Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for my two wonderful children, my beautiful and caring wife and her sweet and gentle kisses, my family, my grandpaprents and my kid's grandparents, my friends, fishing, photography, company swag, freedom of expression, cars and trucks, life's simple pleasures, the internet, freedom, my home, the beach, morning coffee, good food, candle-lit dinners, feelings, great movies and great books, my wisdom, my imagination, my creativity, the food my wife prepares each day, Apple computers, my iPod, my central heat and air, the ability to face life's little challenges, open windows in the spring and fall, loud music, an evening beer and an afternoon glass of wine, watching my breath in teh cold winter mornings, my chili, weekends with my wife and kids, the strength of my wife who has taken in my daughter as her own, my sister whose heart is much bigger than her brain and her loving husband who colects Hot Wheels with me, for my brother who I never got a chance to meet (I miss you and don't even know you - Happy Thanksgiving in Heaven), my dad who taught me to be a man, my mom who taught me to love, my mother-in-law who never stops talking (you have so many great things to say) and my father-in-law whose mild personality is so soothing, my sister-in-law who changes her hair every month, my inability to spell teh word teh correctly when typing, my two wonderful puppies and obnoxious cat, tall trees for my son to climb, green grass, annuals and perennials, love, my job, that my wife can stay home with our son, my buddy Drew who never gives me the controller when we play one-person X-Box games, my buddy Scott whose intelligence far supasses many I know, my friend Daniel who has teh weirdest pre-engagement I have ever seen, laughter and playfulness, smiles from my childern, babling, the way my daughter spells my son's name (Cartre),the wind, television, PlayStation, UK Basketball, warmth, homemade quilts, campfire weiners and marshmellows, playing games this feeling I am having right now of all teh things I forget about until I write them down. I am thankful for being thankful.

This is my daughter's 7th Thanksgiving and my son's very first.


Happy Thanksgiving guys!

Cross your fingers

Well, today is the day that will test levels of stress beyond belief.

The short story:

We have an 80-page magazine due at 6 a.m. tomorrow morning and still don't have all of the content, my wife just began keeping a 6-week old little boy this morning and I have to finish a website design for an important contract - AND it is Thanksgiving Holiday which means a short work week! I'm not even home to help my wife work these things out. On top of all of that, we are out of sugar!! Hold on sanity, I'll be back shortly.

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The long story and the history of the madness:

(#1 - Stress level: High) This morning, around 7:30, my buddy Drew dropped off his newborn son, Liam, for my wife to babysit. His wife mounts up and takes her first day back to work after nearly 2 months off after Liam was born. Good luck on your first day back, Missy!

You see, the plan was, since my wife has put a temporary hold on her career (ie: quit to stay home with Carter), for her to keep Liam for extra income. The only thing is, it is a 10-hour day for $20 a day ($2 an hour). But it DOES help out some of our best friends in knowing their son is taken care of and not being neglected in some daycare housing 50 other infants.

(#2 - Stress level: Higher) BUT, about three months ago, my buddy Scott asked if I could freelance some graphic design for his new company Southestern Book Company.. It involves some newspaper ad design, web banner design and a huge year-end website overhaul. He helped us set up a contract with a 10-hour work week until next March. I gotta tell ya, that helps a ton financially. Thanks Scott! The thing with this job is I am at their "disposal". They have turned a girl, named Emily, loose on me and I have logged nearly 4 weeks worth of work just for her in 2 weeks time. Which is fine because I will have downtime later, it just comes at a bad time in relation to everything else.

(#3 - Stress level: Highest) And then, about two months ago, a magazine publisher came-a-calling - Paducah Parenting & Family. She asked if Angie and I would layout and design a local 80-page magazine on a monthly basis. Whoa! Wow! That is almost more than I make at my 40-hour day job. The only thing is, we have to design an entire magazine in 2 to 3 days. No room for mistakes. No time to get sick. Way stressful situation here!!

(#4 - Stress level: Medium) Two other littl companies have called us. Country Chevrolet in Benton, Ky started soliciting our design services, and a small branch of American Classifieds, called "The Fugitive File," has called upon us.

So with the SE Book deal and the Parenting Magazine deal and all the other little clients needing designs, we are in good financially - just not sanity-wise - lol! Things will get better, though, I hope. I should wrap up the big web project soon, even though I haven't done much of anything but a skeleton (don't read that part Scott) and there will be some downtime after that. My wife will cease keeping Liam at the end of December, so that will be less stressful, too. Hopefully this magazine will soon be more timely that a 3-day design turnaround. *sigh*

Wish me luck?

Local Weather Damage

Tornado and storm damage around my neck of the woods. Most of this damage happened within 10-20 miles of our home. We were incredibly lucky that is just missed us.

And here they are

My darling little trick or treaters!!