Raynor Shine

Greetings from NJ

2010-05-29T09:13:00.009-04:00

looking back at this blog, there have only been a few postings over the last year (last memorial day's post is still on the front page). i'll try to be more prolific going forward.

it's memorial day weekend already, which means parades, golf, bbq and a little r&r for the raynor family. charlie is getting ready to finish nursery school and start swim lessons again. joey is talking up a storm, and loves soccer and monster trucks. kim and i have joined the ranks of the "hip techster" people by getting iphones and an ipad. my most used iphone app is words with friends (scrabble). bri and i have been going back and forth - i've won a game, she's won a game, and the current rubber match game isn't looking real good for me (let's just say that she's the oil leak in the gulf and i'm BP - right now, i've got no answer to her game).

we had a weekend here in the beginning of may when it was just blistering hot for that time of year (90s). none of us were prepared for the heat, so we were all a bit uncomfortable as we had no time to adjust from springlike temps to late summer temps in the matter of days (maybe even hours). to make a long story short, we decided that joey didn't seem too comfortable in the heat - he was sweating and lethargic for most of the weekend - so that week, we went to the barber to get him his first buzz cut. he loves it, but there was also an important lesson learned - the #2 blade on the buzzer cuts a little too short for a child that isn't yet 2. i posted pics below.

nancy also hit a milestone since my last post (who hasn't) - her 60th birthday. dick made dinner reservations at a great place in spring lake (about 15 or so miles south of us), across the street from the beach. kim and i rented a stretch limo to take us there and bring us home. this was a surprise to everyone. the limo picked kim and i up first, then went to dick and nancy's to pick them up. the look and excitement on both of their faces was priceless. and since neither one had ever ridden in a limo before, it made it even more special. we had a terrific dinner, headed back to our neighborhood, picked up charlie and joey from my brother's house, and brought them on a ride for another 45 mintues or so. we then went back to our house, had cake, opened presents, and at the end of the night, the limo took dick and nancy back to their house. awesome night!

last weekend was opening day at monmouth park. our friends from new hampshire were visiting us for the weekend, so the 6 of us (4 raynors, 2 mcgondels) headed to the track for some fun in the sun. we stayed for 5 races and only had 1 person leave the track a winner - charlie. he picked a winner that paid $41.

i've been playing with my most recent camera lens as well - a fisheye lens. it's a real fun lens, not to be used all the time, but can give a pretty cool point of view.

have a great memorial day weekend and i'll be back with more soon.

Charlie's Winning Horse

fun with fisheye lens

Opening race at monmouth park, 2010 with fisheye

more fisheye

before

after

riding in style

palatable potent potable

2009-10-21T11:15:00.002-04:00

new favorite drink in the raynor household - dark and stormy (must be said using a new england accent, dahk and stoimy)

goslings black seal bermuda black rum
ginger beer

pour about 2-3 oz of black rum over ice in pint glass
fill with ginger beer
enjoy

we haven't used anything other than the goslings rum, but i would guess using any dark rum would be sufficient.

quarterly blog post

2009-10-19T16:32:00.002-04:00

i know it's been a while (actually, probably considered a long while) since the last post. lots of summer pics coming, but for now, this will be a short post about a monumental event. during week 6 of the NFL, the buffalo chicken dip finally made it's first appearance of the 2009 season. that stuff is soooo good, i want to eat the entire meal in one sitting (of course that's not advised as it would be completely spurning the deadly sin of gluttony, not to mention clogging an artery or 2).

welcome back, buffalo chicken dip, you were missed!

Happy 4th!

2009-07-06T10:33:00.003-04:00

the unofficial start of...

2009-05-26T14:19:00.003-04:00

the weekend nightmare traffic season (and you thought i was going to say summer). memorial day weekend always marks the unofficial start of the summer season at the jersey shore, which brings with it 2 of the most unfortunate biproducts of living at the shore - traffic and summertime vacationers (not the people that come for a weekend or even a week, but rather most everyone who comes to the shore for the entire season).

traffic is a nightmare around these parts during the summer. what is normally a 30-40 minute commute home on fridays inevitably turns into at least 90 minutes and could very easily break the 2 hour mark. by the time you get home, you need anger management classes, 6 margaritas, and 3 hours of non-stop bob ross on tv to bring you back down to earth. Ughh!

and then there are the full summer vacationers. it appears many are from ny, based on the ratio of nj to ny license plates in the summer. for every 1 nj license plate you see, there are at least 3 ny plates. for the most part, many of the types of cars these vacationers drive are worth more than the house that we live in, and it certainly doesn't help my ego to see that most of the drivers of said cars aren't even old enough to drink and possibly may not have even graduated high school yet. but believe it or not, none of that is really what bothers me about these vacationers. what bothers me is the fact that as soon as they arrive in nj, they seem to think that they are the actual leaders of the free world. they drive extremely fast and aggressive on local roads, jump to the front of any line they may be waiting in, and believe that any service professional waiting on them should be doing so before anyone else. not all summer vacationers are like this, though, but the many that i've had experiences with have left a bad taste in my mouth (and by "bad" i mean horrifically abominable.)

i love having guests come visit us, especially in the summer, because i think the area we live in is beautiful and i enjoy showing it off. i can say with a great degree of certainty that i wouldn't want to live anywhere else. because i am so enamored with the area, i put up with the summer vacationers every year, knowing that as soon as the day after labor day comes, all summer vacationers are gone and my family and i can enjoy another 9 months of peace and tranquility at the jersey shore.

until then, margarita anyone?

shirker...

2009-04-22T16:03:00.005-04:00

yup, that's me, shirking my blogging duties for quite a while now. since my last post, i purchased a new blackberry (which i still haven't mastered), we vacationed for 2 weeks in florida, i took a new position at work (which is the reason for the lack of blogging - no time), 2 new babies were born into the family - cadiem and fletcher, nate morphed into a bearded rock star, joey got 4 teeth for a total of 6, dinosaurs became extinct, and jesus rose from the dead, prompting people to boil eggs, color them, and hide them for others to find, inevitably leaving 1 egg unfound which wouldn't be recovered until the smell became unbearable, giving the egg's location away.

our vacation to florida was fantastic. the weather cooperated perfectly. we had an incredible time at disney, and enjoyed the condo/beach/pool to their fullest. joey had his first pool experience while we were there, and seemed to love it. we were able to see the nokomis drum circle 4 times!

as soon as we got back to jersey, i had to start my new position at work. i'm basically doing the same thing i was before, but i'm supporting much larger customers (only 3 - EDS, DuPont, Koch Industries), and my days are filled completely with their needs. the unfortunate part of the position, though, is that i have to go into the office every day. guess i shouldn't complain since i still have a job.

joey isn't crawling yet, but he is real close. he's able to pull himself along on the floor, much like a military special ops person trying to sneak up on his prey in a field of long grass. i hope he starts to crawl/walk soon beause he's just getting too big to pick up. today, joey has his routine checkup with the dr. and i fully expect the dr. to tell us we can start putting him in pads and a helmet to get ready for football season.

finally, it's kim's birthday next week. anyone have any ideas?

PA weekend

2009-02-17T11:05:00.004-05:00

since we weren't able to head out to PA for christmas because the kids were sick, we decided to go out there this past weekend. we arrived friday evening, a little before 5pm, and had a great time until we left on monday morning. we went to the park by the river and went on the "swirly thing" (as charlie called it - we would call it a merry go round) and fed the ducks. kim and nina went to gabe's and ollie's sunday afternoon. while they were gone, charlie and john had their own, mini version of a music weekend, spending about 2+ hours in the music room making beautiful music. and of course, we got to spend some quality time with granny and pappaw.

to see more from the weekend, check out my
pics page and click on the PA and assorted Feb 2009 folder.

sixburgh

2009-02-02T11:16:00.004-05:00

big ben did it again. he led his team down the field with 2:30 left and made an incredible pass to santonio holmes, who in turn made an unbelievable catch to win super bowl XLIII. we had a nice spread of wings, chipped ham, guacamole, vege dip, kim's homemade spreadable cheese, cupcakes, cake, and banana cream pie. of course, to accompany all of that food, we had yueling beer and margaritas. even tux, our dog, got into the act.

congrats stillers!

Sorry!

2009-01-20T10:05:00.005-05:00

i feel i've been shirking my duties as a blogger by not posting in 2 months, so i'm sorry for being neglectful and will try to make sure it doesn't happen again.

not much going on since my last post, just thanksgiving, st. nick, a day trip with the boys to ny, a special visit to our house by santa riding in a firetruck, christmas, both kids getting sick christmas, the giants getting beat in the playoffs, the steelers making it to the super bowl, a new president taking up residency in the white house, a christening, and our household becoming a part of a much larger family - the wii family.

on a monday at the beginning of december, kim, charlie, joey, my mom, and i went into nyc to the museum of natural history and rockefeller center. it was a bitter cold day, but we were unfazed. we took a 5 minute ferry ride to the city, and then jumped on a shuttle bus which dropped us off about 25 blocks from the museum. after our nice, brisk walk, we arrived at the museum and the large dinosaur that greets you in the lobby. charlie loved the museum. we got to see dinosaurs, all kinds of wild animals. we walked through a live butterfly exhibit, and a live reptile exhibit that included lots of snakes and lizards. it was a great experience and even more fascinating to watch charlie soak everything in. once we were done at the museum, we walked another 30 blocks or so to rockefeller center and went to the "top of the rock." it was beautiful up there. there were incredible views of the entire city, made even better by the fact that we were up there at sunset. we then went back down to street level and got a close up view of the beautiful christmas tree, lit up in all its glory. after we took a shuttle bus back to the ferry terminal and rode the ferry back to the jersey side, we got to our car and quickly warmed up inside. as we were driving home, we asked charlie what was his favorite part of today's adventure - the museum with all the dinosaurs, animals, snakes, lizards, and butterflies, or the top of the rock and the big christmas tree? his answer: "i liked the ferry ride and bus ride the best."
unfortunately, the night before our adventure, i took the battery out of the camera to charge it up, but forgot to put it back in before we left in the morning, so we only had our flip video to use for pictures and movies. with the software that comes with the flip, you are able to snap pictures from the movies that were taken. they are not the highest quality pics, but something is better than nothing.

christmas for us this year was a tough one. we woke up christmas morning and found that santa did visit us the night before, but it quickly became apparent that it wasn't going to be like it was in years past - charlie was sick with a fever. he didn't attack opening the presents with as much fervor as in previous christmases, and really only wanted to lay down on the couch, hoping to feel better. joey was unfazed about the whole thing. he just sat in his chair, taking everything in. little did we know that he was coming down with bronchilitis, which we found out the next day.

this past weekend was joey's christening. john, nina, mickey, and alan came out from pa to join in the festivities, as well as our good friends from new hampshire, jessica and larry mcgondel. jess and larry, along with my brother scott and his wife danielle, are joey's godparents. with my family and kim's family at the church, we made up about half of the congregation. after the ceremony at the church, the party continued at the langosta lounge, an eclectic restaurant on the boardwalk in asbury park. it was the perfect setting. with the bloody marys and mimosas flowing, and the food being exceptionally good, everyone had a great time. and to end the day on a high note for all the folks that traveled out to nj from western pa, the steelers won the afc championship game and are headed to the super bowl. i'd like to think that joey becoming a member of god's family that day was in some way connected to the steelers victory. ;)

also this week, we started giving rice cereal to joey this week, and he loves it. our pediatrician told us back in november we could start giving it to him, but with christmas and all the things we've had planned, we wanted to wait until things slowed down a little before we changed his routine. it appears that he's making up for lost time - he has devoured his cereal the past couple days and now thinks he's ready to upgrade to pulled pork, ribs, and chipped ham (which might be hard since he doesn't have any teeth yet.)

and finally, we got a wii and wii fit this weekend. holy cow is it fun. i got it set up yesterday afternoon and "tested" it with a couple games of bowling, but last night was the official wii welcome into the household. charlie, kim, my mother, and i played it for a while after dinner and had an awesome time. charlie bowled a game first, and did pretty well (i think his final score was 87, which is fantastic considering i thought it was going to be difficult for him to understand how to do it.) after his bowling game, he wanted to do something different, so we chose to do boxing. everyone got into the act - my mom, kim, and even charlie. it was so much fun. i can't wait to fire it up again tonight. and we can't wait to unlock all the different games for the wii fit.

many of the pictures of all of the escapades you read about on this blog can now be found at the following website:
www.picasaweb.google.com/douglasraynor

Enjoy!

Mongo

2008-11-25T10:34:00.003-05:00

well, mongo gained another inch and 2 pounds over the last month. at 4 months old, joey is now 26" long and weighs 18 pounds. he also rolled over for the first time this morning! i thought it was going to take another few months for him to do that, due to his size, but he was somehow able to work the momentum generated by his head and torso and rolled himself all the way over to his stomach. guess he'll be crawling soon.

Happy Birthoween

2008-11-13T14:09:00.002-05:00

finally, i'm back in the office at my pc and can update the blog with pictures. i've been inside the house the last 2 weeks because we were having our porch painted, and since it was being done by someone we didn't know, i felt more comfortable working in the house than in the garage. now that it's done, i've returned to my 'hood.

this year, we decided that we would have a costume party for charlie's 4th birthday, and that it would be on the saturday after halloween, november 1. starting oct 30, we had a pretty busy schedule for about 5 days. thursday was his costume parade at school, followed by a costume parade on the asbury boardwalk that afternoon. friday was halloween, so you can imagine how hectic that day was. saturday, we prepared for that night's costume party. kim had purchased all kinds of spooky decorations and turned the house into a frightening party vessel. the party was a hit, and all invitees (just family) were decked out in their best halloween get-ups. sunday, we went to six flags great adventure for the last day of its season and had a ball. while we were gone sunday, dick and nancy dropped off a bounce house for charlie to use for the week (they know someone from their church who loans it out to people). monday, we blew up the bounce house and jumped for quite a while. tuesday was charlie's birthday. we went out to dinner and gave him his presents from us that night. we are all now finally coming off our sugar highs, brought on by all the candy from halloween and the 2 cakes kim baked for charlie's birthday - 1 for the party and 1 for his birthday. Both cakes were real cool!

i've linked all the pictures to my online web albums in picassa (google's online photo album storage site). please let me know if you run into any issues trying to view the pics.

Halloween parades 2008

halloween and charlie's costume party 2008

charlie bouncy house and birthday 2008

Mongo

2008-10-30T09:45:00.007-04:00

for any of you blazing saddles fans, you know the charactor i'm referring to in the title of this post. if you're not familiar with blazing saddles, mongo was played by alex karras, a defensive tackle for the detroit lions in the 60s and early 70s (you may also remember him as the adoptive father in the sitcom "webster".) in the movie, mongo was a very strong, very large henchman sent to eliminate the new sheriff. however, mongo was defeated by the cunning new sheriff when the sheriff appealed to mongo's only weakness - candy. mongo then became an ally for the good guys and helped them defeat the evil attorney general and his band of misfits (if you haven't seen the movie yet, please watch it - it might be one of the funniest movies ever made.)

we've got a mongo jr on our hands with joey. he's now 3 months old and is 16 lbs and 25" long. he gained 3 pounds in a month, and has already more than doubled his birth weight. that milestone isn't supposed to be reached until 6 months or later. besides mongo, he's also being referred to as "the fire hydrant".

one of these things is not like the other

2008-10-15T11:29:00.002-04:00

i just called xm satellite radio to cancel our car radio subscription and was on hold for a few moments. during that time, there was a promo announcement involving the merger of xm and sirius satellite radio. according to the promo, you can now sign up for the best of sirius, "featuring the howard stern channel, the nfl channel, martha stewart, the playboy channel, and nascar." what demographic are they trying to appeal to? do you think martha enjoys being lumped in with that crowd?

maybe they should have included martha in a grouping of stations that include ivan boesky, michael milken, bernie ebbers, dennis kozlowski, and samuel waksal.

live free or die

2008-10-14T09:51:00.003-04:00

this past weekend, kim, joey, and i ventured up to portsmouth, new hampshire to visit with our friends jessica and larry mcgondel (charlie wanted to stay home with his mimi pat). we ate some great food, drank a whole bunch of really good wine, and watched the red sox split the first 2 games of the alcs. saturday, we spent the day at the topsfield fair, about 25 miles south of portsmouth in mass. this was a huge fair with an abundance of food and entertainment. we saw cattle, pigs, goats, a border collie demonstration, played some typical fair games, and did some great people watching. at some point during the day, larry and i were talking about saturday night live and how the sketches are just too long and not as funny as they used to be. once back at the house, larry showed me one of his favorite sketches called mark wahlberg talks to animals, which i enjoyed very much, so i thought i would post that one along with my favorite. enjoy!

jocktober

2008-10-07T09:59:00.003-04:00

sorry, i couldn't resist the cheesy rename of october, adding to the already extremely overused rocktober and the not as popular shocktober. this is one of my favorite times of year to watch sports - the nfl and college football are in full swing, and the mlb playoffs have started. awesome! here are a few observations from watching the baseball playoffs:

- the boston red sox are on a collision course with the la dodgers and one of the most prolific offensive players ever - manny ramirez - who by the way they traded away during the season to the la dodgers (incidentally, being managed by joe torre, the longtime manager of the yankees, the hated rival of the red sox). my head is spinning.
- the tampa bay rays are for real and dangerous.
- there is some sort of device called a blackberry that can handle email/phone/pics, etc. this is an ingenious invention, but will never take off. no one wants to be in constant contact with work.
- academy award winner timothy hutton has a new show debuting in december on tnt, but it has been kept under wraps and its name escapes me.
- noah wiley is starring in an indiana jones rip off made-for-tv movie
- thank goodness chicago has the bears, bulls, and blackhawks, or there would be a spike in the number of people jumping from the sears tower this week.
- 100 wins in a soft division doesn't mean a thing (see "California LA Anaheim and whatever other geographic name you would like to give to the Angels)
- frank caliendo does great impressions, but how will they translate into a season's worth of shows?
- nobody cares about the phillies or the brewers
- everybody has a little captain in them.

a couple other things to ponder:

apparently, joe biden learned only 9 commandments, skipping over the 8th commandment at some point.
so far, barack obama's answers to america's woes are more vague than a fortune in a fortune cookie.
does being a vietnam vet and a "maverick" qualify someone to be president?
if sarah palin winks at a camera one more time, i think i'm going to go ballistic.
the economic bailout plan sucks! why should we have to pay for the idiocy of these large bank's decisions. shouldn't the decision makers/ceo's of those banks be held responsible?

i'm stumping for presidential votes, so if anyone is as fed up with the current candidates as i am, please feel free to write me in as your choice. i know i've got at least 1 vote so far.

"scrumptious"

2008-10-01T16:02:00.004-04:00

that's what charlie called the apples during our 2008 apple picking excursion this week. the apples were plentiful and, as a matter of fact, scrumptious. this was joey's first apple picking experience, and he missed most of it as he was sleeping very comfortably in a front carrier that kim was wearing. once we got home, we made an apple pie and apple sauce. the apple sauce turned out terrific, but the apple pie could have used a little more flavor. i think our mistake was using mostly red delicious apples in the pie, instead of the more tart stayman winesap apples. oh well, you live and learn.

we've also found a new wine we enjoy very much - ferrari carano fume blanc. very light and refreshing and at around $15/bottle, very affordable too.

9 1/2 weeks

2008-09-26T16:17:00.002-04:00

dont' think you're going to see a review of the movie starring mickey rourke and kim bassinger...

this is a joey update. we had a doctor's appointment today for joey, his monthly well visit, and it seems he had a small growth spurt over the last 4 weeks. at his last visit, 8/28/08, joey weighed 10 lbs and was 22 1/2" long, and everything seemed to be going very well. today, joey weighs in at 13 lbs, 8 oz, and is 24 1/4" long. he gained 3 1/2 lbs and 2" in 4 weeks. if he continues to grow at this pace, we'll have the next defensive lineman for the ny giants in 3 years. even more surprising was the revelation that joey has a big head. so big, as a matter of fact, that the doctor wanted us to get an ultrasound of his head to make sure there wasn't anything in the skull that shouldn't be there. not sure what he would have been looking for - a basketball, gazing ball, soccer ball, the world's largest rubber band ball, but he wanted to take a look to err on the side of safety (really, all he needed to do was take a close look at my head and he would have understood.) so we had the ultrasound this afternoon, and sure enough, everything is perfect. nothing in his head that shouldn't be there, other than a ton of brains.

i have to go now - joey's calling me in for my lesson on the theory of relativity.

strangest thing...

2008-09-18T14:46:00.002-04:00

when we were speaking with the director of Charlie's preschool, she told us that they will be teaching the kids to print the capital letter J without its top (or hat) because that is the way the entire school system is teaching it. huh??? there are so many other issues that should/could be addressed rather than spending time to decide to teach the capital letter J without its top. imagine the discussion - "should we be teaching evolution or creation? should their be prayer in the school? whatever we decide, we have to make sure that the kids don't put a top on their capital J." i don't get it. and i'm guessing it's not the teachers making this decision, it's the administration.

did anyone think of how the letter J might feel about this? maybe he likes to wear a hat to keep his bald head from being exposed to the sun. maybe she likes to wear a hat because she's famous and likes to be incognito when she goes out. shouldn't they teach it both ways and let the kids decide which way they want to print it? or is that too much to ask of our teachers?

maybe there is a valid reason for this, but i haven't been able to find one. maybe it's because the capital letter J looks similar to the capital letter T, but if the teachers aren't able to teach the difference between the 2, we've got bigger problems. i asked the director of the preschool and she doesn't know why and i can't find anything on google or wikipedia. if someone knows, please leave a comment. i just can't believe they've taken away the letter J's identity. without its hat, it's just a hook.

my nemesis has returned...

2008-09-12T11:46:00.006-04:00

charlie's first week of school has passed with things going off without a hitch. there weren't any separation issues - as a matter of fact, he wants to know when he can go back. obviously, a very good sign. however, on his first day (the open house) day, they took the parents up to the church portion of the nursery school to give us some information about the year and what we should expect, as well as give the teachers an idea of how the kids are going to react to mornings without mom and dad. during this session, the head of the preschool spoke about each child's cubby and that we should check it often for important information regarding classes, volunteer opportunities, special events, and so on. and then she drops this bomb - "and you'll find that we have a homework assignment for your children in their cubby for their next class." homework?!?! the first day of class? in preschool? all of these thoughts went through my head, accompanied by a large, disappointed sigh. obviously, you can gauge what kind of student i was by my reaction that my preschool child had homework. all we had to do was thumb through a magazine to find a picture of something yellow, something blue, and something red, cut them out, put them in an envelope with our child's name on it, and make sure the teacher gets it first thing in the morning. couldn't be any easier, yet i was bothered by the fact that homework had now worked its way back into my life. after kim talked me off the ledge, i realized that the next 23 years of homework will be different than the first 28 years (keep in mind that it took me 10 years to finish my higher education) because this time around, i'll be the one making sure the homework is finished, not the one doing the homework. i will assist whenever i can with whatever Charlie and Joey bring home (unless it has to do with math, then kim will take over) and will love helping them when they need it. let's just hope they don't give the kids homework over the weekend - yuck!

some exciting news from monday's golf outing. first, our team won the event with a score of 11 under - our first win ever. the team of my brother, my father, my grandfather, and I had never even been close in the past, so this was as surprising to us as it was to everyone else. also, that day was my grandparents 63rd wedding anniversary, and our 8th anniversary, so it was a great gift to my grandfather and i to be playing together and win on our anniversary. But now, the real big news - my brother got his first hole-in-one! i've never seen one in person and it was quite a thrill to watch and be a part of. i wonder if there are any 33 year olds out there that can say they got their first hole-in-one while playing with their brother, father, and grandfather. a truly special moment for him!

Return to the Top

2008-09-05T14:53:00.006-04:00

it's been quite a while since Raynor Shine has sat near the top of the blog rolls, but with it's triumphant return, it should stay at or near the top for quite some time.

summer is unofficially over here at the jersey shore, but the weather has still been beautiful. we're "bracing" for Hanna to strike this weekend, closing all the table umbrellas and brining in all the floating pool toys. hopefully, the storm won't last into monday because that is the day that my brother, dad, grandfather, and i play in a golf tournament that benefits nancy's employer, interfaith neighbors. our 4some has never won, but i think we have a pretty good chance of surprising some people this year. my brother is finally playing very well, which should help the team tremendously.

charlie starts preschool next tuesday. he'll be going to school from 8:45 - 11:30 tuesday and thursday mornings. the first day of school is an "open house" day, which just means the parents stay with their children throughout the morning to get a feel for what will be going on the rest of the year. charlie seems to be very excited to start school and meet new friends. he's already asked me if i could build a bed for his bedroom so that he could have friends stay overnight. i think that's a little ambitious (the idea of the sleepover and me building a bed), but i would bet that it won't be long before his friends are coming over to play and have snacks.

joey is doing great. he's eating very well, and loves to sleep. he is now 10 lbs and 22.5". that equates to a 2 lb, 2.5" growth spurt in 4 weeks. he and charlie get along very well, and charlie is very protective of his little brother. it looks like joey will have dark eyes, probably brown. right now, his hair has a lot of red in it, but that will most likely change. he loves to furrow his brow, and when he does, he turns from cute baby to old man in a matter of seconds (for anyone who can remember, when he scowls, he looks like the men in the Keystone Light, Bitter Beer Face commercials).

kim starts back to work the week of 9/15. she'll work 2 days that week (tues and thurs), 2 days the next week (tues and thurs), and then 3 days a week (tues, weds, thurs) until mid march, when she'll go back full time. i know she's going to miss all 3 of her boys, but i'm pretty sure she's anxious to get back into the grind.

here's an ode to summer in pictures:

Reviews Galore

2008-08-11T12:04:00.005-04:00

tv, wine, music, and a razor. 3 of these go very nicely with one another. and, surprisingly, music held its own as i was watching tv with a couple glasses of wine shaving my stubble. :)

so you think you can dance finale:
i believe the voters got it right - joshua was the strongest dancer and seemed to excel with every genre of dance that was given to him. the final show was excellent, with a good old fashioned breakdance competition as the special event of the evening. i did pretty good with my picks, too. when they narrowed it down to the top 20, i chose the 2 i thought would be in the final - twitch and will. will was in the top 6 before he was voted off, and twitch made it to the final 2.

ledson medocino county chardonnay:

this wine is fantastic! it doesn't have the typical buttery flavor of most chardonnays. it is very light and has a little fruit taste to it, but not too sweet. this is one of our favorites and is perfect to drink while hanging out on the front porch late on a crisp summer evening. if you're wondering what to pair it with, i would say food. there is a drawback to this wine, though - you can only buy it online from the winery and there is a shipping charge. the winery website is http://www.ledson.com/. we've had many other wines from this winery and they have all been impeccable. you'll see more reviews from this winery in the coming weeks.

itunes:

we have 3706 songs on our itunes. i'm now listening to the rock folder, which contains 1550 songs and approximately 220 artists and is set to shuffle. in the 26 songs that i've heard so far, 5 have been elvis songs and 4 have been dave matthews. that's not much of a shuffle. i wish was a better way to monitor this. there is smart shuffle setting that you can set to change the likelihood of hearing sequential songs by the same artist of from the same album, and i've got that set to the "least likely" position. as i'm writing this, bruce springsteen song number 4 just started. there is a simple fix to this issue, but i really don't feel like continually going back to itunes to hit the skip button.

gillete fusion power:

i've been shaving with the gillete mach 3 turbo razor for years now, and have been very satisfied with the shave it provides. lately, i've been intrigued with the new gillete fusion power razor. it's a 5 blade razor that is powered by a aaa battery, giving the razor blade an oscillation while your shaving. gillete claims this oscillation leads to superlative comfort and closeness. i waited to find a coupon for the razor before i purchased it, and found one a couple weeks ago for $4.00 off (more than half off at target), so i purchased it and have used it about 5 times so far. for my money, the mach 3 turbo is just as good. i can't feel a difference between the 2 while i'm shaving, and i don't feel a difference in the closeness of the shave either. the mach 3 turbo blades are not as expensive as the fusion blades. all in all, i don't think the gimmicky, battery powered, 5 blade razor gives me a different shave than the mach 3 turbo, so i'll be sticking with the mach 3. everyone's face is different, though, so if you think the fusion would be right for you, let me know and you can have mine.

a few recent pics

Even Better Than Sliced Bread

2008-08-07T09:45:00.004-04:00

in the last post, i mentioned that i have a flip video ultra video recorder and thought it was awesome, recommending that you should run out and purchase one asap. well, it just got infinitely better. earlier this week, while surfing on the flip video website to provide you with the price of the model, i came across an accessory that i had to have - an underwater case! it is made only for the flip video ultra and is somewhat hard to find. luckily, the local circuit city had one in stock, so i picked it up and broke it out last night while charlie was swimming in the pool. i love it! it was $50 and well worth every penny (i think). check out the video posted below. the video appears a little pixelated because of the upload to the web, but when viewing it from the original file, it is clear as a bell.

life in the raynor household

2008-08-04T09:29:00.005-04:00

it's been a busy 2 weeks since joey was born and i haven't had a whole lot of time at the pc, so i plan on making up for lost time with this post. joey was born on a monday and we were home by lunchtime that wednesday. from wednesday through the weekend, we had many visitors come by the house to introduce themselves to joey. nancy flanigan, my brother, and a neighbor all brought us dinners that were delicious and because there were so many leftovers, we ate well for the last 2 weeks. my mother plans on getting in on the action this week by making us a scrumptious turkey/chicken meatloaf. once that is done, i guess we'll have to start making our own dinner again. ;)

before joey was born, kim decided she wanted to breast feed him. while at the hospital, joey took to breastfeeding very well. there were a couple instances where kim would need the help of one of the nurses to get joey eating, but everything was going along smoothly. there was a ton of pressure to breastfeed from many of the nurses and even kim's midwife, but i continued to let kim know that i was behind whatever decision she wanted to make regarding the nutrition of our baby. she wanted to continue to breastfeed until it was time to put him on a bottle. a day after we got home from the hospital, we ended breastfeeding and went to the bottle, and things were perfect. joey didn't want to have anything to do with breastfeeding once we got home and instead of going through the stress we went through with trying to breastfeed charlie, we switched over to the bottle. we also use room temperature water to make his bottles, which is a switch from when we would give charlie his bottles. charlie's bottles had to be warm, and that posed many logistical problems, so with joey, we went out and bought a case of water from costco and keep the water bottles on the counter at room temp. this makes it much easier to feed joey. he's a great sleeper, waking only 1 time a night to eat, and then falls right back to sleep when he's done. he goes to sleep around 10:30ish, wakes up about 3:00 in the morn to feed, and then is back to sleep until around 7:30. he rarely cries, except a couple times when he was starving, but we couldn't get to his bottle because we were in the car going someplace, and the one time when the tip of his finger got pinched in the shoulder strap clip of his car seat, which, by the way, will never be discussed again. charlie loves his little brother. he sings lullabies to him at night (using his own words) and is always giving him hugs and kisses. he helps us with diaper changing and anything else that he might be able to do for his little brother. it's a wonderful thing to watch and be a part of.

and since we're talking about charlie, here's a little story that i thought was very cute. every night, i put him in bed and tuck him in and we say our prayers - "now i lay me down to sleep, angels at my head and feet. in the morning when i wake, i pray the lord my hand to take." the other night, we got finished with our prayers, and charlie told me he didn't want the lord to take his hand because then he wouldn't be able to grab anything. i didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but i explained to him that he wasn't really going to take his hands, he was just going to make sure that he got through the day safe. apparently that explanation was satisfactory because he was asleep very soon after.

my brother, sister in law, and niece got me an awesome gift for my birthday in June - a flip video. if you haven't seen one of these yet, you need to go out and get one as soon as you can. they are fantastic. it's a digital video recorder the size of a cell phone that can records 60 minutes of video in color. it has a built in usb attachment that makes downloading these videos to your pc or laptop easy, and the quality is excellent. according to the flip video website, www.theflip.com, the price of the 60 minute flip ultra (my recorder) is $149.99. you can get them at target, walmart, best buy, sears, amazon, etc. they are really cool. i've posted a video of joey just a few minutes after he was born.

finally, now that kim is no longer pregnant, i will begin doing some wine reviews. for the most part, i held off on drinking wine while kim was pregnant, but now that she can join me for a glass or 2, i will post some reviews of some of the wines we like and dislike. look for the first review coming very soon!

Waxing Nostalgic

2008-07-26T10:35:00.002-04:00

remember the good ole days, when your mom or dad would drop you off at the mall for a day of cavorting with your friends, making fun of all the "old" people (which we have now turned into)? or if you were a parent, remember dropping the kids off at the mall and thinking to yourself "finally, a couple hours of peace and quiet"? i remember those days, and the best part about those days was heading to Orange Julius for one of their awesome Orange Julius drinks. Dairy Queen has since taken over the Orange Julius franchise, and there aren't many of the Orange Julius stores around anymore. but if you were ever a fan of the orange julius drink and have been craving one for the past 20+ years, you may want to try one of the recipes below. they are both for an orange julius.

Recipe #1

6 oz frozen concentrate orange juice
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
6 ice cubes (believe it or not, the quantity of ice cubes does matter with this recipe)

combine all ingredients into blender and blend until frothy.
call your mom or dad and have them come pick you up from the mall.
drink up.

Recipe #2

2/3 cup frozen concentrate OJ
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup powdered sugar
6 ice cubes

combine all ingredients into blender and blend until frothy.
go to the payphone to call your friend and tell him that jenny said that mary said that lisa said that betty likes him and wants to go to the dance with him.
drink up.

recipe #1 is much sweeter than recipe #2, but recipe #1 is the way i remember orange julius drinks tasting like.

Baby Pool Winner

2008-07-25T07:20:00.002-04:00

and the winner is - believe it or not - me. with a guess of boy, july 18, 7 lbs, 14 oz, i was the closest to 1000 points with 994 (-3 points for the date, -3 points for the weight). this is a tremendous relief because now i can take the $1500 prize and put it in joey's college fund.

i think i'll celebrate by using a coupon for a free pint of ben and jerry's ice cream and indulge for dessert tonight.

actually, that coupon is the prize. i've been entertaining myself, though, picturing some of the reactions to the fake money prize. :)

Baby Pool

2008-07-24T09:19:00.002-04:00

i will post the winner of the baby pool shortly (as soon as i have it calculated), but here are everyone's guesses:

Gender Date Lbs Oz

Kim Girl 23-Jul 7 10
Doug Boy 18-Jul 7 14
Pat Flanigan Girl 18-Jul 7 10
Scott Raynor Girl 18-Jul 8 3
Laura Dundas Boy 23-Jul 8 4
Jessica McGondel Boy 22-Jul 9 8
Dad Raynor Boy 18-Jul 8 6
Maggie Dorato Girl 12-Jul 8 10
Mom Raynor Boy 16-Jul 7 8
Bri Ivey Girl 11-Jul 8 2
Nancy Flanigan Girl 14-Jul 8 1
Larry McGondel Girl 19-Jul 9 2
Nate Ivey Girl 18-Jul 7 7
Granny Sandusky Girl 27-Jul 7 11
Amanda Coppola Girl 23-Jul 8 4
Marge Raynor Boy 16-Jul 7 2
Chuck Raynor Girl 12-Jul 7 12

The Introduction

2008-07-24T09:03:00.003-04:00

i've always said family should be the most important thing in somebody's life. work, friends, etc always come after family. since i try my best to live by that credo, i thought it would be very hard to charge the family to see pictures of the baby. People magazine wanted to pay a couple million dollars for these pictures, but i'm holding out for more (please don't forward this to anyone at People Mag). to see the pictures, just click on the picture below and it should take you to the web album for viewing.

without further ado, Joseph William Raynor!

Joseph William Raynor

AND...

2008-07-22T00:46:00.002-04:00

We have our own room.

The Baby has Arrived

2008-07-22T00:42:00.001-04:00

Joseph WIlliam Raynor was born July 21 at 11 pm weighing in at 7 lbs 11 oz and 19.5 inches. Mom and baby are doing well.

Here we go

2008-07-21T18:50:00.001-04:00

Kim and i arrived at the hospital at around 5:30 this evening and are ready to push this baby out. kims water brke around 5:30 this morn and since she really wasn't having any contractions all day, the dr told us to head to the hospital so that they could help the process along. kim just got an iv of petosin, which is a drug that apparently helps induce labor. she could be pushing in an hour, or it could be several hours before the pushing begins. what we do know is that they dont have any rooms left for us after the baby is born, so we'll have to stay in our delivery room until one comes available.

next post should be the introduction!

Test mobile blog

2008-07-21T09:07:00.001-04:00

This is a test blog from my mobile phone. i want to be sure to give everyone the most up to date info on baby raynor and have set up mobile blogger to be able to do so. check back often over the next few days because it's going to have to happen any day now.

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Sent from my Verizon Wireless LGVX9900 device.

Baby Update

2008-07-21T08:06:00.002-04:00

baby raynor is still resting comfortably inside mommy's womb, and it doesn't appear that he/she wants to arrive any time soon. we thought the heat and humidity of the weekend would help move things along, but we were mistaken.

stay tuned...

Missing...

2008-07-17T12:30:00.003-04:00

...beautiful, loving, caring wife and mother. been missing now for almost 3 months. she's been replaced by a strange, mood changing alien life form that uses mental telepathy to communicate. i am not familiar with this form of communication and have frequently been caught off guard due to it. she's a master of adding things to a honey-do list that have never even been discussed before, turning a list of 5 to-dos into 10 without blinking an eye. she has an extremely high body temperature, leading to our central ac system to be put on overdrive and me having to go to bed with a down comforter in the middle of july. Extremely quirky, she sometimes bursts out in laughter in the middle of the night, and even occasionally enjoys reading in bed with a spelunker hat on from midnight to 3am. she consistently speaks about the "evil spawn" she is carrying in her belly and often shakes her belly with her hands to wake the "evil spawn."

i'll keep the blog updated if/when there are any kim sightings and will let you know when she comes back. hopefully, it will be very soon!

Mmmmm, Citrus

2008-07-10T16:06:00.005-04:00

time for a couple more recipes. these are more of my favorites, especially in the summer.

spiked lemonade:
2 C lemon flavored seltzer or club soda
1/2 C citrus flavored vodka
1/2 C fresh lemon juice
1/4 C sugar
1/4 C triple sec (if you want to get fancy, use grand marnier instead of triple sec)

combine ingredients in a large pitcher. serve over crushed ice.

this lemonade is not recommended to be used for a lemonade stand. i'm pretty sure selling this by the glass without a liquor license could warrant a hefty fine from the authorities.

easy key lime pie:
1 - 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 - 6oz can frozen limeade concentrate
1 cup heavy cream
1 - 6oz graham cracker pie crust

-place the condensed milk, limeade concentrate, and cream in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until fluffy and soft peaks form
-pour the filling into the piecrust and smooth the top
-refrigerate until chilled and loosely set, at least 4 hours (and up to overnight)

sidenote - if you couldn't find a 6oz can of frozen limeade concentrate and had to use half of a 12oz container, use the remaining limeade concentrate to make a half of a pitcher of margaritas (see the margartia recipe at http://bubsraynor.blogspot.com/2008/06/perfect-refreshment.html, and just half the recipe).

Happy 4th

2008-07-05T07:27:00.005-04:00

i love the 4th of july - bbq'ing, fireworks, time off - for me, the highlight of the summer, usually (the big highlight for me this year will occur in about 2 weeks, maybe sooner).

remember to get your baby pool guesses in as soon as possible. the info is on sidebar on the right. email guesses to douglasraynor@gmail.com.

Dawn Patrol

2008-06-27T11:54:00.004-04:00

today, we took charlie to monmouth park racetrack for their "dawn patrol" program. they open the track up to early risers, provide juice, coffee, and doughnuts, and give you a tour of the behind the scenes workings of the horse track. it is a very informative tour that takes you through the stable area, the backstretch of the track, and even into the jockey's room. cool stuff.

after dawn patrol, we headed north to sea bright to check out the pod of dophins that have been frolicking in the river for the past week. reports have the number of dolphins in the pod at around 14, all of which are moms and their calves. this is a big deal because dolphins don't normally hang out in the rivers in NJ. you usually find them a few miles off shore in the ocean. every now and then, they may come in close to the beach and give you a little bit of a show, but not that often. many are worried that the 4th of July boat traffic in the river will hurt the dolphins, so they are attempting to coax them back out into the ocean before next week.

Celebrate Good Times, Come On...

2008-06-23T11:04:00.012-04:00

yesterday was Pat's graduation party at monmouth park racetrack in Oceanport, NJ. it was a beautiful day and the perfect venue. the location of the party - the patio terrace - was excellent. there was an open bar, delicious food, and even our own betting teller for the races. friends and family enjoyed the celebration from noon until around 6:30 pm. some pics from the party are posted below.

also, kim pointed out that there was a major flaw with my scoring of the baby pool, so i'm changing the scoring completely. here's how it will play out - everyone starts out with 1000 points. if you guess the wrong gender: -15 points. if you guess the wrong date: -1 point per day. if you guess the wrong weight: -1 point per ounce. the winner is the player with the highest score. you will still email me your guess (gender, date, and weight) at douglasraynor@gmail.com. only 1 submission per person. submissions must be emailed by July 7. the due date set by our doctor is July 20.

now, a challenge to anyone who might be heading to Las Vegas anytime soon. there's a bar off the strip called the Double Down Saloon. i will pay for you to drink the bacon martini, made with bacon infused vodka. our good friend Larry in NH calls bacon "God's Candy," but i'm pretty sure he wouldn't even try this. i would need proof that you drank the entire martini in order to get your $$. i would also want a full review of the martini because if it happens to be good, i would like to try to replicate it.

Rooms and Pools and Birds, Oh My

2008-06-18T10:48:00.007-04:00

it's been almost a week since the last post, so i'll make sure to update more often. as usual, it's been pretty busy around the house and work, so i haven't really been able to take time out to blog. first, the pool is finally open, but of course, the weather has cooled off to normal June temps. opening the pool was a chore this year - it was nasty dirty, and the filter and pump didn't want to cooperate at first. after messing with everything for much longer than i had anticipated, all is well and the pool is ready to be used. not only are we excited to start using the pool for the season, but the dragonflies are also excited. they love to dive-bomb the pool and either drink the water or eat whatever microscopic thing that might be floating on the pool.

also last week, we had a few interesting birds visit our area - a goldfinch and a toddler robin. the goldfinch took a bath in the water at the end of our driveway and has been visiting a lot since last week. the robin was lost and hadn't learned how to fly yet, but its parents were able to guide it to safety.

the garage office is finally set up the way we want it. all that is left on the inside to do is finish with the AC/Heating unit installation (hopefully that will be soon because i'm sure more hot, humid weather is heading our way). we like the set up and are very pleased with how the office turned out.

now for some pics.

Before

After (still needs some vaccuming)

Lost Robin

SYTYCD

2008-06-12T17:37:00.002-04:00

short post until tomorrow. i haven't yet seen the full episode of the top 20 on SYTYCD (remember, so you think you can dance) but my 2 picks right now:

Will - i think the clear frontrunner
Twitch - my favorite this year so far

more to come tomorrow.

Walkin on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head

2008-06-09T10:19:00.004-04:00

first blog from a new location - friday, Kim and i were able to move all of our computer equipment, a desk, and a couple chairs into our new office in the garage. the office is now functional. the setup is just temporary as i have our desktop on a banquet table we're using until we're able to get something more permanent in the space. my commute has changed tremendously - i now have to walk more than 4 steps to get to the office, and i even have to put shoes on to do it. :)

also, the 3 H's decided to pay a visit to NJ this weekend - hazy, hot, and humid. it was upper 90s saturday and sunday, and is expected to push 100 today. that is the beauty of NJ weather. we went right from winter to mid summer temps almost overnight. there wasn't much of a spring to enjoy this year. we spent just about the entire weekend inside under the protection of our central AC. it may have been different had i been able to get the pool open when i wanted to, but it's still got the cover on, and it doesn't look like it will be open unless i take a day off and knock it out. the heat this weekend didn't help Kim at all. the baby didn't appear to like the hot weather, and made sure he/she let Kim know. the baby was moving around like crazy all weekend and showed no signs of stopping this morning. i'm not sure if the baby wanted to get out to enjoy the hot weather, or if it was banging on Kim to tell her to turn on the AC in her belly.

finally, Kim gave me a new lens for our camera for my birthday this weekend. it's a 50mm lens that basically blurs everything in the background of your picture (sometimes referred to as bokeh). some pics taken with the new lens:

Wren McCormick would be proud...

2008-06-05T09:41:00.003-04:00

tonight, the top 20 are announced on the best reality show on TV - So You Think You Can Dance (which will from now on be referred to as SYTYCD in this blog). we've seen all tryouts leading up to tonight, and still i don't have a favorite. once the top 20 are announced, i'll make my pick for the winner (of course, that pick will change as my picks get kicked off the show...). to commemorate tonight's show, i've added a video from one of my all time favorite routines from the show. i'm not sure why i like it so much - maybe it's the dancing, maybe because it's different, maybe because it reminds me of one of the greatest music videos ever (Thriller) or maybe it's just because i can't get enough of the song they dance to (Ramalama Bang Bang by Roison Murphy).

Chlorine: the breakfast of champions!

2008-06-04T06:13:00.003-04:00

last night finished up Charlie's latest session of swim lessons. he's doing very well and is now able to keep his head above water. his technique, however, is still being refined. he's scheduled to take more lessons in the summer and we will probably keep sending him to swim lessons until we feel he is on par with the likes of Mark Spitz, Matt Biondi, Michael Phelps, and Drew Dundas.

Good Morning!

2008-06-03T09:13:00.004-04:00

Kim and I get up pretty early in the morning, as Kim likes to be on the road to work just before 6am. I thought the sky this morning presented a nice photo opp, so here's the view from our master bedroom "terrace." (sounds snotty, doesn't it) :)

The Perfect Refreshment

2008-06-02T12:14:00.004-04:00

it's finally starting to feel like summer here in Jersey, which means it's time for a refreshing cocktail recipe, and this one happens to be one of my favorites - The Margarita. this is very simple to make, and it's made by the pitcher.

Ingredients:

1 Can Limeade from concentrate (large can)
Tequila (doesn't matter what brand)
Triple Sec

make the limeade per the directions on the can. after the limeade is made, fill up the empty limeade can with tequila and add that to the Limeade. then, fill the can up halfway with Triple Sec and add that to the Limeade/Tequila mixture. stir. pour over ice. drink!

the good thing about this recipe is that since it's made by the pitcher, it will always be waiting for you in the fridge (if you don't finish it the same night that you make it). you can have it for breakfast before you go to work, as a mid morning pick-me-up, maybe with your taco bell at lunch, or enjoy it as a happy hour drink later in the day. the Margarita is very versatile, light, and refreshing and can be enjoyed any time of day (of course, if you would like to keep your job, i would not recommend drinking the margarita with breakfast during the week, especially if you drive to work.)

chips, salsa, and a Margarita are the perfect starters to a nice summer evening.

happy mixing!

2008-05-27T10:26:00.007-04:00

it was a very busy week last week. it started off with painting the new office in the garage, which took a little longer than half a day from cleaning the walls to painting the walls and ceiling. Thursday was spent clipping hedges, cleaning off the front porch, mowing the lawn, and beginning to install mosquito curtains around the front porch. The weather for Memorial Day weekend in Jersey was suppose to be beautiful, so we were keeping our fingers crossed. Friday we had a Dr.'s appointment to check on baby Raynor, and everything is looking good and on schedule for July 20. Saturday, I played in a golf tournament with my brother and a couple friends - which we won! When i got home, Kim, Charlie, and I went to a local Strawberry festival, where Charlie got to ride a pony and a firetruck. Sunday, we spent the morning at a park on the boardwalk with Charlie and in the afternoon, we went to Asbury Park to check out some street performers that were roaming the downtown street (we were not impressed). After, we took Charlie for some ice cream and headed home to enjoy some much needed sleep. As we were getting ready for bed, I was locking the front door and turning out the lights when I heard a noise on the stairs. I turned to see what I thought was one of Charlie's toys tumbling down the stairs. To my surprise and shock, when the "toy" landed, it was actually Charlie. We're not sure how many steps he tumbled down, but based on the noise, it sounded like it could have been the entire staircase (13 stairs). Luckily we have carpet on our stairs, which I'm sure cushioned his tumble because he wasn't hurt, just a little scared. He came out of it with just a small bruise on his left hip. Monday, we went to the annual Memorial Day Parade in town, and then finished the weekend off with a terrific dinner at the Flanigan's.

The weather was gorgeous all weekend! If you're keeping score at home, this was the first weekend of 2008 that the weather people were correct with their forecast. Let's hope they stay on this "streak" for the rest of the summer. Enjoy the pics from the weekend.

Baby Raynor

Mosquito Curtains installed!

This dragonfly defied the odds and was resting inside the mosquito curtains

Ice Cream Night

Parade Day

Charlie waiting for the firetrucks at the parade

Video Crash

2008-05-21T11:57:00.003-04:00

Hello all. There seems to be a large problem with the video portion of this and many, many other blogs. Hopefully, the blogger team is working on the issue and the videos will be back up asap.

2008-05-20T11:26:00.006-04:00

So I took a long weekend off from blogging - you didn't really think i was going to blog every day, did you? (believe it or not, i did) :)

All good things must come to an end, so it is with heavy heart that we say goodbye, Auf Wiedersehen, Arrivederci, Au Revoir, Do svidan’ya, Sayonara, and any other way you can say goodbye to a dear old friend of ours - our 2001 Honda Civic. It was for sale for quite some time because we purchased a new minivan back in December, getting ready for the 2nd Raynor child to arrive. We put it on Craigs List, in the local paper for a week, placed for sale ads in my work newsletter and on the Unilever bulletin board, and even parked it at the local train station for a week, hoping for a bite. While we did receive phone calls for the car, none of them panned out. This past Saturday, we held a garage sale at our home and someone suggested we park the car in front of the house to generate interest (doing this, of course, would take up a valuable garage sale parking spot, but it was worth a shot). Sure enough, by the end of the day, the car was sold! The new owner came by Monday to pay the balance due and take her away. I said my goodbyes to the car and sent her on her way to a new home. We're going to miss her - especially since she was getting around 36 mpg on the highway.

2008-05-15T14:56:00.004-04:00

just so i can keep up, here's the 4th blog post on the 4th day of the blog's life. it's another picture story - this one of our niece Ryan.

The Diesel

2008-05-14T12:13:00.010-04:00

i know you're all out there, sitting on the edge of your seats, continually clicking the Raynor Shine icon on your favorites list, anxiously awaiting the next blog post. day 4 of the blog, post #3 - can this be considered an addiction?

while reading a fellow blogger's post about a week ago, i was turned on to a pretty cool piece of free software called microsoft photo story (thanks, Bri). after playing with it for a little while, this is one of the results (i'll post the 2nd result later, just so i can make it 4 posts in 4 days.)

The Name Game

2008-05-13T09:12:00.004-04:00

as you can tell, i'm a little excited about the blog (posting a blog 2 days in a row). and as you probably know, Kim and I are expecting our 2nd child in July, and we are not going to find out the sex. we have a girl's name already set in stone, but we're having some difficulty with the boy's name. we thought we solidified one a couple months ago, but have since wavered on that and are now back to square 1. because of the miracle of technology, you're voice can now be heard. i've posted a vote on the sidebar of some of the boys names that have been the topic of discussion lately. please vote on the one that you like most. we aren't promising that the name with the most votes will be the name, but you never know.

2008-05-12T15:38:00.000-04:00

ok, well here's my attempt at keeping up with the times. i've finally started a blog to share our experiences, photos, and videos with friends and family. you'll probably see some favorite recipes popping up, restaurant reviews, wine reviews, maybe a cocktail pick of the month, child rearing advice (like "don't change your baby's explosive diarrhea diaper without having the wipes and new diaper ready" stuff), and anything else that may come to mind.

the blog will start off with a milestone - Pat Flanigan's graduation from St. Joe's University May 10, 2008. Yep, he made it in 4 years, and already has a job with A&P (and it's not as a grocery bagger). the graduation ceremony was under a tent at the school, with a formal dinner dance following that at the Sheraton Center City in Philadelphia. a few of the pics of the day are posted below. as you can imagine, we're all very proud of him, and are even more excited because now he can buy beer with his own money! :)

and of course we can't forget - Happy Mother's Day!

i hope everyone enjoys the blog. check back every so often as i will try to post at least a couple times a week.

Cheers!

the famous st. joe's tower

campus map

proud parents and grad

telling the university president goodbye