So Saturday morning, I go into the basement and peer into the walkout that goes out to the backyard and I’m thinking that I need to make a hole when the forecast calls for one to three inches of snow later that day.  Well, luckily it was an easy repair but what made me decide suddenly to work out there where I haven’t even given it much thought in the past six months is beyond me.

Long story short, the foundation, or lack thereof, meant that the base of the walkout was essentially resting on the ground and, over the years, the wood had rotted.  So, using some pressure treated wood, some cement board, and a mixture of cement, I built up a new foundation that will most certainly stop further damage and keep moisture, critters, etc. out of the basement.

One of these days, I need to get some photos posted here of the work that we’ve done.  There is still much to do but we are getting closer and closer to a final product.  We were suppose to have a mud-and-tape guy come on Friday afternoon to look over the job and quote us a price but he either forgot the appointment or was held up for some other reason.  Whatever the reason, our general contractor will look into it and hopefully resolve the situation early this week.

The first Red Sox spring training game is scheduled for THursday against Minnesota!  Makes you forget for a moment that the temperature is only 4 degrees outside (without accounting for wind chill).  At least one writer from Fox Sports, Dayn Perry, has Boston winning the East this year, and why not?  Even with Damon off to the Yanks, Boston still has a potent offensive, the defense is much improved in the infield, and both the starting rotation and bullpen look solid.  They’re even a little younger, which never hurts over a long season, eh?

Categories: Family, Red Sox
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Well, it’s been some time since we posted but we again caught a nasty cold virus that put us all out of commission for a week or so.  Not that we couldn’t post something, but how much do you want to read about those gory details?

So obviosuly, given the circumstances, there has been little progress in the basement since earlier in the month.  Hopefully we will be back down there this weekend getting the door frames in place and the rest of the family room sheet-rocked.  We also have a mud-and-tape guy coming this afternoon to give us a quote on doing that task when we are ready for that.

On a brighter note, Red Sox spring training is fully underway.  Pitchers and catchers reported late last week and the rest of the team (sans Manny Ramirez, who won’t be in camp until 01 March) showed up yesterday.  The first spring training game is one week from today against Minnesota and the excitement of a season yet to commence has everyone in Red Sox Nation waking up from the restless slumber of the last month or so, with the Patriots having made an early exit from the playoffs and the Celts and Bruins playing less-than-stellar basketball and hockey, respectively.

Other good news on the homefront is that Lea’s acid reflux finally appears to be under control.  The specialty doctor that she’s been seeing for the past four months finally gave the green light, so Tiffany is in the process of weaning Lea and switching here to a special formula.  She’s also ready from stage 1 baby food and has already been having rice cereal for a few weeks.  She also seems to be sleeping better at night which, of course, is a huge plus.  Jakob, meanwhile, is still attempting to be trained on the potty but that’s seen limited success - good days and bad, which is not unexpected as we’ve been told by others.

Hopefully everyone is well elsewhere!  Catch you later…

Categories: Family, Red Sox
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If you see Tiffany today, make sure to ask her to take care of some laundry for you, then wish her a Happy Birthday! For those who are curious, she’s one year younger than the number that appears on her favorite Red Sox player’s jersey, Jason Varitek.

Categories: Tiffany
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Well, it’s been some time again between posts but the good news is that most of the family room has been drywalled, including the ceiling which we did this weekend.  A word of advice - if you ever hang drywall on the ceiling, rent a drywall lift.  $50 for the weekend from Taylor Rental and it was worth its weight in gold.  Makes very quick work of what would otherwise be a laborsome task.  We haven’t taken any photos yet but hopefully we will do that this week and then get a photo album online so that everyone can see the progress.

Unfortunately, the weekend started on the wrong foot - er, hand.  As I was using a block to try and wedge a corner of the drywall in place, I accidently smashed my index finger on my left hand.  Might I just say that it hurt… a lot.  Somehow, I kept myself from letting the entire neighborhood know in the form of some rather foul language that I had made such a boneheaded mistake and my friend Marty was surprised that I was able to contain myself so well, especially when I pulled off my glove to reveal a very black fingernail.  By the evening, the pressure was just too intense and I had to drill the nail to relieve the blood from behind the nail.  What a difference; here it is on Monday morning and it really doesn’t feel too bad now.  Maybe I’ll get a picture of that up here, too - hah!

We also had a nice little nor’easter hit on Sunday and locally we got around a foot or more of snow.  It was a little hard to tell because the wind was whipping around everything.  In fact, there was very little snow on the roof, which was good because there’s one little spot where if it ices the water backs up under the shingles and eventually makes its way to the ceiling in the kitchen, where we have a nice little water stain to look at these days.  Of course, the snowblower did its usual job and so it’s back to business today per usual.  Jakob did go out and play for a little while in the snow in the morning but everyone stayed in after lunch because the wins really picked up in the afternoon and the snow came down hard and fast.

So we don’t forget, we wish all our family and friends a Happy Valentine’s Day!

Categories: Family
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Okay, as promised more than a while ago, here are some recent photos of Jakob, Lea, and Kokopelli, who has probably not been photographed in some time!

Categories: Cats, Family, Jakob, Lea
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Funny that the grandhog reportedly saw his shadow today, meaning six more weeks of winter.  Around here, it’s been unusually warm and just raw if nothing else.  We did get snow earlier this week but it’s nearly gone; with rain in the forecast, it will likely be washed away by the weekend.  We had every intention of hitting the slopes a few times this winter as we had before the kids came along but the chances are getter less and less that we will even strap on our bindings before the daffodils pop up this spring.

At least we haven’t had to deal with driving in adverse conditions; not so much that we don’t know how, but that we don’t have to be sharing the road with people around here who see a few snowflakes and suddenly forget how to operate a motor vehicle.  You can divide people around here into three categories: first, there are those who have a clue and just take it easy taking corners, staying well behind vehicles in front of them, and giving themselves plenty of time to come to a stop.  Then you have the people who think that because they have a four-wheel drive vehicle that they can go ten miles over the speed limit and ride your behind like they are trying to read your gages.  Finally, there are those who drive half the speed limit with one foot on the gas, one foot on the brake, and are oblivious to the mile-long caravan of cars behind them. Perhaps the latter two should just follow the groundhog and remain in hibernation, eh?

Categories: General News
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