P90X2 - Another Challenge

In case you didn't already know, the next version of P90X is about to be released and I am planning on taking on the challenge.  It is scheduled to ship tomorrow, but I probably won't start it until around or after the holidays..

I am going to try and put some daily blogs posts out here to track my progress and if all goes well, about the first of April I'll be done.

Into the unknown...

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Arrival of Alice Olivia and Grace Elizabeth

Grace and Alice

Alice - 7:14 PM - 5lbs 12 oz - 18 inches

Grace - 7:14 pm - 5lbs 9 oz - 18 1/4 inches

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I love Tartine bread!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, while we were in San Francisco in April, we visited Tartine Bakery.  This bakery is well known with the locals and probably most of the tourist who venture away from the main touristy spots of San Francisco.  The main attraction there was the country loaf and mainly the only reason I wanted to go there.  We purchased a couple of small items from the traditional bakery case and got a full loaf of bread.

The bread was fresh, probably just a few minutes from the oven.  They don't start selling it until around 5:00 PM Sunday - Thursday, we had timed it just right!  We were scheduled to have dinner at Delfina's which actually right next door to Tartine Bakery, so I didn't want to fill up on the bread, but I could not wait to have the first bite.  It was phenomenal; well worth the wait we encountered, which wasn't much really.  The wait we did have allowed Debbie and I to catch up and have a good laugh or two about the funny stories that had already occurred in the few hours we had been in town.

I knew that the owner and head baker at Tartine had recently released a book and I was actually thinking of purchasing his book while we were there, but I think it just slipped my mind during the rush... No matter, I was able to reserve it, luckily, from our local library.  I had a new project in the works.

If you want to follow the recipe from the book, the country loaf is not something you just whipped up on any given day.  It takes time and patience.  I had the time, since I didn't have some of the essential tools/gadgets for making the bread anyway.  Patience, well...

Once I finally got everything I needed to make the bread, I planned it all out.  At Tartine, they serve fresh bread with dinner, so the normal baking schedule doesn't apply.  It really is an all day affair once you are actually ready to prepare the country bread.

I won't belabor the details of the process, that's done well enough in the book, but I was pleased with my first effort.  By no means perfect, or exactly like what we had from the Tartine Bakery, but everyone that tried it, seemed to like it.

Here are some photos from my first attempt (and hopefully not my last)...

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By the way...

Last Friday Debbie has a deep scan ultrasound to ensure that all was well with the twins.  This type of ultrasound is pretty common with twins and allows the medical staff to get a really good idea on the size and weight of the twins and how they are progressing with known standards.  This type of ultrasound also allows them to spot any issues that might be noticeable early in the pregnancy.

With all the extra "work" that is involved with having twins, we decided early on that we were going to find out the gender of the twins as soon as possible.  The deep scan ultrasound was the first opportunity that we were going to get a peek at what were going to be expecting.

Affectionately known as "Baby A" was up first and the technician seemed pretty confident in her analysis of the gender... GIRL!!!

On to "Baby B"...another GIRL!!!

In a matter of moments poor Grant and I were out numbered by the girls 2 to 1.  However, both Debbie and I are very excited with this news and now begin the name selection process.

Officially due in late September, but likely will deliver in early September, we have some work ahead of us to get things around the house ready for the arrival of the twins.

Exciting times ahead...stay tuned.

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San Francisco...

October 2011 will mark the 10th year I have been married to my best friend.  12-18 months ago I had thought of planning a big trip to someplace that neither of us had been to.  At first I was thinking big; Europe, Caribbean, Hawaii, Bora Bora, etc.., but as the time to really start planning came along, our thoughts on such a trip probably would not be possible.

After that realization took hold, we set out to plan 2-3 smaller trips to less exotic places, but destinations that we had not yet been to.  Late last fall we landed on San Francisco as one of those destinations.  We stayed 4 days and 3 nights in an awesome studio apt, which we found on airbnb.com.  The studio was very close to public transportation and had a great view of the city's skyline.

San Francisco is a very unique city, quite a contrast to our normal Midwest atmosphere.  Perhaps it was just California in general, but the both of us noticed the city's population was much more of a community centric area.  Public parks were packed with people from all walks of life, and a dog for every 3rd person.  All well behaved, I might add...

We put quite a few miles on our shoes during those 4 days, despite trying to use public transportation every place we went.  With a 4-month pregnant with twins wife in tow, I wasn't sure how much this would limit what we were able to do and see.  But she was a trooper and was always up for the next stop of the trip.

We tried not to plan things around a time schedule, since we didn't want to be stuck in a situation where we needed to be somewhere and were enjoying where we were.  So most of the time we just found the closest MUNI station and waited for our next ride, but we did have a couple of stops that were planned in advance with reservations.

As most people have noted who have visited SF, the food was great!  The Tartine Bakery's fresh sourdough was a favorite of mine. I think Debbie enjoyed the over-sized cinnamon rolls at a different bakery...and I'll admin they were damn tasty.

The notorious cable cars of SF were very interesting and quite possibly dangerous at times.  I decided to "hang" instead of sitting, which lends itself to wandering the numerous views that you encounter as you move along.  However, if you aren't paying attention, you could easily be sent flying by a passing cable car going the opposite direction...no leaning, I literally had no more than 8-12 inches of clearance when another cable car was zooming past.  Yikes!

The Golden Gate bridge is just amazing.  Everyone has seen pictures of this thing, but photos really doesn't do it justice until you have walked along side it to appreciate what a massive structure it is.  We thought about walking the entire length of the bridge, but instead settled to walk to the first main upright.

We brought back some great stories that we will both never forget from our short but enjoyable visit to San Francisco.

It was good to get home and see the kids, we got in late but had to briefly wake them to say hello.  They were excited to hear about how our trip went and enjoyed the little bits of chocolate from Ghirardelli's that we brought back for them.

A big thanks goes out to grandma who was generous enough to stay at our home and take care of the kiddos while we enjoyed our trip.

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guess what...

We recently learned that we are going to be expecting another child.
We recently learned that we are going to be expecting another child.

No, that isn't a typo and I am not repeating myself...we are expecting twins!

I would have never imagined that I would end up fathering twins.  Turns out they won't be identical, which is probably a good thing. I have a hard time spitting out the correct names of the two kids that have now when I am yelling at them for something they shouldn't be doing.  I'm sure having identical would probably easier when you are around them often, but I know myself well enough to know that I would eventually screw it up...

It's still early into the pregnancy, so I haven't started to get too concerned about the whole situation.
Ask me if I feel the same way in 6 months.

The kids are super excited about arrival of the twins, hopefully this means that their excitement will lead to helping hands when they arrive.  Somehow I think the DS or Kinect will take precedence in the end.

This year mark the 10th year that Debbie and I have been married, most of the plans I thought that we would have are now changed.  But this will still prove to be a memorable year in the end.  I'm sure the misses will have a number of updates via Facebook or her blog.

Stay tuned everyone..

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Slow Dance...

This morning in my normal commute to work, I was listening to an audio book via my ipod, like I do most everyday.  I have been listening to the "4 Hour Work Week" by Tim Ferriss.  It is a great resource for the wanna-be entrepreneur.  It points out several concepts that most of the working world, me including, do to fool ourselves into being a workaholic.

At the beginning of the last chapter, an email that was sent to Tim that really hit home with me for some reason.  Here is the content of that email:

"Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down, don't dance so fast.
Time is short, the music won't last.

Do you run through each day on the fly?
When you ask "How are you?", do you hear the reply?
When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next 100 chores running through your head?
You'd better slow down, don't dance so fast.
Time is short, the music won't last.


Ever told your child; "We'll do it tomorrow." and in your haste not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die, cause you never had time to call and say; Hi?
You better slow down, don't dance so fast.
Time is short, the music won't last.

When you run so fast to get somewhere, you miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift thrown away.
LIFE IS NOT A RACE.
Do take it slower.
Hear the music before the song is over."

Wow...what a great poem.  I am going to try and tuck this one away and recall upon it from time to time.

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