Life’s Little Moments

This week, I felt like I really didn’t feel like me. I’m not sure that even makes sense. I’m not sure what is “off,” but something is. Hoping that I can figure out what the deal is. What’s weird about it, is that there were some great things that happened this week.

This week, the professional photo from the Daddy/Daughter dance arrived in the mail. When we took the picture, Ella leaned against me. They took a picture like that and then another one of us just next to each other. I didn’t know what photo they were going to send. I’m glad they sent this one.

Andrew was invited to a birthday party at the Sloan Museum of Discovery. They had a room for an hour and then afterward, the kids got to run around the museum. They had a cool exibit there that we got to check out.

They had these dinosaurs there that moved, roared, and looked real. The kids and I had a blast walking through the exhibit.

After we saw the dinosaurs, we went into the automotive section, which had some very cool cars to look at.

We also had a warm and sunny day this week, so in between pick up and drop off, Mabel and I walked the neighborhood.

Of course, being Michigan we had ice storms the following day!!

I’m looking forward to the nice weather. It can arrive any time!

Happy New Year!

2026 rang in as I was in Dreamland. The ball dropped in New York City – unseen by me. The new year was three and a half hours old when I opened my eyes.

Andrew tapped me and wanted to know if it was still night time. I assured him it was and encouraged him to go back to sleep. It wasn’t long before we were all up. Which led to Mabel hearing us.

Once she heard us, she wanted outside. I dressed and took her out in the cold so she could wander the yard and eventually offer up poops #1 and #2 to the new year. When we got back inside she wants to play and I want to sleep.

Once she settles, I try to sleep. However, 20 minutes in the cold has now got me pretty much awake. So her and I go out to the living room.

The new year is just over five hours old. My first meal of 2026 was a bowl of Lucky Charms. Mabel is laying next to me on the couch as I write.

I’m sure there will be a much deeper blog later, but for now here is a great quote:

“Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

As we begin the journey of 2026, may it be full of 365 “best days.”

Up To Snow Good

We had our first big snow over the weekend. It’s always fun to watch how a puppy who has never seen snow will react to it.

It was early, like 4am early, and Mabel made it clear that she had to go outside. As I opened the door, I could see that there were about 4-5 inches of snow on the ground. Mabel stood on the porch while I walked out onto the driveway calling her. She wasn’t sure what to do. She finally ventured down the step and stared at me.

She eventually did her business (on the driveway) and flew back up to the porch. All she wanted was to go inside.

As the day progressed, she would go outside and go further into the yard. It helped that the kids went outside with her.

It has now become a chore to get her to come back in the house! There has been more than one occasion when I’ve had to chase her around the yard. I’m sure that she finds it humorous to make me run around after her.

She has had no problem adjusting to her new home. She even loves taking rides in the car. She loves taking a trip up to the school to pick up Ella at the end of the day.

In the short time she has been with us, she has become one of the family. She is growing fast, too. It won’t be long before she is as big as me.

I Tumble For Ya …

The above photo, done by AI, probably has the look on my face correct. However, I actually fell INTO the house (and I’m not talking about inside).

On Friday, my wife ordered groceries online. She asked if I would run up to Meijer to get them. I knew the wagon was still in the back of the car, so I decided to take it out to make room for the groceries. I had my wallet and keys in one hand, the wagon in the other, and I went to put the wagon on the porch. Here is what I think happened.

As I started to step up onto the porch, the tip of my shoe must have hit the edge of the porch. The forward momentum caused me to begin to lose my balance. I could feel myself starting to fall and I had no way to stop it. As I fell forward, the wagon also caught on the porch, causing it to twist toward me. I’m sure that is how the handle ended up hitting me in the mouth and giving me a fat lip. As I tried to process that pain, I continued to fall forward. It was a millisecond after being hit in the face that I felt the top of my head slam into the side of the house.

The entire family was at the front of the house, so they never even heard me fall. I was seeing stars for a minute, but was able to get up. I picked up my wallet and everything that spilled out of it, picked up the keys and began to drive to Meijer. The more I drove, the more I began to hurt. My lip was swelling up pretty good and I had a headache. I didn’t think too much on it, until the guy loading my groceries said, “Looks like you took a nice hit to the head.”

I looked at it in the mirror and I had taken a slice or two of skin off the top. When I arrived home I had Sam look at it and she told me I should go to the ER, because it was a hit to the head. I took some Tylenol and said I would wait for a bit. My headache was bad, but there was no other sign of a concussion. Saturday I woke with a pretty nasty scrape.

On Wednesday, the kids got their early Christmas present. I went and picked up the puppy.

She is a St. Bernard and Poodle mix. So, I guess you call them a St. Berdoodle or a St. Benardadoodle. I’m not sure. The breeder was calling her Holly, which I liked because of the holiday season. However, the kids decided that she is Mabel.

She seems to be fitting right in …

I forgot how much I love going outside in the cold so that puppies can go potty! The adventure begins.