For Xavier’s 5th birthday he wanted to go to the Kalahari, so we’re here in the Wisconsin Dells for a 3 day mini-vacation. Here’s a photo for everyone of the not quite 5 year old taken yesterday. Oskar has been really interested in the new indoor amusement park they’ve opened and has discovered rock climbing. He spent close to an hour on the wall yesterday. Xavier gave it his best trying to keep up with his big brother…
Today was certainly a full day for everyone in the Alyn household. Erik turned 10 today and Xavier attended Erik’s party as well as Alex’s (from his pre-school). Everything came off as planned and a good time was had by all. To see the rest of the photos, be sure to check out the Flickr set or just see them all after the jump. (more…)
Busy month and clearly I’ve been slacking in my informational duties. Gretchen started the month with a trip to the beach to visit Vince and Jan while I stayed behind and finally made sense of my office. Spring sort of sprung and we did a bunch of cleanup in the yard only to have a whole mess of branches blow down the next day! The city cleared out the alley quickly and cable and telephone service were restored in short order. There are still wires draped in the alley and the Rizza’s fence and natural tree barrier will take some time to repair though.
We took the boys to see the Harlem Globetrotters after a successful elementary school game that featured the staff vs. 5th graders. Both games were a lot of fun although Oskar was frustrated the Globetrotters spent so much time talking instead of playing the game. Xavier seemed to enjoy it… or at least he enjoyed the candy 
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Gretchen had a birthday which Oskar and Xavier made a cake and pinata for. The effort spanned a few days but was enjoyed by all. The cake had a slightly deformed shape after sticking to the baking pan, but we shoved it back together and hid the seams with frosting and it tasted just fine!
Oskar also joined Cub Scouts and attended his first Den meeting this past Tuesday. He’ll be joining the Wolf Pack officially in mid May but will participate with the Tigers now. I’m not sure how much fun he’s having yet, but I’m having a blast. So much so that I started a little campfire with the boys in the back yard this evening. Next time we’ll have marshmallows.
Gretchen has also instituted Friday night Pizza night featuring some most excellent home made Pizza that she’s been making. Gretchen and Oskar have also been working hard at Montessori work. Oskar is working hard as a first time pupil for Gretchen as she masters the materials.
Both of the boys are recovering from cases of pink eye and everyone is being hit hard by the seasonal allergies.
Last but not least, I opened my homebrew that I made WAY WAY WAY back in January for the first time. Despite being heavily over carbonated it tastes pretty good. It takes a couple of minutes for the head to go back to liquid though 
Next time – I’ll move it to the lagering shelves much sooner.
Well, officially it was yesterday, but I wasn’t up to the task of writing a post about it. With over 150 pictures on Flickr, it was too much to cull through. Friday we headed out to the Kalahari in the Wisconsin Dells. Xavier had a blast in the water and in just about everything else he did. (more…)
