I hope everyone had a great 4th of July!  My family’s big plans consisted of……well…..not much.  We picked up a friend of my son’s at the airport and went to the Mall Of America indoor theme park (using all day wristbands that I got for over half off through my employer…SCORE!).  Then we came home, grilled, and watched our city’s fireworks from a hill in a park behind our house.  They were kind of far away, but there were also plenty of people around us that were shooting off fireworks, and we enjoyed them all.  Cheap theme park wristbands, and […] Read more »

Happy 4th of July weekend, EOD Nation!  We don’t have any big plans for the weekend, although I definitely plan on firing up my grill to make some delicious food, and because……’Murica.   My son also has a friend coming to visit, so we’ll have a house guest for the week.  My wife and I instantly feel the need to start planning activities, but the look in our son’s eyes as we started discussing was priceless.  He wanted to hang out with his friend….not his friend and his parents  Time for us to take a step back.  LOL. Get your fists […] Read more »

Last weekend my wife and I were in Duluth, MN for me to run a 5K and a half marathon as part of Grandma’s Marathon weekend.  With that now behind us, it’s time to focus on summer projects.  First up is a leftover from last year:  re-staining the deck.  I stripped it of the old stain last year, but didn’t get to finishing the project.  So, we’ll be doing some light sanding and then putting a fresh coat of oil based stain on it.  If we paid someone to do it, it would cost over $700.   No Thanks.  I know […] Read more »

Race weekend is finally here! After months of training and hard work, I’ll be running a 5k this evening, and a half marathon tomorrow as part of Grandma’s Marathon weekend in Duluth, MN.  Vonnie and I traveled to Duluth yesterday and one thing is clear; captive audience prices apply.  Hotel room prices double for this weekend, and you have to stay two nights.  Souvenirs, food, you name it and the price has gone up, bute’re doing our best to stay on budget and have fun! Get your fists up to wish me luck….and for my favorite posts of the week! […] Read more »

Yesterday we said goodbye to another school year.   My wife and I are now the proud parents of a Senior and a Freshman.  Scary.  My wife, who works as a paraprofessional at an elementary school, is also now off for the summer.  The good news is, because the school district prorates her pay for 9 months of work over the full 12 month calendar year we still get her normal paycheck but she doesn’t have to go to the job.  You can imagine she’s just a little excited about that. On another personal note, today is my 20 year service […] Read more »

The Pizel Family has had a number of adventures over the last few months.  Trips to Florida and Texas, my daughter was confirmed, our annual Memorial Weekend party as well as other smaller events.  With all of that behind us, there’s just one thing out in front of us yet which is a trip to Duluth, MN in two weeks where I’ll be running a half-marathon.  But this weekend…..absolutely nothing.  I feel like hibernating in my home, and putting my very well used wallet into a locked safe.  Sound good to anyone else? Now, get those fists up for my […] Read more »