County Fair with Friends

Lightsabers, Clean-Smelling Teeth & Ice Hockey

If you're a Star Wars fan,
hit 'play' below for a deleted scene :)

Now when I was a kid, they had
lightsabers that were sold fully extended
and equipped with (make-believe) sound effects.
When I was a bigger kid
(ok, maybe I was in my twenties)
my brother Josh bought me one that
could actually extend and retract, albeit manually,
but that had prerecorded sound effects!
Very cool!
Not to be outdone, Ashton used a
birthday gift card (courtesy of the Chalmers')
to purchase the new and improved model...
this thing looks and acts like
a real lightsaber!! (WT-lol)
Not only does it light up and make noise
like mine, but it also automatically extends with
the push of a button!!
(I'll raise a Star Wars nerd if I want to)
:)

Such a big boy...


A few weeks ago I scored some free tickets
to a night of college ice hockey
at the Savannah Civic Center.

Ashton LOVED ice hockey!!
...for about 15 minutes.
Thank God his Uncle Jon and Aunt Judit
joined us and kept him company :)

Christmas 2009

5 Christmas this year.
The first was Christmas Eve with
Uncle Jon and Aunt Judit.
Jon had to work Christmas Day
so we exchanged gifts the night before.

#2 was Christmas morning
at Mommom and Poppop's house
with the family.


Ashton...oops, I mean Batman
was a thrill to watch.

Uncle Josh's remote control helicopters
were a very big hit!
(...well, at least with the big kids)

#3 was Christmas night
in Baxley, Ga at
Stacy's father's house.

After all of the gift exchanges
Stacy pulled out her Wii game system
and we all took turns
boxing, bowling and golfing.

#4 was 2 days after Christmas
with Stacy's Father's family in Brunswick, GA.

We spent a lovely afternoon eating,
swapping presents, & playing outside.

And #5 was later that evening
with Stacy's Mother's family.

We met at a Spanky's restaurant for dinner,
and then carried the party over to
Stacy's Aunt & Uncle's house for dessert
and more gift exchanges.


For those of you who may not be familiar
with "Wii Boxing", please enjoy as Ashley & Mark
(Stacy's sister and brother-in-law)
provide this hilarious demonstration...

Forsyth Park (...and a few shots of chili)

On a beautiful day, back in early December, Stacy, Ashton and I headed out to Forsyth Park to take in the 3rd annual Savannah Chili Bowl.

While walking through the park we happened upon a gorgeous and untouched blanket of yellow leaves surrounding the trunk of naked tree. We had great fun rolling around on the ground and snapping photos.
Following that we took a few shots by the fountain
and enjoyed watching Ashton on the playground.





Of course, sometimes watching
Ash on the playground is nerve-wracking!



As for the Chili...

It was good...what little bit we had. Stace and I each bought armbands allowing us as much chili as we could eat. The problem was that by the time you finished waiting in line at any of the dozen-or-so vendors, all you got for your trouble was a itty-bitty styrofoam shot glass of chili. I doubt we'll be back next year, but it was cool to try it out :)

Happy Halloween 2008!!

Jack Skellington courtesy of Jon Sturgis


For our pumpkin,
Stacy, Ash and I checked out a couple of local pumpkin patches.

With her degree in Interior Design, Ashton and I agreed that Stacy was best-suited for the pumpkin carving honors :)

She did give Ashton plenty of opportunity to help with the guts-removal...

...after his first slimey quasi-handful, Ash decided that it was womens-work.

I, of course, was in charge of the camera.
Last year Ashton was Moe Doodle,
and this year THE RED POWER RANGER!We opted to go Trick or Treating in Stacy's neighborhood this year, and we had a blast!

I was actually somewhat surprised that Ashton didn't go for longer than he did. Stace and I took turns taking him out, but after only a few streets he was done.

It wasn't from fatigue, mind you, he simply knew that he couldn't dig into his haul until he came home and we checked out the loot.


Stacy and the girls at her office
decided to dress up 80's-Style for Halloween.
I loved it.
She looked just like every girl I had the hots for in High School :)

After trick or treating
I surprised Ashton by introducing the Power Ranger
to the local (well-fed) sheriff(the creepy-looking guy in the back is Jonathan)

The girls hangin' out.

Before long, everyone was trying on the fat suit...
'Plump Jon'
'Baby-Got-Back Judit'

It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time

A long long time ago (like, 2 months), back in the peaceful ages before my son knew about Peanut Butter Jelly Time...things were quiet and serene in my house.

And then...
My thoughtful and helpful girlfriend looked at us in shock when she realized that Ashton and I were unfamiliar with Peanut Butter Jelly Time...

Stacy remedied that oversight quickly.




Ashton LOVES Peanut Butter Jelly Time.
I mean, he REALLY LOVES it.





Now here's a YouTube video that Ashton and I can agree on...


That vid always cracks us up!

(And Ashton is perfecting his British accent...

...his Aunt Judit would be proud)

Once again at the pool...

Spending another wonderful summer day
with several friends at Karen and Pete's pool.






Ashton and his ladies...
:)
(Kailey and Avery)

June 2008 - Beach, Pool and Stick your tongue out and bite it

Jekyll Island

First off...yes...I am sporting the Lex Luthor look in this pic.

From time to time...much to my poor girlfriend's chagrin...I like to suddenly shave...my face...my head...my...

Making an in-ground pool

Stacy getting some sun

Mr. Cool

Karen and Pete's Pool

A couple of friends of ours have very graciously invited us over several times during the summer to enjoy their hospitality and their pool.

It has given Ashton some wonderful deep-water exposure.




We're still a ways away from him swimming like a fish, but at least he's slowly getting over his fears and having a blast doing it!

Stick Your Tongue Out And Bite It

This is nothing more than a "night in the life" at our house.

The following video is VERY typical Ashton behavior.

He cracks me up! :)

Date Night...Southern style...

Ashton spent most of a recent weekend with his Mommom and Poppop (oh thank god....OH thank god) :)

I missed him terribly (ok...that might be a wee exaggeration).

After making the transfer to his grandparents over breakfast at Denny's in Richmond Hill, I spent a few (peaceful) hours at home working on a furniture-refinishing project of mine.

Later, I cruised on out to Rincon to pick up Stacy and we headed to the Outlet Malls near Hilton Head for some shopping. It was a beautiful day and we had a blast.

As the sun started its descent, we make our way out to the Hwy 21 Drive In. This was my first Drive In experience and I loved it!


Despite a little rain moving us from the back of the truck into the cab, we thoroughly enjoyed our double-features.

Bunk Beds a.k.a. Ready-Made-Fort

...my house
has never been cleaner
AND there was money
left over...

So I've been wanting bunk beds for Ash's room for about a year now. They're kind of expensive to buy new, and I hadn't had any luck finding a nice used set.

Finally, I decided that if I cleared out and sold all of his nursery furniture (along with the 3.6 tons of miscellaneous stuff I had crammed in my attic), I'd probably make a pretty good dent in the cost of his new furnishings. Following Stacy's suggestion, I posted my lot on Craigslist over the course of 4 weeks. Not only did I completely pay for his new bed (and chest of drawers), my house has never been cleaner AND there was money left over!

Ashton's New Bunk Beds from Mike and Ash on Vimeo.

Of course... he can never decide whether he wants to sleep on the top bunk or the bottom bunk... but I suppose there are greater hardships in life :)

Easter Eggs, Easter Basket and CHOCOLATE!

Stacy and Ashton dyed Easter Eggs together this year (I had to work). He certainly seemed to thoroughly enjoy decorating the eggs... there's no doubt that he enjoyed breaking them with daddy the next day!


Ashton's Easter Basket from Mike and Ash on Vimeo.


Ashton LOVES Chocolate!
After digging through Ashton's Easter basket,
he and I made up a basket for his Uncle Jon
(who happedened to be working that day at the Fire Station across the street from us)


Stacy, Ashton and I after church on Easter.

St. Patrick's Day & a Visit from Cris!

Another St. Patrick's Day came and went in Savannah, GA. Despite the parade being held 3 days before the actual holiday, Savannah still had very large crowds and lots of fun.

A week before the celebration, the Southern Sturgis' were delighted to get to enjoy several days worth of visit from my cousin Cris. She was making her way cross-country from California to New York, and managed to find time to spend several days with my parents, my brother Jon and Ashton & I (she kept a beautiful blog of her journeys...check it out!)

For the 2nd year now, Ashton and I participated in the 'Shamrock Run' in downtown Savannah.
First, there's a Kiddie Run around City Market (Ashton strutted... jogged, then strutted again), and then a 5k for the adults. Despite the rainy weather, I did ok on the run this year and shaved 2 minutes off of last year's time! I was pleased. Ashton waited for me at the finish line with Stacy and Cris (my cheerleaders).



Here's a super-quick vid from before the race:

Waiting to race! from Mike and Ash on Vimeo.

My new "friend"..........Stacy

Well she met the folks last weekend, and as she'll likely (hopefully) be showing up in more and more blog posts in the future, I thought I'd take this opportunity to introduce Stacy to the rest of you.

I'm not going to jinx anything by talking too much about her...besides, a picture is worth a thousand words...or in this case...a video:
My son...the artist (and an introduction to Stacy) from Mike and Ash on Vimeo.