On the road again.... goin places I've already been.

I really wanted to post the tune of Willie Nelson singing "On the road Again" but I figured I would spare all of the strange people I surround myself with that despise "Good O'l Country Music". Once again I'm getting ready to hit the open road, hopefully this will be my last multi-week business trip for the year. Thankfully its to North Carolina again and not California. Most people think I'm crazy but I just don't like the West Coast. I am hoping to stop and see my friend Mark who moved to Virgina about 3 years ago as well as my friends (The Grabowski's) at my home away from home in NC. I am doing my best to make sure I pack my camera so I can take some pictures to share with everyone. Till I post again, keep safe, have fun, and do your best not to miss me too much.

Sping has Sprung, and Fishin's Fun!

Today was the opening day of fishing season in the state of CT and the kids and I spent the day together. We awoke to a summer like day, Becky and I enjoyed the sound of the birds singing as the sun was rising this morning and the warm breeze through the bedroom window that we left open all night.

I was unsure if I was dreaming this morning cuz most days the kids are awake before the crack of dawn and are usually noisy enough to wake the dead! Much to my surprise - and the cause of my confusion - the children got up this morning and were quiet as church mice. Not that I'm complaining I enjoyed relaxing in bed it is just that I expected to have two children pulling me out of bed to go fishing before the sun had risen.

The kids made their own breakfast and after filling my travel mug with the required morning dose of hot coffee we were out the door to the local brook/river to go trout fishing.

Today was a historical day as it was the first time I was taking my kids fishing with the plan being they would be performing their own casts with the lure of their choice. This meant that all three of us would be actively fishing. I am PROUD to report that Alex took to casting his fishing rod "which I must admit is no easy task-even for an adult as we are fishing a brook surrounded by trees, bushes, briar's, etc...) like a well seasoned veteran. Both of my kids have learned to cast their open face reels at a much earlier age than most kids I know which I hope will give them a better appreciation for the sport of fishing.


We all had our own tackle boxes which I filled with new lures (yup, you read right, lures - no drownin' worms for my kids! Actually I will touch on this in a moment) that I purchased with my Cabela's gift card from Christmas.



Due to the nice weather this morning there were a lot more people fishing than I am accustomed to seeing. Even with all the people surrounding us at the brook we enjoyed the morning together. I hooked into a nice Brown trout which was between 16" - 18" I was going to let the kids reel it in (that's my story and I'm stickin' to it) but after it rolled several times in the current my lure came free :( I did catch a little rainbow trout it too fell off my line as I was lifting it out of the water. The kids each had several good "hits" that I witnessed but we left for lunch with an empty stringer.


We also enjoyed a good hearty laugh as Ariel attempted to wade out into the water to free her lure from a rock. After only 2 or 3 steps she lost her balance and ended up sitting on her behind in the ice cold water! Thankfully Ariel is a good sport and after making a pit stop at home for some clean, dry clothing we were on our way again.


I stopped at my cousin's house to help him hang a couple sections of stockade fencing. While we were there Alex enjoyed playing with his 2 dogs while Ariel spent her time doddling over his chickens and helped out by performing the egg collection duties.


We decided to try a local pond I enjoyed fishing as a kid which much to my kids horror required we get some live bait to fish with. After lunch we found a nice sunny spot on the shore and I set up their poles and the waiting game began. After about 2 minutes Alex informed me that this was a boring way to fish and decided to continue to reel in and cast out on a regular basis even though I told him letting it sit was the preferred method.


We managed to catch a couple of fish and the kids learned about fishing manners as I taught the kids around us the do's and dont's of fishing around other people. Ariel also found a baby painter turtle (its smaller than a US Quarter) which we brought home for our back yard pond.


Before calling it a day we decided to go wet our lines in the brook again and even though we didn't catch any more fish we had a great time together as well as watch a 3 engine freight train go slowly by on the other side of the brook. As I have stated many times before I am blessed to have kids who are interested in my hobbies. Not only do I get to do things I enjoy, I get to do them with my family.

The Fish Whisperer

Redneck fishin' buddy

Future Bow Hunters of America...

My Dad would be proud. Last year both of the kids expressed an interest in the sport of archery. I wasn't sure if it was a passing interest just because it was hunting season and they wanted to participate in my target practice or if it was a genuine interest. I decided to hold off on spending the money on all new "equipment" even though I did all my "homework" on the options available and had picked out a new bow that would be compatible for both of them.

Much to my surprise as soon as the weather started favoring outside activity Alex began nagging me to set up the 3D target so he could start shooting again. They are using a "camp style" plastic bow but they have been conscious of safety and are enjoying the competition between themselves.

I can remember spending hours shooting my fathers Indian Recurve at the targets attached to the bales of hay in the back yard. I always loved the challenge of archery whether it was simply target shooting or in the woods deer hunting. I hope I can pass this love of archery onto my children by showing the patience my father did when he was teaching me not so long ago.

I am the world's luckiest dad, I have two beautiful, healthy children which long to follow in my footsteps. Both of my children share the love of the great outdoors that I have and I look forward to all the memories we will acquire while hunting, fishing, and just hanging out together as the years go by.

Let's go racin' boys...

Tonight was the Awana Grand Prix for the Sparky's. Alex and I tested out several different Hot Wheels prior to the race but underestimated the competition this year. Alex came in second in the first heat, third in the second heat, and second in his third heat. Even though he didn't get to advance into the finals he still had a great time shouting encouragement to his friends.

My favorite memory of the evening was several of the boy's (who obviously live in Nascar watching families) lining up their Hot Wheels and announcing "Boogity, Boogity, Boogity...LET"S GO RACIN' BOYS!"
I am thankful that both of my children are humble and accept the fact that there are winners and thus always losers in competition. Alex was just glad to have taken part in the race and was excited to get a participant ribbon, although a matching trophy to his sisters would have been nice.

Home Sweet Home....

I am back home in the Nutmeg State, I guess it's time to start acting like a Yankee again! My drive home went well and I am enjoying the day lounging around with the family. I have to correct myself about the "all work and no play" comment in my last post. Most of my coworkers that were staying at the same hotel as me left on Wednesday morning leaving me alone for the evening happy hours at the hotel. It turns out there was a CSI class being taught in the Raleigh area and several of the police officers attending were staying in my hotel. It didn't take long to make new friends and as it turns out several of them were from CT. It was nice to have people to exchange stories with which seemed to make the week go by faster and my time away from home more bearable. I can't say I am looking forward to returning to the "Tar Heel State" at the end of the month but I will be sure to bring a camera with me so I can share some of my adventures with everyone. I can say I am glad to be back home in the North Woods, where I can enjoy home cooked meals every night, (by no means am I complaining about the fried chicken, yummy grits, lots of bacon and sausage and of course the fresh BBQ that I consumed on a daily basis) hugs and kisses from my wife and kids, and sleeping in my own bed. This coming week will be a very busy one as far as work is concerned, at least I can go through the week knowing that my driver won the Saturday Nascar race and came in 2nd during today's Cup race! Now I just need to figure out how to loose the pounds I gained eating all the yummy southern food this past week!

All work...no play.

As many of you already knew I am doing some work related traveling during the next 2 months and have safely made it to my destination - Raleigh, North Carolina. I found this picture which doesn't show the massive amount of traffic found during most hours of the day. My trip here went well - I was off to a much later start (and with much less sleep) than I had planned due to a job I was working on in Boston on Saturday. I drove straingh through and stopped at a friends house about an hour outside of Raleigh and enjoyed an afternoon of catching up on conversation, not to mention I was allowed to watch the Nascar race without any complaining as I am in Nascar country now! We enjoyed a wonderful home cooked meal (as we always do when I'm here) and everyone knows food is always a highlight of my day! I have only been gone a couple of days but I miss my family and can't wait to get back home. Work is going well, I am getting trained on our new 275-1100 kVa unit so while I am here it is all work and no play. I am adding a link for some information that I know my kids always ask about when we travel to different states - and I thought since we have friends and family who are homeschooling they might find it interesting as well. I hope to come up with some exciting stories or experiences to post while I am down here (ie... driving through snow in Virginia on my way here) but if not I will type to y'all when I get back home.

Here is the link I mentioned earlier:

http://statelibrary.dcr.state.nc.us/nc/symbols/symbols.htm