'm thinking PGN will finally get around to reviewing our application in mid-February, at which time they better give us the green light. Not sure I can handle another kick-out.

Keep in mind..once we get the green light - then its still another 6-8 weeks before we can go pick her up. That's pretty close to the tentative suspension date of 04/01/08.

Tonight I'm spending the evening going through a HUGE bag of hand-me-down clothes from a friend at work - I'm all about sharing. Little girly stuff is SO friggin cute!

ps. Cari, from our agency, is down in guatemala this week visiting with all the children. Just think she could be playing with Fern right now (I'm so jealous!). Hopefully next week - we'll have new pics to post.

The Grand Adventure

2007-11-16T10:44:00.000-05:00

So, I headed out to Arizona last week to skate with all the guys from the Old Man Army. For those of you who don't know, Old Man Army is a skateboard company out of the Phoenix / Tempe area that caters to old dudes like me, that just can't seem to put down the useless wooden toy, 30 plus folks. Thats not really all that old but when the average age of a skater is around 16, then yeah thats pretty old, at least the youngn's think we're old, we wear (GASP!!!) pads and helmets, we've got families and jobs to think about here.

Got to Phoenix around 4, former Wilmington resident "Calamity" Jean and "Boise" Tom Kilroy picked me up at the airport, after a quick drop off of gear at the Hideaway Lodge we're off to the Tempe Skatepark to meet up with some other old dudes. Tempe is just mobbed with people, kids, old dudes, the works. I got in a couple of runs in the flow section and quickly learned that you just have to go, with this many people its kind of hard to be polite and take turns, you either go or get left behind. After Tempe we head off to the "Pool Party" at an undisclosed location. Some friends of Jeans were kind enough to offer up their empty swimming pool for folks to skate. Food, beer, skating and one hell of a honky tonk band called Flathead. Some of the most insane ripping I've ever seen, I held back and shot pictures, I'd be back here later when the session wasn't quite so heated. I was just in awe, one local guy slammed so hard he split open his helmet, not even fazed, he just grabbed another one off someones head and kept on keeping on. The Arizona people are true rippers.

Next day, we lead a seven car caravan up north, the goal is Wickenburg, Prescott, Chino Valley Private Ramp and Goodyear to round it all out. We hit up Wickenburg Skate Park first and meet up with some of the folks coming in from Northern California. Wickenburg has a great bowl, I could've stayed here all day, I really liked this bowl, but the caravan must march on. Right as we hit the road disaster strikes. Jean, husband Steve, Boise Tom and myself are in Jeans VW Van when we get rearended by an RV. I was showing Tom pictures on my camera when we got hit, one minute I'm in the back seat, the next I'm up in the front. We never even heard squealing tires, homeboy in the RV never hit the brakes, just walluped right into us at around 35-40 MPH. The van is toast, as well as the driver of the RV, he had no ID, no insurance, and the RV wasn't even his. Due to the Box o wine they found in his front seat, he got a free ride to the Wickenburg pokey. Serves you right buddy. We regather and regroup into other vehicles and before too long, we're back on the road, through dessert and hills and those crazy cactuses that you see in old westerns.

Onward and upward, he head up into yonder hills towards Prescott, great park. Everything here is twice as big as back home, it feels really good to be skating the big stuff. Next up we head out to Chino Valley to skate Tom's (different Tom) ramp, beautiful creation out in the middle of nowhere. A skaters dream come true. Finally get back to Tempe for Italian food and beers around 8ish. Its been quite a day.

Sunday was the actual BBQ at Chandler Skate Park in duh!! Chandler, Arizona. Eight states and three countries are represented, with Jonno coming in from Thailand and Paul coming in from the UK. Never in my life have I seen some much unity with skateboarders, it didn't matter if you were kickturning and flailing or if you were getting 5 foot airs with style, everyone was just as stoked. The Death Race was just a scarey thing, raffles were held, stuff given away, and lots of skating going down. Even Patti McGee showed up, Patti was the first ever proffesional female skateboarder, and even made the cover of a 1965 Life magazine. She's a legend and paved the way for all of this thing we call skating. I gotta add to that its pretty cool to see a bunch of skaters wearing my designs, and seeing folks come up to the merch booth and commenting on the shirts, it was a great little ego boost.

After a great afternoon, some folks headed off to Goodyear Skate Park, Jean and I headed back for food and one last visit to the Pool Party Pool. This is the first real pool I've ever skated and had an absolute blast, didn't quite make over the light, but made it over the painting of Mr. Rogers, and never bailed, so I was pretty happy.

Thanks goes out to all the Old Man Army guys for all the hospitality, Lox, Jean, Steve, Patti, Boise Tom, Chef, Lou, Jeff, Bobby, Dan, Old Man Mike, Old Man Brian (aka Grumpy Smurf), Chino Valley Tom, Hughes, Greg, Louisvilles 'Concretins' crew, the owners of 'the pool of make believe', skinner, andy, jonno, trev, dave, crash, and anybody else i may have managed to leave out, thank you all so much for such a wonderful time and such amazing hospitality. It certainly was a grand adventure.

you can see more photos here : http://www.flickr.com/photos/20736622@N08/

Do Over..

2007-11-13T22:07:00.000-05:00

I spent all day Monday painting the bathroom - two coats of green and it wasn't the right color - what a bummer. It turned out too minty green.

So tonight I changed it back to white (sure wish you could just flip a switch to change paint colors). Now trying to decide what color to use. We are STILL waiting for final inspection and hopefully the doors for the built-in cabinet will arrive soon. I'm ready to move back to my bathroom. Those treks upstairs in the mornings are getting really chilly!

A few updates..

2007-11-09T18:34:00.000-05:00

Its Friday nite - Jer is in AZ for a gathering of the Old Man Army. They may sound menacing, but really just a bunch of old dudes who like to skateboard.

So while he is off doing his thing - tonight I'm heading out with some girls to see a band - then tomorrow I volunteered to babysit for a friend of Jer's. I'll be hanging out at the house with a 11 month old girl for about 9 hours! I figured it would be good practice and give me a little taste of my future life! Sunday and Monday (gotta love bank holidays) I'll be painting the new bathroom green. I will share pics when its done.

So enough about my boring life.. on to the adoption news - the reason why you check this site..

Presidential elections were held in Guat last week - the good guy (or shall I say the lesser of the two evils) won. What that means for the future of guatemala adoptions - who knows.

Our agency is moving pretty quickly with fixing our paperwork. By now it should be in Atlanta at the Consulate for authentication. Then it comes back to Raleigh, then to Guatemala where it has to be translated..then finally back into PGN..could be another 2-3 weeks.

On a positive note - Guat congress met last week - nothing definite yet - but sounds like they are in favor of bumping out the suspension date from 01/01/08 to 04/01/08 when hopefully the US will also be Hague compliant. Also, they are considering a "grandfather" clause for the pending cases.

Now..back to something negative.. learned yesterday that in guatemala - the holiday season is from Dec 6 - Jan 6. This of course means very very little paperwork will be processed as everyone will be out in the streets celebrating - so not fair - I want a month off for the holidays!

That's all for now..everyone send out some good vibes to jer so that he has a SAFE weekend skating with the big kids (can't afford any hospital bills!).

Blueberries for sale...

2007-11-07T20:13:00.000-05:00

What do you do with 10pds, yes 10 pounds, of wild maine blueberries??? Let's see - ya got blueberry muffins, blueberry cobbler, blueberry milkshakes, blueberry waffles.......yummm I could go on and on.

My Mom sent me this frozen care package - I've put it into about 30 ziplock bags and its now sitting in my freezer. Let me just tell you - working with blueberries can get pretty messy - my hands have purple stains all over them, but the cold, fresh juice at the bottom of the bag - so worth it!

Thanks Mom - you're the greatest!

ARGH...we've been kicked out...

2007-11-05T18:35:00.001-05:00

Today we got a call from the agency - after 6 weeks in PGN - we've been kicked out. Apparently Guatemala had issues with the social worker's report being signed by our agency and not by the individual social worker, which it turns out is NC law - whatever. Anyway to make a long story longer...

It should take our agency approx 3 weeks to resolve and have our paperwork re-submitted to PGN so we can start again at the bottom, yes I said the bottom, of the pile! So all told..this probably added about 2 1/2 mons to the process. Yes, they are killin' me, but before we know it, Fern will be home and there will be NO more weekends sleeping in till 11:00am!

And to boot...still no news from Guatemalan gov't as to what they are going to do with the existing cases prior to the big suspension date of 01/01/08. Let's hope they agree to grandfather in ALL adoptions already in process.

adoptonewz

2007-11-05T09:37:00.000-05:00

So Alvaro Colom is the new president of Guatemala, Mr. Colom, I know you're busy and all, but lets take a little time to address this adoption fiasco you have going on in your country, Fern called last night and said she wants to come home, you can make that happen Mr. President.

Also, a great editorial in the Washington Post concerning Guatemalan adoptions.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/02/AR2007110201782.html

Has it really been 5 years?

2007-11-02T09:01:00.000-04:00

Well its been five years now that we've been married, I kind of always worried that our anniversary was on the mexican day of the dead, but i guess that has turned out to be a good thing. The past five years have soared by, in restaurant land if you make it through the first five years then you have a pretty good chance of making it. Well we've hit that mark and i think its gonna be alright.

I feel so grateful that i get to spend everyday with my best friend, that we've built a home together and that we'll soon start a family with Fern, I've been truly blessed. Mom said she prayed for Selina to come to me, I guess ya'll were a little worried about me, huh? Granted I probably needed a little grounding, I needed to grow up a bit, settle down and figure out some kind of plan. Wild nights only last until the sun comes up, but true love lasts forever.

I love you more now than I ever have Selina, Happy Anniversary.

And we'll go honky tonkin, honky tonkin......

2007-11-02T08:19:00.000-04:00

I guess its no real secret that I love honky tonk music, none of that new Nashville stuff mind you, but real live honkey tonk music, the stuff that Hank Williams and Jimmy Rogers poured from their souls, songs of heartbreaks, fistfights, boozin and loosin'. Country music always reminds me of being young and riding around in my Dads car (the green LTD really was the best) listening to the radio, solid country gold, I'd never admit it at the time, but I always secretly hoped the next song would be Johnny Cash's 3 Feet High and Rising, and really hoped it wouldn't be Kenny Rogers belting out "You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille" (This would inevitably lead to Dad singing 'You picked a fine time to leave me LOOSE WHEEL', hardy har har), but everytime i hear those songs of Merle Haggard, Willie, Waylon, Johnny, Hank, and the west Texas tales of Marty Robbins, it makes me think of my old man.

Now Nashville is cluttered with this American Idolized version of country music, Kid Rock singing country? Give me a break!! 'Honky Tonk Bedonky Donk?? Country rap? What!!??? BLASPHEMERS!!!! BLASPHEMERS!!!! You people have no business in Nashville, oh wait thats right, everything is business in Nashville now. "Welcome to the Nortel / Coca Cola / Microsoft, Grand Ole Opry! (brought to you by Ford Trucks, 'Built Ford tough!!')"

Now I know this all sounds bitter, but there is a saving grace. Several area bands took the call to save this precious artform, and for years have been belting out classic honky tonk the old fashion way, with no money and lots of beer, folks like Caitlen Carey, Two Dollar Pistols, Whiskeytown, Tift Merrit and Hank Sinatra bring back true country roots with a punk rock Do It Yourself ethic that has no match. Take that Nashville, welcome to North Carolina, pull up a chair we'll show you how its done.

Our good friends in Hank Sinatra will be playing their last show on December 8th at the Local 506 in Chapel Hill, billed as "The Showdown at the Hoedown" this is bound to be a great show, with Two Dollar Pistols and a reunited Backsliders to boot.
I've had the privelage of doing all of Hank Sin's posters over the past year, Jeffro and the guys give me free reign to do whatever I want to and its given me a chance to flex some creative muscle and for that I'm grateful. So I did this poster as a last hurrah for them, Hank Williams redefined, I like to think its a statement on country music today, the mainstream killed it, but it still lives on in some sort of weird twisted punk rock way.. (ain't that deep?)

you can see the rest of the poster on this page, right underneath the photos: http://www.hank-sinatra.com/index.cfm

here are some more pics

2007-10-31T22:10:00.001-04:00

new fern pics!!!!

2007-10-30T18:58:00.001-04:00

we got new pics today, mr. president berger guy, how can you resist that face? huh? HUH? thats right, i thought so..

2007-10-28T13:52:00.001-04:00

So several times a week I check out one of the Guatemala forums to see what people are saying and how their cases are moving along through this brutal process. I've told myself over and over again that I can NOT compare our timeline to the timeline of other families. Every case is different and it also depends on whether Mr. Barrio (the reviewer at the PGN that let's paperwork sit on his desk for 8 weeks) is in a good mood that day!

Well..now that we are officially 4 weeks in PGN..I can't stop counting the days. I was doing such a great job of being patient during the first few months ..but now its killing me! Anyway, the deal with PGN is this - they will review your application within 8-11 weeks then at that time they will either give you the green light OR kick out your paperwork. We've seen many many families get kicked out for stupid paperwork issues.

Here are the timelines for two recent posts on the forum
One family entered PGN on 09/05/07 (we entered on 09/25/07) - and they got the green light from PGN on 10/25/07. That means it only took them a month and half to get through with no kick-outs. that's what I WANT!!!

Then this other family - they were in PGN for 10 weeks and then got kicked out. How depressing..

Sorry for the rambling. As you can probably tell - this is a roller coaster for the emotions and I hate roller coasters!

Bathroom is coming along

2007-10-22T17:15:00.001-04:00

Ah....sweet piggy

2007-10-20T20:10:00.000-04:00

For those of you that missed the NC State Fair....

Barbecue Sundae
Layers of bbq, beans and coleslaw
A new tasty treat at the Fair!

And of course, the beautiful piggy!