Paynecentral

Welcome Abigail Rose

2011-09-25T20:32:00.000-04:00

Congratualtions to Tara and Guillaume on the arrival of Abigail Rose! We are all very excited.

All New Dating Game

2011-09-10T11:43:00.001-04:00

Flash back to 1986 and watch Tom on the All New Dating Game (staring Elaine Joyce).

Tom competes with future actor future actor Eamonn Roche and glass blower Adrian Cervantes for the affections of pre-mad student Michele Fimbres.

While Tom did not win (he argues that Michelle was confused), the winners got to attend Winterfest in Ft. Lauderdale with Willard Scott. Here is a newspaper clip from the time:

-- A California couple won a four-day trip to Fort Lauderdale for appearing on The (All New) Dating Game. Michele Fimbres, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of Southern California, chose as her date Adrian Cervantes, 22, a glass blower at Sea World. The couple and their chaperone, Jacqueline Waite, stayed in oceanfront rooms at Marriott`s Harbor Beach Resort. They were whisked by limousine to the city`s boat parade, where they boarded Old Peculier, one of the lead boats.

Tara and Guillaume's Wedding pictures

2011-05-16T16:53:00.002-04:00

Online here

Photo Booth

2011-04-20T18:12:00.000-04:00

At Tara and Guillaume's wedding, they had a photo booth so guests could take old-style strips of pictures. It was quite a hoot.

More pictures can be seen here.

Congratulations, Tara and Guillaume

2011-04-18T21:27:00.003-04:00

It was a nasty day, but the bride was beautiful and the guest seem to have a grand time, dispite the weather.

The bride's family...

The blushing bride...

Tristan, the Ring Bearer...

William, the Herald...

The proud parents of the bride...

Tristan's School Play

2011-04-10T11:21:00.000-04:00

Tristan played Peter Pan in his nursery school's production of "True Colors", a ensemble play created by his teacher, Judy Tonkel. In the play, the class goes on a trip to a museum where the students imagine they are characters from the various paintings they see. Characters from the Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Cinderella and Red Riding Hood appear in the play.

Mommy. daddy, Kate, William, Grandma and Aunt Debbie were in the audience.

The entire class had a great time, although there were some moments of stage fright. Congratulations to all!

William quote

2011-04-01T09:38:00.002-04:00

Teacher: "William, did you get a haircut?"
William: "Yes, it was too big"

Teddy Bear Clinic

2011-03-21T23:08:00.000-04:00

This weekend, Tristan and William took their stuffies on a trip to the new Emergency Room at Northern Westchester Hospital.

It turns out that Tristan's tiger "Fluffy" has a broken leg from running around in the jungle and got a bad cut from jumping down from a tree. William's buddy "Meow" also needed some stitches.

Erin go Braugh!

2011-03-12T23:10:00.002-05:00

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

JibJab StarWars...staring us!

2011-01-19T15:05:00.002-05:00

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Sledding in Kent

2011-01-18T07:55:00.000-05:00

This weekend we went to visit our friends up in Kent, CT. As always we had a great time, but the most exciting (and perhaps stupid) parts were on a small hill in town. Tristan and Rory had a blast...and while there were some bumps and bruises, no people were actually hurt while filming these clips...

My Blackberry is not Working...

2011-01-10T20:48:00.000-05:00

Santa's Portable North Pole

2010-12-17T20:23:00.001-05:00

Santa has a special message for Tristan and William this year...

Tristan's message
William's message

Lego Calendar

2010-12-17T08:34:00.001-05:00

Each year around this time, we get a Lego Advent Calendar in anticipation of the upcoming Christmas holiday. Thanks to Tom's love of Legos, this tradition long pre-dates the arrival of Tristan and William. We have augmented the Lego calendar with a Playmobile calendar as well so both boys have something to open each day. The theme for the Playmobile set this year is a black knight and a white knight with their accessories. The Lego set revolves around a family scene with toys, pets, family members, etc.

This morning I slept in and when I saw the boys I asked what they got in their calendars today. Tristan noted he got a "fire". This is an expected firepit for the knight's camp. When I asked William, he said he got a "shower".

Here I was a little perplexed. At 3, sometimes William has difficulty speaking so I asked him to repeat himself. Quite distinctly he repeated "shower". The boys were busy watching "Santa Claus is coming to Town", so they were getting a bit annoyed by my line of questioning, but I continued. "Tristan, what did he get?" "A shower, daddy" and he gave me a perplexed look, "you know what a shower is!"

At that point, I had to go over to the kitchen table where the calendar were set up and check for myself. The prior sets had included things like family minifigs, a toy crane, a piano, fireplace, a dog, a cat, etc. While these are all themed around household items, they seemed to focus on the living room and dining room, but not the bathroom.

Sometimes, it difficult to figure out what the designers at Lego had in mind with their design. But there is was. Clear as day. A shower.

This immediately led to some internet browsing to see if anyone else thought this was odd. Apparently, while the shower is a bit out of place, the really bizarre bit is what shows up tomorrow.

There's quite a bit of 'net traffic about the semi-naked Santa. While I had an "what the heck" reaction, I have no particular issue with this. The boys seem to think the shower is perfectly normal. Santa has a lot of work to do and he needs to prepare. Kate seems to think this is an outdoor shower, but I think that it would be too cold. Then the question is where is this shower supposed to be? Is this a new tradition? Does Santa shower in my bathroom during his global delivery jaunt?

Can't wait to see the boy's reaction tomorrow.

Vineyard Catalog!

2010-11-16T22:22:00.002-05:00

Earlier this year, we had some excitement when the boys appeared on the Vineyard Vines website. Imagine how crazed the Payne household got when we recieved this year's Holiday Catalog. Not only does it offer crazy pants for dad...it also contains a picture of Tristan and William sporting their whales!

Playhouse progress

2010-10-11T23:49:00.000-04:00

The boy's playhouse is nearly complete. All of the hammering and cutting is finally over. (As you can see, the ork was done a while ago...the ofing old enough to have accumulated folliage)

All that is really left is the painting. I kinda like the natural look, but the trim and decking are not weather treated and will need some protection from the harsh nothern winter (and the cyclic global warming). So we had a discussion with the owners (Tristan and William) about color schemes. Tristan originally wanted white, so I was somewhat relieved when he now recently changed to green and orange. Still, these did not appear to be woodland colors that would blend into our charming backyard.

I tried for the "pumpkin and chocolate" that many of Tom's college friends will remember from the SigEp days, but Tristan would not hear of it. After several iterations with Tristan's design consulant (Jennifer), we settled upon "Orange Spice and Chlorophyl" (just rolls of the tongue).

It may take some time to get used to this:

Thomas Paine

2010-09-23T23:26:00.000-04:00

Histerical...yet accurate...history of Tom Paine...from a British point of view:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHwuSIvKbdI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yMglQ6kB5E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoXd7T4YJn4

Great quote...from a cat

2010-09-17T08:58:00.000-04:00

I am going to have to use this someday...a quote from Bucky in today's "Get Fuzzy"

"I think he is like a shopping cart...he's slimy, he makes whiny noises when you push him, and he pulls to the left annoyingly...but he carries food home, so we put up with him."

We're published!

2010-09-05T15:03:00.000-04:00

Check out the preview of our LBI photo book

Long Beach Island 2010 | Make Your Own Book

More Surfin'

2010-08-24T20:23:00.001-04:00

Here a great video we caught of Tristan catching a wave:

Here is another video where Tristan gets a surprise.

Runnin'

2010-08-15T16:28:00.003-04:00

When we arrived two weeks ago, Jennifer stubbornly went for a run, desperate for some kind of exercise, but convinced that she hated running. With no other options, Jennifer wound up running most days, first with Rob, later with Kate as well. Each day, Jennifer would brag about how she went a little farther. It actually appeared that she was staring to enjoy herself.

So when Tom was reading the local paper and learned about the "Harvey Cedars Dogs Days Roadrace", a five mile run, he thought it would pose an obvious challenge for her new found obsession.

Crossing the finish line (at 1:02:36)

We are all very proud of Jennifer's achievement. Horray to Kate as well (but she has done this before).

But it wouldn't be proper to allow this go without poking some fun, so...

Here we are waiting at the finish line

0:56 minutes into the race. Where is Jen?

This old guy is done...where is Jen?

Here's a guy with two kids in a stroller...where is Jen?

Here's a 6 year old...

Finally!

This was to prove that other people did finish after her...

Including this guy hat I heard mumbling that there were times

when he didn't know where he was.

Congratulations!!!

Race results: Jennifer and the other runners.

Surfin'

2010-08-15T08:24:00.002-04:00

If you ask Tristan what his favorite part of the day was yesterday, I think he would be har pressed to pick one. It was the day he tok his first boogie board ride:

"I love this"

He got to play miniature golf (again):

Attempting to load the non-functional golf ball canon

And then he got to go to the St. Francis Carnivan and ride the Ferris Wheel:

"wow"

William particiapted in all of this as well...except that he slept through the boogie boarding.

I am pretty confident, however, that his favorite part of the day was the carnival!

Chillin'

2010-08-04T08:35:00.001-04:00

After a full day of sun and fun at the beach, you need some time to just relax...and enjoy Thomas the Tank Engine with your buds. Here Tristan and William are hanging out with Gavin.

There is lots of work to be done at the beach. Most of this involves digging deep holes (even though city regulations limit the depth to 12"...just in case there are still live munitions left over from World War II). It's actually very rare to see Tristan or William digging a hole...usually they are busy filling-in the hole that they convinced daddy to dig for them.

There has not been much time spent swimming in the water yet. The water has been surprisingly cold and the boy are still a bit cautious of the waves. They do however love to frollic in the surf.

click here for more pictures

Beachin'

2010-08-01T20:32:00.000-04:00

Summer vacation started with our trip to Long Beach Island on the Jersey Shore. William was very excited and could not wait to run to the beach.

Tristan loves playing on the dangerous rock outcroppings that appear when the tide is low.

Rest in Peace, Boru

2010-07-26T22:54:00.000-04:00

Our dear friend Boru the cat left us today. He was very sick, first suffering from diabetes, then Lymphoma and finally kidney failure. We think we extended his time with us in a meaningful way, but eventually, no matter how painful it would be for us, it no longer made sense to prolong the inevitable.

You will unfortunately never know how much we miss you Boru. You touched everyone who met you. You make cat-haters love you. You comforted us. Rest in Peace.

Jennifer is in the news...

2010-07-24T22:09:00.000-04:00

With the latest season of MadMen just starting, the local press is buzzing about the Ossining/Junior League references in the storyline. This lead to an article featuring Jennifer and her take on the modern Junior League. Check it out. (click here)

William just chillin

2010-07-21T20:24:00.002-04:00

It must be tough to have recently turned 3 and have all that pressure and stress of life hanging over you. It's good that William can take a moment and relax

A Tree falls in Tappan: UPDATE

2010-07-21T08:38:00.000-04:00

Well, it appears that my concerns were well placed regarding the hole in the side of the house:

When the lights came back on (and Deborah's important "stuff" were removed), a sizable hole was found in the base of my old bedroom closet. It typical Dr. Who fashion, the hole appears to be larger on the inside than it is on the outside.

A Tree Falls in Tappan

2010-07-20T10:21:00.000-04:00

You actually would have thought that a tornado passed through my parent's neighborhood in Tappan yesterday. When I got the call that a tree came down in their yard...and took out my childhood bedroom, I was a bit concerned. But then came the added "but there is not water coming in", I started to get a bit curious. A quick drive over to the house did show a great deal of damage, but all indications were that my old room was intact.

This was a pretty major tree. It took out the gazebo attached to the house, the little porch swing my dad built in the yard and the storage shed attached to the house. Amazingly, nothing touched my mom's new car..leaves all around it, but not a scratch.

The bit of serious house damage was to the soffit (just over my old room). It could have been much worse.

Personally, I think the most serious damage will be this whole in the side of the house. It just appears to be superficial, but replacing the siding will be a joy, I am sure.

Click here for more pictures.

More from William's Birthday

2010-07-07T21:30:00.001-04:00

Here are some of the better pictures from William's birthday party(s)...

Tristan and William are officially "preppy"

2010-07-06T19:33:00.000-04:00

We sent an email to the people at Vineyard Vines a while back...and totally forgot about it until today. Apparently, they people over there have an eye for cute kids...in matching outfits. Check them out on the Vine blog: (permalink)

Happy Birthday, William!

2010-07-03T21:08:00.007-04:00

William celebrated his third birthday with a pool party for a bunch of his friends. It was actually a bit cool in the shade, so many of the kids spent their time playing on the swings and climbing the castle.

It's pretty clear that William had a great time!

On the day of William's Birthday, we celebrated with a big backyard BBQ (officially, a Shrimp Boil). The Spiderman theme followed over from the pool party, including a delicious cake and a Spidey pinata.

Lego and MC Escher

2010-07-02T22:11:00.001-04:00

For lovers of Lego and MC Escher, this is a must see...click here

The Playhouse

2010-07-01T21:43:00.027-04:00

So, Tristan and William's dad got bored of spending his days in front of a computer and needed to pound a hammer and rip some wood. This has resulted in plans for a playhouse for the boys. Originally, this was supposed to be a simple kit from Toys R Us...

Initial Toys R Us Concept

but when Tom found out that the shipping was as much as the playhouse, alternative options were explored. After all, there was a simple playhouse at the boys' nusery school...how difficult could it be? (And after reading the reviews, I am pretty glad we did not go down this route.)

Early Inspiration

Tom had a basic idea of how to build the walls. Studded wall are everywhere. He had even been lectured on the need for "headers" and the such around doorways and windows. The problem was how do the walls attach to one another? You see, 2x4's are not square. When you butt them up at 90 degree angles, they don't match up exactly. Enter the internet. Have you noticed how this is a great resource for almost anything?

Black and Becker Playhouse

Well, it turns out that this is not really a problem if you don't plan to using interior wallboard. But the web research did result in a basic plan that would provide many of the ideas for Tristan and William's playhouse.

Rockler Plan

The Rockler design was just what Tom wanted...but he refused to pay $9.95 for the plans. It would be much easier to work them out from scratch.

The only problem with the internet is that sometimes your kids are watching over your shoulder. One day, Tristan was watching as dad browsed the various links to various playhouse plans and he saw this Gothic Americam Playhouse.

American Gothic Playhouse/church

While to Mom and Dad, this looked more like a country church, to Tristan, the dominant feature was the peaked front door...which looks just like the door to his real house. Suddenly, dad's vision of a rustic log cabin started to morph into a bizarre amalgum of design styles. The initial sketches were not pretty...

Dad's Initial Sketches

Designs did evolve...and it appeared that the door situation could be left "open" for the time being. Trips to Home Depot were scheduled...and wood was purchased. Taking two toddlers to Home Depot to purchase wood is not a trivial task. The real problem is trying to figure out how to get two 4x8 sheets of plywood and 20-odd 2x3's into/onto your SUV while there are car seats in the main section. It's not like you can just have the boys sit on each other's laps in the front seat...straddling the 2x3's. So this meant the wood had to be strapped to the roof. This also meant "committing" to the purchase...cause once you have the wood out in the parking lot, you need to get it strapped to the roof in some manner. This also tends to mean a very slow ride home...with hazards flashing...so pieced of wood don't go flying hither and yon down the Saw Mill River Parkway.

Once the initial load of wood was purchased, the first part of the project was to establish a firm platform for the construction project. I specifically do not use the word "foundation" as this platform was just some weather treated 2x4's set on a level plot of dirt...leveled by some available bricks/rocks. Anything more permanent would potentially have zoning implications. With the platform in place, Tom could start to work on the sections of wall that we talked about so long ago...

Finally...studs

More to come...

Tristan's First Recital

2010-06-08T22:24:00.000-04:00

For the past several weeks, Tristan has been taking music classes at the "Amadeus Conservatory of Music". Today, he had his first recital...performing several variations of rythm (drums) and music (xylophone). We will surely to look back at these videos in the future when Tristan is an opera (or ROCK 'n ROLL) star.

Some (old) Laser FX News

2010-06-03T20:57:00.000-04:00

Back in the late 1980's, Tom and his friend Josh has a brief stint as inventors. Josh did most of the initial inventing, and Tom helped to refine the product, making it ready for production. The product was called "Laser FX". It was a sort of home version of Laserium (the laser light show at your local planetarium). At first, Tom and Josh were going to start their own company to produce the Laser FX, but later decided to license the product to a company who knew what they were doing. In a local Spencer gift store, they found products from Chatsworth-based "With Design In Mind"...and made arrangements for them to produce the Laser.

Today, while googling, Tom came across this article from the LA Times archives and it brought back many memories...

With Design In Mind Makes Toys to Entertain Grown-Up Children

Gadgets: The Chatsworth company hopes a stock offering will raise about $4 million, easing a cash crunch.

June 26, 1990
JAMES F. PELTZ, TIMES STAFF WRITER

Steven Zuloff and Barry Benjamin define their target audience as "the child that lives in the adult." But the adult also must have plenty of disposable income.
With Design In Mind International Inc., a Chatsworth company founded by Zuloff and Benjamin in 1986, designs and markets many of the odd toys and electronic gadgets sold by department stores and such specialty retail/catalogue companies as The Sharper Image and Spencer Gifts, a unit of MCA Inc.

Design's products are not must-have gifts, and cynics would dismiss the items as dust collectors. Even Zuloff, Design's president, said "We tend to stay away from functional items. We tend to be entertainment oriented."

One hot-selling item is PinPressions, a frame filled with 2,310 soft-pointed pins that forms a detailed sculpture of your profile when you press your face against it. Retail price: $30. Another Design product is Plasma FX, a clear ball that displays "controlled lightning" when you touch it ($99). There's the Levitating World Globe ($150). And Laser FX, whose three models create a laser-light show when hooked up to your stereo ($99-$249).

Zuloff said Design, with more than 20 products that retail for $25 to $400, is one of the few companies that offers retailers a variety of such gadgetry from a single vendor. Sharper Image, a San Francisco company that annually sells about $210 million worth of gadgets through its glossy catalogue and chain of stores, confirmed that it buys from Design, but said that it does not publicly comment on its suppliers.

Regardless, Design is still a pipsqueak operation with 23 employees, wide-swinging profits and annual sales that reached only $8.2 million last year. The company also is operating on a razor-thin margin of excess cash--less than $10,000, down from nearly $400,000 a year earlier--and until recently it was a penny-stock company whose whopping 350 million shares outstanding traded for 3 cents apiece.

But Design is trying to sharpen its image. Last week, Design had a 1-for-352 reverse stock split, so that it now has 1 million shares outstanding that trade at about $9 each. By leaving the penny market, Design hopes to appeal to more investors and raise about $4 million by issuing additional shares, which would help alleviate its cash crunch.

Design also will use the proceeds to expand, but it's in no hurry to grow until its financial health is stronger, said Benjamin, the company's chief financial officer. "We want to get as big as our foundation and our capital base will allow," he said. "I have no problem with growth as long as you can manage it in the back room."

Design's profitability has been erratic. The company's earnings shot up from $92,000 in 1987 to $551,000 in 1988, but then plunged to $26,000 last year because of increased overhead costs, higher taxes and product purchases from its outside manufacturers, Benjamin said. Those factors also dried up Design's cash, so the company was forced to sell some of its existing inventory at a discount to raise cash, which further lowered its profit, he said.

Included in the overhead costs were the salaries and other compensation paid to Zuloff and Benjamin, which totaled $110,000 and $230,000, respectively, in fiscal 1989, according to Design's annual report to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Zuloff, a stocky, bearded 46-year-old, has been developing and marketing odd products for two decades. Between 1968 and 1980, he owned a company called Moonlite & Co. that initially sold black lights, strobe lights and other equipment to the psychedelic crowd. When that craze faded, he went into the gift industry, and among other things marketed the Light Beam, patterned after the laser swords used in the "Star Wars" movies.

"With the '70s and '80s came a whole generation of yuppies looking for escapism and looking for uniqueness," Zuloff said, "and I decided to cater to that marketplace."

In the early 1980s, Zuloff came up with PinPressions and it sold well. He followed that with Plasma FX, the lightning ball. "Suddenly we were developing a line," he said.

In 1985, he hooked up with Benjamin, now 52, who was brokering sales of businesses after spending 10 years in banking. They founded Design with about $20,000 apiece and merged it into Pacific Acquisitions Inc.--a publicly held shell company that was organized solely to invest in another business. Today, the pair own 70% of Design's stock.

Zuloff and Benjamin don't bother with consumer tests or other surveys in deciding whether to market a new product. They just play their hunches. "I use my own love and dislove for things that come to mind and that come to me," Zuloff said. They conceded, however, that they occasionally show a new product to their big customers to get their input.

Sometimes the hunches don't pan out as planned. For instance, Zuloff admitted that sales of Design's Talking Crystal Ball, which offers 28 different answers when asked "yes" or "no" questions, are lagging. One problem: Too many shoppers thought it was a lamp.

About 30% of Design's products are developed by Zuloff and his staff, and outside inventors create the rest and receive between 2% and 5% of their item's gross sales, depending on how closely their invention resembles the product's final design. The products are manufactured by contractors in South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
As for which products get dropped from Design's line, "your customer really decides that," Benjamin said. "The consumer has an insatiable appetite for new products."

Zuloff also knows that not everyone is a Design customer; he figures only three out of 10 people are. "We have a very select audience that we go after," he said. "Usually it's an upper-middle-class person who has the bucks to spend, and usually with that comes a sense of boredom, and that's my customer. My customer usually is the impulsive buyer wanting to feel different or unique."

He now wants to cash in on the renewed interest in cartoon characters, such as the Simpsons and Dick Tracy. Design is developing a product called Toon Tones, which allows its user to modulate the voices on a television or videocassette recorder so that they sound like cartoon shows. "With home videos, you can change the kids into cartoon characters," Zuloff said.
Silly? Sure, but that's Design's business. Besides, Zuloff said, the problem for specialty catalogues and department stores these days "is finding unique items. There aren't enough." The question is whether Design can find more profit by supplying them.

WITH DESIGN IN MIND INTL. AT A GLANCE

With Design In Mind International in Chatsworth markets unique gift items sold in specialty stores, department stores, and catalogues. Founded in 1986, the company's 20 products are made by outside manufacturers based on designs developed in-house or licensed from inventors. The company has 23 employees.

Stomp Rockets

2010-05-23T08:17:00.000-04:00

1,2,3...Baby Action! We are not quite sure where the phrase originated, but is seems to be an important step in launching "Stomp Rockets". We think Tristan and William's friend Cary came up with this first, but he has subsequently denied...and then accepted credit. Other variations appear to be "William Action" and "Grownup Action".

Christmas...finally

2010-03-28T18:28:00.000-04:00

OK, I am a bit behind in posting my photos

On Multitasking...

2010-03-13T04:25:00.000-05:00

Found on the web. Couldn't agree more:

As I write this my iPod is off, the phone is silent and the computer only has one thing on it - this document with its blinking cursor and corporate compliant Futura font. I'm not paying attention to email, the blinking IM icon, or the conversation in the cube across the aisle, although hearing about my colleagues weekend adventures with karaoke is intriguing. I am doing this because I realize I have a problem focusing. My brain is all over the place. Contemporary existence demands so much splitting of attention - because we can do more, we do. The problem with being so distracted is that we inhabit daily experience in an absent minded mode and as a result, have more difficulty forming strong memories, as though the passing moment didn't leave a trace. I need all the memory I can get. A team of researchers at Stanford University found that people who are HMM (heave media multi-taskers) do not pay attention, can not control their memory or easily switch from one job to another adeptly as people who concentrate on one job at a time. High multi-taskers can't keep things separate in their minds. Ever have a colleague repeatedly ask you for files or information? It's a real life or death problem, no exaggeration. The culture of distraction is rewiring our brains, making us less happy, less able to connect with people and form conscience. Multi-tasking impedes the brains executive function, the part that decides what's meaningful and what's not. What to pay attention to what to ignore. We may think we're multi-tasking but we're really task switching, toggling between one task and another and each time you start up there a start up cost. One study suggested that up to 25% of an office worker's day is spent switch tasks. When occupied with many and varied task, we tend to feel far away from pretty much everything. So I'm announcing my intent - pardon me while I unitask. I will pay attention to one thing at a time, like riding a motorcycle.

Prepping for St. Patrick...

2010-03-05T05:02:00.000-05:00

An Irishman goes into the confessional box after years of being away from the Church.

There's a fully equipped bar with Guinness on tap. On the other wall is a dazzling array of the finest cigars and chocolates.

Then the priest comes in. "Father, forgive me, for it's been a very long time since I've been to confession, but I must first admit that the confessional box is much more inviting than it used to be."

The priest replies: "Get out. You're on my side."

Tristan Sings...and William says "Get Well"

2009-12-08T17:58:00.000-05:00

Tristan learned a new winter song...and William hopes that his pop pop feels better...

William also says "Hi" to the family!

Meeting the Mouse!

2009-11-23T05:48:00.000-05:00

Or, it would appear...the goofy dog.

(click to see more photos)

Tristan and William took their mom and dad to California to see some relatives. As long as they were out there, they thought it might be a good idea to check in on Mickey and company...you know...just to make sure they were OK.

To Infinity and Beyond!

2009-10-31T13:24:00.000-04:00

CIMG4165
SlideShow

Originally uploaded by tompayne

Here is William...as Buzz Lightyear...playing with Buzz Lightyear. He had a blast on Halloween with his brother and other friends. It was a pitty we had scattered showers, but I don't think any of the kids noticed.

D-ck in a Box?

2009-10-30T19:39:00.000-04:00

CIMG4058

Originally uploaded by tompayne

Halloween for the adults was celebrated at Doug and Anabela's house this year. The costume demonstrated an eclectic mix of creativity and...well...ah...creativity.

For example, Tom and Brian chose to show up as Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg's alter egos from an Emmy Award winning skit from SNL.

Pumpkin Boy

2009-10-24T19:48:00.000-04:00

William is obsessed with pumpkins. This time of year, he sees them everywhere. He doesn't miss one. Here Grandma is helping him decorate the pumpkin he got at Jackson's birthday party.

More pumkin news: William brought a pumpkin to nursery school on Thursday, where the class got to paint and sparkle them as a class project. William was very excited. His teachers noted that he spent extra time on this project and was very excited about it. Dad bought this home on Friday and proudly displayed it on the front porch with the other holiday decorations. Unfortunately, it rained on Saturday...and dad was not aware that they used water based paints. This morning we went to the gym and found the pumpkin sitting in a pool of paint and glitter. William wasn't quite sure what had happened...but seemed to be OK with the situation.

Happy Birthday, Jackson!

2009-10-22T18:41:00.000-04:00

Tristan and William helped their friend Jackson celebrate his second birthday at Outhouse Orchards. The Halloween themed party included a hayride, pumpkins, facepainting and slimy Jell-o spiders. What could be more fun!

Sadly, Tristan and William would not sit for the picture above. It needed to be patched together from two similar pictures. Thank you PaintShop!

Tristan's costume unveiled: Papageno!

2009-10-19T14:09:00.000-04:00

Tristan is very excited about his Halloween costume this year. Originally, we was going to be Luke Skywalker (and he wanted his daddy to be "Dark" Vader). At one point, he thought at being Batman would be cool. Things change.

Tristan's mom was very excited about taking T to the Opera. She had tickets for a dress rehersal of Mozart's "The Magic Flute" and thought this would be a great way to introduce Tristan to the Metropolitan Opera...without having a 3-year old disturb the brutal Met partons. He was extremely excited and ultimately loved it. You might say "obsessed" about it. When subsequently asked what he wanted to be for Halloween, all he could say was "Papageno...the Birdcatcher!"

Here is Tristan and his new hero, Papageno (portrayed here by Nathan Gunn).

The arguement can be made that the costume in this Judy Traymor production does look something like a superhero. Tristan talks about his costume and character like everyone will know what he is talking about. He even has told one of the girls in nursery school that she could be his Papagena (Papageno's would-be girl friend)

Click for more pictures.

Oktoberfest reprise

2009-10-17T17:19:00.000-04:00

This Saturday was our "return to Turtle Bay". The family drove down to 46th Street in Manhattan to participate in the annual "Oktoberfest/Kid's Festival" sponsored by the Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza. Along the way, we stopped by the old apartment and visited with George, our old doorman.

This year, due to inclement weather, the festival was celebrated in the gym of our old YMCA...so yet another haunting ground revisited.

At the festival, we ran into our friend Olga. She was very excited to see Tristan and William.

The boys loved the festival, especially the opportunity to get their faces painted. Tristan pushed for the Spiderman. William was a little heistant about the face painting, but eventually loved the idea of being a tiger ("roar!")

The final stop on memory lane was "Good Burger". In the old days, they only had burgers, but this time the boys were able to get hotdogs, Tom had a "crabby patty". Jen did, however, haver her traditional cheddar cheese burger. All was good with the world.

I am an apple

2009-10-09T18:46:00.000-04:00

Tristan came home today from school and sang a adorable song (to the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot")

"I'm a little apple
Small and round
I make a crunchy, munchy sound
If you bite in to me, you will see
I am delicious as can be"

He was talked into appearing on video:

First Day of School!

2009-09-21T06:32:00.000-04:00

Last week was the first day of school for both Tristan and William. Tristan is returning for the 3's program, and William has taken over Tristan's classroom from last year. Both boys are very excited about the new school year.

Tristan has grown a lot since last year's pictures...

Upgraded

2009-09-08T19:18:00.000-04:00

There is a blog worm going around...so I had to risk upgrading the system today. Looks like it worked. If you have any problems, let me know ASAP.

Tom

Development Alert: William's First Sentence

2009-08-23T03:25:00.000-04:00

His mother and others will insist that he has pulled together 3+ word sentences prior to this, so this may just be his first documented sentence. His mother will also be appauled by the topic, but dad thinks it is adorable.

This morning while playing with Wall-e and Ev-a, daddy was making coffee, with the news on in the background. We have been having some trouble with the TV (a bad connector has the screen go green and fuzzy every once in a while). This morning is happened again and a concerned William noted "Daddy, TV no work".

Old Barney

2009-08-13T17:59:00.000-04:00

Today's adventure (and blustery weather) took us to Barnegat Light at the northern tip of Long Beach Island. This year, the lighthouse is 150 years old...and was relight on January 1, 2009, after years of retirement.

Since it was a nasty day, we had to wait quite some time to get into the lighthouse, but after about 45 minutes on line, we were able to start the ascent...

William lasted about 10 of the 217 steps to the top of the light. Jennifer had a hard time making it to the top...due to a bad issue with heights...but braved onward for the sake of the boys.

Apparently, the boys do not share mommy's fear of heights (she is probably queezy just looking at this picture).

NightSabers

2009-08-11T03:17:00.000-04:00

On his trip to Busch Gardens, Uncle Skull bought the boys light sabers. They have gotten significant use...so much so, that they are on their second set of batteries.

The sabers have seen some water action as well (down at the beach), so they are a little flakey at this point. Dad may have to do some work with a solder iron when he gets home.

Rain Day

2009-08-09T03:52:00.000-04:00

We woke up to torrential downpours this morning. We thought to ourselves..."thank goodness we brought all these videos" for the kids. The sentence wasn't out of our collective mouths when the power went out.

Luckily, Andrew had prepared for this and had collected the supplied for a seaside art project. Initially, the kids enjoyed the project...glueing shells to posterboard, drawing beach scenes...and the occasional ocean front nuclear power plant. But the novelty wore off pretty quickly ("they have the attention span of a three year old!")

With this plan shot, Jennifer quickly reviewed the local vacation brochures (they still have these on paper? Thank goodness they were not only online) and discovered our next plan...the Aquarium in Atlantic City.

Upon arrival at the aquarium, we discovered that many other people had the same idea.

None the less, the kids had a blast. Here Tristan checks out a Moray Eel. ("There something alive in here!")

Tristan and Rory discover a sea urchin in the aquatic "petting" zoo.

William and Jamie had a good time, as well.

...and then again at the Borgota after lunch

SuperKids

2009-08-08T03:47:00.000-04:00

Friends Annelise and Andrew brought some gifts for the boys when they arrived...matching PJs for everyone!

The next morning, with sun glistening in their golden hair, our hero's survey the world around them.

Crabbing

2009-08-04T16:22:00.000-04:00

Tom decided that he wanted to take the boys for a boat ride. While renting the boat, the boat people asked if we wanted lines and bait. At first, we said no, but then, not knowing what else we would do all day on the water, we said yes.

It turns out the bait and lines were for crabbing. It turned out to be a lot of fun. And while we played catch and release, we were successful.

Fantasy Island

2009-08-04T03:26:00.000-04:00

Tristan and William both love amusement parks. Long Beach Island has a classic version known as Fantasy Island.

Above, the boys are enjoying taking a fire engine out for a spin. But, by far, their favorite ride was the miniature pirate ship swing.

Uncle Skull was so proud (this is his favorite ride as well).

Be sure to ask Tristan about his new girl friend. Do you think he got her number?

William also appeared to enjoy the Wild Bumble Bee ride...

But the best ride of all was daddy...

Long Beach Island - Day 1

2009-08-01T16:01:00.000-04:00

This summer most of our vacation will be spent at Surf City on Long Beach Island at the Jersey Shore. We have been going here for the past couple of years thanks to friends Greg and Lisa, but this year we have rented our own place.

The house is right on the beach and over looks some freshly renovated dunes. The boys are having a blast.

Uncle Skull came to to visit for a couple of days (on his way to the roller coaster at Busch Gardens).

I am still calling it Shea...

2009-07-30T11:02:00.000-04:00

This turned out to be a banner week for first time stadium trips...and once again, with the VIP treatment (I am getting used to this). This time the trip was to CitiField in Queens...but as I point out above, I will still be calling it Shea.

This time, the participants were Tom, his sisters Deb and Tara, and Skull.

Somehow Debbie got tickets from a parish priest...who had apparently gotten them from someone else. Either way, we wound up in an "Empire" suite with a bunch of other people we did not know. It turns out that the suite belongs to Aramark, the food concession people. As a result, the food stuff was pretty good, including burgers an shakes from Dany Meyer's Shake Shack.

I arrived at the stadium an hour before Deborah arrived with the tickets. Unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing to do there until you get inside. The stadum is surrounded by auto body rear shops.

Once inside, you would noramally be exposed to a variety of excellent food option, but our tickets had us ushered directly...and unexpectedly...into a private suite.

The game was an opportunity for a family portrait (missing my boys and wife, however)

The key difference between the Yankees visit and the Mets? The Yankess won at their game...

Yankee Stadium

2009-07-24T08:45:00.000-04:00

Thanks to some intoxicated silent bidding at a Boy's/Girl's Club charity auction, we acquired awsome tickets to the Yankees/Oakland game at Yankee Stadium. We paid no where near the face value for these tickets...since these Legend Suite tickets initially went for $2,500 a piece...but got to participate in a truly first class experience. Free gourmet food, waiter service in our seats, and an incredible field level view just behind home plate.

When we first researched these tickets on the Yankee's website, I thought they would be closer to third base. We were very pleased (amazed) when we arrived and they were virtually behind home plate. And while we were on the side by the Oakland dugout, we had a view into the Yankee's.

We were joined by friends Annelise and Andrew.

Tom caught some classic shots of some classic players...Jabba, Jorge, A-rod and Jeter.

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Pool Party

2009-07-10T17:27:00.000-04:00

William's Birthday celebration continued with a pool party at Birchwood with his friends. This was a group event, co-celebrating the birthdays of friends Mia, Riley, Lucy and Koby.

Happy Birthday, William!!!

2009-07-03T17:08:00.000-04:00

William celebrated his 2nd Birthday today with a BBQ at Stately Payne Manor. Mom and dad initially planned a traditional 4th of July theme...but one thing lead to another. Mom's desire for a "shrimp boil" inspired dad to add things like andouille sausage and Hurricanes and then next thing you know, we have a New Orleans theme. (Without going into too many personal details, New Orleans has a very special connection to the events leading up to William's birth.)

The day started with fun and games in William's bedroom. Afterwards it was off to camp at Club Fit, followed by lunch and a daily nap. By the time William's party started at 3pm, the guest of honor was still sleeping.

By the time William made his initial appearance at his own party, it was in full swing.

By the time the day was over, it was apparent that William was having a blast. We can only hope that all of his birthday's are as much fun!

Friends...

2009-06-14T18:00:00.000-04:00

Friends Rory, Jamie and Gavin came over for a visit. 'nuf said.

A cute story

2009-06-10T10:45:00.000-04:00

They walked in tandem, each of the ninety-two students filing into the already crowded auditorium. With their rich maroon gowns flowing... and the traditional caps, they looked almost .. as grown up as they felt. Dads swallowed hard behind broad smiles, and Moms freely brushed away tears.

This class would NOT pray during the commencements----not by choice, but bec ause of a recent court ruling prohibiting it. The principal and several students were careful to stay within the guidelines allowed by the ruling. They gave inspirational and challenging speeches, but no one mentioned divine guidance and no one asked for blessings on the graduates or their families.

The speeches were nice, but they were routine.....until the final speech received a standing ovation.

A solitary student walked proudly to the microphone. He stood still and silent for just a moment, and then, it happened. All 92 students, every single one of them, suddenly SNEEZED!!!!

The student on stage.. simply looked at the audience and said, 'GOD BLESS YOU, each and every one of you!' And he walked off stage...

The audience exploded into applause. This graduating class had found a unique way to invoke God's blessing on their future with or without the court's approval.

Birth of a Star Wars fan...or is it baptism?

2009-06-06T05:15:00.000-04:00

Perhaps Tristan has watched Star Wars too many time. I honestly think it is only 3-4 times, far fewer viewings than Peter Pan or The Little Mermaid. But it appears to have made an impression.

Last night, during a bubble bath, Tristan was playing with his wash frog (for the uninitiated, this is a wash-thingie that looks like a frog). After a few minutes of dunking the frog beneath the bubbles, he had a concerned look on his face. He started calling out "Luke, Luke". I thought he was referencing his friend Luke...and honestly, I was concerned the he was dunking his buddy in the bath. It wasn't until he recited the classic line "I have a bad feeling about this" and "there's something alive in here" that I realized he was actually re-enacting the garbage compactor scene from Star Wars.

Six Flags Great Escape

2009-05-24T18:50:00.000-04:00

Day two of our Lake George adventure had us visiting Six Flags Great Escape.

This time, it was William's turn to have a blast. While Tristan, Cary and Mary Kate seemed to enjoy themselves, William was simply joyous.

He road a boat, flew a plane, jumped on a motorcycle, road a train, screamed on a rollercoaster and drove a Corvette. Each time with a smile a mile wide. We are going to have to be careful. It looks like we have a daredevil on our hands.

At the end, they had so much fun, they had to call someone to tell about it!

Thomas the Tank Engine

2009-05-23T18:18:00.000-04:00

Thomas the Tank Engine came to Lake George this year...and so did we! Together with Tristan's friend Cary (and both families), we all treked to upstate New York for a ride on the famously Useful Engine.

Tristan was concerned that the whistle would blow at any moment and remained cautious throughout the trip:

Otherwise, Tristan was literally glued to the window...

After the ride, Tristan, William, Cary and the crew enjoyed some other amusements, including a bouncy castle...and Thomas related shopping. With lunch conlcuded, we stopped back at the train station to see there phenomincal model train recreation of the local area. Again, Tristan was glued to the window...

Cary's mom provided the weekend accomodations, thanks to a generous relative with a log cabin in the area. It was cozy with 5 adults and 4 kids...and one bathroom...but the kids had a blast trying our the new "bridge expansion set" from their Day with Thomas adventure.

Painting with Pop-pop

2009-05-12T17:48:00.000-04:00

Tristan thought is would be a good idea if he helped his grandfather paint the garage door. Initially, Pop-pop thought this was a good idea as well...

The door looks as good as new, so apparently, the teamwork paid off. Thanks Tristan and Pop-pop!

Pond Redux

2009-05-11T17:59:00.000-04:00

There have been a lot of projects around Stately Payne Manor recently. First, the winter freeze cycles destroyed our front steps and they were repaired by a quite impressive stone mason. Then the gutters needed to be replaced. This week, work continued on the back deck, replacing the rotted surface. And we had the pond repaired. Quite a bit of activity!

The pond needed help. Over the winter, many of the stones that defined the perimiter of the pond decided they would prefer to be in the pond. Additionally, a persistent leak in the ponds liner needed to be fixed. And finally, some of the plants surrounding the pond had given up the ghost.

While we were at it, we added a waterfall and stream to the pond, at the same time upgrading the filtering system. There are even lights!

At least one frog has come back to enjoy the pond (he has set up house inside the new skimmer). Hopefully more will decide to make this their home. Tristan would be quite happy to hear that. And you can actually see the fish now. Yes, there are actually fish in our Koi pond. We weren't quite sure about that until the water cleared up.

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T18:12:00.000-04:00

M is for the million things she gave you...

We celebrated Mother Day this year with dinner at home. Steak, baked potatos and corn on the cob were the main course (actually, that sounds like a Father's Day meal).

William apparently enjoyed himself...Hopefully, the moms did as well.

Mini-Mowers

2009-04-26T17:03:00.000-04:00

No, we have not embraced child labor, Tristan and William are trying out their bubble mowers on one of the first warm days of the summer (94 degrees!)

The shirtless look started with William being too warm in the outfit Tom picked out this morning and then he got his onesie dirty. Then Tristan had to copy his baby brother.

Fishin'

2009-04-25T16:46:00.000-04:00

While Jennifer was out of town, Tom took the boys up to Macedonia State Park to go fishing with Tristan's friend Rory. Rory's dad, Andrew, has supplied the equipment in the past, but this time Tom brought his own nets ($1 butterfly nets from Target).

William figures out the net thingie

Tom and Huck?

Tom is also thinking of become a portrait artist:

Family Tree

2009-04-14T16:32:00.000-04:00

Tom's latest obsession is the family tree. His sister, Deborah, started this a long while ago with the goal of seeing how far back the family went. Tom's simply want to understand how his boys are related to Jennifer's sprawling branch of relatives. Check out the tree at http://paynebancroft.myheritage.com.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T03:50:00.000-04:00

Coloring Easter eggs is very serious business.

OK, not really...

Dad thought the eggs would look nice out in the front yard

But the boys put out their colored Easter eggs in hopes that they Easter Bunny would come in the morning and hide them...

The Easter Bunny made a visit to Paynecentral. And it appears that they boys were quite pleased with the results.

Passover with the Leibermans

2009-04-11T04:06:00.000-04:00

Is is becoming something of a tradition for the Payne's to celebrate Easter with a visit to the Lieberman's for Passover Seder.

This year, we were joined by cousin Mikey. It was Mikey's first seder. Here he is reading a portion of the haggadah, the story of Passover, while Tristan enjoys some matzah.

Tristan took some good closeups of our host, Mel.

Here Tristan catches fellow guest, Ron, setting up some wine for Elijah...and himself.

Kissin' Cousins

2009-04-10T16:31:00.000-04:00

One of the positive aspects of Norm's passing was the fact that Tristan and William got to spend some quality time with their cousin Madeline.

Here are some cleaner pictures...

Madeline (from South Carolina) was joined by 2nd cousins Kasey and Konnor.

Kasey and William enjoying some down time:

Greg and Konnor geeking on their phones...

Happy St. Patrick's Day - a la Pearl River

2009-03-23T19:51:00.000-04:00

Tom got to show off his new Irish knit sweater at this year's Saint Patrick's Day Parade in Pearl River, NY. Tristan is currently avoiding the camera, so the only way to get a smile out of him was to dangle him upside down!

Uncle Skull and Aunt Patty (Tristan's godparents) joined in the festivities.

The boys had a blast!

Tristan's Party

2009-03-20T18:11:00.000-04:00

Tristan celebrated his birthday with 19 of his closest friends at the local indoor playground/gym, KidsU. They had a blast climbing on the "playquad" and running around the gym area.

Afterwards, Tristan and his guests enjoyed pizza (due to allergies, T had chicken fingers) and a special dairy-free (allergies again) birthday cake...bake with love by his mom and creatively decorated by his (favorite?) aunt, Debbie.

And while it was Tristan's party, there is no doubt that William had a blast as well!

Tristan's Birthday

2009-03-16T18:22:00.000-04:00

This year's "recession Christmas" was not to be out done by the "recession birthday". As you can see, Tristan was quite spoiled on the morning of his third birthday.

(yes, that's Tristan behind the mounds of gifts)

Happy St. Patrick's Day - a la Mt. Kisco

2009-03-14T18:15:00.000-04:00

This weekend, Jennifer marched with the Junior League in the Mount Kisco Saint Patrick's Day Parade.

Cousin Jessie was actually more interested in the antique cars...but was disappointed to find out they were all Fords. What was he expecting...Toyotas?

Development Alert: Kachow!

2009-03-10T18:24:00.000-04:00

William is getting better and better at communicating his wants and desires...but his favorite "word" right now is "Ka-Chow", mimicking Light'ning McQueen from Cars.

Norm's obit

2009-03-08T19:41:00.000-04:00

There was a slight error in Norm's Journal News obituary:

William "Norm" Bancroft, Jr. of South Salem, NY, died March 6, 2009, he was 69. Born in Queens, NY on April 29, 1939 the son of William and Elsie (Neuman) Bancroft. He was a graduate of White Plains High School and held a degree from Brown University. Mr. Bancroft served as a cartographer in the US Army during WWII, stationed in Africa. He worked for IBM as an Engineer for 27 years retiring in 1994, after his retirement he worked for Reader's Digest. He was predeceased by his wife Mary Ann King. He is survived by his daughter Jennifer Bancroft-Payne of Chappaqua, NY, his son Gregory Bancroft of Pawley's Island, SC, his sister Barbara Cryan of Fayetteville, GA., and his grandchildren, Tristan, William and Madeline. Visiting hours Monday 6-9 PM at Beecher Funeral Home, Pleasantville, NY where funeral services will be held Tuesday 10 AM. Interment Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne, NY In lieu of flowers donations to the Alzheimer's Association in his memory would be appreciated.

At 69 in 2009, he was a bit too young to have actually served in WWII.

Rest in Peace, Norm

2009-03-06T04:38:00.000-05:00

Jennifer lost her dad today. Apparently, he passed in his sleep peacefully.

While he had a hard time remembering their names, there is no doubt that he loved his grandchildren. It was also clear that he loved his family, especially his children, Jennifer and Greg.

Norm has suffered with Alzheimer's for over 10 years. As Jen points out, many of the people who had met her dad during that time didn't have the oportunity to meet the real Norm. She remembers the sports loving man who took up skiing at 45 so he could spend time with her on the ski team. She remembers the "hockey dad" who brought the same enthusiam to equestrian events, scolding judges for not scoring his daughter with the ribbons he knew he deserved.

Norm is now with his beloved Mary Ann who we lost 10 years ago.

Tristan's new best friend

2009-02-20T18:09:00.000-05:00

Jesse and Kim came for a visit...and Tristan has a new best buddy

Is it just me, or does this look like a scene from the "Three Stooges"?

Stephen's Birthday Party

2009-02-15T03:26:00.000-05:00

Tristan's friend Stephen celebrated his 3rd Birthday with not one, but two parties at his apartment in NYC. There is Stephen in the red shirt...

The hit of the party was the puppet show...featuring Princess Perfect and her protective brother, Spiderman.

Tristan had a wonderful time. As a matter of fact, T re-enacted the entire puppet show on the ride home from the city.

Welcome, Baby Lucy!

2009-02-14T03:34:00.000-05:00

Friends Doug, Pennelope and Vivien welcomed a new bundle of joy into their lives...little Lucille. Or is it Luceel? Or Luceille?

What a special way to spend St. Valentine's Day!

Just January

2009-01-15T18:06:00.000-05:00

Rest in Peace, Jimmy Harder

2009-01-09T19:36:00.000-05:00

Yesterday morning, the world lost a true gentleman...and we lost a good friend.

I knew of Jimmy long before I ever met him. Whenever I would visit my friends Mark and Elizabeth in their upper east side apartment, Elizabeth would inevitably have to go upstairs to look in on her father who lived in the apartment directly above. Sometimes it would be to make certain he had something to eat, but more often than not it was to make certain he had his copies of the NY Times, the Post and the Daily News. My impression was that he was an elderly socialite who was too prim and proper to be bothered interacting with some recent college graduates. I always got the impression that Elizabeth was protecting him from us as well.

Jimmy and Dorothy at Elizabeth's 40th Birthday Party

After time, there was actually occasion to meet the great man. We had heard stories of how his family had been survivors of the Titanic and that he had been an actor who had appeared on Broadway. (A poster from "Very Good Eddie" was in Elizabeth's apartment. It took me years to understand why. It was Jimmy's play. It wasn't until tonight that I found out he has been nominated for a Drama Desk award for his role) At the time, he lived up to his mysterious personna. It was seen as a priviledge to be allowed to meet Mr. Harder. It felt like only a small circle of friends were allowed upstairs.

It was quite incongruous to later find out that some of Mr. Harder's more profitable (and famous) roles has been as the Butterball Turkey Pilgrim and voice of Scotch Tape ads...and of all things...the dancing man dressed as a piece of fruit. No, not one of the Fruit of the Loom boys...but the Big Fig, the famous spokesman for Nabisco's Fig Newton cookies.

(click to download quicktime video)

Later, we would develop a friendship with Elizabeth's mother, Dorothy thanks to numerous visits to he home on the Cape. While Dorothy spent most of her time on the Cape, Mr. Harder was still working so he spent most of his time in New York. So even though we were now spending a lot of time with Dorothy, Mr. Harder remained a mystery.

When Mr. Harder would come to the Cape, he would spend his days mostly in the solitude of his bedroom...reading his newspapers and watching soap operas. It seemed like we would never get to know the man. But apparently, we had become adults and we were allowed to participate in another of his rituals. He would come out just before dinner to prepare cocktails.

As Jimmy's health degraded over the years, he had to give up drinking. But that didn't stop him from the ritual. You see, Jimmy was nothing if not a gentleman...and a creature of habit. He wouldn't be comfortable if his guests went without a drink. He would share an O'Doulls. (I started to think he actually enjoyed them at some point.)

Jimmy has long since stopped being "Mr. Harder". Our visits to the Cape continued but his time in Manhattan drew to an end. He retired a couple of years ago and move to the Cape full time. He never really stopped working. His work consisted mostly of voice-overs and he could do that remotely. But again, his health was declining, so even this was limited.

In September 2007, a radio station rediscovered the "Big Fig" and interviewed him on air. I was able to record the show. You can listen to what I think would have been his last interview below:

I never heard Jimmy complain about his health. You knew he was sick, but he always was happy to see you, loved to see our kids and wanted to make sure you were comfortable...and had your cocktail.

Jimmy with Tristan (April 2006)

Jimmy with William (September 2007)

We all knew the time would come when he couldn't continue the fight. Just before Christmas, both Jimmy and Dorothy were in the hospital. Dorothy was out by Christmas and sent us a picture. My understanding is that he had a heart attack and subsequently refused his dialysis and died from renal failure.

Jimmy was one of the sweetest men I have ever known. He had a heart of gold, old school charm and an style that made you long for a more elegant time.

Police Action

2009-01-05T12:10:00.000-05:00

This post was originally written on May 29, 2007 but never published. At the time, Jennifer thought it might screw up our chances of buying our home in Chappaqua. Since this is old news, but a good story, I figured it couldn't hurt to post it now:

Last night, Jennifer got phone call from Tom's parents. Apparently, they were on the way home from visiting Aunt Polly and Uncle Jim in Massachusetts and decided to stop by Chappaqua to see the new house in person. Unfortunately, they neglected to bring the address with them. They called from the parking lot of Tom and Jen's new chuch, on the opposite side of Chappaqua from the house. With the address in hand, Mike and Laraine were now off to see the new house. In most families, this is where the story would end. But noooo....

A later call revealed that, when they arrived at the address, a local police officer was knocking on the door of the house. Seeing the car pull up to look at the house, the police approached our intrepid adventurers. The officer wanted to know if M&L were the owners of the house.

"Are you the owners' of this house?" asked the officer. "No, my son just purchased this house," replied Laraine. "Do you know how to get in touch with the owners?" Apparently, the owners were travelling in Vermont, stopped to get some gas and drove away, forgetting to pay for the fuel. To no one's great surprise, this is considered a major criminal offense in Vermont. The Vermont police tracked down the car's license plate number to the house in Chappaqua.

Jennifer's phone rings. Laraine explains that a local Chappaqua police officer would like to talk to her. Faced with a genuinely bizarre situation, her first thought is that Mike and Laraine somehow ran into her cousin Bobby (who lives in the town next to Chappaqua) and was now playing a practical joke. Nope. This was for real.

The officer was looking for contact information. Still unaware of the entire situation, Tom provided the owner's phone number. But since they were not home, the officer asked for the realtor's name as well.

By this time, Mike and Laraine were chatting it up with the officer. While Mike investigated the tree that fell in last week's storm...and is now blocking the driveway ("You now only have half a circular drive," observed Tom's dad.), Laraine found that the officer had recently moved to New City, a neighboring town in Rockland.

Fun at the Mall

2009-01-04T12:12:00.000-05:00

Skull and Dan noted that our group hadn't seen each other for a while and thought it would be a good idea to get a bunch of us together for dinner. Plans called for us to meet at the big chicken wing sports bar at the Palisades Mall (Buffalo Wild Wings), but it turned out that everyone had the same idea.

While we waited to get in, we headed over to Dave And Buster's. Tristan had a blast playing bowling with his aunts Tara and Deborah (much to his mother's horror).

Once we finally got into the wing place, we all had a great time. Tristan and Danny Jr. enjoyed each other's company...and Danny introduced Tristan to some special DS2 techniques.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T12:03:00.000-05:00

New Year's Eve was spent with friend's Jill and Brian (our hosts), Jason and Jenny, Scott and Sonia, and Alisa (minus Kevin).

No, there is nothing wrong with your monitor...the event had a black and white theme. These really are color pictures!

Christmas, Part II (and Jennifer's Birthday)

2008-12-29T11:17:00.000-05:00

Christmas continued for several days this year...and merged into Jennifer's Birthday. Happy Birthday, Jen!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T11:06:00.000-05:00

William wasn't really prepared for Christmas morning, but Tristan had been waiting for it for the past two months. I don't think either were disappointed. From all appearances, Santa was not impacted by the recession.

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The morning was spent opening gifts at home and then we all gathered at Grandma and Pop-pops for additional gifts...and food. At one point, Boru was able to settle in for a well needed rest.

Snow Day!

2008-12-21T04:46:00.000-05:00

With the first major snow storm of 2008, the boys had an opportunity to try out their new sled.

Dad had to go our an buy a new sled. There are three of them in the garage (this makes four), but they are of the old "Flexible Flyer" variety and need a bit of work. This new plastic sled is just right (as long as Tristan isn't applying the brakes while dad is trying to pull them around the yard).

Swim Class

2008-12-20T05:01:00.000-05:00

No, we didn't invest in a new underwater camera. This is what happens when you bring a cld camera into a warm indoor pool. You need to wipe the lens free of the fog.

It is clear here that William is enjoying his swim class! You never would have known that we trudged though ice and slush to make it to the pool.

Haircuts

2008-12-19T08:25:00.000-05:00

Just got back from haircuts, gas fillup and ice melt run. Started snowing as we left the barbershop. Tristan and William both sat on Joe's chair by themselves...and then played around the store like little gentlemen while I got my hair cut. (I initially was going to put William on my lap while I got my hair cut, but Joe insisted that I let him wander). Everyone thought they were adorable...especially when Tristan noted that he was now "cute for Christmas". Then Tristan threw a tantrum because he didn't want to leave.

The Little Drummer Boy

2008-11-28T15:00:00.000-05:00

Over Thanksgiving break, Tristan received some drumming lessons from cousins Chris and Mikey.

Turkeyday in Rochester

2008-11-27T14:02:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving 2008 was spent in Rochester visiting with Jennifer's cousin Kris and family. Kris stocked the house with toys for the boys and food for everyone.

The drive up was pretty uneventful. There was some snow along the way, but nothing to stop us from proceding. The roof rack did spring a leak and we needed to use Kris' dryer after we unpacked, but with two boys, we figured we would be using the washer and dryer throughout the trip...not to mention the occasional spot remover on the white carpets.

Mikey, our cousin attending West Point, came up to visit Kris' boys (a little more age-appropriate than Tristan and William). Mikey insisted on helping with dinner, staking a claim to the mashed potatoes and gravy. We all got a kick out of the West Point cadet spending his vacation peeling potatoes.

Christopher took a break from his studies at RIT (and playing Rock Band 2) to teach Tristan the subtleties of storming a castle:

William had a blast playing ball with Kris. And Kris doesn't provide just your run of the mill ball. Her's is basically twice the size of William!

Ragamuffin Parade

2008-10-19T19:02:00.000-04:00

This year's Ragamuffin Parade featured the debut of Tristan and William's costumes for 2008. Tristan long ago decided that he wanted to be Captain Hook and that his little brother should be Peter Pan. Dad joined in by donning a crocodile hat and an enormous alarm clock. Mom volunteered to be TinkerBell, but decided that the temperature was far too close to freezing to wear fairy wings.

This picture was taken by the town photographer...and we are looking forward to seeing our segment on local public accesss television.