Winter X Games

Forget the half-pipes, moguls, and snowmobile jumps; this years extreme athletes are conquering the rocking caterpillar.Nothing says danger like the moment you go no-hands-on-the-handles, no-feet-on-the-ground with mom, dad, grandma, and grandpa looking on.

Action like this is not for the weak or the uncoordinated. Of course, Owen took a spill or two, but he bounced back up and went for more. I've always wondered how extreme athletes get started in their craft. Something tells me that Owen is starting to offer evidence.

Badgers are Related to Wolverines

..or so the sign in the Izzone said tonight. The ESPN headline put it best:

In a fantastic game in which coaching strategy played out to perfection and a little guy from Grand Rapids displayed the heart and competitive fire that define his game, the Spartans picked up a critical, resume building Big10 win. The final stretch of Hoosiers, Wolverines, and Badgers is not easy, but Owen and I sure are enjoying this MSU team.

Go Green! Go White!

A Day at the Zoo

Lions, Giraffes, Seals, Otters, Penguins, Camels, Hippos, Fish...you name it and Owen saw it on Monday during an outing to the zoo.








He and his pal Joey walked and even danced their way around the various exhibits, taking in all of the sights and sounds of the animals along the way.
Owen has really developed a fascination with fish. It might not be too long before we will have to invest in a few friends of this sort at home. At the time of this picture, I believe he was saying, "Look grandpa, a keeper!"
During his weekly swim lessons, Owen has developed a real fondness for floating on his back. Lounging on his back with a toy in his hands has led several others in the class to nickname him "little otter." Today was the first time that he came face to face with his namesake.Both boys will agree that in the middle of February, and following a week of snow and cold, it sure is nice to get out of the house.

15 Months - Happy Valentine's Day

If you're happy and you know it, shout hooray! Here's to 15 months and all of the Valentine's in Owen's life.

Happy Valentine's Day!

GSB Moment: The Commute

There are moments in the b-school process that you will always remember. 5, 10, or 20 years from now I should remember classes, professors, exams, and key learnings, right? Somehow I doubt it.

Instead, one story that I'm likely to be recounting to Owen and others is the Feb 13th, 2007 drive home from school. The 12.5 mile commute between school and home typically takes about 30 minutes.

On this particular evening, as 25mph NE winds blew snow off of Lake Michigan, the commute home took 3 hrs and 40 minutes. Yeah...that was fun. Truly memorable for all the wrong reasons.

Off-road Haircut

When you see the following picture, what comes to mind:Personally, I think that Owen must be at the grocery store, and Brecken has just put a penny into the machine for a quick spin in the Wrangler, or maybe Owen is at Toys-R-Us and is interested in getting a new vehicle for his basement playroom. Neither!

Instead, Owen is about to get his haircut for the first time at a local establishment geared to the underaged driving community.
Despite my emerging skills as Owen's stylist, Brecken took matters into her own hands and sought "professional" assistance. One thing is for sure, the at-home approach lacked the vehicle, the yellow superhero cape, and the willing-to-stay-still Owen. I'm not giving up completely, but for one day, Owen took his primping on the road.

Living above the rim

Despite every effort to start with the fundamentals (dribbling, passing, moving your feet on defense), I have to accept the fact that Owen simply lives to play above the rim. He's another cog in the Sportscenter machine.

Well...at least a kid can dream, right? After all, he's bound to end up with the vertically challenged ups of his father. Either way, Owen is having a lot of fun with his new basketball hoop .

We'll start working on the basics some other day.

Man-Bags

Shortly after we discovered that Brecken was pregnant, I began having horrible dreams of becoming "that guy." You know... the "my-manliness-isn't-threatened-because-I-am-carrying-a-Vera-Bradley-diaper-bag" guy. I don't think I was really that insecure about it, but the dreams of me toting around an overstuffed, overpatterned bag in airports, restaurants, bars, sidewalks, etc. did have me a bit worried.

Thankfully, Brecken and her friend Sarah teamed up to find a "man-bag" from Lands' End. It is a small, or more aptly stated, efficient, dark, and arguably sporty alternative. Tossing it over the shoulder still clearly announces "I'm a dad, and I've got diapers," but in more of a "you better believe I'm ready for another cold one" type of way. Life was good again, and the dreams subsided.

Well, fast forward through pregnancy, birth, and 14 months, and here we go again. I need some professional viewer opinions. Owen has taken a real fancy for a bag that I don't think can really be considered a man-bag.

Set aside the two handed pose he is striking for the camera, and evaluate the "bag." Part of me keeps coming back to the fact that this box once housed cigars (manly), yet the other part of me cannot get over the ribbon and beaded handle (not manly). Eerily, the interior lining is Vera-Bradley-esque. This one is really tricky.

Suffice it to say that Brecken classifies this as a purse, and in so doing, rules out any chance of this being a man bag. I'm glad Owen is so self-assured, but we might be visiting Lands' End again soon.

Disclaimers:

- No offense intended to our designer friend Margarita.

- Sarah - does this Lands' End plug get me discounts?

- No cigars were wasted in the posting of this blog.

Winter Camping?

In my New Venture Strategy class, the professor constantly hammers home that a "good idea" is paramount to success.

This past week, I found myself contemplating the idea of a few good friends. The idea was originally presented to me way back in early November when we were enjoying some unseasonably warm weather: "Hey, we should go winter camping this year."

Seemed like an innocent enough idea, and it honestly sounded like a lot of fun. Well, I guess it sounded fun in one of those "When we survive it, we'll have a good story to share" kind of ways. As this fateful weekend approached, I started to follow the weather a little more closely. Forecast for central Wisconsin: -6 degree Fahrenheit for Saturday. That might be a little more than I was willing to "survive." Our wives started to plead to our common sense, and a switch in my mind finally declared: "BAD IDEA."

That being said, we would not be denied. The camping gave way to a cabin visit, but we still managed to get outside a lot. Maybe not a great idea, but still a lot of fun. Thanks guys for the bad idea and the willingness to adapt. Next year let's bring the kids.

Toast to the Bears

Alright...since the Lions are not in the Super Bowl, and since there is a high likelihood that the Lions will never be in the Super Bowl, Owen and I are rooting for the Bears this weekend. Bears football is like religion in this town, and it is hard to avoid getting swept onto the bandwagon.

Here is a quick look at Owen and Brecken offering a toast. The second half of the video is when Owen dropped his cup, after remembering that Peyton Manning is going to be playing for the other team. His reaction seems fitting for Bears fans.

Cheers to everyone this Super Bowl weekend.