Finn gets a new friend

Our friends, Jeff and Angela of The Daily Squink, are off to the hospital to have their new baby. Their son, Tiberius will be arriving soon with all the excitement and amazement a new baby brings.

Our congratulations rush out to them on a happy delivery. Enjoy it!

A Good Year (or 8 months)

Today, Beach scheduled the movers for our journey back to the US. We're leaving Germany 8 weeks from tomorrow. I know I've had a pretty bad attitude about this place for the past few months; maybe I'm actually projecting my feelings about being cooped up with a newborn on the place instead of the situation (better to blame Germany than to blame Finn, right?). So, anyone who has listened to me complain must be thinking that I'm counting the days. I was, but the impending end of our time here made me forget about the bumps in the road and realize about what a great adventure this has been. We've experienced probably about 80% of what Europe has to offer, good (tulips in the Netherlands) and not-so-good (Forbach - the French city never shown in the Frommer's guides). And, whenever we feel homesick for the States, we can get a big group of obnoxious Americans from Beach's office (who have been great stand-ins for our US friends), dominate a restaurant for an afternoon, and forget that the only thing I've learned to say in German in 8 months is "Zwei brotchen, bitte" (translation - "Two rolls, please" - I buy a lot of bread).

I'd like to apologize to Germany for my negativity, and thank Germany for the endless laughs I've had at your (and your people's) expense, and for making us realize that living in America is really, really good. I'm going to miss you, and your bread.

Finn drafted by team "Pooh Bear"

The scouts were in town this week to find new talent, and it doesn't get much newer than Finn. He ended up accepting the offer from Team Pooh Bear. Their scout noticed his use of his hand to suck on. "This new development really got our attention, especially since he seems to be a switch-hander."

The team's opening offer was tabled to see if competing bids would come in. "He had a great showing at the combine," said Brian Beachkofski, Finn's agent, "and we had hoped to see offers like this come in."

Although unable to finish the 40 because he still can't walk or crawl, his strength to body weight ratio was impressive. Despite the high hopes, the only other offer came from Team Smurfs, who ended up signing JuCo transfer Pax Jolie.

Team Poop Bear's Manager said, "Finn seems like a good fit in the clubhouse. He gets along with everyone and Kanga has taken him under his wing." When asked about how he likes the selection Finn simply smiled.

Tulip Time in Holland

We took a trip up to the Netherlands for a visit to the tulip fields and Amsterdam for the weekend. We had perfect weather for the whole weekend and got some nice pictures.

Our apartment was near the Albert Cuypmarkt, the largest market in Amsterdam. It was full of people and trash. We bought our dinner of cheese, olives, bread, and fruit there one night.

The tulip fields are amazing. In addition to the fields, there are over 70 acres of gardens and a windmill. Seeing fields of orange, yellow and red instead of green is breathtaking.

The smell of the fields was as nice as the sight. The hibiscus flower scent was everywhere and refreshing, unlike some of the canals of Amsterdam. The canal water used to run a high risk of cholera if you were to drink it. I think that is still like the "good old days" since the houseboats have running water that flushes directly into the canal. The smell was only bad in the canals that were drained for dredging.

The canals of Amsterdam were also photogenic. We rented a canalbike (paddle boat) and took Finn on his first boat ride. His ride came with a mid-cruise meal.

Also, in response to popular demand, we have a high fashion shot of my new clothes.

There are a ton pf pictures (76) because it was difficult to narrow them down. In fact, this is the first time we ran out of room on our camera. It's amazing to me that seeing vacation slides use to be the stereotypical boring activity, and now people will choose to look at them since they are on-line. Maybe the change is due to the honesty that can be expressed without the vacationers in your presence.

Beach goes on H&M shopping spree

Sarah told me that I was in a fashion rut. Well,nothing cuts to the quick faster than insulting a man's fashion, so I began a new mission. I would create a new look for myself, throwing my old clothes to the wind like a Reds' lead in the 8th inning.

After work today, we packed up the Civic and went downtown to the H&M for a wild German shopping spree. After an endless amount of time (2 hours and 30 minutes), I walked out with 2 pants, 3 shirts, and 3 other button-up shirts.

My new look is an acknowledgement of growing older and being a father now. To paraphrase my fashion growth inspiration, Jay-Z:

Fresh to death, head to toe until the day I rest

I don't wear tees, I'm 30+

Give me a relatively wrinkle-free pair of linen pants, friends,

and a button-up

...

I'm going to get my grown man on.

The trip ended back home with a fashion show where I modeled my new look to much rejoicing. I am pretty happy with the results, but now realize that I can't go to more than 3 events that require nappy attire. I'd start to repeat which is clearly unacceptable to either me or Jay-Z. Maybe a trip back to H&M is in order soon.

When Will Tiberius Burst Forth?

Our friends Jeff and Angela of The Daily Squink fame are expecting their first child. Some have called their fetal child lump, bump, or Moe, but they have named theirs Tiberius.

As his baking time has now past Finn's, the moment is coming soon. Congrats to them in advance. We know it will be quite a big and wonderful change.

After winning the office basketball pool, i feel as if i am on a hot streak. Rather than have the traditional 'guess when she'll deliver' contest, I thought that a series of wagers would be fun.

Tiberius is due 24 days from now on April 27th. The bet goes like this: will ____ happen before Tiberius is born (odds listed in parentheses).

Here is the list of bets:

• Ohio State fans will get over their loss to Florida (1:1)
• Ohio State fans get of their other loss to Florida (2:1)
• Iran will release the British hostages (3;1)
• Sanjaya will get voted off American Idol (5:1)
• Britney Spears will go back into rehab (4:1)
• Britney Spears will then leave rehab (4.1:1)
• Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt adopt another child (7:1)
• Reds will have at least 15 wins like last year on April 27th (3:2)

Again, congrats to the happy parents to be!

On (to) Wisconsin!

Finn continued his national tour into Wisconsin where Finn met more of his great-grandparents, grandparents, cousins, uncles and other relatives, friends and gawkers. The pictures are here.

One of the highlights was the trip to his great aunt and uncle's house to meet his cousin Kai. Although almost two months younger, Kai is about the same size as little Finn. Everyone had a great time and it was great to get the two of the three youngest of the cousins together.

On our way back to Germany we had an 8 hour layover in Altanta. Finn asked to go see the Final Four festivities and get a tour of the Georgia Tech campus. We agreed to take him. He had fun walking through the rain and, despite being the same size as a basketball, no one tried to throw him through a hoop. I saw Dick Vitale at the CNN Center. He looks a little like Finn.

Thanks to everyone for their hospitality, gifts, and well-wishes from all stops on the Finn '07 tour. It was a good time and got us excited to return in a few months.