Slip & Slide in Kents Store, VA!

This is funny!

Neil's 1st Birthday!

I loved this video!!!

Some Videos

My son dances like no one's watching!

We'll certainly save this for his wedding day!

Britt's big getaway (kinda) and Grandma & Papa Visit!

Well, Britt left us for a long weekend in Texas. She first flew to Austin to visit Tory, Milam, William and Caroline. She then drove to Houston to meet some friends. She went to Corpus Christi to spread some ashes of her dear friend Jana who was killed in a helicopter accident last year. She was a flight nurse and they were transporting a patient to the Medical Center in really poor weather. I know that wasn't a fun part of her trip, but I hope that seeing her friends and performing that duty will provide some closure and make things a little easier for her. She then had a trip to MD Anderson for her checkup. Normally, this is not a fun time for her, however this year her report was so great they didn't even perform the dreaded bone marrow test! That's great news and we're all going to celebrate tonight!

So, what we did while she was gone you ask?

Well, my parents came into town and so began the "honey do's..."
1) Install fan in our front room (porch area) - Check. Actually my dad did this before she even left.
2) Replace broken microwave (built in above stove) - Check. Actually my dad did this before she even left.
3) Fix the natural gas lamp in the front of the house - Check, turned into quite the project...
4) Fix the junk drawer with striped screws - Check
5) Pick up dog dirt - Check
6) Mow the lawn - Check
7) Install battery tender for Harley

Additional duties completed...
1) Clean up & repair the injector pump hazmat mess and shop vac... Britt, we'll discuss later...
2) Replace broken child safety locks on cabinet - Check
3) Reverse water pipes in basement sink - Check and upgraded to braided stainless steel.
4) Cleaned up our messes...
5) Got some sweet Harley time in!
6) Green egg'd our A$$es off!

Harleys, birthdays & new technology!

So, today we got a new camcorder. Not only was our old camcorder not HD, it wasn't digital either! So, now we can take video and easily share it, either via the dvd burner we bought or by posting short clips here on our Blog! I guess this will probably have me updating the blog more often...

I'd like to say that Britt had a fantastic birthday, however she worked the night shift the night before and I know was plenty tired. Though, while she was asleep, I took the kids out for lunch at Portillos and to run some errands. When Britt woke up, we decided to go to the Zoo! Apparently we were among a million other people with the exact same idea! It was quite busy and Kelly was pretty fussy (especially when he couldn't ride the choo choo. We tried, but after waiting 20 minutes without progress, gave up). Anyways, we came home and I

made pizzas on the Big Green Egg. Then, Britt fell asleep on the couch at like 745! So, that was her exciting day.

Oh, and I got a Harley Davidson! It's a 2005 Harley Davidson Heritage Softail. I bought it used, but it only had 3600 miles! I've tried to ride it around the block, but am a little nervous until I go through the class. While riding around the block, I stalled it while turning left. Well, when the motor stalled, with the bike leaning, it wanted to go right to the ground! It took every ounce of strength I had to keep it off the ground. I was thankful I caught it, but it made me very nervous and sore (lots of muscles were apparently used! The bike is over 700 pounds!). I look forward to safe rides in the country, after I obtain my license. Britt surprised me with a traditional bell which is supposed to ward off the demons that can latch onto your bike and make it break down, crash, etc. You are supposed to mount it close to the road to ward off these guys! Needless to say, when I almost dumped the bike, I hadn't installed it yet!

That's it for now, isn't that enough?

Jason & Family

Jason Cooks - Finally!

The Big Green Egg!!!

For those that don't know me that well, I don't cook. Not that I can't, because I can. I am actually as good a cook as you know because the accountant in me ensures that I follow directions to a T... That said, I don't change recipies very often, so my meal is only as good as the recipe! I don't even know why I don't cook more, because when I do it, I kind of like it.

But, then came the Big Green Egg! Now, you might say, "what is a big green egg!?!" Please see the attached website and the pictures below...

http://www.biggreenegg.com/

I have made this my passion. These things are pretty pricey by my standards, but a series of events caused me to make this purchase...

1. Winning Fantasy Football two years in a row (this year was $550).

2. A few of my ffb players had expectations that because I won, I should shower the money on everyone, of which I didn't agree.

3. One of the players said, "hey - why don't you take the money and buy a big green egg and forget throwing everyone a party. You won fair & square and why should you spend your winnings on us" (my thoughts EXACTLY). With his peer pressure, everyone agreed! So, if I bought myself this, I could avoid a $150 - $200 party expense, that sounded pretty good.

4. I LOVE food cooked by my neighbors on their Eggs. It is a staple of just about every group get together... In this neighborhood there is 5 or 6 eggs and thus, plenty of people to compare notes with, get training from, etc. It took the guess work and intimidation out of it!

That said, I got one. And I love it! Even despite the fact that I've yet to grill on it when the outside temp was over 32 degrees (and most of the time it has been under 15 degrees), it is a very easy way to cook.

The only challenge used to be getting the coal started. Back in the old days, this could be time consuming. However, my neighbor has purchased a torch of sorts that can hook up to propane and light coals in 20 seconds flat, effectively removing this downside... Now, you can light your green egg and be cooking within minutes!

The green egg is a grill / smoker and can sear steaks at 750 degrees or you can cook all night slow & low for things like brisket or pulled pork. It's very versitile. To date we've made chicken legs & pizzas, several times each. Britt makes the pizzas, using our vitamix blender to make the dough from scratch, and I brave the elements to cook them. When the temperature warms, we're looking forward to trying new recipies.

A really easy recipe for Chicken wings, drumsticks or breasts that's delicious (green egg or not!)

Put a bunch of brown sugar (like a small bag f

rom the store) and a little salt in a pot, add water. Soak (Brine) the chicken in this for a minimum of a couple hours to as long as over night. I use generic brown sugar / salt. Then, take the chicken out and dry it off. Jewel sells a Carribean Jerk spice that comes in a little pouch, similar to hot chocolate. Take that, empty it into a large freezer bag and proceed to "shake and bake" the chicken. Then grill however you normally woul

d (I recommend the Green Egg, duh). You could pr

obably bake also. I find that the sweetness of the brown sugar and spice of the Carribean Jerk is AWESOME! Give it a try and let me know what yo

u think!

Asleep in the Chair

Have you ever seen a kid sleep through a haircut? I asked that question and was told by the stylist "I've seen kids fall asleep in the chair while getting a haircut, but this is a first."

Kelly hasn't been taking his naps recently, so despite the fact that it was nap time, I decided to take him out for a haircut. Not two minutes down the road, Kelly was asleep in the car... I called Britt and she said, get his hair cut, then if he falls asleep afterwards, bring him home for a nap...

When we got to Sports Clips, there was no wait. So we went in and Kelly didn't wake up while I pulled him out of the car, removed his winter hat and coat, or even when the stylist proceeded to put the cape on, and put him on the booster seat. During all of this, his eyes never even cracked a smidge. So, we began. I held him in the seat and held his head up... We both thought the clippers near his ear, spray bottle in his hair, etc would certainly wake him up! (I had a lollipop ready because I figured he wouldn't be thrilled with what he woke up to).

He didn't wake up at all! The closest he came was when he rubbed his eye as some water from the spray bottle had dripped down his forehead. After his haircut, I put his coat & hat back on, got him in the car seat and drove him home to mama, where he never made a peep. We pulled him out of the car and out of his winter gear, and straight to bed where he proceeded to sleep for 2 more hours. I guess that's the trick to getting him to nap!