SUZI: Hockey Teeth

I’m not really into sports.  I have a faint idea when certain sports start during the year.  I can name off a few teams.  Individual players?  Not so much.  I like going to live sporting events, but I pretty much go for the snacks and the company.  I cheer when everyone else is cheering, but I’m not always sure why.  I have a couple exceptions to my non-sporty self.  I used to play tennis in high school, and I do  enjoy watching tennis matches.  I also really like hockey. 

I really like live hockey. 

A lot.

When I was growing up, my dad regularly watched hockey games and we even got to go to several Blues games, which was just a really cool experience as a kid.  I knew a lot of the teams and players and I understood most of the rules.  Rules like the fact that you can fight and keep fighting until you fall down.  Because let’s face it, what’s a good hockey game without some really good fights. 

Right?  

(And, yes, I realize that I am a very non-violent person and I hate fighting and think that trying to solve anything by pummeling someone isn’t going to accomplish much, except somehow hockey and fights just seem to go together in my book.  Maybe I blindly think no one is actually getting hurt with all the padding in the uniform...) 

But between the flying pucks, waving hockey sticks and punches, a lot of hockey players are missing a few teeth.  I’m not so crazy about that part.

I never realized that my now two year-old son would start his hockey career so early.  When we were in Prague at the beginning of 2011, Cooper loved to look into our really tall bathtub and watch the water.  He bumped his mouth and just slightly chipped one of his teeth.  It wasn’t a huge thing, but I decided to have it checked out when we returned.  So, at the ripe old age of one, Cooper had his first dentist visit. 

Fast forward a few months…

Cooper is standing on a work platform in the kitchen (remember that there was constant construction going on in our house and Cooper had stood on this platform a hundred times with no problem).  Except that morning, he slipped and whacked his mouth on the counter. 

And cracked his front tooth in half. 

There was blood.  There was crying.  There were some parents with shaky hands and a Saturday call to the dentist.  No exposed nerves.  No apparent major damage.  There’s some sort of putty they can use to fill in the space, but there’s nothing we can do at this point until he can sit with his mouth open for 2 minutes straight.  That’s not happening anytime soon.

Fast forward a few more months…

Cooper, running like a maniac, tries to take a turn at full speed, but doesn’t quite make it and falls, head first, into our night stand.  More slightly chipped teeth. And a ripped frenulum labii superioris... yes, that little piece of skin that attaches your upper lip to your upper gum.  Feeling a little squirmy right now?  Imagine how much blood that entailed.  More parents with shaky hands. More dentist visits.  (This time with relief after the Dentist reports it was probably for the best since Cooper's little skin thingy was too long and would have needed fixing anyway!)

All told, we think he has five (maybe six) chipped or broken teeth! Cooper is amazingly steady on his feet, so it is unbelievable that he has done this multiple times.

Since he is so set on starting his hockey career this early, I’m seeing a mouth guard in his future!

A little more Kayaking

We decided to brave the heat this morning and take Cooper out in the boats at Rothwell park.  We ended up sinking a perfectly good hat in process, unfortunately... but we made memories!

BTW... it's not the easiest process to paddle with a two-yr-old in your lap.  You've gotta keep from smacking him in the head or smashing a finger on the down stroke.

It's worth it.

Class of 1992: Happy 20th Anniversary!

The Fridge... Again

A few weeks ago, I noted that my dishwasher had saved my 'fridge.

Soon after the repairs were complete, Suz noticed a puddle of water under the freezer door.  I said it was an errant ice cube that melted and blew it off.

It happened again.

And again.  This time bigger.

That's when we knew something was wrong.

Yesterday, I finally took the time to do a quick web search on "Water is leaking under my Samsung Refrigerator."

(Why did I wait so long?  Because the towel in front of the fridge was doing a fine job of corralling the flood... i.e. it hadn't gotten bad enough.  Typical male, I know, but I digress.)

I found my answer and went to work.

Basically, your fridge cools things off, and in doing so, creates condensation.  That has to go somewhere to evaporate, so there's a drain below the radiator thingy to remove it.  If that drain gets plugged with gunk or, as in my case, frozen over, the water leaks into the main compartment.

First, I had to clear the shelves and remove the back panel of the freezer, exposing the evaporator.  At the base is a small pan with a drain.  A hairdryer melted off the excess ice, hot water dissipated the internal frozen mass I couldn't get to and within an hour the line was open.

To say the least, I'm pretty happy with myself... that first gurgle of draining water nearly brought tears to my eyes.

SUZI: What’s In a Name?

I was recently at a playground where another mom heard me call Cooper by name.  She told me she really liked his name.

And then she asked if he was named after Alice Cooper.  

The heavy metal rock star Alice Cooper.  

Scary Alice Cooper.  

I wanted to laugh out loud. 

The thought of someone looking at me and thinking I’d name my son after Alice Cooper was hilarious to me.  I’m Pollyanna in comparison, people.  Pollyanna with sunshine and rainbows and unicorns and gumdrops and Care Bears.

In fact, Cooper’s name came from James Fenimore Cooper (as in the author who wrote Last of the Mohicans).  He’s not exactly named after him but was just inspired by it.  I was desperately searching trying to come up with boy names before Cooper was born.  I thought a literary name might be nice, so I was scanning hundreds of authors’ names.  I came across Mr. Cooper and voila!

Cooper Alexander McGarvey.

I thought the name was a good strong, solid one.  Thankfully Scott agreed!

The name Cooper means  “barrel maker.”  If you’ll notice Cooper’s barrel chest, strength and great physical agility, I think you’ll agree that the name suits him nicely!

Sorry, Mr. Alice Cooper, no namesake for you here!

Happy Father's Day

My Li'l guy is quite taken with the Guitar.  In fact, his instrument of choice goes just about everywhere with him... So, it was only fitting that he'd drag his axe with him into the annual Father's Day photo.  

Below are the warm up shots... sometimes you gotta shred a bit to get in the mood for a photo shoot!

The Perfect Weather Radio

So, when my Weather Channel app looks like it did today, I'm pretty happy I've got the Reecom 1630.

Most of you know I'm the resident tech-head and early adopter for my little circle of influence.  Every since we moved back to Missouri and Joplin happened, I've had my eye on the sky and this nagging thought we should get a NOAA weather radio.

You know how the weather guy says, "The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a (Fill in the Disaster Blank here)?"  That info is broadcast nation-wide through a network of over 1000 transmitters.  The NWS constantly sends out local forecasts, time/date info, etc.  Certain radios pick up this signal and provide the same alerts you see on TV.  There are alerts for everything from volcanic eruptions to nuclear fallout and dust storms.  Warnings, watches, evacuations, they're all available through the NWS system.  The problem with the basic radios you pick up at Walmart is that they don't determine between fog in Boone county, nuclear fallout in Callaway or a hailstorm in Randolph.  Some of them just play the weather continuously, which is quite annoying.  Imagine the weather channel without Al Roker and Ice Pilots or Coast Guard Alaska.  

I know, terrifying.

When Suzi's mom asked recently about getting a weather radio, it finally pushed me over the edge. I did my research and discovered the Reecom.  The bonus is that it allows you to select specific warnings for specific counties.  As much as I'm sure that McBaine, MO needs to know when there's a flood warning at 2AM, I don't want to be rousted from my dreams by an ear-shattering siren declaring a disaster that's of no consequence to my immediate safety, 40 miles away.  Only want to hear about severe warning and impending icicles of doom in your immediate area?  This is your radio.

We bought five of them, one for each the families.

So, this is how it typically works... This past Saturday started out hot and clear.  We spent the morning on the Slip-n-slide and then decamped for cooler quarters for the afternoon siesta.  At 4.11PM the radio went off, and the robotic voice (named Donna) declared an impending severe thunderstorm with hail.  I went out, put the vehicles away and wrapped up the water park that our backyard resembled.  By the time, I got inside, the first drops were dimpling the dusty terra firma.  I called the neighbors to go roll up their windows and quicker than an Emeril BAM!, the storm was upon us.

In short, I love this thing.  You can pick one up on Amazon for $45 and that's money well-spent.