Thanksgiving

Much to be very thankful. Thank you Father for your bounty, blessings, mercy and grace!

Enjoyed a great Thanksgiving day at my sister Tammys house and she and her husband Brad treated us to a fabuous dinner feast. Great fellowship and we even took the time to read the Proclamation of Thanksgiving of 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln. It was great to listen and share the reason for the nations holiday and he mentioned God no less than 4 times to my knowledge. Crazy how our public policy has changed over time. Great time with family...

The balance of the weekend was great and we spent 2 days erecting the kids long awaited tree fort. They have been reminding me daily that it needs to be done. Well - about 75% there and we need to side it, finish roof sheating, and other trims/paint. It was a great time to show the kids fruits of labor, simple carpentry, and working together as a team. Loved it...

Sean and Amber helping to secure bracing... Safety first!

Amber has her eye protection on and appropriate flip flop attire... Wacking the nail!

View of the deck through the door. Cannot show the balance until it's complete so stay tuned... Kids are loving it already.

Big Blue

Sean and the rest of his Loredo Pals. Cool Pic.

Blue Ninjas

AYSO completed the regional finals this weekend. 4 games in one weekend! The weather was in the 90's and we had mainly day games so it was time to stay hydrated.

Amber's team Blue Ninjas almost took a very close fought victory and ended up second place within the region. It was their first loss of the season. Amazing!

Regardless of the second, they took first in effort and attitude and we are thankful for the experience of the loss in light of the continuous record. We appreciate any place in this sport and thankful for the lessons of wins and losses (albeit AYSO does not make this a point).

We are thankful for the coaches and the young ladies who gave it their all. God Bless them all!

Tooth Puller

Seany boy yanked on his first tooth. Just a few days later, yanked the next. The boy has no fear in this regard...

Morning Sun at Refugio

Woke early before the sun came up. Prayed a bit while making coffee before everyone woke. God is perfect in revealing His majesty and beautiful handiwork.

Jenn joined me just before the sun came up. Enjoyed some great time with family and friends.

The Opener

Rudy treated me and Juda to a dive trip to Santa Cruz Island the first day of the Lobster season. The experienced folks call it "the opener." Met Rudy at 5am to load and drive his boat to Santa Barbara Harbor and made the channel crossing to Santa Cruz Island. Thankful for maps, compass, charts, and GPS since we were in total fog until we reached the island. It took approximately 1:15 since there was moderate chop on the water.

Cap'n Rudy at the helm with a very accurate land in fog on the north end of SC.

We arrived on the north end of the island and immediately found a spot, anchored, and jumped in. Rudy dove with me and we spent time exploring this edge for over an hour on the first dive. It was an amazing experience.

First Dive spot. Note the beautiful and shear rock faces and kelp forests. The caves are were the bugs are.

Our first dive was awesome and Rudy really showed me the ropes. Between a dive depth of 20-50 feet at various areas, we saw Calico Bass, a few lobster (I missed it...), crabs, and many other sea creatures. It was amazingly beautiful and full of color and adventure.

Rudy and Juda suited up while I ran a live boat for better dive access.

Rudy in his ocean element. Look at the smile!

Judas monster bug!

Yours truly took the run home. I was pretty off the return run in the fog but not too bad.

Finished and ready for the drive home. Rudys boat is one amazing craft and very sea worthy. The SB Channel has its reputation and this boat can handle some very nasty seas.

Pictures in the live well.

Well, not so live. Dinner table the following night! Tasty buggers!

Really enjoyed my first California opener. Between myself, Rudy and Juda, 17 total bugs on the trip. I was not much help to these experienced lobstermen since they both limited out. Time and experience will kick in and make me more productive. Looking forward to more dives and ocean runs with Rudy.