October 2021

The month started out with an award. I was nominated by one of my patients. My co-workers all came back and clapped for me because they had to cancel the award ceremony due to COVID precautions. The certificate came with a paper that told who nominated me and what they said about me. It was very nice to read what they had said.

The kids with an early morning soccer game. They were happy to have Grandma and Grandpa there to watch them play.

Immediately after their soccer games were over we drove about a mile down the road to get to their cross country meet. This was the first meet that both kids were able to attend. I wasn't able to stay for it because I needed to get to the UK game for my recruiting gig. Jennifer and my parents stayed to cheer them on. Not the most ideal situation coming straight from a soccer match, but they both worked hard.

What a great night for UK Football! Kentucky finally beat Florida at home. After the win the crowd rushed the field and the whole place was going crazy. All of us golf cart drivers had to get a picture to commemorate the moment. I also ran into a co-worker from Dance Blue Clinic, Mrs. Kara. 

The next weekend the kids both participated in the city championship. Both kids did really well, but Landon had an issue in the opening seconds of the race. As he darted out with the pack at the opening gun he slipped and fell. He was playing catch up the rest of the race. I am proud of him and his effort. We will continue to work on it and see what can happen with some more training. He loves to run so we are going to keep going until he doesn't like it anymore. We were so glad to be able to run with the school. Their school is full of a bunch of great kids, especially this bunch of kids. 

Next sport up was rec league softball. The Hornets was a group made up of half the travel softball girls and some new friends. This was Brinley's first time playing softball so there were a lot of new rules that we had to learn together. She sometimes doesn't want to listen to me, but I love helping out. So when her coach asked me to help out of course I said yes. 

Brinley got invited to a birthday party for her teammate on both softball teams, Aubrey. They played for a couple hours together at D-Bats. While they were playing we took Landon out to lunch and let him pick. Of course he chose Goodfellas! The little guy loves their breadsticks and marinara sauce.

Landon had played with the same group of kids for the past 4 seasons of soccer. They all decided to get together one night and go watch the UK Men's Soccer team play a match. The kids mostly played on the hill while the parents watched the match. Brinley and Landon had a blast.

I had a friend at work that offered me tickets to Big Blue Madness. After I took the tickets I found out that my wife had to work. So I passed them on to another co-worker. The next day my friend came back and said she had some more tickets for me. I took this as a sign that I just needed to go. Surprisingly the kids were excited about going. We made it and had a lot of fun. The kids enjoyed all the extra stuff going on. 

Landon has been working on his baseball skills as well. He has put in a lot of work and he has gotten so much better. 

Olivia turned 3 and her birthday party was at the Columbus Zoo. We weren't going to be able to make it because both the kids had soccer games and Brinley had a softball tournament. However, we had a ton of rain and all the games got cancelled. The kids were excited to be able to make it to her birthday party. Olivia had a lot of friends that came to play at the zoo with her. They were also having Boo at the Zoo so the kids decided to wear their costumes so they could get some candy. 

Olivia loves the giraffes, so everyone that came to the party got to feed the giraffes. These three are becoming pros because they have done it almost every time they have been at the zoo. I am honestly just surprised the giraffes aren't tired of plain lettuce leaves.

If you have ever met Olivia then you know that this little lady loves to celebrate birthdays and a must have for a celebration is cake! The kids even helped us put together her play kitchen that she got for her birthday.

On Olivia's actual birthday we all went out to COSI - the Center of Science and Industry. The kids hadn't been there since the pandemic started. When that had happened we were actually members. Since they had been closed for a lot of the pandemic they still let us use our membership which was really nice. Everyone had a lot of fun exploring and seeing some of their favorite things from before. Brinley got picked out of the crowd to be the official scorekeeper for a game of rat basketball, yes actual rats played a game of hoops. Rather weird, but neat all at the same time.

The whole crew at COSI. This was the first time that the Maitland's got to visit the museum.

Fall ball came to a close and Landon racked up another game ball. We took a picture with his buddy Eli. They were so happy to see each other at summer camp on their first day. It was a pleasant surprise and made Landon love going to summer camp. We are excited to that Eli will be on our team again when spring ball starts up again.

I had to take a picture of Brinley one day as we were leaving Costco. The person who checks your cart and receipt when you leave usually draws a smiley face for the kids. The lady today drew Brinley and put a mask on her face. I just hope that someday soon we can get rid of these masks, but until then we will protect ourselves and family.

With the surge of COVID cases we made the difficult decision to cancel our Pediatric Cancer Survivor Picnic. This is the second year in a row that we have had to do this. That is two years that we haven't been able to celebrate with these awesome kids and their families. We put together care packages for all the kids that signed up and tried to make the best of a difficult situation. Our group is so hopeful that we will be able to be back together next year. We will never stop loving our patients and praying for them all. 

Brinley had her first travel softball tournament. The girls were very excited to finally be playing a game together. The only problem was that their lack of experience and pitching depth really showed. At the end of the day they had a lot of fun together and hopefully gained some valuable experience. It was really frustrating at times because there was no run limits so a couple of times the other team just kept on scoring and we barely even got a chance to bat. Brinley had two at bats over the three games. First at bat she struck out looking and the coach mentioned in the post game talk that we do not strike out looking. Brinley thought coach was singling her out and she completely shut down and wouldn't talk and was getting teary. I had a big talk with her and told her that it was ok. It was her first time in live action and being pitched to by another kid. She rebounded and in her next at bat she grounded out to the pitcher. I am proud of her for battling and getting her first hit.

We are extremely proud of our girl. She has really stepped out of her comfort zone and has been pushing herself. We still have a lot of work to do, but she is willing to put in the work so I will keep getting out there and helping her get better.

PumpkinMania at Transylvania was back again this year. We all wanted to go so we packed up and headed downtown. Brinley did a wolf howling at the moon, Landon did a skull, Jennifer did an owl, and I did an FTK. FTK stands for For The Kids. It is a saying that the students of DanceBlue (where I work) say to explain why they dance and raise money for the patients.

People have started sharing puzzles with me because they know how much I love them. My soon to be sister-in-laws parents (thanks Karla and Don) found this Monopoly puzzle for me to try. Doing the puzzle made me want to play a game of Monopoly, but then I decided it would take way too long. 

We were out of town for the DanceBlue 5K so we decided to run it the next day that Jennifer and I were both off. I actually ran mine the day of the race in the neighborhood at 11:00 pm with my headlamp. I ran it again with Jennifer and the kids. Landon and I ran together...well I tried to keep up with him. He destroyed me and kept getting so far in front of me and then turning around to come check to me. Brinley and Jennifer completed their race together.

At the kids routine check up with their doctor we mentioned that Landon occasionally has some episodes of wheezing in the spring or when he is sick. Just to make sure that every thing was ok she wanted us to follow up with pulmonology. I met Jennifer and Landon at the appointment and Landon did his PFT's (Pulmonary Function Test). The doctor was blown away with all the activities that Landon was able to do and couldn't believe that just days prior he was running a 5K. He said that he never gets patients coming in to see him that run, let alone 5K's. He said that every thing was great with his testing and that he wouldn't need any additional follow up. 

The UK Men's Basketball team had their first exhibition and Landon said he really wanted to go. They were playing Kentucky Wesleyan College, which is where my mother went to college. I had seen them play ball growing up just about 30 minutes from the college. We started out in my seats up top, but my friend Barb who was in the lower arena told me that some seats were open in front of her. We moved down to get a closer view of the game and Landon had to get an ice cream cone. We had a great time at the game and of course Kentucky won!

Brinley's soccer team had their final game cancelled so they decided to get together for a little celebration. These girls worked really hard this season and got a lot better both individually and as a team. It was a lot of fun to see them grow. 

Working in a children's hospital means that everyone is always looking to be as kid friendly as possible. The clinic also likes to have a theme when it comes to our Halloween costumes. This year we decided on Toy Story. We had a lot of great costumes from all the staff. We had characters across all four of the movies. The kids loved it and were happy to see everyone all dressed up.

The hospital does a reverse trick or treat with all the kids in the hospital. Usually all the staff in the clinic get to attend, but again because of the pandemic we had to limit our staff to just a couple of people. I of course volunteer to go give candy out to the patients. I took Rex with me because who doesn't love Rex!

We finally cut our pumpkins at the house. Jennifer did a Frankenstein, I did the Harry Potter logo, Landon did a Pikachu, and Brinley did a Hogwarts castle. We also went to a couple of trunk or treats so that we could get our use out of our costumes. If you can't tell we are all characters from Harry Potter. 

We had a lot of fun trick or treating in the neighborhood. Mimi came and watched the kids run all over the place getting all kinds of candy. It was such a beautiful night with great weather. They couldn't wait to get home and start eating all that candy. 

I think Jennifer did a really great job coming up with all of our costumes. Only true fans of Harry Potter knew who we all were. Everyone could figure out Landon as Harry Potter, which then led them to figure out Hagrid. Jennifer was harder for people to figure out as Professor McGonagall. Only the true fans could figure out that Brinley was Luna Lovegood. 

Look at all that candy that the kids got. They were so pumped that 10 houses in the neighborhood gave out full sized candy bars. You would have thought that they were handing out gold the way that the kids were acting. I helped the kids sort out all the candy to see exactly what they got.

October was a lot of fun. It was jammed packed with sports of all kinds. If the kids weren't practicing or playing in a game, then we were out watching someone play. We got to do all the normal Halloween traditions that we have always done in the past. We were so happy to celebrate Olivia's birthday with little weekend trip up to Columbus. Thanks for reading and God Bless!

September 2021

September started off an amazing adventure. Since the pandemic started in early 2020 Jennifer had not been able to take any vacation time. When she finally got approved we knew that we had to go somewhere for all of our mental well being. So, we took the kids out of school (for the first time ever) and got approved for an educational trip. The kids kept a journal of all our adventures and Jennifer even checked out books to correlate to activities that we did every day. 

The first stop on our Northeast vacation was Niagara Falls. The kids had been here before but neither one of them remembered it. We decided to stay on the American side and actually do something I had never done before. Last time we went on the Maiden of the Mist, the boat that goes up to the falls. This time we walked the decks below the falls which is called The Cave of the Winds. We had no idea what we were getting into, but it should have been a clue when they gave us waterproof footwear and ponchos when you bought your ticket.

It was awesome! You really got to feel how powerful the falls really were because it was just a small part that was hitting the decks and you could barely even walk over to it. Brinley did not enjoy it because even with the rain gear she was getting soaked. Landon on the other hand loved it. He wanted to walk through it all again, so I took him back for a second round. 

Before leaving Buffalo we had to stop and get some wings. We didn't go to the original location, but we grabbed some wings from Anchor Bar, which is considered to have created the Buffalo wing. Brinley wanted to try them and she enjoyed it. Landon didn't want to partake in the messy wings. 

Last year we were supposed to be making this trip to the northeast to visit and celebrate with my Aunt Mildred. She turned 90 last year and it was just one of the other things that the pandemic canceled. We were excited to see them because it had been a few years since we had been able to see them. Randy, Sheila, and Nicky also came over to see us too. It was a nice little reunion. Landon really loved riding on the chair lift.

We sat and talked for hours and the kids took turns riding up and down the stairs. I just wish that we lived closer so the visits could happen more frequently.  

The next day we woke up in Vermont and headed down to a local hole in the wall cafe, Papa Pete's. They served pancakes the size of a pizza pan! It was huge and all four of us shared just one and we still didn't finish it. Our server offered up lots of great tips for things to do. We told her that we were looking into trying to find a local syrup farm. She gave us a bottle of Vermont's finest local syrup to take with us. We also discovered that we do not like corned beef hash. We also found a few local covered wooden bridges to explore. Then we headed out to our next adventure.

Some more pictures of us at the covered bridge and at a scenic overlook on our drive in Vermont. 

We found a local farm off the beaten path that we went to see. It was called Ross Family Farm. Mrs. Ross gave us a tour and explained the process of how they make the syrup. It really seemed like a lot of work, but man does that syrup taste delicious. 

We couldn't find anything that stood out to us as something to do in New Hampshire. Jennifer discovered a mountain that said it was mildly difficult to climb, Mt. Major. Our goal on this trip was to try and do as many things out in nature as possible because we were still living in the middle of a pandemic. It was a great hike and it had a lot of scrambling up the side of the mountain. The kids really enjoyed it. Which set us up well for the next few days of hikes. 

View from the top of Mt. Major and a rock that the kids enjoyed playing on top of.

The next day we were in Maine at Acadia National Park. We found out the night before going into the park that apparently all 4th graders get in free to all National Parks as part of a program trying to get children out to the parks. So, Brinley covered our 30 dollar admission into the park. We first drove around the park a little bit and even got out to take a short stroll around Jordan Pond. 

Then we headed over to one of my greatest hikes that I have ever been on. It is called the Beehive and it is literally the side of a mountain and you go through a series of switchbacks complete with rebar stairs and bridges. Jennifer was completely terrified and at times stayed on her knees and crawled to the next obstacle. The kids loved it. We had to tell Landon to slow down and wait for the rest of us. It was so much fun and it made it so much better because everyone (with the exception of Jennifer) loved it!

More pictures of our journey to the top of the Beehive. 

We explored more around Acadia National Park. The kids loved the hike along the coast of the Gulf of Maine and getting to see and hear the Thundering Hole. Brinley loved finding sea creatures in the little water holes in the rocks. We found thousands of snails and mussels. 

The next morning we got up early and headed out on a lobster boat tour. We pulled up four pods and caught about 10 lobsters, but were only able to find two keepers. We learned so much on this trip. Both kids measured to see if they were keepers and threw back the ones that weren't along with a ton of crabs that they caught. The bottom right picture shows a female lobster with all of her eggs under her tail. These females get marked with a notch in their tail so that they are never kept. This allows the lobster population to remain alive and well. 

Landon was hesitant to hold a lobster but we finally talked him into it. Brinley loved every second of it. She was volunteering to load the bait bag which consisted of shoving a metal rod through three fish (through their eyes). After Landon saw Brinley do it he said he wanted to do it too. I would highly recommend everyone that visits the northeast to go out on a lobster boat tour. 

Just a couple of pictures once we got back on land. Brinley found this huge lobster claw that she wanted a picture with. We all took turns being lobsters and the kids got a picture with all the buoy. Every boat has their own buoy color combination that they attach to their pods. All the other fishermen watch out for one another so that they don't get their stuff stolen.  

Boston was the next stop on the tour. We were planning on walking some of the Freedom Trail. We parked and walked up to the information center and the last tour of the the day was about to start. As we were waiting for it to start we saw a Coke representative handing out free sodas. The kids were so excited to try Coke, but I have a feeling that they have been sneaking sips of Jennifer's drinks for years.

Another thing that I would highly recommend would be the Freedom Trail tour with Jeramiah Poope, yes that is poop with an e. It was very informative and very entertaining. A lot of what they were talking about the kids had not yet learned about in school but they stayed at the front of the group and were very good listeners. After the tour we walked to a few more spots on the trail, like Old North Chruch.

We hadn't planned on going to Salem, MA but had some extra time so we stopped over to drive around town. I didn't think the history ghost tours would be something that the kids would enjoy so we just went around and visited a few places. The kids went into the stocks, Brinley posed with the Elizabeth Montgomery Bewitched statue, and we even saw the house from Hocus Pocus. The kids needed some time to run around so we stopped at a park and let them play for a little while.

Jennifer had heard about a donut shop that made donuts with potatoes, so of course we had to go check it out. They were ok, but nothing that made me want to go back for more. 

Another must do in the northeast is a whale watching tour. This was the second time that I had done one of these and it is crazy how large these animals really are. They come here every summer to bulk up and eat a lot before making their trip south for the winter. Both the kids had never seen whales before so they loved it. The two whales that we saw were named Ebony and Tripod. Whales all have a unique pattern on the underside of their fin that allows people to recognize who they are. It is like their fingerprint. 

The whales would come up a couple of times in a row. Then dive down for a few minutes. It was always fun trying to spot them when they came back up to the surface. 

A couple more pictures of us on our boat trip. The top left picture was my favorite whales that we saw. 

If there is anything in New England in abundance it is lobster and Dunkin Donuts! We didn't have plans to stop at a Dunkin, but they were everywhere so we finally caved in and stopped. Jennifer and I ate lobster a couple of our meals here too. I tried the cold lobster roll, but I would prefer a regular lobster or a warm lobster roll (not pictured). Brinley didn't really like lobster and Landon wouldn't try it. More for us!

I had seen some show on the food network about this burger spot in Connecticut. After a little research we found that it was Ted's and that they were famous for steamed burgers. The inside was closed, but you could order from a to go window. While I ordered Jennifer and the kids went to a bathroom at a gas station nearby. While I was waiting for the food they were on an adventure. They ended up going to 3 gas stations before they discovered one that would let you use the bathroom. Then Brinley slipped and fell and scraped up his leg. The burgers were delicious! The burgers are steamed along with a block of cheese. Then they scraped the melted cheese on top of your burger. Look at the cheese pull on Jennifer's burger. 

We also discovered that PEZ are made in Connecticut. We weren't sure if they would be open because it was Labor Day. The factory was closed, but the museum was open. So we didn't get to see the process of how the actual candies are made. The museum was awesome. They had PEZ dispensers from the early 1900's and almost every character imaginable. 

We even turned the kids into PEZ dispensers. Of course I spot my Kentucky Wildcats wherever I go. If you are ever in the area I would recommend this little spot. We all had a lot of fun doing a scavenger hunt finding which years certain dispensers made their debut. You even got a prize for completing the hunt.

We had trouble finding anything to do in Rhode Island. A quick google search suggested a cliff walk for the views and to see all the mansions. We were unable to see any of the mansions due to the walls they had built around their properties. So, we were not really impressed. After our walk we drove around town to see a few of the homes. (I found out later that people can actually go inside the homes to look around. Not my idea of fun, but for some it might be.)

Next up was New York City. You can't go to the city without getting some New York style thin crust pizza. Everyone enjoyed their slice of pie.  

Jennifer and I had been to the 9/11 Memorial, but had never made it into the museum. They give free tickets out on Mondays so it worked out perfect for us. The museum brought back a lot of memories from that day and shed light on many different stories that I had never heard about. We had to explain to the kids what terrorists were and what happened on that horrific day. There was so much to see and do we just didn't have enough time for it all. I would love to have read about every single person and their story. The kids just couldn't take more than a couple hours before they started to get stir crazy. 

We  grabbed an ice cream from a street car vendor and it was the most expensive ice cream of my life. The three soft serve cones in the bottom right picture cost $22. I couldn't believe it. I should have known something was up when they didn't have their prices listed. Brinley enjoyed looking out the window at all the sights and sounds of the city. The top two pictures were actually taken in New Jersey where we were going to meet up with a surprise group of people.

We drove through Times Square and even stopped off at our favorite cheesecake spot, Juniors. That was our treat every time we came to New York. We ate our cheesecake in New Jersey at Liberty Park.

The kids were excited to see their cousin Olivia and she was pumped too! They were on their way to see Chris' parents on Long Island. The kids ran around and played for a bit before we went our separate ways. 

Our first stop in Philly was at the cheesesteak spot Pat's. The next morning we woke up and headed straight for the famous steps where Rocky Balboa trained. There was a concert that had happened the night before and the stairs were blocked off so we weren't able to fully recreate the scene from the movie. We did get down to the Rocky statue to get a picture. If you ever want more food choices than you can imagine, then you should head down to the Reading Terminal Market. It was packed full of all types of foods and different restaurants. 

Jennifer and I had a debate about the Liberty Bell. She tried to tell me that the bell was located outside because she saw it in pictures. I informed her that she was wrong and I even went so far as to bet my entire life savings on it. She even knew that I had been there before but she believed a picture over me. Well, if you can't tell from the picture, it is indoors. 

We took in the sights but opted out of any tours here. Maybe we will have to come back here to fully experience the city. The kids were really excited to see Independence Hall because we had recently watched National Treasure and they go there in the movie. The sandwich I have in the top right picture is a roast pork sandwich that we got in Reading Terminal and I actually think it was better than the cheesesteak!

I had no idea that this LOVE statue was so small. I had to get a picture with the love of my life in front of it though.

Delaware was another one of those states where we couldn't find anything that seemed interesting to us. We found a nature preserve and went out for a little hike. 

Another National Park was next on our trip. Assateague Island is in Maryland is mostly known because it has wild horses roaming along the ocean and beach. We saw lots of horses, but the kids were mostly excited to play in the ocean. We started with just putting our toes in the water, but very quickly that turned into full blown jumping into the waves. 

The next day we set out on a kayak adventure. It started out great when we were paddling with the current. When we started heading upstream against the current the kids decided that they were done with kayaking. Too bad there was only one way to finish the adventure and that was to get back to our car.

Some more pictures from our adventure. It was a lot of fun until the kids decided that they were done. They pushed through and we made it back to our car.

We went back to the beach again after our kayaking adventure. The kids loved playing in the water even though it was on the chilly side. 

Nothing like an ice cream treat after a day at the beach. 

Our last city that we stopped in on our adventure was Washington DC. The kids had both been here before, but they were too young to remember it. We wanted to see as many of the monuments as possible and we discovered just the way to make it happen.

We discovered Lime scooters. We just had to break a few rules. You were only supposed to ride one to a scooter, but the kids weren't old enough or tall enough to see over the handle bars. The bottom pictures are from the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. We did a quick trip through and made sure to catch all the highlights. They touched crystals, a rock from Mars, and got to see the Hope Diamond.

I let the kid that was riding with me take pictures along the ride around town on the scooter. They enjoyed taking selfies better than of the scenery.

More monuments and a few more pictures from the Natural History Museum. 

Brinley getting in on the selfies too.

We also went to the National Archives building so that we could see the Declaration of Independence. Landon especially loved the movie National Treasure. He said that he wanted to get a copy of the Declaration from the gift shop. As we left the Archives building, Landon was running around saying he stole the Declaration! He was so excited! On the drive home to Kentucky he was examining his document for John Hancock's signature. That is when we discovered that he picked up the wrong document. He actually got a copy of the Constitution. Jennifer quickly ordered a Declaration of Independence to be sent to the house. We didn't have the heart to tell him on the drive, but instead we did when the Declaration showed up a couple days later.

We hit the ground running when we got home as fall sports were in full effect. Brinley was practicing with her travel ball team and playing on a rec ball softball team. Landon was playing fall baseball. Both kids were playing soccer with Iam3rd. Almost every night was a practice or game. 

Landon's fall ball team was the only one that I was officially helping coach. I have had to readjust the way I talk to him as a coach because I get too fired up during a game. I think this will only help the both of us as his sports career continues.

I also signed both the kids up for cross country with their school. Most of the meets conflicted with Brinley's schedule, so Landon got to run with the team. The first two meets that he ran all involved rain. At least it didn't get hot during the down pour. His first race he finished 17th overall and first one to finish from his school. Not too bad for his first race. We quickly found out that the when we went to more competitive races that Landon has some more work to do. I know that he has it in him because he is so competitive, but I have trouble training him now because he is faster than me. I have to get in better shape so that I can keep up with the little guy.

My dad had given me this to plant and it only blooms at night. We finally got to see it bloom and it was beautiful. 

I was back to driving around recruits on game days for the UK Football team. The first couple of games proved to be a lot of fun. I even got to see one of my little patients who was chosen as one of the Kentucky Children's Hospital kids of the game. I was able to find her in the stadium so that I could go say hello. 

Landon was really excited to go to his best friend Mason's birthday party. They had a lot of fun jumping at Get Air. 

We got together with my mom to surprise my dad for his 70th birthday. It was the first time that we were all back home in McLean County in a long time. One morning I even got up and went for a jog around the whole town. 

Family picture time

We rented a house out for a weekend so that we could celebrate together. It is a nice place to stay and the kids loved the game room in the basement. The kids loved playing air hockey. We also played outside with some frisbees and of course someone threw one on the roof. Instead of leaving the frisbee I put Landon up there to get it down. 

The kids had a lot of playing together. They played ice cream and played music on the organ. Grandpa showed them how you get the mail from a mailbox. We even took a trip down to the public library. 

Another family picture. Only person missing is Jennifer because she had to work this weekend.

September was definitely a very memorable month. Our northeast vacation was jam packed full of fun and adventure. We ended up going to 15 states in nine days and traveling over 3,000 miles. I can't wait to take many more trips with them over the years. They are only young for a little while. We have to show them as much of the world as we can. I am so thankful that my parents took me on trips growing up. I have seen and been able to experience so many different places. I just want to do that with my kids too. Thanks for reading and God bless.