Happy New Year!

And here we are in 2010! Well, those of us on Central Standard Time, at any rate. Most of the world has been in this new decade for hours already. But here in Vermilion County, Illinois, we've just watched the ball drop (an hour delay) at Times Square in NYC. Yes, we watched Dick Clark here at Chez Brownie, because there really is no one else to watch. I mean, Carson Daly? You were great on TRL, but you're no Dick Clark. The Sweet One and The Cute One both stayed up to ring in the new year/decade, but The Wife had gone to bed.

And now, I'm shuddering with a single thought... Next year, I turn 40. Four-oh! Oh, man, now I need to go get a blanket.

they are freshINK... and they do good things

Envirocon Product Shoot from freshINK on Vimeo.

birthdays and sunsets down on the farm

We had the privilege of enjoying a down-home sunset when we attended the birthday party for The Wife's uncle. He has a farm in Vermilion County, Illinois, where he grows mostly corn and soybeans. He turned 80 years old, and his daughter and two sons decided to throw him a surprise celebration. My mother-in-law baked and iced the cake, while The Wife added the decorations.

Obviously, The Wife's uncle is one of John Deere's biggest fans. Yes, that's him in the lower right corner.

Congrats, Adam and Dru

I'm about to be a great uncle again!

UPDATE AT 3:00 am: HE'S HERE!

My father

Since I did an entry for my mother on Mother's Day this year (see?), it's only fitting that I would do one for my father on Father's Day. He's wearing his high school baseball uniform. I'm not quite sure of the year - maybe around 1949?



Happy Father's Day, Dad.

My mother

Here she is at age 19. Happy Mother's Day, Mom.

"a yummy New Year breakfast"

That's my eldest daughter's title for this post. Our first meal of 2008.



A two-egg omelette with bacon, chives, and cheese, accompanied by whole-wheat English muffins and a slice of processed American cheese. A perfect New Year's brunch.

the Brownie sisters

One of the great pleasures of the holiday season is getting together with family, particularly those that don't live close and aren't seen very often. This past week, I was able to spend time with both sisters. The younger sister* lives in nearby West Chester, Ohio, only a two hour drive from my house in Indianapolis. She's only 15 minutes from downtown Cincinnati, so I've dubbed her Cincy Sister. The older sister isn't as close - over ten years ago, she left the sunny skies of Ohio for the grey life of Panama City, Florida. Quite obviously, she's PC Sister.


One night last week, we fed on pasta and sourdough bread at one of Dayton's most famous downtown establishments, Spaghetti Warehouse. We sat at a large table in the back of the restaurant, where we could be as noisy as we wanted.


Here the sisters are, in all their glory. Cincy's on the left, and PC on the right.





* I designate them with the "older" and "younger" titles to set them apart. They are both older than me, the "younger" one by twelve years.

Merry Belated Christmas 2007

Hope yours was a good one. Mine was spent with family, half of whom I only see on rare occasions because of where we live (Indiana and Florida, two states that aren't exactly close to each other). We stayed with my parents, which meant no wireless capabilities. I didn't have a car to drive anywhere for some WiFi, and I didn't want to beg anyone to take me.

There were 28 people at my parent's house. 28! That has to be a record for the number of people able to fit into a 8X10 room. Well, my parents' house isn't exactly that small, but it sure felt like it. With wrapping paper and bows flying everywhere, it was utter chaos.

If you want to see some photos of my Christmas, go here to Salty Dog's place. I'm on the right side of this photo, between my mother in the turquoise sweater and my nephew with the hat.

Circle of Lights

Every year on the Friday following Thanksgiving, Indianapolis lights up the downtown circle (which gives the "Circle City" its nickname), creating what is purported to be the World's Tallest Christmas Tree. It's cheating a bit, since the lights aren't strung on an actual tree but the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument.


For the first time, the Brown family decided to join tens of thousands of strangers for the festive event. The chill was present but the wind was not, so we were pretty happy. We parked our van in a garage for only $1.50, a rare thing in any big city. After a quick bite to eat at Arby's, we joined the masses.



Before the lights:




After:




The Christmas season has begun!

the Thanksgiving Meal

Since I had to work at the hospital for Thanksgiving, we stayed home instead of traveling to one of our parents' homes. Happily, my parents decided to join us for dinner, so we were still able to have family with us.

We started off with some shrimp cocktail and crackers & cheese for appetizers:

We ate the traditional meal: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, yams, and green bean casserole. We washed it down with pomegranate-cranberry infused ginger ale.

I forgot to take a picture of the pecan pie and the pumpkin pie. Sorry!

he's coming

My niece's water broke today, and I'll soon be a great-uncle for the... oh, I've lost track by now. Go here for updates.

Yay!

Update (2:30 AM on 11/3/07): A C-section! Oh, my!

Update 2 (5:00 AM): Micah's here!

Update 3 (11/7/07): Go here for photos.

it's 12:50 AM

My two-year-old daughter - who turns three in ten days - absolutely refuses to go to sleep.

She wants to watch "Dora the Explorer" in the playroom.

She doesn't understand that we have church in the morning. She doesn't care that I have to be there at 8:25 for choir mic check.

*sigh*

The joys of parenting...

Nephew-in-law, you will soon understand.

blast from the past

I'm quite certain several members of my family will enjoy this picture, taken in my house on February 12, 1989. The tallest guy is me. A trip to Disney World the previous December explains the Mickey Mouse sweatshirt - which I no longer have, BTW. The two girls were part of my church's youth group. Who is the short guy? One particular niece should be able to tell immediately.