The Ultimate Act of Creativity

We had the most wonderful Father's Day that anyone could ever have. Today Howie and I became grandparents for the second time.

Our son Matt and his wife Karla gave birth to a 6 lb 9 oz beautiful baby boy this morning. Jackson Kyle Streger made his appearance in time to be the ultimate Father's Day gift. Howie said it's the best Father's Day gift he ever got. It's going to be hard to top this next year.

Here's the little guy sweetly sleeping off the exhaustion of his long journey. His little hands are covered, but he has the most exquisite long fingers I've ever seen on a baby.

And here's Jackson's leading lady, our dear DIL Karla. I can just hear Karla thinking, "I can't believe this was inside me just a few minutes ago!"

Big Brother Michael's first glimpse of his little brother. I can just hear Michael thinking, "Oh, boy, the two of us can get into a lot of trouble together." Michael is 8 1/2 and when Jackson is 8 1/2, Michael will have just gotten his driver's license. Oh, yes, I see lots of adventures, or should I say misadventures, in the future for these two guys. Daddy Matt is looking on with pure joy on his face. Yes, life doesn't get better than this.
Gramps, AKA Howie, is absolutely glowing with happiness.
Here I am holding Jackson for the first time. No, Howie and I did not coordinate the color of our shirts when we got dressed this morning. In fact, we were in such a rush to get out of the house when we got the call at 6 AM that the baby was about to be born, that we barely spoke to each other as we rushed around getting dressed.
This is Karla's mother, Marty, beaming with joy. Speaking of rushing, she and Karla's sister, Teresa, had a 6 hour drive in the middle of the night as they flew across Pennsylvania to be at the hospital in New Brunswick, NJ when Jackson made his grand entrance.
And here is Aunt Teresa who is Karla's younger sister. Yes, Teresa, it's payback time. Now it's your turn to babysit for Jackson since Karla babysat for you when you were a baby. Look at that big grin on Teresa's face.
Here is a picture of three generations of Streger men which is sure to become a family treasure in the future. Henceforth, they shall be known as the "Tool Boys." Howie has always been a great Do It Yourselfer and Matt has followed in his Dad's footsteps. There's nothing that the two of them can't fix, build, or refurbish. Michael is quite the willing apprentice and has been getting a lot of on-the-job training. In fact, he has his own toolbox and tools. Jackson, you have great role models in your life. You're a very lucky little boy.

Global Warming?

I thought today was June 15th. In fact, I just checked both my calendar and the front page of the newspaper to make sure I was correct. Yes, it is definitely June 15th.

So why is my deck covered with hail making it look like January 15th?We were in the middle of a very heavy thunderstorm this afternoon when suddenly it sounded as if the hammers of Hell were beating on our roof. Imagine my surprise when I looked out the window and saw everything covered with what looked like snow but was actually hail. The street in front of my house looked like a river.

Wow, what wacky weird weather. How's that for alliteration?
The pieces of hail were huge. Too bad these aren't diamonds!

I'm wondering if NJ is going to be visited by the other 9 plagues this summer.

Amazingly, the weather has cleared up and the birds are back in their trees chirping away so all is well with the world except for the fact that the flowers on the deck may have been destroyed.

While I have your attention, in case you haven't heard, there is an auction currently taking place online. During the past year, over 100 artists collaborated in the making of an art doll which is almost life sized. By buying tickets for a chance to win this doll, you are supporting research for Ovarian Cancer. There is a button on the right side of this blog. When you click it, you'll be taken to the Ties That Bind website where you can learn about this project and how to purchase tickets. This is one small way that we can all make a difference!