First off, I’d like to wish a Happy Birthday to my brother Erik. He turns 27 today and is celebrating by leaving these below-freezing temperatures and heading down to California to "network" with Randy.

We celebrated Erik’s birthday last night with some kick butt chicken casseroles (courtesy of my lovely wife Lis, and my Mom). We didn’t do much, watched the news, flipped to a different channel, watched the news some more, and finally watched more of the news. That’s what happens when Dad controls the remote.

Unfortunately, we didn’t do too much for Erik. He had to get up early for his plane ride plus my parent’s had to drive back to their house and on the ice-covered roads that lead them there.

That’s right ice-covered roads.

It’s freezing here – literally.

It all started on Monday, take that back, it was actually Sunday when the snow started to come. It blanketed the yard and the car and by morning had disappeared from the rain. Monday afternoon that rain turned into light flurries of snow (thanks to all the news watching I’m getting all the snow adjectives down). It wasn’t sticking but it was still fun to look at as I sat inside the office at work.

On Monday I went home for lunch and as I was leaving the flurries turned into hail and 10 minutes later Mother Nature was dumping snow on us. That ended for a couple of hours but right around 3:30pm or the time when people begin to make the commute home it dumped again and this time it was sticking and this time people were slipping and sliding. People abandoned cars on the interstate, I watched as the traffic in our little town began to get more and more backed up and I watched as the aid car and fire truck whizzed by me three or four times.

At 5:30pm I had had enough. I packed up my things, walked out the back door and straight into a blizzard. Okay, maybe it wasn’t that severe, but I was running out of adjectives to use, plus blizzard is probably the closest way I can describe what was going on. Two to three inches of snow had covered my car, the snow flakes were coming at you from every which way (trust me, I couldn’t dodge them), and I had to wipe off my windshield, rear window and my hood before I could make the jump to hyperspeed. Now for those of you that have driven in the snow at night and are also a fan of Star Wars (I’m sure there are a few of you out there), then you know that driving in the snow at night, with the flakes flying at you, resembles the Millennium Falcon making the jump to hyperspeed. And all the Star Wars geeks said, "Represent!"

It was actually fun driving in the snow. Not because I felt like Han Solo commanding the greatest space ship in movie history, but because I had my 4-wheel drive going, I didn’t slip too much and the snow just made everything look pretty outside.

The rest of Monday night I spent "oohing" and "ahhing" at the snow. "Wow, look how much snow we’ve gotten!" "Wow, it’s still snowing!" "Wow, it’s so cool outside!" "Wow, I wanna go and play football outside!" "Wow, can I take Lukas outside to play?!" Yah, I drove Lis crazy.

Lukas wasn’t allowed to go outside and play because he had a cough that sounded like a bark from a seal and a runny nose and Lis wasn’t having it. Just because she’s a Mom and has those motherly instincts she thinks she knows best. C’mon! We wanted to wrestle in the snow.

I ended up spending the rest of the night resting my head on my hands, leaning on the windowsill and peering outside.

Tuesday we woke up to find the snow still on the ground! Whoohoo! The Boss Lady called to tell me she would be late coming into work. Me, living just a couple miles away, decided to brave the snow and head for work. You all know me, I love my job, can’t miss a day.

Once I got out to the car and attempted to wipe off the snow I thought to myself, maybe this isn’t such a good idea. The four inches of snow became 2½ inches of snow and 1½ inches of ice. So I spent my commute time (and more) deicing my car.

Lis allowed Lukas to help me with the deicing and we both spent a few minutes dancing in the snow. Thanks Honey Bunny!

Cute Note: On Sunday, when the snow had first appeared Lukas was saying "nows" pronounced "nose" for the snow. On Monday it became "snow", thus making me happy that my kid isn’t trying to learn a third language…pig latin.

The drive to work was a slippery one. I tried to make a stop at a stop sign and slid a few feet. Then watched as cars fishtailed their way down Main Street.

Work was peaceful for the most part. I convinced the Boss Lady that there was no need to come into work. The roads were awful and it was slow so there was no point in coming out.

I stayed until about 2pm, had lunch with my folks, and went home to hang out with the family. Lukas was happy to see me when he woke up from his afternoon nap, asking "Daddy?" when I went to check if he was awake.

That evening my Grandparents and Erik came over, along with my Parents, for dinner and to celebrate Erik’s birthday and just like that we’re back to the second paragraph of this entry.

Today the Boss Lady and I manned the office. The roads are still covered in ice and more snow is expected tonight. I was supposed to cover a girl’s basketball game but school is cancelled so I get another night with the family before I begin working my night shifts at the newspaper. I’m scheduled to work Thursday through Saturday.

Some of you might wonder how Lis is doing. In my prior entry I mentioned that she wasn’t feeling well. She ran a fever for a night, which always makes us extra cautious, and her back was aching along with her throat. She didn’t eat much on Wednesday and Thursday and Friday, after she had another fever, we decided to take her to the doctors. With her we always take a "better safe and sorry" approach. Not taking the chances we did before where for a month and a half we wondered why bruises were appearing all over her body and she was unusually tired and sick.

Anyway, the diagnosis was strep throat, which meant no kissing for a few days. "Darnit!" for me, "Whoohoo!" for Lis. She didn’t have to feel my goatee for a few days. Maybe I should use conditioner.

She’s doing well now, we’re just freezing our buttocks off and trying to weather the storm.

Let me get a show of hands for those of you that thought Thanksgiving sneaked up on us this year. Okay you can put your hands down I can’t really see you.

Yah, for me it felt like Thanksgiving just magically appeared out of no where. Maybe it’s because a week and a half ago we were in California basking in the sun and having a good time at the Lake’s wedding. Or maybe it’s because Thanksgiving is not the last week of November, which wouldn’t make sense because Thanksgiving was on the 24^th last year and this year is on the 23^rd. Or maybe it’s because I’ve been busy with both jobs that time is just flying by. Or maybe, just maybe, it doesn’t matter because it’s here and I don’t do any of the cooking anyway.

This Thanksgiving will be one year since I last saw my Uncle Jeff, and for those of you that follow my family through my blog, that will forever be the last time I saw my Uncle Jeff. Last year he spent Thanksgiving with us. He was going through some marital problems and ended up living with my parent’s for a few days while things got sorted out. Fortunately for me that time was during the Thanksgiving holiday, which meant I got to see UJ. I didn’t know it would be the last time I saw him. Sadly, he passed away five months later and that’s all I’m going to say about that because I’m beginning to feel a bit emotional. Probably because it was the last time I saw him and I wish I would’ve said more, or would’ve seen him more in the five months that followed.

That is not one of the things that I’ve thankful for. Here are five things I’m thankful for:

I love my son. He’s funny, he laughs at my jokes and he "gets" me and my sense of humor, which is a hard thing to do. I can pretend to open a door in my face, or trip on my shoelace and he’ll bust up laughing. He loves Star Wars, knows the characters and loves to watch the movies with me. And at this age he’s picking things up so quickly. It’s amazing watching him learn the two languages (English and Portuguese) and keep us guessing on which one he’s speaking more of. He also has quite the imagination and can play by himself with his cars for hours, having them wrestle, or talk to each other or having them be chased by a giant alligator. He brings a smile and laughter to my life every single day (and those with teenagers say…"Wait until he’s 14")

Okay, so I love my wife and I love my son, but I also love my family (parents, grandparents and brothers). We always have a ton of fun together as a family - especially now that we’re older. I remember years ago, at my cousin’s wedding (2001) in San Diego, thinking about how much fun I have with my family. I had more fun with them than I did with my friends. I remember people telling my parent’s about how much fun my brothers and I were to be around and they also told us that they could tell that my brothers and I are very close and where one goes, the other goes too. Flash ahead five years later and again we’re partying at a wedding and hanging out together, nothing’s changed in those five years, except our weight (and I’m married now).

People tend to take their family for granted. Everyone has rough times in their family lives. There was a time when I was upset with my Dad. But we’ve moved on. You forgive and forget, because if you don’t you’re not going to have a family to stand by. I stand by my family, and love that we have a strong core with my Grandparents, Parents, brothers and now Lis, Lukas and I. I hope to continue to build on that as Lukas gets older. I’m also thankful for my in-laws for they were built on the same foundation as we were. They understand family and stand by their family.

Though I’m married now and have fewer friends, I’m still thankful for the ones that I have and that have stuck by me through Lis’ illness. I’m not going to name names but if you read through my past blog entries you’ll know who my close and good friends are.

Kind of goes hand-in-hand right? Lis and I slowly continue to get into the rhythm of going to church every Sunday and I think its going to get easier. We just got a new music director at our church and the music is great. Upbeat, fun, and it makes me want to sing – out loud! We’ve also gotten new youth directors, which is good for the kids and it just feels like there is a new life to our church. We’ve always had a great Pastor and a loving and caring church family and now we’ve got good music and youth leadership. And for the first time in a long time I’m excited to go to church.

I guess that’s it. There are plenty of things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Food, money, a roof to sleep under, but that’s just a few personal things that stick out in my mind. Happy Thanksgiving everyone and don’t eat too much turkey…ahh, who I am kidding! Gobble, Gobble!

This past weekend (Nov. 10 – 13) we flew down to California to make a surprise guest appearance at a wedding of a longtime friend. They didn’t know we’d be coming. We received the invitation, marked "six" and sent it down to my Aunt and Uncle in San Diego for them to send back to the soon-to-be bride and groom.

The groom is the son of my Mom’s high school buddy and her best friend, Jane. Jane and my Mom had three sons that were all very close in age. Chris, the groom, was the oldest then me, Erik, Jane’s second son Josh, Randy and Jane’s third son Tim. Jane later had a fourth son, Thomas, but that was not until about 10 years later when we were no longer hanging out together.

So, as you can tell, we all pretty much grew up together, with the six of us tagging along with our mom’s while they went shopping for purses, shoes or whatever. They tease us about how they tried on wigs and embarrassed us. We remember times when we acted like mannequins in a store window, when the pool Chris’ dad filled up exploded seconds later, leaving Timmy standing there with a floatie around his waist. And the time at the circus when Erik fell through the bleachers and landing about eight feet down and onto the circus dirt and a clown running up to him to see if he was alright. They joke about whose kids were the most rambunctious, with Jane pointing fingers at my Mom and vice versa. Unfortunately, Jane always trumps my Mom by just saying the name "Randy".

Though we were close as kids we later grew apart. It wasn’t until Jane and Chris surprised me by showing up for my graduation in 1995, that we became friends again. Whenever the six of us get together we always have a good time and act like we’ve been friends forever. I guess we have.

So when we received the invitation for Chris’ wedding we knew we had to go. They (Jane and her sons) and shown up for every one of our high school graduations. We had to repay the favor and do it with some style.

We arrived in California on Friday. My Dad, Erik and I flew down to Burbank to meet my Mom, Lis, and Lukas, who drove down on Thursday in the Tahoe. Since Lukas is over 2-years of age we have to pay full price for a ticket, yah that sucks, so we figured it out and decided for us to be able to go then Lis and Lukas would have to drive down with my Mom. After gas prices, food, and not having to rent a car it actually game out cheaper and Mom was all excited, she’s a big fan of road trips and she got to travel with her favorite daughter-in-law and grandson. I’m not sure how their trip went. They both said, "fine" but I wonder what they really think…hehe. I do know that Lukas got a little carsickness and barfed while watching a movie.

Lis, Lukas and my Mom met up with Randy earlier in the day and got to have dinner with him and his rommate Evan. Then they (minus Evan) drove to the airport to pick us up. Dad had bought Erik and I three rounds of drinks so we were feeling pretty good, which made it easier to take Mom’s nervous behavior.

She was all over my Dad (not in the good way) by the time he sat down in the Tahoe. She has her agenda (she’s the kind of person that packs two months before a vacation) and he was adjusting things without asking for prior approval. She wanted us up and out of the hotel by 8am; my Dad was still in bed at that time. Not a good sign. Mostly though I think she was nervous. She was going to see her friend for the first time in six years and she wanted the surprise to go off without a hitch.

And it did. We fought through the traffic and made it to the hotel with enough time to grab some Wendy’s, change our clothes, iron our clothes (that’s right Lis!) and get to the wedding in enough time to grab the shuttle. We did spot Jane and she was slowly making her way through the clumps of people and headed our way. It began to get intense. The shuttles weren’t back yet and she was coming. She then mingled into the group of people waiting for the shuttle next to us. Was she going to notice? (Can you feel the intensity?!?) The shuttles arrived and the minute they opened the doors we leaped inside them. So we may have cut in line, but at least the surprise was intact!

We arrived at the place where the ceremony was going to be held. As we walked down the pathway we heard Josh, from a distance, say "Ken?" They had spotted us. We greeted them, congratulated Chris and told them that their Mom didn’t know so keep it on the down low. It wasn’t until after the ceremony that she would find out.

The ceremony was nice. Unfortunately the speakers went out so we only got to hear bits and pieces of the vows. We also couldn’t tell when we were praying. It was like doing the wave, if the people in front of you were bowing their heads, then you bowed your heads. I kept peaking up to see when they said "Amen".

Afterwards my Mom finally caught up with her buddy. They kissed, embraced and chatted it up. My Mom was finally relieved. She had surprised her friend and was now able to relax. It was like a high school reunion for her. She got to see Jane’s family, Jane’s ex-husbands family, and other people she hadn’t seen in ages. She was happy, which made us happy.

The place the ceremony was held was beautiful. It was at a golf course but held faraway from the clubhouse (thus the shuttles) in a secluded area that had nice bushes. There was a little cabin where the bride came from and where the food would later be housed. The drinks were good, though spendy (again, thanks Dad for feeding my addiction to C & V), but later they put two bottles of wine on every table and Lis was able to let loose a side of her I’ve only seen two other times. Oh yah, it was an adult occasion so Lukas was not invited. This is where I give an extra shout out:

** Thanks cousin Stephanie for watching Lukas. We really appreciated it and it really allowed us to relax and not have to worry about getting home to Lukas. I hope you enjoyed your time with him, he enjoyed playing with Kody and hanging out with you guys. Thanks again! **

The rest of the ceremony was great. After the toasts from the best man and maid of honor the DJ walked around to every table and asked if someone wanted to talk. Jane pointed to my Mom, who said something and then passed the mic to me and my brothers. We all said a little something. I choked under the pressure. The minute the DJ walked away I thought of a million things to say, okay maybe not a million, just a few. Anyway, here goes…

** Congratulations Chris and Andee. Thank you for inviting us to your wedding we’re glad we could play a part in your memorable day. I’ve known Chris for 29-years and even though we were never close I still consider him one of my dear friends. He’s even a defensive end on my Nintendo GameCube game. I guess we’re more like cousins. When the six of us get together we always hit it off and have a good time like it’s been just weeks since we’ve last seen each other. I look forward to keeping in touch with you and to watching your marriage grow. It’s a fun and sometimes tough journey but you guys will do great! Congrats! **

The rest of the night we spent dancing, mingling, drinking, joking around, drinking, meeting new people, drinking, dancing, drinking, and making people laugh. We were pretty funny Randy.

Never one to shy away or even leave early from a party, we stayed until the very end, helped carry out some flowers and left the ceremony feeling good. All six of us (Parents, Lis, my brothers and I) had a fun time.

That evening my cousin said she was going to leave and that she was meeting someone at the hotel. We told her to stick around, we wanted to party some more. I asked who she was meeting, her boyfriend? She just laughed. Randy joked that Uncle Steve was going to be there. And lo and behold he was lurking in the hallway. He and his family and driven from Arizona to meet us there. He had talked about it before but then said he wasn’t going to make it. Silly guy!

He followed Randy into my parent’s room. He stood next to my Mom and she didn’t even notice him. Lis said, "What the heck?!?", my Dad said "What are you doing here?" and my Mom finally turned around and noticed her brother standing there. It was a nice surprise for her. We had no idea.

The following day my friend Dennis and his wife and baby daughter met up with us. We all, my Uncle’s family included, had lunch at Applebee’s then we, minus my Uncle’s family, went to Tom’s Farm to walk around a bit. Unfortunately, Lukas was zonked and wasn’t able to see the animals, train and everything else. But it was still fun to hang out with my friend, his wife and meet his first child.

On Monday Randy took us around Hollywood. We visited with his roomies one last time - I mean mingled with the stars – then we went to the Griffiths Park Observatory (where they filmed such movies as "Rebel Without a Cause", "Terminator", "Dragnet", "Jurassic Park", and the classic "Bowfinger"). The observatory was closed for renovation but we got a nice view of the landmark Hollywood sign.

Later Randy took us to the Grove shopping center where we had lunch. Lis and I ate at a Brazilian restaurant, Erik and Randy had Japanese and my Dad had Greek. Lukas had a bit of everything.

That evening Erik, Dad and I flew home and Lis, Lukas, Mom with Randy tagging along made the trek back home.

It was a short and eventful weekend filled with lots of fun and adventure. I got home and I was exhausted and cold! The weather in California was a comfortable 75-degrees. Back in Washington we were lucky to hit 55. At least the flooding had subsided.

Just a little blurb to say that I haven’t forgotten about my blog and I do hope to write in it very soon. I’m just extremely busy with both jobs right now and haven’t had a chance to write, let alone breathe.

We have a new gal at the insurance place so I’ve been training her along with trying to keep up with my regular duties. I'm now 27 files deep in work with no end in sight.

The newspaper job meanwhile has me working four days a week and covering sporting events directly after work. Last Saturday I spent 11 hours covering a cross-country meet. This Saturday I’m covering two events, volleyball in the afternoon, football at night. So the last thing I want to do on my day off is sit in front of a computer and write.

Hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween. Lukas was a little tiger and enjoyed chasing us around while making the tiger sounds. Lis and I suited up in our Ghostbusters outfits and went to a couple of parties. It was nice to go party-hopping with my wife, plus her friend Fernanda and Fernanda’s boyfriend Lance.