It was a birthday weekend as our Ryan turned 6 this past week. We decided on a "Star Wars" theme at home. Let's just say that we survived. As one of the other parents said, "Imagine if these eight were your own." We tried to keep them occupied with games and activities. Started with a gathering activity (making Star Wars masks) as the party goers arrived. We had a Star Wars obstacle course, a Star Wars "pin the tail" game, an asteroid scavenger hunt, and a Death Star pinata. Here's what Ryan had to say about turning six:
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
The Wedding Entrance to Beat All Entrance
This is a video that went viral maybe a year or so ago. It was long ago now that the NBC show "The Office" even did a spoof of it on a recent episode. The original and the spoof are below.
I've encouraged my kids that if they are going to get married one day that this is what their wedding entrance should look like.
The song is Chris Brown's "Forever."
I've encouraged my kids that if they are going to get married one day that this is what their wedding entrance should look like.
The song is Chris Brown's "Forever."
Pink Glove Dance to Promote Breast Cancer Awareness
Here's a great video to promote breast cancer awareness made by the staff of Providence St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Portland, Oregon. Got the link from my sister.
Speaking of Fireworks...
There will be a Seattle 4th of July fireworks show after all! Most of the effort to save the fireworks is owed to Dave Ross, a KIRO radio show host, and Tom Douglas owner of Seattle area restaurants featured on the Food Network. Here's a video clip about his donuts from Lola. His other Seattle area restaurants include: Palace Kitchen, Dahlia Lounge, and Etta's.
Anyway, back to Seattle fireworks. After searching for 15 months, One Reel, the nonprofit responsible for organizing the annual Lake Union fireworks, announced on March 31, 2010 that the fireworks show would be cancelled. They had been unsuccessful in reaching agreement with an entity to underwrite the cost of the $500,000 show. The previous local funder was Washington Mutual bank. Chase, which purchased Washington Mutual, funded the fireworks one year, but announced that they would not fund the fireworks show again. You would think that JP Morgan Chase would be able to spare $500,000. Chase had an ad campaign running that said, "Chase picks up the tab." "Your morning mocha could be on us." But I suppose your fireworks cannot be on Chase.
Chase is on the list of banks that received bailout money from the federal government, but not on the list of donors that ended up putting up money to fund the Seattle fireworks:
Microsoft $125,000
Starbucks $125,000
Vulcan Inc. $50,000
Nordstrom $25,000
Merrill Gardens $13,950
Charlie's Produce $10,000
Seattle Bank $10,000
International Parking Management Inc. $5,000
KING 5 $5,000
Northwest Administrators $5,000
Stewart & Terry LLC (Aspira Apartments Seattle) $5,000
Taco Time $5,000
Tom Douglas $5,000
Turner Construction $5,000
Underdog Sports $5,000
Red Mill Burgers $3,000
Berschauer Phillips Construction Co. $2,500
Cristal Charters $2,500
Ewing and Clark Inc. $2,500
Hales Ales $2,500
Novastar Development $2,500
Point B Inc. $2,500
BNI-Western Washington, Inc. $2,000
Filco Environmental Services $2,000
Key Bank $2,000
Neighborhood Grills $2,000
Pacific Urethane Recycling $2,000
Renton Concrete Recycles $2,000
Heidi McBain $1,500
Brian Hartman $1,250
All Systems Electric $1,000
Anchor Bay Charters $1,000
Anita Yearley MD $1,000
Beecher's Handmade Cheese $1,000
Blue Moon Burgers $1,000
Blue Rooster, Inc. $1,000
Brewe Layman p.s. $1,000
Brian Cartenuto $1,000
Capital Management $1,000
Cascade Federal Credit Union $1,000
Catherine Budbill State Farm Insurance $1,000
Claudia, McClain Insurance in Everett $1,000
Continental Van Lines, Inc. $1,000
Cutter & Buck Inc. $1,000
Dave Ross $1,000
Dearmin Fogarty PLLC $1,000
EmeraldSkySports.com $1,000
Findwell Real Estate $1,000
Fusiontek $1,000
Futurepoly $1,000
Geocaching.com $1,000
Greg Hunicutt $1,000
Gunning, Stenson & Price, P.S. $1,000
Heidi Heineman Aflac Insurance in Kent $1,000
Heston Technical Inc. $1,000
Hollywood Lights Inc $1,000
Homestead Book Company $1,000
Hy-Security Gate, Inc. $1,000
Jana Helmuth CPA $1,000
JK Fabrication $1,000
John Hanson $1,000
Legal Media Experts $1,000
Lenati LLC $1,000
Lucius Hill $1,000
Marty Rood, Mr. 99 & Associates, Inc. $1,000
Max Technology $1,000
Medina Hair Design $1,000
Meriwether Partners $1,000
Minor & James Medical $1,000
NELLA CUTLERY $1,000
Next Door Media $1,000
Northwest Gourmet Foods $1,000
Northwest Yacht Brokers Association $1,000
Nursecall Northwest $1,000
Paddy Coyne's Irish Pubs $1,000
Pamela Hinckley $1,000
Pennys Salsa Inc. $1,000
Phoenix Mailing LLC $1,000
QUEEN CITY PLATING, INC. $1,000
Read Products, Inc. $1,000
Reconstructed Clothing Company $1,000
Rite-Line Tax Service, Inc. $1,000
Santamaria and Sons $1,000
Schumacher & Co., P.S. $1,000
Seattle Ferry Service $1,000
Security Imaging Corporation $1,000
Sequoyah Electric $1,000
Sharron & Gary Deibert $1,000
Silver Cloud Inns and Hotels $1,000
Smith Brothers Farms $1,000
Sprague Pest Solutions $1,000
Sweetwater Investments $1,000
Tricia Rendina $1,000
Ventana Construction $1,000
Ward's Cove $1,000
West Seattle Blog $1,000
www.saspcrecycling.com $1,000
In Play Films $500
MCW Events $250
Turnure Telecom LLC $250
Dancey & Cassady, L.L.P. $100
FloorPlanOnline.com $100
The Frenchy Bee $100
These donors stepped up after Tom Douglas went on Dave Ross's radio show to pledge the first $5,000. After his appearance on the radio show, Tom Douglas went back to his office and started making calls. Microsoft and Starbucks pledged that they would match amount pledged by others meaning that $250,000 would be needed. Within two days, the entire amount was raised. Talk about grassroots efforts!
Oh, yes, and those of you from Alaska that make the trek to Seattle on a shopping trip might consider taking some of your business to those on the above list.
Anyway, back to Seattle fireworks. After searching for 15 months, One Reel, the nonprofit responsible for organizing the annual Lake Union fireworks, announced on March 31, 2010 that the fireworks show would be cancelled. They had been unsuccessful in reaching agreement with an entity to underwrite the cost of the $500,000 show. The previous local funder was Washington Mutual bank. Chase, which purchased Washington Mutual, funded the fireworks one year, but announced that they would not fund the fireworks show again. You would think that JP Morgan Chase would be able to spare $500,000. Chase had an ad campaign running that said, "Chase picks up the tab." "Your morning mocha could be on us." But I suppose your fireworks cannot be on Chase.
Chase is on the list of banks that received bailout money from the federal government, but not on the list of donors that ended up putting up money to fund the Seattle fireworks:
Microsoft $125,000
Starbucks $125,000
Vulcan Inc. $50,000
Nordstrom $25,000
Merrill Gardens $13,950
Charlie's Produce $10,000
Seattle Bank $10,000
International Parking Management Inc. $5,000
KING 5 $5,000
Northwest Administrators $5,000
Stewart & Terry LLC (Aspira Apartments Seattle) $5,000
Taco Time $5,000
Tom Douglas $5,000
Turner Construction $5,000
Underdog Sports $5,000
Red Mill Burgers $3,000
Berschauer Phillips Construction Co. $2,500
Cristal Charters $2,500
Ewing and Clark Inc. $2,500
Hales Ales $2,500
Novastar Development $2,500
Point B Inc. $2,500
BNI-Western Washington, Inc. $2,000
Filco Environmental Services $2,000
Key Bank $2,000
Neighborhood Grills $2,000
Pacific Urethane Recycling $2,000
Renton Concrete Recycles $2,000
Heidi McBain $1,500
Brian Hartman $1,250
All Systems Electric $1,000
Anchor Bay Charters $1,000
Anita Yearley MD $1,000
Beecher's Handmade Cheese $1,000
Blue Moon Burgers $1,000
Blue Rooster, Inc. $1,000
Brewe Layman p.s. $1,000
Brian Cartenuto $1,000
Capital Management $1,000
Cascade Federal Credit Union $1,000
Catherine Budbill State Farm Insurance $1,000
Claudia, McClain Insurance in Everett $1,000
Continental Van Lines, Inc. $1,000
Cutter & Buck Inc. $1,000
Dave Ross $1,000
Dearmin Fogarty PLLC $1,000
EmeraldSkySports.com $1,000
Findwell Real Estate $1,000
Fusiontek $1,000
Futurepoly $1,000
Geocaching.com $1,000
Greg Hunicutt $1,000
Gunning, Stenson & Price, P.S. $1,000
Heidi Heineman Aflac Insurance in Kent $1,000
Heston Technical Inc. $1,000
Hollywood Lights Inc $1,000
Homestead Book Company $1,000
Hy-Security Gate, Inc. $1,000
Jana Helmuth CPA $1,000
JK Fabrication $1,000
John Hanson $1,000
Legal Media Experts $1,000
Lenati LLC $1,000
Lucius Hill $1,000
Marty Rood, Mr. 99 & Associates, Inc. $1,000
Max Technology $1,000
Medina Hair Design $1,000
Meriwether Partners $1,000
Minor & James Medical $1,000
NELLA CUTLERY $1,000
Next Door Media $1,000
Northwest Gourmet Foods $1,000
Northwest Yacht Brokers Association $1,000
Nursecall Northwest $1,000
Paddy Coyne's Irish Pubs $1,000
Pamela Hinckley $1,000
Pennys Salsa Inc. $1,000
Phoenix Mailing LLC $1,000
QUEEN CITY PLATING, INC. $1,000
Read Products, Inc. $1,000
Reconstructed Clothing Company $1,000
Rite-Line Tax Service, Inc. $1,000
Santamaria and Sons $1,000
Schumacher & Co., P.S. $1,000
Seattle Ferry Service $1,000
Security Imaging Corporation $1,000
Sequoyah Electric $1,000
Sharron & Gary Deibert $1,000
Silver Cloud Inns and Hotels $1,000
Smith Brothers Farms $1,000
Sprague Pest Solutions $1,000
Sweetwater Investments $1,000
Tricia Rendina $1,000
Ventana Construction $1,000
Ward's Cove $1,000
West Seattle Blog $1,000
www.saspcrecycling.com $1,000
In Play Films $500
MCW Events $250
Turnure Telecom LLC $250
Dancey & Cassady, L.L.P. $100
FloorPlanOnline.com $100
The Frenchy Bee $100
These donors stepped up after Tom Douglas went on Dave Ross's radio show to pledge the first $5,000. After his appearance on the radio show, Tom Douglas went back to his office and started making calls. Microsoft and Starbucks pledged that they would match amount pledged by others meaning that $250,000 would be needed. Within two days, the entire amount was raised. Talk about grassroots efforts!
Oh, yes, and those of you from Alaska that make the trek to Seattle on a shopping trip might consider taking some of your business to those on the above list.
Friday, April 16, 2010
KFOG KaBoom
If you can't wait for the 4th of July fireworks, check these out. These were the fireworks from the 2009 KFOG KaBoom live music event. The venue opens at 1pm with fireworks at 9pm this year.
2009 KFOG Kaboom Fireworks from KFOG Radio 104.5/97.7 on Vimeo.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
A Day at the Beach ... Sort of
We spent a day visiting the Monterey Bay Aquarium during this spring break. One new exhibit was on pink flamingos. The river otters have been replaced by sea turtles. Got good pictures of Ryan up close and personal with the turtles.
Another new one was about the retreating ice and advancing water in the north in places like Alaska. The video focused on Shishmaref, Alaska.
Other sightings include sea horses, spotted jelly fish, sea otters, sharks (no great whites though}, a shy sunfish, penguins, giant tunas, and skates.
Most of the final pictures of the ocean in the slide show below were taken by the kids while we ate dinner at the Paradiso Trattoria on the Monterey water front. If you're looking for a bargain, be sure to ask for the three-course meal menu.
Another new one was about the retreating ice and advancing water in the north in places like Alaska. The video focused on Shishmaref, Alaska.
Other sightings include sea horses, spotted jelly fish, sea otters, sharks (no great whites though}, a shy sunfish, penguins, giant tunas, and skates.
Most of the final pictures of the ocean in the slide show below were taken by the kids while we ate dinner at the Paradiso Trattoria on the Monterey water front. If you're looking for a bargain, be sure to ask for the three-course meal menu.
Sunday, April 04, 2010
Cal Bears Women's Basketball Wins WNIT!
It's a rare year to be able to see two teams cut down the net. For those of you not familiar with basketball, the "cutting down the net" ritual is part of winning a championship. Usually this happens after winning a league championship or after winning a tournament.
Earlier this year, the Cal men's basketball team clinched the Pac-10 conference championship by winning their last home game of the season. I wrote about this earlier on this blog. This was their first conference championship in 50 years so it was only fitting that they clinched the crown at home and had a presentation after the game that included the team cutting down the net.
We decided to attend a Cal women's basketball game for the first time yesterday. It just so happened that they were playing at home for what was the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) championship. The women's games are general admission meaning that the seating is first come first serve so we got seats four rows behind press row across the Bears' bench.
Harmon seats about 12,000 and usually fills up once or twice each year for men's games. The men's games draw about 9000 or 10,000 people on average. The women's games usually draw fewer than 1000, but on this day the announced crowd was about 2500 although there were times that the place got loud enough to feel like more than the announced crowd. I think that this speaks for the passionate, loyal fan base that the women's team has. Kind of reminds me of the old days with the men's program when Harmon only seated 6600 and had a waiting list for season tickets.
If the men's games had the same kind of boisterous fans on the alumni side of the court as at the women's game, we'd probably have to wear ear plugs for the game. At men's games, often times it takes something really special for the alumni side to give a standing ovation. Not so at women's games. The difference probably is the general admission seating. Perhaps at men's games they should consider making all seats available to anyone in attendance after half time. It's a shame to see empty seats closer to the court.
The women's program seems to have a bright future. They started four freshmen for this game and the first player off the bench was also a freshman. They have another top recruiting class coming in too. With the ticket prices being in the $6/$12 range, I can see more people attending their games in the upcoming years.
Earlier this year, the Cal men's basketball team clinched the Pac-10 conference championship by winning their last home game of the season. I wrote about this earlier on this blog. This was their first conference championship in 50 years so it was only fitting that they clinched the crown at home and had a presentation after the game that included the team cutting down the net.
We decided to attend a Cal women's basketball game for the first time yesterday. It just so happened that they were playing at home for what was the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) championship. The women's games are general admission meaning that the seating is first come first serve so we got seats four rows behind press row across the Bears' bench.
Harmon seats about 12,000 and usually fills up once or twice each year for men's games. The men's games draw about 9000 or 10,000 people on average. The women's games usually draw fewer than 1000, but on this day the announced crowd was about 2500 although there were times that the place got loud enough to feel like more than the announced crowd. I think that this speaks for the passionate, loyal fan base that the women's team has. Kind of reminds me of the old days with the men's program when Harmon only seated 6600 and had a waiting list for season tickets.
If the men's games had the same kind of boisterous fans on the alumni side of the court as at the women's game, we'd probably have to wear ear plugs for the game. At men's games, often times it takes something really special for the alumni side to give a standing ovation. Not so at women's games. The difference probably is the general admission seating. Perhaps at men's games they should consider making all seats available to anyone in attendance after half time. It's a shame to see empty seats closer to the court.
The women's program seems to have a bright future. They started four freshmen for this game and the first player off the bench was also a freshman. They have another top recruiting class coming in too. With the ticket prices being in the $6/$12 range, I can see more people attending their games in the upcoming years.
Happy Easter!
We've annually attended Dan'a annual Easter egg hunt at his place. Until this year it was known as Megan's Easter Egg Hunt. Megan is his daughter who has probably not attended one of these events in a few years since she no longer lives at home and is either attending school or working now back east. This was the first year that it was called "Dan's Easter Egg Hunt."
Friday, April 02, 2010
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