Then we came home and it was back to work :( On Sunday, we headed to Church in the morning. The rest of the day I was on phone calls and sitting in front of my MacBook :( Hopefully my work/life balance returns to normal soon!
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Short and sweet
Most of my weekend was spent working on a multi-million dollar deal for my company. Therefore, this blog is not going to be very long...
As the saying goes: All work and no play makes Grant a dull boy. I am definitely not dull, so I managed to carve out some quality time with both Liesel and my boys. On Friday night, our babysitter arrived shortly after I got home from work. This meant that Liesel and I were heading out for a delicious dinner at my new favorite restaurant, B-Spot! This time Liesel gave in to temptation and ordered herself a chocolate shake after seeing my Chocolate Expresso shake :) These guys make the world's best shakes, and their burgers are out of this world! After the heavenly dining experience, we stolled around Crocker Park, browsing some stores and checking out some sales.
Saturday saw me working in the morning, early afternoon, and the evening until 1am. However, Nathan and I had time to jump into the pool at our gym. He wanted to show me how he can now SWIM! He has been going to private swim lessons, and this week, he was able to swim across the deep end of the pool! I was so proud of him!
After dinner, we headed to the Westlake Recreation Center for a bicycle ride in the warm summer evening! After the ride, the boys love playing and climbing in the playgrounds!
Then we came home and it was back to work :( On Sunday, we headed to Church in the morning. The rest of the day I was on phone calls and sitting in front of my MacBook :( Hopefully my work/life balance returns to normal soon!
Then we came home and it was back to work :( On Sunday, we headed to Church in the morning. The rest of the day I was on phone calls and sitting in front of my MacBook :( Hopefully my work/life balance returns to normal soon!
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Fantastic Father's Day Weekend!
The McCarthy household doesn't usually stick to the tried, and trusted traditions of old. And this weekend was no exception! Father's Day celebrations were extended to a weekend which started with a family fun night (FFN) on Thursday night. For FFN, we all went to go watch Madagascar 3 with friends. Normally this is am expensive outing, but we found a theater that only charges $3 per person, so the evening, with a cold-drink came to under $15!
Then on Friday night, I came home from work and grabbed a quick dinner, before heading out to my friend's house to load the car up with band equipment for my bands outdoor gig at a local Coffee Shop. Once I got back home, the boys and I enjoyed some time in the pool, while Liesel went out shopping for Vacation Bible School this coming week.
On Saturday morning, we were out of he house by 9:15 since today was the Annual Duct Tape Parade, and we wanted to get ourselves a good spot. It was a hot day, and sunscreen was definitely required! The parade did not disappoint, and the floats were impressive. We especially enjoyed the "Safari" theme with elephants, lion, giraffes and zebras aplenty! The boys were rewarded well for their patience and scored a load of candy and some other goodies.
Afterward, their was just enough time to get home and jump in the pool for a quick cool-off before heading out to my band's gig. We were playing at a coffee house from 2 - 4pm, but needed to set up our equipment beforehand and run a couple of sound checks - so we arrived at the venue at 12:30pm. The temperature was forecast to be 88 (31C), and it was HOT. Despite the heat, the band played well together and enjoyed the complimentary iced coffee during the break! By the time I got home after the gig, after packing up the equipment and setting it back up in our practice room, it was 5:30pm. It was the perfect time to fire up the grill and enjoy some hamburgers for dinner, followed by an after dinner swim with the boys. Then came Father's Day! After I woke up and went downstairs for breakfast, my wife greeted me with Chocolate Croissants and coffee! An excellent start to the day. Josh and Liesel made me a card that I got on Friday, and Nathan gave me a card with a customized copper guitar pick, with "Dad, you rock!" inscribed on it!
That was so thoughtful! Liesel also spoiled me with a heavy duty reciprocating saw! After breakfast, the boys headed to downtown Cleveland for a Boys Morning Out. It was Marine Week in Cleveland, which meant that there was a lot of Military hardware (tanks, planes helicopters and more) on display! The boys were able to climb into tanks, and even the cockpit of helicopter, which Nathan loved! We had a great time together doing guys' stuff!
We got home in time for lunch, followed by an amazing dessert that Liesel and the boys made the day before. It was Cookie Dough bites, small rolled balls of cookie dough, with some dipped in dark chocolate! Hmmmmmmmm But WAIT, that's not all. For dinner, Liesel made a delicious chicken in a mustard/maple syrup sauce, accompanied by some incredible roast potatoes!! Thank you Lee! You know the way to my heart :) What a crazy busy, but crazy good weekend!! Thank you family :) I am blessed to have you all in my life!
Afterward, their was just enough time to get home and jump in the pool for a quick cool-off before heading out to my band's gig. We were playing at a coffee house from 2 - 4pm, but needed to set up our equipment beforehand and run a couple of sound checks - so we arrived at the venue at 12:30pm. The temperature was forecast to be 88 (31C), and it was HOT. Despite the heat, the band played well together and enjoyed the complimentary iced coffee during the break! By the time I got home after the gig, after packing up the equipment and setting it back up in our practice room, it was 5:30pm. It was the perfect time to fire up the grill and enjoy some hamburgers for dinner, followed by an after dinner swim with the boys. Then came Father's Day! After I woke up and went downstairs for breakfast, my wife greeted me with Chocolate Croissants and coffee! An excellent start to the day. Josh and Liesel made me a card that I got on Friday, and Nathan gave me a card with a customized copper guitar pick, with "Dad, you rock!" inscribed on it!
That was so thoughtful! Liesel also spoiled me with a heavy duty reciprocating saw! After breakfast, the boys headed to downtown Cleveland for a Boys Morning Out. It was Marine Week in Cleveland, which meant that there was a lot of Military hardware (tanks, planes helicopters and more) on display! The boys were able to climb into tanks, and even the cockpit of helicopter, which Nathan loved! We had a great time together doing guys' stuff!
We got home in time for lunch, followed by an amazing dessert that Liesel and the boys made the day before. It was Cookie Dough bites, small rolled balls of cookie dough, with some dipped in dark chocolate! Hmmmmmmmm But WAIT, that's not all. For dinner, Liesel made a delicious chicken in a mustard/maple syrup sauce, accompanied by some incredible roast potatoes!! Thank you Lee! You know the way to my heart :) What a crazy busy, but crazy good weekend!! Thank you family :) I am blessed to have you all in my life!
Sunday, June 10, 2012
It's all fun and games, until someone gets stung by a wasp
What a gorgeous weekend! Cloudless skies, accompanying hot, windless days gives us the perfect excuse to spend hours in the pool, which is exactly what we did...
The weekend started on Saturday morning with a band practice for me. The band is playing at the Avon Cafe this coming Saturday, so we needed some extra time to work on a few songs for the gig. While I was strumming my guitar, Liesel took Nathan to our favorite home improvement store, as their kids program was building a wooden airplane from the Madagascar movie that morning. When I got home, it was time for lunch, and then a little later, the boys headed to the pool! It was glorious, especially since the water temperature was 83 degrees (28C)! We stayed submerged until dinner time, which was at Moe's, as per Nathan's request for his family fun night. On the way back, we made a detour to a home improvement store to pick up a gas bottle for my grill, as well as a window screen repair kit. This was the cheapest option to replace holey screens that my youngest made in his screen, the screen door in the kitchen, as well as my bedroom screen! Fortunately YouTube has a DIY video on how to do your own screen replacements!
Sunday was even hotter than Saturday. Nathan showed some Pink-eye symptoms, so we opted not to go to church. Instead we had a lazy morning enjoying the air-conditioning in the house! After watching some of the Men's Final in the French Open, Liesel headed out to do some grocery shopping. While Lee was out, I was checking on the pool, and on the way in I felt an intense pain in my knee, Instinctively my hand went to my knee to brush away the source of the pain. Unfortunately, the source was a wasp that stung my knee, and then subsequently stung my thumb! It's been decades since I was last stung, and I obviously forgot how intense that pain is! I immediately put my thumb under cold running water, before looking up how to treat stings.... Once the stings subsided, the boys and I ventured outside, and headed back to the pool for some cool fun! For dinner, I fired up the grill and we ate a delicious dinner outside on the patio. After dinner, we played outside some more, before going on our second bike ride around the neighborhood that day! You've got to love summer! Now only if we could get rid of the "useless" insects that can ruin our fun.........
The weekend started on Saturday morning with a band practice for me. The band is playing at the Avon Cafe this coming Saturday, so we needed some extra time to work on a few songs for the gig. While I was strumming my guitar, Liesel took Nathan to our favorite home improvement store, as their kids program was building a wooden airplane from the Madagascar movie that morning. When I got home, it was time for lunch, and then a little later, the boys headed to the pool! It was glorious, especially since the water temperature was 83 degrees (28C)! We stayed submerged until dinner time, which was at Moe's, as per Nathan's request for his family fun night. On the way back, we made a detour to a home improvement store to pick up a gas bottle for my grill, as well as a window screen repair kit. This was the cheapest option to replace holey screens that my youngest made in his screen, the screen door in the kitchen, as well as my bedroom screen! Fortunately YouTube has a DIY video on how to do your own screen replacements!
Sunday was even hotter than Saturday. Nathan showed some Pink-eye symptoms, so we opted not to go to church. Instead we had a lazy morning enjoying the air-conditioning in the house! After watching some of the Men's Final in the French Open, Liesel headed out to do some grocery shopping. While Lee was out, I was checking on the pool, and on the way in I felt an intense pain in my knee, Instinctively my hand went to my knee to brush away the source of the pain. Unfortunately, the source was a wasp that stung my knee, and then subsequently stung my thumb! It's been decades since I was last stung, and I obviously forgot how intense that pain is! I immediately put my thumb under cold running water, before looking up how to treat stings.... Once the stings subsided, the boys and I ventured outside, and headed back to the pool for some cool fun! For dinner, I fired up the grill and we ate a delicious dinner outside on the patio. After dinner, we played outside some more, before going on our second bike ride around the neighborhood that day! You've got to love summer! Now only if we could get rid of the "useless" insects that can ruin our fun.........
Sunday, June 03, 2012
Hey, where did my weekend go?
After having a three day weekend last week, I kind of feel short-changed by this past one. So with limited hours to enjoy ourselves, we made sure to enjoy every minute! On Friday night, we headed to a local home improvement store to stock up on some supplies for the weekend activities. So on Saturday, my work was cut out or me. Jobs included: additional landscaping with stepping stones and marble rocks, repainting and re-attaching a window ornament, and cleaning the pool. The air temperature was cooler this weekend, so no-one made use of our pool. After the DIY tasks were taken care of, it was time for family fun night. Josh chose to go to Crocker Park, which turned out to be a wonderful evening! When we arrived, Nathan and I sat down at the outdoor chess tables and enjoyed a game together.
At the same time, Liesel and Josh headed to Barnes and Noble, where Joshua entertained himself in the Children's section with their new train table! Once Nathan and I finished up, we headed into Barnes and Noble to find the other's and spent some time indoors with them. On the way back to the car, we were stopped by a policeman in his car, and when I approached his window, he offered the boys a couple of police badges. Another reason we love it here!
On Sunday, we headed to church a half hour earlier than normal, due to a summer schedule change. For lunch we headed to a new playground for a picnic lunch with Liesel's MOPS group. It was an enjoyable outing, and the boys loved the playground, and I loved the dessert :)
Another good weekend - just not long enough!
At the same time, Liesel and Josh headed to Barnes and Noble, where Joshua entertained himself in the Children's section with their new train table! Once Nathan and I finished up, we headed into Barnes and Noble to find the other's and spent some time indoors with them. On the way back to the car, we were stopped by a policeman in his car, and when I approached his window, he offered the boys a couple of police badges. Another reason we love it here!
On Sunday, we headed to church a half hour earlier than normal, due to a summer schedule change. For lunch we headed to a new playground for a picnic lunch with Liesel's MOPS group. It was an enjoyable outing, and the boys loved the playground, and I loved the dessert :)
Another good weekend - just not long enough!
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Memorial Day - the unofficial start of Summer
In the USA, three day weekends are few and far between. Monday is Memorial Day here, so I am looking forward to being able to spend some extra time with my family, since my work has had me doing quite a bit of traveling recently! My most recent trip sent me flying to San Francisco on Monday afternoon, to spend two days of training at the YouTube headquarters, before making my way back on Wednesday night. I had a good time in San Francisco, but due to my current workload, I did not have the option to explore the city. The course ended roughly at 8pm on Wednesday, and immediately afterward, I made my way back to the airport for a 10pm flight to Las Vegas. One advantage to flying so late, is that the airports are generally quiet and there is no wait to pass through the security checkpoints. My flight took off on schedule and I landed in Las Vegas just after midnight. Bear in mind, that I had been awake since 5:30am the previous morning......
This was the first time I had been to Las Vegas, and as soon as I came up from the jetway in the airport, I was greeted by a huge welcome sign and row after row of slot machines!
Considering I had 6 hours to wait before my next flight, I took a shuttle from the airport to the (in)famous Las Vegas Strip. I got of at the MGM Grand Hotel, which was indeed Grand! The foyer consisted of mostly marble and gold and could easily accommodate large crowds of people! Then came the casino section, which seemed never-ending. I was amazed how many people were still gambling at around 2am. Also, coming from Ohio where all smoking indoors is banned, I was disgusted to see how many people were sitting at the slot machines and tables, puffing away at their cancer sticks! After wandering around aimlessly in through the maze of slot machines, I managed to make my way out and onto the Strip. The temperature outside was a pleasant 80 degrees (27C) at 2am - so I was still working up a sweat as I walked between the hotels. I walked past the Excalibur and Tropicana (where the finals of Dancing with the Stars is being held), before a saw a familiar skyline. Diagonally opposite me was the Empire State Building, Chrysler building, Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty! I had stumbled upon the New York New York resort, which was my next stop.
I went inside, but once you've seen one casino in Las Vegas, you've pretty much seen them all! Basically there were thousands of slot machines, with hundreds of gaming tables all around (with people smoking and drinking as they emptied their accounts...) I made my way outside again and looked for the Bellagio, home of the famous fountains. My eyes caught the hotel's signage in the distance, and I determined that it was way too far for my weary legs to get me there and back. Shortly afterward I caught a shuttle back to the airport where I could relax for a couple of hours before my three and a half hour flight back home!
This weekend was spent mostly at home, enjoying the record breaking heat, and relaxing in our pool! On Saturday evening, we put our bikes on the bike rack and drove to a local park for a family bike ride which is always enjoyable. Liesel and I worked in the garden on Sunday, pulling out a tree and two shrubs, before getting cleaned up and going on a date night! We chose this restaurant that is owned by a renowned chef, Michael Symon, and specializes in hamburgers. It is called the B-spot, and the variety of hamburgers is amazing! I also ordered myself their Chocolate Expresso milkshake, and it is by far, THE BEST MILKSHAKE I HAVE EVER HAD! Liesel agreed with me! It was thick, creamy, and had chunks of chocolate and expresso beans that added texture to the delectable flavor. The hamburgers were also out of this world - so it was the perfect end to another good weekend!
This was the first time I had been to Las Vegas, and as soon as I came up from the jetway in the airport, I was greeted by a huge welcome sign and row after row of slot machines!
Considering I had 6 hours to wait before my next flight, I took a shuttle from the airport to the (in)famous Las Vegas Strip. I got of at the MGM Grand Hotel, which was indeed Grand! The foyer consisted of mostly marble and gold and could easily accommodate large crowds of people! Then came the casino section, which seemed never-ending. I was amazed how many people were still gambling at around 2am. Also, coming from Ohio where all smoking indoors is banned, I was disgusted to see how many people were sitting at the slot machines and tables, puffing away at their cancer sticks! After wandering around aimlessly in through the maze of slot machines, I managed to make my way out and onto the Strip. The temperature outside was a pleasant 80 degrees (27C) at 2am - so I was still working up a sweat as I walked between the hotels. I walked past the Excalibur and Tropicana (where the finals of Dancing with the Stars is being held), before a saw a familiar skyline. Diagonally opposite me was the Empire State Building, Chrysler building, Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty! I had stumbled upon the New York New York resort, which was my next stop.
This weekend was spent mostly at home, enjoying the record breaking heat, and relaxing in our pool! On Saturday evening, we put our bikes on the bike rack and drove to a local park for a family bike ride which is always enjoyable. Liesel and I worked in the garden on Sunday, pulling out a tree and two shrubs, before getting cleaned up and going on a date night! We chose this restaurant that is owned by a renowned chef, Michael Symon, and specializes in hamburgers. It is called the B-spot, and the variety of hamburgers is amazing! I also ordered myself their Chocolate Expresso milkshake, and it is by far, THE BEST MILKSHAKE I HAVE EVER HAD! Liesel agreed with me! It was thick, creamy, and had chunks of chocolate and expresso beans that added texture to the delectable flavor. The hamburgers were also out of this world - so it was the perfect end to another good weekend!
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