bonnie & jason

Ahh, to be a little kid again

Went to the South Sunset park with Alissa today. She basically ran around the fields non-stop for an hour. Definitely a good way to tire her out before her nap.

Smiley

Bath time pics

Ashley the piglet and Amanda the chick.

Twin pin

Ashley and Amanda spend a lot of time together. And now that they’re able to roll over, they’re often in each other’s space, on purpose or not. I’m sure the words, “stop fighting” will be uttered from my lips more than I care to know, but I didn’t think it would start this soon!

Ashley trying to eat her way free:

Amanda, already practicing the eye gouge:

Alissa the photographer/videographer

Alissa is really talking a lot these days. I don’t have a frame of reference to know where she lies in the continuum of 2 and half year old little girls, but it seems like she’s non-stop some times. Anyway, here’s some video that she inadvertently took as a random sample of her verbosity:

Shed and shelf are done!

The shed is finally done. I might put some more shelving inside but for the time being, I’m saying it’s done. As you can see, it basically just holds all the tools and materials that I used to build the thing to begin with. Bonnie happy I’m not getting the garage all dusty though and it’s nice to have the space back as well. I’ll probably move a bunch of other tools and “man-stuff” in there too. Put a keg and a HDTV in and I can almost live back there!

I also finished off my first attempt at cabinetry. This was kinda my learning project in preparation for making the built-ins for the breakfast nook. It’s made of 3/4″ birch plywood for the casing and shelves and various pieces of solid birch trim. The “toy chest” drawer is also made with 3/4″ birch ply and solid birch trim. I routed the top trim piece with a 1/4″radius round-over bit for a comfortable grip when sliding. It slides on bottom mounted drawer hardware. Finally, the finish is a simple hand rubbed tung oil. It brings out the grain nicely and imparts a warm, golden hue to the naturally pale birch.

Lesson #1: Don’t skimp on tools. I had originally bought a cheap stacked dado set and got crappy cuts with lots of tearout. I’ve since upgraded to a nice set from Freud and expect better results next time based on the test cuts I’ve made so far.

Lesson #2: Prep work is just as important as the actual work. Planning, measuring, tool setup, etc. all contribute to the quality of the final product.

Lesson #3: 3/4″ birch plywood is HEAVY! I almost broke my back trying to get the thing up the stairs.

House for rent

My tenant is moving out Saturday so if anyone knows of anyone looking for a house to rent in the Sunset, feel free to forward this CL ad.

Amanda’s turn at solids

While Alissa eats a piece of pizza.

And daddy got a little bit of project work done:

It’s the front panel to a DAC (digital to analog converter.)

San Francisco Giants Picnic in the Park

Cousin Eddy took a bunch of people including Alissa and myself to the Giants Picnic in the Park yesterday. It was a great event actually. The weather was perfect. Free hot dogs, beer, soda, popcorn, tacos, ice cream sandwiches, etc. They had an inflatable jumper and obstacle course for the kids and even a petting zoo. And, of course, they had a bunch of players signing autographs and helping distribute beer and food as well. The coolest part was just the perspective of being on the field. Here are a couple things I noticed:

1. The grass is amazing! It’s so dense, you can’t see the dirt even if you try to look between the blades of grass.
2. The warning track is much longer than it looks on TV. Probably about 20 feet long.
3. The outfield wall is taller than it looks on TV. It’s about eight feet tall I guess.

Here’s the photo diary of the trip:
Sami and Shauna helping Alissa cross the busy streets:

Killing some time at Borders before the event started:

Enjoying a hot dog with Megan in left field:

Hanging out with pops:

Enjoying cup #2 of popcorn:

In the jumper:

Looking for something fun to do with Uncle Alan:

Enjoying some organic chocolate milk:

On the way back to the car:

Moment by Moment

Some of you know that I volunteer my photography services with the non-profit group, Moment by Moment (click logo above for details.). It’s little more than a some time and a few dollars for me. However, the organization is managed by a few very dedicated people who really put their blood, sweat, and tears into this endeavor. Unfortunately, blood, sweat, and tears aren’t enough to keep the lights on so to speak. So if you happen to be looking for a great group to invest your charitable contributions with, please consider Moment by Moment. As it turns out, they are actually having a fundraising event September 12 if you’re interested in attending (contact me for details.) Otherwise, you can simply contribute by check or credit card. For checks, please make payable to Moment by Moment (Tax ID 55-0896956) and mail to Moment by Moment 1499 Sunnybrook Road Alamo, CA 94507. For credit card, you can submit via fax (925-407-2737) with the following info:

Card Number __________________________Exp. Date ______Code_____

Signature __________________________Total Amount Charged $_______

As a semi-unfair tug at your heart strings, here’s a picture of Amanda when she was in the hospital a few months ago.