Jan & Feb 2017

January & February 2017 Update

Would you look at that? I MADE IT! ^_^

Hope you all don't mind just a quick update - we've been busy, but there's not a whole ton of new 'developments' necessarily (mostly just the average, daily grind for everyone at the moment). 

Update for Matthew

Our little guy is growing up fast - he's more and more independent every day (something that he is always happy to demonstrate). He's absolutely in love with talking with as many people as he can - and his ability to remember and retell stories (albeit with some occasional embellishments) is actually rather unnerving. Prepare for the stage of being hyper-aware of what you say around this little intellectual sponge! 

Update for Anna

Tax season is in full swing for my better half - and that means that there are a lot of times that we don't see mom until late at night. We're all looking forward to getting to the end of these next few months - Matthew probably more so, because that means that he'll get one of his best friends back to play LEGOs and tell stories with. 

Update for Jay

Work is starting to ramp up for me as well, though not at the speed that Anna is facing - ours tends to be a slow build to insanity throughout the year. The first quarter is always a planning stage, it seems - not that there aren't a billion things going on behind the scenes for us (especially now). This year hopefully will be a bit more sedate than the last few, but given the track record...let's just say I'm not holding my breath. 

The podcasting is still a huge source of enjoyment for me, personally - and I know that Anna loves the community that has sprung up around the chat room that we have. Even Matthew has gotten a few moments in the lime-light when we have a daytime stream or recording session (he loves getting to say hello to everyone, even if it's just for a brief moment). 

2016 in Review: Christmas Update!

Christmas 2016

Well, it's been a while since we've gotten a chance to talk! It's been a busy, busy year for us here - apologies for letting the blog slide back in priorities. Going to try to get at least a post in every other month starting in 2017 (might be one of my resolutions) for everyone to keep up with what is going on up here in the Midwest. 

After talking to Anna, we decided that instead of sending out a picture to everyone, it might be more in the spirit of the season to send out a digital update for everything that's going on with our family currently. No worries - nothing terrible is happening or has happened. We just want to try to get a bit better at staying in touch with everyone and this has honestly proven to be a pretty good approach in the past!

Update for Matthew

Our little guy is growing up fast! He's enjoying just about everything (including the school work that he's being exposed to a bit at his daycare) and always is excited about what tomorrow has in store. Which he reminds me of constantly at bed time - which thankfully has taken a huge turn for the better this past year. 

He's gotten into Pokemon recently - and has taken to 'capturing' and 'training' them throughout the house and backyard...much to the consternation of Cayde and Kyara. His enjoyment of trains has stayed consistent as well - which is no surprise, for any of y'all who have been around him in person. The kid has the ability to find a train ride just about anywhere we go (I'm still waiting to see if he's going to make one magically appear at the grocery store at this point). 

Independence has skyrocketed as well - something that is both awesome and frustrating. He's as likely now to just disappear suddenly to take care of something (it literally can be anything) himself as he is to ask for our help - which has led to some interesting situations and conversations about how we don't play with certain items around the house (I'm looking at all you sharp knives...I don't care if he used two chairs to get to you, still not cool).

Update for Anna

Anna has finished the major testing portions of the CPA certification process finally and is now on the next steps of finishing that up - and then she'll be done! She's done a truly masterful job at balancing work, studying, and taking care of Matthew and I - and I know that she's looking forward to getting one of the major things that she's been working on for the past few years finally completed and off her plate. 

She's also working on several personal projects that she's hoping to get finished with this next year - I'm really excited to see how they turn out, and from the looks of what I've seen so far, they're going to be amazing!

Update for Jay

This year has been a crazy ride (as probably you can imagine, from the lack of activity on here) - between work and starting up a podcast (more on that in a bit) I'm finding it tough to find time to get sleep. Thankfully, we have coffee. 

Back at the end of last year, a group of guys that I gamed with started really talking seriously about putting together a group that would promote a place where people from across gaming communities could come to chat about the stories in the games and other media that we all love so much. This took off pretty decently and soon transformed into an opportunity to start up a podcast. Last year was a year that was amazingly insane for me on a personal level - I was able to travel to LA for E3 and then later to Tampa to be a part of the Destiny Community Convention 2016 with Anna. On top of those amazing experiences, I've been blessed to be able to get to know and now call friends many people within the gaming community that I would have never known otherwise - something that I would seriously not trade for anything. We have had an amazing time growing the community and the podcast (link to website) this past year and can't wait to see where it takes us in 2017!

June 2015

Annnnd there's another missed month. Not going to lie about it - I'm still not sure where May went.

Update for Matthew

So the update for this guy can be summed up with the words 'amazing' and 'super-smart'. He's learning new things every time I turn around and is more than happy to discuss them with anyone or anything that gives him more than 5 seconds attention. This evening we got to play with a cicada who had not yet shed its shell and taken flight and he was 100% focused on what was going on - and it was amazing. It's events like that which make me aware of just the large amount of amazing things that are in the world around us.

Update for Anna

Anna has started her last few classes in preparation for sitting for her CPA exam - and I get the feeling that these cannot go by fast enough for her. Thankfully we got through tax season, so she just has to deal with the insanity that is Matthew and I while balancing work and school (which is more than I could handle, to be honest).

Update for Jay

As you can imagine, my update is pretty much restricted to...projects! Seriously though, it's pretty much what my days are filled with these days. Then there's Matthew and, when I can fit it in, some downtime to game or catch up on TV with Anna. And then....when I can, I get to catch some sleep. But when you complete the project, sometimes the lack of sleep is worth it.


As is usual - if you're in our area or plan on passing through, let us know so that we can try to get together and catch up on all that has happened!

April 2015

I swear that it feels at times that I just put these up yesterday and it's already time for another one. Needless to say, it's be super busy for us - not that it's a necessarily bad thing...just makes you appreciate the down time more!

Update for Matthew

Our recent acquisition for someone's upcoming birthday was a miniature trampoline (complete with the ability to make animal sounds when certain areas are jumped on) - and it has been an absolute hit. He is absolutely in love with being able to go outside again - most of the time it's all we can do to stop him from barreling through the back door when we get home from daycare every evening. He's also become more and more independent - as he likes to show us by going down the 'big people' stairs without an accompanying adult (something we're not a huge fan of, to say the least). 

We're still obsessed with trains and have recently really started getting into the Thomas & Friends show. Most 'choo-choos' are named "Thomas" in our house now. Unless they're green. Then they're "Percy" or "Green-Thomas".

Update for Anna

Tax season is nearly over...so it's getting crazier and crazier. I know that the full days of daycare for Matthew have really made a difference for her schedule - but am still constantly impressed by how much she gets done. And she manages to do it all while keeping an impressive level of calm, which is pretty amazing in my book.

Update for Jay

The projects march on. And the days always seem shorter than they need to be to get what needs to be done, completed. But each day ends with everyone one step closer to the completion of the project. As insane as it is, there is something to be taken away from the chaos of these schedules that I look at each morning - something that, while sometimes it eludes me, keeps me coming back in search of. I love the challenge of staring at a puzzle and trying to figure out what rules are bendable enough to get the desired result, even if sometimes that requires rework and some long hours. The success at the end is just that much more enjoyable when you manage to create something that many didn't think was going to be able to be done. 

Not to say that it isn't stressful - it is. But it's also something that is needed to be done, so we do our best to make as many people as we can happy with what we can provide them.

As is usual - if you're in our area or plan on passing through, let us know so that we can try to get together and catch up on all that has happened!

March 2015

So not sure if I should play this off as being extremely late or early...because completely missed getting a post up for last month. Apologies about that!

Update for Matthew

This little guy. We're definitely starting to get into the age of "my way or else" - although he usually is pretty...reasonable about what he throws a fit over. Like when we take his shoes off before he was ready. Or make him food that he asked for, but it took to long (or wasn't what he really wanted).

In light of that, he's still a great little guy. He grows by leaps and bounds every time I turn around - learning new words and phrases every day it seems. He's loving the full-time daycare situation and can't wait most mornings to go over to see his friends and spend time with them. We have also started to really get into trains (as we call them here, "choo-choos") and are having a blast on the weekend visiting the local malls that have shops and restaurants which are exclusively train themed. And having the train station downtown is just a bundle of fun when we get a chance to go down there - he's in constant awe at the huge machines that he gets to look at and (in some cases) play with.

Update for Anna

Tax season. It's back and it's just as busy as I remember it for us. Anna is, when she's not sleeping or dealing with Matthew and I, working almost non-stop.

I know that she's stressed, but she still does a wonderful job of keeping everything together both at the house and in our lives. I am constantly impressed by her ability to keep Matthew at the top priority, even when everything around us seems like a whirlwind of chaos. I think the new schedule of full-time daycare has made it a bit easier for her to have a set schedule at the office though, which I'm sure is appreciated (I know that I like having a set plan of the week).

Update for Jay

While Anna has tax season, I get to experience implementation projects. Plural. Both of our schedules are crazy busy - something that sometimes makes it tough to get together enough calmness of mind to put together these posts (hence the missing of last month's update). These days are pretty much the same exact schedule for me - wake up and get Matthew over to daycare, get to the office, get as much work as done as possible before the end of the day, come home and try to get something to eat and catch a few hours of relaxation before heading to bed to start the cycle back up again. I'm enjoying the challenge that the projects are giving us - although the time crunch that we have been assigned is rigorous, especially when considering the number of different systems that we're looking to reconfigure and reintegrate with one another. But it'll get done.


As is usual - if you're in our area or plan on passing through, let us know so that we can try to get together and catch up on all that has happened!

January 2015

Happy New Year, everyone! Hope you all have had a great holiday season and that everyone got what they were hoping for this Christmas - I know Matthew had more toys than he knew what to do with after our trip to Texas.

Update for Matthew

Our little man is having a blast with all the new toys that he got over Christmas - and the trip home to Texas only made him enjoy the holiday even more. He loved being in a house that you could open the door and see peacocks, horses, donkeys, cats, and dogs - pretty sure he's still searching for most of them now that we're back home with just our dog. And he's always willing to let anyone know what sounds any of those animals make while discussing in his own way the adventures he had while we were with my family.

Starting next week, we're also transitioning into a full-time schedule at daycare for him, to help free up Anna's days during the upcoming tax season - which has been a somewhat bittersweet realization on our part. We're glad that he's having a great time and to get a bit more free time to allow Anna focus on keeping up with the increasing demands of work, but at the same time...it's somewhat a punch in the stomach to realize just how much he has grown in such a short time. It's truly amazing to watch everyday as he assimilates more and more knowledge from the world around him - and even more awesome when he turns around after we're sure that he's forgotten something shown to him and utilizes it to overcome something that he's faced with (recent example from just tonight was the ability to get into a 'big person' chair that was higher than him - he just attacked the challenge, and then when he figured it out...he got back down, turned around and did it again, almost as a reinforcement to himself that it was still possible).

Update for Anna

We're done with the Master's degree! Just in time to celebrate with a new tax season!!

Anna has done a great job - between dealing with me, Matthew, work, and the pressures of school - I still am impressed that she is still sane. And now, she gets a bit of freedom from one of those pressures (at least for a while). As I mentioned above, we're also starting Matthew at daycare full-time, which means that her daily schedule should be more open to getting things sorted at the office than before (although I'm sure that Grandma and Grandpa are still going to find ways to sneak Matthew back in there from time to time, from what I'm hearing).

Update for Jay

Anyone who's been talking to me recently is aware of the recent flaring up of one of my addictions - video games. While during the day, I'm working and trying to keep up with Anna and Matthew, I'm pretty sure that I've lost more sleep than I should to the recent releases. And this past week, I managed to start playing in a Beta for the new Halo game (sorry people, I'm holding back as much as possible - but the geeking out is getting tough to not show here) and have been absolutely loving it. I also have secured a few placements in a couple of preview programs that have really been a cool experience to see just how the beta testing process for programs (both on consoles and mobile apps) works.

Work has been somewhat docile these past two weeks because of the holidays - but starting Monday, I'm expecting a gearing up again of full-speed ahead on the current project that we're rolling out (hopefully we'll be done about half-way through 2015) and an accumulation of side-projects that require our input/monitoring throughout the year and most likely into 2016.


As is usual - if you're in our area or plan on passing through, let us know so that we can try to get together and catch up on all that has happened!

December 2014

Annnd missed last month's update. Not sure where the time's going, but it's going there fast. As I'm sure that all of you are experiencing, our family is staring down a pretty well loaded schedule for the upcoming weeks - so going to try to touch on all that's happened!

Update for Matthew

This little guy is growing up fast. He's starting to really develop a sense of identity and beginning to show preferences - which is fascinating to watch. He did amazing with Anna in their trip down to Texas for Thanksgiving (I had to stay home due to some schedule conflicts with work) and had a blast with her family. He also learned how to say "cheeseburger" - which has become somewhat of an adorable past time (he doesn't say it much...but when he does, everyone celebrates).

He's also starting to really enjoy all those toys people have been trying to get him to play with for the past 19 months - I think it's starting to click that these things are awesome. His latest fascination has been trains and over the past couple of weekends, we've visited downtown where there's a burger place that is FILLED with trains (and yes, he's in absolute heaven the entire time). I'm looking forward to getting him down there again soon now that we're able to say "cheeseburger" and "choo choo".

Update for Anna

Three more classes! Getting pretty excited for the upcoming completion of the Master's!! Anna's going through everything and doing a great job - she handles the combined pressure of taking care of Matthew and I in addition to her schoolwork and day job with a patience that I'm pretty sure I'll never come close to accomplishing. It's truly amazing and I'm thankful more and more that I get to share this amazing experience with her.

Update for Jay

Work has officially hit the "hold on" phase - which for the past week or so has translated into an average of 10 hours at the office and trying to fit everything else in when I get home. Thankfully, we had a good vacation for Thanksgiving to prepare for the insanity that we're going to be experiencing these next few weeks until the start of January - hopefully it'll be enough!


As is usual, if you're going to be around, give us a shout so that we can get together and catch up!

October 2014

Well it definitely feels like I just sat down to write one of these things yesterday - of course, with everything that is going on, I'm pretty impressed that I'm getting this out this close to the start of the month!

Update for Matthew

As was stated previously, our little guy has come a long way.  He's becoming more and more talkative (although we're still working on the whole language barrier thing) with everyone and wants to make sure that you know exactly what he's thinking about whatever it is going on at any particular point.  And we're starting to get a bit of temper too - definitely figuring out what it is that he wants...and if he doesn't get that, bar the door, because he'll let you know about it.

Update for Anna

We're getting closer and closer to the end of classes (for the Master's degree, at least).  Which makes for a pretty crazy schedule - but Anna's handling it like a champ.  Still not sure how she manages to take care of all of us, work, and go to class (and keep up with those classes).  But she does.  And we love her for it.

Update for Jay

Work is still in the gear-up stages for the next project, after hitting a few minor snags with some details.  However, we're still going strong and hope to be getting into the thick of design of the next phase of our program upgrade shortly.  Needless to say, that means that the smaller projects that we have floating around currently need to have determinations on if they're going to be able to be completed or put on hold made.  Which is always fun.  And super stressful.



With all that being said, if you're going to be in our area - please let Anna or I know so that we can try to get together for a cup of coffee and catch up!

September 2014

Well September has been a busy month!  Going to try to get everything down that has been going on since the last update here for everyone.

Update for Matthew

We're definitely seeing more and more communication from our little guy - though he still hasn't quite broken the English barrier, he's making sure that he's being heard by everyone that is around him.  And he has a ton to say about everything that is going on.  Especially food.  And his dog.  And playing outside.

He's getting more comfortable around the kids that he sees at daycare as well, which makes it so much easier for us to drop him off in the morning!  Whereas before he seemed to not be able to wait for us to show up and get him home to see his dog and have dinner, now he has a tendency to want to play just a little bit longer once mom shows up in the afternoon.  And we're alright with that.

Update for Anna

The 'final class' has begun (sort of)!  This semester is actually kind of an odd one - half being on one day for one class and the second half on another day for another class.  But this is the final semester for Anna to get her Master's degree!  I know that she's really looking forward to being done with the degree (though she'll still have to take a few more classes before she can completely cross off the prerequisites for both CPA exams).  And while she's doing an amazing job balancing everything going on with us currently, I'm pretty sure she's pretty pumped about getting to a point where she has one less thing to have to worry about.

Update for Jay

As stated in the previous update, work has just been getting busier and busier.  With the upcoming kickoff for our "Phase 2" project, our team has had to kick some other projects into high gear in order to free up enough time to start to get our hands around the prerequisite work that is needed in order to get ready for everyone else to get ready to start.  Putting that down, I realize that it sounds a lot more confusing than it did when I think about it.

Suffice to say, it's super hectic around our area of the office and doesn't look like it's going to be slowing down for us anytime in the near future.


As is usual, if you're going to be in our neck of the woods, give us a shout so that we can get together and catch up!

August 2014

So July got away from us before we realized what was happening - hence the skip in blog posts.  I will try to capture everything that has happened as much as possible (it feels like a ton has happened and that it's only been a few days since I posted last).

Update for Matthew

The little guy is moving more and more confidently around places - especially when it comes to places that he's familiar with and/or really wants to get to.  Things are becoming more and more interesting for him to manipulate (i.e., cabinets are really, really cool because that's where we're not supposed to be and have things that look like toys and make the adults kinda freak out when we play with them).  Independent play is still...tenuous in regards to the true definition of "independent", but we're definitely getting to the point where we can hand him something and have a reasonable chance that he'll entertain himself for a few moments before requiring either another item or our attention.

Teething is starting to really pick up (at least it seems that way - might not be as back-to-back as it was for the first few, but the ones that are coming in now make up for the slower pace by the size of the tooth and the pain that they cause).  Dancing is definitely still one of our favorite activities - in fact just about anything with a rhythm becomes "dance-dance music" for him.  We're also really starting to notice a more concentrated effort on his part to communicate - we're not always sure what exactly is being relayed to us...but it's definitely something that takes a few minutes and is very, very, very important that we know.

Update for Anna

As many of you know, Anna has completed just about all of her classes for her Master's program (she's only got 3 hours left!) and is really starting to get excited about closing this particular chapter.  She's doing great with the handling of everything (Matthew, class, me, work, etc.) and we're all starting to get excited about what the future holds for us when we don't have to worry about the next paper/exam/homework assignment.

Update for Jay

Work has been insanely busy lately - so there really isn't a ton of 'updates' for myself other than just trying to keep everything in line and stay afloat.  We're getting closer to kicking off the next 'phase' of the CapitalStream program, which is going to mean a huge amount of behind-the-scenes balancing acts to keep the system alive and moving while also upgrading and updating the setups that are all flowing in and out.  Which I'm sure is about all you really want to hear about it - sometimes Anna just tells me to stop trying to explain what it is that I'm doing and tell people that I perform 'technical magic' and make the things work better.

I know that it's not a ton of verbiage - but, again, it feels like we just got done posting about our last update...and honestly, most of the updates that we all care about are in regards to Matthew anyways.  ^_^

June 2014

This month has already started out going nearly the speed of light - and it looks like there's no slowing us down anytime soon.  Which is both terrifying and awesome.

Update for Matthew

Now that he's over a year - our little guy is pretty dedicated to walking and letting us know his mind (even though he hasn't fully mastered any particular words yet...he's a talker).  He is definitely developing favorites with his toys (currently one of his most sought after item is a small ball that we found and got on a whim...can you say success?) and is starting to really understand basic patterns when it comes to certain times of the day (most notably his bed time routine).

He's also really started to play independently - although this usually tends to require more monitoring than when he was playing with us.  Our current favorite game is to rummage through the trash and find the random 'cup-like' objects and take them with us around the house.  He's also started really enjoying music - the more bass and rhythm, the happier the 'dancing' that we get to watch.

Update for Anna

Anna is doing amazing - she just finished a concentrated semester (full semester in 3 weeks) of a graduate class and is diving into a summer semester of two more.  I believe the plan is to be complete by the end of the year (although I could be mistaken - you'd have to ask her, because it feels like every time I turn around she's finishing another course).  I know she's stressed, but watching her maneuver through these classes, the workload that she shoulders, and taking care of Matthew and I, you really wouldn't know it (although she'd probably love to tell you all about the craziness that is going on).

Update for Jay

These past few weeks have been a rather concentrated whirlwind of action for me professionally - I was recently promoted at the bank to a position that, so far, seems to be much more in line with what I want to be moving towards.  Instead of being solely dedicated to the CapitalStream program as an System Administrator, I'm now a System Analyst for our Credit area (which, while I'm still heavily involved with the design and implementation of the CapitalStream solution, is a more behind-the-scenes position focusing on the actual breaking down of systems to identify how they operate with one another and help identify ways in which to create a more efficient process overall).  A lot of my time is spent discussing ways in which the world that we exist in currently can be moved into a more streamlined environment at the moment, but with some of the big projects that are on the horizon at the moment, it's definitely going to be getting interesting here soon.


As is usual - if you're going to be in our corner of the world (or if you'd like to get together and put something down on our calendars to plan on a trip here), let us know!  We'd love to get to see you and introduce you to Matthew!!

May 2014

So as many of you know, Matthew's birthday was this month - which basically means that we've been pretty busy with family visiting.  So I'm pretty impressed that I am getting this update posted so soon.  We also just got back from visiting the Peytons for the baptism of their newest son the weekend before...so we're definitely playing catch up on general rest and recovery.

Update for Matthew

Other than turning 1 (which was an awesome milestone to reach, btw), our little man has been growing more and more confident with his mobility.  He's truly becoming more and more interested in independent movement, although at the moment that is basically crawling and 'walking' with the assistance of his walker (or just about anything that he can easily push around and use as a 'walker').  He's also playing more and more independently (although sometimes this results in us needing to be more vigilant on what 'toys' he's discovering around the house) as well as becoming more and more interested in playing/cuddling with our dog - although she's still trying to figure out just how she feels about this.

Update for Anna

Anna is starting to gear back up for her return to the classroom here in the next few weeks - something that I know she's pretty nervous about...although she's going to be awesome (but don't tell her I said that).

She survived another tax season (this time with two people needing her to take care of them, instead of just me) and I know that this break between the end of the working craziness and the upcoming insanity of classes/work/taking care of Matthew and I is something that she's treasuring.  So hopefully we didn't stress her out too much with all the traveling and partying that Matthew and I did over this last weekend (there was cake.  And lots of sugar...)

Update for Jay

While I don't have the excuse of more classes to explain my running around and forgetting just about everything that I do after 12 hours have passed (which is why we have checklists, smartphones, and emails, right?) - I can't deny that it's been an eye-opening experience.  I never realized how much is needed to keep something alive and moving...or that it was something that our team was capable of (trials by fire are truly...interesting).  That being said, the experiences are not something that I would give up - they have truly opened my eyes to what we are capable of when we get pushed to the line and asked the impossible.  Our team has risen to the challenge each time (even those that require some extra coffee and burning the candles at both ends in order to keep up at the office and at home).  I couldn't be more proud to work with who I do or more impressed at what we've managed to accomplish.  And it only looks like we're going to be moving forward.  That's what truly is exciting - not what we've accomplished, but rather what lies in store for us to conquer.

As usual, please let us know if you're in our corner of the world - we'd love to catch up with you!

April 2014

In the same vein as the last month's update - this is probably going to be a pretty short post.  We're nearly through the worst part of the tax season...but there's still a week or so to go before we get free from that particular beast.

Update for Matthew

The little guy has really started moving on his own, both with crawling and 'walking' (with his walker/anything else that is about knee level in the house).  He's basically all but mastered the turning of the walker, and really can get just about anywhere that we don't want him to.  This past weekend we finally had to put up a gate to cut off access to the mystical stairs which hold a good level of his fascination (and when we're downstairs, we're having to constantly 'help' him to steer clear of trying to climb them.

In other aspects, he's quickly becoming more and more interested in playing independently (which we're not all that disappointed with, to be honest) and exploring the areas of the house that are opening up to him as he becomes more confident in his ability to move around.

Update for Anna

While we're getting close, we're still in the thick of the dreaded tax season.  Anna is doing amazing with balancing being a mom and the demands of work - although she will probably be to busy to actually acknowledge anything other than the details that require her immediate attention currently.  Lots of weekends with Matthew and I playing while she helps out at the office and keeps everything and everyone above water.

Update for Jay

Work has been a steady rate of a blur of activity for the most part.  Between the new projects that our team is being pulled into for assistance/advice, the maintenance of our live system, and the design of the new phases that we're getting ready to either roll into production or implementation for a later deployment this year...I'm not sure sometimes if we'd still be able to walk around at the end of the workday without the coffee that we imbibe.  But it's still an amazing process to be a part of - the growth is undeniable to anyone who looks at the situation we're in and it's exciting to be a part of such a vibrant environment.  Stressful sometimes, but exciting none-the-less.


As is usual, I want to let anyone who is passing through our area to know that we'd love to see you - so please don't hesitate to shoot us an email, text, or call Anna or I.  

March 2014

Well this is probably going to be a pretty short update - to be honest, Anna and I have both been super busy at work, so there hasn't been much that has occurred for us since last month's update.

Update for Matthew

As many of you saw on Facebook in these past couple of days, Matthew has finally started getting more and more impatient about not being able to move around himself, and has started to really show some interest in walking.  Just this morning, we stroller-walked around the house for about 20 minutes - with the only assistance needed when it came to making some turns and transitions between our carpet and hardwood floors.

He has also started to eat more 'grown-up' food, mostly due to his not really being all that interested in baby food other than his cereal (which we're having to supplement with the fruits and veggies due to his not wanting anything to do with them on their own when they're pureed).  It's pretty fun to introduce him to some of the more basic foods that we eat (mostly rice, mac and cheese, some meats from time to time, and, one of his favorites, stew).

Update for Anna

Again, this update is pretty much summed up with the phrase: "Tax Season."  Anna has been running nearly full speed for the past couple of months - and it doesn't look like she's going to be able to slow down until at least the end of April...at which time, of course, her classes are going to resume.  Thankfully, she and Matthew have both seemed to gotten over the never-ending bug that was plaguing them finally, which means that her energy is starting to somewhat come back (although between the tax season and having a 10 month old demanding her attention, I don't quite understand how she can move without an inordinate amount of coffee to assist her).

Update for Jay

Work is definitely starting to pick up for me as well, with most of the preliminary planning complete, we're now starting to identify which gun barrel we're going to be staring down for the foreseeable future in regards to oncoming projects for the next phase.  Which is both exciting and rather daunting at the same time - sometimes the sheer amount of information that is required to be processed is rather unnerving...especially when it feels at times that there isn't enough hours in the day to get the tasks that we already have on our plates finished.  But our team is amazing, and we haven't come up against anything yet that we haven't been able to overcome, so my hope is that, while it's tough, we're going to continue that track-record.


As is usual, I want to invite anyone who's passing through the area to give us a shout - we'd love to see you and catch up (and, in light of this weekend's forecast, give you shelter from any literal storms that are about to hit our small corner of the world).

February 2014

First off, I wanted to apologize for the lack of a post last month - we were all super busy with holiday travels and then all got sick, so there wasn't a lot of free time in which to sit down and compose.  Hopefully, I'll be able to cover everything in this month's update.

Update for Matthew

Needless to say, Matthew has gone through quite a lot these past couple of months.  We drove down to Dallas to visit some close friends for what has become somewhat of a new tradition for New Years Eve - which was no small event this year.  Of course, even without an infant in the car, an 8 hour drive can be tedious...and Matthew did a great job both on the way down and back up.  We got to finally meet the Case's new arrival, as well as catch up with the Hornsby and Mech families.  Overall the trip was a blast that ended too quickly.

Of course the next experience for Matthew wasn't nearly as much fun, as soon after getting back home, we all got hit by a bug and have just recently gotten back to our normal healthy selves.  Both Matthew and Anna got hit a bit harder than I did, but we've all been down and out for the most part of the last couple of weeks, so it's nice to start seeing everyone getting back on their feet.

Matthew has also started attending daycare twice a week, to better help Anna survive tax season, and has been doing quite well, from what I've heard.  the other development that has been going on is that he seems to finally start to show some interest in getting independent mobility - although he still obviously prefers the big people to carry him around.

He just recently got his two bottom teeth in, so we're also having fun getting through the pain of that whole process (him obviously moreso than Anna or I) as well as starting to really become interested in chewing on just about everything that he can get his hands on (food and otherwise).

Update for Anna

Tax. Season.

No, seriously.  It's tax season - so the fact that she is able to take care of Matthew and I on top of keeping her head above water at work is beyond impressive.  And she does it with a smile (generally...unless I do something that I shouldn't) - which is only more amazing.

As I mentioned in Matthew's update, Anna has also been going through some illness (the weather is definitely not helping the situation).  So that, on top of the normal load of stress that is present around this time of the year has not improved matters. But we're getting through it (with the help of a lot of hot tea and cough drops) and are getting closer to the end of the tax-tunnel every day.

Update for Jay

As is normal, work has been pretty busy for me - though now that the holiday season is coming to a close and everyone is back from vacation, it's calming down.  We're looking at another few projects that will probably be starting here soon and will be taking at least a few months to design and implement - which is one of my growing points of interest.  In my mind, the development and implementation of systems have kind of always been more my cup of tea when compared to maintaining the systems after they go live - I'm definitely guilty of having more interest in design than in maintaining new programs and procedures.



As usual, I want to invite anyone who is passing through our area to give us a shout - we'd love to see you and catch up over a cup of coffee (or hot tea).

December 2013

Another busy month for our family (and I’m sure most of you all can relate)!  Hopefully I get everything down that has gone on.

Update for Matthew:

We’re at 7 months!  He’s been getting a bit of "stranger danger" but with all the family members holding him over the Thanksgiving break, he got over that pretty fast.  He is growing so fast – not quite crawling yet, though Anna and I are pretty sure he has the strength to do it.

One of the cool things he does now is turn pages in a book.  I read to him every night before bed and every time, even when he’s not necessarily paying attention to the story, he wants to turn that page to the next one.  It's pretty adorable.  He has also recently started to drink out of a sippy cup, which is pretty hilarious – we haven’t explored too much with food (still on veggies for the most part, though we’re starting to introduce fruits now), but he loves to drink like the ‘big people’ do.

Update for Anna:

The semester is over, so Anna’s got a bit of a break (just in time to start getting ready for the insanity of tax season) to breath before she heads back.  I know she’s getting excited to be so close to getting done with the classes (and we’re not going to talk about the ridiculous test that she’s going to be needing to start studying for).

She also just got a new vacuuming robot (one of her Christmas presents) and is super excited about it (so anyone who has any advice or tips on how to best use one, shoot us an email!!).   So we’ll see how that turns out.

Update for Jay:

Not much is going on in my corner of the world – other than work and keeping up with Matthew, there isn’t much time left over for anything else.  November is always a bit insane around the office; throw in the new systems that we’ve implemented and we have a bit of an overflowing plate.  Though it was nice to have a solid break for Thanksgiving (I took off a few days to make it a 5 day weekend with my family coming in).

Other Updates:

Other than the busy holiday visiting schedules, not all that much occurred – though to be fair, there wasn’t much time left after all the visiting and eating for anything to occur.  We’ve gotten to put our fireplace to a bit of heavy use with the cold weather that we’re having (though most of you in the South have had it rougher than us, interestingly enough) and we updated our entertainment hardware (yay for Black Friday sales).  But that’s really the big things that have happened.  Now it’s time to start gearing up for the Christmas holiday!!

As usual - if you’re ever in the area, please let us know so that we can try to get out to see you or have you over for a cup of coffee/tea to catch up!

November 2013

Been a busy month!  Matthew's growing by leaps and bounds and work had been crazy (for both Anna & I).  I'll try to get all of it down in the breakdowns below:

Update for Matthew:
Matthew turned 6 months old and is doing really well.  On Halloween, he had his 6 month doctor's appointment and he weighed 18lbs 12oz and was 2 feet 2.75 inches long.  He can pretty much sit up unassisted and does it all the time now.  He can even reach for toys without tipping over.  He's not showing a ton of interest in crawling just yet, but he is doing some wiggling and pre-crawling movements when he's on his tummy, so it's only a matter of time.


The biggest thing is that we've started him on baby food!  He's been eating rice cereal for the past month and we just switched him to oatmeal twice a day.  After his doctor's appointment on Thursday, we started him on veggies.  First to go was green beans.  The first two days he wouldn't have any of it.  Made all sorts of yucky faces.  But by the third day, I think the newness of the flavor wore off and he gave it a chance and ate it and I think he liked it.  Then we tried peas, which he loved.  No wonder he's almost 19 pounds already!

Update for Anna:
Work is starting to ramp up in preparation for tax season and, from what I can tell, class is starting to become a little easier (with the semester starting to draw to a close).  Other than that, and starting to mentally get ready for the Thanksgiving holiday (which we're having our family come up to visit us instead of driving down there, due to Matthew's probably not being ready for that long of a car trip), she's got tons of "free time" (yes, that was sarcasm).

Update for Jay:
As is usual for my updates - work is predominately what is going on in my world at the moment.  We went out to our Colorado locations a few weeks back for some follow-up training - which was actually a rather nice change of pace.  Granted, being gone for nearly a full week wasn't the ideal thing for Anna & myself, but she did an amazing job of holding the fort while I was gone and the chance to spend a three day weekend with her and Matthew was well worth the hassle of having to figure all the logistics out for the traveling.  With the holiday season coming up, we're expecting a rather full work-load at the office, though the days off that we have are going to be welcome; the days that we are going to be there are sure to be filled to the brim.

Other Updates:
Thankfully, after the small fiasco with the bathrooms needing to be resealed, there hasn't been really anything big needing to be redone around the house.  Leaves are coming off the trees like nobody's business, so my weekends have definitely been filled with the more mundane yard work (which Anna has taken the opportunity to take some adorable shots of Matthew in - though he's still somewhat nervous about being put in a pile of organic matter that goes over his head).  As I mentioned above, we're having my family in for Thanksgiving - which should prove to be an interesting change of pace for the three of us.  Still, looking forward to getting to catch up with everyone and see what all has happened in the last few months since we last saw them!

As usual - if you’re ever in the area, please let us know so that we can try to get out to see you or have you over for a cup of coffee/tea to catch up!

October 2013

I am getting the feeling that this whole thing isn't going to be slowing down anytime soon – so as much as I try to keep to a strict update schedule, I am going to just have to get used to being a few days (or a week or two) behind it.  I hope you all can forgive me for that!

Update for Matthew:
We’re definitely becoming a bit more aware of things recently.  I've managed to get Kyara to stay still for a few moments and we got to pet the puppy (which I don’t think she realizes is going to be a gateway for chasing and playing with the puppy when we finally get mobility mastered).  We tried to introduce some avocado…which didn't go over too well (I think it was mostly the texture change) – but we’ll probably be revisiting this here in the near future.

Vocally we've become much more focused on making sounds (which means a nice little break from the normal screeches) and socially, we definitely require all the attention to at least include us.

Update for Anna:
Class has become a rather stable matter now – I think that the overall layout of the class in general has helped a ton in our easing back into a more balanced schedule that affords Anna some time away from everyone.  I know that work has started to pick up (October deadlines looming) and that soon we’re going to be looking down the barrel of the next tax season – so the more we can start getting ready for that, obviously the better off it’s going to play out for everyone.

Update for Jay:
Work has been actually moving back to a more manageable level of insanity – we've surpassed the 3 month mark of being live on the new system, which is pretty much a soft deadline that our team has put into place to mark when we would expect the new users to start becoming more comfortable with the system.  And so far, it definitely has happened in the same general direction that we were expecting it to – I know that on my end of the design and implementation of issue-resolutions we’re starting to see more and more technical requests (instead of the general usage inquiries that we were being flooded with).

Other Updates:
What with the busy schedules that we have, thankfully we haven’t had too much happen in regards to needs on the house side of the picture – I’m going to be redoing some work in our master bath this weekend, but nothing huge that should take more than a couple of hours to take care of.

In conclusion, we've been busy.  But we’re all happy and enjoying the insanity that is our life!  If you’re ever in the area, please let us know so that we can try to get out to see you or have you over for a cup of coffee/tea to catch up!

September 2013

So, needless to say - it's been busy.  Tons of things have happened in this last month (hence the late posting) and hopefully, I'll be able to touch on them all without dragging out into a huge post.  So, with the prerequisite apologies out of the way, here we go.

Update for Matthew:

We're eating cereal finally!!  He's loving it (and demanding more and more each time we put him into his highchair) and has really grasped the entire concept of eating off of a spoon quickly.  It's really awesome to watch him every day grow up and make connections to things more and more quickly (tonight's 'revelation' for him was the beginning of feeling of faces, while concentrating on the nose and moving down to the chin).  He's becoming more and more vocal (huge surprise there, for those of us who have known Anna for more than 5 minutes) and gets super excited whenever the 'big people' include him in their conversations.

He's also getting much better at looking around at his environment - starting to recognize the person carrying him, the sounds of people coming and going (and 'greeting' them with a smile), etc.  Kyara is already one of his favorite objects around the house; she's going to be a busy pup when he does finally learn how to move on his own.

Update for Anna:

Anna's class is back in full swing - and she's really loving it from what I can tell.  This semester is a seminar based course (which I believe I mentioned last posting) and has turned into a great experience.  She's excited to be back into the swing of 'adult life' - and I imagine that the excuse for a bit of alone time is helping to...I have no idea how she manages to do everything that she does and I'll shamelessly make a plug here for how amazing of a person she is.  She makes it look easy - even when I know it isn't.

I know that work has been somewhat 'slow' - though I can imagine that it's going to be picking up here soon of her as the next tax season starts to loom nearer.  Thankfully, Matthew and I (with some much appreciated help from Anna's mom) have started to get used to spending a few evenings on our own while she's in class.  Which means that Matthew has started to understand that the lesser of the two big people that he lives with is assigned to him to look after while mom is away.  He's a pretty good sport about it - makes sure that we know exactly what he expects and how he needs it without causing too much of a fuss (most of the time).  ^_^

Update for me:

Busy would be a rather small understatement for me at the moment.  The new system is up and running fully at work (we've been live for 2 months now and have incorporated all the banks into the centralized system finally) and add the fact that quarter end is quickly approaching, it's going to be getting a bit more crazy before it calms down.  Granted, it's not all bad - we have great support from all our associates and, while people are still going through the "Holy Christ, it's a new system" phase, they are really taking to it rather well.

Other Updates:

The house has undergone another renovation - this time an external one.  My family was in town for Matthew's baptism at the end of July and we took advantage of the extra hands and went ahead in tearing down the front deck.  Just this past weekend, we've finished having a close friend of Anna's family construct a new set of concrete steps - and they look awesome.  We also threw together a rather nice sized firepit in the backyard with some of the extra materials that we had collected from the tearing apart of the old structure in the front of the house...so everyone came out a bit happier than we went in.  I think we're going to be installing a small row of shrubs/bushes in front of the house and along the sides of the steps to finalize the new setup - but we're still in discussion on exactly how we're going to be handling that particular finishing touch.

Original Porch

Porch DESTRUCTION

New Steps

 

And of course, if you're ever in the area, please let us know (text or call)!  We'd love to see you and have you over for a cup of coffee.

August 2013

3 months!  We’ve survived for 3 whole months with a baby!!

Which is pretty impressive, given the fact that in the last month I’ve been on a team at work that just implemented an enormous system that has taken over 1 ½ years to design.  And Anna’s already getting amped back up to head back into classes (albeit a single class – because we want to ease back into the swing of things to prevent an overload).  So we’re doing pretty fantastic for the most part.  Is it hard?  You bet your butt it is.  But that’s part of the deal, right? 

As far as updates for the month…yeah, did I mention that we’ve survived with a baby?  How about also getting a baptism done, ordering and mailing out birth announcements, and hosting my family for nearly a week in the house?  Oh and we’re also remodeling the front of the house (getting rid of the old, rundown deck that has dominated the front of the house since before we moved in and replacing it with a more simpler and easier to maintain concrete steps).  Sooooo, we’ve been kinda busy.  Not to mention, we’re having some great friends coming in this weekend to test how Matthew handles other babies (yes, Jessica and Parker – your daughter is going to be the first encounter with the infant species that our son is going to have.  Enjoy that.)!

And, before I forget – everyone needs to sends congratulations to Liz and Dave for their newest arrival!

As usual, please please please let us know if you’re going to be in the area (text or phone calls work great as well as emails!) so that we can try to introduce you to Matthew!