Michael & Liz are Bloggable

About two months ago we were at Petco and were browsing the toy section for Daisy & Gryffin. We've tried making them toys and we've tried buying them toys. No matter what we do, those toys get destroyed and inevitably get thrown away. It was an endless struggle. Until we found the item we call "Gryffin's Ball".

We bought this round rubber ball for $5 and at the time we thought "that is way too expensive for a silly little ball". It has two little holes on either side to allow for it to be squeezed easily. Ever since we got that ball, Gryffin has been attached to it and very protective of it. Turns out we would have paid $20 had we known how much he'd love it.

His favorite game is for us to throw it around the house and for him to go chase. Imagine that, a dog that likes the game of "fetch". Coincidentally, Daisy's favorite game is to attempt to bite and block Gryffin while he runs around the house. So it's a win-win. They will play this game for hours or at least as long as we aren't tired of it. We also call him a punk cuz he *REALLY* enjoys squeezing it in Daisy's face as if to entice her or to rub in the fact that he has it and she doesn't. Another nickname for him derived from "punk" is "punksopotamus". He really enjoys just sitting and squeezing it. We don't understand why. The great thing is, it hasn't shown an ounce of wear and tear and we really don't think it ever will. It's like a gobstopper... for dogs.


Since we got the ball, we loved it so much, we got a second. Turns out, one is really all we needed because they are only ever entertained by one. It's ok, this way if we somehow lose it, his happiness doesn't end. That is a picture of Gryffin waiting for his ball to be thrown. I took this with my camera phone since I was lazy and didn't want to get the real camera. I tried to take a picture of him chewing the ball, but he wouldn't stay still and again, I'm lazy.

By the way, throughout this entire post, he has not stopped chewing his ball. Victory.

I had nothing else to post here. Daisy does this all the time (run into the screen) and the only time she doesn't is when we open the door slowly enough that she recognizes the screen there before she has a chance to run... I just really wanted it on video and I got it :).

Sorry for the shakey-ness.

Most people reading this blog probably don't pay too much attention to football. I also probably lost about 50% of my audience in that first sentence. But the Bengals are off to a 4-1 start on the season and I wanted to write a post on my thoughts.

Let me first start positive.

• The Bengals defense is what is keeping them in games. They are physical, fast, and are playing with passion. Holding the 31 point average Ravens to 14 is a testiment to their efforts. Their philosophy is to not let the other team's best player beat you, more specifically, the other team's best wide receiver. For example both Greg Jennings and Derrick Mason had 0 catches in their games against the Bengals. Fantasy suggestion? Don't start a receiver against the Bengals D. There really is no credit to be given to anyone in particular because everyone is playing well. They are really playing as a unit and every player is playing shut down defense right now.
  
• Cedric Benson is running his tail off. This stat will surprise EVERYONE. He is the leading rusher in the NFL by 6 yards over Adrian Peterson. Have I mentioned that those yards are against Baltimore, Pittsburgh, & Denver. Those defenses are no slouches.
  
• Carson is clutch under pressure. Two weeks in a row he has run for a 1st down during a 4th down play within the last minute of the game. Carson isn't known for his running. He has also taken the Bengals on a 4th quarter game winning drive 3 weeks in a row now. His arm isn't as stellar as it has been in the past but I think he'll continue to improve.
  
• T.J. Who? I don't miss him even a little bit. Laveranues Coles hasn't panned out to be a viable replacement (yet), but Chris Henry and Andre Caldwell have stepped up beyond anyone's expectations and T.J. isn't missed for that reason.
  

But the point of my post is to say that their wins haven't convinced me that the Bengals are a contender for the playoffs or Super Bowl... YET. I really want to be wrong. I want nothing more than to see us do it. Other than Cleveland fans, who would be rooting against the Bengals right now? You have to be happy to see them succeed. I'm just not convinced yet.

Did you know the Bengals have been in the lead during their games for only 18% of the time and are still 4-1. That's incredible. They have needed a game winning drive during the last minute in the last 3 games in order to win. One of those games was against Cleveland and Cleveland is TERRIBLE. They have also had tons of kicking issues. They just fired their long snapper today. He has ruined 11 points between extra points and easy field goals in the 5 games not to mention all the horrible snaps the holder was barely able to save.

Really there is no reason why we couldn't be 5-0 or 0-5 right now. Maybe what makes great teams is their ability to pull through in the end but so far I only feel like the Bengals success is pure luck. I could give so many examples but the most recent one is the Baltimore game. I actually feel like the Bengals should have blown out the Ravens. The game should have been in their hands by the end of the 3rd quarter. Carson threw a bomb to Chris Henry who galloped down the field to only be tackled at the 5 yard line. Had he hustled just a little, it's a TD. Results? A missed 30 yard field goal. That's unacceptable. That's the real Bengals from the last 19 years.

But why were we lucky? Let's look at the last drive. We only had an opportunity because Baltimore dropped a wide open catch for first down and had to punt it away. We got the ball with 2:10 left and after 3 downs, it took a 4th down run to get a 1st, burning a minute off the clock. Then on 2nd and 10, Ray Lewis hits Ochocinco in the face and gets flagged for 15 yards. Ray Lewis absolutely deserved it but that's just help you don't normally get. After that we got a legitimate 11 yards. Then on 3rd and 16, there's a defensive pass interference called for Ochocinco. I'd love to say that the Ravens deserved this, but it should have been 4th and 16. That was not a foul. Next play from the 20 yard line, touchdown. I can't help but feel like the Ravens handed us that game.

What I would like to see this weekend is the Bengals destroy Houston by 30. Let's have a 4th quarter full of Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott just pounding away. Until the Bengals put a complete game together, I will not be able to claim they are different this year. They have done a lot of really good things, but they have squeaked by on far too many levels. We'll know a lot more during the next 4 games. We have Houston, Chicago, Baltimore, & Pittsburgh. You better believe Balt. and Pitt. won't sleep on us again.

How will the Bengals finish? My guess is 11-5. I just hope the Bungles stay away long enough to bring back some pride in this desperate city.

So about 2 weeks ago, Liz and I disagreed about the number of items in the shower. It came down to me only needing a bar of soap, and she needing more than a bar of soap. For a long time it wasn't a problem because we had a metal shower hangy thing where things were stored. Then we replaced the standard shower head with a fancy shower head that included a hand held cord. That cord then got in the way of the metal hangy thing causing us to have to get rid of it. This got all the items on the metal hanger demoted to the ground. That demotion was the cause of the conversation about the number of items in the shower.

So my handiness kicked in and thought "I could build a shelf!" A couple hours later of cutting, screwing, sanding, painting, and we have a shelf. I realized today that I am very good at starting projects, but terrible at finishing them. So I got motivated tonight and finished this project at least. I built it kinda fancy so that the base of the shelf doesn't sit against the wall. I figured with water, steam, and mist, the least amount of contact with the wall the better. The shelf may not look level in the picture, and I think that's due to the shadows because it's dark and the angle of the picture, but I assure you, it is level. Maybe the shower frame isn't level... hmm....

Just wanted to post pictures of my most recent woodworking project. There aren't too many pictures of the steps I took to do it, but I'm loving the results and wanted to share them. Here are all the pictures:




What took the most amount of time was the stenciling of their names and signatures. It was about a half hour per letter if you include the drying. Also the paw signatures were created using a combination of a chopped off PVC pipe and the center hole from my athletic tape. We figured the way their names are written match who they are. Gryffin is a male and usually don't care about their signature. We figured he'd write in block letters. Daisy is a female and more fancy and we figured she'd have more curvy writing. Also Daisy is smaller than Gryffin so her signature is smaller.

I did learn one thing when working on this project and that is that white paint cannot be polyurethaned. You cannot see it in the pictures, but there is a slight yellow tint to the white paint. I was very upset about it at first but really, it's hard to see and no one would see it at first glance. Also as it was pointed out to me today, they are dog bowls and will get dirty anyway.

Also through this project, I have been asked to make 3 more dog bowl dishes, 2 for my sisters and 1 for my Mom's friend who will pay for the wood. I love having projects to work on. Although it seems like my deadline is Thanksgiving. I also have a Secret Santa woodworking project to work on as well. I better get hoppin' in October.

w00t October! More on that later!

As most people who read this blog know, I like to make things out of wood and more specifically, I like to make birdhouses. Well back in March, Liz and I went to the Raleigh birdhouse competition and it has inspired me to compete next year in it. I was prepared to walk in and be floored by the talent and super glad I didn't try to compete. But honestly, the houses there were not spectacular. I got confidence that whatever I make would and could do well. For more information on it, this is the site from this year.

What I learned from going to this is that the concept and idea of the birdhouse is MUCH more important than the talent or skills it takes to make it. I think a creative birdhouse would win over a nice looking one. So that's why I'm posting today. Can you give me some ideas for a sweet birdhouse design? Here's what I'm thinking about so far to get you started:

First Idea:
How sweet would a birdhouse look with the face of a transformer on it? The hole entrance could be the eyes or the hole at the top? Both front and back sides could be different transformer logos or the same logo on each side:
















Second Idea:
A bird house shaped like a beehive. I could get a branch from a tree outside and hang the beehive birdhouse from the branch to make it seem like it's an actual beehive and it will have an open slot for an entrance. I have no pictures of the idea, but I do have the concept mapped out in my brain.

Do you have an idea of a sweet birdhouse design? I am not looking for easy simple ones either although those are always appreciated. That Transformer birdhouse will be RIDICULOUSLY difficult to build (especially with my limited toolset). Any idea is a good one. Let me know what you think!!

Well football starts again today and I decided to log in and make my prediction for the Bengals. I am torn this season.

I love the Bengals and I want them to do well. I want them to win. But since last season I have started following a blog that I have come to enjoy and agree with. It's called the Who Dey Revolution. The goal is basically to call out and expose the crappy Bengals management in order to get changes made to the way the team is run. The guy, as cynical as he comes off, is 100% right about almost everything. He makes it obvious how terrible the Bengals organization is run. It's painful to say, but any success the Bengals acheive is pure dumb luck. They really will be the siberia of the NFL until they get competent management. Did you know the Bengals only employee 1 scout? Yes that's right, 1 NFL scout for 1 NFL team. There are only 6 teams in the NFL who don't have a GM. Those 6 teams include either extremely successful owners (Jerry Jones) or extremely unsuccessful owners (Mike Brown and Al Davis). There is no in between. You'd think with 19 years of crappiness, maybe going a different route for success would be good?? Those are just a few of the topics the blogger at Who Dey Revolution brings up.

So as you can see, it's understandable that I'm torn on rooting for them to win.

Regardless, I enter another year hoping for the best and expecting the worse. Can you believe last season I actually predicted that the Bengals would be ruined by injuries? Check it out. Well I didn't get it all right, Rudi Johnson didn't do well in Detroit, but Carson took the year off with an arm problem so I got that right at least. This year I can't help but be optimistic. Carson is back and doing well, Ochocinco is reenergized and talking about playing in the Super Bowl, apparently Cedric Benson is playing this year at the same weight he was in college (his last good football season), and the defense has added a bunch of new players and is expected to improve their 12th ranked defense from last year. How could this not be a good team?

If only they weren't Cincinnati. I'm afraid the higher my optimism is, the higher my disappointment will be. I read somewhere that the Bengals could potentially win 10 games this year. I say bogus, we aren't going to split with BOTH Pittsburgh and Baltimore. I'll believe it when I see it. My prediction is that it will be an up and down year. Our offense will disappear for a few games and I think we'll end up 7-9. I don't think Benson is going to make a big impact this year and Bernard Scott may have to come in to pick up the slack. Unless any of the wide receivers or Carson get hurt, I think they'll all have a decent year. The defense will improve but will be mediocre and stay around 12th ranked in the league. We're better than we were last year but not as good as we were in 2005. If we had an easier division I'd be a little more optimistic about our record, but I just can't see us having a winning record.

And if you just read all that, congratulations, I could barely stand to type it myself.

It may not be clear by the post above but... Go Bengals!

Also I can't wait until October.