Holiday World

The day began early in the morning when Nena picked us up. The road trip was really not that far and it was an easy drive. Holiday World is located just a few miles off of Interstate 64 in Santa Claus, Indiana.

We all had a WONDERFUL time. We started off by letting the kids ride several rides. Even Callie got in on the fun. No one knew if she would be daring enough to ride the mechanical rides or not, but she was!

After a while, we went to the Splashing Safari (Water Park Area). It was a BLAST. We rode several water slides and spent time in the wave pool. Cassidy and Callie enjoyed the kids pool as well.

Later, we ate a buffet style meal at a really affordable restaurant right in the park. While we were eating there arose a huge thunderstorm. We had to take shelter, but it passed quickly. Below are some of the pictures highlighting our trip. I can’t say enough about what a great park Holiday World is. It was very clean, and the people were extremely nice. It is very much a family atmosphere and we all felt good about being there. We will definitely be going back to Holiday World.

Update on the Search for a Vehicle

The car we test drove was a 2004 Chrysler Pacifica. It had about everything we wanted. It resembles a van, and in fact, is listed as a mini-van on the Kelly-Blue-Book site. Unfortunately, we just can't pull the trigger on such a large purchase. We really want to stay away from a car payment, and without trading in the Jeep, it would be next to impossible for that to happen.

Trading in the Jeep would mean that I (Ryan) would be driving the Taurus back and forth to work everyday. I really don't like the Taurus, but I suppose I should be willing to make that sacrifice so my wife and kids can have something nicer. In actuality, there are a lot of reasons to get rid of the Jeep. It is hot in the summer, cold in the winter, rides like a tank, and is a major roll-over hazard (something I think about every time I have the kids with me). Add to that the fact that, even with the soft top on, it is so loud that we avoid the highways and interstates as often as possible, one would wonder why in the world we would want to keep it. So why do I like it? Well, besides the fact that it is fun to drive around town with the top off, there is that once in a great while when I need the four wheel drive. Plus, I get tons of compliments on the Jeep. Maybe that is vain, but it makes me feel good. So, I guess I could say that I feel good driving the jeep (not physically of course, all the jarring and shifting and loud noise is pretty nauseating).

So, anyway, for now it is back to the drawing board. We need to decide what we really want, but isn't that always our predicament?

Thinking About a New Car

We are tossing around the idea of getting a new vehicle. This one would fit us really good. I'll post more about it later.

First Day of Summer

Today is the first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. That means today is the longest day of the year! In case you are wondering, this also means that the sun is as far North as it gets, and our hemisphere is pointed as directly towards the sun as it can get. We live at a latitude of about 38 degrees (well, 38.3226 to be precise). You may have noticed that the sun is really NEVER directly overhead where we live. It is always south of directly overhead. If you started traveling south today, and made it all the way to 23.5 degrees, you would find that the sun was directly overhead at that point. That point is given the name, the Tropic of Cancer. So, when the sun is directly overhead at its farthest point north of the equator (Tropic of Cancer—23.5 degrees), you have the summer solstice, or the first day of summer in the northern hemisphere. If you lived in Australia, today would be the first day of winter. Onya, and G’day mate!!

A Wonderful Day

Today was a great day. It began early as we got the house and yard ready for the playgroup. It was Amy’s turn to host the group and all the kids had a wonderful time. Heather and her kids stayed over for lunch, and we all had a good time. In the afternoon I took Cassidy up to the high school and let her look at all the neat science items in the room. She really enjoys getting to go there. Tonight, we had our neighbors over for pizza and Yahtzee. We are really looking forward to getting to know them better.

Father's Day 2007

Today was a good Father's Day. I had the chance to spend a portion of the day with my dad. He came over for lunch and played with the kids. Dad and Callie had a really good time playing with a yo-yo. She kept laughing and laughing!

For a good history of Father's Day, click HERE.

So what else has been going on? I have been painting, and painting and painting. It takes FOREVER to paint a house. I will try to post some pictures soon. We also watched a cute movie today called Night at the Museum. I would highly recommend it. I've also been trying to read a little, and enjoy the summer vacation a little.

I've also come to the opinion that blogging is like any other hobby. There are times you are really interested in it, and there are times you are not. I hope to get back to posting more about what would interest the readers (if there are any left). I strive to keep a balance, but I know lately things have been more on the personal side. I will try to get something up soon that will generate a little more interest. Thanks for reading, and remember, comments are ALWAYS welcome!!

Taking a Nap

I snapped this picture of Callie yesterday. She went to sleep in her swing. Not much else is going on these days. I have slowed down on the room for a while. I now have both the washing machine and the dryer out there. There is still a lot to do, but we are getting close to the spot where we cut a hole in the kitchen wall. Once we do that, we have a big mess for several weeks. I think we are going to wait a bit and do that.

Update on the Project

Well, I seriously considered hiring a plumber or handy man to come finish this project. But the estimates I had for the original project (before I made the mess) were upwards of $800. So, here is how it went. Saturday and Sunday I felt pretty bad, so I didn’t do much. Yesterday I got up early and went to anchor and rented a rotary hammer. That device just didn’t do what I wanted to do, so I was about to go back to the dreaded jack hammer. Fortunately, I talked to someone there who told me about a device called a “Demo Hammer.” This was EXACTLY the tool I needed! In about an hour, I had busted through the concrete and exposed the pipe that I needed to cut and replace the fitting on. We got everything glued back together, and hooked up the washing machine. So far, it has not leaked. Today, I insulted all the piping, and put the floor back on. The room really looks like it is coming along now. This picture below is the broken pvc drain in the concrete.

Here is what it looked like after the the Demo Hammer (and the hours upon hours I spent trying to chisel it out by hand, drill it out with the wrong tool, stare at it, think about it, weep over it, etc.



And this was my reward for getting this part of the job done!!!





Ahhh, nothing like junk food when you are just getting over a sickness!! I have learned that remodeling takes several times longer than new construction does. I have also learned that sometimes you run into major problems, but if you are willing to try to do the work yourself, you can save a lot of money. I’ve probably spent a couple of hundred dollars on this room already, but to have it hired could easily have been way over a thousand dollars just to this point.

So what is left? A lot, but at least a major part of the plumbing is done! And if all goes as planned, adding the utility room and expanding the kitchen will not only add value to this house, but will most certainly help to sell the house. Thanks for reading!!

Dealing with Sickness

I really hate being sick. The past couple of days I have been battling a yucky illness. Last night my temperature was really high. I took Tylenol as often as I could. Today my throat feels like it is on fire. I don’t know what is wrong, but I’m hoping it goes away very soon. I did wake up feeling a lot better than I did yesterday. Yesterday was pretty bad. I just laid still and tried to endure. For whatever reason, sickness with me creates pretty bad depression. I’m doing much better today, but it only takes a few hours before I get really down emotionally.

Ok, let’s talk about something else. Since I have been off I have been attempting to turn a room in our garage into a utility room. Since our house was built on a concrete slab, the drains and water lines turned out to be a nightmare. I knew everything would have to go perfect for the job to work, and of course, we ran into trouble. I ended up renting a jack hammer to bust up concrete. If you have never operated a jack hammer, consider yourself blessed. I was pretty sore the next day. Today, we put all the drains together and ran a couple of load of laundry. The idea was to make sure everything works okay before I start to re-build the floor and cover it all up. Unfortunately, the fitting that goes into the concrete had a leak. While taking it out, I broke it and now it is a major mess. At least I have a plan. Instead of renting the jack hammer again, I’m going to try to find a place that has a rotary hammer I can rent. I think I can get in a tight spot a little easier with it. If not, it will be back to the jack hammer, but this time I will be busting through like a foot of concrete in the kitchen. Oh well, Amy wants to remodel the kitchen anyway.