Reflections of a year gone by...

2015 isn't quite over but I am looking forward to 2016. The past 12 months have had their ups and downs but as I write this I smile as I am focused on all good things that made 2015 what it was. 

My year started out fast and furious with me commuting back and forth to upstate NY every day for almost 3 months. I am very grateful to have a job, especially one that affords me all my wants and needs but there are times when the stress and hours make me wish I was either wealthy or retired already! My year started out on a big work project and it is ending on another which is why I decided to write today while I had a moment, rather then waiting till another year had passed me by.

After three months of long commutes I was ready for some relaxation and we decided to splurge when we got an offer that was too good to pass up. I have become quite fond of cruising and the turquoise waters surrounding the island of Bermuda. Although I have gone on two other cruises this time was different, as I said earlier we decided to splurge and boy, oh boy was it worth it! We booked the family / penthouse suite and were pampered like kings and queens. The down side is I don't think I ever want to go back to a normal balcony room so once again it's a good thing I have the job I do so I can save every penny possible before our next adventure on the high seas!

Ariel & Alex's annual tradition while leaving port!

The Beautiful Pink Sand

Bermuda Longtail - I am mesmerized by their beauty

My Happy Place, just past the famous Horseshoe Bay

 I love the time spent in the rolling waves of the ocean, the food and drinks, the shows and of course the island but the time spent with family away from life's cares, concerns and distractions is the reason I love it and can't wait to take everyone on another adventure as soon as possible.

This year I was forced to come to grips that my children are growing up. I watched them go through the struggles of adolescence during which they learned life long lessons about adults, friends and enemies as well as a lot about themselves. The highlight of these life lessons is they had a family to lean on during them. One lesson I always try to impress upon my children is that friends come and go but family is family forever. 

I think one of the harder memories of this year was saying goodbye to my Mom and Roger when they moved to Florida. On one hand I felt alone but on the other I was thankful to have people like my cousins Mert and Bert and my cousin Kim to lean on as well as my wife, kids and In-laws (although I hate that term and I always introduce Chuck and Gay as my Dad and Mom.)

As I said my kids are growing up and Ariel went out and got her first job at Dunkin' Donuts which is fitting considering our families love of the beautiful roasted bean.

She also started working towards getting her drivers license which is much more involved then it was when I went through the process. Thankfully she passed her written test and is now putting some miles under her belt with her learners permit. Rebecca has been the one coaching her but I had a break in my work schedule the other day and I got to spend 2 hours in the passengers seat while she chauffeured me around the surrounding towns.

Ariel has continued her love of music and art both of which have continued to flourish this year. In 2015 along with her love of the piano she taught herself how to play the ukulele, began learning the cello and found a mentor at a local art studio. Sandra has not only helped Ariel hone her art skills but she convinced Ariel to share her beauty with the world by being a sit in model. 

Ariel becoming Art as a model

2015 was a year full of music for the whole family which included me jumping into the mix. I have always loved music, making it, singing it and of course listening to it. I decided that I wanted to prove the saying "you can't teach and old dog new tricks" wrong and picked up a bass guitar. I have been amazed at the methods Alex's guitar teacher used and love watching him hone his talent while encouraging him along the way. I decided I wanted to give it a go and have been pleased with the knowledge Jeff has passed on and can't wait for my work schedule to lighten up so I can get back into the groove of things and pick back up where we left off last month. 

This year my best friend and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. I honestly have to say that my greatest success in life is convincing Rebecca to marry me!

 She has stuck by my in sickness and in health, in good times and bad and now I just need to prolong the till death do us part as long as possible! 

The past 24 years have gone by in what seems to be the blink of an eye but I couldn't imagine a single moment with her by my side. This past year I have experienced people come and go that I thought were friends our family and although I am disappointed about how things turned out I am not really upset when I realize that my family are the only people that I really need.

Were riding the bus to crazy town together as a family!

As I was going through pictures from the past 12 months I realized how much Alex has changed. I have watched him grow from a little baby into a young man who is now as tall as me and reminds me of myself when I was his age. 

I have enjoyed the developing a father son relationship with my boy. For the longest time I felt like we didn't have anything in common but the past year has been a learning experience for us both. I was able to take him with me during a week of work in Maine which allowed us both to spend some time with my cousins Rick and Lynne. I am proud of how much he has excelled with his guitar playing and the fact that he has started to step out of his comfort zone which has opened the door to new band opportunities and friendships. I think the highlight of firsts this year was getting the opportunity to watch Alex harvest his first deer.

I have written about my love of hunting and the memories I have spending time with my Dad as a kid hanging out in the woods. I will cherish the memories I have of hunting and fishing with Ariel as she was my original partner in crime way back when she still liked wearing pink princess clothing and I am thankful that Alex has joined us in our pursuit of the great outdoors.

The next step of our journey will begin on 12/23/15 when we pick up our newest family member - Tiberius, the Doberman Puppy! I honestly never thought I would open my heart to another dog but I was wrong and while I miss Goliath and Navarre every day I am ready to feel the love of a new fur baby. 

As the sun sets in the Bermuda Triangle I can't help reflect on the fact that even though there are moments that make you feel like the weight of the world is upon your shoulders throughout the year they were just that, moments! I have so much to be thankful for and look forward to embracing 2016 with open arms. I know the year will be full of firsts for me and my family but together we will work through them and when the sun comes back up we will look back and remember the lessons learned and smile as we reflect upon the good memories of our life as we lived it day by day!

The next up and coming green giant...

My job has been very demanding as usual but I wanted to give an update on the gardens progress. It has been 10 days since I finished seeding the hydroponic system and I am happy to report that everything has sprouted! 

I managed to snap a few pictures with my cellphone the other day in anticipation of writing this post! The parsley and cilantro had us worried because they took so long to germinate but after doing a little research we are way ahead of schedule as they can take 2-3 weeks to sprout under normal conditions! The hydroponic gardens are filled with lettuce, spinach, swiss chard, radishes, bok choy, beets, green onions, parsley and cilantro. 

I am especially excited about the beets, they are one of my favorite root vegetables and I love the greens both raw and steamed! 

Despite the area bear emptying out the bin once already the potatoes that he didn't find seem to be growing in the mulch and compost. It looks like the muskmelon seeds I threw in last week have sprouted too as well as the celery bottoms I tucked along the edges. I am leaving this all to do its own thing so I will be curious to see how things turn out!

The raised bed garden has started to take off as well, I am hoping to get some deer netting this week as I have a large doe that seems to like stopping by every now and again for her fix of tomato greens.

The peppers have begun producing and I will be harvesting this yummy serrano chile as I don't think I can stand to wait for it to turn red - I am sure there will be plenty more in the coming weeks.

The zucchini plants have quadrupled in size and with some sunshine I think we will be blessed with blossoms for frying and yummy green squash before too long

All the rain we have been blessed with has made it care free for watering but I am looking forward to some warm sunshine to get these sweet fruits ripened so I can begin snacking on them daily!

Last year we grew some dill and much to our surprise we found it had seeded itself in the deck planters for this year - I

 love free food!  

Some of the basil we planted in the deck benches

Organic cilantro we picked up at whole foods and decided to plant so we would have some to harvest while waiting for the hydroponics. I am amazed at how well it is filling out.

  

Summer is upon us

As is normal, life has been busy and often feels like it is in fast forward since the start of 2015. Thankfully we recently enjoyed a great family vacation in Bermuda which I will post more about in the upcoming week if time allows.

It seems like only yesterday we were watching the fiddle heads pop up out of the forest floor throughout our property and here it is the day before the official start of summer. With my work schedule I didn't think we were ever going to get around to cleaning up the yard which includes planting some veggie and herbs in the deck planters and some colorful flowers to enjoy throughout the year.

Last weekend I finally got a weekend off and decided to not only clean up the yard but to finally dig out the sand box the kids no longer use and transform it into a vegetable garden. The kids assisted me with digging out the sand and replacing it with a yard of enriched soil on Saturday. As soon as we were done Rebecca and I made a trip to Johnny's Roadside Market which holds a special place in  my heart as I consider the owners part of my extended family due to the bond I formed with them over the years of shopping there with my Mom for flowers but mostly because of the summers I worked full time on their farm as a young man. Ariel and I meticulously placed each plant and bean into the soil. It felt great to have a garden to swoon over again.

 The sand box provided the kids with years of fun now it will provide us with a bounty of fresh food!

Rebecca filled the planters on the deck with flowers and herbs and Ariel and I filled the planters in front of the house with black oil sunflower seeds. Every couple years we change up what we put in the front planters and last year the resident chipmunks stockpiled the seeds they snatched out of our bird feeder in the planters and mulched areas surprising us with a constant harvest of sunflowers for the vase Rebecca keeps on the counter during the summer. I decided since nature did such a good job showing us the value and beauty of what most consider nothing more than bird food I would give it a shot growing them in a controlled manner.

Black Oil Sunflowers reaching for the warmth of the sun 

Sunday morning Alexander and I got up early and picked up a load of cedar mulch and in a short amount of time cleaned up the area in front of the house. It felt good to work outside, get my hands dirty and dream of the beautiful flowers and yummy produce I would be enjoying throughout the year!

 Foundation area mulched and planters sprouting sunflower plants!

Sunday afternoon Rebecca's parents and her Grandfather came over for lunch. It's not every day that there are three Charles' present in the same room but thankfully we have our name system of Chuck, Charles and Charlie so the confusion of who is being addressed is eliminated! During his last trip up from Florida Grandpa Rathbun brought us his hydroponic garden system and I have been patiently awaiting the chance for him to visit and show me how to set it up. Much to my delight that time was finally here!

After we filled our belly with a hearty lunch that I prepared on my Weber Grill I took all the accessories out of the garage and grandpa gave me a 101 on setting it up. Every night when I got home from work Ariel and I would dedicate a little time putting together and setting up the system. Friday I went and picked grandpa up and he assisted me with the last few tweaks to the system and last but not least assembling and installing the irrigation system which would provide the water and nutrients.

All set up and ready for growing!

I felt like a little kid Friday night before bed as I added the organic parsley, cilantro, lettuce, spinach, swiss chard, beet and bok choy seeds into the media which is a mix of peat, coco coir, perlite and vermiculite. This morning at Agway I found more seeds which included romaine, kohlrabi and several verities of radishes and wasted no time planting them when I got home. 

Sweet Basil - One of my favorite herbs

Dill which actually seeded itself from last years crop!

The next week will be like a form of slow torture as I wait to see if all of the seed sprout. If all goes well this time next week I will begin to see the results of this past weeks work and I hope to document the different stages from now through harvest. Keep your fingers crossed that everything works as planned!

Green Beans already pushing through the soil

 

My newest addition to the family

I have been patiently awaiting to make the announcement, last week we found out we were expecting...

Yes after almost 9 years we ordered a new grill!

On fathers day 2009 I posted about getting a new grill. It has served me well over the years but the internal components had finally started to give out over the winter and the cost to replace everything just wasn't worth investing in the repair. After much consideration Rebecca and I decided it was time to invest in a Weber Grill! After much anticipation it finally arrived today and as soon as I got home from work I jumped right into the assembly process. I have to say the directions were easy to follow and after about an hour I was turning on the gas and heating it up for the very first time!

I love grilling and with the proper care I hope to get 10 years out of this one as the construction is definitely better than the last one. I was amazed at how quickly it heated up which will sear whatever we are cooking locking in the juicy goodness. While I love cooking with charcoal there are many benefits to a propane grill and I love the convenience of being able to cook out on the deck during every month of the year.

As you can tell I love my metal masterpiece and will cherish the investment for years to come!

So starting with dinner tonight I wish you all happy grilling!

Recognizing my Blessings and Giving Thanks

Today I find myself extremely thankful for the woman I have by my side. While it has been a year and a half since my accident we were still dealing with matters from the night of the actual incident. It turns out the hospital despite multiple submissions of the information to them never billed my insurance and almost a year after the fact sent me a bill for the night I spent in the emergency room. It has been a weight on my shoulder this past year and I felt like we were going in circles trying to rectify the matter but I refused to give in and pay for services that would have been covered by my insurance if people had done their job and submitted things in a timely manner. Thankfully I have a wife who is amazing at keeping records and I would truly be lost without her. After months of going back and forth the hospital finally found a lawyer who was willing to proceed with their case and today was our day in court. After all the dockets were read we were eventually given a chance to sit down with the hospital's lawyer so she could try to come to an agreement with us and settle without having to go to trial. With my amazing administrator / beautiful wife by my side I entered into discussion with the lawyer. It didn't take long for her to realize I wasn't willing to negotiate and was willing to stand before the judge to plead my case. We presented her our documentation and every time she tried to throw us for a loop we had an answer for her as well as the paperwork to back it up. She tried to prolong things by requesting proof that insurance had covered other bills from the accident but thanks to Rebecca and smart phones we were able to show her a list of claims that were covered right then and there! We stood our ground and eventually the lawyer called the hospital's finance lady and with us present began discussing our case. This was the same lady we had gone in circles with for months because she refused to admit it was a clerical error on their part. I think Rebecca and I were both equally surprised when the lawyer told her over the phone, in front of us, that they were going to lose. She informed her that Rebecca was "Meticulous" with her record keeping and that with all the records we presented her showed proof that we had submitted our information on multiple occasions. It took awhile but eventually she hung up with the hospitals finance department and informed us they were going to withdraw their suit. Eventually we entered the court room and when the judge called our docket and the case was withdrawn! After what has seemed like an eternity I feel like the burden that has been quietly on my shoulders has been lifted.

I finally feel like my accident is in the past and that life can move forward. I have been blessed over and over since that night first and foremost by the fact that I am here typing this post. Despite having to realize there are limits to what my back can withstand I can say my surgery was a success, I can feel my legs again and enjoy life on two feet with my family. I have been blessed with a wife who takes control of our finances and deals with the things I don't have the patience or organization to take care of. She has stood by my in sickness and in health just like she promised and while many take it for granted her love is not wasted on me a single day as I realize how lucky and blessed I am to have her as my wife and friend - not to mention the perks of being married to your very own smoking hot secretary! While I may have been the voice today she is the one who took the countless telephone calls, sorted out the letters and emails, reassured me and reminded me to focus on what matters and is within our control. While I may have placed the roof over our heads it is Rebecca that keeps it there! Thank you for all you do, I love you Rebecca!

Our prayers have been answered and the burden lifted and I give God the glory for the outcome of today's events it seems fitting with today being Saint Patrick's Day that we aren't lucky, we are blessed which goes with James 1:17 (ISV) Every generous act of giving and every perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father who made the heavenly lights, in whom there is no inconsistency or shifting shadow.

Now onto the rest of my day...

The Man, The Myth, The Legend - My Dad, Stephen Patrick Wearne Sr.

 While many will be celebrating the good deeds of St. Patrick today, I am celebrating the life of another man - my father. I would normally place some daffodils on his head stone but with the amount of snow we still have on the ground I may have had to skip my trip to the cemetery but my mind is still focused on his memories. As is normal this time of year I have found my mind swimming with memories of him and the good times we shared together. The man truly had flair - he entered the world on St. Patrick’s Day and departed it on St. Valentine’s Day. I am sad because I miss him and not a day goes by that I don’t think of him. During times like these I find myself fighting my emotions in order to get through the day. Although I miss my dad, I must once again acknowledge that I have been blessed with two wonderful men in my life who I respect and love. Both Chuck and Roger are there as as fathers for me and have been a blessing to me and my children. To make a sad situation into something meaningful I would like to celebrate in memory of his birthday, the life of the man who taught me among many other things how to hunt and fish, how to drive a car, and the importance of making time for family. As I look forward to my meal of Corned beef with potatoes, carrots and cabbage I will have a smile on my face as I remember my Fathers disapproval of my brother and I smothering our cabbage with tomato ketchup. I will reflect on my memories of days spent in the woods hunting, days off from school working with my dad in the big red tractor trailer truck, afternoons spent drowning worms on the banks of a fast moving brook, Sunday driving lessons, listening to the baseball game on the radio while playing in the back yard, digging up wild daffodils and day lily’s on the side of the road for Mom's flower gardens, Sunday lunches together as a family, the memories go on and on. I am thankful to have the memories that I do and to have had the privilege of being my father’s son. Remember the reality is we are only here for a season and it is up to us to determine how we spend that season. He may not be with us in the flesh but he is here in my heart and in my memories so for no other reason other than that of good memories… I miss you and love you, Happy Birthday Dad.

Me and Dad 

My Memorial 

My Dad the Great White Hunter