Otto-Bots, Let's Roll!

Kelly and Eric's latest member of the family, Otto.

Christmas Drive

So, tonight we leave (hopefully,... ideally...) around 6PM.
Tonight, we drive to Stow, Ohio, to spend Evie's first Christmas with her extended Ullman clan.
I am currently at a photo shoot for work. Waking up this morning at 7:15 AM and heading in to this jobsite at 9:30AM.... its now 11:30 and I will be on the road halfway to my destination in 12 hours. Sheesh, we will be lucky if we roll in at 3AM.
*sigh*
Kill me now.
Evie, you will hear about the countless hours and insurmountable energy your father & I put forth during your childhood when you, someday, have kids of your own. It is, afterall, the circle of life that allows us to be able to tell you all the stories when we get old just like our parents are doing to us now.
I hope the traffic tonight goes easy on us!
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Finally! New storm doors....

I have wanted new storm doors since the day we bought this place 3 1/2 years ago. The ones it came with were those aluminum doors your grandmother once had featuring (prominately) the initial of her last name in the center of some twisted filigree.
Kitchy and vintage, but also, not so great.
Anyhoo, I happened to come across some money and thought, "Hey! Fast and easy household improvement!"
Right?!.
Wrong.
From the beginning of October until just last week, I have been through:
1. Having our handyman measure the doors before we buy them.
2. Borrowing K's truck to buy them.
3. Contemplating returning a door with a ding in it (I kept it, it really wasn't that bad).
4. Waiting and waiting for our handyman to install.
5. Handy man installs... the front door only. Turns out, its 3" too short. I decide to return it and order a custom size instead. I then pitch a fit when I learn its TOO LATE once its already been installed. Our handyman offers to buy the door from us. Didn't he measure this door before we bought it?
6. I order a custom door for MORE THAN TWICE AS MUCH and I then wait for almost 3 weeks for it to arrive.
7. The new door arrives!
8. Our handyman informs us that he doesn't have time to install the new door and directs us to his friend, G.
9. G goes through a series of delays including, but not limited to: being sick, truck was broken down and busy.
10. I go freaking nuts with the patience waning and call our real estate agent to get a handyman recommendation. I call M, who she recommends.
11. M has to change the date once, but otherwise shows up within the week.
12. M has a helluva time with the back door resulting in having to dismantle the back porch and CHISEL part of the door frame out to make it fit. He spends 2 1/2 days installing the doors... $250 installation fee when all is said and done.

My initial project of an estimated $570 that was to be completed over 1 weekend became $1000 over 2 1/2 months.
All future projects are now on hold until 2009 when I can handle it again.
Enjoy.

Back door
Front door
13. Almost forgot, G just called late last week to set another date and time to install the doors. Dumbass.

Tacky Sweater Day

So, my friend A told me about an "Ugly Holiday Sweater" party her friend holds each year.
When it came time for the CC Spirit Committee (yes, my marketing dept has a spirit committe and believe it or not, I am on it. Don't believe me? Just see the dorky pictures below showing my pride) to pick this December's fun in-office activities, I suggested "Tacky Sweater Day".
Many rolled thier eyes, many choose not to get involved at all, and many... went all out.
Enjoy:

PS, I do plan to post daily rants someday again soon - I just never seem to have the downtime I once had. But trust me, I got some rants bottled up inside just waiting to burst forth.