A Year of Change

Today it starts. Well actually it started last night when Lori began upstairs while the boys and I were at baseball. Jag had a good game, boy can he hit the ball. If he’s not the best hitter on the team, he’s one of the top three. He sees the ball like the other two really good hitters while most kids are still swinging at pitches in the dirt or near their heads. Look out as he gets older. He pitched again last night and struggled a bit. He sometimes thinks too much out there as the coach preaches to remember the four steps. I could see him actually talking through the four steps to himself out there, so I told him to stop thinking about it and just throw the ball. Then he did much better. It was the last inning and all of a sudden the lights went out! We all got out cell phones to turn on flashlights so the coach could call the city to have them turned back on but the umpires just left? Our coach gave them hell saying why were they so quick to leave? After all they get paid. They just walked away and before the made it to the parking lot, the lights were back on, but of course, they didn’t come back. I think we’ll finish the game later in the year.

Now back to the purge, we’re having coffee now and then I’ll start in our room with my dresser. What I haven’t worn in 6 months is gone. If I really like it, like old concert shirts from when I was a kid, I’ll put them in a bag and then downstairs. After that, the closet. Then the boys rooms, then the guest room. If we can somehow get through the upstairs today, it’ll be a miracle.

Hope everyone is well, time to run, God Bless.

What a week, it flew by. That’s what happens when you’re moving 90 miles an hour. As promised yesterday, I was on the phone for a good 6 hours, Mom worked hard and the boys, well, were boys.

Tonight we have baseball and we need to be at the field by 5:30 and should be home by 9. This weekend we are taking the word “purge” to a new level. If it’s not nailed down or something we use, it’s going away. We’ll start upstairs in ours and the boys rooms. First up will be closets and dressers as we must have 500 pounds of clothes that need to go. Then it’ll be toys and useless junk. I already did the mud room and tossed old coats and shoes. Well I actually gave them to Eliva who cleans the house once a month or so. She’ll use a bunch and find people that’ll use the rest. Stay tuned for our progress as we’re committed.

This morning I need to run to the distributor at 7am and get back by 8 to take the boys to school. They’re out of school at 11am, not sure why but they are. Jennifer’s Grandma will drop them off at home as I have another call starting at 10. I think she’s taking them for a treat like ice cream or something, before she brings them home.

Lori’s working hard as usual. She amazes me at the skills she’s picking up on her own. She’s doing a great job.

Coffee is done, weather is changing (snow Monday???) and time to go, God Bless.

Today I have 3 conference calls, Lori has a full day at work, and Jagger and Ty are busy at school. We start our day around here by feeding Mojo, making coffee, watching the news, reading the paper and writing the post. Then we pay the bills of the day, make breakfast, make school lunches, clean the kitchen, start the laundry, make our lunches (mine and Lori’s), and then shower. Throw in getting the boys ready for school, helping out with any last minute homework and taking the boys to school and it’s all of a sudden 8am. So you see, lots happens around here by 8am each day.

Yesterday I dropped Lorenzo at the airport around 9am, headed to Boulder, then Arvada and then picked the kids up at school. Ty then went to Vinny’s while Jag went with me up north to Longmont. We made it home around 4pm and Mom soon arrived after us as she had to leave early to drop something somewhere.

At 5pm I picked up Ty and then we sort of just hung out for the rest of the evening. That’s about it, another day staring us in the face and here we go again. Hope all is well, God Bless.

This morning Lorenzo will jump on a plane back to New York. Everyone, especially the boys, are sad to see him go. It was a really good trip where we accomplished a lot. He and I needed some time to just talk and then strategize about what we see for the future of the Company.

Today the boys have a half day so I’ll be picking them up at 12:15. Not sure what I’ll do with them this afternoon. They were both shooting their bows last night and by the way, Lorenzo did purchase a bow with all the accessories that will ship to New York probably by tomorrow. He’s very excited and I’m excited for him too.

Hard to believe it’s almost May. Did anyone take us up on trying to go to the grocery store only once in 7 days? I haven’t seen any comments so I doubt it but it’s an interesting exercise. We try often just to see what we need the most and to see what we can do without. Think of it as a game.

I have a touch of a headache from a great 1996 german wine we toasted our dinner with last night. It was a touch sweet which will tend to give you a headache if you don’t watch out. The boys also built a fire in our fire pit out front last night. It’s so nice to have a little campfire at night, even in the front yard as it is almost like camping!

Time to run, hope all’s well, take care and God Bless.

Well last night Lorenzo and I headed down to the World famous Broadmoor Resort where we, or should I say he, entertained about 100 people. I of course was along to meet the Vice President of the resort who recently came from 22 years at the Greenbriar. I also schmoozed with the other people I needed to know like chefs, restaurant managers, and Bucky, the wine buyer. It was a great night with fantastic food, wine and company. I did meet one older man who is a small banker in the Springs for 30 years. He knew who my dad was and has insisted he host Lori and I for a lunch at the Broadmoor in the future.

Meanwhile Jag was at his baseball game and wouldn’t you know it, was sent in as pitcher! I didn’t expect this as he only had about 20 minutes of pitching practice in his whole life! I was texting back and forth with Mom getting the play by play. One strike, two balls and on it went. Soon it was “he struck him out!” Then “he caught a ball hit back at the mound and threw the guy out at first”, then “he hit a double and had an rbi”, all while I was not there. Mom said he was nervous and might have been more nervous had I been there so at least he had his debut and now he’ll be more comfortable in his next game this Friday. Mom and I sure are proud of him. He could be the next Randy Johnson who was a Hall of Fame big league pitcher who was 6 feet 10 inches tall!

Today I’m taking Lorenzo back to my favorite traditional archery shop. We have one of the best in the country right here 10 minutes from home. Lorenzo had mentioned how he’s always really wanted to get into it and learn the skill after he saw Jagger shooting arrows in the backyard over the weekend. You see it’s very difficult to own a gun in Italy and he, and all other wine makers, have a wild boar problem. They (the boars) eat about 1/3 of the crop of grapes each year and he figures with a bow, he can reduce that substantially. Plus he wants to acquire a new skill set. Now of course when I heard this, I was super excited so I called Tommy, the owner of the shop, and took him straight over yesterday morning after my work calls. He had about an hour of personal instruction and as Tommy said, was a quick learner. They have an indoor ranger and he was put through the works shooting various bows and learning all the proper steps and technique. He was thrilled and I’m sure will be sore today. Anyhow this morning he’ll shoot a few more and is then going to buy a couple bows. He’ll send one straight to Italy with a couple dozen custom made arrows (you have to buy the ones that fit your draw length) and then a second to take back to New York. He’s all excited and so am I for him as it’s great to see someone take an interest in one of the great arts. You see traditional archery has been around since the dawn of civilization. This afternoon he and the boys and I will shoot in the back yard when they get home.

Well time to go, lots to do, laundry, clean the kitchen, etc. Hope everyone is well, God Bless

Here comes a busy week. Today Lorenzo and I will head down to Colorado Springs around 3pm, about an hour and 15 minutes away, for a wine dinner at 6pm. We’ll then drive home after it’s all over rather than spend the night as Lori is staying home since Jagger has a 7:30 to 9:30pm baseball game. Before that we all have either work or school.

Yesterday though was Easter! It started out with the boys hunting for their baskets and a box each from Grandma in the house. Then it was outside to look for all the colored eggs. We quickly hurried to shower (Lori and I that is as the boys already did) to go get Lorenzo whose plane was 30 minutes early. We picked him up and headed to brunch at Le Central. Our brunch was fantastic, mussels in wine and garlic, escargot, eggs, lamb, french onion soup, croissants, champagne and more and all for about $20 per person! It was really good food, very little money and much fun.

We then headed home, ran to Lowes to buy a new door handle set for the front door which broke the night before, and then were off to Grandma’s to let the boys hunt for another dozen eggs and to see her and Tom and Ali. We stayed for 45 minutes or so soaking up the sun and then all drove down the block to see June who was at her house as her estate sale just wrapped up. My Mom came along which made June very very happy as they’ve known each other for probably 40 plus years. I took the boys and Lorenzo and we walked home and left my Mom and Lori down there who soon followed.

Then we hung out and relaxed for the rest of the day. We all skipped dinner (except for the boys) as we were too full and tired from brunch. Today Lori and I will get back on our pre Belize way of eating as we’ve kind of been cheating on and off since we returned home. It’ll be good to get back to clean eating. This of course means no alcohol for me tonight at the wine dinner which is fine as I’m driving anyhow.

Jagger is up with me now at 5:45 while everyone else is still sleeping. I think we’ll go to the gym but we’ll see how he feels in a few minutes.

Hope everyone is well. One thing I need you all to do for me, just humor me. Buy a little extra food this week, just think of it as if you won’t be able to go to the store for one week. See if you can do it. I’ll bet none of you can even go one week without going to the grocery store. Don’t believe me, give it a try. Shop today and see if you can make it until next Monday. We bet you can’t, you’ll see how dependent you are on everything being available to you whenever you want. I dare you!

God Bless.

“The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong in the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry.”

– Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms, 1929

Today although we celebrate the Easter Bunny and hunt for baskets and eggs, let’s not forget the true meaning of the day.

Easter is the day when we celebrate Jesus Christ rising from the dead. Jesus is the Son of God and heroically gave His life to die for our sins. On the third day after He died — the day we now celebrate as Easter Sunday — His friends went to His grave, and found that He had risen from the dead. They saw an angel who told them, “Don’t be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He has been raised from the dead, just as He said it would happen.”

I won’t go too much further as I don’t want to preach to you but there are a few simple things you can do that will bring God into your life and allow you to be saved by Him. He offers you the chance for your sins to be forgiven and the gift of eternal life. Here are the four principals that tell you how you can receive the gift of God in your life.

1. God Loves You!

The Bible says, “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”

The problem is that

2. All of us have done, said or thought things that are wrong. This is called sin, and our sins have separated us from God.

The Bible says “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” God is perfect and holy, and our sins separate us from God forever. The Bible says “The wages of sin is death.”

The good news is that, about 2,000 years ago,

3. God sent His only Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins.

Jesus is the Son of God. He lived a sinless life and then died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. “God demonstrates His own love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.”

Jesus rose from the dead and now He lives in heaven with God His Father. He offers us the gift of eternal life — of living forever with Him in heaven if we accept Him as our Lord and Savior. Jesus said “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by Me.”

God reaches out in love to you and wants you to be His child. “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe on His name.” You can choose to ask Jesus Christ to forgive your sins and come in to your life as your Lord and Savior.

4. If you want to accept Christ as Savior and turn from your sins, you can ask Him to be your Savior and Lord by praying a prayer like this:

“Lord Jesus, I believe you are the Son of God. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins.  Please forgive my sins and give me the gift of eternal life.  I ask you in to my life and heart to be my Lord and Savior. I want to serve you always.”

Hope you have a great day, take care and as always, God Bless!

Yesterday Ty’s friend from school came home with us to play until 9pm. Jag had baseball so I took all three boys with me and Ty and his friend played at the park while I helped out with baseball. We all made it home around 6:15 and Mom was already here. We bbq’d up some hamburgers, hot dogs and bratwurst for dinner. After dinner we made a small fire in the fire pit out front so the boys could roast some marshmallows. All in all, a fun night.

It’s supposed to be warmer today but looks overcast right now. Jagger and I and maybe Mom and Ty re joining Ethan from Jag’s baseball team and his dad at a great bbq place for lunch. Turns out Ethan’s dad is also paleo meaning he basically eats what Lori and I eat which is just about everything except gluten. Ethan invited jagger to spend the night but we have lots going on this weekend so we opted for lunch and some play time instead. The coach asked me to coach first base Monday night at the game as our assistant coach is in Hawaii but I’ll be at the wine dinner in Colorado Springs.

Our house is spotless and I’m going to try to keep it that way at least through tomorrow. I spent the better part of the morning cleaning it up yesterday. I need to go buy some small flags and stick them in the lawn on the sprinklers in the next 2 hours so we can have the grass arreated but first will have to pick up some dog poop!

So time to go, hope everyone is doing well, God Bless.

Last night after all of us had a long day, we had a long long baseball game. Of course the game before us lasted longer than expected so we had a late start. Finally at 10pm we were done. On top of it all, it was really cold out. We were all wrapped up in down jackets in the middle of April. Jagger played outfield, 3rd and 1st. He had two great plays at 3rd where he tagged two runners out in the same inning! Then he also hit a bullet into the outfield and stole 2nd. Overall we had a really good game but lost to a team with a pitcher that was Triple A who threw about 60 miles an hour. But our kids battled hard, never gave up and made a game of it.

This morning everyone is running late as we (the boys) had homework before and after baseball. It’s now 6:30 and we need to get going. Lori and I are up but both boys are still in bed. We (Lori, the boys and I) along with Lorenzo are going to Easter Brunch downtown on Sunday as we are all too tired to cook and clean. My Mom is going to Tom and Ali’s and her parents are joining them. We would have had everyone here but with Lori working so much and our house a mess, we just couldn’t swing it. Tom and Ali’s is too small to have us all, so brunch it is.

Guess I’ll go so I can get moving on cleaning the house. Have a great Good Friday and Easter weekend. God Bless.

It’s 4:32 and the coffee is on and the day is started. I’m up early so I can get to the gym and back before everyone else rises. Work is work and school is school. Jagger had a good practice last night while Ty did some homework, ran to the grocery store with me and lobbied for new tennis shoes. He just got a new pair less than 2 months ago but due to skateboarding and just being a kid, they already have a large hole in the toe. Luckily I have a rewards coupon for $38 that will cover 2/3rd’s of the cost. I told him today after school I’d take him for new shoes. After that and after dinner, Jagger has a baseball game. It starts at 7:30 and goes until 9:30. It seems awful late for a kids baseball game but that’s what’s on the schedule.

Tomorrow is Good Friday which kicks off the holiday weekend. I’m abstaining from politics but just so you know, things are still pretty much screwed up. 6 out of 10 registered voters say the Pres lies about important things. Maybe there’s hope for us yet as people seem to be waking up. I’d better stop as the mere mention of politics, even by me, seem to get me going.

Lori is doing an amazing job at work. Some of the things she is responsible for and figuring out on her own are things others go to school for years for. They’re really lucky to have her.

Well my coffee just beeped so time to run. We hope everyone is well and has fun plans for Easter. Not sure what we’re doing besides church and getting Lorenzo from the airport. I’d better call my Mom today. Take care and God Bless.