The Kelsey's

Our podcasts are getting a little longer, 21 minutes for this one, but we were able to knock it out in two sittings. One for recording and one for editing and post production. If you want to know what we’re up to – give it a listen!

Let us know what you think by leaving us a comment. Remember, it takes a while to have comments approved – so if they don’t show up right away, don’t sweat it … they will.

Tags: podcast, the kelsey kids, thekelseys podcast

At the end of August, I got some tickets to go see Tim Hawkins (who’s that? Well go see and then come back here! ).

There was some confusion because there were no tickets per se.  I got them online and I was supposed to print out the receipt.  When the day came, I had no idea where the paper was or if I had even printed it out at all.  I called the church where he was going to perform and also the contact number from his web site and finally got a call back from Tim’s brother who said if I had a photo ID, I’d be fine.

I would show you some pictures – but I was having too much fun to bother to take any.  I took a short video of Tim’s big finale song – one of Caleb’s favorites: “Fire Ant.”  But it didn’t turn out very nice.  Here is a link to it inside of Facebook. << you may have to be logged into Facebook to access it.

When we got there we say about 20 kids playing in the parking lot.  I made my kids wear “business casual” attire.  I didn’t know that it would be anything goes.  So they felt over dressed, but they got over it.  We have just become a casual culture – what can you say.  Not that I mind, I’m not fashion maven, I’m just sayin’.

So we  got our tickets and lined up at the door to get in.  There were no assigned seats (although there could have been because the church sanctuary had theater seating with rows and numbers for seats), so we were behind about 15 people in three lines.  We waited at least 20-40 minutes for the doors to open.  And when they did, the lines to the right and left of us started moving way faster than ours.  Why is it that everybody always picks the slowest line to be in?  How’s that happen?

When we got in there, the first 8 or so rows in the middle section were taken.  The kids spotted the first row all the way to the left was open so we headed there.  Another family beat us to it, so we ended up in the 2nd row way off to the side.  Even so, we were about 20 feet from where all the action took place.  The only problem for me was that the sound wasn’t designed to hit the corners,  so when there was a lot of laughter you couldn’t hear the next line very well.  It was all good though (now come on, there was laughter – I just meant that I had to concentrate to hear… anyway).

The Burkett’s came and got the seats next to us, and the Kiernan’s arrived too.  But by then some boys had taken a few of our “reserved” seats and plus it was a challenge to decide to sit so far off center.  Emily came down and sat with us though.  Everybody said they could see and hear fine where the were.

Tim had another guy up first.  He did a good job.  I really appreciated his point that he felt bad for doctors and lawyers, because when they get to heaven (if they do – in the case of lawyers ), there won’t be much for them to do.   That probably applies to computer nerds too.  Maybe I should take up gardening (and not the Facebook variety).

Tim did a great job.  He even previewed his Candyman take off.  He’s kind of a home town version of Weird Al with his spoofs of popular songs.  It was a fun time.

Afterwards, we stopped off at Dairy Queen for a little dessert and then headed on home.  We’ll definitely keep an eye out for the next time he comes into town.  He’s lives around here, so I would think he’d do local shows more often – we’ll see.

It was a long time coming…

There were threats, counter threats, and promises made.  But it came down to this…

There would be a water gun showdown.  Dr. Eddie not only took all comers, but he also mixed it up personally.  It was a cloudy and rainy afternoon on July 12th when all sides gathered together.  After a “last meal,” everyone headed outside and commenced to fightin’.  Usually things were pretty spread out.  There was one instance where the wrestling got knotted up when Joshua challenged Eddie.

As you can see – there was only one slide at the beginning.  Here is some video from my phone – the quality is not too bad, but it’s not going to be shown at any film festivals this fall… (Umm, note – your sound is not broken – there was nothing to hear until the very end where Nathan comes inside. Although a few shouts and shrieks can be heard through the glass.)

If you watched the video to the end, you know that Nathan came in freezing (did you see how my camera made his little penguin walk just that much funnier? The camera got weirded out there at the end.). But I dried him off and we watched from inside for a while. I took more video, but I am only posting the best of the best so as not to bore y’all.

These shenanigans went on for quite some time. I was tired of standing and went off to sit down. During that time, Nathan could no longer stand it and headed back out in his dry clothes. He had been quietly watching, so I didn’t hear him slip out. In the mean time the fight had been reduced to trying out a “bigger, better” slip-N-slide.

And here is some final video of sliding folks. You can also see Nathan rolling his “bowling ball” all along the way. He does get a little peeved when “Kay Kay” jams up the traffic.

Thus ends our tale of Hydrogen Hydroxide induced destruction, for now.

There were many more fun and exciting happenings this summer, including VBS, the kids going to Tim Hawkins, and stuff like that. I’ll get to them soon (maybe post one more tonight when I get home from work ).

I know you’re starving for more scoop on the happenings around here – blame it on the chronicler. (Oh, and happy birthday, Mom! Hope to catch you some time today!)

Here is how we like to celebrate Independence Day. This is a little tradition brought about by necessity. Since we’ve had small children for over a decade, it seems that someone is always uncomfortable with the loud fireworks displays. But fireworks beyond what you can light in your yard have been a part of my 4th since the Music Man band and VP fair of the mid 80′s. So we’ve found a compromise. We normally head out around 9:20 or 9:30 for Steak-N-Shake. We order milkshakes and sit on a hill and watch 3-4 different displays: Hazelwood, Florissant, and Maryland Heights. All from a kid friendly distance. We get there just in time for the big finally. Forget the warm-ups, we just want to be dazzled. (Hannah discovered this year that we weren’t there from the beginning and was complaining that Mommy and Daddy had been tricking the kids!  The jig is up!)  That’s just about enough time to finish off the shake and get in the car and go home. Mission accomplished: total celebration in about 1 hour. You couldn’t do better if you produced it for reality TV!

This year was a little different. We were invited to visit with some friends who happened to live about a mile from a Steak-N-Shake… how convenient! So we parked at the destination and headed out on foot.

Here’s a view from the back of the pack.

Notice that Dad wore a long sleeve shirt? Some folks just don’t know how to check the weather…
Hmm – looks like Mommy and Hannah were lallygagging.

As we were passing by the school, we noticed that they had buses running as shuttles down to the fireworks display. Being homeschooled, our kids have never been on “the big yellow bus” that I’ve personally logged the equivalent of more than a few months on. Gotta capture this for posterity.

Hannah just looks like one of the kids from Jr. high (or middle school these days).

Unfortunately the bus couldn’t go down the street we needed so we drove past our destination and had to walk back. When we got out, there were about 20 people waiting to get on. But Dad had to take pictures anyway, what a dork.

Hannah said, “No press!” and Nathan couldn’t quite make that big step at the bottom.

Caleb is always ready to contemplate the significance of the moment though.

We got to our friends’ house and spent some time visiting and eating some of the food that was piled up around the place.  There was plenty for all.  I had a big heap of cherries that were yummy. When it was dark and fireworks were getting ready, we walked back and ordered our shakes. By the time we laid out our blanket, some rain started to sprinkle down. “It’s only a sprinkle, Dad.” Hannah informed me. I said, “When it’s coming down pretty good, I’ll remind you that you said ‘just a sprinkle’.” By the time the fireworks started a decent rain was coming down. Hannah volunteered to slip down to the van and get the cool golf umbrella that Laura got me for my birthday a year or two ago. The hill was so wet that she could barely walk back up with flip flops in the mud.

Laura and Nathan had retreated to the van. Joshua was melting as his legs were getting soaked – but with Daddy’s big umbrella we could mostly stay under it.

I tried to get an arms length shot while laying along the side of the blanket. Who needs fireworks pictures when you can see fireworks observers!

Hey, I just found a post from last year’s 4th of July! The more things change, the more they stay the same. I guess we’re pretty boring after all.

Tonight Laura took Caleb and Nathan with her and went to talk about getting ready for VBS at the end of July. I was tasked with taking Hannah to the Library to do some crazy shirt painting exercise. It was going to take an hour, so I just stayed and read a portion of a Thomas Sowell book.

Joshua didn’t want to go with mom, and he thought he be bored with me. So he got to stay home – alone. Our neighbors down the street knew the situation, so they were available if needed.

This is how kids grow up you see. Nothing eventful happened. And with that the month of June fades away.

Say it ain’t so!

After dad being adamant about not wanting the mess or the expense (for upkeep and additional home repairs…) of having a pet, mommy caved when she say the dwarf hamster owned by her work out buddy. So about a week ago (I guess I should be more accurate since we have a 14 day return policy that is running out fast!!), Laura took the kids to PetSmart and purchased a vermin with a cage to put it in.

I would show you a picture, but I don’t think anyone has thought to take one yet, and at this time of the morning “Helio” is still buried in the shavings at the bottom of the cage. I do have a picture of a rodent that looks very similar – only this one was in a trap… remember?
(I have pictures of that one, but as we said before – they probably aren’t for public viewing)

As you have probably guessed, I’m not enthusiastic about this turn of events.  My view of pets is that they are a great oportunity to teach children the life object lesson of what death means.  Pets die, and we get to tell our children about that reality.  And that’s a valuable lesson to learn, especially as they become teen-agers and think they are imortal. ( Bible quote )

Caleb comes down first thing in the morning and checks on Helio.  Joshua likes to let him run up and down his arms.  He and Laura enjoy sticking it under my nose while I’m working at the computer – there must be some enjoyment out of that.  I get none.

Wouldn’t have just been easier to just adopt the squirrels already in our attic?   Everybody else is happy with the decision, so there it stands.  Even Hannah has purchased some garden gloves so she can hold Helio and not be concerned about rodent defecation touching her delicate skin.  You can never be too careful.

Tags: dwarf hamster, Helio, pet

It took us a while to get some audio together, but it’s here now.  This episode features the debut of Laura – she’s on the last segment, so you’ll have to listen all the way through.  This episode is a little longer than the others (17 minutes).

Let us know what you think by leaving us a comment.  Remember, it takes a while to have comments approved – so if they don’t show up right away, don’t sweat it … they will.

Tags: thekelseys podcast

Just wanted to share this tale before too much time has gone by.  While we were at Campmeeting at the beginning of the month, the three older kids were staying with me in a small dorm room.  We had two keys between us.  We shared them as needed.

It was Caleb’s turn to hold the key between some meetings.  He had it in his shirt pocket and was jumping around through the grass when it bounced out.  He couldn’t find it and he came and told me as much.  We retraced his steps, but found nothing.  I even found out that the science teacher who lived across the street had a metal detector.  We went and borrowed it and went searching for “treasure hidden in a field.”  As people passed they would ask what we were looking for.  One friend, Winston, asked if we had prayed to find it yet.  I said we hadn’t and that I would wait until all my children could be there to pray.  So when we were all there, we did have a little prayer to find the lost key.

Then we went back to searching and found nothing until it was dinner time.  For the last few days of meetings we just got used to the routine with one key.  On the last day, when we were cleaning up our room – no you didn’t guess it, it wasn’t that easy.  I lost the other key!!!

The kids just told me to pay the fines and move on.  I was just too embarrassed to do that.  I had them leave the room so I could tear it from one side to the other.  I found it in one of my pants pockets.  So I put the room back together and then headed over to the registration area to turn in my one key.

When I got there and I told them what room I had, they turned to me and said.  “Oh, one of the featured musical guests at campmeeting found your key on the way to dinner last night and just turned in your key.”  He was still standing nearby so I thanked him and told him that my son would feel much better knowing that he hadn’t caused his dad to be charged for the key.

When we all got in the van to go home, I told Caleb and the others what had happened.

His eyes got real wide and he said, “So God DID answer our prayer!”  Now that’s a faith builder!

If you’ve been keeping up with us – last summer I mowed our lawn with a push rotary mower.  It was quite a work out, but Laura wasn’t real pleased with the results.  So this summer (May 8th in fact… how do I know that?  Read on) Laura went and got a Craftsman lawn mower from our local Sears Appliance & Hardware store on N. Lindbergh.

The third time I used it was yesterday.  That would be June 10th – 32 days after our purchase.  When I came across this:

Is that not clear enough?  How about this…

Well, after that little contact with my mower, the shaft got bent and it was all over.  We figured we’d have to buy another lawn mower (and leave the two broken ones in the back of the shed).  I was talking to my mom on Skype and she said that I should call Sears and try to buy the warranty post mortum.  I figured, “what could it hurt?”

So I called and talked to Ashley.  She told me that you can, in fact, buy the warranty up to 30 days after your purchase.  That’s how we discovered that it had been 32 days.  She also told me that the main shaft wasn’t under the warranty or any extended warranty.  She paused for a moment and asked if she could call me back in 10 minutes while she called her manager.  When she called back, she said that they would do an even swap for a new mower.  When Laura got home from her work out, we scooted over there and made the trade.

I finished the lawn this evening.  Sears Hardware is now my favorite hardware store.  That’ll be where I stop by when looking for all things hardware.  See how being treated well can change your actions and outlooks?

So be nice to somebody and see what a difference it can make.

It’s been gray and dreary all day.  There have been sprinkles off and on.  Of course a day like today is just perfect for Hannah to pack up and take off with her Pathfinder club for a weekend of camping at Spring Camporee.  Well, she won’t be alone.  There will probably be a couple hundred kids trying to put up tents to ward off the dampness for the weekend.

I would much prefer that over the 2nd degree burns she had across her eye brows and cheeks last year just from forgetting to bring sunscreen (and being so fair skinned that she’s almost translucent – some genes we’ve provided her, huh?).

So this weekend it’s just mama and the boys.

Just over a week ago Laura returned from her journey to Maine.  She surprised her folks and got to spend some time talking with her brother.  Not to mention the opportunity to drive through New York City on her way up.  I mean, does it get any better than that?  If we can get organized around here, maybe we’ll do some interviews about our experiences and pull them together into a podcast episode for you.

Caleb had a cyst removed from his palm last weekend and it’s healing really well so far.  We also recently discovered that he’s going to need glasses.  Caleb has all the interesting things happen to him.  He leads a life of adventure.

Joshua still clings to his guitar and I have the phone numbers of some teachers.  We just have to get to calling around and get him going with some lessons.

Nathan is talking more and more.  When I come home from work, he’s the one who greets me.  He wants to have something to say so bad that usually it’s just some jumbled thoughts or maybe a question.  When he gets real tongue tied he falls back to the old faithful, “I nub you dad.”  You can’t go wrong with “I love you.”

And for me, things are crazy at work trying to figure out how thing work around there and getting acclimated.  My accountant called and said they noticed that my income for the 1st quarter of 2009 has been “erratic.”  Uh, that’s because I didn’t have any invoices in December and all but the last week of January.  That’ll make your business a little unstable.  So hopefully my current assignment will stay steady through 2009, regardless of how shaky it feels.

I’m also trying to work on some software on the side – a class assignment planner for homeschoolers that they could access over the Internet.  It’s coming along, but not as fast as I’d like.  Does that sound like something you’d be interested in?  Let me know, it’ll spur me on to get it done.  We really want to develop an online homeschooling community, called Barnabas Way (check out our blog at http://barnabasway.com/blog ).  I’m looking for two homeschooling families that would like to be beta testers and help jump start our community.  Again – speak up if you or someone you know is interested.

That just about covers life with the Kelsey’s at the end of April of 2009.  Thanks for stopping in to see what’s up.