Ready for Christmas!

Elle Turns 9!

Santa Came

Santa delivered again!  This time in the form of a Nintendo Switch.  Pete scored a few toys and treats as well.  Merry Christmas!

And even remembered Petey!

Still Making Pecan Pies!

Here's a before and after! This is the high fructose corn syrup free version famously documented here....Fructose syrup free pie!

Gingerbread House Time!

Ugly Ornament Party

Here's Steph's entry into the ugly Christmas tree ornament party!

The party was after the holidays last year so I picked this up at Wal-mart's 50% sale as one of the last remaining ornaments.

Merry Christmas!

In Germany

They roll with real candles on their Christmas trees!  Above photo from Bill's friend...

The Toaster Ornament Soldiers On!

We have two on our tree actually :)

The Kearney Tornado

Here's an old unpublished post from Bill featuring a cool tornado pic!  Happy Birthday Bill!

A recent tornado ripped through my former hometown last week. Someone I still know there sent me this photo. The next time I pass through I'm going to drive by my old house to see if it's still standing.

The Gator Bullseye!

It is always fun to visit the Gator Bullseye at the Target right beside the University of Florida.

Queen of Peace with Moon

We had a beautiful evening at church a few weeks back.  And also the moon!

Knives Out!

Movie prop fun!

Jack at the Lectern

Jack continues to make us proud and do an amazing job as an occasional lector at church!

Halloween Recital!

Jack and Elle had their Halloween recital this past week-end and both did a great job!

Halloween Costumes!

Here are Jack and Elle in their Halloween costumes.  Elle is Hermione Granger from Harry Potter and Jack is a Hazmat guy (same as he was 2 years ago but this time with $25 extra in his pocket!)

GONE G8R

Here's an interesting plate from North Carolina!  Gone Gator...

ESPN Gameday!

Elle and I had a memorable morning when ESPN Gameday came to Gainesville on October 5!

We started off with Krispy Kreme doughnuts and then made our way to the gathering.  She learned an appreciate for Neil Diamond as the crowd sang Sweet Caroline.  As we were wandering through the crowd a lady asked if we wanted to be on TV.  Of course, we said.  10 minutes later we were fitted with Home Depot Gameday hard hats and positioned for their famous grill scene!

Halloween Mask Fun!

Elle and I had some fun with the cheap masks at $5 Below!

Nothing Says Fall Like Pumpkin Cookies

From a review perspective these should be treated like Starbucks' Pumpkin Latte. One per year is more than enough.

Elle

A few days ago it was Dad take your kid to school day at Elle's elementary school.  While that is nearly everyday for me, this time I walker her to class and got to enjoy a chicken and biscuit breakfast with her!

Jack at the Gator Game

Jack and I headed off to the Gator's tune-up game as they prepare for Auburn next week.  This week was Towson University, which if you didn't know, is in Baltimore.

Battle!

The kids still enjoy battling it out over foam!

Jewel!

Elle's horse camp horse was Jewel this year!  Despite a rainy week it was still probably her favorite camp.

Exoctic Car Driving!

Had a chance to drive a Lamborghini for the first time.  Also a ride in the Nissan GT-R!

Dominoes with Granny!

Here are a few old pics I found of Jack playing dominoes with Granny!

The trusty Nissan hit 70k miles!

Glacier Point might have been our number one highlight at Yosemite... Half Dome, waterfalls, vistas and valleys!

Our Older House is Not Looking Good!

Our old house in Cameron Park, 3649 Millbrae Rd. is not looking too good these days.  We drove by on our trip and it is in a slight bit of disrepair.

Somewhere, over the ...

We had a vibrant rainbow a few days ago!  Now all the talk is Hurricane Dorian!

Science marches on: Sausage biscuits tested

Here's another old "draft" post that I published on Dad's behalf.  Don't know if he ever published a different version of this or not.  Regardless, Happy Birthday Dad!

- - - - -

It rained today, so I did a research project: How do sausage biscuits from Hardee's, Mickey D, and Burger King compare? The prices were $1 at McD and BK, $1.50 at Ha. Here are the weights, in grams.

ordered as follows:  BK Ha McD

Overall weight 116 118 112

Sausage weight 43 30 42

Sausage degreased 37 21 33

Degreasing was accomplished by microwaving each patty for ten seconds and then giving it a maximal napkin squeeze with which my readers are familiar. BK is a clear winner here with both the biggest patty and the least squeezable fat.

Next I tested for taste. My personal ratings were McD 9, BK 8, and Ha 4. McD had a nice spicy kick while Ha had an unpleasant mushy texture and very little taste.

I also let my dog Jake test these for flavor. To do this, I placed a small sample of each meat patty on the laundry room floor and then opened the door to the dog. The samples were placed left to right about a foot apart in the order BK Ha McD. I recorded the order in which Jake snarfed them up as 1, 2, or 3. I then repeated this in the order Ha McD BK, and finally in the order McD BK Ha. I added the order numbers as preference scores, and then repeated the whole test. Thus little Jake (a Boston Terrier) tried 18 sausage samples in all. Here are the total scores: McD 9 Ha 13 Bk 14. Jake likes McD the best followed by Ha narrowly over BK.

Here are the overall conclusions: Go to BK for this item and if it's not too far out of the way, swing through McD on the way home to get a treat for your dog. Avoid Hardee's.

First Day of School 2019!

The Folsom Staybridge Suites

Where desks are manned by dogs....!

This pooch was "working the back desk" of the Staybridge Suites on our recent trip to Folsom. 

The pooch was well-mannered and liked scratches.  Was cool they let him come in with one of the employees.

Jack Turns 12!

Here are a few pics of Jack celebrating his twelfth birthday with a chocolate cake!

Ready for 3rd Grade!

Elle scored a good desk spot (until she gets moved) and a great teacher in Mrs. Davis!

Burning Half Dome

One of my favorite Yosemite pictures.  Sun is descending and only the tip of Half Dome is in the sun!

Charcuterie Platter

Steph made a fancy platter of hors d'oeuvres!  Note the little mice! 

Jonesboro One of The Cheapest Places to Live!

Jonesboro ranks as one of the more inexpensive cities to live in!

Million Dollar Quartet!

We got to see the Million Dollar Quartet musical at the Hippodrome.  Pictures during the show weren't allowed but here's the set - Sun Studio on Union Ave. in Memphis.  The show, featuring Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley - along with Sam Phillips was excellent!

Horse Camp

Elle scored a horse named Jewel and her team got to paint a horse!

Tesla Model X Invasion!

We went in to Looseys for dinner and when we came out our car was surrounded by White Teslas!

The Vacuum Store!

This place appears to be legit.  They have an Oreck in the window.  

Always Coca-Cola!

Happy 4th!!!

Birdie and Bear!!!

We finally got to meet the good dogs (Australian Shepherds) that are Birdie and Bear!

Reading Buddy

Elle had a reading buddy a few months back that would make Petey jealous.  Our neighbor's friendly pooch Bruno!

Gainesville’s Solar Walk

We finally did Gainesville's Solar Walk this morning.  Actually, we ran it!

The Gainesville Solar Walk is a 4 billion to 1 scale model of the solar system situated on NW 8th Ave.

Spanning nearly a mile, you can see the entire solar system and even a few stars on the Gainesville Solar Walk. Each planet is represented with its own monument designed by artist Elizabeth Indianos. Each planet also has a bronze plaque designed by Tim Malles.