A Quote to Start Things Off

""I'd love to go to Santa Fe at some point, Emmett said, but for the time being, I need to go to New York. The panhandler stopped laughing and adopted a more serious expression. Well. that's life in a nutshell, aint it. Lovin' to go to one place and havin' to go to another. Amor Towles in the Lincoln Highway.

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Pictures of Memories I

Pictures of Memories I
Snow kidding! These "kids" now range from 17 to 23

Thursday, April 30, 2009

That's What I Like About You.

It's that time again. Here's what Three things I have for this Thursday.

1. I enjoy Three things this Thursday so much, I had to tell the blogging world about it. So I posted this on yesterdays edition of Works for me Wednesday at We Are That Family. Maybe there will be some new posters checking it out this week.

2. Oh Boy! I have just loved the last few episodes of Chuck. Specifically, Scott Bakula's turn as Chuck's father. If like me you can't watch full episodes at NBC.com ,maybe you can watch them at IMDB.com or hulu.com. I am not sure if Monday's season finale was also the series finale. If it was they sure went out on a strong note. Check it out.

3. Today is the last day of my Point of Grace/ Michael Kelly Blanchard give-a-way. If you haven't entered by leaving a comment on my original post do so before 10 p.m tonight.

Well that's all for me. If you would like to see what three things others have this Thursday or participate in 3TTT go to Psalm 104:24. Have a great week!

Next Time: 5 minutes at a time.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

In Praise of Three Things this Thursday


So it's Tuesday and I am posting my Works for me Wednesday submissions and it's about 3 Things This Thursday. Wow! 3 days of the week in one sentence!

Three Things This Thursday (3TTT) is a blog carnival hosted by pride lands mommy @ Psalm 104:24. It is a blog I feature on mine in part due to the excellent music that plays there.
Essentially what happens is the host shares three things going on in her life and gives the readership an opportunity via Mr. Linky to do the same. The first thing is generally a synopsis of the Lost episode from the previous evening. I have never seen the show, but know such a review would appeal to people like WFMW's originator, Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer. Here is a link to last weeks issue. Since discovering this feature a few weeks ago, it has quickly become one of my favorites. Here are three things about 3TTT that work for me.


1. It's an easy format to follow and useful when time constraints or life itself are getting in the way of blogging.


A few weeks ago after my brother passed away, I did not have the mental energy to create a WFMW post (grief, depression, nor the passing of a loved one work for me.) but 3TTT was just the ticket. Here is the link to my original 3TTT entry.


2. It allows for me to post about disparate thing at the same time and things that I might not blog about other wise. In the past few weeks, I have talked about books I read, snacks I've prepared, and give-a-ways I was hosting.


3. I enjoy 3TTT because it appeals to my randomness and love for the non sequtir. The snack post I referred to was right after I wrote a transcript of the eulogy I gave at my brother's funeral.


So that's why Three Things This Thursday works for me. I encourage you to participate this Thursday. (She generally posts about 8 or 9 a.m Thursday mornings). To see what things work for other's late Tuesdays and into Wednesday go to WFMW at We are That Family.


Next Time: That's What I Like About you.


Where's the Carnival?

Each April the lethargy that comes with much time spent indoor during the winter melts away as surely as the winter's snow. Bikes are rode, balls are tossed, kites flown and the carnival comes to our town. At least that's how things were until last year. Last year our "April Carnival" did not come until June.

Today is April 28th and the carnival is not yet here. Hopefully it will come soon. Here is some footage from last year's carnival. Lucy and her cousin Bobby sure seem to be enjoying themselves!



A different kind of carnival has arrived as it does each week. The Carnival of Homeschooling. While I have submiited several carnival entries in the past, (see my labels) I have not before actively promoted the sight. This week I have started announcing the current host of the carnival.

In addition, I will be hosting the May 19th carnival at Home School Dad. More will be announced about that in the near future. This weeks carnival is being hosted by Corn and Oil. I encourage you to check it out!

Next Time: In Praise of Three Things Thursday.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Hockey Lessons

My Three things this Thursday are: hockey lessons, lost update, and a give-away.

1. Hockey Lessons.



I recently completed reading a book about the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team entitled The boys of winter by Wayne Coffey. It's a perfect companion piece to the film "Miracle." Although, I have never played hockey, there are many valuable lessons to be learned from these boys. I will be posting some of them here in the near future.

Speaking of hockey, on January 1, 2009 there was a Hockey game between the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Black Hawks. This is not unusual in itself, as these teams being part of the original 6 teams in the N.H.L. have skated against each other hundreds of times. What made the game a spectacle, is the venue, It was played outdoors at Wrigley Field the friendly confines of the Chicago Cubs. Which brings us to ...

2. Lost Update.

I was at Wrigley last night to watch the Cubs take on the Cincinnati Reds. The Cubs lost 0-3.

I went with my son, Charlie and my brother in law, Mike. Throughout the ballpark there are signs advising to be alert for foul balls. Charlie and I had brought our gloves but nothing came our way. At the gift shop I saw a 8.5 by 5.5 replica post card of the sign for just a buck. I told Charlie that I'd buy it for him and we'd hang it on his wall. His reaction: "When I get my Blog, I am going to post it there!" You guys know how 7 year olds get excited about blogs and stuff.

It was nice to spend some time with Mike. He has spent much of the past year being the primary care giver for my father-in-law and helping him recuperate from various illnesses and injuries. It was good for him to get a respite from all that and catch a game with us.

Speaking of respites, that brings us to . . .

3. Give-a-way.

In my most recent post, I talked about the importance of taking a break or helping someone else take a break so you or they can be re energized. I also announced a give-a-way of a c.d and a book. The book is Unsung Heroes by Michael Kelly Blanchard. Blanchard is a singer/songwriter best known for writing "Be Ye Glad." The c.d. by Point of Grace is called How You Live. Point of Grace is the Christian Pop quartet that has recently become a Country Trio.

To register for the give-a-way which ends on April 30th leave a comment at my original post.

Those are my three things for Thursday April 23rd. Go to Psalm 104:24 to see what other trios of things are out there for your perusal.

Next Time: Where's the Carnival?

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Give me (them) a break.











As the main teacher/caregiver of the family this past year I have a new appreciation of what a privilege it is to educate your own children. I also have developed an appreciation of how taxing an occupation that is. It is so taxing that from time to time I need to be away from my children and either have time to myself or time to reconnect with Amy.


I think it is vital for parents to take time away on a regular basis. Amy and I are blessed that both our parents are somewhat local and can watch our children from time to time. We also have a neighbor that can often babysit at a moments notice. Some families don't have those luxuries. Perhaps they have older children that can watch the kids. Perhaps they have other families that they can trade babysitting with.


There is a family from our church that has 3 adopted children 5 or under. They have a 3 year old who has many special needs. At home he can be quite a handful and make it very difficult for the rest of the family to connect with each other or be able to go on outings like the zoo or even be able to get work done around the house. So when they joined our home school support group they put a prayer request in that they were looking for some people that could give their son some respite care.


Amy and I both have some background in ministering to special needs children, so we offered to help. About once a month Luke comes over for a day or two. He is a wonderful boy and quite frankly we are still waiting for him to have any type of episode. One of our children will generally implode the weekend he is with us, but never Luke. His parents have told us he usually does much better with other people. Our kids love him, and we all look forward to his visits. In July, he will stay with us for a whole week, and it should be a great time.


So that's why I think taking a break from your kids or helping others do the same works for me. Giving stuff away works for me also and as this is my 75th post, It is time for Crazy Dave to come out and give something away. I am giving away a book and a c.d. so that the next time you take some time off you will have something to read or listen to. The c.d. is How you Live by Point of Grace and the book is Unsung Heroes by Michael Kelly Blanchard. The giveaway ends 10:00 CST April 30th. Just leave a comment to enter. I am again giving additional entries to those following my blog. See the sidebar for official rules.


To see what else works go to We Are That Family.




Next Time: Hockey Lessons

Monday, April 20, 2009

Random Postings: An open letter to the car behind me.

In 2001 I wrote the following letter for our family website:



Dear Car Behind me 7:30 p.m September 1st exiting Elk Grove Bowl Parking lot onto Southbound Arlington Heights,


Yesterday as my wife, daughter and I were heading home from dinner at the Rose Garden restaurant in Elk Grove we were making a left out of the parking lot of The Grove Shopping Center on the corner of Arlington Heights Road. We were joined by you on our tail. My wife, who is probably the worlds best and safest driver, was waiting for traffic on both sides to subside before making our turn.

This is when you, in your 2nd row mentality, decided that you could see the traffic better behind our minivan than we could ahead of you. So you blared on your horn, indicating that we really should be turning at that exact moment and make you wait no longer. Well, Superman, (A reference to your x-ray vision; being able to see past our car to the ongoing traffic) not 3 seconds after you honked, a northbound car barreled past us.

This means that if we took your horn blowing advice, and stuck our cars nose out in traffic, that most likely my wife, myself, and my daughter and our unborn child would be dead right now. My daughter would not have turned two today. The house in Carpentersville we moved into yesterday would have never been lived in by us, nor paid off by us, saddling our parents with grief and debt.

Fortunately, as disconcerting as your second row salute was, my wife did not go until the coast was actually clear. You, then had the audacity to catch up with us and give my wife a glare! Don't you realize, that if we did take your advice and got smashed up, you would have most likely been even further delayed than you were. When we both stopped at the light at Landmeier it was all I could do to not roll my window down and give you an earful.

This has happened to me so many times before. We live in an area of congested traffic, driving in front of people who honk the horn at us before the light turns green. If you guys are so quick on the draw, how come you generally are behind me ?

So car behind me, next time you are second in line behind somebody else: try to remember that it's not just a car you are behind, it is people!

Love,

Dave Roller


A little perspective: I sent a copy of letter to our local newspaper and they advised me it would be published on September 12, 2001. I don't believe the newspaper evcer published it due to more serious matters from that time period.

Next Time: Give me a Break

Saturday, April 18, 2009

4 Weddings and a funeral, Part I

The FAQS of Life: My life in Frequently Asked Question Format
Today's Topic: 4 Weddings and a Funeral


Nothing brings a family together like a wedding. Except maybe a funeral. With the recent passing of my brother, Keith, I have decided to share a little about his funeral as well as his wedding, my wedding and the weddings of my two other married siblings. Today we will talk about my sister Kathy's wedding.


Q: Who was the first of your brothers and sisters to tie the knot?
A: I am pretty sure that it was me. It may have been my brother Chris; we were both in scouting at about the same time. I was a tad uncoordinated, so maybe him.
Q: I mean who was the first of you to get married?
A: Oh, sorry that would be my sister, Kathy. September 1, 1991. She married Andy.
Q: How did they meet?
A: Kathy met Andy at their 5 year Notre Dame reunion. They had not known each other previously, which how they were able to "meet". It turns out my father and Andy's had been Notre Dame classmates as well and had planned the whole thing out in the student union their sophomore year. All right that part is made up. But they did know each other.
Q: What was the significance of this wedding? A: Kathy moved to Virginia with Andy after the wedding so this was the last time the 5 of us would live in the same state.
Q: Was Amy involved in the wedding? A: Amy did not attend this wedding, as we were just college friends at the time, but her car did. Amy lent me her car so I could drive up for the wedding.
Q: What do you remember most about the wedding?
A: Like many young women, Kathy had been planning aspects of her wedding for years. But what was unusual, is that what Kathy had been planning was the music she would play at the reception. I think she had about 5 hours of must play songs. The song I remember the most was "I Knew the Bride When She Used to Rock and Roll."
Q: Before I ask my next question could you tell me what a smile and nod moment is?
A: Smile and nod refers to what our family does when one of our family members is acting kind of unusual. People tend to smile and nod at myself or my brothers and sisters and some of our cousins.
Q: Were there any smile and nod moments you recall from Kathy's wedding?
A: There were. My sister was the 2nd oldest of 29 grandchildren. The oldest grandchild came to the wedding wearing a very nice Indiana Jones hat.
Q: So you smiled and nodded when you saw him in the hat?
A: We smiled and nodded when he told us very proudly that he had sold his blood plasma in order to purchase the hat.
Q: Interesting. Where do I go after that?
A: Ask me what's coming up next time.
Q: What's coming up next time?
A: Next Time: An Open Letter to the Guy Behind Me.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Putting the fun back in funeral

Three Things Thursday time. Here is what I have for you today.

1. During the wake and funeral for my brother I was constantly remembering one of his favorite episodes from Night Court, one of his favorite television programs. The episode featured an undertaker with a warped sense of humor. His goal was to put "fun" back in funeral. Among his tricks of the trade he would put bumper stickers on the casket that said things like "My other car's a hearse" or "I'd rather be breathing."

2. I gave the eulogy Tuesday at Keith's funeral. I'd like to share to the best of my memory my remarks, and yes I did call the Catholic Priest "Pastor Ed". Keith's service was at the Catholic Church my family attended when we were growing up. My parents still go there and my Dad drives the bus for the churches elementary school. The entire student body came to the funeral.


Here is what I said ...


"On behalf of Lynn and her children, my parents and my brothers and sisters I'd like to welcome you to the Illinois regional Jeopardy auditions. (wait for laughter to subside) Keith and the rest of our family grew up at this church. The first funeral I recall attending was here. It was for the father of a school and scouting friend of Chris and mine. After the service, my dad approached the widow and said "38 is much too young to go."

Now, I was about 10, and like maybe many of you, (motioning to the students) 38 did not seem young to me at all. But let me tell you, 38 is much too young (Keith was 38 when he died). When you love somebody whenever they die it is always much too soon.

Many people who knew Keith only by his diagnosis (bi-polar disorder) might think that there were two Keith's. That was so untrue. There was only one Keith. He had a greater capacity for love and enjoyment than anyone I ever knew. He loved his family. He loved playing games and he loved jokes. He was active in his children's schooling and scouting. (I meant to talk briefly how he loved chess and how he was helping my son Charlie with his chess class on their last visit together a week before he died. I didn't get to that part. I also wanted to talk specifically about how much he loved his wife Lynn, missed that as well). He was logical to the point of being obnoxious or perhaps for the purpose of being obnoxious. He'd be at a a party at my house and I'd say "Keith there's Pepsi in the cooler if you want one." And he'd say "Actually, there's Pepsi in the cooler even if I don't want one."

Keith's passing has left many of us with the same question. A question my daughter Emma has asked many times this week. "Daddy, why did Uncle Keith have to die?" I don't think it was any coincidence that Keith died during Holy Week. During the same time that many of you were celebrating the stations of the cross and asking "Why did Jesus have to die?" Pastor Ed you are right Keith is not asking those questions now. Keith understood the hope of the resurrection and He is in heaven right now with his Savior.

During the past 3 years during the course of his illness, (Keith had heart and kidney ailments) many people have stopped me and asked me "How is Keith? How is your brother doing?" Keith is doing great. He is doing better than we can even imagine.


3. Yesterday the day after the funeral, I decided to seek comfort in comfort food. It is one of those foods that I enjoy making as much as I do eating. There is a food product at the Mexican grocery store near my house called duros or wheels. They are like a meatless pork rind. For $1.50 you can get a large bag of them prepared. But for about $2.00 you can buy a bag of them uncooked that makes 8-10 times the large bag. Not quite enough for Frugal Friday, but still fun on a budget. All of my children like to eat or prepare the treat.

Here is what they look like uncooked . . .









Here is what one looks like after being cooked in hot oil . . . You will notice it's in the same bowl.



So there's my 3 things combining fun, funeral and food. To see more three things this Thursday go to Psalm 104:24


Next Time: 4 Weddings and a Funeral.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

The write thing at the right time.

Today has been a difficult day. I started teaching the kids today and it did not go really well. I went shopping after Amy came home and started crying about three times in the five minutes I was in the store. Purchasing refried beans usually does not have that effect on me. Keith has been on my mind all day.

When I got back in the house I started crying again. Emma was finishing a writing assignment that Amy gave her last week. She asked me what was the matter and I said that I wasn't feeling very well today. She handed me her finished assignment and said "here, I hope this makes you feel better." It really did! She gave me permission to share it here.

My Dad! By Emma R
A man like Dad is hard to find. If you looked for someone like him in a 1,000,000 men, not one would be just like him. That is because my dad is the best dad in the world! But not the best father. Just kidding!
That is because he is silly, helpful, kind, nice, funny, and crazy! He likes to say "llama". Once he said I'll give you 5 cents for every time I say llama!" Boy! Did we get a lot of money!
We used to get 50 cents for allowance. Now we get $2.00! He even lets me be paid for some jobs. He always prays for Lucy and sometimes lays down with her. He loves playing games with us!
When Lucy has sticker time, he lets her choose. When she has computer time, he does exactly what she wants. He makes Lucy's school fun. He takes our neighbor to the store, because she does not have a car.
He used to visit our uncle at the hospital. In conclusion, my dad is the best dad in the world because he is nice, kind and crazy.


I just gave a eulogy yesterday. The problem with a eulogy is that the person you want to tell all these great things about is not there to hear them. Emma's paper seemed like a eulogy that I was able to receive.


Next Time: Putting the fun back in funeral.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Let's go fly a kite!


This morning Charlie and Lucy were keen to try out their new kites. I was more keen to stay home and mope around as I have the past two days. Kite flying won, and the three of us went out into the brisk windy day. Lucy with her Barbie kite and Charlie with his Air Force fliers. Charlie had his flying in no time. Lucy was a different story. It was too cold for her delicate sensibilities. I took her home, where she told me she'd like to fly the kite next time when it's not windy. Somebody needs a science lesson.

I returned to find Charlie mastering the art of kite flying. We made a fine morning of it. We even got a chance to let him start to process through the feelings of losing his uncle. I'm not processing nearly as well.

Perhaps, I should be less the catharsis smatharsis guy I have bragged about being here and use this blog as a place to sort out my feelings. I'm not sure that's who I am even now when a little catharsis could go a long way. These pages are about my family. Loving my wife and children. Training them in righteousness. Rejoicing in the good times. Even lamenting in the bad. So, I will just take things as they come here. If my grieving comes out here, so be it. If it doesn't, I will find a suitable place for it.

Keith always took an active interest in my family. Our children did quite a bit together and Keith was a big part of that. During one of his last hospital stays, I was able to use this blog to show him how Charlie and Emma were biking without training wheels. Now there is one small way I can use this blog in memory of him . My brother and I, along with the rest of our family, were often throwing movie quotes around. As an homage to him I am going to begin titling as many posts as I can with movie titles or quotes.


With that in mind ... Soon: 4 Weddings and a Funeral
Next Time: The write thing at the right time.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Three Things Thursday


Here are my 3 things for Thursday April 9, 2009:

1. Prayer update: Continue to pray for my family on the loss of my brother. The wake is Monday and the Funeral Tuesday. He leaves behind a wife and 2 young children. We had invited He and his family for Easter before he passed. The rest of his family will still be attending.

2. Post of the day. Over at We are That Family there is a very nice post about a new addition to the We are that Family family. Check it out.

3. Currently Reading: Just started Ernest Hemingway's Islands in the Stream. Twenty pages in it looks like it will be an engaging read.
To view or participate in Three Things Thursday go to Psalm 104:24 (The blog not the verse).


Next Time: Let's go Fly a Kite!

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

A Bet I wish I lost

My brother Keith has been in and out of hospitals and nursing homes since 2006. He has heart and kidney conditions uncommon in a man so young. I have visited him in 5 hospitals, 2 nursing homes from here to Minnesota. Last summer at the end of an almost 3 month stint in hospitals and nursing homes I offered him $100.00 if he could avoid the aforementioned for a period of a year. This winter and spring he had been making the hospital and nursing home circuit again. Last night he was taken in an ambulance from his nursing home to a nearby hospital with cardiac arrest. He did not survive the trip.

That is $100.00 I would have gladly parted with. Parting with him will be another deal entirely. I covet prayers for his family. That they would trust God knowing that Keith lives now with his Heavenly Father. That we'd be able to live without him.

Next Time: ?

Sunday, April 5, 2009

I do all my own stunts

Fits me to a T
My life in T-Shirts
A few years ago I was at a birthday party for my wife's cousin (cous-in-law). My wife's sister (sister-in-law) gave my cous-in-law a t-shirt that said "I do all my own stunts" . I thougt it was way cool and wanted one myself. My cous-in-law was turning 8 at the time.
So, yes I get my fashion tips from pre-pre-teeners. I love that story and I love that shirt. They both capsulize my personality. T-shirts are like washable bumper stickers. I realize that in a way certain shirts I have had in my life can tell my life's story. From time to time I will be displaying them for you here.
Next Time: My video collection

Friday, April 3, 2009

The Same Guys

I was looking at Ship full of Pirates/Meanwhile Back at the Ranch recently when I received quite the shock. I was looking at the following post and the guys in that video looked very familiar. I knew those bug eyes and facial tics from somewhere. Then when one of the guys started playing the recorder, I knew! It was the Fabulous Bentley Brothers from Jelly Telly.

It seems like the guys who sing excellent and very funny summaries of books of the Bible, like this one on Judges, also sing very funny songs about frogs and Facebook.

These guys have an excellent website at Rhettandlink.com. I highly reccomend both their personnas. I have linked up some bentley/rhettandlink videos at my site. Let me know which one you favor.

Next Time: I do my Own Stunts!

Thursday, April 2, 2009

State Capitols and Restate Capitols


Welcome to all linking to this post from Home School Carnival gardening edition.


When Emma was in 1st or 2nd grade she had a unit on States. She learned all the capitols, the year they became a state and a famous citizen of that state. Charlie followed along and learned much of the information himself. It was an excellent unit, and a great jumping off point for other studies. We learned many interesting facts we had not known before, like the fact that Adolf Hitler had at one point owned large portions of Colorado. This led to studies on the Holocaust. We learned about Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott. This led to further studies about civil rights. It also sparked an obsession in Charlie about boycotts.

Since that time we have seen Emma's memory of capitols dwindle down to 50% from knowing all of them. We decided to prepare a refresher for her and Charlie during Spring Break. Since Amy now has a Spring Break at her job we give the kids a few days off their studies as well. We did have them review the capitols every day for a week and now Emma is almost back to 100% again. Charlie is kind of boycotting the quizzing and answers Baton Rouge or Salt Lake City to all of them.

The Monday of Spring Break was the regular day for our home school cooperative. I teach a class on grammar and editing for the 7th grade-and-up crowd. I like to open the class in an unusual way, so I began by quizzing them on state capitols. One girl did not know the capitol of Illinois. That's fine if you live in Kansas. But when you live in Illinois, it's kind of an important fact! I went through 20~25 states and no one even got a quarter of 'em. They assured me they had all memorized or at least studied the capitols before. These are bright articulate kids. But just like Emma and Charlie, they need a refresher. Here is a demonstration.

This Monday, the tables were turned. I was assisting at the co-op in Charlie's class. They were reading a story about Martin Luther King and the bus boycott. I could not think of Rosa Parks' name. It was killing me! I asked Charlie, he didn't remember. I sauntered across the hall and asked Emma, she didn't know. I stayed up all night racking my brain and at about 6 a.m, it dawned on me. No, that's just a bad joke. I thought of it on the drive home. But the point had been made. Things get forgotten, and things worth remembering need to be taught over and over.
**********************************************************
Another important aspect of state knowledge is being able to place them on a map. No doubt many of you have seen this useful resource. It is very addictive and I have become pretty good at it. I have placed all 50 states without an error 3 times now. It all depends on the order of the states you are given. Today we had a family contest and Emma won placing 47/50 with an average error of only 14 miles. Charlie is not able to read all of the states. He does a pretty good job of recognizing the states by shape.
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Next Time: The Same Guys

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Father Son Ski Trip


One of the great things about skiing are the opportunities to talk with girls. One thing I liked to do was start conversations with girls on the ski lifts. Many of them have their names written on their skis. They forget they are written there, so when you call them by name you catch them by surprise. I went up the mountain one time with a beautiful girl. She had a wonderful laugh. She laughed each time I called her by name. Her name
was Rental - Steve Martin


My cousin is a high school teacher. He is also the sponsor of his school's ski club. As such, over the years, he has thus far twice had me as a guest, a non paying one at that, on one of his ski trips. On the last occasion I brought Charlie. It was March 14th and while the day started below freezing, we skiied in about 40 degree weather .



It was a gorgeous day for him to learn to ski. I arranged for him to have a lesson. The instructor had him practice to begin with 1 ski on a rather small incline and graduate to 2 and then to the actual bunny hill, where his greatest difficulty was using the tow rope.


Charlie and I hit the bunny hill hard for a few hours then had a nice junkfood jamboree at the snack bar. Nachos, hot dogs and his own soda (something that never happens at home.) We skiied for a few more hours after that and then we headed for home around 3 o'clock.





On the way home, we stopped in the town of New Glarus, Wisconsin. If I have my greats in order, Charlie's great great great grandparents were some of the original settlers of New Glarus, coming there from Switzerland. I took a picture of him at the monument under the names of his forebearers, Jost and Fridolin Becker. Our home school is named after my grandmother Izola (Becker) Roller. So I thought it was appropriate on the innaugral outing of the Izola Becker Home School Ski Club, to also study her history.

It had warmed up to the mid 50's by then, and there we sat in a park, jacketless, enjoying each other's company less than 2 hours after being on a ski slope.

We had a fantastic time. Charlie is keen on skiing and we hope to get the whole family in or back in the act soon. Don't worry cousin Billy, next time, it will be on our dime.

Next Time: State Capitols



A to Z 2023 Road Trip

#AtoZChallenge 2023 RoadTrip