Our Life in Halls

Finally Back

2010-06-15T20:23:00.001-07:00

Some lake action from June 13, 2010. It was a bit windy today and very choppy on the water until late in the afternoon. The choppiness made for miserable shooting conditions for the tubers. Not many keepers today.

Sarah Turns 9

2010-04-03T09:32:00.000-07:00

Wow, my little baby is another year older. Yvonne worked hard and her Pink Panther cake came out great.

Madison's 9th Birthday Party

2010-03-30T15:33:00.001-07:00

Sarah and I attended a friend's birthday party. What's a guy with a camera to do. Shoot some video and stills. This is what I came up with. 5d2 and 24-105f4IS.

Pottery Fun from tim gangloff on Vimeo.

Air Nick

2010-03-22T15:28:00.000-07:00

OK photography fans and Canophiles. You've heard it before. The 5dmkII can't do sports. I've told you before, it can. I put the camera in manual mode, 1 shot ai-servo with the 24-105 f4 IS and experimented with what it can do. Well, it apparently can do some sports. Almost every shot I tried was tack sharp. Yes, I realize that at the f-stop and focal length I was shooting at gave me a pretty large DOF, but still, it nailed shot after shot. Nick was a very willing model and he and his friend had fun doing some dunks for me.

Sarah Jams On The Drums

2010-03-18T19:46:00.000-07:00

Sarah Drumming from tim gangloff on Vimeo.

Sweet Smile of Success

2010-03-14T19:48:00.000-07:00

Nick had his first soccer game of the year. If you remember, Nick played a bit of competitive soccer last spring and played well enough that the coaches wanted him to come back and play in the fall. He stated he wanted to play football instead. Well, it is almost spring again and he decided (with just a bit of persuasion) to play soccer again, but this time for the less competitive AYSO organization. He was a bit surprised to see two of his former teammates (and very good players) lined up against him on Saturday morning. Seems the two players decided to take a year off from competitive soccer and have fun. I guess that might say something about our emphasis on sports when kids tell their parents they just want to play for fun again.

Well, Nick had fun Saturday. He played hard and really looked like he was having a blast. Even when his team went down by 7 goals, he kept working and playing. That is why it was particularly enjoyable to see the smile on his face after he scored his team's first goal of the season late in the game. It was especially gratifying for him in that he scored against one of his buddies from last year's team and probably the best player on the field. Well, maybe I should just show you the photo.

And a few more.

Cold Soccer

2010-02-28T18:35:00.001-08:00

It was a cold day for soccer today. Mid-30's and some snow during the games. Not much fun for the players and certainly not for the photographers today.

Woodpecker Visit Today

2010-02-26T14:34:00.000-08:00

We had a male and female Pileated woodpecker visit the yard today. They stayed around for quite some time and hopefully they will take up residence someplace close.

Snowboarding

2010-02-01T09:22:00.000-08:00

Concentration

2010-01-23T22:40:00.000-08:00

Cold In Roscoe

2010-01-01T07:40:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year!

2009-12-31T21:46:00.001-08:00

Crazy Dog

2009-12-31T14:46:00.001-08:00

Just one from today.

Christmas Tree

2009-12-27T08:18:00.001-08:00

Pop's and Grandma Roey's outdoor Christmas tree after 7" of snow yesterday.

7 Inches of Pure Powder Fun

2009-12-26T14:20:00.000-08:00

After a rainy day yesterday that almost washed away all of our snow, we got 7 inhes of light, fluffy snow.

Of course, we took advantage of the beautiful conditions and played outside for a while.

The Screamer

2009-12-25T09:23:00.000-08:00

Emme At Dinner from tim gangloff on Vimeo.

Santa Visits Roscoe

2009-12-24T16:23:00.000-08:00

In a huge surprise that sent shock waves through the Gangloff's house in Roscoe, Santa stopped by for a quick visit and early present for Nick, Sarah and Emmerson.

Winter X Games - Extreme Sledding

2009-12-24T11:47:00.000-08:00

Not much time for word smithing, so just some pix

2009-12-23T10:55:00.001-08:00

Nick's Crazy Stunt

2009-12-22T14:39:00.001-08:00

Nick Doing Snow Angel in Boxers from tim gangloff on Vimeo.

What Happened to Summer?

2009-12-05T12:56:00.001-08:00

60 degrees last weekend and pretty pleasant. Then Bam! We get hit with 2-3" of snow. Yuck. I like summer.

These stupid dogs obviously don't realize that the snow Sarah is eating is all over the place and free for the taking.

This was the last we saw of Coconut. Cadbury finally had enough and chomp, bye bye Coco.

Ok, not really, but if I was Cadbury, I would have had enough a long time ago.

Some Leaf Fun Today

2009-11-25T22:55:00.000-08:00

Back yard neighbor's grandson, Hunter.

Sarah's good friend and next door neighbor Katie.

We were cleaning up our yard and our neighbors yard today and the kids had a ball playing in the yard. It looked like so much fun, some neighbor kids joined Sarah and Nick. You can see all of the images from today's fun here: Leaf Fun

Dollywood At Night.

2009-11-22T21:28:00.000-08:00

Untitled from tim gangloff on Vimeo.

See it all of the images and the video in a much better quality here: Dollywood

Holy Sports Week

2009-11-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

Wow, Nick and I had a great week for sports. Last weekend, we saw the Bills play the Titans, and then Tuesday night, we went to the Vols basketball game and finally, last night, we saw the Vols play Vandy in their last home game of the year. While, the Bills got spanked by the Titans, and the basketball game was so lop-sided we walked out at half (score was 66-10), the football game was a good one.

Our view from our upper deck seats. Hey, when they are free, it's hard to complain. And when the game is boring, you don't feel bad about walking out.

Our seats for the football game were really great. Also free thanks to our neighbors. Thanks Gaylors!

And lastly, Nick found his dream car while walking back to our car after the football game.

Buffalo Bills Football

2009-11-15T21:43:00.000-08:00

We at wings on Saturday night in preparation for our trip to Nashville to watch the Bills take on the Titans on Sunday. Well, it looked liked the Bills QBs ate too many wings as they threw more touchdowns for the other team than they did for their own team. Horrible, horrible football.

Well, at least the weather was perfect. I mean we could not have asked for weather this fine in mid-November. 70's and Sunny with a slight breeze. Holy smokes it was nice.

We went with our friends, Tony Woods and his sons Hutson (Nick's football teammate and friend) and Jakob. The boys had a ball and we had great seats. We had 3 seats on the 14th row on the 4 yard line and 2 seats on the 50 yard line a bit higher, but still in the lower level and under cover and in the shade. We left early, ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel on the way and still got to the field in plenty of time. We stayed for the whole game, even though it got ugly at the end and then headed back to Knoxville, but did stop for dinner on the way. The boys were great and we all had a ball.

Air Soft Battle

2009-11-14T13:44:00.001-08:00

You can see them all here: Air Soft Fun

Beautiful Day in Knoxville

2009-11-13T20:13:00.000-08:00

It was a great day today in Knoxville. Very pleasant with lots of sun and Nick even put on some shorts. I am not sure what they were doing when I got home from work, but I think it was some version of cowboys and Indians like I used to play in the yard many years ago, so I got the camera out and got a few images. Sarah looked cute with her UT jersey and hair braided.

Roanoke VA Soccer Blast

2009-11-11T21:24:00.000-08:00

Sarah and I had a blast in Roanoke at her last tournament of the year. Yvonne and Nick stayed in town to allegedly look after her dad, but from what I understand, she went to the UT Football game, went out to dinner with her sister and who knows what else she and Nick did. While the cat is away, the mice played. Oh, and I am sure she did take good care of her dad as well.

Anyway, Sarah and I had a good time in Virginia. It was a bit of a long drive (4 hours) to go play soccer, but we stayed in a nice place and Sarah got to spend a lot of time with her soccer friends. We had several girls over to our room to watch movies on the laptop, while dad watched football on the large, in-room HDTV.

Sarah played well on the field and her team came up a goal short of making it to the finals. No complaints though as Sarah continues to improve each time out and if you look at the images below, you can even find her smiling. She really seems to have fun playing.

Roanoke Soccer Rocks

2009-11-09T11:00:00.000-08:00

Sarah is one tough soccer player!

2009-11-01T13:07:00.000-08:00

Sarah really impressed me this weekend in her 3 games. She was tough as nails and is showing improvement each time out. And, I see her smile on the field more than anyone else. What can I say, I am proud of her hard work.

Headed to Huntsville, AL

2009-10-22T21:15:00.000-07:00

Sarah and I are going to Huntsville for a bit of soccer and we are both looking forward to a little one on one time. She had a warm up game tonight against some older, bigger boys. She did not back down though.

Dad's cooking Safety aka Fire Safety Training

2009-10-17T11:14:00.001-07:00

Rainy Wednesday

2009-10-14T17:17:00.001-07:00

What A Night For Nick

2009-10-12T19:43:00.000-07:00

Nick played really hard tonight and his team won an important game that will hopefully get them into the playoffs. A few images of Nick in action follow. He was all over the field. He had numerous tackles behind the line for a loss, including a safety. I just loved over-hearing their coaches all ask their kids who was going to block #10. Later, I could hear their half-time speech and one of the coaches told their biggest kid he would have to block #10 since no one else could or would. Turns out the biggest kid could not either (See pictures below).

Anyway, after making the saftey, he returned the ensuing kick about 50 yards for a touch down. A bit later, he had a huge hit, causing and then recovering a fumble. Finally, he got his number called from about 8 yards out and ran over a couple of boys on his way to his second touchdown of the night. With the 2 TDs and the safety, he accounted for all his team's points tonight. I am proud of him.

He played last Saturday, but did not play very inspired and it appeared he was not really hustling on the field. I told him that I really don't care if he makes plays, or misses them, but I better not seem him taking plays off. He did not take any plays off tonight.

Onto some game action.

Nick grabs the back in the endzone, forcing a safety.

Nick takes ensuing free kick and scampers for a touchdown.

And his team helps him celebrate.

Late in the 4th quarter, Nick hits the back in the backfield, causing a fumble.

And then Nick picks up said fumble.

And the big guy who tried, without success, to block Nick. You can see Nick just above the Quarterback. He is the one with the pink mouth piece. (No Photoshopping the pink.) He told me he did a quick swim move to get around #71 and then was on top of the QB before he could even hand the ball off.

And then maybe most importantly, he and I and a couple of his teammates went out to grab a bite to eat after the game and celebrate the victory. I just love Monday Night Football.

Soccer Tournament

2009-10-05T19:10:00.001-07:00

Sarah played in a soccer tournament Saturday and Sunday and I was very proud of her play. She has a lot of fun playing but does not back down. But, most of all, I love to see her out there playing hard and smiling. Also, she told me she likes to play goalie and of course what's not to like about that.

And last, but certainly not least. My favorite from the weekend. Tenacity and Fun. Here she is battling one of the better players.

These and rest of the images are on my site.

Camp Wesley Woods

2009-09-26T17:04:00.000-07:00

I volunteered to help chaperone 100 5th graders for 3 days and 2 nights of camping fun at Camp Wesley Woods in Townsend, TN near Gatlinburg. It is a pretty remote location, meaning no cell phone service. I not only survived the trip, but really had a ball. Yes, there were a few moments that challenged my patience, but all in all, it was a great trip and I can't wait to go with Sarah in a couple of years.

I really just enjoyed watching the kids. At times, I was quite active in helping them get from point A to point B, but at other times, I just watched from a (safe) distance and let them be independent. I bunked in a room with 9 boys. I knew some and some I had not met before. Nick was assigned to a different bunk room, but was in the same lodge.

Since I don't recall ever going to camp when I was young, I found the whole process pretty interesting. In the morning, the kids go to breakfast. At each meal, one kid is the "table captain" and sets the table and carries all of the food to their table while the other kids wait outside the dining hall until they were called, table by table. I guess there were about 8 kids at each table. The meals are served family style and are all you care to eat. The kids are strongly encouraged not to waste any food and eat all they take. At the end of the meal, all of the food left on their plates, called ort, is weighed and the students are encouraged to go ort free. While the kids never went ort free for a meal as a group, they did do progressivley better and better at each meal.

After breakfast, the kids were divided up into an activity group and a female teacher and I were paired up with 14 kids and a camp staffer. We got to camp on Wednesday morning and spent the first hour or so, unpacking, and getting the camp orientation speech. After orientation, it was on to lunch. After lunch, we spent about 3.5 hours on the "Challenge Course" where the kids are taught to work together as a group and the chaperons are told to butt out and let the kids work out all of the problems. It was quite interesting to see which children take a leadership role and watch the group slowly learn how to complete their tasks as a team. Sometimes it was quite painful to watch the lack of progress, but at the last challenge station, it was clear that the group had learned how to work together. The boys and girls were no longer afraid to work with each other in order to get the job done. Below is my group and some pictures of them working on their tasks.

After the Challenge course, it was on to dinner and then after dinner, we had a campfire and sing along. The kids were amazing and the particpation was great to watch. After the campfire, it was back to the dining hall for a snack and then back to the lodge for bed. We gave the kids about an hour to play and then had lights out at 11pm, but I let them use their flashlights and read or talk quietly for another 30 minutes or so. The lodge had 3 rooms for boys and 2 rooms for girls. The rest of the kids were put into single sex smaller cabins, each housing about 8. The cabins were a bit rougher (no bathrooms and no air conditioning), but at least they did not have 60 kids running around inside of them either.

On Thursday, we got up at 645am, got most of the boys showered and ready for breakfast at 8. After eating, we had a geology lesson, a hike to the a pretty waterfall and in the afternoon after a filling lunch, we had rock wall climbing. At the waterfall, the kids all painted their faces, and mine, with some natural mud paint. Thursday night, we had a bit of stargazing and then a fun kid dance. After snack time, it was back to the lodge again and this night the kids were all a bit more tired. Lights out about 11 or so and everyone asleep by about 1230.

Nick had a ball dancing with his buddies.

On Friday morning, we had breakfast at 730am and had to pack before breakfast, so were up very early again. Friday morning, my group did orienteering and then stream ecology where I taught Nick how to find and catch a crawfish and a salamander. Yes, we really caught one of each. Then, much too soon, it was time for lunch, a group picture and a bus ride (for the kids, not me) back home.

You can see all of the pictures here: http://www.hatpix.com/Events/Wesley-Woods

Yes, it is password protected, but if you read this blog entry, you can figure it out.

Frog Release

2009-09-09T20:34:00.001-07:00

Sarah and I took the frogs to a great location here in Halls and released her frogs.

Sarah and Frogs

2009-09-06T09:34:00.000-07:00

We found some baby frogs in the yard Friday and Sarah had a ball playing with them. Sarah recieved a frog habitat for Christmas and we had kind of forgotten about it, but she remembered it and has now put it to use. We found 7 frogs and Sarah kept 3 and we took 4 to the creek to let them go some place safer than our yard. We will probably keep these a few days and them let them go too.

And one more of Sarah just goofing off. When one big spoon is not enough.

Nick's "Birthday" Party

2009-08-24T22:32:00.001-07:00

Since the timing of Nick's birthday is not conducive to having a bunch of friends over for some fun, we said he could have a party at a place of his choosing in August. He chose NASCAR speed park in Pigeon Forge, TN. It was actually not that expensive for him to invite 10 friends and get unlimited rides, some game tokens and loads of pizza and drinks. I think the kids all had a really good time. We only had one casualty. One boy thought it was cool to ride the spinning ride time after time until he puked. I thought it was gross. He had so much fun doing it, he tried it again after eating pizza, with success.

The speed park had about 8 tracks of varying degrees of speed and difficulty. The most difficult required the drivers to be licensed. The others were fun and all of the boys rode as much as they wanted. They also played putt-putt golf, did some rides (the spinnng one) and goofed around.

Not quite wordless Thursday

2009-08-13T18:26:00.000-07:00

For you photography fans out there, I tried my 300 2.8 with a 2x teleconverter on the 5dmkII tonight. With the great late afternoon lighting, it worked pretty well.

Busy week with Grandma Roey and Pops!

2009-08-10T19:18:00.001-07:00

We had a busy, but wonderful 4 days with Grandma Roey and Pops. And surprisingly, not a lot of pictures were taken. We were just too busy to snap away. Really.

They arrived on Tuesday right on schedule and the heavy rains arrived shortly after they did. We spent Tuesday night teaching Nick how to play poker and he did really well and I know Gram would have been proud of the horseshoe he apparently has secreted away, if you know what I mean. I mean how many times have you won 5 card draw with 4 of a kind.

On Wednesday, we stayed home and played as the kids had basketball camps to attend to and Nick had football too. We cooked some steaks and fish on the barbie and celebrated Pop's retirement in high Halls style.

On Thursday, we went to Dollywood early to get the kids back to practice on time. Nick had a scrimmage and pretty much got beaten and bruised. He played really well, but his team stunk. Oh well, it was a good learning experience.

This was a ride I did not try. I just took the picture. Oh, look at the screaming people in the back row, right side.

We also played on new, "cool" ride called River Battle, which is essentially a water gun fight on small boats that ride around a small loop. After you finish the ride, you can commandeer a water gun on the side of the ride and soak the riders as they pass you by. Of course, they can, and will soak you too. Very fun on a hot day.

The kids enjoyed a few rides and everyone enjoyed some ice cream.

On Friday, we spent the day on Norris Lake. And despite one teensy incident with a small, harmless snake, we enjoyed a peaceful and quiet time on a relatively empty lake.

Well, it did get a bit noisier after we hit the lake.

The kids are suddenly into fishing. Time for a trolling motor.

The water was great way to keep cool in the hottest week of the year.

Oh, and anybody know what kind of duck these guys are?

Bye for now.

Some Lake Fun

2009-08-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

Saturday, August 1st, was a typical hot and humid summer day. We heard the lake water was pleasant. We put some brats and cold drinks in the cooler and headed for Norris Lake to spend the day. And if you know us, we packed a lot of other stuff, including lots of snacks. We had enough provisions for the week, just in case. Like, in case our battery quit working or I decided to retire and join my dad in retirement. Just waiting on my co-worker to tell me our lotto numbers came in.

The brats were tasty, the water was warm and the cold drinks were, well, cold. Also, the weather cooperated and the heavy clouds did not roll in until later afternoon.

Sarah and her cousin, Allison, had a good time speeding around the lake on the jet ski. I parked in a cove and took some pix of them cruising around. After being goods sports for a bit and letting me get a "few" images, they took off. They came back a while later with big smiles on their faces. I have no idea of what they were up to, but it looks like they had lots of fun.

We also got a bit of tubing in. I towed the kids behind the pontoon boat, so it was a pretty lame trip for them. Nick did find a few ways to aggravage Sarah though. Below is the classic hand-drag technique to spray your partner with water. Nick used it with much success. Sarah took it all in with a smile. Well, mostly. And then she pushed Nick off the tube. See first picture above.

Published.

2009-08-02T17:06:00.001-07:00

Well, not really my first time, or for that matter, Nick's. But we both are battling our big egos now.

Front Page (just a small image on top right).

But, check out the sports page.

You can go to the Shopper's online site and see the paper for yourself here: Shopper

It's Football Time in Tennesse

2009-07-27T18:17:00.000-07:00

Well, it is officially football time in Tennessee. I love this time of year. Yes, it takes up a lot of our time with practicing 3 to 4 times per week and then one or two games on top of that per week. But the truth is that for about 2 hours per night, I get to watch Nick play something he really enjoys and chat with some other football loving parents about not only Halls football, but also about the upcoming Univ of TN football season and maybe even some pro football. So, all that time is not wasted. Plus, it gives me a chance to drag out the camera almost every night.

The first two weeks the kids practice in helmets and there is no contact. Nick has the same coach he had two years ago when the team won the county championship and I see good things for this team too.

Nick may or may not get to carry the ball this year, but so far he is getting to play running back some. He told me he really wants to earn that spot and from what I've seen so far, I know he is working harder than most.

You can see more images of Nick and his team here: Football

Lake Fun?

2009-07-18T19:16:00.000-07:00

The rest are here: lake fun. The will be uploading tonight, so check back later.

Some Pool Fun

2009-07-17T19:48:00.001-07:00

No children were injured in the making of this blog.

And the rest of the pool fun is here, with video: pool fun

Making Brownies and Skate Action

2009-07-12T12:22:00.001-07:00

The kids "helped" Yvonne make brownies today. I am not sure, but it looks like they left a lot of batter in the bowl and on then on their faces.

Here is one of Nick with his new skateboard. He has been having a ball with it and trying new tricks.

Nick, Sarah and I go for a bike ride, find water fun.

2009-07-11T17:42:00.000-07:00

We gave mom a break today and let her stay in the cool house while we went for bike ride downtown. The city of Knoxville opened up a new playground last week to take the place of an aging, but fun, all wooden playground that we have frequented over the years and the kids affectionately call Sam's park. I have no idea how it got that name.

The new parks is bright and shiny and all metal and plastic. I think I prefer the older wooden one and wish the city had decided to fix that one up instead. Sarah said she liked Sam's park better too.

The new park is right next to the old World's Fair Park and the water fun. So, the kids had a ball playing in the water and keeping cool. After cooling off and playing for a while, we continued our bike ride. As we were cruising by Calhoun's on the river, Nick talked me into stopping to get some wings. He is wing crazy. Sarah and I got some Nacho chips and cheese and rested for a few seconds before continuing on our ride.

Bike Ride with Sarah

2009-07-05T13:15:00.000-07:00

Sarah and I took a little bike ride today. Did not get many pix of her, but got some of the things we saw.

Happy 4th of July

2009-07-04T20:15:00.000-07:00

The Last Track Meet of the Season

2009-06-28T05:44:00.000-07:00

The kids had their last track meet yesterday. I am really proud of both of them. For their first year in track, they both competed very hard, were not afraid to try new events, learned a few things, made a few friends and had fun. Oh yeah, and both qualified for the competitive team.

Sarah competed in the 100m sprint, 4x100 and long jump. Unfortunately, she missed a few events she wanted to try, like shot put, due to conflicting event times. Oh well, there is always next year.

Nick competed in the high jump and long jump. He was competing against some very good kids, and some older ones too. Due to the long time it took to complete the high jump, he missed several other events. He was not complaining though. Even though the track meet started at 830am, it was still pretty hot by the time we left about 1130am. It was hot enough that I was sweating just watching them and taking pictures.

Oh, did I mention pictures.

There was a photo-finish in the 100m. Well not exactly, but my photo does show it was a very close race. Sarah finished third. The girl on the right drifted in and out of Sarah's lane and may have slowed Sarah down, but anyone who can run that fast with sunglasses on top of their head is pretty fast.

Here is the girl drifting into Sarah's lane. Actually, I think she came from two lanes over as you can see another girl behind her in that lane too. Oh, the girls are supposed to stay in their lanes in this race.

Early on, Nick's form in the high jump was not too impressive and I did not give him much of a chance at winning. However, the guy running the event gave all of the kids advice after each jump. Nick listened carefully, made adjustments and really improved his form.

An early attempt at a low height is cleared, despite the lack of form or technique.

The form gets better.

And better.And very nice.

The thrill of success.

And congratulations from the coach/judge after winning the event!

The Scar --- PG Rated

2009-06-27T18:18:00.001-07:00

Not for those who are squeamish or otherwise adverse to large, stitched wounds.

Turn back now...

Feeling brave? Scroll down.

and another from a reader as comparison.

Washington DC

2009-06-26T07:00:00.001-07:00

OK you Nikon fans. I know you are out there. But, here is your challenge: Grab one camera. Go out and shoot 21mp images and then without missing a moment, start capturing full 1080p HD video. I realize I am not the next Speilberg, but this 5dmkII tool is a so much fun I have a hard time calling it a tool with a straight face when I really want to type "toy."

Busy Summer

2009-06-16T17:18:00.000-07:00

I've been pretty busy lately and not much time to post.

Nick qualifies for the Knoxville Youth Track Competitive Team with a great high jump. He and Sarah have both qualified now and both are happy. We don't really have the time and schedule to allow them to participate on that team, but they are happy and content in the knowledge that they made it. And so am I.

Sarah still can burn up the track in the 100m sprint. Her easy-going personality sure changes when she gets to the start line. She does not like to lose. Look closely at the first image in the series and the look on her face.

In the next series, she is running the anchor leg on her 4x100 team. She takes a second to glance over at her competition. She is not happy that she is not in front.

In the image above, you can see that she is running against some older girls, but still not happy with losing to them.

She finds consolation in the long jump where she is still the reigning champ.

And this is the form that gets the job done.

But, Summer is not all work. There is plenty of play time.

Track Video

2009-06-08T16:16:00.001-07:00

Track video 1

Track video 2

Track Video 3

Hurdles from tim gangloff on Vimeo.

Testing the quality of two different hosting sites. Please bear with me

So, what video looks the best on your computer? What works the fastest and provides the best image quality. What plays without any hiccups or hesitations? I need some feedback. So, let 'er rip. Thanks.

One Quick One

2009-06-07T20:14:00.000-07:00

I am too tired from a day at the lake to go through all of my images right now, but here is one that shows the fun. Nick, Sarah, cousin Conner and his friend.

Oh, found one, make that two more that I want to put up.

Yeah, that is 3, but who's counting.

The Track Meet

2009-06-06T12:19:00.000-07:00

Nick and Sarah had their first real track meet this morning. They did great. Sarah had a spectacular day, winning two events and qualifying for Knoxville's Youth Competitive Track Team with her long jump. I don't think she will be able to join the team as it looks like it will interfere with her soccer schedule, but she is still happy about it. We are too.

Here she is holding her Blue Ribbon and her qualifying red ticket given to the kids who qualified for the team.

I'll be posting more later today.

Here are a few more.

The rest are here: Track Meet or rather will be later tonight.

Crush Soccer Action

2009-05-26T20:12:00.000-07:00

Nick played with some advanced kids this past weekend in Chattanooga. He learned quite a bit and did very well. And most importantly, he and I had a fun time together on our first boys trip.

Lake Fun

2009-05-25T20:36:00.000-07:00

Tournament Interrupted

2009-05-17T12:23:00.001-07:00

Nick played two soccer games Saturday and all was going well until this storm rolled into town.

And here are a few images from the games.

The Sprinters

2009-05-16T07:42:00.000-07:00

Nick had his field day on Friday. He and his class did really well and most importantly, had a lot of fun on a hot, sunny day. He competed in a few events, including the 200m sprint. He finished 2nd in the 200m sprint and really gave it all. His team also finished 2nd in the 4x100m relay and his class won the tug 0f war.

Proud Dad

2009-05-12T19:21:00.000-07:00

Lake Fun

2009-05-10T21:08:00.000-07:00

Winning Smile

2009-05-09T12:55:00.001-07:00

One picture.

Went to the track today

2009-04-29T17:41:00.000-07:00

Nick made the track team this year. They only have one track meet, and it is a big deal for the 6 or so 4th grade boys who make the team from school. They will compete in a few weeks against all of the other local 4th graders. He qualified for both a running event and the long jump, but are only allowed to compete in one, so he chose the long jump.

Today, Nick, Sarah, their friend, Josh, and I went to Halls High School (where the meet will be held) and practiced the long jump. Their friend Josh is in the 5th grade and he too is doing the long jump at the meet.

It was a bit warm today, but nothing to complain about. The kids had a ball and of course, I took a camera to document the fun / training.

It Feels Like Summer

2009-04-26T19:14:00.001-07:00

It was a pretty hot weekend around here, so it was time to put the boat in the water and start getting ready for summer. I know some of you guys in the north have not put away your snow shovels yet and are still waiting for the last layers of ice to melt off of your area lakes. Just think, in another few months, you'll be at the lake too.

Some Easter Egg Fun--Hunting and Dyeing

2009-04-11T15:49:00.000-07:00

We had a little egg fun today. First, we went to a friend's church where something like 18,000 eggs had been "hidden." I'd say most were not hidden, but rather tossed in the grass as it would have taken way too long to put any effort into actually hiding them. Sarah had fun finding them, though. Nick's age group did a scavenger hunt in the taller grass.

Some of the eggs contained large rings. Sarah had fun wearing all of her bling.

After we got home, they colored some eggs. There will be egg salad in the coming days.

Happy Easter Everyone.

Very Busy Weekend

2009-04-05T15:38:00.000-07:00

I've had a pretty busy weekend. I shot a 20+ team softball tournament Friday and Saturday and then played with the kids hard all day Sunday. We took a bike ride at local park, had lunch out with kids and then I mowed the grass.

OK, Kids, PG8 material ahead.

Don't read if you don't like the cycle of life. I warned you.

OK, so Nick comes running in the house and is yelling that Coconut has caught a rabbit. Sure enough, I run outside and the little dog has a small rabbit in her mouth. We chase Coconut all over hard trying to release the still living bunny from her mouth. After a few minutes of what must have been a hilarious show for the neighbors, we catch Coconut and I force open her jaws and release the rabbit. Thinking the danger has passed, I hold Coconut and let the rabbit "escape." Well, Cadbury, although he is somewhat fat, can still motor for an old, fat, dog (kinda like his owner). He then chases down the bewildered rabbit, who is small, but moving pretty fast for having just been released from the jaws of a dog (albeit more like a rat than a d0g). Anyway, as you can guess, Cabury catches the poor rabbit and Nick, Sarah and I start chasing Cadury around the yard (again, more fun for the neighborhood). Well, before we can catch Fatboy, he chomps two or three times and swallows the rabbit. Sarah is quite traumatized, thinking that there is no way the Easter bunny is coming to our house now. She might be right.

After all that fun, Nick, Sarah and I had a little fun with jumping and the camera.

Orange Crush

2009-03-28T10:29:00.001-07:00

Well, after two weeks of practice, the kids had their first game today. Actually, it was so nice (not really), they played two. It has been raining for about 3 straight days and the conditions were wet and cool. So even though they played back to back games (8:30 and 11), they did not get overheated and despite not having any subs and having to play the whole game, they did not get too tired. Both played really well.

Some more Roscoe Fun

2009-03-19T14:44:00.000-07:00

My parents threw a little 8th birthday party for Sarah. She loved it. She had a great soccer cake, got a lot of really cool presents from everyone and then we had a ball later that night playing cards. Sarah had a lot fun eliminating players, like Fran, from the games. I am still processing some images and will try to post a few.

Some more fun in the sun

2009-03-15T11:00:00.001-07:00

Spring Break in Roscoe

2009-03-14T11:54:00.001-07:00

The temperature does not feel like spring, but the skies are clear and the kids were outside today.

More images coming later.

Sarah being Sarah and one of Nick

2009-03-11T19:57:00.000-07:00

Sarah asked if she could use the knee pads and elbow pads today. I said, "Sure", but wondered what she needed them for. I did not ask, even when she said she was going to use some of Nick's elbow pads as knee pads as hers did not fit anymore. "Sure, no problem." I told her. She and her friend were playing outdoors and I went out to get some pictures of them.

Well, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Feel free to suggest your own captions.

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Some Boys Airsoft Action

2009-02-12T13:17:00.000-08:00

Came home from work and these boys were waiting on me.

Not much going on these days

2009-02-08T15:33:00.000-08:00

Nick's basketball seasons are almost over and Sarah has a game or two left. Next, we have to decide if the kids want to play baseball/softball or soccer. I hope they choose soccer. We'll see.

The last two days have been great. After missing 3 days of school last week due to snow/cold, it was in the high 50's yesterday and today. We took a short drive today over to the Ijams Nature Center and walked on some of their trails.

We had a nice time and then went to Calhouns on the River for some ribs, wings and pork chops and then a huge hot fudge sundae for the kids (and yes, I made Sarah share with me).

The kids were not quite worn out yet, so I made them help me wash the cars today when we got home. Sarah tried to get me to pay her for her help. I said I would pay her, but would have to charge her for the ride home from Calhouns. Incidentally, the ride home cost the same as what she was going to charge me to help wash the car. Nick did not fall for it.

On to some pix from Ijams.

Catching Snowflakes

2009-02-02T10:18:00.001-08:00

Really, who doesn't like catching snowflakes on their tongue.

Some Ooze Action

2009-01-11T10:30:00.000-08:00

Sarah and Nick played with their awesome science kits they got at Christmas. They had a ball making ooze. Take parts water and corn starch and mix with your fingers. Add some food coloring if you want to be a bit more colorful. It makes a really cool ooze. It will drip from your fingers, but if you grab it, hit it or something like that, it instantly turns hard. Release the pressure and it will go back to a liquid like consistency. OK, so I admit it. I thought it was cool too.

Sledding--The Outtakes

2008-12-30T13:04:00.001-08:00

Snow much more fun in Roscoe

2008-12-30T11:12:00.000-08:00

Some random vacation images

2008-12-30T06:41:00.000-08:00

Some Fun Pix

2008-12-27T13:53:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T14:27:00.001-08:00

Oh No, More Snow!!

2008-12-24T09:41:00.000-08:00

Yepper, it is still snowing. We built an igloo, a snowman and a snow fort. I am not sure who is more tired. No, I take that back. I am clearly more tired than the kids.

Some new snow and more snow fun

2008-12-23T10:19:00.000-08:00

OK, so we ate and drank some more. We played in the snow some more and had a ball. We are all worn out. From young to old, from human to canine. We are tired.

Lots more images coming. But first, we are heading out to get some hot wings and beer. Really.

Minus One

2008-12-22T15:35:00.000-08:00

It was incredibly cold today. So cold that when you walk outside the moisture in your nose freezes instantly and it is not comfortable. But, the kids still wanted to go out and play, so we dressed warmly and braved it. Twice.

The Dubins got in yesterday, but their luggage did not arrive until late today, so their sledding time was pretty much non-existant, so I'll have to include images of them later. Jen arrived with Em today, but they were smart enough to stay inside.

Snow much fun in Roscoe

2008-12-21T05:48:00.000-08:00

First Day in Roscoe

2008-12-20T11:07:00.000-08:00

We made it to Roscoe last night just in time for a great dinner. The trip was uneventful and we did not really hit any bad weather or roads until we got to Roscoe. It is great seeing all the white snow piled high everywhere.

The kids, young and old, are having a ball.

Just one (or two) of Sarah today--OK and 2 of Nick too

2008-12-14T14:44:00.000-08:00

While trying to set up lighting for Nick's basketball game today, I got Sarah to go onto the court to test my lighting. She is not so happy posing for me. She was wearing a pretty Christmas sweater to watch a friend's Christmas play today. You can see her enthusiasm to pose below.

And yes, I am probably the biggest geek at the gym. You don't see other parents breaking out the portable flashes and clamping them to railings in an effort to add some light to the gym.

OK, and a couple of Nick. Once again, he was taking on the big man. Up until yesterday, Nick did not start and only played about 1/2 the game. I guess he caught the coaches eye yesterday, as he started today and played the whole game.

2 Basketball Games

2008-12-13T19:42:00.000-08:00

Nick had two games today. The first game was with the Boys and Girls Club and is very competitive. The starting center on Nick's team was missing, so Nick had to step and play nearly the whole game against some big, tough kids. He held his own and played very well. He was tenacious on defense. The second game was with his Rec league team. He played well in this game and even posted up a couple of times and drove to the basket, scoring some points.

Both of the gyms are extremely dark and not conducive to shooting pix. I tried some different things today and was not entirely successful, but here is what I did manage. I primarily focused on getting Nick playing tough defense.

A little offense. We are going to work on free-throws at home.

Favorite Foto Friday

2008-12-11T21:12:00.000-08:00

Well, maybe not my favorite. In fact, I am pretty sure it is not, but it is pretty interesting.

Mr (or possibly Mrs) Cuddles.

Long time, no posts

2008-11-30T10:02:00.000-08:00

Things have been pretty quiet around here the last few weeks, hence the lack of postings. Nick has been practicing basketball on two teams, but has not had any games yet. I wonder if he is getting as bored with all of the practices and no games as I am. The games start soon, so I should have some more material soon.

Sarah's neighbor friend moved out a few months ago, but a nice young girl moved in and she and Sarah have become good friends. She and Sarah play great together and will play all day together and it is great for both of them. You can see they are two peas in a pod.

Speaking of Sarah, she really is into Christmas decorating. She is so much fun to watch getting all of the decorations out and putting them all over the house. Her style is unique and you never know where the decorations might end up. But, her enthusiasm is genuine so we just sit back and smile.

Nick and I got to go to last night's UT football game. They played Kentucky and it was our coach's last game. The coach has been at the university for the last 30+ years, either playing, as an assistant coach or as the head coach. It was a bit sad to see him go and I wish I had gotten a field pass to shoot the game, but it did not work out. Anyway, Nick and I got some great seats for free and watched the game from the 20th row. It was a very wet and cold night, but it was worth it.

Before the game starts, the team runs through the "T" formed by the band and on this night, it was Phil's last trip through the T . Of course, the media was out in force for this last run.

Although UT has struggled this year, the team rallied for their coach and put a pretty good whipping on Kentucky. Kentucky has a better record than UT but had not beaten UT in 24 years going into last nights game. The players made sure that the streak would not end on Phil's last game. Sorry Kentucky, maybe next time. UT 28, KU 10. A quarter century of frustration for KU.

Some AirSoft ActionToday

2008-11-02T18:31:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween. Well, it was a couple of days ago. So, what's a family to do with their old pumpkin. Pie? No, thanks. Compost Pile? Maybe later. Target Practice? Bingo.

It was a beautiful weekend and we broke out the Airsoft weaponry since we did not have any organized sports to play. Airsoft weapons shoot a small plastic BB at about 300 feet/second. Since they are so light, they don't hurt much and with a layer or two of clothes, you can hardly feel them. But, if they hit skin, they can sting and leave a mark for a few minutes.

On Saturday, Nick's neighborhood friend Josh came down with his weapons (about 3 or 4, including a fully-automatic machine gun, which was fortunately for me malfunctioning) and he and Nick took turns shooting me. I am not sure who won the battles as I took quite a few shots and one to the middle of the forehead that stung, but did deliver quite a few hits of my own. Oh, yes, protective eye wear is required, so rest easy out there. These weapons are actually pretty accurate, just ask Nick.

Today, Nick and Sarah had some pretty tame battles as she was not into getting hit. Smart kid. I did not get any images from yesterday's action as I was too involved, but took a few today.

I am pretty sure that when we bought the castle and house below, we did not envision them being used in this manner in our wildest dreams.

Camping in the Cold in Cades Cove

2008-10-23T19:15:00.000-07:00

So, we went camping last weekend. The kids are on fall break and I took a couple of days vacation to head to the hills with the family.

We had a great time, despite the chilly fall weather. The days were perfect, but the nights were downright chilly, with the lows in the 40's and maybe even high 30's. We had a good, roaring camp fire every night, so we stayed next to that until it was time for bed.

We ended up camping with Betty and her family and a few of their friends. All in all, there were about 6 families and lots of kids, but all middle and high school age ones. Sarah and Nick did not mind and had a ball. Right next to our camp site was a large, very steep hill. The kids had a ton of fun climbing it last year, sliding down on their rears and in the process getting filthy. The bad part is that there are not any showers, so once they got dirty, they stayed that way. Anyway, once we got there, they pretty much headed straight for the hill.

Nick and I rode our bikes around the 11 mile, hilly, Cades Cove Loop road with some of the other campers and he made it all the way. At times, I struggled with the hills and car traffic so I know he was worn out afterwards. I will say that those 11 miles are much harder than the level 20 mile route near my parents house on the IL rails to trails route that we sometimes take while visiting them.

One afternoon, Sarah and I took a little horseback ride. I had a mean horse who walked as close to the trees as she could I think in an effort to try to knock me off. She did not succeed, but I had to continually try to get her back on the trail.

On the way out of the camp ground, we saw a mama bear and two cubs on the side of the road. They were in pretty thick woods and picture taking was difficult and my results were not good, but we can say we saw bears this year, which was a first for us on a camping trip. We also saw lots and lots of deer and a few turkey.

Late Season Soccer

2008-10-22T21:18:00.000-07:00

Nick has one football game left and no practices. Sarah has one soccer game and one practice left and no more softball. This means our nights are largely free again and I get to work on that honey-do list a little more regularly.

We went camping this weekend, so I guess I need to download the images and see if there is anything worth posting. I did not take very many, really, probably less than 50. Including the 5 or 6 of the 3 bears we saw on our way out of the camp.

Anyway, here are some more of Sarah and her team. The team shot was crazy. I think it would have been easier to pose 9 cats. Whew, they did not want to cooperate. This was the best of the lot.

A little hug to celebrate Sarah's goal.

A Night To Remember

2008-10-18T21:39:00.000-07:00

What can I say. I had a ball.

Buffalo, New York October 2008

2008-10-11T21:04:00.000-07:00

We went to Buffalo last week and had a lot of fun seeing my family and some family who I have not seen in 30 years. Yes, 30 years. The last time I saw some of my cousins, we were playing together as young kids and 3o years later, our kids were playing together.

While in Buffalo, we ate lots of wings and Nick loved them. We visited my old stomping grounds, including my maternal grandparents old house on Lombardy in Lancaster and let the kids walk in Como park like I had done many, many years ago. Only for them, it was 47 degrees and blustery. Not a nice walk in the park kind of day. We found that Vargos Pizza & Wings was now Picasso's, but the wings and pizza were still great.

We went to Lockport on the Erie Canal and watched a small ship go through the two locks there.

We visited my old home on Steele Circle in Niagara Falls

and no trip to Buffalo would be complete without a trip to Niagara Falls.

So, we visited the falls and took a trip on the Maid of the Mist.

More coming soon.

Some More Sarah Action

2008-09-30T20:58:00.001-07:00

Here are some Sarah shots from the last few days.

Sarah played in a softball tournament. The promised three games turned into 4 when they made the finals and played for the championship. Sarah's team won. I'll say she played a small role in the team's success. She was playing on a semi-quasi-all-star team. She played with some girls who know how to play.

Nick- The Recovery

2008-09-29T07:33:00.000-07:00

Nick is almost completely healed. I've had some requests to see how he is doing, so here is an image of him shot the other night as he was playing water boy to his teammates. At the time of the picture (09-25), his shoulder was still not healed, so he could not play. His shoulder scab came off this weekend and the shoulder looks to be healed, so he should be back in pads tonight and ready for action.

Some Sarah Sporting Action

2008-09-21T10:16:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are some shots of Sarah in action over the last week or so.

I am not really sure why, but her and her teammate battled all game long like this. Sarah and I talked about it while going through the pictures. She told me she was faster than this girl and she kept getting in her way. I told Sarah to spread out and use the rest of the field.

Here is the rest of the gallery from her game this Saturday:

Soccer Gallery

On to some softball. I am no expert, but I think it is easier to catch with your eyes open.

Again, I am no expert, but I think this is the harder way to catch a ball.

When you are wearing the orange hat, life is good.

And here is the rest of that gallery on my hatpix.com site.

Softball Gallery

The Skateboard Incident

2008-09-14T16:19:00.001-07:00

On the bright side, Nick was wearing his helmet when he crashed today. It was a bad crash that landed us in the emergency room today for ab0ut 3 hours. He is now the first in the family to get a CAT scan, but all is OK with his brain. His face has a bit of healing to do, as do his shoulder and elbow.

He does not remember it all, but here is what we do know. He went up to a friends house to see if he could come down and play for a while. His friend was not home so Nick skateboarded back down the hill to our house. He got to much speed and his board started to wobble violently, so he jumped off to avoid crashing. Unfortunately, he could not run as fast as his board had been traveling and he wiped out. He does not remember the wipe out.

I was cleaning in the garage and looked out up the street to see if he was coming back. I saw him sitting in the street 25 feet from his skateboard. Something did not look right, and when he got up, he kind of stumbled around a bit and I went out to meet him. He was kind of out of it and did not know what happened to him. I put him in the shower to get the road debris off his face and started to realize that he was having some memory issues. Yvonne called at about same time and I told her I was taking him to the hospital to get him checked out.

We got to the hospital fairly fast and we checked in promptly. Well, suffice to say that 3 hours later, he has a grade 2 concussion and some good scrapes on his face, shoulder and elbow, but will be perfectly fine.

He'll miss at least one week of football though with the concussion. On to the images.