Past the tipping point

We've made the symbolic one month and are 5 weeks strong. We've even ventured out to the LOMAH classic of Waterton. While Dora stayed in town, I ventured up Bears Hump with some visiting relatives and Logan. After a few hops and a crash I carried Logan the rest of the way. While Waterton should not be a petting zoo, the squirrels didn't seem to get the memo. The fat, well fed squirrels.

From 2009_07 Waterton Hike

From 2009_07 Waterton Hike

From 2009_07 Waterton Hike

From 2009_07 Waterton Hike

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One month and the survival of the clan

Well it is official. We made a month with all family members intact. At times it has felt a lot like Raiders of the Lost Ark. You know... where Indy is carefully weighing out the sand to escape with the golden idol. Like Indy, we were often unsuccessful. With flying fecal matter as we duck and cover, tiptoeing past cribs where angels and demons lie and making leaps of faith hoping we might see the light of day once more. Yes these are the joys of child rearing and I Am a Parent!

On a more optimistic note, Evan is gaining weight, at a rate of about a pound a week, we've finished the downstairs bathroom (sans trim) and I built a bench on our deck this week.

The bathroom is AWESOME!! We tiled the shower awhile ago and grouted last week. This week we installed the door. While pricey at 700 bucks it does look great and it complements the decadence I call "Aquatic Symphony". We've installed two shower heads which can be considered over the top or thrifty depending on your point of view. Considering we can fit the whole family in this shower it's really 3 showers for the price of 2! I'll believe this if you will.

From 2009_07 bathroom

The deck bench was a 1/2 day project that added a nice element to the back yard. Logan uses it as a table, chair and launching point for airborne assaults. Really, only 1 band-aid so far! Also you can see our pot-o-carrots too.

From 2009_07 bathroom

To finish this posting, I'll add a few pictures of Evan since he is the newest addition to the family.

From 2009_07 Evan 1st Month

From 2009_07 Evan 1st Month

From 2009_07 Evan 1st Month

From 2009_07 Evan 1st Month

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Steve's Machine

My bro has asked me to build a new machine for him and since he really doesn't do email, I'm posting stuff here for him to look at.

The first thing is a new case. This truly decides the look and feel for the new machine. Here are my initial offerings. I've gone with 3 different companies to start.

NZXT Tempest





















NZXT Guardian 921





















Coolmaster Storm Scout

Coolmaster Haf 922























Coolmaster makes a good case with a selection here as well as NZXT which are here.

Newly added are some Gigabyte cases. The sumo looks quite nice but is at the top end for what I'd pay for a case. I like the simple look and attention to detail.




















More Gigabyte cases can be seen here.

Other than these cases, there are tons to look at here.

Good luck choosing bro!

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Koowool

I recently ran into a relative who does a number of cool and exciting things. One is a knitting, felting and sewing. She sells here wares and has a site here. I personally love the scarf that looks like a snake.

Have a look and as I it's never too early to shop for Christmas!

Oh... she also builds straw bale homes if you were wondering what the other things were.

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Week 3, a camping trip

Week 3 has come and gone. I managed to use the Jedi mind trick on Dora to convince her to let me go camping with Logan. Silly woman, she should have checked my identification!

After a late start we headed South to Kalispell, Montana to pick up a new tent. I purchased a RTT or roof top tent from camping lab, a company that sells them and arranged to pick it up in Montana to get the free shipping.

Unfortunately, the base bars were too short to fit my truck rack and I was stuck in another Country without any tools. With kid in tow, I made a mad dash to the local HomeDepot at purchased some supplies. I then headed to Whitefish as my cousin has a cabin there. By the time I arrived Logan had fallen asleep so I set-up my tent (brought a backup tent!), tucked him in and set to work building a new base to put the tent on. Shortly before midnight I had successfully mounted the tent. You can see the finished product here.

From 2009_07 Tent trip

The next day involved us hitting a nice little lake just north of starving donkey... I mean hungry horse. Logan was a real trooper and hiked the whole thing except the last 5 minutes. He was a tired little boy.

We packed up and headed to our campground for the night. With a dramatic crash off the ladder (Don't worry, new rules are now in place!) we survived our first night in the tent. It truly was the cat's meow.

From 2009_07 Tent trip

From 2009_07 Tent trip

Logan truly enjoyed his camping experience and found a new use for camping equipment as highlighted below.

For those worried about Dora and Evan... they both survived the 3 days we were gone and I think the Jedi mind trick might work a few more times this summer.

As well I plan to do some "Real" mounting work, lowering the tent about 2" and adding a few extra's I'll post the revised truck set-up later.

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Evidence of success?

Recently I was looking at my marks for my Masters and noticed that the results for my projects were in... They were graded as satisfactory which typically means no re-writes. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and calling this "semi-official" for being done my Masters. I'll post the fancy paper when it arrives.

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A new link to friends

An adventurous couple of friends have embarked on a journey. With boat and strong spirits they plan to see where the open water will take them. The link is here and I have added it to our sidebar.

Here's an excerpt from one of the more recent postings

"Picture this: two men, covered from head to toe in full rubber rain gear on an unstable deck that is often awash with 12-degree sea water and covered in fish slime, blood, machinery, and thousands of fishhooks. There was a few times that I thought to myself, 'This is insane'. The first day the fishhooks were pre-baited with rotting fish heads and octopus bits. What smell! Like I said, I blew chunks, but only once the first day - enough times to empty the bran flakes. It was the combination of that rotting fish juice, the diesel engine stink, and the big choppy sea."

Cheers

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Sod "oh my" *UPDATED*

A few weeks back I helped my parents lay about 5000 sq ft. of sod. Surprisingly it went pretty quick and if you saw the parade pictures from a previous post it looks pretty good already. Here is a quick video of Logan giving a hand.


Here is a second video

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Obon

I've posted before about Obon, a Japanese service for the dead. You might know it as the festival of lanterns, but I'll let Wikipedia explain it.

Obon (お盆^?) or just Bon (盆^?) is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the departed (deceased) spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ancestral family places and visit and clean their ancestors' graves, and when the spirits of ancestors are supposed to revisit the household altars. Also called the Feast of Lanterns, it has been celebrated in Japan for more than 500 years and traditionally includes a dance, known as Bon-Odori.

We traditionally head out to Raymond to the cemetery to honour the relatives that have passed away. As well we often take family pictures. Here are a few from this years gathering. Of particular interest is the ever-growing number of kids. I find it so interesting how the "Japanese" has been diluted down, but I hope the traditions will remain strong.

From 2009_07 Obon

From 2009_07 Obon

From 2009_07 Obon

From 2009_07 Obon

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Week 2... Should I up the Defcon?

Another good week hs gone by, but a rough night for Dora resulted in me sleeping on the couch with Evan from about 1:3- to 4:30 in the morning. Oddly it was quite comfortable until I tried to move my head and noticed the rather uncomfortable kink that had developed. From what I recall I was pretty out of it when I hit my regular pillow.

From 2009_07 Evan 1st Month

From 2009_07 Evan 1st Month

Other than that it's been pretty regular, like Metamucil for parenting with the exception of Logan who is anything but regular. With visits to grandma and my parenting he hasn't seen a regular schedule since school has ended. Personally, I doing alright with it.
With a week like this one should probably grout a bathroom right? Perfect as we thought the same thing.

See you next week.

From 2009_07 Misc Pictures

From 2009_07 Misc Pictures

From 2009_07 Misc Pictures

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1 week and holding at DEFCON 4

Well it's been a week since the birth of Evan, our newest clan member and things are holding out pretty good so far. Dora is not getting much sleep, but surviving. Interestingly enough this is a good thing as it means that Evan is eating great and gaining weight quickly. An Iwaasa that likes to eat.... how odd?!? I'm managing Logan which I think is very similar to what a Hollywood agent does. My client is noisy, doesn't listen, gets into trouble and is constantly making outrageous demands of me. What can I say.... my commission is full of smiles and hugs. I've been keeping him outside as much as possible and the weather has been great too. Here are a few highlights from the week, including Canada Day out in Raymond.

Parade day in Raymond.. Folks new house as well! You can play where's Waldo and find all the family members.

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

Evan at Home. I love Logan's new outfit and his ability to help out.

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

Logan relaxing. With a magazine like that how can you not want to have kids? It's a perfect excuse to buy toys for "someone else"

From 2009_06 Evan Iwaasa

Next week will bring some new challenges.... stop by for a visit to be part of them or see you next week on the blog for more.

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Arts & Crafts

Some of you might remember Mod Podge, as it's been around the block a few times. Diedre made Dora a piggy bank years ago using it and I decided Logan needed one.

From 2009_07 Misc Pictures

With a few Lego catalogs and misc. magazines we got to work. He was quite the helper and here is our finished work.

From 2009_07 Misc Pictures

From 2009_07 Misc Pictures

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