January is COLD

So, up nort' in the land of the frozen tundras, the family and I had a very low key month. For example - a rough Saturday morning committment turned into a nice afternoon with family and beers... (no children were harmed in the taking of these pictures)


Oh, and how can I forget Joe's first black eye - again, not printing details to protect the innocent...


We had a nice day at the zoo -


Did I mention that the COLD causes a lot of static?


The big highlight of January was Ryan and his team's entry at the Future City Competition. This competition begins in September with the submittance of a Sim City computer mock-up of the city that meets certain criteria - I am sure Ryan could go into great detail for you if you would like to know more. Before Christmas they had to submit an essay regarding how they see nano technology playing a major role in the energy and materials of the ciy and then they begin work on their scale model of the city made out of only recycled materials. The city also has to have moving parts generated by one 9V battery. They then bring that model to the competition to present in front of the judges. The judges are from some of the local companies like Opus, 3M, and Xcel Energy. Ryan was voted by his classmates to be one of the 3 presenters, but since he is not in grade 7 or 8 he was only allowed to present to the non official judges. He did a great job and we are so proud of him (even though we aren't going to Washington DC for the finals)!


Finally, some of you may have noticed a new 'widget' on the right side bar of this page. It is for the liz logelin foundation. This foundation is in memory of matt's wife liz and the goal is to financially help young widows and widowers with small children. If the mood strikes you, please donate to this great cause. Thank you!