Apparently I suck at writing monthly posts…haha. As always, things around here have been rather busy. Here’s what we’ve been up to.

Ben’s been developing really well. It seems as if he’s doing something new on a daily basis. Putting his toes in his mouth, grabbing his feet and anything else within range, full-on laughing, rolling over, sitting up by himself, screeching, bearing weight on his legs, and more. The little turkey has been busy. He weighs about 19 lbs. now and seems to be growing in height just as fast. He’s continuing to eat very well and has even started eating some solid (soft) foods. Tonight, he ate the most rice cereal/milk combo he’s eaten in the past 3 attempts. He lunges towards the spoon, so feeding seems to be a breeze so far. We are hoping it stays that way. Here are some of my favorite photos from the past month and a half

(here is a link to my Picasa gallery):

On January 9, our friend Ashley came to stay with us for a few weeks all the way from Japan. She had a conference to go to in the states along with some odds and ends that needed to be done here in VA. Seeing that we haven’t seen her since this past summer, it was very good to spend some quality time with her. It was the first time she has seen Benji in person, so he got to finally meet his ‘Auntie Ash.’ Here is the link to the gallery.

Holly, Benji, Holly’s mom, and I took a weekend trip to Tennessee (1/23-1/25) to take some instruments to a well-known guitar shop in downtown Nashville. Unfortunately, we didn’t get out to see any/many of the sights, but it seemed like a pretty cool town to visit again, so we will have to make it back there soon. The trip took about 7+ hours with stops and Benji rode like a champ. Mimi kept him company in the back seat most of the time. I did manage to get out and walk down West End Ave/Broadway to snag some photos. Here is a link to the galleries (1/24 & 1/25) and here are some of my favorites:

Brother Greg, Becky, and kids came the following weekend (1/31-2/2) to visit us. The weather was a little cold, but clear. We went on some hikes and spent a good amount of time entertaining Benji. Nathan and Rachel really seemed to get a kick out of him. Here are the links to the galleries (1/31 & 2/1) from the weekend. Even though it had only been a month since we saw them last, it seemed as if both kids had grown and changed a lot. I’m sure they thought the same about Ben.

My parents came to visit this weekend (2/13-2/15). They watched Benji while we went out for dinner to a local “fancy” restaurant for Valentine’s Day. Our dinner was pretty expensive for what we got. The food was just ok, but the appetizer, beer, and dessert was really good. The beer I ordered was Allagash White Ale. Their website says it’s their “interpretation of a traditional Belgian wheat beer, Allagash White is unique and truly refreshing. Brewed with a generous portion of wheat and our own special blend of spices, this beer is light and slightly cloudy in appearance, with a spicy aroma. Overall, it is a beer that is very drinkable and smooth any time of the year.” I have had something very similar to this beer before; possibly Ommegang Witte Ale as Greg K. suggested. It was good to see them and they enjoyed little Benji.

It’s getting late and I don’t have much more to say, so I’ll end it here. Night.

Categories: Baby, Misc., Uncategorized, beer
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I fell a little behind on my post from last month, so I’ll try to catch up without making this too long. Two bigger holidays have passed. Many great meals were had. Time was spent with lots of family and friends. All was good. Now, for some specifics…

Ben has been growing like a weed. He’s now about 17 lbs. and about 26″ long. He’s eating and sleeping well and has started to “talk.” He makes the funniest sounds sometimes. He has also discovered his feet just this past week and has started to grab objects in front of him. His eyes have yet to make the full transformation. There have been 2 big brown specks in his right eye for about 2 months now, but they are still mostly dark slate blue. Here are some of the latest photos:

I got a ticket to go to the Duke/VT football game (11/22) with some friends of mine. It was around 20˚ F outside, with some wind, so the pre-game festivities were a must. Jackson, Derek, and 2 other friends of Jackson’s started out at their parking spot. Jackson used his MacGyver-like skills to light a fire in their firepit (read: dump a box of matches on the fire logs) the rest of us enjoyed some food and drinks while watching Captain Outdoors work his fire magic. Derek and I ventured out to visit with our friends Mac, Michelle, and some of their friends. After that, we went to visit our other friends Katie and Brian. She’s been telling me about their “Big Beer Game” that they play every home game, and that I needed to play it. Well, I lost (2nd to last) and ended up with a big can of what appeared to be rotten cough syrup called Four Loko Fruit Punch.  The game was fun, we had great seats, I ate a turkey leg, and Tech won. It was a successful night.

Our friends Mac and Michelle stopped over the next day to see Ben. We hadn’t seem them since their wedding, which was 4 days before Ben was born. Here are a few photos of their visit:

We hosted Thanksgiving at our house for the second year in a row. Our friend, Bryan J. joined Mama G, Holly, and me. Holly and Mom prepared a wonderful spread.

About 2.5 weeks ago, our cat, Smokey, went missing. We would let him outside since he liked it out there. He had a habit of coming right away if you called for him, but not this time. I had a soft spot in my heart for him since I picked him out at the animal shelter. He would visit me when I would go to the bathroom and lie on my chest when my alarm would go off in the morning because he wanted me to get up to feed him. Holly saw some unfamiliar dogs outside the house around the same time he disappeared and one of our neighbors said she saw a coyote around lately, too. We’re not sure what happened to him, but I’m sure he’s up in kitty heaven weaving in and out of people’s legs. I miss you Smokey.

I found some time to clean up the Univega bike I picked up last month. It cleaned up pretty good for being a 20-year-old bike. I got some tubes and tires for it and will use it for cruising around when I need some more flexible gearing which I don’t have with the fixie. I ended up pulling the original front wheel from the Raleigh since the front wheel on the Univega had some bearing play. Here are some photos:

I also got the fixie bike back! It took a long time to get all of the right parts, but it’s finally done. I rode it right after I picked it up from the bike shop and I’m really pleased with it. I didn’t have the head badge at the time I took the first round of photos, but I snapped a photo of it on the bike. I also am waiting on some leather straps for the toe clips, then it will be 100% finished. I can’t wait for some nice days so I can ride it. Today was promising, but I ran out of daylight. It looks like there are some nice days early next week that I might be able to get out and ride. Here are some pics:

We had a few Christmas celebrations this year, and one more today (12/28) when Mama G. comes to visit. The first was at my Mom & Dad’s place with our family, Greg & his family, and Mom & Dad (12/20). We all had fun and was great hanging out with our family. Here’s a link to some of the photos from the day.

The next day (12/21) was our yearly “Yohn Christmas” which was traditionally at Nan Yohn’s house, but has moved to either my parent’s house or my Aunt Denise and Uncle Marlin’s house. This year, my parents hosted it and we had a full house…25 to be exact. We had a special visit from Santa Claus, lots of presents and got to catch up with some relatives we only see a few times a year. Here’s a link to some of the photos from the day.

We left my parents’ house around 4:30 on Sunday (12/21) and stopped in Maryland on our way back home. We stayed with our friends Greg and Krista, and stopped by Holly’s Granny’s house. We also met up with some other MD friends while we were in town. Here are some photos from the visit with Granny:

Then, on Christmas Day, Holly, Ben, and I opened up gifts from each other and Santa. We all got some very special gifts. While looking at a poster and print blog (OMGposters!) I stumbled on an artist named Jason Sho Green who ran into some bad luck and was selling some of his original art. I really liked his style, thought it would be cool to start a collection of original art for Ben, so I picked 2 pieces up from him (one for Ben and one for Holly). I surprised Holly with a piece I personally designed on Christmas Eve. Here’s a link to the piece and here’s a link to some of the photos from the day.

Today, Mama G. stopped by for a belated Christmas dinner. The ladies sure outdid themselves with another great meal. Standing rib roast, potatoes, green beans, macaroni & cheese, rolls, and some cannoli cake for dessert. It was great to see her and spend an evening with her since we haven’t seen her in a while. She brought our other cat with her, so we are no longer kittyless. Here’s a link to some photos of the gift exchange.

We also got a very special gift from the guys at Fender. They sent a very touching letter along with a Custom Danny Gatton Signature Telecaster for Ben’s first Christmas. Here are a few photos of this beautiful guitar:

Lastly, I found some free time to do some design work. I contribute to an art/design/photo blog along with a few friends of mine. As you can see by the name of the blog, it really has fallen by the wayside. I try to make time to do some design projects for myself, and this is where I showcase that work: fallenbythewayside.

I think that’s all I have. I know that was much longer than I expected, but I had to catch up on quite a bit. I’m sure there won’t be too much to write about in the next few days, so have a very happy 2009. I wish you all the best. Take care and goodnight.

Categories: Baby, Cars, Holidays, beer, bike, cats
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I didn’t know exactly what it would be like, but I have to say, it’s a great feeling. The lack of sleep is the only thing I’m not liking too much. I know Holly is grumbling under her breath after reading the previous sentence. Haha. She’s doing really well other than not sleeping too well. She really does need to start sleep when Ben’s sleeeping. He has grown so much in a month’s time. His cheeks and legs have filled in pretty well (read: chubby). It appears he is able to focus his eyes now compared to the previous weeks. It also looks like his eyes seem to be turning from a dark blue to a tint of bluish-brown. We have been showing Ben off to our neighbors, family, friends, and strangers. Everyone seems to agree that he’s so cute…we think so too. Here are some photos from the past few weeks. Some are not very good quality shots, but I still like them:

I went to H2Ointernational (vw/audi car show) in Ocean City, MD a few weeks ago (9/27-9/28). I left the Friday before and came back the Monday after. I really didn’t want to leave Holly and Ben, but we always do well at this show, so it was a must that I go. A few friends of mine helped me at my tent and I ended up doing pretty darn well. As always, it was a blast hanging out with friends I see a few times per year.

I also went to a conference with a colleague of mine for work in Savannah, GA this past weekend/week (10/4-10/7). It was the UCDA’s (University and College Design Association) annual conference. It was my first conference and it was a really positive experience. It was comforting to hear from other designers in a very similar professional position as I am, and to hear what they go through at their schools. I found it interesting to hear how different the experiences are for designers who work at smaller schools compared to me, who works for Virginia Tech (probably 30,000+ students). I met a lot of really nice people and hope to stay in contact with them in the future. I also hope that I will be able to go to next year’s conference which is in Seattle, WA. I was very anxious to get home by the end of the conference. Holly’s mom came down and stayed with Holly and Ben while I was away. Here are 2 links to the photos I took through out my time in Savannah: Page 1 and Page 2.

Holly, myself, some friends, and co-workers just went to Mountain Lake’s Oktoberfest this past Friday (10/10). The food was fantastic, the beer was great (Spaten Oktoberfest), and a great time was had by all. My parents and Nan Y. came up to watch Ben while we went out. They, of course, didn’t mind at all!

I dropped my Raleigh frame and fork off at the powder coating shop. It should be done this week at some point. The guy at the shop called me last Tuesday and said he was waiting on the powder still. Apparently, the dark green that I specified was out at the first 2 vendors I picked. I will be sure to post photos of the frame when I get it back. I can’t wait to see it come together. On other bike related news, my Nashbar TT bike is still at the bike shop. The wrong size tire was ordered, some measurements were taken and the correct tire and tube will be ordered and shipped soon (I hope).

Holly, Ben, and I will be making a trip up to PA this coming weekend to show Ben off to the rest of the family (in the Central PA area) that hasn’t seen him yet. Everyone is anxious to meet him in person for the first time.

Well, I think that’s it for now. Night.

Categories: Baby, Cars, beer, bike, cats
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Well, another couple of busy weeks have passed. I got caught up on some things that have been looming overhead for a while which I’m happy about.

On 12/5 we got our first snow. It wasn’t much, but it made the holler look really pretty. Here are some pictures:

The cats are still fighting. Selena has been instigating fights with Smokey and he seems to becoming more depressed/generally pissed off. I hope they can work out their differences soon. Smokey sprayed the wall in the guest bedroom the other day. We put some aluminum foil down where he sprayed. We read that cats don’t like walking on the foil but we’re going to keep the door to the guest room closed for a while just in case he would “strike again.”

We were up in PA again for a quick visit with my family and to attend our friend’s annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Party. We had a great time as usual. We were able to stay the night this year so we didn’t have to cut the night short. Here are some pictures:

Well, that’s it for this one. I’ll be writing another one this week to catch up before the holidays. Night.

Categories: Misc., beer
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I’m going on 3 hours of sleep right now and I feel like I’m going to pass out. Holly and I took our friend, Ashley, to the the Roanoke Airport at the crack of dawn this morning (left the house at arond 5:30 am). Then Holly and her mom started working on dinner when we got back while I straightened up the house and washed the cars. The cars get really dirty since we live off of a gravel/dirt road, plus it was a really nice day in the morning (sunny, around 65º). Our friend Derek came over to join us for dinner/lunch. The food was delicious. Mama G. and Holly did a great job. I commend them in their hard work. Here are a few photos from today:

I tried the Sam Adams Black Lager and it was really good. It had some characteristics of a stout, but finished like a lager. It was a good mix in my opinion. I’ll definitely get it again.

It was a good day. I’m still full from today’s meal. I think I’ll go to sleep now. Night.

Categories: Holidays, beer
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