time to chime in!

It's been a while, but it's coming on Christmas. Before things get too crazy I thought I'd post a little news.

Everything is good here as we come up to Katt's one year anniversary. The check up is looming, but she has no symptoms, and she is all smiles!

Charlie is about as big as you can imagine. He is talking clearly, for the most part, and now has an imaginary friend named "Tovie" who he calls once in a while to tell him how things are going! It's awesome!

We hope you all have a great Christmas and Holiday Season, as we will! Charlie is wondering already when Santa is coming to the house!!!

All the best to each of you!

"Dada...I don't think this will fit."


Mama and Charlie baking in the kitchen. Watching Charlie copy Mama is hilarious!


Having laughs at the UNC game...fortunately for this game, Carolina won, so we weren't laughing at the team!


Charlie loves to be outside still. And runs, jumps, climbs...he has tons of energy!


By the campfire. I couldn't have been more happy.


"Christmas time's a coming..."


My lovely wife.

Katt's 50 mile ride

Well, I posted it on facebook, however:

Katt had decided going through her treatments last year that this July 2010, she would, and always will do, the 24 Hours of Booty Ride for charity (raising money for cancer research). This year was her first time back on the back after a notable two years missing (cancer, birth to Charlie, back surgery).

Her goal was 50 miles. Needless to say, she did that, and more! I couldn't have been more proud of her if I HAD to! She's been through so much. It's time for the luck of the Irish to shine on her, and shine it will, as she makes her own good fortune!

Here is my lovely lady on the bike:


Heading to the 'survivors' line up!

That's her in the blue helmet.

Coming up at the end of lap one...3 miles of 50!

The reading of her computer at the end...let's say she decided to do more than 50!

I'm back!

Ok Ok, so it's been a while. Well I could try to convince you of a long story of tall tales and fairy tales, but I'll resist, telling you that WOW HAS CHARLIE GROWN!! Just look at him:

"Go long!"

How about that follow through!

This is at his Granda Bonner's surprise birthday party in Ireland. Granda was overwhelmed!

This is at the Giant's Causeway. There was a rainbow over it that day, however, Charlie didn't cooperate for picture taking until after it had vanished!

Yeats' grave in Sligo. It's on the way from Katt's sister's home to her parents. We almost always stop off. "Horseman, pass by."

Charlie and two Irish cousins, Thomas and Kelly. When asked who is his best Irish cousin, he says "Cousin Kelly!"

Here he is with Marcy the skelanimal, on the plane. He was fantastic on the plane ride...each of them!

It's been a great few months since I posted last. A trip to Ireland, Katt getting better, Charlie talking, makin' up stories with his toys, lovin' sports and getting outside...and I am just cruising along, wondering where the next business venture takes me. We shall see.


Wherever I go, it will be with her:

Too many things to talk about:

1. Katt's one year anniversary of cancer diagnosis has come and gone. What a year it was.
2. Katt has been back on the bike, training for her goal of 50 miles at the end of the month.
3. Charlie continues to inspire. His 2nd birthday was this month, and he continues to grow and learn. His imagination is starting to come out! Naming all the little figures on a train set, naming the man in the bulldozer, the woman in the helicopter...not to mention telling stories about where he has been...wow.
4. He dreams! Sometimes he wakes up, and upon waking he strings things together such as "car wash, horses, and bike shop." Interesting to try to put those together!!
5. Charlie now knows to say "hit the ball" and "strike one!"
6. He also knows to look for Lancearmstrong (he puts both names together) while watching le Tour...some tough luck this year for Lance.
7. The way he looks and runs to Mama...just give me a tissue now.
8. The way he looks and runs to me coming home from work at night...can I have another tissue?
9. The Irish contingent (or invasion) comes over starting tomorrow with Niall and lady friend Rosie. Should be a blast with uncle Niall.
10. Grandma and Pawpaw I think would keep Charlie for weeks, if we would let them! Such a good thing to have grandparents willing to keep him (and wanting to!!)

Love to all! (pics to come later!)

Ocracoke and the Beach.

Above on Ocracoke with Margaret, Adam, Lucy, and his parents.

Below at the beach with my folks...



We had a blast in both places!!

It's coming up on a year

(That's Charlie's first pull up)

A year tomorrow, since Katt was at Duke waiting for a possible lung surgery. One that didn't happen, because she was diagnosed with something that only 8000 people get each year. Yep, Hodgkin's is that rare.

After chemo and radiation, she is 6 months out and going in for her official first scan in a couple of weeks, to see if all is well. We think so, as she feels ok, and she is slowly building up her mileage to do the Booty Ride this year at the end of July. 50 miles is her goal, and I have no doubt she will make it! She is stubborn, and Irish.

Charlie...now that's a subject! "what's that dada?" over, and over, and over...
And the imagination.
And the running.
And the talking.
And the laugh, wow he has a great laugh.
And the running. Oh, I mentioned that.
He is growing up, ever so fast. He gets miffed when he looks at someone, smiles, and says hello, but they don't respond. I can see it in his look, he is thinking "how rude..."

He is great, I am great, Katt is doing great. We just can't wait for Charlie's 2nd birthday.


This is me and the boy at Pisgah Covered Bridge. One of the few left in the country, and it's just on the northern side of the Uhwarries.

After a training ride with my lovely wife...go get 'em baby!


Below are pictures from my folk's 45th anniversary SURPRISE party. Did I mention surprise!?! We got 'em! They had no clue. Hopefully they have a clue as to how much they are looked up to.


good year so far! Let's hope we all can keep it up!

baseball time!

Charlie had his first "train" ride this past month. Behind us are friends Walter and Stacey (who Charlie took to at once!) They live near Atlanta, and on a rainy Saturday, we decided to do something inside...so to the Marta we went! Of course, the boy loved it!

"Mr Fireman, can I get on the truck?" Of course he let Charlie hop on...and we almost couldn't get him out! What's funny is, we pass this station almost daily, and Charlie always looks for them as we pass. They were at a festival in a North Raleigh community and he finally got to see them up close!!


Yep, that's Susan and Benjamin, trying to kidnap our boy!! They were kind enough to take us to dinner at our favorite Irish pub...only as a rouse to take the boy! He always has fun with these two friends!

We hire him out once in a while to do special yard work if you need his services...


We just might have a natural on our hands! Yep, Pawpaw taught the boy how to swing a bat...and he is pretty good! Watch out Yankees!

We can't hold him back, he just keeps on going and going...and we wouldn't have it any other way! Katt is doing better, as the side effects of all her treatments are subsiding and she is starting to ride her bike again. The happiness if great to see!

Love to all!

stringing them together!

Leaps and bounds. Charlie already is trying to see how far he can push mama and dada! Just the other night, as he is learning to drink from a regular cup, he starts to walk from the kitchen into the living room. I tell him that he has to stay in the kitchen when drinking from a cup. Well, he, while looking back at me to see what I will do, starts to walk one-step-at-a-time, slowly, to the living room, yet again. After this a couple of times, I threaten timeout...needless to say, timeout was achieved!! He is growing up!

He loves to ride in the trailer behind dada's bike. He looks around, has fun, says as we go down a hill, "down we go!!" I forgot how fun a bike ride could be!!

We hope all of you are doing as well as we are. Life is grand. Each day we try to do something worthwhile...last year reminded us of that.

John, holding the boy like he was his own...I hope Charlie gets to spend a lot of time with him.

Here Charlie is watching his first baseball game with one of our neighborhood kids. The guy's brother was playing, and Charlie could be heard saying, "hit the ball!"

Charlie at his first hockey game...LOTS of firsts in April!! He was enthralled with the "boys playing hockey," as he called it. The Canes won this one!

"Come on dada!" Charlie likes his scooter!

Yep, Charlie is now saying complete sentences. We just came from his first picnic with our friends Donna and Michele, and a bike ride on one of the Raleigh greenway trails, and he tells me as I put him in the car seat, "dada, it's hot in here." Yes it is, son...

Love to all.

Charleston...

Katt and I needed a kickstart, and this was it! What a great, much needed trip for us to recharge our batteries. At Battery Park no less (ha).

Easter Egg hunt...the first Pagan holiday!

About 30 kids showed up for a beautiful Saturday neighborhood Easter egg hunt. It was awesome, as the kids ran around, hunted eggs, and played and the parents had adult bevvies and enjoyed a great day. As you can see, Charlie got his first blue food coloring thingy...oh well.