Welp she's growing more each day. Amazing. She's started to laugh a little (and screech on occassion). She reaches for things, makes a popping noises with her mouth, likes chocolate pudding (but who doesn't?) and is quite the clothes horse. I admit. I have a weakness for buying her nice clothes - thought'd be the mom didn't you? Well so did I.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Thursday, March 29, 2007
I'll Miss You Dearly.
It was bound to happen. I knew the day would come. It was great while it lasted, but you know how the saying goes "nothing good lasts forever". She was a blast to have around and she never let me down. I took great care of her and I was actually really sad to betray her so. I'm sorry. I hope you find a nice, deserving owner. When the weather is right and the sky is clear I hope they take you outside to do what you do best. Goodbye my precious Eclipse Spyder Convertible . You'll be missed.
Yep it's true. I traded her in for something newer. Something more practical. Something more befitting of a 35-year-old guy with a family and dreams of making it big in the restaurant business. I took excellent care of her making sure nothing was ever in disrepair or dirty. She proved herself one last time with a totally kickass trade-in value that even the dealer couldn't deny. I wish I had taken one last picture of her before they drove her off to the backlot.
With Isa I never felt safe to try and attempt and put a babyseat in there and go driving. If something should happen a retractable softtop would never do. Also it being what it was the blindspots were huge. A low-slung ragtop would only mark me as an irresponsible parent. So since October of 2006 I had been researching and pricing a replacement for the Spyder.
It had to reliable, well engineered and still maintain style. No minivan or station wagon would EVER be parked in my driveway. I thought my Acura MDX purchase was a solid purchase (and it was) so I figured an Acura TL would be the right fit. And if I wanted to be more price conscious then the TSX might be ok. I even rented a Toyota Highlander and considered a Honda CRV since we liked our suv's height so much. I even came "this close" to buying a Volvo S60 Turbo from a guy (glad I didn't - he wanted too much and the reviews were less than stellar surprisingly).
Yep it's true. I traded her in for something newer. Something more practical. Something more befitting of a 35-year-old guy with a family and dreams of making it big in the restaurant business. I took excellent care of her making sure nothing was ever in disrepair or dirty. She proved herself one last time with a totally kickass trade-in value that even the dealer couldn't deny. I wish I had taken one last picture of her before they drove her off to the backlot.
With Isa I never felt safe to try and attempt and put a babyseat in there and go driving. If something should happen a retractable softtop would never do. Also it being what it was the blindspots were huge. A low-slung ragtop would only mark me as an irresponsible parent. So since October of 2006 I had been researching and pricing a replacement for the Spyder.
It had to reliable, well engineered and still maintain style. No minivan or station wagon would EVER be parked in my driveway. I thought my Acura MDX purchase was a solid purchase (and it was) so I figured an Acura TL would be the right fit. And if I wanted to be more price conscious then the TSX might be ok. I even rented a Toyota Highlander and considered a Honda CRV since we liked our suv's height so much. I even came "this close" to buying a Volvo S60 Turbo from a guy (glad I didn't - he wanted too much and the reviews were less than stellar surprisingly).
No, no. My newest toy came in the form of a last minute entry to the choices of an Infiniti G35 sedan. Now most people know that I refuse to buy a brand new luxury or sports car. It's a money pit and there for vanity purposes only. I can't see myself dropping $40k on a vehicle that depreciates in a few months. BUT THIS...this was different.
Once I saw it at the dealership I knew it was mine already. It was "used" but I wouldn't even call it that. With only 32,000 miles on it, it didn't have a single scratch, dent or mark on it anywhere. Fully loaded and upgraded with a sports package it had all the bells and whistles and then some. With just a couple of minor customizations this car is perfect for me.
√ dark gray or black color √ spoiler √ alloy rims
√ tinted windows √ power sunroof √ leather interior
√ 6 cd changer/satellite radio/tape deck (for ipod) √ Xenon headlights
√ power windows √ power mirrors √ power, heated seats
√ dual climate controls √ sick ass interior design
√ serious horsepower (V-6 pushing 260 ponies on this baby)
√ cruise control √ superior reviews and reliability
√ most importantly under $20,000 (well below market price)
I went ahead and got the 4 year / 48,000 mile extended bumper-to-bumper no-fault warranty. I did want the stock GPS/NAv system but I can get the Garmin c340 or TomTom One! for around $300 vs the $2000 for Infiniti's. Other than that it's a perfect ride. Quiet, smooth and enough "oomph" to get you there and back. It feels solid, yet light. It beckons me to push it to its limits with its TipTronic gearshift. I feel comfortable driving it vs. when I had the top down on the Spyder bassing down the road frontin' for the kiddies. I'm past that stage of my life now (well kinda at least).
√ dark gray or black color √ spoiler √ alloy rims
√ tinted windows √ power sunroof √ leather interior
√ 6 cd changer/satellite radio/tape deck (for ipod) √ Xenon headlights
√ power windows √ power mirrors √ power, heated seats
√ dual climate controls √ sick ass interior design
√ serious horsepower (V-6 pushing 260 ponies on this baby)
√ cruise control √ superior reviews and reliability
√ most importantly under $20,000 (well below market price)
I went ahead and got the 4 year / 48,000 mile extended bumper-to-bumper no-fault warranty. I did want the stock GPS/NAv system but I can get the Garmin c340 or TomTom One! for around $300 vs the $2000 for Infiniti's. Other than that it's a perfect ride. Quiet, smooth and enough "oomph" to get you there and back. It feels solid, yet light. It beckons me to push it to its limits with its TipTronic gearshift. I feel comfortable driving it vs. when I had the top down on the Spyder bassing down the road frontin' for the kiddies. I'm past that stage of my life now (well kinda at least).
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Ellen Decides To Join The 21st Century...
Well I'm glad El has decided to revitalize her blogger she had me create for her almost two years ago. Gotta show her the basics of uploading pictures to it and some basic coding. She loves the new camera I gave her for Valentine's Day and uses it almost exclusively on Isa, which is exactly why I bought it for her. Now her gadget collection is just about complete - Nano iPod (check!) iBook (check!) Canon SD630 digital camera (check!) Canon portable photo printer (check!) USB Jump Drive (check!).
Feel free to browse her spartan blogger if you like. It's a good start...
Feel free to browse her spartan blogger if you like. It's a good start...
Thursday, March 15, 2007
My Precious...
My baby (no my other baby, my boat) has been out of service since last September. I haven't had time to take it out for a cruise so I let Mike at Heinmiller Marine Services take it for a week to take care of things I've been meaning to but just haven't had time to. Ever since I took my father and Uncle Ernie out to fish last summer at Cape Canaveral the reverse has been shot when they jammed it into gear hard - twice! Plus, I never got around to installing my VHF radio in it. I also managed to pick up a set of submersible LED trailer lights that should save me the hassle of having to replace popped bulbs whenever I forget to unplug the harness before I back it up into the water. I decided to also do the seasonal maintenance of checking the lower unit, filters, etc. Because it sat in storage for so long the tires rotted out so I had them replaced with new ones. I also took a few minutes to install a new jack stand for the boat since the original was shot to shit. And the icing on the cake will be the detailing job of a nice wash and wax. By the end of this week I look forward to picking it up and possibly taking it for a spin at Moss Park or Lake Toho. Aaaaah my precious...
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Almost Four Months...
Time has flown by and she's growing bigger and getting cuter. There are little things we start to notice that in other people's eyes may seem minute or inconsequential, but to us aren't.
She's discovered she has feet and loves to play with them. She makes a new mouth sucking noise when she plays. She blushes at herself in the mirror when I hold her up to it. She's starting to reach out and hold her baby bottle now, eventho most times the nipple ends up on her cheek and milk dribbles down her chin. She HATES getting her hair washed, but enjoys splashing in the tub. Dry diapers make her feel good (and us, too.). She LOVES her mobile abover her crib (compliments of El's cowerks), sleeps great with her white noise sheep toy from her Auntie Abigail, and loves to grab at the toys on the playmat she inherited from her cow-sin, Gabriel and Auntie Len. She greets us every morning with a huge smile and kicks her legs in excitement. She sleeps with her hands behind her head (odd, no?) and is apparently right-handed.
She's had such a positive impact on our lives. She's taught us patience and understanding. Things that used to upset me, doesn't anymore (at least not as much anymore). She's showed us what time management is really about. And that everything works itself out. Self sacrifice was a good lesson, too. What a neat little person.
She's discovered she has feet and loves to play with them. She makes a new mouth sucking noise when she plays. She blushes at herself in the mirror when I hold her up to it. She's starting to reach out and hold her baby bottle now, eventho most times the nipple ends up on her cheek and milk dribbles down her chin. She HATES getting her hair washed, but enjoys splashing in the tub. Dry diapers make her feel good (and us, too.). She LOVES her mobile abover her crib (compliments of El's cowerks), sleeps great with her white noise sheep toy from her Auntie Abigail, and loves to grab at the toys on the playmat she inherited from her cow-sin, Gabriel and Auntie Len. She greets us every morning with a huge smile and kicks her legs in excitement. She sleeps with her hands behind her head (odd, no?) and is apparently right-handed.
She's had such a positive impact on our lives. She's taught us patience and understanding. Things that used to upset me, doesn't anymore (at least not as much anymore). She's showed us what time management is really about. And that everything works itself out. Self sacrifice was a good lesson, too. What a neat little person.
It Feels Like A Family
A couple of Sundays ago we had the Acura go out of commission - tranny was dead. Odd since it doesn't have a lot of miles on it. We were forced to have it replaced by the dealership. It should've cost about $4300 in parts and labor, but upon hearing our situation Acura kindly agreed to pay all of the parts if we just pay the labor ($1100). Gladly. We had to rent another SUV that morning to get us through the week so El had to call off from work. It just so happened to also be a beautiful day out and there was also an art festival downtown at Lake Eola.
It had been a long, long time since we spent real time together as a family and this was an opportune time to Take The Day Off. Bueller...Bueller...Bueller...
We took care of business and then got dressed to make the most of our day. I felt bad we couldn't take Bailey Boy with us. I know he's been itching for some attention. All of it has been concentrated on Isabella...
It had been a long, long time since we spent real time together as a family and this was an opportune time to Take The Day Off. Bueller...Bueller...Bueller...
We took care of business and then got dressed to make the most of our day. I felt bad we couldn't take Bailey Boy with us. I know he's been itching for some attention. All of it has been concentrated on Isabella...
I actually enjoy shopping for my little girl. Whenever I run errands I somehow manage to find a nice outift for Isa. Here she's rockin' a little white dress I picked up for her at Old Navy. Such a cutie.
While out and about we also ran into Jenny and Joe Lamy who are ALSO expecting a little girl soon. Congrats you two! Parker is going to have great parents.
Happy Valentine's!
Our first Valentine's with our little girl. As a little surprise, I bought and dressed Isa in her Valentine's outfit so her mom would wake up to it. Unfortunately, mom jumped the gun inadvertently and saw her too early. It's ok tho. Happy Valentine's! I had to work that day, but I had made preparations waaaay in advance of the day to get things in place when I got home that evening.
In addition to the fine meal El whipped together we managed to exchange gifts. El had been wanting to use her Canon printer more cos of Isa, but the original camera I bought it with was officially dead. This year I got her a brand new Canon SD630 - that thing is pretty sweet. I actually like it better than my gigantic Nikon digital.
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