Blue, blue, the Moon is Blue - III

Big Blue is well on it's way into the new year, a new year and the second decade of a new millenium. Blue moons are new beginnings. In the spirit of the blue moon and new beginnings, on December 15th (midway between the 1st and 2nd full moons of December) Poppy donated $400 to UNICEF USA to help create new beginnings for the estimated 24,000 children that die daily from totally preventable causes. That would be $100 for Mom and me, and $100 each for the children. A small price to pay. Welcome in the new year with the blue moon knowing that you helped save babies that would otherise not have seen this, nor any, blue moon.

More information

Blue, blue, the Moon is Blue - II

Finally big blue is high above the horizon. Here are a few photos of the special event. Granted they don't look like much, but you know the moon is moving away from us at about an inch per year. When we, and the moon, were young it was so close that tides were well over 1,000 ft. So where were the Hawaiian surfer girls then? If I only knew.

Mooned!

Blue, blue, the Moon is Blue - I

Here it is, the long awaited evening. Katie remembered this sacred event and saw the moon rising in the east on her way to IL. (I've heard that Blue Moons can play havoc with the electric grid. Hope there are no turkey breasts in the oven in IL.) My view here at the center of the universe is blocked by magnificant Blue Spruce trees which set the line of demarcation between civilization and the ghetto. Blue is good, be it moons, trees, or summer afternoon skies. I'll check progress after supper, and let you know.

Johnson's Barber Shop

A family tradition was renewed last Tuesday when both Chris and Oliver got hair cuts from Mickey Johnson, the former owner and now semi-retired barber at Johnson's Barber Shop. It was kind of like a blast from the past in that nothing in the shop has changed in the past 25 years. And of course, Poppy paid.

Action photos.

Christmas 2009

Several weeks ago (That would be the 1st weekend in Dec, an eternity in pre- and post- blizzard F'burg), Poppy began creating the Christmas Wonderland on Wendt Rd. that GG and he love so much! Just a dusting of snow and fairly warm (well above 0) temperatures greeted him. Tim came over to trim the tree that Poppy grew. (Poppy has no idea how to trim a tree, except with a chainsaw.) Then, all winter hell broken loose, a BLIZZARD (and I don't mean Earl!) hit. Snow, snow, snow, snow. After 16" of snow and 4+ hours, Poppy cleaned up the mess (see previous Snow, snow, snow, snow blog entry for additional detail.) A few days later on Christmas eve, while K&J were without power in IL, Tim came over to enjoy Mama's lemon chicken. And, as always, it was very tasty. A treat for 3. On Christmas day Tim re-appeared along with Katie & Jason. Lots of presents were exchanged, food eaten, and good times had. On the menu, Poppy's pizza, and it was very nice I might add. An enjoyable Christmas day. The day after Christmas, GG's birthday (I won't say how many, except one more than Poppy), Katie came over. The next day the Minnesotans arrived -- Chris, Em, Oliver and Charlotte (oh, Brucie too). Tim and Sarah, and Katie and Jason also came over. It was great, good company, grandchildren (did I mention just how sweet Oliver and Charlotte are?), and food. Lots of food. King crab legs and shrimp topped the bill, along with sour cream potatoes, home made corn, cardinal salad, and Christmas bread. It took Poppy an hour to finish eating! The next day gifts were exchanged and all enjoyed watching Oliver rip through the presents. Sometimes he missed the actual present in his exuberance. Overall it was a very good time. Now all have returned to their respective homes. Nothing left to do but the washing up, and enjoying the memories.

Oh and a few photos too.

Mine's The Fattest of them All

Toad Madness

Unfortunately, my not so thin toad is fatter than Katie's very thin cookie. Guess I'll just have to eat the cookie and release the toad. (I wonder how toad on bagel tastes?)

Poppy's toad:














Katie's cookie:














You be the judge.

Thin Cookie Madness

Because the true measure of a Brown woman (or McKeever or Smart) is how thin her thin cookies are, I decided to accept the challenge. The pictures below attempt to demonstrate their thiness, though admittedly it's hard to capture with a mere photo. Rest assured they are thinner than the thinnest piece of paper.

At least the first couple batches were. I'm sick of making them and Jason is now trying to use up the dough by making some thick thin cookies.

Cookie Mania

Snow. snow, snow, snow

F, F, F, Snow

The 'burg took a big hit overnight. The Mama and Molly and Poppy woke up to 16 inches of the "white stuff". Mama was happy because GFC was closed, Poppy was happy because Risie had to close the Lab, but Molly hated it (no where to take care of business). Tim told all of his employees to work from home as he did, Katie also reluctantly stayed home. Jason worked from the Madison site, a short 10 minute walk from home. All were safe from "global warming."

Then Poppy had to blow and shovel. Here are a few photos of his 4 hour (hell of a way to skip work) ordeal.

PS Add your own captions. The big P can't get them to work, and really doesn't care right now.

Photos

Once in a Blue Moon

Blue Moon means it's Time for New Beginnings!

Earlier this month I was outside waiting for Molly to take care of business when I noticed that it looked like a full moon. I came inside, checked my handy dandy Smokey Bear pocket planner calender, and sure enough on November 2, 2009 there was a full moon. I thought, cool, maybe a blue moon month. But no such luck. There will be only one full moon in November. I kind of forgot about it until today when I was flipping through the afore mentioned calender and saw, much to by delight, that not only is December a blue moon month, but the second full moon falls on New Years Eve. My scientific curiosity aroused (Yes, I'm old!), I checked the past several years for blue moons.

2009: December 31:

Charlotte, you are a very special young lady, and regardless of the blue moon, you are still a new beginning for all of us.

Katie & Jason, I know you will only get married once, but even though not in this blue moon, you too are still a new beginning.

2008: No blue moons. ):

2007: June 30.

Oliver, not only are you a very special young man, but you were also born on a blue moon month and day. How sweet is that. And besides that, you are the beginning of the next McKeever generation. (I'm so sorry!)


Good things will happen on December 31, but just once in a blue moon!

Katie's Kahala

Photos

Wedding pictures

We're back - check out the pictures!

The wedding pictures are posted first, honeymoon pictures below that.

Poppy & GG vacation in Hawai'i

Poppy & GG (aka Pappy and Mama, David and Gretchen, and don't go there-Dave and Gretch) recently returned from their first (and perhaps only) trip to Hawai'i. Overall, it was a very nice trip. Blue skies, ocassional gentle breezes, very good food, good company, nice scenery, tent cities (retirement home?) and a very special joining of the McKeevers and Smarts. Life is good. And, at just $290 per person per day, you gotta love it.

Here's Poppy's highlights of the trip with GG's responses, ala Dave Letterman:

POPPY (GG)

1. Katie & Jason are one! (Goddy love!)
2. Tim and Sarah join us. (Nice.)
3. Tasha and John join us. (Thank you.)
4. I wish Oliver and Charlotte were here.(Me too.)
5. Bikini clad surfer girls. (Alfonzo rocks in Amalfi.)
6. Sunshine and temps in the 80s. (Sucks to sweat.)
7. Fresh fruit all year long. (I love fruit.)
8. Kakazu says it rocks. (Kaka who?)
9. Airline tickets are free. (But not sound proof.)
10. Beats Fitchburg. (Sure does.)

Here's one photo per day, highlighting our adventure:

Day 1: Poppy & GG arive in Hawai'i and head down to Waikiki.







Day 2: Poppy and GG just hanging out with a bird of paradise:







Day 3: John & Tasha join us for a trip to the North Shore:







Day 4: Looking around the island, then heading west:







Day 5: John and Poppy on a walk about:







Day 6: Goodness in China Town:







Day 7: The holiest of holies (Yummo!):


















Stay tuned for photos, videos and assorted other junk that only Poppy can do.

Sweet little Charlotte

Dear Charlotte,

I'm so sorry. I was well on the way to making you a special little chair for when you are able to sit up and enjoy the world. But, guess what, my plans were shattered today when the very nice piece of SPF #3 I purchased a couple of months ago so I could age ir nicely, up and shattered on me. I kinda feel like Mick Jagger, but not really because he never had to deal with the US government, nor the USDA Forest Service's lack of control over our Nation's timber supply. But don't fret, Poppy will deliver. He always does, sooner or later.

Here are some very nice, and sorry photos.

Love,
Poppy
PS Big hug for Oliver. He's the man!
PPS Tell your Daddy that Mickey says hi.

Photos

Happy Accidents

Here's my second Bob Ross painting. The general composition follows the first attempt, although this time I used less paint and a larger canvas. In a recent episode of "The Joy of Painting" Bob let his son Steve paint. Steve showed me how to do the birch tree - I think it turned out well. (Steve does did not have his father's fro, but did have a hard core mullet and out of control 80's mustache.) The large boulder in front of the tree started out as a cabin, but I screwed it up. Bob never showed me how to do a large rock, so I'm happy that it looks like it actually belongs in the picture. As Bob says about every other show, "We don't mistakes. We just have happy accidents." My pine trees still aren't to my satisfaction and the clouds could be better. The next painting I do will have a different scene. The mountains are fun, but I think I have them down pretty well. I may try something different in the background... not sure yet!

Happy Little Trees

Look what I did with my brand new $130 "Bob Ross Master Paint Set." (That I got for 40% off.) Look out Da Vinci! I'm proud of the mountain, the water, and the water bank on the left side. The trees and bushes need work. I don't think I did them right. All in all, not bad for someone who never took an art class!

(PS - The good stuff looks better in the person, and the bad stuff looks worse in person. Go figure!)

The Honeymooners Return

Mama and Papa returned yesterday from 3 days in Door County hoping to re-create their original honeymoon experience from 35 years ago. Everything was exactly the same as then, only different. Attached are a few photos and videos to help celebrate and document this marital bliss milestone.

Photos

and videos from our condo.

In the Days of Yore

Way way back in the days of yore, before the world had color, in a place 850 miles away, a young, innocent couple joined together in holy matrimony. After the nuptials, the couple headed north to the coast of Maine. Lobsters and clams and other delicacies were enjoyed by all. You guessed it, the Clan McKeever was created. Now, 35 years later, the original founders are heading North again, but now to Door County WI to re-create the original experience. No lobsters, no clams, but great shopping, and other delicacies! Long gone are the $10-15 motel rooms enjoyed by the graduate student and his new basket room bride in 1974. But then, he had to make do on his $3,800 per year research stipend.

Green Yay!

Thanks to good connections, (i.e. Poppy Mac and some lady at the gym), Jason and I were able to go see a preseason Packer game at Lambeau. Packers vs. the Buffalo Bills (minus TO) .... outcome? Victory.

Good seats + beautiful weather + nachos + pretzel with cheese + a Packer victory = Greatness!

PS - we saw a lot of Brett Favre haters

Pictures

Our Newest Blogster

Hi everyone.
Poppy added me to the "News from WI" blog. He also created an email account for me to use to post and comment to the blog. I'm looking forward to seeing all the new posts, especially those about me.
Bye for now.
Love,
Charlotte
P.S.
Check out a couple of photos of Poppy and me.

Sweet, sweet little Charlotte

On July 14, 2009, GG and Poppy received the long awaited, but somewhat early, call from MN. A new baby has arrived. Sweet little Charlotte is now the newest member of the family. Of course, Poppy was still in bed, but GG was ready to go. By the time we (Poppy) got up, packed, watered flowers, dropped Molly off at her sitter's, and gassed up the car, you (Charlotte) were nearly 8 hours old. My, how time flies. Needless to say, once we hit the road, Poppy put the petal to the metal, but how fast can one go in a 4 banger Honda? Not fast enough! We made it though, and saw the sweetest little girl in the whole wide world on her very first day. You are such a wonderful addition to the family.
Goddy love. Hope to see you soon.

Here are some photos and videos to celebrate the occasion.

Photos


And videos

Door County, WI

On the 4th of July weekend, 2009, Mama and Katie and Pappy dumped the dog off at KK's new house and hit the road to Door County WI, by way of Green Bay. (Yes, I know, what the heck is going on here? Dad driving on a national holiday!) The weather was great, the crowds less than expected, and the federal government rate at the Holiday Inn very reasonable. Despite a major detour enroute which Tommy took care of for us nicely, it was a very good trip. Prime rib, craft fairs, scenic overlooks, gift shops, Lambeau Field, the Oshkosh Outlet Mall, and lots of shopping were all on the agenda. Here are photos and videos to document the trip. And who knows, maybe we'll all be there next fall.

Photos

Videos
1. Bailey's Harbor.
2. The road to Ellison Bluff County Park.
3. View from Ellison Bluff County Park.

Thomas says: "Happy Birthday Oliver."

On the weekend of June 27, GG and Poppy (and Tim and Sarah) traveled to Chaska, MN to revel in the 2nd anniversary of Oliver's birth. What an entirely different person young Oliver is now than he was 2 years ago. He’s now become quite the young man, yet still remains the ladies man. Just look at all the hotties who attended the festivities! Here are Poppy’s photo and video highlights of that special day.

Photos

Videos

Home on the Range

It was a muggy, overcast day in the 'burg. But the Mama was happy, the Molly didn't care at all, and the Poppy had to get up early (let's just say around 7:45'ish) to greet the Maytag man. Well not the real Maytag man, but the Jenn-Air delivery men from the Maytag store. They promised to be here between 8:00 and 10:00 AM. Being the optimist that I am, I emailed my secretary and told her that I'd probably not be in until 11:00-12:00 o'clock or so, and maybe not at all. The bitches came at 8:15.

Everything went well. They were out of here around 9'ish, by when Molly finally became hoarse from barking. Needless to say I didn't go to work.

3:45 and here comes the Mama home from work. She immediately tries out the burners (like a moron I didn't), and only 3 of 4 ignite. I'm pissed. Bitching on the phone got me little more than the first appointment tomorrow for repairs. In the meantime Mama found 4 little brass gas nozzles which are probably the converters to LP for the 4th burner. So now I have to decide if I want to stay home and confront (hopefully) the guy who screwed up, or let the Mama fend for herself. I should probably just go to work.

Anyway here are a few (not so good) photos. First the old, then the new.
Stove photos

Update: The service tech just left. A loose ignition wire caused the burner not to fire. All is well in the 'burg today.

Addressing the Dresser

I am the proud owner of a brand new dresser. Yes, I know, that's terribly exciting and impacts you in a meaningful and significant way. I of course took this wonderful opportunity to post some pictures, complete with inane comments aimed to enlighten and amuse. Peruse the four photos below at your leisure.

Dresser

The Door County Four

Last weekend Sarah and I went to Door County for a lovely romantic getaway. It was just the two of us. And her mom. And her mom's friend from Columbia. So it was an A+ on the getaway scale, but more of a low passing mark on the romantic scale. I of course forgot to bring a camera because I'm good like that. Fortunately, Marcia Hoke took plenty of pictures and assembled some to share. You'll find a selection of them below with insightful, endearing and considerate remarks added by yours truly.

Door County

Kitchen Floor Pictures

The floor is all done as of this afternoon. Attached are the before, during, and after pictures. Last weekend I spent about 14 hours on Saturday and 12 hours on Sunday working. Today I worked another 5 hours finishing all of the trim around the baseboard.

Anyway... here are the pictures:

Kitchen Floor Pictures

The end of an era

The Johnson Barber Shop in Verona, although still there in name, is no longer there in spirit. Here are the sad details as reported in the WI State Journal.

Easter in WI

The 'burg was hopping (as is hippity hop, hippity hop) last weekend when the entire family came to visit for the big pagan spring ritual of Eostre (or Oestara) as celebrated by the early Anglo-Saxons. They had flowers and eggs and rabbits and fair maidens and all of the other trappings of the modern Christian Easter except for two things: 1) No chocolate bunnies, and 2) No checks from Grammy and Granddad. Long live Christianity!

Here are the photos which include some really strange pagan looking people feasting on pig and pratties, and some action videos of the youngest and oldest and those in between romping through the spring sunshine. And don't forget Thomas and his buddies. They were the hit of the party.

Thanks to all for coming.

Easter Photos 2009

Home Repair Pictures

Here are some pictures of the new paint job in Oliver's room as well as some before and during pictures of he kitchen floor. Hopefully next weekend at this time I will be able to post some "after pictures."

Link to the pictures.

Chris

My Turn

If we're going to start posting video game pictures... well, game on! This is currently the wall paper on our computer. I took this picture (I was killed and waiting for the round to clear so I could rejoin the game) during the game, it's two of my friends chainsawing a computer opponent. In Gears of War 2 you have the ability to snap pictures and upload them to the sight. This was my favorite picture that I took.

Winner here!

It's been quite a while since the Big P posted. Lots going on and yet to do. But today, after several hours of fun in the snow, I came in, put my paninis, which had just finished rising, into the oven and settled down in the "home office" for a game or two of Peggle. Here's the result. Pappy kicks ass! Eat your hearts out wanna be gamers.

Oliver Fake Eating an Apple

A surprise update to the News from WI blog. Oliver got a hold of an apple and pretended to eat it... it was pretty funny so we captured it on film. I hope you enjoy it!

Movie Link

More painting pictures

Purple Painting Party

Yesterday Jason's office was transformed from a green room into a purple room, thanks to a (my) couch that will be going in there.

As our friend Dan told Jason, "K-Mac's got you changing the color palate already, huh?"