Bugs Palace!

Been a minute since I posted. LOTS of updates today. I’ll try and keep them short and to the point. Oh, and these are in NO particular order. It was a pretty crazy summer!

Automotive: MINI has nearly all this years projects done. Super charger pulley, intake, exhaust and sway bar complete. I think the only thing I have left is the stereo install. And it has to go in soon! No bluetooth and SiriusXM is BRUTAL. Beetle finally has the new carb installed. Still needs lots of tasks completed. Hoping this to chip away at those last few jobs this winter and finally go into next spring all good! Lastly – Honda dirt bike. After getting a fuel service and some minor repairs done, the bike is running very well! Kids FINALLY got some riding in! Both kids are getting very comfortable on it and getting a bunch of seat time when time allowed. I’d love to find a second one cheap so they can ride together instead of having to share. So great seeing them figure it out and loving it

Pool is FINALLY up and running. Lots of time (and money) later, its finally up and running. Sadly didn’t get it finished up till fairly late in the summer, so we didn’t get to spend a ton of time in it. I still have a handful of tasks to finish the deck and pool area up 100%, but all in all it is done and should be up and running much earlier next summer.

Joe built his first computer this summer! Wee-man has been saving money for quite some time with the intent of building a pc for gaming (and hopefully not homeschooling). So proud of him. For the geeks at home, its an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X, Asus B550, 16GB, M2 drive, and liquid cooling. He ended up getting a used video card from a friend of mine as new video cards are covid-taxed these days. He is over the moon with the machine. Especially the LED lighting throughout!

Baseball didn’t look like normal this summer, but we DID have baseball! I’d like to say a huge THANK YOU to Jarvis, Caledonia, Port Dover and especially Fisherville for running a baseball program this summer. Both kids played in Fisherville this summer and had a fantastic time. Season was much shorter than usual with fewer games, but the time spent on the diamond was a mental / physical boost that our kiddos desperately needed. Shannon and I too for that matter. Hopefully next year we can get back to a normal season.

School is back in full swing! Joe is back at St. Marys in Hagersville, but for the first time – he is the only VanDalen in the building. But the boy is rocking it! Thankfully all his cousins are still there! Big sister Abby has made the next step and started grade nine at Holy Trinity in Simcoe. She was slightly terrified leading up to the first day. Despite the nerves and worries, I am happy to say she is making huge strides in becoming a high-school student. Shes slowly making some new friends, branching out and looking into clubs and sports to play and even riding the bus to-from school each day. Very proud of both our kiddos. And honestly, all the kiddos. They have had such a shitty 1.5 years of school behind them that I pray is actually behind them. Schools are still under all the safety protocols, masks etc, but they are IN school and learning.

Now, my final two updates are out of order. I’ve been saying forever that after Jabba I would not buy any more dogs until AFTER my new shop was built. Well, I failed LOL. As we started getting closer to doing the actual build, I realized I better start looking into another puppy ASAP. I decided to reach out the the family we got Jabba from to see when they were having more and to see if there was a wait list I could get on. Boy was I shocked and a bit taken back when she told me they had a fresh litter that she was planning on posting that night as they would be 8 weeks old the next day. Damn it. How do I say no!? Same dad as Jabba but instead of a English/Old English mom – this little has an English/French mom. I decided we had to take the step now instead of waiting. This time I told Shannon instead of just surprising her, but we didn’t tell the kids. The next day we were at the breeder surrounded by adorable puppers and one of them would be coming home with us. We settled on an adorable little boy who we named Boba Pett – to keep the Star Wars theme. He is amazing. He and Jabba get along far better then I could have ever hoped. They play and wrestle and tug of war for hours each day. Beyond cuteness 24-7.

With the doggo bought and in the house – the garage HAS to be next ;-). We are, after nearly 20 years of scheming, finally in the process. We now have a design, plans/blueprints and a building permit! The shop is gonna be HUGE! It will equate to a 6 car garage with room to work as well. Old 1.5 bay will be coming down and in its place a 2 wide x 3+ deep shop will rise in its place. Along with the shop some other house updates are planned. Fresh siding, roof, etc. We’ve opted to have a builder to do the bulk of the project but I will be chipping away at the finishing work with some help from family and friends to save some money for other potential upgrades. Unless the builder falls behind with current projects, it’s looking like we will be breaking ground at the end of October.

Ok. I’m sure I missed some other updates (bought my first drone, sump pump replaced, carpet for Joe, new tree, camping, etc) but for now, I think that covers the main tasks. Until next time 😉

Well pandemic or not, time is marching on! Many little updates and a couple huge ones.

First up, Subaru and Harley both sold and gone. In their place now sits a 2006 (one owner, never winter driven, 68K old) MINI Cooper S and a 2017 Triumph Thruxton R. Both vehicles in exceptional condtion and slowly getting tweaked to be just the way I want them. More MINI info HERE and Triumph info HERE.

House updates: over my holidays in May I made huge progress on the pool. Fence is nearly complete (short a couple boards), and the pool itself has been completely sanded down thanks to a ton of work from the wifey. Once she finished that, I hit the seams with a wire wheel and coated it with seam sealer. Finally fresh coat of paint over all metal surfaces to help fight future rust from forming. Metal is still solid, so hopefully this preventative repairs will keep it that way. Little more work to do, but its getting closer. Also, despite the cost of wood we’ve started getting actual quotes for the garage upgrade. Not going to get too excited just yet, but it’s finally making actual steps to becoming a reality. Now if wood prices would just settle back down, we can hopefully get it done!

Since the last update school was cancelled as was the regular baseball season. Two very disappointed kids here. And frankly, two frustrated and angry parents. Only small hope of a couple local towns are running some form of a baseball camp which both kids are signed up for. It’s not the normal season, but at this point any baseball is better than no baseball.

Vaccines are getting done fast and furious around the province. Nearly everyone in the family has both shots now. Shannon (getting 2nd today) and Abby (July 30) are the last two to get done. Feels like a real step. Still disappointed Joe doesn’t make the cut (11yrs old) but the more people get done, the safer he is.

Speaking of my boy – he just turned 11! Happiest of birthdays Joe-Man. So proud of the dude you are and the big dude you are becoming. I hope you enjoyed your birthday and gifts. We love you lots!

And last but certainly not least: Graduation. Today my baby girl officially graduated from grade 8 at St. Marys. And a co-valedictorian no less. Words can’t describe the pride and love you Mom, Joe and I have for you. You have grown from my goofy, stubborn, intelligent, loving, beautiful, tiny little human into a goofy, stubborn, intelligent, loving, beautiful young lady. Especially with this last two school years you have really proven just how strong and resilient you are. You make us proud every single day. Keep being you, keep dreaming the big dreams and never give up. You can and will be able to do anything you set your mind to. We love you Abigail.

So the pandemic is still in full force, and in fact, getting worse. Just when we thought life was going to get back to normal, this 3rd wave hit, and lock-downs are back in place. It still sucks, but we’re making the most of it.

First up, our stove failed a few months back and we finally replaced it. Our old unit was a super wide (46″) fancy unit that looked great but wasn’t really functional — we replaced it with a traditional size that is far more usable. In doing so, I also had to remove and replace the counter on the left of the stove as well as add a spacer on the right side. In the end, it turned out very well, and I’m quite happy with it. Looks like it was part of the original design of the kitchen. The cupboard and stove look great, and both are far more functional. Gonna call that a win!

Vehicle updates: Bug is sleeping still, and the Jeep just passed 250,000km. She needs some love, but all in all still being a beast. As for the Harley and Subaru – both are not long for my garage. As planned, I started looking for a replacement for the WRX a few months ago. Finally settled on a nice, super low km, 1 owner car that should treat us well for the next few years. It will quite likely be Abby’s first car. Deposit was made on Friday and hoping to pick up mid/late this week. I’ll make a new post once it’s officially in my hands. As for the Harley, this is a tougher decision. I knew buying it, that I was stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something different. It is a gorgeous bike that sounds incredible. Sadly the last year has shown me that is where my love for it ends. I’m just not ready for a cruiser style bike yet. Add to that it really isn’t big / comfortable enough to ride two up — I’ve decided to make a change. So it’ll likely be joining the Subaru on Kijiji in the next week. Replacing it is tougher. I’ve got a short list, just need to decide which one calls to me the loudest. Pretty certain it will be retro styled, and British born. But again, will know more soon.

Also on Friday, I got my first shot of the Pfizer vaccine. I realize its a small step, but feels like a step finally. Fortunately no side affects other than a bruise like feeling at the injection site. Second shot incoming in August. Still gotta play safe, but very optimistic this will be the beginning of the end of this pandemic. Just need to get the wifey stabbed in the next couple weeks and all will be well!

Kids are out of school, province is on lock down again. Really worried baseball will also be cancelled again this summer. Need to get a lot more needles in arms before life will really start getting back to normal. Fingers crossed the kids will get back to in school learning – even if just for a few weeks/month. They need it. This homeschooling is getting old. Fast. Thankfully both my kiddos are taking it in stride. But they still hate it.

On the upside, and as a final note. So very proud of Abby. She is the recipient of the 2021 Catholic Leadership Award. Congrats baby girl. Love you to the moon and back!