I took the (rare) opportunity of being out alone and with my camera to attempt some lightning shots.

Boy am I glad I did!

Lightning in front of the Aqueduct Building

This is hands down the most people I’ve seen at a Big Shot yet.  I’ve heard it was somewhere around 1500 but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was more than that.  The entire SeaBreeze park was packed, It seemed like there were hundreds of people assigned to each of the lighting areas.

As always, the picture was online before I had a chance to check (ya gotta love Digital Photography). I thought it came out beautifully but check it out for yourselves below:

RIT Big Shot No 27

I managed to sneak my own picture (handheld as they didn’t allow tripods in) with one hand while lighting things up with my other:

My Vantage Point of the RIT Big Shot

Sorry it’s a little shaky I still thought it came out pretty neat.

The only thing better than being in the mountains is being in the mountains with my family.

This trip has been great. We woke up this morning 2 minutes after a pair of deer left the yard, so that was a little disappointing. Just before lunch though, they came back with friends! Six of em less than 25 yards from the front of the camp. Needless to say Delilah was pretty ecstatic.

D and I spent a bit of time this morning playing in the snow. Snow angels, snow balls, falling down, running around, chasing the dogs with piles of snow, all good fun. It was pretty nice to come inside to the stoked up fire and warm up, a lot different than the little camp with just the gas stove.

After naps we headed to Saranac Lake for the end of the carnival fireworks and to check out the ice palace. The plan was to check it out, grab a bite to eat and then watch the fireworks. However; it was way too cold to stay much longer so we headed back to camp with about an hour and a half until the fireworks display. Next time we’ll probably come after dinner so we’re there just before the slideshow/fireworks.

Our first family trip to the mountains has been a success so far. Rachel still has a week before she goes back to work so we’re in the mountains taking advantage and spending a long weekend with the family. The ride up was relatively uneventful although it did take us an extra hour and a half tiger going, and the trip itself took an extra hour due to required stops. All to be expected with an infant and a toddler dragging along so I call that a success!

It sure is nice having a lot more space at camp. We wouldn’t have been able to do it with both kids, both dogs, both of us and my father in the little cabin. Now we have a bedroom to spread out in and the kids have a living room and dining room to spread out in. I put it that way because Delilah’s at the age where that’s essentially how it go’s.

We mostly just spent the day relaxing in the cabin in the woods. Dad and I picked up a bit of wood in the morning, and even managed to kill a porcupine in one of the traps he has set around diamond. He’s trapped 7 so far in the past week. Not too shabby.

After naps we took a quick trip down the road to see some family. Was good to catch up with cousins and let Delilah play. She had a blast running around playing with the cars, trains, animals, miniature babies and other toys. Her favorite parts were a sort of red light/green light game she played with her cousins, as well as the typical dance party she likes to throw these days.

Tonight the sky is so clear the temperature is gonna drop most likely to below zero. This is by far my favorite time of the year to be in the mountains. With the snow on the trees and such clear skies you don’t even need a flashlight outside. It’s beautiful and usually makes for great riding conditions in the morning.

Delilah seems to like the snow almost as much as Rachel and I do. Every time the snow starts to fall she exclaims “I see the snow! So pretty!” and a little piece of me smiles.

I can’t wait for more trips like this. I feel so lucky we have a place to go to anytime we like. I look forward to when Reece can run around an enjoy it as much as Delilah does now.

Reece Davin Aldrich

He was born at 12:13pm weighing in at a beastly 9lbs 6.1oz and measuring 21″.

The name Reece is something that just came to us one day but his middle name has a bit of meaning. More on that later.

For now, here’s some pictures from the first two weeks of our little man’s life.

Drywall is up, paint is on, electric is in, stove is working, wall is open, furniture is moved, cabinets are in, siding is up and stained, bedroom doors are stained, floors have been stained.

Lots more to do though.

• Tongue and groove wood wallboard needs to go up in the living room.
• Window and door trim needs to be installed.
• Bedroom doors need to be hung.
• Some insulation needs to be hung.
• An attic staircase needs to be built and installed.
• The water system needs to be figured out.
• Remove compost toilet.
• Permanently install the cabinets including sink.
• Build an indoor/outdoor wood box.

The great news is though, the furniture is partially in and the addition has been opened to the old camp so now there’s space!

Can’t wait to get back up there and enjoy it.

D 'helping' Daddy

A few days ago I experienced the scariest moment of being a parent (so far).

D was ‘helping’ me reinstall some speaker wire connectors and a phone jack. I turned to my right and leaned over to screw in the last screw that holds the speaker wire wall plate on. I finish and turn back to grab the last screw for the phone jack wall plate. Only it’s not there. I look around for a second then look up at D who is smiling at me and between her little lips is a tiny shiny something. I tell her to stop and to spit it out but instead she starts to make a swallowing motion, i envision the tiny screw lodged sidewas in her throat and daddy mode kicks in. I can’t tell you exactly what happened because I honestly don’t know, but I can tell you it ends with my finger buried halfway down her throat holding her, face down, half choking about to puke.

I got it. A few terrified tears and a long hug later and everything was A-OK.

Lesson learned.

We were able to get the rooms framed in and prepped for electric and insulation. Now the real work can begin. Looks like we might just be able to make it usable this winter after all.

On the vacation side of things we had some fun.

• Delilah spent some time playing in the stream
• Took lots of four-wheeler rides (and Delilah got hooked)
• Spent some time at the beach at Higley Flow State Park
• Went geocaching and found a really nice new spot very close by along the Raquette River
• Took Delilah on her first mountain climb up Arab Mountain
• Went out for Ice Cream
• Played on the playground (where Delilah learned her new love of old-school metal slides)
• Ate lots of great grilled food (including lots of corn)
• Built Delilah a house out of a large cardboard box

All in all it was a great week. Love getting to spend some quality time with our family.

UPDATE: Since this post was written a month and 1/2 ago and just posted today… more progress has been made on the camp. The insulation and electric work is complete, all corners/windows have been framed with rough cut (and painted) 2×4′s and the siding is going up.