Boo

That little girl is easy to love. It's not just the milestones that I'll remember. Sometimes, it's the little things. Down in Florida, Maddie slept between me and Sugar Britches every night. She would wake up in the morning with her hair sticking up in every direction and flash a little sleepy-eyed grin...sweetest little girl in the world. I'm rather fond of the little gal.

After taking a week off for vacation, I decided to get back to work and change things up a bit; add a bit of variety. Doing more conditioning work now: boxing and rowing. The strength work that I'm doing is exclusively bodyweight training: squats, pull-ups, push-ups, roll-outs, and hanging leg raises. I had forgotten just how hard pistol squats are. Also doing a bit of mobility work everyday. I'm not getting any younger here. And looking to clean up the diet a bit. Not going on a diet, just making a point to eat clean.

Top shelf quit Jenny. Congratulations. Two more years and Bakon will have to take off his shoes to count the anniversaries.

Welcome aboard the Quit Train Chris. I had to back up and take another run at quitting before I stuck the landing. Joining this site made a world of difference. Now I can say that the last cigarette I smoked is the last cigarette that I smoked. Buckle up, knuckle down, and enjoy the ride.

There was plenty of frolicking going on. Miss Maddie took to the beach like a natural. She loved sitting at the shoreline as the waves rolled in. She would laugh and clap every time the next round came in. I modified a tandem kayak so Maddie had her own custom seat in the middle. It was a proud moment for me introducing my little girl to the joys of paddling. Maddie, being the natural entertainer that she is, enjoyed doing pratfalls in the sand. Yet another proud moment for Papa Boo, the little gal appreciates slapstick comedy. The trip went well. Looks like the Boo Crew is going to be scheduling at least one beach trip a year from now on. Same here. Hard to believe that the little bundle we brought home from the hospital is approaching one year-old now. We used to worry when she cried. Now we worry when she's quite, that's when she finds things to get into.

Just as the kids were coming to terms with the whole Santa event, it was time for the nightmare fuel that is a photo session with the Easter Bunny.

Way to go Gus.

Good job Dianne.

Congratulations Steven. Good job.

Driving the better half crazy going over my checklist. Making sure everything we need is packed and in the truck. I call it due diligence. She calls it "obsessive compulsive." I think she was being a smartass when she asked if I had a checklist for my checklists. The Boo Crew is beach bound. See ya later folks.

Just let the dog out for his routine nightly business. Saw a bunch of lighting bugs out for the first time this season. Think I'll just sit on the back porch and watch the light show and listen to the frogs croak for a bit. Saturday nights are a lot less crazy than they used to be.

We all had a birthday. Wouldn't be here otherwise. Death is inevitable. Sad but true. It's what you do with the interval between that really matters.

Crabs in a bucket. If a bunch of crabs are trapped in a bucket, inevitably one or two of them will try to escape. The other crabs could escape as well but they spend their energy on pulling the ones trying to escape back into the bucket. Crab mentality is all too common in human beings: if I can't do it, neither can you.

You smoke because you're addicted to nicotine. You're addicted to nicotine because you smoke. That's it. Smoking is a means of getting your nicotine fix, nothing more. Smoking does not ease anxiety beyond temporarily relieving withdrawal symptoms. Smoking does not facilitate jobs and tasks. Smoking does not make you a better writer. Smoking does not lead to joy and fulfillment. A cigarette is not a one-way ticket to Big Rock Candy Mountain. We all had to unpack the lies we told ourselves about smoking and confront the truth of why we actually smoked. The successful quitters realized that smoking gives nothing but will take everything. A big turning point for me was when I quit fighting random thoughts about smoking. Learned to simply sit with the cravings and temptations, recognize them for what they are and move on with my life. Every thought has as much or as little power as we give them. When I stopped fighting, I won the battle. The Quit Train is full of former smokers. We were all addicted to nicotine and most of us had moments when we doubted we could ever quit smoking. Yet, here we are. We did it and so can you.

It takes a little while to get there, but we are surprisingly adaptable. In the early days of my quit, I had some white-knuckle moments where I was hanging on for dear life. Now, I can't even imagine smoking another cigarette. You're doing great Robbie. Keep on trucking.

Lookout Liverpool! Doreen is cocked, locked, and ready to rock! Guess I jumped the gun (pun intended). Have a good one Doreen.

Ate

Somebody get Ringo a snare drum or at the very least a tambourine. Paul has his bass. John and George each have a guitar...kinda feels like they hung Ringo out to dry on this one.

Did I mention that I have a nine-foot rod? I know how to get Doreen interested in fishing talk.

Overcast sky. With the exception of an occasional breeze, not much wind to speak of. Had a big stonefly hatch. The browns were really biting my little yellow sally fly...It was a good day.

Happy Mother's Day to all the special ladies out there. Sugar Britches had a wonderful first Mother's Day. And Papa Boo found out those non-toxic ink pads that you use so your little one can "sign" a card with their footprints and handprints are messier than advertised.

Congratulations Linda. You're doing great.