Yeah, the Packers aren’t in it so it’s not nearly as stressful to watch this year, but we’re still enjoying some family time together. While I may have tuned out for a little bit to get some work done for tomorrow, Becky bowed out to practice a presentation, and Gavin stepped out to finish his book for Battle of the Books, but we’ve had a great time watching the game and the commercials. We had a delicious Super Bowl supper (baked antipasto sandwiches using crescent rolls for the crust) and are just chilling and talking during the game. Throw in joking about the commercials and it’s been pretty awesome!

While we could pretty much care less about who wins we’re having a good time spending time together as a family and loving it. It’s been a great excuse to all curl up on the couch and chill together.

Thanks!!!

Last April I was making some pretty awesome progress in making puzzle boxes.  Crafting puzzle boxes was relaxing and very gratifying at the same time.  Spending time in my workshop is always great, but time spent on something relatively small that will be a gift just makes that workshop time even better.

Over the past few months I’ve spent most of my free workshop time on insulating it.  My intent was to get that done first and then jump back into making boxes.  After yesterday it just felt right to start making them again.  Dad had always wanted to know how I made them and after as close to him as I felt yesterday I got the urge and gave in.

No major progress was made, but just the act of making the blanks felt great.  When I went to cut the first one I just laughed at how rusty I was.  I totally screwed up the first cut and all I could do was chuckle.  Time to get back into the swing of it!

While that was going on Dominic was at a Boy Scout merit badge day and was able to work on earning two merit badges.  Gavin spent much of the afternoon working on his Game Design activity pin for Weblos.  I got out den meetings mapped out for the rest of the school year and have it worked out so the boys will have the opportunity to earn their Weblos badge.  Lots of time and work spent on scouting, and it was pretty awesome.  Both of the boys had a great sense of accomplishment after their hard work, I was proud of both of them for focusing on reaching the goals they set for themselves.

This was a great day spent mainly at home and it was awesome.  Working on the puzzle boxes and making progress on scouts made it all the better.

Thanks!!!

 

Aunt Donna’s funeral was today and we said goodbye to an incredible woman.  While I knew her in life it’s still amazing to learn more about her than I knew before.  She was remarkable in more ways than I can even begin to count.  One day when I see her again I am so excited to sit down with her and ask her so many questions.  Every additional story I’ve heard about her helps me see that I only saw the tip of the iceberg…  and I already held her in very high regard!

I was honored to be asked to give some family reflections during the service today and wanted to share what I wrote below.  Many of her family members sent me thoughts, memories, and deeply heartfelt messages of what the appreciated the most about her.  In reading their stories I was moved to tears by the love of them for her and her love for each of them that came through clearly in the stories.  In some cases I literally laughed out loud at some of the stories that I hadn’t heard before.

Donna was really quite the gardener, wasn’t she?  She grew so many beautiful plants and flowers.  She had a knack for planting the right things in the right places, giving them just the right amount of sun, water, and love…  That wasn’t the only thing she grew though.  Look around this room…  She grew us as well.

To put it simply, Donna was awesome.  How else do you describe someone who was an incredible cook, gardener, friend, and polka dancer who was also able to run a chainsaw, teach you how to drive a clutch, and milk cows?  Throw in the fact that she was always willing to share advice on a recipe, sewing, and gardening.  Awesome, right?  And that’s before we even get into the incredibly loving and giving person that she was.

Donna was such a giving person and in so many ways.  When new siblings were being born the other young siblings all went out to Donna and Tom’s.  She even knew that those “city boys” didn’t like fresh milk so she had chocolate milk waiting for them.  When her mom needed to go shopping or go to a doctor’s appointment she did without question and always with a smile.  Donna touched many lives as she volunteered for hospice, the nursing home, and her church.

I’d be remiss to not mention how giving she was when it came to meals and hospitality.  During hunting season everyone received a hot meal from Donna, no cold sandwiches there!  I remember so many holiday meals at her house, a tradition that had been ongoing for a long time.  Her brothers and sister remember going to her house on Christmas day for lunch.  Not only did they never leave hungry, but they’ve said those were some of the best meals they’ve ever had.  That was Donna’s gift to all of them.

In many ways Donna was a second mother to many of her siblings.  She was always there to listen, help, and guide them through life.  One of her many strengths was her ability to listen without judgement and help guide them through any situation.  Whatever they needed, she was there for them.

One of the most heartwarming moments of my life was when I had the privilege of taking her back to see my dad for the first time after his surgery.  My thought was that I would be strong for her and help hold her up.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  As she talked with my dad her voice was pure love.  It was the pure love of sister for her brother, a mother for a son, and an aunt for a nephew.  I may have gone in with the intent of being strong for her, but by the time we left the room it was Donna who was carrying me.  She helped me see my dad through her eyes and it is a beautiful gift that I’ll never forget.

Donna loved us all completely, simply, purely, and without judgement or expectation.  Her love for everyone was unconditional.  As her granddaughter Julie put it, “you could hear love in her voice.” 

She had the rare ability to truly see us each for who we are, faults and all, yet she always saw us as the best versions of who we are. The best way for each of us to honor her legacy and keep her alive in us forever is to try to be that person she saw in us.  To be that person who is kind, good, thoughtful, and always puts the needs of others first – the same way she always did.

This spring as the weather warms, the flowers start to bloom, and you see the first butterfly of the year please take a minute to pause.  Donna will be with you, smiling down from her eternally sunny garden.  If you listen close I’d bet you will even hear her beautiful voice in your heart. 

If you listen closer you might even hear the polka music in the background as she and Tom are dancing together again.

As you’ve just read, Aunt Donna was an amazing person and I’m so fortunate to have known her, spent time with her, and learned from her.

Aunt Donna, thank you so much for all you’ve given my family and I throughout your life.  While you will be missed we’re happy that you’re home with your other brothers and sisters, your parents, and your beloved Tom.  Please keep an eye on my dad, who knows what type of trouble he’s already causing up there!  Love you!!!

Thanks!!!

When I got to the Rice Lake office this morning Nicole had a card fro me from her youngest son, Bret.  She was talking with him last night about how my aunt had passed away as she explained why I had to re-schedule our development meeting.  He immediately insisted that she drive him to the store so he could get me a sympathy card.

As I opened it this is what I got:

How cool is that???  My new 9 year old buddy wanted to help put a smile on my face and he was successful.  There’s nothing quite like getting a card from someone out of the blue to put a smile on my face!

Bret, thanks for making my day dude!  I greatly appreciated you thinking about me and taking the time to get me a card.  Thank you so much for bringing a smile to my face today dude, you’re awesome!!!

Thanks!!!

 

 

Not going to lie, today has been amazing.  Seemingly at every turn I had another moment in which I could’ve written my blog.  There were even huge moments like knocking another one off my dream list and being asked a tremendous honor.  In bits and pieces this is definitely a day I will remember the rest of my life.  So what am I thankful for today?  In case you missed it in the title, I’m thankful for snuggling with my best-est buddy in the coffee shop.

In trying to help Becky have time to work and study for her PhD I took Gavin with me when I dropped Dominic off at church tonight.  He and I were going to chill, have mugs of decaf and hot chocolate and relax – me with my laptop and Gavin with his book.  While it started off at a normal table Gavin quickly opted for the comfy chairs in the back corner.  Before too long he got up, smiled at me, and said ‘let’s snuggle on the couch!”  How could I refuse?

Next thing I knew I was typing one handed as he snuggled right into my left arm.  It was awesome!  There we sat, just chilling and snuggled up.

I know there aren’t too many more of these moments in the future, so I appreciate every single one of them.  There was much awesomeness today, but that snuggle with him meant the world to me and brought me a ton of joy.  Of all the awesomeness in my life the moments I appreciate most are these quiet moments of chilling and snuggling with my family.

Thanks!!!

Today’s been an awesome day so far.  It’s pretty sure to be the highest scoring day yet on my checklist (from last week, if you missed it you can check it out here).  That said, today’s post goes back to trying to stand balanced on the end of a log that’s floating in the water.

Another week of logrolling, another week of interesting thought processes afterwards…  I’m so glad Becky talked me into trying this for the first time a little over a year ago.  Never in a million years have thought it’d give me the insights that it has.

Under most (or almost every) circumstances I’m very competitive and goal oriented.  If there’s a record I want to beat it.  If there are milestones to hit I’ll bust my butt to hit them.  If there’s an extreme boundary I want to push it.  If there’s a competition I want to win it.  That’s one of the ways my brain is wired, I enjoy achieving.

When it comes to log rolling I have zero delusions of grandeur.  Seriously, I’m terrible!  I have no desire to compete, to set a record, or anything like that.  There’s no specific time goal that I want to achieve.  There’s only one goal that drives me when I’m rolling…  I want to get better.

That’s it, nothing else.  Each time I go I want to be just a little bit better than the last time.  No score keeping, no chase for perfection, no nothing like that.  I just want to get better, and it feels great!

When I’m pushing hard for a goal or trying to set a new personal record for something I sometimes get overly stressed.  When I push that hard I sometimes lose sight of the reason why I started in the first place, and I just want to be the best.  It seems like when that happens I start to make mistakes or miss out on things that would’ve helped.

Logrolling is totally different.  After each attempt I run through it in my head, listen to our coach, and try to make one small improvement.  No wholesale changes, just consistent progress.  As I think about it, yoga is a very similar sensation.  Each session I try to stretch a little further or push a little harder.  In both cases there’s no long term goal besides continuous improvement.  There’s no finish line, endgame, or competition, it’s just improvement for the sake of improvement.  It feels pretty awesome!

Today I’m thankful for this simple lesson, remember to enjoy something more by having one goal…  to get better.  In taking any project just one step at a time, becoming a little better than I was the last time, not only will there be progress, but I’m more apt to enjoy the ride.

Thanks!!!

About a few weeks ago I reached out to a friend who does some excellent motivational speaking to see if she would be interested in a little gig for our teams.  We have an annual event in which we get all of our teams together and we were looking for someone who would leave us all with an awesome send off message.  This friend is super high energy, upbeat and positive and my first thought went to her.  I reached out right away via text.

“Thank you so much for thinking of me!  I would love to, but I have my nose to the grindstone on a couple of projects and I need to stay in my lane.  What kind of topic are you looking for?  I could recommend someone…”

When I read it I just smiled.  How cool of a rejection was that?  To the point, thankful for the offer, and honest about having a few other projects that needed to be focused on.  As I read her rejection there was no frustration, I totally got it and could understand.  Thinking about it more I grew more respect for her for just saying it like it was and still offering a different way to help.

Not only did I appreciate her very well put rejection, I saved that text to remember that verbiage for those times when I need to say no.  As I’ve mentioned earlier this year there are three specific work goals I am focused on achieving this year and I’ve already had to say no to several incredibly awesome and interesting opportunities.  In the past I’ve struggled how to put the rejection.  How do I say no without sounding too harsh, but directly enough that the person knows that the answer is no.  Her response was exactly the tool to put in my belt for this year.

Fast forward to today when there was an email to get started on a project that I really enjoy and want to dive into in a bad way.  I’d let it sit for an extra day just because I couldn’t quite bring myself to say no to it.  This morning when I saw it in my inbox the text from my friend popped into my head and I was able to politely say no until I’m ready to take this project on…  And it felt great!

Thank you so much to my friend for not only giving me one of the nicest rejections I’ve ever had, but also, and more importantly, for helping me find a better way to stay in my lane.

Thanks!!!

 

This past weekend was built around spending time with a few of my closest friends and it was everything I’d hoped for and then some.  My three closest childhood friends and I spent time hanging out, shooting the bull, and having a lot of fun.  There was a really cool combination of one on one time with each as well as with the group.  All in all, it was flat out an awesome time.

The reason I am thankful for this is because life is busy as all hell but we’re still able to find ways to get together at least a couple of times each year as a big group.  These are the friends who know me incredibly well and have shared memories of growing up together.  Ever since we were kids we’ve been a constant in each other’s lives and it’s amazing just how close we’ve stayed throughout the past few decades and change.

When we get together as a group we pick right up where we’ve left off.  Many of the same jokes and memories are shared.  Our perspectives continue to change and evolve, but we’re still the same group of dudes getting together that we were many years ago when we’d hang out in James’ attic.  Weekends like this feel great, it’s like being present in the now while also going back in time.

We’re there to help each other out through the curveballs life throws us, listen when we need someone to share a thought or idea with, and to celebrate life’s successes.  Long story short, we’re always here for each other.  Weekends like this are a great way to make sure that bond continues over the years.

This weekend we re-lived memories, created new memories, and laughed our asses off and it was awesome.  An awesome weekend with awesome friends…  I am so thankful for this time we had together!

Thanks!!!

Every time my buddy Garwood comes to La Crosse there are a couple of things that are guaranteed. First off, we’re going to have a great time chilling and relaxing. Second, there’s always at least one tradition that we follow without fail… a trip to Buzzard Billy’s!

We stayed true to tradition tonight and the food was awesome as always. While there we shot the bull, watched some tennis, and had a great time.

It’s always an awesome time when the Woodah comes to town, and this goofy little tradition is usually one of the highlights, not just for the food, but mainly for the time to talk. When we get together we spend a ton of our time playing games and being active, this is that chance to just chill and talk… and I’m very thankful for it.

Thanks!!!

Another great day is not even close to being done as we just got back from dinner and I’m about to spend some great time with friends tonight. It’s actually pretty fitting that this is the case tonight as it’s a perfect example of what I’m thankful for today.

Without sounding overly cryptic today I’m very thankful for taking advantage of the opportunities i have with friends and family. Life is way too short to miss out on spending time with the most important people in our lives. It’s so easy for me to get caught up in the race of daily life and miss some of those moments.

Since Dad’s passed I’ve kept this in mind often and it’s caused me to change my actions occasionally. Tonight I’m very thankful for that slight attitude adjustment, it’s paid off well in amazing ways.

Thanks!!!