Group picture from the Trichel reunion 08
5 days ago
19 December 2008
13 December 2008
Cayden in tub picture
Pretty proud of the duck picture thats the way it came out no editing at all!!!
The Christmas gator tradition
Well Charlies brother Billy for as long as I have known him makes it a tradition to come to Natchitoches and visit family every year. Every year he brings what family he has and takes a picture with the Christmas gator. The first year I was introduced to this tradition it was Billy, his wife Shannon and daughter Katie...we this year six years later it was Billy and Shannon plus daughters Katie, Khloe, Caroline, and baby number 4 name pending. Wow has time flown since the first year we meet Billy for Christmas in Natchitoches. So this year guess what...... The Charlie Veuleman family started their gator picture tradition...
04 November 2008
24 October 2008
09 October 2008
01 October 2008
Cayden the dino wrangler!
While at Sams tonight I found Cayden a new toy!!! Its a dino...
Here are some pics!
23 September 2008
Ready to move
Cayden is sooo close to moving. He loves to get up on his knees and rock back and forth. He from time to time rocks himself forward and plantes his face into the floor. He is a champ at pushing himself backwards across our wooden floor. He gets very frustrated trying to figure out what he is to do once he gets up on his knees. I'm trying to convince the husband to buy a small portable camera that can capture video clips in time to get his first crawls!!! Wish me luck...
Ike
Our Ike story...
Friday night Charlie taught karate like normal Nathan and Bridget plus daughter Ellie stayed the night. Saturday morning the weather was ok sunny and looking like normal. Around 12pm it started getting dark and 12.30 pm a loud boom and bye bye power. Luckily the boys had picked up pizza on the way back from getting Landon (our nephew who evacuated from Lake Charles came over to stay with us). So we found all the candles and flashlights to prepare for the storm. Later that afternoon the rain and wind started. It would get rainy and then stop then rainy then stop. Around 5pm the air sirens went off and the wind picked up quite a bit. Nathan and Bridget deciede to pack up and head back to Natchitoches before they got stuck in Shreveport for the night again. So Charlie, Landon, Mrs Dana, and I sat on the back porch and watched the weather. Right about dark Mrs. Dana saw a dog run across our lawn and we open the garage door to look and a tiny chiwawa came darting into our house. The little dog was soaking wet and scared to death out in the bad weather. So we let him stay looked for his owners for a few days and finally gave him to our neighbor when we could not find her owners. The rest of the night was pretty scarry very heavy winds lots of rain. Our power stayed off for 4 days, but luckily the weather was beautiful!!!!!!!! Our house survived with no damage thank goodness, but tons of houses around us had roof and tree damage. So thats a short version of our Ike experience....
Friday night Charlie taught karate like normal Nathan and Bridget plus daughter Ellie stayed the night. Saturday morning the weather was ok sunny and looking like normal. Around 12pm it started getting dark and 12.30 pm a loud boom and bye bye power. Luckily the boys had picked up pizza on the way back from getting Landon (our nephew who evacuated from Lake Charles came over to stay with us). So we found all the candles and flashlights to prepare for the storm. Later that afternoon the rain and wind started. It would get rainy and then stop then rainy then stop. Around 5pm the air sirens went off and the wind picked up quite a bit. Nathan and Bridget deciede to pack up and head back to Natchitoches before they got stuck in Shreveport for the night again. So Charlie, Landon, Mrs Dana, and I sat on the back porch and watched the weather. Right about dark Mrs. Dana saw a dog run across our lawn and we open the garage door to look and a tiny chiwawa came darting into our house. The little dog was soaking wet and scared to death out in the bad weather. So we let him stay looked for his owners for a few days and finally gave him to our neighbor when we could not find her owners. The rest of the night was pretty scarry very heavy winds lots of rain. Our power stayed off for 4 days, but luckily the weather was beautiful!!!!!!!! Our house survived with no damage thank goodness, but tons of houses around us had roof and tree damage. So thats a short version of our Ike experience....
Cayden can bounce
While our power was out some old friends of ours Daniel and his wife Amanda brought Cayden two bouncers their little girl grew out of. Charlie and I had been talking about buying him one and even had one picked out luckily we had not bought it yet!! He loves them!!!! Goes to town jumping and spinning making as much noise as possible. I am posting a few pictures of him in them.
21 September 2008
Pictures from the seminar
Charlie and his instructor hosted a seminar at our soccer facility in Houston. We drove in just in time for the seminar to start. Master Mac taught a great seminar everyone had a wonderful time. After the seminar we had snacks and beer over at Mac's house. I had to leave early so I could go spent the night working with Kasi at Northwest. It was fun seeing how different and yet the same our facilities opperate. We spent the night with Mac so Charlie and Nathan could spend some time working out with Mac the next day. After the workout we all packed and headed back to Shreveport. It was an extremely productive weekend for everyone and we all had a great time.
Carrots and Cayden..
Just a few pictures of Cayden eating carrots for the first time. Guess you can tell he loved them!!! So far Cayden loves all food except peas. Cayden thinks peas are gross and loves to spit them all over mommy when she tries to feed them to him. Other than peas he loves food we are blessed so far with a wonderful eater!!! In fact if you dont have constant food being spooned into his mouth he get angry...guess he gets his eating speed from his father.
27 August 2008
American Idol Tour!!!
After watching the kids sing all season long Charlie and I figured the best way to end the season was for us to see them in concert. So for my birthday Charlie got me tickets to see them live here in Shreveport! Let me say the show was wonderful!! Charlie's neice Jennifer watched Cayden for us and we are super thankful to her!!!!!!!!! We dropped off our little man and headed to Centurytel Center parked in our ole faithful can get out of here quick spot (which worked like a charm) and headed into the center to find our seats! We sat on the floor right in front of the stage in the back right section they we really good seats had a great view and the people in front and to my side of us left early so we had tons of room!! Lets see here is how our night went
10.Chikezie he sang Caught up, So High, and Know my name they were all good not great if I were to rate them 4, 4.5, 4.5
9.Next Ramiele sang If I ever see your face again, Love will lead you back, I want you back
rated 2, 3 ,3.5
She was by far the worst she was boring to see on stage and did not sound good and she seemed unfomfortable when talking to the crowd just awkward
8.Next Michael Johns We will rock you, its all wrong, dream on
rating them 8, 9.5, 8
He was great loved him sang wonderful!!! Its all wrong was his best by far!!!
7.Kristy Cook Squeezing the love out of you, God bless the USA, Cowgirl
rated 6, 9, 7
loved her on the show not so much in concert she did not sing great songs except God Bless the USA that was great.
6.Carly opened with Bring me to life, I drove all night, crazy on you
rated 5, 8, 8
she is such a good singer however bring me to life was way to big for her but the other two songs were excellent!!! I love the song drove all night and was super excited she sang it!
5.Brooke was lifted on stage with her paino to sing let it be, 1234, yellow (coldplay)
10,10,10
worth the price of the ticket to see her just as bubbly and cute in person she was beyond great!!! Go watch her on you tube worth seeing!!!! Yellow was amazing going to download it later!
4. Jason sang Somewhere over the rainbow, daydream, crazy
rated 9, 7,9
Loved Crazy great song for him better than the original he sounded great live so cute and humble!!! I was very pleased with his singing was worried I would not like him live, but I was very wrong!!!
3. Syesha sang umbrella, If I aint got you, listen
I was not as big of a fan of hers as I was on the show and I think its because of her song choice hated umbrella. I in general hate that song so im not sure if it was her or the song. Loved if I aint got you she sang it better than Alicia and listen was beautiful and heartfelt she started crying on stage and was really cute talking to the crowd after she sang!
2. David A came on stage playing the paino and singing Angels, Appoligize, Stand by me, When you say you love me
He was great loved him and thats quite different than my disliking him during the show. All his songs were great and he did a wonderful job with them. He was soooooo dorky when talking to the crowd you can tell he is very young.
1. David Cook rocked and the place went nuts for him!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He sang hello, time of my life, hero, i dont want to lose a thing, and billie jean lets just say he deserved the win. He was fantastic and had such a great stage pressence. Loved Loved him!!!!
Soooo my night was wonderful!!!!!!! Had a great time and am sooo glad we were able to go Thanks you Charlie and Jenn!!!
19 August 2008
16 August 2008
I can giggle
Friday night I had to run up to work for a few hours to get some stuff done. While I was gone Mom and Dad watched Cayden. I came home with some extras Bridget (Charlies karate student Nathan's wife) and thier daughter Ellie. They decided to hang out with us while the boys played karate. When we get back from Sport Port Mom ask me when Cayden learned to giggle......apparently it happened in the few hours I was away from him. I finally was witness to his laughter today and it is sooooo wonderful to see him smile and laugh!!!!!!!!!! Nothing better to a mother than hearing her baby boy have a good time. Can't wait to get some video of it!!
12 August 2008
Our skills bike class
Charlie and I attended a biking class hosted by LOCO the mountain biking people of Shreveport. There were about 12 people there of different skill levels mine being the lowest. We warmed up with some log juming which was pretty scary...but was a great thing to learn!!! We then jumped onto the trails which was pretty crazy. There were tons of hills and dips bunches and bunches of trees mostly very close together where the trails decided to go between. I made it through the ride...well almost made it through without any incident...there was this one tree that decided I needed to stop and take a break...so I did stop thanks to a tree in my shoulder. Ended the day with just a few scratches and lots lots of sweat. Had a great time and feel like ten times the bike rider. Here are a few pics from the clininc...
06 August 2008
Cayden turns 5 months old!!!
Well I am a day or so behind on the Cayden 5 month old update. So much has happened the past few days our air conditioner broke in August not a great month to break. Our house has been on average 82 degrees....thats hot! It was so hot one night that we actually went and stayed at Beth's house to escape the sauna. It took the air men four trips to finally get everything working right! It was a wonderful night when Charlie and I walked in the door tonight and our house felt cold!!!! Here is a new video of the little guy I took on is 5 month birthday...check out our rolling skills!!!
05 August 2008
If You've Never Been Thrown By A 70 Year Old Man
Then you are just plain missing out.
August 2nd I attended a Judo (Koreans say 'Yudo') seminar in Jackson Mississippi. The instructor was a well known senior in the martial arts, particularly Korean styles. Dr. He-Young Kimm, who resides in Baton Rouge, has not only an impressive background in several Korean martial arts, but also was an Olympic level Judo player. He's a bit older now days, so I didn't know quite what to expect from him as far as participation was concerned.
Then he chunked me across the room. Guess he planned to participate.
Before the seminar, as Dr Kimm stepped into the school, and everyone came to attention to salute and welcome him, I noticed in the parking lot, Mrs Kimm took a spill. I guess only a couple of people noticed, and as everyone is being all official, myself and another black belt ran out to check on her. Dr Kimm actually joked about it once during his seminar, talking about the difference between conscious falls, vs the one his wife took. Long story short she bumped her head a bit, but was okay.
Twice a year, there is a large Korean Martial Art festival held in Jackson MS, and I try to take my guys to at least one of them. We'll be going this fall, so I'll post about it then.
CV
August 2nd I attended a Judo (Koreans say 'Yudo') seminar in Jackson Mississippi. The instructor was a well known senior in the martial arts, particularly Korean styles. Dr. He-Young Kimm, who resides in Baton Rouge, has not only an impressive background in several Korean martial arts, but also was an Olympic level Judo player. He's a bit older now days, so I didn't know quite what to expect from him as far as participation was concerned.
Then he chunked me across the room. Guess he planned to participate.
Before the seminar, as Dr Kimm stepped into the school, and everyone came to attention to salute and welcome him, I noticed in the parking lot, Mrs Kimm took a spill. I guess only a couple of people noticed, and as everyone is being all official, myself and another black belt ran out to check on her. Dr Kimm actually joked about it once during his seminar, talking about the difference between conscious falls, vs the one his wife took. Long story short she bumped her head a bit, but was okay.
Twice a year, there is a large Korean Martial Art festival held in Jackson MS, and I try to take my guys to at least one of them. We'll be going this fall, so I'll post about it then.
CV
03 August 2008
Just a small update...
Charlie took a trip this weekend to Jackson for a seminar and my dad took a trip to Beaumont for a fishing trip so Mom came up and hung out with Cayden and I. We had a short, but great visit. She took a cute video of Cayden talking that I will try to post on here. Charlie made it back home last night after having a fun time tossing people around. Cayden and I super excited to see him home safe!!
26 July 2008
Summer Is Flying By
Just a month left until I start back to school. Its crazy to think, that in one semester I'll be done with nursing school. Its been a long, rocky road getting here, but I'm excited and confident. I don't expect next semester to be easy by any means, but if I remain constant and disciplined, I'll do fine. Speaking of discipline....
I made it to my 30 day mark of my no fried foods attempt. Actually, it wasn't hard at all after about the 10th day. I've started my count over, since I rewarded myself and endulged in some Canes and Oyster Bar on day 31, but as I look to what I eat, and try to decide what I want, I have no problem passing over the fried stuff. (okay...the sweet potato fries I saw on a menu today tempted me a little).
Amanda has decided to try it as well. She is on day 4 herself today. Impressive! It's hard, in the South, to cut out fried goods. Try it and see.
Biking has cut into my brewing time. I need to get in the mode and just brew for about 3 days non-stop. I have 7 kits of ingredients that need to get converted to malty goodness. I'll make it happen before school starts. Sooner the better, right? Biking has been incredible. It satisfies my need to get outside, gives me good exercise, and is very therapeutic. I've lost about 8 pounds, but thats not why I'm doing it, just a benefit. I'm at almost 100 miles for July. In August, I hope to do about 150. Amanda has been biking a bit as well. She can tell the difference I know.
I'm working quite a bit more with Amanda these days at the Sport Port. I enjoy spending the extra time with her, and its nice to see how far she's brought the facility from what it was. She has a vision for things, and a passion to succeed. I think Let's Play Inc is going to be a part of her life for quite a while. Who'd'a thunk'it?
Cayden, the other day, at the indoor, sat up. It was Sunday, and he was laying in a chair Amanda's Aunt Anne left us last year during the sisters tour. He was about 30degrees propped up by the bobby cushion, and he pulled himself up. Then he looked to one shoulder, fell back. He sat up almost as far, then fell again. I was stunned. I think it was just a fluke, and he might not do it again for weeks, but I saw it. I'm not completly crazy, promise. Pretty Amazing that kid. I'm nuts about him.
G'night....
CV
Going to bed.
I made it to my 30 day mark of my no fried foods attempt. Actually, it wasn't hard at all after about the 10th day. I've started my count over, since I rewarded myself and endulged in some Canes and Oyster Bar on day 31, but as I look to what I eat, and try to decide what I want, I have no problem passing over the fried stuff. (okay...the sweet potato fries I saw on a menu today tempted me a little).
Amanda has decided to try it as well. She is on day 4 herself today. Impressive! It's hard, in the South, to cut out fried goods. Try it and see.
Biking has cut into my brewing time. I need to get in the mode and just brew for about 3 days non-stop. I have 7 kits of ingredients that need to get converted to malty goodness. I'll make it happen before school starts. Sooner the better, right? Biking has been incredible. It satisfies my need to get outside, gives me good exercise, and is very therapeutic. I've lost about 8 pounds, but thats not why I'm doing it, just a benefit. I'm at almost 100 miles for July. In August, I hope to do about 150. Amanda has been biking a bit as well. She can tell the difference I know.
I'm working quite a bit more with Amanda these days at the Sport Port. I enjoy spending the extra time with her, and its nice to see how far she's brought the facility from what it was. She has a vision for things, and a passion to succeed. I think Let's Play Inc is going to be a part of her life for quite a while. Who'd'a thunk'it?
Cayden, the other day, at the indoor, sat up. It was Sunday, and he was laying in a chair Amanda's Aunt Anne left us last year during the sisters tour. He was about 30degrees propped up by the bobby cushion, and he pulled himself up. Then he looked to one shoulder, fell back. He sat up almost as far, then fell again. I was stunned. I think it was just a fluke, and he might not do it again for weeks, but I saw it. I'm not completly crazy, promise. Pretty Amazing that kid. I'm nuts about him.
G'night....
CV
Going to bed.
23 July 2008
Pics from Tuesdays Ride
Amanda and I got out on Clyde Fant Parkway on Tuesday. Here's a couple of pics...
21 July 2008
Our four year anniversary
What a wonderful night....Beth took over Cayden duty starting around 4pm for Charlie and I. We caught an early movie "Wanted" good movie not great, but worth seeing once. Then around town just to waste some time before our dinner. We ate dinner at Lil Italiano a great little upscale place with low lighting and just a great atmosphere. Charlie and I had agreed no gifts for our anniversary seeing how we just bought new bikes we were going to call them our gifts to each other. Well just as a suprise Charlie employed Lugo to get me a small arrangement of flowers just waiting for me on the dinner table. Sneaky Charlie... they were wonderful he also bought a black picture mat and silver pen for us to remember our past eight years together. After dinner we went back to get our little man who we were missing terribly.
I would not lay there....
So the other night (I call it night but it was really about 3am) my husband sits straight up in bed and then proceds to jump up. I figure he is going to the bathroom or something along that line...I was wrong. He turns around a few times and calmly looks at me minutes after he has gotten out of bed and says "I wouldnt lay there if I were you".....whhaat??? So I throw off the covers and begin to move when I remember...wait this has happened once before... let me explain
many many months ago way before Cayden was even an idea Charlie jumps out of bed in the middle of the night turns on the light and screams at me to get out of bed now!! So a very groggy and scared Amanda obeys and hops her butt out of bed..... what what??? Charlie says " spiders all over the bed" and begins to throw off the covers to find them. Oh crap are you kidding me seriously...spiders in bed your dreaming...."no there real they are in the bed" where I dont see anything Im going back to bed...end of story no bugs just vivid dreams.
Back to the other night... so not to be tricked again by the sandman I layed back down and calmly said what's wrong... can you guess what he said oh yes he did "theres a spider in the bed" ... "its really big and its under my pillow"... "it's the size of a cup saucer get out of bed"... ha you just think im budging I rolled my tired self over as he crawled back in bed saying " it felt so real".. just like last time no spider!
One day I am really going to be upset when my wolf crying husband launches himself out of bed as I lay there allowing some nasty creature to crawl on me......
many many months ago way before Cayden was even an idea Charlie jumps out of bed in the middle of the night turns on the light and screams at me to get out of bed now!! So a very groggy and scared Amanda obeys and hops her butt out of bed..... what what??? Charlie says " spiders all over the bed" and begins to throw off the covers to find them. Oh crap are you kidding me seriously...spiders in bed your dreaming...."no there real they are in the bed" where I dont see anything Im going back to bed...end of story no bugs just vivid dreams.
Back to the other night... so not to be tricked again by the sandman I layed back down and calmly said what's wrong... can you guess what he said oh yes he did "theres a spider in the bed" ... "its really big and its under my pillow"... "it's the size of a cup saucer get out of bed"... ha you just think im budging I rolled my tired self over as he crawled back in bed saying " it felt so real".. just like last time no spider!
One day I am really going to be upset when my wolf crying husband launches himself out of bed as I lay there allowing some nasty creature to crawl on me......
20 July 2008
Lake Bistineau Group Ride
So, now that I've been biking a while, it was time to use my bike for what it was built for, off road, mountain biking. Since we don't have mountains, how bad could it be, right?
Wrong.
Them woods have hills, ya'll! And trees you can smash into, as my bike and I soon found out.
I met up with a local mountain biking group, appropriatly named LOCO, Louisiana off-road cycling organization. Great and very supportive group of people. In particular, a guy named Brady who has been helping me find road trek's in Shreveport for my early morning rides. When I pulled into the state park, and met up with the dozen or so other riders, I soon knew I was going to be way in the back alone. But, Brady, who is known to be super fast, stayed back and blew his riding day off, to help me. I layed my bike over at least two major times that I can think of, and discovered that my seat was not my friend. One time, I laughed the whole way to the ground, as my fellow rider shouted "Get up and quite laughing, there's redbugs everywhere out here!". The other time was pretty bad, I cliped a sapling with my handlebars, turning me funny and slamming my shin and crankset (front gear teeth) into a bruised and dented mess. No worries, I wasn't using that gear anyway.
The course was very technical, with alot of back and forth path movements. My biggest enemy was going slow actually. I crashed way less when moving quickly. The roots and things wern't too big of a problem, but having to get going on an uphill climb is something I'll have to work on. Oh, and those damn trees. We pulled out about 2 miles to the end, because we were running short on time, and honestly Brady probably was worried about an unintentional manslaughter conviction. After about 7.3 miles, I was toast. And this is after me doing all the miles in the city, thinking I'd built up some endurance. Yeah, going 20 mph on pavement isn't too hard, when you consider going 5 mph in the woods.
At the end of the day, I had a great time, and learned alot (often by necessity of the moment). I also now know how to tailor my rides in the city to build me up for riding on the woods.
Bottom line, get a bike! I'm having a blast!
Charlie Vman
Wrong.
Them woods have hills, ya'll! And trees you can smash into, as my bike and I soon found out.
I met up with a local mountain biking group, appropriatly named LOCO, Louisiana off-road cycling organization. Great and very supportive group of people. In particular, a guy named Brady who has been helping me find road trek's in Shreveport for my early morning rides. When I pulled into the state park, and met up with the dozen or so other riders, I soon knew I was going to be way in the back alone. But, Brady, who is known to be super fast, stayed back and blew his riding day off, to help me. I layed my bike over at least two major times that I can think of, and discovered that my seat was not my friend. One time, I laughed the whole way to the ground, as my fellow rider shouted "Get up and quite laughing, there's redbugs everywhere out here!". The other time was pretty bad, I cliped a sapling with my handlebars, turning me funny and slamming my shin and crankset (front gear teeth) into a bruised and dented mess. No worries, I wasn't using that gear anyway.
The course was very technical, with alot of back and forth path movements. My biggest enemy was going slow actually. I crashed way less when moving quickly. The roots and things wern't too big of a problem, but having to get going on an uphill climb is something I'll have to work on. Oh, and those damn trees. We pulled out about 2 miles to the end, because we were running short on time, and honestly Brady probably was worried about an unintentional manslaughter conviction. After about 7.3 miles, I was toast. And this is after me doing all the miles in the city, thinking I'd built up some endurance. Yeah, going 20 mph on pavement isn't too hard, when you consider going 5 mph in the woods.
At the end of the day, I had a great time, and learned alot (often by necessity of the moment). I also now know how to tailor my rides in the city to build me up for riding on the woods.
Bottom line, get a bike! I'm having a blast!
Charlie Vman
15 July 2008
July 17th Starts Year Four...
...for Amanda and I. We got married here in Shreveport/Bossier back in 2004 after we moved up from school for work. Its been quite an adventure here, and now we have Cayden to enjoy as well.
Our friend Beth, and probably Lugo as well, is taking Cayden for the evening, so that Amanda and I can get out and have a nice dinner together at this snazzy Italian place. It is one of those places you'd expect to see a 'family meeting' at. Low lit, locally owned, with a booth in the corner and one swinging light illuminating the goomba and his briefcase awaiting a guest....okay maybe its not that gangster, but it is pretty interesting. In any case, we'll also get to go hit the movies as well, which is something we don't get to do these days. So, it should be pretty fun. Its almost like a date or something!
"Hey Amanda, wanna go out with me, you know, on a date or something?"
Charlie
Our friend Beth, and probably Lugo as well, is taking Cayden for the evening, so that Amanda and I can get out and have a nice dinner together at this snazzy Italian place. It is one of those places you'd expect to see a 'family meeting' at. Low lit, locally owned, with a booth in the corner and one swinging light illuminating the goomba and his briefcase awaiting a guest....okay maybe its not that gangster, but it is pretty interesting. In any case, we'll also get to go hit the movies as well, which is something we don't get to do these days. So, it should be pretty fun. Its almost like a date or something!
"Hey Amanda, wanna go out with me, you know, on a date or something?"
Charlie
10 July 2008
A life with no fried foods
Well, today is day 19 of no fried goods for me. It is amazing how much stuff I HAVENT been able to eat since commiting myself to 30 days of fried-food-free eating. When I started this deal, it was pretty simple, I just wanted to make one small change. Its hard to say "I'm going to eat better" and really stick to it. Thats just too broad. So, I figured, the easiest way to impact my cholesterol and other bad-food related lab values, was to just cut out the greasy fried foods. I think I'll be able to make it past 30 days, but that just seemed like an easy goal. At that point, I'm going to eat something fried, and I don't care what it is. And then I'll restart my 30 days.
I won't know what objective impact this has made to me until the end of August, when I repeat my labs at the Doc's office, but I expect it to be better. Boy, I do miss Raising Cane's though....only 11 days away.....
Charlie
I won't know what objective impact this has made to me until the end of August, when I repeat my labs at the Doc's office, but I expect it to be better. Boy, I do miss Raising Cane's though....only 11 days away.....
Charlie
09 July 2008
My first bike ride
Well I finally got to take my first bike ride!!!!
The sistas tour finally came to an end this week after about a month. The girls came back through Shreveport after making thier last stop in Dallas on Monday. We got to visit with them one last day before they ended there trip and see all the pictures and hear all the great stories from their trip. From the sounds of things that had a wonderful tour this year yet again!!! We were glad to have them and look forward to next years tour!
So Tuesday Morning after the little man woke us up for his morning feeding at 7am BeBe took over babysitting duty and let Charlie and I take a morning ride. It was great we biked 5 miles to the boat launch and back home. I cant wait til we get to go riding again....
The sistas tour finally came to an end this week after about a month. The girls came back through Shreveport after making thier last stop in Dallas on Monday. We got to visit with them one last day before they ended there trip and see all the pictures and hear all the great stories from their trip. From the sounds of things that had a wonderful tour this year yet again!!! We were glad to have them and look forward to next years tour!
So Tuesday Morning after the little man woke us up for his morning feeding at 7am BeBe took over babysitting duty and let Charlie and I take a morning ride. It was great we biked 5 miles to the boat launch and back home. I cant wait til we get to go riding again....
28 June 2008
First Ride
Well, Amanda posted about us getting bikes a few lines down. I'll elaborate a bit. For about a year now, I've been wanting to get a bike. I work with several people who bike often, and I've always thought it would be fun. Growing up, I had a bike when I was about 10 or so, and it fit me for about 3 years. It was simple, pedal forward to go forward, pedal back to stop. No gears, no nothing.
When I got really serious about this, about 2 months ago, I did as I always do, researched the hell out of it online. There were a few good resources, but not exactly what I needed to know in the format I'd best understand it. Now, currently I am off of school for the summer, my last summer off before finishing nursing school in December. I had alot of plans for the summer, like spending time with Cayden, enrolling in Sign Language interpreter/translator school, and maybe even getting a new computer(Mac). But, life beeing the way it is, got in the way, and I missed the signup date for ASLanguage school, and getting a new computer really needs to wait until I finish school. So, I worked a little bit, and rekindled my desire to bike. The hard part, of course is always convincing Amanda that I am not insane. And for the last two months, I've pretty much failed, and she wasn't convinced it was a good idea to go drop a ton of money on bikes.
Finally, after shopping around, and saving my ass off, she started to come around to my way of thinking. Actually, she probably just got tired of hearing me talk about it. I was very interested in getting a more recognized bike brand, instead of something at Walmart or Academy sporting goods. We have a Dicks sporting goods in town, and so I decided maybe I needed to comprimise. Amanda and I went, and found a couple of bikes we really liked. The salesman got tied up with some other stuff, and we decided to take one last look at the local bike shop here in Shreveport. Once inside, and test riding bikes, I really got attatched to this Trek 3700, it had an aluminum frame, and solid looking setup.
Amanda and I have been together for quite a while now, and we read each other pretty well. She knew I wanted it, and I also knew she understood that I was willing to make a comprimise on it, but being the giving person she is, she gave me the okay. We still had to get her a bike though, and we shopped around. She test drove several bikes, and ended up finding a Quest bike that suited her really well. The shifters wern't exactly what she wanted, but the style was rapid fire like mine, so she was happy. Off we went, with a car full of rubber and aluminum.
Once we arrived home, I almost immediatly shot out of the door on the bike. I felt like a kid again! It was amazing at how much I forgot I liked to ride. Being a gadget, semi-tech'ie, how-it-works minded person, I really know this is something I am going to like. Plus, it fills the void in my life of getting outdoors. I'm designed to be outside, I just enjoy the outdoors. Down the street and back, it was now Amandas turn, she jumped on hers, and had a good time as well. Cayden shut us down though, we wern't paying him enough attention.
The next day we didn't get to ride any, but did get to make several braking adjustments, and add on some stuff to the bikes, like repair kits and such. This morning, however, was my first ride worth mentioning.
Cayden, in all his cuteness, has now discovered a new trick, that I refer to as the 5am wakeup call. He once slept through the night, for pretty much his whole 2nd month, and some of the third, but not now. We gotta eat. And eat. And eat. Last night, we drove out pretty late to give a friend a ride home from a local watering hole, and didn't get home till about 0130 in the morning. I knew 0500 was going to especially suck today, and we also have a wedding we are going to in Lake Charles at noon, so today was shaping up to be rough. But, my guy was a guys guy today, and just relaxed and let dad sleep. All the way until about 0645, which is FINE by me! On a side note, I now am creating a theory that the only good sleep occurs between 0430 and 0600. I woke up very refreshed, very rested, and thought, I should get in a ride before amanda gets up. So, I fed Cayden, put him in his rocker, and geared up.
So here's the visual. Charlie. Bike shorts. Helmet. Gloves. Shades. Thats gangster! All joking aside, I did purchase some of those bike shorts with the chamois liner for your doo-dads, cause nobody wants chaffed doo-dads, I mean, come on! But it's function, not fashion, so I put on some cargo shorts over it. I got some padded bike gloves, and am now glad, cause my hands would have been hurting without. Helmet in Bossier is a must, with traffic and all, and shades keep the bugs from taking out a cornea. I figured I'd eat a bug or two huffing and puffing, but I didn't thankfully. I guess that nasal surgery back in Dec did the trick.
Well, its about 0730, and 78 outside, with a little breeze blowing, and off I go. I biked to the gas station, to make sure I had enough air, and get some H2O. The store clerk looked at me oddly when I brought me bike in at first, then smiled. Surely I wasn't the first to drive their vehicle inside of his place of business. Then, I made it down Airline drive, and onto Teague Parkway. I biked all the way down to the boat launch, and then made some adjustments to my seat, and headed back. I passed bikers and walkers all along the path, us breezing by each other with a simple 'morning!'. I got home, 4 miles later, feeling great! I could have done another mile or two, but I didn't want to push it too much. And, I am also probably not going at the recommended 90 RPM's. It was more of a joy ride, and joy it was. The wind felt great, the downhills were awesome, the uphills were not too tough, and traffic wasn't as scary as I'd thought it would be. I don't know when I got home, but Amanda was still asleep. I knocked several times (forgot my keys), with no luck, so I watered the yard and plants, and just enjoyed the rest of the morning. Eventually she let me in, which brings me to this post.
I had to share my morning experience. It was wonderful, absolutly wonderful. If any of you are even remotely considering getting a bike, or pulling out your old one, I'm in favor 100%.
Even if the in-laws think its a bad idea. :)
-Charlie V
When I got really serious about this, about 2 months ago, I did as I always do, researched the hell out of it online. There were a few good resources, but not exactly what I needed to know in the format I'd best understand it. Now, currently I am off of school for the summer, my last summer off before finishing nursing school in December. I had alot of plans for the summer, like spending time with Cayden, enrolling in Sign Language interpreter/translator school, and maybe even getting a new computer(Mac). But, life beeing the way it is, got in the way, and I missed the signup date for ASLanguage school, and getting a new computer really needs to wait until I finish school. So, I worked a little bit, and rekindled my desire to bike. The hard part, of course is always convincing Amanda that I am not insane. And for the last two months, I've pretty much failed, and she wasn't convinced it was a good idea to go drop a ton of money on bikes.
Finally, after shopping around, and saving my ass off, she started to come around to my way of thinking. Actually, she probably just got tired of hearing me talk about it. I was very interested in getting a more recognized bike brand, instead of something at Walmart or Academy sporting goods. We have a Dicks sporting goods in town, and so I decided maybe I needed to comprimise. Amanda and I went, and found a couple of bikes we really liked. The salesman got tied up with some other stuff, and we decided to take one last look at the local bike shop here in Shreveport. Once inside, and test riding bikes, I really got attatched to this Trek 3700, it had an aluminum frame, and solid looking setup.
Amanda and I have been together for quite a while now, and we read each other pretty well. She knew I wanted it, and I also knew she understood that I was willing to make a comprimise on it, but being the giving person she is, she gave me the okay. We still had to get her a bike though, and we shopped around. She test drove several bikes, and ended up finding a Quest bike that suited her really well. The shifters wern't exactly what she wanted, but the style was rapid fire like mine, so she was happy. Off we went, with a car full of rubber and aluminum.
Once we arrived home, I almost immediatly shot out of the door on the bike. I felt like a kid again! It was amazing at how much I forgot I liked to ride. Being a gadget, semi-tech'ie, how-it-works minded person, I really know this is something I am going to like. Plus, it fills the void in my life of getting outdoors. I'm designed to be outside, I just enjoy the outdoors. Down the street and back, it was now Amandas turn, she jumped on hers, and had a good time as well. Cayden shut us down though, we wern't paying him enough attention.
The next day we didn't get to ride any, but did get to make several braking adjustments, and add on some stuff to the bikes, like repair kits and such. This morning, however, was my first ride worth mentioning.
Cayden, in all his cuteness, has now discovered a new trick, that I refer to as the 5am wakeup call. He once slept through the night, for pretty much his whole 2nd month, and some of the third, but not now. We gotta eat. And eat. And eat. Last night, we drove out pretty late to give a friend a ride home from a local watering hole, and didn't get home till about 0130 in the morning. I knew 0500 was going to especially suck today, and we also have a wedding we are going to in Lake Charles at noon, so today was shaping up to be rough. But, my guy was a guys guy today, and just relaxed and let dad sleep. All the way until about 0645, which is FINE by me! On a side note, I now am creating a theory that the only good sleep occurs between 0430 and 0600. I woke up very refreshed, very rested, and thought, I should get in a ride before amanda gets up. So, I fed Cayden, put him in his rocker, and geared up.
So here's the visual. Charlie. Bike shorts. Helmet. Gloves. Shades. Thats gangster! All joking aside, I did purchase some of those bike shorts with the chamois liner for your doo-dads, cause nobody wants chaffed doo-dads, I mean, come on! But it's function, not fashion, so I put on some cargo shorts over it. I got some padded bike gloves, and am now glad, cause my hands would have been hurting without. Helmet in Bossier is a must, with traffic and all, and shades keep the bugs from taking out a cornea. I figured I'd eat a bug or two huffing and puffing, but I didn't thankfully. I guess that nasal surgery back in Dec did the trick.
Well, its about 0730, and 78 outside, with a little breeze blowing, and off I go. I biked to the gas station, to make sure I had enough air, and get some H2O. The store clerk looked at me oddly when I brought me bike in at first, then smiled. Surely I wasn't the first to drive their vehicle inside of his place of business. Then, I made it down Airline drive, and onto Teague Parkway. I biked all the way down to the boat launch, and then made some adjustments to my seat, and headed back. I passed bikers and walkers all along the path, us breezing by each other with a simple 'morning!'. I got home, 4 miles later, feeling great! I could have done another mile or two, but I didn't want to push it too much. And, I am also probably not going at the recommended 90 RPM's. It was more of a joy ride, and joy it was. The wind felt great, the downhills were awesome, the uphills were not too tough, and traffic wasn't as scary as I'd thought it would be. I don't know when I got home, but Amanda was still asleep. I knocked several times (forgot my keys), with no luck, so I watered the yard and plants, and just enjoyed the rest of the morning. Eventually she let me in, which brings me to this post.
I had to share my morning experience. It was wonderful, absolutly wonderful. If any of you are even remotely considering getting a bike, or pulling out your old one, I'm in favor 100%.
Even if the in-laws think its a bad idea. :)
-Charlie V
26 June 2008
Biking it
Charlie and I bought bikes!!! Charlie decided that we need to get into better shape and everytime we join gyms we seem to pay more than we work out. So his new idea is buy something that can be fun and exercise. We just got home from our day out and about at 11pm. Charlie walked into the door put down the kid and jumped onto his bike and loved it!!!! I had to follow suit and jumped onto mine (I think my legs are gonna be sore im not a teenager anymore!!) and enjoyed the new bike. Wish us luck!
21 June 2008
Time to post some stuff
Well its about time to get on here and post an update..
Trichel reunion was this past weekend and we had a blast showing off the little man. He had a blast being held by all of his family!!! Charlie and I had a blast enjoying some freedom!!! The food was great and the company even better. I always love going to our reunions!
The sistas tour has offically begun. Wed afternoon my mom, her sister, and my cousin all drove into Shreveport to spend a few days with us before they head off to Houston to visit cousin Sarah. It was a great visit cousin Brandi did a wonderful job with our back room she painted and hung curtains for us and it looks great! Charlie and I had a great few days with them before they headed off.
Have pictures to post from both events soon....
Trichel reunion was this past weekend and we had a blast showing off the little man. He had a blast being held by all of his family!!! Charlie and I had a blast enjoying some freedom!!! The food was great and the company even better. I always love going to our reunions!
The sistas tour has offically begun. Wed afternoon my mom, her sister, and my cousin all drove into Shreveport to spend a few days with us before they head off to Houston to visit cousin Sarah. It was a great visit cousin Brandi did a wonderful job with our back room she painted and hung curtains for us and it looks great! Charlie and I had a great few days with them before they headed off.
Have pictures to post from both events soon....
04 June 2008
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