Two and then some...

Carys is now just four months shy of turning 3... she's speaking in long, rambling run-on sentences as she's been doing for months. Needless to say, she is verbally advanced. And she has a new little sister to teach all kinds of things to now. Kelen Carmelina was born November 14, 2007 and she is such a smiler, it makes me nuts. She smiles with her whole face and she started doing so at about 3 weeks old. Believe me, it wasn't gas ;^)

It's such a thrill to watch Carys grow up and see the differences between the two of them as Kelen goes through ages that Carys has long passed. I find myself more and more in love with the both of them each day and I'm so proud. Having kids has been so much fun... exhausting, frustrating and mind-boggling, but crazy fun.

The year in business

So, these last few weeks have been pretty brutal at work. We were forced to resign the primary account I've been working to build over the last year. The press actually had a pretty serious field day over the last few weeks, beating up my company every chance it could get. Now, I find myself running two major new business pitches, both of which are pretty exciting... it appears there won't be any stabilization on a new account for me or my team for the coming month or more. Might seem like things are slower for me, but the new business thing keeps my mind turning all the time and I find myself feeling busier than I was before. Again, not a bad thing. I think occasions like this bring out the competitive, entrepreneurial spirit in me.

Carys is doing really well... she is so close to walking on her own. It's taking her longer to start this than I thought it would. She continues to get more and more vocal almost by the day. She's just such a joy to be with. I love seeing her when she wakes up in the morning and am always excited as can be to see her when I come home at night. She has such a wonderful personality and is just precious. A recent picture is posted here.

Crazy mad...

ANDREW: Life's been hectic to say the least... Carys turned one year old a couple weeks back... picture here. Work's been really nuts. Too many things to worry about. Other than a lot of work with a lot of travel (mostly to Dallas and New York), life's been good. Things have been stressful at the office, but life with Corrie and Carys has been wonderful. Mark and Alice are coming to visit in a couple weeks. Looking forward to taking a couple days off. Corrie and I were supposed to go on vacation in June, but with things at both our jobs being so busy, we pulled the plug. I definitely need some planned time off.... I've got to have that to look forward to. I've learned that it helps keep me going.

Anyway... getting late on Sundy night. Sweltering outside. I'll post again soon...

Once again...

... I've been shirking my blogging responsibilities. Work has been busy. I've travelled some... NYC, Dallas... both quick trips. Carys turned 10 months old yesterday and is doing great. She's getting so big and seems to change every day. Corrie took her to have her picture taken within the last couple days. They're really adorable and we should get them back in the next couple weeks.

Was supposed to go to the Cubs game this past weekend, but it was so cold. We had to bail out.

Mother's Day was very nice... Took Corrie, her mom and my mom all out for lunch. It was nice to get everyone together and catch up. I think Corrie had a nice day and definitely enjoys being a mother, even when it's not mother's day.

Time to work... fingers to the bone, my friends.

Mr. Cub

Forgot to tell everyone about meeting the Hall of Famer, Ernie Banks, last week while I was waiting for a plane in Dallas. Spoke to him for a good 20-30 minutes. He autographed a photo I had with me of Corrie, Carys and I at Carys's first game last September. The photo was in a mini album that I carry with me when I travel. Some of you have, no doubt, seen this little album. It was a very cool experience for me, being a lifelong Cubs fan.

A day to smell the flowers

What a great day today was... Things at work were fairly mellow because it was the Friday before the Easter holiday. I was able to get some work done but I was feeling a little impatient because I've been working on a deal that was taking longer than anticipated and I was afraid my team might have to be re-dedicated to other projects if I couldn't get this thing locked down soon. They'd already put so much work into it. And the last thing I wanted was this hanging over my head before the holiday weekend... Around 1:30, my client and I agreed to terms on two key projects that will give us an opportunity to do some very compelling online marketing that integrates video and audio. True digital convergence. The program is targeted to teens and will be up in July in time for the Back To School retail boon. I'll keep everyone posted on how the project progresses and when the communications will be in the market. I can't wait...

After that, I had drinks with another client from 2pm - 3pm and our office closed promptly at 3 to parole everyone early to enjoy the holiday. I didn't leave till nearly 4, but when I got home it was at least 75 degrees outside, Carys had just awoken from a nap in a great mood, Corrie was already home and the three of us sat on the front porch chatting with neighbors and enjoying the sunshine.

To top it all off, the Cubs are beating the Pirates in the top of the 9th, 11-6. Another half inning to go. Life is very, very good today.

Ready for a break

I'm very tired today... work's been stressful and busy. I like busy... Last week, I spent three days in Dallas. No travel this week, but it's felt so long. Next week, Wednesday morning, Corrie, Carys and I are shipping out to Seattle to visit Corrie's brother, Geordie for a few days. Seattle is one of my favorite American cities and I can't wait to have a few days off to play with the family. This will be Carys's first airplane adventure. We didn't get her a seat, so she'll be switching off between Corrie and my laps. Seattle should be beautiful this time of year.

Good things

Things with my mom thankfully all turned out well. She did not, in fact, have anything resembling a stroke and the calcification that was noted in the CAT scan turned out to be very mild, normal for someone to have. The culprit, it turns out, was high blood pressure medication that her former shoemaker doctor insisted she take. With normal blood pressure, it drove her pressure down so low that she passed out... twice. She is no longer taking the medication, checking her blood pressure each morning to ensure things are in order. She'll follow up with the doctors in the next week to be sure everything's back to normal, but in the meantime she's back to herself and her old tricks.