Willie Gets Busted

I know this is old news, but dosen't Willie get a waiver...He's been doing this stuff for years. The latest on Willie arrest from The Smoking Gun (No pun intended)

Rolly Polly Olly

Charlotte is on the move. She isn't crawling yet, but she gets around the living room pretty good by pushing and rolling over. Charlotte is also in the high chair so we can all enjoy dinner at the table. An we can't forget about the Jolly Jumper...Charlotte hangs out in it for hours.

This past weekend was pretty busy. After my test on Saturday, the three of us went down to Lark Fest in Albany. Not the best place in world for a stroller, but Chris and I had never gone to the festival so we wanted to go just to see what it was like...The crazies were out in force.

On Sunday, it was off to The Crossings in colonie for the 1st annual Harvest Fest. It was a lot like Niska Day only on a smaller scale. They had vendors, farmers market, clowns, food, music and Fireworks. What was very nice was the fact that we could walk to the park so we didn't have to deal with all the traffic.

Here are some more pictures from the last few days:

Time for some Jumpin
Chris and Charlotte watching the crazies at Lark Fest
Hello Cutie
Crossing Ducks
Time for the Fireworks

The Bribe Is In The Mail

I came home from work today and had to laugh when I saw a envelope from the NYS Department of Taxation & Finance...I knew exactly what it was. It was my $133 school property tax rebate.

So, you may be saying, what is the big deal...The boys of Albany gave us a tax break for once...A little more cash in the pocket helps...No big deal. WRONG. My problem is with the timing of these checks. Amazing how it is less then 60 days before the general election and we are getting a rebate. Could it be to help us out with our school tax bill? Well that is the reason that they are giving us, but that is not the real reason. You see the scum of Albany want to make sure you remember them when you go to the booth on November 7th...It's just a good old fashion bribe.

Again, I don't have a problem with the rebate, but I do with the timing. After working for the state for 12 years I know how these clowns work. These guys are buying votes with your money. Look at what the letter that came with the check says: "...we are pleased to provide you with a bribe of $133...Please remember your incumbent on November 7th. "

Pool Anyone?

I'm not sure if anyone has seen this. Although everybody is speaking french, it is still cool. Oh, and if this has been on the internet for years or it some sort of trick video...I don't care...it's very cool!!

Is that George W. Bush or is that Rosco P. Coltrane?

While we were in Myrtle Beach, one morning I happened to turn on the TV while Dubya was giving a press conference. A couple of observations:

1. This guy needs to go back to English class...When he says things, he does not use proper English. You listen to this guy and you say to yourself...This guy is a Yale Graduate? He couldn't of gotten in on intelligence... He can't speak English.

2. Whenever Dubya "chuckled", I couldn't help but to think about Rosco P. Coltrane from the Dukes of Hazzard. Next time you here Dubya speak, instead of wasting time trying to figure out what he is saying, just pay attention to when he chuckles. It's amazing how similar he sounds to Rosco.

Charlotte's First Trip To Ohio

After spending three days at home, Chris, Charlotte and I continue on our third leg of 12 states in 30 days. After work on Wednesday (8/30) we started off to Chris's Dads house in Warren, Ohio. Charlotte was a great traveler again and we would have it in normal time except for the 45 minute traffic delay in Buffalo, NY. Needless to say, pulled into the driveway at 1:30am.

On Thursday, we hung out with Chris's Dad and made our traditional trip to the Hot Dog Shoppe. If you ever pass through Warren, you need to set aside time to go to this restaurant. It's nothing fancy, but it has, by far, the best dogs, fries and shakes I have ever had. And you can't beat the price... .77 cents for a dog. Goes to show how much profit they are making at baseball parks across the country.

On Friday, it was off to The Canfield Fair in Canfield, Ohio. I have not gone to a fair in over 25 years, however, after going to this fair, Chris and I decided that we are going to start going to more of them next summer. The fair was cool...Lots of animals, shows, tractors and food.

On Saturday, Chris went out to Lunch with her friends Jeri and Mary, while Charlotte and I spent the afternoon with Granpa watching college football. College football has never really interest me, but after visiting Ohio for the last 5 years, I think I'm turning into a Ohio State Buckeyes fan. Saturday night, we went to Chris's sister Amy's house for dinner.

On Sunday, we went to Amy's house again for a picnic where Charlotte met her Aunt Joanne and Uncle Jim for the 1st time. On Monday it was back on the road again for our trip home.

So there you have it, 12 states and over 3,500 miles since the beginning of August. 3 States to get to Maine, 6 States to get to Myrtle Beach, 2 states to get to Ohio and finally New York. Needless to say, we are a little sick of driving, so we will be hanging around home for the next month. Our Next trip is our annual foliage trip to Lake Placid in early October.

Here are some pictures of our trip to Ohio

Allison, Caitlin & Rachel
Granpa & the Girls
Amy & Chris
Jeri & Charlotte
Allison checking out the cows
Cool sunset at The Canfield Fair
Cluck Cluck
Allison and Rachel checking out the tractors
Hi Mr. Horse
Leave me alone...I'm eating

Myrtle Beach

Now that we've been home for a few days and I was able to cut the lawn, pay the bills and visit my parents, I can finally write about our first real vacation as a family to Myrtle Beach, SC. We started out Friday (8/18). Our plan was to drive down to Chester, Va, spend the night and then drive into Myrtle Beach on the 19th. It took us a little longer then expected, but it wasn't because of feeding stops for Charlotte...it more because of the traffic on the NJ Tpke. Charlotte was a great traveler. On Saturday we woke up early and finished our drive to Myrtle Beach.


We stayed at the Holiday Shores Motel on the corner of N. Ocean Blvd and 76th. Chris has been going to this Motel since she was a kid. What's great about this place is that it is small, immaculate and only one block away from the beach. It doesn't have all the accommodations the the big hotels have, but it does have a very nice pool and a great staff. Unfortunately, while we were there, we overheard that the "big boys" may buy them out soon and either turn the place into a parking lot or condos. After we checked in, it was off to are first of many trips to the beach.

The weather was great everyday we were there, except for Thursday, when we went Barefoot Landing for a afternoon of shopping. So our daily routine was to wake up, have breakfast and then go to the beach. Late afternoon we would come home, clean up, go out to dinner and then usually ended up stopping at Kirks for ice cream or a walk on the beach. On Wednesday, we had dinner at one of our favorites; Magaritaville at Broadway at the Beach. After walking around the shops at Broadway at the Beach, we had a night cap at Cold Stone Creamery.... mmmmm

As for golf, yeah I got out once to Arrowhead Country Club, where I played the The Cypress course and The Lakes Course. Both nines were challenging and in beautiful shape.

So that was about it...Chris got in her shopping and I got in my golf, but our favorite was the three of us spending time at the beach or at the pool. I must say Charlotte did seam to enjoy the water in Myrtle over Maine...I don't know...maybe the 20 degree difference in water temp. had something to do with it.

On Saturday, 8/26, it was back on the road again for our trip home with another stop over in Chester, VA again. It was hard to leave, but we will be back again in 2008.

Here are some more pictures of the trip:


The Family at "Broadway at the Beach"
Goodmorning...you like my new hat?
Charlotte & Chris enjoying their last night at the beach
I love my mommy
I can deal with this everyday
The Dunes
Daddy & Charlotte at "Broadway at the Beach"
Aaron's new friend

I'm Back...But no time to write

I'm back...But I don't have time to write about our 9 state tour over the last two weeks. I'll write more about our trips this week along with some comments about Tiger Woods and Dubya.