How Can You Be So Calm ?

Just after Noon today, I had a harrowing, yet exhilarating experience:
I was flown in a small airplane ... by my son.

A few important factoids:

Josh Jr at the helm

- Josh Jr has never flown before today (never actually been in an airplane either!)
- The actual pilot never left his seat ... but his hands were off the steering column for MOST of the flight (except the takeoff, final approach, and landing).
- No one in the plane vomited.
- Everyone in the plane was treated to several moments of unplanned weightlessness.
- I cannot say I was never worried about my safety, but I was more impressed by my son and his courage, ability to learn, and composure during what he later dubbed 'way longer than I thought I'd be responsible for flying!'

Carlos, hands OFF the controls,
calmly instructing Josh Jr ... as he flies

Now as to the title of today's post, the actual pilot, Carlos, was unbelievably CALM throughout the whole experience - including some arguably scary situations.  In fairness, he has logged over 500 flight hours and clearly has enough experience to know when there is real danger versus perceived danger.  But it was HIS plane we were in (not a cheap plane either!) and he barely knew our group and certainly had almost no understanding of whether or not Josh Jr was capable of being the 'pilot' for any duration of time.

I suppose it is true that the more experience you have, the easier it is to remain calm and in control of your emotions in the face of challenges.  There's a life lesson to be learned here ... but it may take a few more days of reflection for me to find it.  At least my stomach isn't bouncing around now.


Song Of The Day:

The view from our plane, shortly
after takeoff - right as Josh Jr took
control of the aircraft

If you listen to ANY pop radio, I am certain you've heard the song "Geronimo" by Sheppard, but I've linked the acoustic version in this post for two reasons: first, I thought the words 'geronimo' and 'bombs away' during the flight today; and second, being in the airplane without the support of the actual pilot shares some similarities to a version of a song that is stripped of the support of heavy instruments and electronics.  In fact, Josh Jr did much better after the pilot instructed him to focus on the horizon ahead instead of the many instruments on the dashboard.  Sometimes it is better/easier to go with the basic senses.

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What Are Weeds Good For ?

From my earliest memories I had a fondness for fire and a distaste for weeds.  Despite the obvious solution that combines these two things, it is only recently that I have put two and two together.

Temporary fire pit

In our expansive backyard, we've recently uncovered an area where there is no vegetation whatsoever, just dirt.  Although not perfectly flat, I leveled the area reasonably well and created a small, temporary fire pit.  I am sure a more permanent one will be constructed, but for now this little test refinery will work just fine.

Josh and Ben
enjoying the fire

When fully dried out, weeds are not only an excellent fire starter source, but they also burn quickly and very hot.  So over the past year or so, I've accumulated a few piles of weeds in corners of our backyard, and they have dried out entirely.  This past week, after a good afternoon rainstorm that saturated the surrounding grounds, I proceeded to kill two birds with one stone: weed piles gone and pyromaniac tendencies satiated.

coals from the fire

My oldest sons helped me manage the fire (as much as I love playing with fire, I'm actually VERY careful with it and respect that it has a mind of it's own).  The boys got some great pictures of the glowing coals for background photos on their iDevices too.


Song Of The Day:
Not only is "Burn" by Ellie Goulding a great new song, but it fits perfectly with today's post.  Our WiFi stretches out to the fire pit area and this song came on my Songza app while we were tending the flames.  My eyes lighted up as she sang "cause we got that fire, fire, fire ... and we're gonna let it burn, burn, burn, burn gonna let it burn, burn, burn."  I'm confident my boys enjoyed it too!  :)

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Are You Ready For This ?

Today marked the last day of school for my kiddos for this school year.  This is an occurrence every year, and usually signals all sorts of upcoming events that I'm very excited about: backyard barbecues, Popsicles on the front lawn, trips to the swimming pool, little mini-vacations, and even working in the yard on family projects together.  Karen even has some great plans for a summer schedule to help keep the kids from either extreme (being sooooo bored or just playing video games and watching movies all day).  All in all, it should be a great summer vacation for everyone in the Case household.

But that's not what has me in a reflective mood.  It is what happens after this summer that has me nearly paralyzed with fears of inadequacy, both my own and that of my children.

Here are the BIG changes coming our way in early August:
- Josh Jr (our oldest) will begin High School.  Not only that, but he will also begin attending early morning seminary which starts before 6:00am.  I am NOT a morning person!  I think he will adjust just fine, but time certainly goes faster once they're labeled by school year names: Freshman.
- Ben (2nd oldest) will be in TWO different advanced classes (8th grade math and Honors English) in only his second year of middle school.  He's plenty smart enough, but I'm running out of things I can help him with when it comes to his homework!
- Brooklyn (our oldest girl) will begin Middle School.  She is ready for this, but I am NOT!  She's still my little girl but 6th grade brings with it the start of becoming a woman and I am NOT ready for her not to be my little girl any more!
- Savannah (our middle child) will now be our oldest, and therefore most relied upon, kid at the elementary school.  She's up to the task but watching out for her and her younger sister(s) (especially that crazy Catalina!) will be a challenging change for her.

Myra, who turns 4 this summer

- Myra (our youngest daughter) will begin attending pre-school.  This would be just exciting except that she is still not 100% potty trained, which always fills parents' heads with trepidation about being judged as horrible parents.

As with anything else, I'll try not to worry too much about the changes until they get here, but the gloomy cloud of possible problems seems just a short ways down the horizon.  Wish us luck!


Song Of The Day:
I heard "The End Of Innocence" by Don Henley on the radio today and it just felt fitting for the post I had in mind.  It's probably more related to my oldest son and oldest daughter switching to completely new schools, but it also seems like the innocence of all my kiddos is disappearing so fast.  I'm really not sure I'm ready for this, but I guess I have to be.

When Did This Happen ?

Yesterday my oldest son was joking around with my wife and he climbed up in her lap, as if to act like a little baby.
Only he's clearly not so "little" any longer!
I think Karen quickly regretted his decision to effectively squish her, but I know she remembers holding him shortly after giving birth to him as though it were yesterday.

I am quite proud of the young man my oldest son is becoming / has turned out to be.  Sure he has his moments of malice or moodiness, but overall he is a very good example of what a young man and future adult should be.
In fact, the oldest daughter from one of our "friend families" recently commented that she could tell he was being raised up right ... if he were a few years older ... and then they commentary trailed off (but you could tell it was a reference to his dateability).


Song Of The Day:
It only seems appropriate for a Boyz II Men tune, since my oldest is clearly making that progression very quickly.  Their earliest BIG hit was titled "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday" and seemed to be played at every high school graduation for years after its release.  It has also become a standard of a Capella music.  Great tune for a great young man!

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Golfing Every Morning ?

One of the most enjoyable experiences of our family Spring Break trip to Casa de Case in Arizona, was the opportunity to go golfing with my dad and my two older sons ... every morning!  Thanks very much to Grandpa Jerry for his membership connection (and even more for his willingness to go out early each morning) that allowed us to golf for free each day!

The boys got better, but no one ever beat me over the whole 9 holes (we played 10 holes each round, but that is just because the 9th hole has a makeshift tee box that aims directly back toward the green of the 1st hole).  We always played that hole as a double-or-nothing hole (since I was pretty much always ahead by a lot at that point).

We played initially by strokes against par (normal scoring if you don't follow golf), but gave that up after about 3 holes because we had nothing to track the scores on that first round.  We began to keep track of two things: total strokes and a modified point system (there was 1 point open for each hole, which could be halved if two or more players tied for the lowest number of strokes for that hole).

I was very proud of my sons, who joined me with a first stroke that stayed on the green on the 8th hole.  This didn't occur until our 4th morning of playing, but it was very cool nonetheless!


Song Of The Day:
I have chosen "Wooly Bully" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs for two reasons in this post.  First, it is more from my father's generation of music, so I can picture him doing his "car dance" to this tune ... and it cracks me up!  Secondly, the song was featured in one of the best golfing movies ever: Happy Gilmore.  I need to watch that film with my boys!

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A Boy Scout Sleepover ?

Several weeks ago I received an email from the Denver Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America.  I get emails periodically from them, mostly with updates regarding Council news and upcoming camps.  But this one was different.  This one contained information regarding a "Boy Scout sleepover" at the Pepsi Center, home of the Denver Nuggets.

For a reduced ticket price of admission, any attendees would get to participate in the sleepover, including a few other events: shooting baskets on the floor after the game, watching a movie on the giant big screen above the court, sleeping on the club level overnight, and enjoying some late night snacks and then donuts and juice in the morning.

Of course I purchased tickets for my two Boy Scout sons, and I was able to get two additional tickets for my friend Aaron and his son Nicholas.  Together the 5 of us enjoyed a great evening of professional basketball (so what if the #1 team in the NBA beat the Nuggets like they were high school players), some card games, and fun conversations.  We also learned some valuable lessons for the next time including where to try and "camp" as a group (there are four "open" boxes that face the court/ice, as well as a restaurant area where they turn the lights off at night - the rest of the club level was lit up as bright as could be ALL NIGHT LONG which made sleeping a tough endeavor).

We all also got a special patch for the boys' sashes.  I think it's pretty cool, and certainly one that none of the other boys in their troop will have.


Song Of The Day:
The pictures above tell plenty of other stories, but I saved one to include here because it goes specifically with today's song.  "Good Morning" from the movie Singin' In The Rain is probably more about the amazing dancing, but the phrase it's great to stay up late, good morning, good morning to you was running through my mind as I walked around the arena in the early morning hours ...
and subsequently snapped this photo of the sunrise.

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What Do You Mean By "Master" ?

This past week, I experienced another "when did I get to be this old?" moment: High School Orientation for my oldest son Josh Jr.  It feels like no small coincidence that this very year is my 20-year high school graduation reunion.  A double dose of feeling my age: boom, BOOM!

But today's post isn't about being old.  Instead it is based on the picture I took below.

It is harder to read than I hoped, but the last line of the class description says:
"Students will master golf, racquet sports, ping pong, archery ..."

So the sign up process for classes seems much more streamlined than when I went to high school, but that much should probably be expected.  I was reasonably impressed by the different elective options that Josh Jr has for consideration through these next four years.  Even I wanted to sign up for some of the classes!

What I am not a fan of is the misleading verbiage that was used in the picture above.  I'm all about life-long physical fitness and learning the rules and gaining experience participating in different sporting activities.  But let's carefully consider whether it is appropriate to promise that students will master these various games.  You may master some of the skills.  You may master the terminology and regulations.  But come on?!  If you could "master" these sports through this class, don't you think everyone would be taking it?!  Even professional (see: paid lots of money for playing their sports) athletes aren't "masters" of their disciplines.  To be a "Master" is to perform even further beyond professionals.  It is the pinnacle.  The top.  The best of the best of the best.

It already feels like it's going to be a LOOOOOONG four years!


Song Of The Day:
It's been far too long since I featured a song by my favorite group: OMD.  One of their more popular songs from the 80's was "Dreaming" and it fits today because ... this instructor is only dreaming if they think high school students will master these sports in a single class, let alone a single semester!

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How Am I Short ?

Short post today because it's a picture blog.  Below are the before and after pictures from the activities today ... dirt and fertilizer spread, sprinklers hooked up and running, and sod laid down in our park-sized front yard!

BEFORE (fertilized dirt pile not spread yet)

 

DURING (fertilized dirt now spread - different view)

AFTER (sod installed - original view)

The title of the post is in reference to the amount of sod I ordered.  After much discussion and measuring (once we realized we were nearly 250 square feet short on sod), the error in my initial math became very clear.  Somehow I forgot that the front easement is just as long as the rest of the yard.  I had calculated it at half the length, which accounted for the whole error.

HUGE thanks to my brothers-in-law Brian L and Rick L for their hard work in the yard.  Brian even took my dad in a rush to go and pick up 21 more rolls of sod (how *convenient was it that Brian's van already had the seats taken out?!)  Their backs and arms and whole bodies must be sore, but my yard looks excellent!  Thanks also to my sons Josh Jr and Ben, as well as my nephew Daniel for their help too.

And here is one more "after" picture of the "finished" front yard.  I took several photos of the yard before (with rocks and weeds and general not-looking-good type landscaping) but I cannot seem to find them on our computer.  :(

Song Of The Day:
There is no more appropriate song today, with new sod in the yard, than "I Wish It Would Rain Down" by Phil Collins.  I would be most grateful to Mother Nature if she would see fit to rain down on my new sod and help it take root.  It's a bit late in the year to get sod in, but with the right moisture we should be just fine (if the cold temperatures could hold off for another 4-6 weeks that would be icing on the cake!)

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The SPL Was The MC For A COH ?

First, some definitions:
 - SPL = Senior Patrol Leader ... this is a position held by the youth leader in a Boy Scout Patrol.
 - MC = Master of Ceremonies ... this is the person who leads an activity or event.
 - COH = Court Of Honor ... this is a regular meeting held in Scouting, where boys receive merit badges and/or advancements in rank.

Josh Jr (SPL) handing his brother Ben his merit badge
for Citizenship in the Nation

So now on to my bragging about my oldest son.  I have rarely done this in my blog, but I am very proud of my son and want him to know it (outside of my telling him this multiple times).

Using just a hand-written outline of an agenda, he kept things moving by efficiently covering all items and actually finishing on time (one hour).  He coordinated the flag ceremony (albeit just moments before the meeting began) and properly introduced others when turning time over to them for various segments of the agenda.  He was very respectful in the way he handed out merit badges to his fellow scouts (this was just asked of him on the spot, but it seemed like he had already prepared for it).

L-R ... Bro VanDenBerghe (Scoutmaster)
Josh Case Jr (Senior Patrol Leader)
Karen Case (Mom)

Josh Jr, I know you have said how nervous you felt, but you did great!  I mean it when I say you are the only one who could tell you were nervous.  I have seen many young men struggle with speaking and leading in public, but none impressed me as much as you did this night.  Well done!


Song Of The Day:
The song "Lead Me" by Sanctus Real is about a man's relationship with his children, his wife, and his God.  I have chosen it because my son is leading others (including myself) when he acts appropriately and fulfills his assignments with such aplomb.  Thank you son!

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Is That Why I Have Short Fingers ?

Disclaimer: I know that there is no actual connection between my fingernail chewing/biting and the size of my hands or length of my fingers ... so please don't try to explain to me how it is not medically possible.  I'm just drawing logical but ill-founded conclusions from unrelated pieces of information.

I have been a fingernail biter / chewer for as long as I can remember (well over 30 years now).  I know it serves no purpose and makes me look nervous, immature, etc.  I have tried to stop more times than I can count.  I've made it months before, but I always end up nibbling them down to the soft tissue eventually.  Even when I clip them regularly, I still find myself chewing them.

I have done a good job to not chew them in front of my children, because I don't want them to pick up this stupid habit.  And thus far that has been a success.  Which got me to thinking ...
 - My hands are fairly smallish compared with someone my height, and my fingers are definitely shorter than they naturally should be.
 - My oldest son, 13 at the time of this post, is already on par to exceed me in height ... and his hands are already as big as mine ... AND ... his fingers seem to me to be freakishly long (they are probably normal sized).

My hand on the right
Josh Jr's (13) hand on the left

I am now convinced that his ability to avoid chewing/biting his nails has allowed his hands to grow at a normal rate, while mine were made shorter because I chewed them off before they could grow fully.

It is the only rational explanation.

I wonder what it would have been like to have full-sized hands.  :)

Song Of The Day:
Any post about hands would have allowed me to use the great song
"Hands To Heaven" by Breathe, but this was the first post I could think of about hands.  Perhas one day, after this life is over, I will no longer be trapped in a fingernail chewing habit AND I might even get a regular-sized pair of hands to use.  That seems fair.

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Can A Change If Plans Turn Out Better Than The Originals ?

Yesterday had some vacation 'challenges' to say the least.  Best laid plans had little chance of success because ... it just takes longer when you're preparing, transporting, and sight-seeing with 20 people!

But, after some good open dialogue (the right kind of communication always makes things better, thanks Kevin A for suggesting it), the second half of the day went quite well.  Kids were super happy (beach time, morning hikes, pizza and movie night).  Adults got to do things they wanted to (beach, exercising, eating delicious homemade pizza, playing board games).  For me anyway, the day was darn near perfection for a vacation experience.

So it got me to wondering ... do we sometimes over plan things?  And would life be much better and/or easier if we only made partial plans and let the rest of life just fall into place wherever it may? I am a meticulous planner by nature, but there was something liberating about choosing to modify all of our afternevening plans yesterday.

I am positive my 13-year old son will not speak to me for
weeks after posting this picture.  The things boys will do
for attention from cute girls!  Josh Jr took it like a man!  :)

Song of the Day:
Sometimes inside jokes are the best kind of humor.  And in honor of that, today's song is "Something To Talk About" by Bonnie Raitt.  And the inside joke has to do with exercising ... and that should be enough to remember the hilarity that ensued yesterday as plans changed and laughter resolved conflict.
Beautiful humor.

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Do You Play The Piano ?

One of my great disappointments (which I could rectify, but know I won't) in life is that I do not know how to play the piano.  Or any instrument for that matter.  But piano music is one of my favorite styles, whether it be complemented by human voices or an orchestra, or is the single sound piercing through the air.

I chose the 'learn to sing' path in junior high and high school.  Some would argue I didn't learn much about singing during those years.  I might agree with those folks most of the time.

My mother taught piano for years growing up, but she (probably very wisely) did not want to teach me or any of her own children how to play.  I know if I had expressed an interest she would have coordinated lessons for me and I could have invested countless hours learning to play scales and read music (which I can mostly do now anyway) and practicing, practicing, practicing.  But I did not express any interest then and as an adult I do not have the commitment to start at the beginning.

Judge away, I don't mind.  I have come to grips with my non-piano-playing life and I am mostly content with it (I can't say 'content' by itself after starting this blog post by listing the non-piano-playing situation as one of my great disappointments in life now can I?!)

Instead, I support my wife in her gentle pushing of some of our children to learn to play.  Thus far 2 of the 7 kids have taken (or are taking) lessons.  Hopefully most of the others follow suit.  My oldest has moved on to the trumpet, which I admire him greatly for learning.

Hats off to you piano players!  Your talents bless the lives of many and even if you're a bit rusty, take comfort in knowing you can bring beautiful melodies and harmonies to life on an awesome set of ivories!

Song Of The Day:
There may not be a better day of the week to listen to classical music than the Sabbath.  Not all classical music has the most positive or spiritually uplifting themes, but many pieces can inspire deep reflection and the pondering of life's great mysteries.  And some, like Mozart's "Piano Concerto No. 8" are just a delight to listen to!  This is just the first movement from that concerto, but it has recently become one of my favorites.

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Why Is Yardwork More Fun Than Chores ?

With the warmer weather slated for this week, I felt it would be a good use of time to get started on the LONG list of yard work projects today.  Trimming the bushes was more work than I thought it would be, but it felt nice to get it done.

As I moved to the backyard, I quickly found that basically all of my children that can walk (6 of the 7) wanted to be outside "helping daddy."  I was moving retaining wall stones in anticipation of clearing the dead stuff from the flower boxes, which left trails of dirt and crumbled stone parts all across the back porch.  The 3 older kids were helping to uncover the stones and carry them to our staging/stacking area.  Bless Brooklyn's heart for being tenacious enough to carry some stones by herself because they are heavy!

And then a funny thing happened ... Ben and Brooklyn began to argue over who got to sweep off the porch/patio area.  They both wanted to do it.  This is not funny by itself, but in context is basically absurd.  You see, in the house the "sweep the kitchen" chore is by far the least desireable among my older kids.  In fact, they often fight about who did it last so they can avoid it being their "turn" again for as long as possible.

So I didn't have a picture of the kids
helping outside ... so here's Baby #007
Spencer Joseph @ 3 months old.  :)

It got me wondering ... why are "outside" chores more desireable for my kids than "inside" chores?  Is this a long-term situation where the kids will be arguing to help all summer?  Or is it just exciting now because it is new, different, and "with daddy" instead of alone?
Whatever the reason, I'll take the help as long as I can get it!

Song Of The Day:
Today's song is "Tough Little Boys" by Gary Allan.  I chose this because Josh Jr and Ben worked pretty hard ... and they both volunteered to help (and were sad when I said we were done for the day).  This showed me how "tough" they are, but it also turned me into a little bit of a "big baby" because they're growing up so fast!

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