Expedition Everest Challenge

I have not updated this blog in quite awhile. I think the reason is that I have not really come up with what I want to talk about. I will have to work on this more now though. Especially now, that I have doubled my readership. You know when you double your readers from 2 to 4 that is like a big deal. Kind of like being Robot Chicken on cartoon Network.

I think shorter updates are the better way to go.

This past weekend, Alex and I went to Walt Disney. We stayed at Pop Century. It was a decent hotel with nice amenities but definitely a step below the Polynesian. Thankfully, we will be at the Boardwalk Inn in 2 weeks.

On Saturday night was the Expedition Everest Challenge. It was quite an event. We started at 7:35 and ran a 5k. After finishing the 5k, we did four obstacles. They were four marine hurdles, a cargo net climb, a balance beam, and a cargo net crawl. After we completed those obstacles, we then had four clues on our scavenger hunt. We were about 2 clues into the event, and the heavens opened up. So we had to finish the challenge in the pouring rain. I later found out that he officials closed the course prior to everyone finishing due to lightning. I hope everyone at least got his or her medal. They are outstanding.

Most of the after party was closed down due to weather, so Alex and I left the Animal Kingdom. For the first time in my life, I did not know where I parked. Not like I forgot which row, but I didn’t even know which parking lot. I was so excited about the race, I completely forgot to look. So for 20 minutes, Alex and I had to walk up and down rows in the rain looking for our car. For the record, there were three other Prius’ in the parking lot. Oh ,well it was a fun event, and I will probably try and do it again next year. Although it will be in June.

On another note, I saw Lori Burke from http://www.wewantstheredhead.blogspot.com while we were competing. I met her the day prior at the Food and Wine Festival. You should check out her blog. It is fantastic. Even if she thinks it not all that great.

Abridged Vacation

So let us begin. This blog seemed like such a good idea at the time. However, I am finding that updating Facebook is so much easier, because I can do it from my phone or my iTouch. I haven’t updated it in the past two months.

Betsey’s mom came down a week before we went on leave. She was able to see the kids one more time prior to them spending the summer with their mother.

We left for leave on a Friday morning, and stopped just North of JR’s in North Carolina. We met Jennifer. The kids were happy to see her. They left with her, and we checked into a hotel. The next morning, we finished the trip up North.

While we were on leave, I had the opprortunity to see two baseball games. One at D.C. vs. Toronto, and the second was in Baltimore vs. D.C. Both games were good, and it was nice to see the stadiums. For the record, the Nationals lost both.

I prepared for my “new” career while I was home. I want to spread pixie dust for the tilt-a-whirl, or bark for the Yak Woman. But it didn’t work out. Instead, I made funnel cakes, and fresh squeezed lemonaid. Thinking about it, have you ever met the Yak Woman? Ugly as sin, but a nice woman, and she sure can cook.
My brother Jerrod flew North, and my mom drove up and we had a mini-reunion and spent the 4th of July with family and friends.

After the vacation up North, Betsey and I decided to go South for the weekend. We went back to Disney. We stayed at All-Star Sports. It was a nice place. We did Tea at the Garden View Lounge. He had dinner at Yachtman Steakhouse. On Saturday, we went to Hollywood Studios, and had a great time. We had lunch at Mama Melrose’s, and dinner at Jiko. All four places were fantastic, and I highly recommend them.

Well, that’s all I have to say now, but with some luck, I will have Betsey update with some of her stuff.

The New Job and New Movie

So today, is Friday, and it is about 4:39 p.m.

I started my new job this week. It seems to be going well. I think as time goes on, it will become better. With the exception of two Soldiers, and two SSGs, I am the most junior person out of about 25 people. Oh, Joy.

I went and saw Star Trek last night with Alex and my neighbor, Scott. It was fantastic. I highly recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a good movie. You could know nothing about Star Trek and still have a great time. It also has the G.I. Joe, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and some other cool trailers. Go see it. You will like it.

Until next time, Strength and Honor.

I Got To Get Better At This

I have realized that I have to get better at updating this blog.  There is just so much going on, and I am not writing about it.  It could be because I hype it up in my head, and when I put it to paper, there is nothing really there.

So let us see.  Alex and I went to the Atlanta Braves Home Opener vs. the Washington Nationals.  We left our house at noon and the game was at 7:35 p.m.  Plenty of time, right?  Nope.  We got to Turner Field at 5:30 p.m. and then spent the next 2 hours 30 minutes trying to get to our parking spot.  We missed the National Anthem, the first pitch, and Flyover by the Air Force.  Everything.  By the time we got into the field it was the middle of the 2^nd inning.  At the top of the 4^th inning, they had a rain delay.  After about 20 minutes, we decided that we should go ahead and leave, because I had to work the next day.  Needless to say, after the rain delay was finally over, and they finished the game, we were already home.  Good thing we didn’t stay for the whole game, or that would have been some drive home. 

 

Alex was confirmed on Easter Sunday.  That weekend, Alex’s mom, stepdad, half brother, my mom, dad, brother Jerrod, and his two girls came to support him.  It was a nice weekend.  MacKenzie went back to North Carolina for the week with her mom.  Alex was set to go on a Spring Break retreat, but it was cancelled at the last minute.  The Youth Minister resigned the evening of Easter.  The parents rallied around the Youth Group, and were able to make many things happen that week, that helped soften the reactions that everyone felt.

 

On 30 April, I was bouting with one of my students in hand-to-hand combat.  I caught some Velcro to the face.  Not a big deal, but I mention it only because of the next day.  I was promoted to SFC on 1 May 2009.  I have some great photo’s because I have a black guy, and a busted chin.  Good times.

 

 

This past weekend, we went to the Jacksonville Zoo.  It was a fun time had by all.  The kids decided that they wanted to go to Cheeburger Cheeburger for lunch.  So I pull out my trusty Garmin and type in the name looking for the closest one.  SCORE!  There is one only 20 minutes South of the Zoo.  Actually, about 40 minutes with traffic.  Let me tell you how it was.  I wouldn’t know, because it closed down six months ago.  Sheesh.  Oh, well.  We know that there is one somewhere. J 

 

We will see where this goes in the future, but in the mean time, Strength and Honor!

It is time…

So I was sent an e-mail today saying that it was past my birthday and that I have to update the blog.

 

Okay, on Monday, 30 March, Betsey had her Ultrasound. We found out the we are indeed only having one baby, and it's going to be a boy. I think this is great. So now comes the drama of which I can help eliminate right now. Yes, we may know what we want to name him, and No, you can't find out. Nor will recommendations for names be taken. We have decided that the baby will be not named after anyone. So now that's being said, let's see what else is going on.

Last Wednesday, Alex and I signed up for our next running event. The 24-27^th of September, we will be down at Disney once again to participate in the Expedition Everest Challenge. We will be staying at Pop Century Resort. It is definitely a step down from the Polynesian, but as a consolation, we will be at the Beach Club Resort in October. Plus us it is only us guys, we don't need a lot of room.

This weekend, is going to be full of events. On Friday, Alex and I are going to the Braves home opener. They are playing the Washington Nationals. This is Alex's first Major League Game. It should be fun. Friday night, a lot of my family is also coming into town. On Sunday, Alex is being confirmed at Richmond Hill United Methodist Church. I know this is important to him. The following day, he is going on his Spring Break Mission Trip to Orlando. He will be working with "Give Kids The World." I hope he has a great time.

MacKenzie is also doing well. She hasn't been mentioned much in this blog, because she is just going right along with the flow. She scored a 100% on her Math test today, which she is extremely proud of, so I mention it here. She is also excited that her cousins are coming up this weekend, so she has more girls to play with. She will be spending Spring Break up in North Carolina. Hopefully she has a great time as well.

 

That's it for now. Have a great night.

A Very Happy Un-Birthday to me!

So I am sitting down writing this note on March 23, 2009. It is my unbirthday. We have 364 unbirthdays a year, and only one birthday. My birthday is tomorrow. I turn 32.

 

I do not know how I feel about this birthday. It just seems that I am being challenged so much by everything in my life. Betsey has an okay job at Cracker Barrel. Not the job I wish she had, but at least it is something. She has had two job interviews in the past couple of weeks. One has been fantastic, and alas, she did not get the position. Another she feels she did not do so well on, and she will find out next week about that one. I am an optimist by nature, but right now, my money is on "No." I think that is terrible for me to have this mindset, but it is so tough right now. I constantly have to ask myself, how bad is it out there? I mean, come on, she has a Master's Degree, and cannot find work. She is having to work with high school kids and worse yet is being treated as one as well. She is 29 years old, and until we moved to Georgia, was considered quite successful.

It is awful that everything has to do with a job, but it is becoming stressful on the family. She has to work nights mostly, and so the kids do not get to spend a whole lot of time with her. They see her in the morning for about an hour, and then maybe 25-30 minutes in the evening. I just wish she had a regular daytime job. We try to do what we can with the kids, but it is a lot of work just to plan simple things together. Because she is working at a restaurant, even scheduling time for us to see family is difficult. Every major holiday she has to be able to work. Get this, it does not mean that she will work, just that she can't ask off, because she might have to work. I can understand this, if she had a job in nuclear physics, but come on.

 

Easter Sunday is fast approaching. Alex is being confirmed that Sunday. It is a big deal for both him and us. My mom will be down from Virginia. My brother, Jerrod, his two girls, and my dad will be up from Florida. I hope that it will be a nice time.

I ask this question to those who read this. How is Ancient Rome like the United States of America in a religious context? Alex was given this comparison in his UMC Youth Group two Sundays ago. I did not sit in this class, so I don't know. I have been racking my brains trying to figure that one out. If you know, please let me know. E-mail it to me at Mitchell (dot) Brannen (at) us.army.mil.

My mother-in-law, is here visiting us now. It is nice that she is able to visit, and I know we all enjoy her company. She will be flying back up to D.C. on March 30. She will miss Easter, but other obligations prevail. We are happy to have her when we can.

 

Well, that is all I will rant on today, but I'm sure I will come up with something more sooner or later. Until then "Clean Cup, Clean Cup. Everybody move down."

Our Long Weekend Trip

So Thursday afternoon, Betsey, Alex, MacKenzie and I drove from Hinesville, Georgia down to Disney. We arrived around 7 p.m. and checking into the All Star Movies Resort. We went to Downtown Disney and did some shopping. We had dinner at Raglan Road. It was forgettable, but the Orlando Organic Ale is something I wish they had in Georgia.

The next morning, we got up and spent the morning at Epcot. We arrived before park opening and it was the first time I have seen the opening ceremony. We rode Soarin with almost no wait. We were able to finish out The Land, and The Seas with Nemo and Friends in about two hours. Spaceship Earth was about a 20 minute wait. It was nice , but as Betsey said, "We are Konkrit fans!"

Around 2 p.m., we went over to the Wide World of Sports and pick up our packets for the Royal Family 5K on Saturday morning. The WWS is a fantastic complex. They were having a Braves game that evening, and the fans were out in force.

The Expo was a nice event. Vendors from all over were there to show off new products. I only wish they had some merchandise for men. I know it's the Princess Marathon, but I would have liked to get at least a decent T shirt. Oh, well. Betsey forgot her shoes for the race, so we had to get her a new pair. She loves her UnderArmour running shoes.

 

We checked out of All Star Moves, and checked in to the Polynesian. What a fantastic resort. We have a great room. It was 20 feet from the volcano pool and 30 feet from the quiet pool in the Samao Building.

We went back to Epcot in the evening for Extra Magic Hours. We spent the evening in World Showcase, and had a wonderful time. We had Chinese at the quick service in where else, but China. We finally got back to the room about 10:30, and starting getting ready for Saturday morning.

Alex and I got up around 5:30. We got dressed quickly and headed to the bus for the race. It was very cold but nothing that a cup of coffee couldn't help. The race started right on time, and it was fantastic. In almost every country there was the princess to go along with it. We both received a nice medal at the end. We were back at the room by 8.

We spent the day exploring the area. We had breakfast at the Whispering Canyon Café. We had never been to the Wilderness Lodge. What a neat resort. Betsey thought the prices at Artist Point were very reasonable for dinner. For example, $10 for a steak. It is at that point, I had to show her that she was looking at the glass of wine that was recommended to go with the Steak. J

On Saturday evening, Betsey, my aunt Dora, and Uncle Bill went to the California Grill. We had a 7:40 ADR, so we were able to watch Wishes from the Balcony. If you ever have the opportunity to do this, do it. The dinner was fantastic. I really recommend the Peeky Toe Crab Salad for starter.

Sunday morning, Alex and I got up early and hit the Magic Kingdom. The park was very reasonable. With the opening at 9:00 and by 11:00, we had done all three mountains, the Haunted Mansion, Buss Lightyear, Pooh, Snow White, and Peter Pan.

Betsey and MacKenzie came into the park around 11, and MacKenzie fulfilled her mission of meeting Daisy Duck. We had dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern, and then went back to the resort for a swim. We came back to MK for Extra Magic Hours. It was a nice way to end the day.

 

Monday morning, we checked out of the Polynesian, and went over the Beach Club. We had lunch at Beaches and Cream. I don't see how some can eat the No Way Jose all by themselves.. We have also decided that when we come back for our next race, we will be staying at the Beach Club. It is our new favorite hotel. At least until we find the next new favorite hotel.

Then we just took the long ride home to GA.