Yesterday I took Trey to the Rowe Woods branch of the Cincinnati Nature Center. A friend of mine had mentioned it to me numerous times as a good place for hiking and mentioned that his nephews loved it as well. Though we didn’t really get to hike on this visit, we still had a great time.

PlayScape

Most of our time was spent in the PlayScape, basically a children’s play area that is built to look and feel like a natural environment. Though the water features were already turned off for the year, Trey still enjoyed climbing up and down the rocks where waterfalls normally would be. We also spent a considerable amount of time in the digging pit. I would hide a stick in the gravel for Trey to dig up. We must have played this game well over a dozen times.

Trey Ready To Dig

Once he started to get tired we took a short walk along the new Discovery Trail to see the fish in Matt’s Pond as well as the Abner Hollow Cabin. The cabin doors were open so Trey was able to run around inside with a couple of other kids, though there really wasn’t much to see inside.

Abner Hollow Cabin

A couple of rocking chairs on the porch of the cabin provided a good resting spot. Trey was so excited to climb on each of the chairs, and by the time he made it in the last one I could tell he was ready for a nap. Thankfully we weren’t too far from the car, so I picked him up and carried him through the woods and back to the car.

Rocking and Roaring

I hope to return to the nature center on a future warm day or sometime next spring to see more of the over a dozen miles of hiking trails.

You still have a few more hours left to go vote (for Barack Obama). I walked over to my polling location around 10 AM this morning to find absolutely no line whatsoever. I wasn’t sure what to expect with all the long lines I’ve heard about at early voting locations. Plus this was my first time voting in a presidential election year while a Cincinnati resident. Fortunately it really couldn’t have gone any smoother. There were a couple of issues on my ballot that were missing from my research, but I was able to make a decision rather quickly and be on my way. From all indications, tonight is going to be an interesting night to follow along as the results come in.

Trey has been busy this Halloween season, but that’s perfectly fine with him as he is figuring out more and more what Halloween is all about. We took him to Hyde Park Square this past Saturday for their annual event. I didn’t realize that there is a costume contest as part of it, so we will have to try harder next year. We attempted to dress him up as Bob the Builder, but he refused to wear the overalls and plaid shirt. He did keep the yellow construction hat as long as he was receiving candy. He quickly learned that trick-or-treating means a near endless supply of candy.

Bob the Builder

It’s perfectly okay if he doesn’t want to be Bob the Builder again tonight. My mother has purchased so many different costumes that he has enough for the rest of the week. She dressed him up in a skeleton sweatsuit for their weekly trip to the library on Monday. She also has a monster costume and a rock-star costume.

Skeleton

It doesn’t look like the weather is going to be very nice this evening, so we will probably just take him around to a few of the neighbors houses and then spend the rest of the evening passing out candy with my family, who are joining us again this year. In what is becoming my new favorite Halloween tradition, we will be dining on the “Bearcat” pizza from Adriatico’s. Yum!

Carved Pumpkin

This past Sunday I drove the family up to Lebanon, Ohio for a train ride on the Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad. My father in law had bought us all tickets for the Great Train Robbery ride:

Travel back to the rough and tumble times of the old west alongside gold prospectors departing out of Lebanon to a connection bound for Yuma. Prospectors, known for carrying large quantities of gold, are often targets of train robbers. Warning: Be on the lookout for the Big Iron Rangers, a gang of notorious robbers known well in these parts! The prospectors are prepared to defend their gold to the end, are you?

Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad

Indiana & Ohio Car

Kim, Trey, and Nick

After a four mile or so train ride, all passengers were allowed back off of the train where a mock gun battle was staged. A couple of the period dressed employees acted as robbers of the gold on the train, so the sheriffs had to chase them down and shot most of them dead on the spot.

Sheriffs Doing Work

One Man Dead

Nick And Conner With A Robber

It was a fun way to spend the afternoon. Train rides of all kinds are offered most weekends throughout most of the year.

Today was the start of my jury duty that I mentioned a few weeks ago. I always thought it would be interesting to see the inner workings of a court room. Unfortunately that has yet to happen for me. I arrived at the courthouse this morning at 8:30, waited in line to check-in, and then went through orientation until around 10:30. From that point I sat with the other citizens (somewhere between 100 and 200 of us) in various rooms waiting for our names to be called in a juror pool. We were told that once in a pool we would be taken to any of a few dozen courtrooms for additional questioning and then finally jury selection.

However no names were ever called today. What a complete waste of time it was. I killed the three hours of waiting time by walking 21 laps around the courthouse’s fourth floor (I was told 7 laps was a mile), playing on the internet with my phone, and even closing my eyes for a few minutes. Around 12:30 an announcement told us all that we were dismissed for the day.

And guess what happened next? I went online to see if I have to report again tomorrow, and it must be my lucky day because I do. You can bet that I’m bringing my laptop and other entertainment items with me to help pass the time tomorrow. I really can’t believe how inefficient this system is, plus each person is given $19 per day so it isn’t a cheap process either. I’m going to keep my fingers crossed that tomorrow I at least get to see the inside of one of the courtrooms.

Yesterday was my second father’s day spent as a father. We spent the bulk of the afternoon at my aunt and uncle’s house swimming and hanging around their pool with various members of my extended family. It was a good way to wind down a rather chaotic weekend.

My mom helped Trey make a father’s day card for me toward the end of last week, which you can see below.

Trey’s Card To Me

Thanks Buddy!

Trey also knew exactly what to get me – a new temperature controller for his old deep freeze for milk so that I could turn it into a beer cellar! I’ve been quietly stashing beers in various places around the house, and now I can keep them all in a temperature controlled area until the perfect time has come to enjoy them.

New Temperature Controller

Re-purposed Deep Freeze

Starting My Collection

After fourteen years it looks like my time has come to fulfill my civic duty and become a juror. I have received a few notices in the past in different cities, but those always had a phone number to call the day before you were to report. And each time I called I was told not to come in. I’m actually excited to see how this whole jury thing works. It sure does look fascinating on TV and in the movies. I’ll be sure to post again after July 2nd detailing my experience.

Notification

Kim and I have been busy watching craigslist for some new backyard entertainment for Trey. We finally secured a clubhouse on Monday and yesterday I picked up a swing set with slide. Hopefully this means that we won’t have to bust out the pool every time we go into the backyard to play. It seems to be working so far as Trey splits his time between both new items.

Clubhouse - Complete with mail.

Swing Set And Slide

The people I bought the swing set from have twin girls, hence the pink baby swing. Trey doesn’t discriminate though.

Slide Time

He’s already figured out how to use the rope ladder that is on the front side. I figured he would use the steps on the backside for a while but he is proving me wrong already. I hope this provides hours of entertainment for the little guy.

Last night I headed downtown to see Kim’s graduation from the YWCA’s Rising Star program. From their website:

YWCA Rising Stars are a dynamic group of younger professional women nominated by members of the YWCA Academy of Career Women of Achievement to participate in a program designed to provide unique networking, mentoring, and educational opportunities.

The YWCA Rising Star program was created by the members of the YWCA Academy of Career Women of Achievement in 2002.  One of the goals of the Academy is to “lift as we climb” – to support younger women in pursuit of excellence in their careers.  In 2002, the Academy introduced the Rising Star program as a vehicle to recognize and support younger career women who will become our city’s future leaders.  By giving the Rising Stars the opportunity to interact and network with career women of diverse backgrounds, this program provides these younger leaders with the opportunity to address topics that will enhance their ability to further their career success.

The room was full of many very powerful young women. Being one of only a handful of men in the room, it was a little intimidating actually. However I was happy to be there to show my support for Kim and congratulate the rest of these women. A few members of MUSE Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir were on hand to sing a touching rendition of “True Colors.” It was an inspiring evening.

I spent Sunday afternoon down at Williamstown Lake. Kim’s uncle Joe has a cabin on the shores of the lake that we visit frequently in the warmer months. The lake is only an hour from home, so we can easily cruise down for an afternoon. We don’t always get to take the pontoon boat out on the lake, but we did on this visit!

Kids In Charge

Trey wasn’t a fan of the life-jacket at first, but once Nick and Connor put theirs on he seemed to be a little more tolerant. We all packed together on the pontoon and headed off to a deeper cove for some swimming. The water near Joe’s is too shallow for swimming, in fact we later watched a speed boat get stuck in the mud just past his dock.

Swimming

The lake was a swirling mix of warm and cool waters. Most of us enjoyed floating around for an hour or so. Trey only lasted fifteen minutes or so before he wanted back in the boat. Hopefully as the water warms he will enjoy it more. Joe said this was the earliest he can remember swimming in the lake in the spring. Thanks to all the warm weather recently.