Chicago style parting gifts

He slid his hand into the outer pocket to fish out the keys while walking towards the car. The day was over and his tired feet were ready for a break. He glided into the bucket seat and inserted the key into the ignition while stepping on the clutch. Turn - nothing, turn again - nothing, turn again- cursing emanates from his mouth.

Yes yes folks, it seems that 3 -4 years of Chicago winters can do wonders for killing car batteries. Not to mention brakes. So after shelling out $450 for new brake rotors and pads (for the Saturn)this last weekend, we have to shell out another $70 for a battery for the Honda. All courtesy of the fine Chicago winters with corrosive salts and ice. Another good thing about moving back south.

Drive to work

As I was driving to work this morning, I am teaching 2 days a week at the Huntsville campus of Calhoun College, I was thinking how cool is it to drive pass this giant rocket on my way to work and to walk out of the front door of the campus and see it as well.

One of the three Saturn V rockets on display nationwide, this is quite a spectacular site when you turn the corner on I565. You can visit the US Space and Rocket Center website for more info. BTW: this is where space camp is held as well.

Our Little Superstar.

On Friday (1/30), Ashley performed in "Eastwood Idol" at Eastwood Elementary School. She sang and danced to the song "Rock Monster" from the VeggieTales Movie "The Pirates who Don't Do Anything". This is a parody of "Rock Lobster" by the B52's. Ashley did not win, but did a great job anyway. She even made the local newspaper (Decatur Daily).  We just might have ourselves a future superstar! 

Home for the Holidays

Well, we decided to stay home for the Christmas and New Year's holiday, but we were not without visitors. My sister Kathy was the first to come by from Dallas and was kind enough to bring us our old full side bed that she was finished with. This was perfect for Ashley so we upgraded beds for the kids. Ashley is now happily in a full size and her twin is now Ryan's first "big boy" bed. Hard to believe that in 3 years, he has not once gotten out of his crib, but it was time for him to move to a big bed and he loves it. He has only gotten out once in the last couple of weeks so it is a success. The kids loved having her around and actually cried a bit when she left. 

Cathy's mom came for Christmas and again the kids were excited to have someone else to play with. And of course, they loved their presents. Ashley wins the best kid award as she was overheard telling people that even though she did not get the one thing she asked Santa for (Nintendo DS), she was grateful for what she did get. I guess we are doing something right! Again the kids were sad when she left.

Lastly, the Appelts from Chicago were able to stop by on their way back from holiday in Florida with their new son, Nathaniel. He was quite the cute little guy and Cathy was enamored with him. Even Ryan got into the act by bring Nate a blanket and saying, "Here's a blanket, baby."

All in all, it was a good Christmas with 2 weeks off and a lot of family time.

New Scott Sigler Book Coming

For those of you that like horror/science fiction novels, check out these books by Scott Sigler: Infection and Contagious. For free audiobooks, visit Podiobooks.com or ScottSigler.com. Check out this trailer for the upcoming Contagious:

What a Day!

It is finals week and the weirdness has not stopped. Ryan has been sick since Friday with diarrhea and the worst diaper rash we have ever seen, the furnace condensate is leaking into the walls due to shotty construction, the chimney is also pretty messed up and will need work, and finally the HVAC guy found a long shed snakeskin in the attic. Just a day in the life of the Alabama Jones Family.

Building an Ark!

It was quite a night on Tuesday. About 9:00PM, our neighbor knocked on our door saying our yard was flooding since the sewer drains had been blocked by leaves and pine straw. So with water rising towards the house, we worked to clear the clogs and after about a half hour the water was receding. At midnight though, another huge wave of rain hit and even though the drains were clear, they could not keep up with the rain. The water was rising into the carport and I was trying to keep the drains clear as a river was flowing towards us down the street and down the alley as well. Cathy was on the phone with the city public works, emergency management and the Decatur police and we were praying nonstop as the water rose to within an inch of entering the house. With about 2 inches in the carport the intensity lessened and the water slowly began to recede again. It was a long night with much effort to slow the impending flood, but we survived and now know to be on the alert when it rains.