SNOW!

As I type this e-mail, there are at least 2 inches of snow on the ground, and the forecast is calling for 3-6 inches more.

I. LOVE. SNOW.

Matt and I hope to be able to get out and build a snowman tomorrow. We'll post photos soon...along with photos of our recent trip to Colorado.

Take care!

Chaos Reigns

My boss talked trash to me today. Her son's YMCA basketball team beat my team in the first game of the season. I look forward to the re-match. Once we install our offense and defense we should be in better shape.

I've termed our current system on both sides of the ball "chaos." It involves all of our players going after the ball at the same time. One of two outcomes usually results: someone takes a shot or everyone winds up in a pile on the floor. Passing occurs on rare occasions as well.

Clearly, we've got some work to do. It looks like we'll get snowed out on Saturday, which means an extra week of practice to prepare for our next game and lots more chaos.

I'm having fun so far. Hopefully the kids are too.

It's Time to Make Some Policy Changes

Someone recently posted a string of angry, profane comments on a handful of our latest blog postings. We have experienced a mixture of surprise, anger, sadness, and - believe it or not - even humor since discovering them over the weekend. We apologize to anyone who was offended by the comments. However, we chose not to delete them as they ultimately reflect most poorly on the person who posted them.

We briefly considered shutting down our blog. Instead, we have opted to make some changes that will significantly reduce, if not eliminate, the opportunity for such inappropriate behavior in the future. Feel free to have fun at our expense; just watch your language when you do.

Oh, and be careful what you say about Caribou Coffee baristas while you're at it. There's a certain line you just don't cross with us. (Note the sarcasm. I tend to employ it on occasion. At least one person failed to notice.)

The first change we are making, effective immediately, is to require that all comments be pre-approved before they appear on the site. 

We will receive an email whenever a new comment is registered on our blog. From there, we will need to approve it before anyone else sees it. No more "anonymous" attacks on our ... um ... choice of car purchases and coffee shops (?).


Next, we will soon limit access to our blog by requiring a user name and password for all visitors. 

Please contact us if you do not receive an email from us by the end of the weekend but still wish to view the site. We'd rather not introduce an extra step to the process of accessing our blog, but we think it's for the best. Clearly, not everyone who visits the site has our best interests in mind.

It's worth noting that we initially chose settings for our blog that greatly reduced the possibility of having unwanted visitors view our photos, read our stories, and provide unwanted comment. For example, our blog does not appear in Google searches unless you use very specific terms that suggest an existing familiarity with the site. Unfortunately, our "anonymous" commenter wasn't a stranger.

We know who is responsible for the recent string of comments, which brings tremendous disappointment. We continue to believe that this person is better than what they are showing. Given what has happened, though, we are making the necessary changes to prevent such activity in the future. As that person has ironically said before: "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

We started this blog as a way to keep in better touch with family and friends who we would miss seeing on a regular basis following our move to North Carolina. It will continue in that vein. We appreciate the love and support of those who continue to want the best for us.

Coach Taylor

I decided to coach a second- and third-grade YMCA basketball team in Durham this season. I figured it would be a fun volunteer opportunity and that I could hopefully teach the kids something along the way.

We're two practices in now, and it has been fun; however, I'm starting to think I'll be doing as much learning as teaching.

Here are a few lessons I've already picked up:

-Second- and third-graders are kind of like college students

My first basketball practice was similar to the first day of classes at Mount St. Mary's University. There were a few kids that listened and were eager to learn; they reminded me of why I'm doing this in the first place. And there was a second, larger group that couldn't give a whit what I had to say and already started ignoring me

There were some differences, though, that worked in the little kids' favor. For example, no one at practice was text messaging or hung over. Among the kids, that is. The parents were all hung over. ("Do you have to bounce those basketballs so loudly?")

-Divide and conquer

Perhaps it sends the wrong message to compare dealing with young kids to being in a street fight. Let's just say it puts you at a significant disadvantage to be outnumbered.

I'm greatly outnumbered when I show up for coaching duties - an 11:1 ratio to be specific. So I have to come out swinging and fight dirty. Wait, no. I mean, I have to divide and conquer.

That kind of differential limits what you can realistically accomplish in practice, particularly when it comes to individual skills instruction.

Heck, who am I kidding, it limits my ability to even keep all the kids on one end of the court. Pretty soon I'm going to have these guys holding hands and using the buddy system so no one gets lost in the gym.

I can only imagine explaining that one to a parent.

"I'm terribly sorry. I turned my back for just one second to demonstrate proper box-out technique; the next thing you know Henry was gone. He's not much of a basketball player anyway. Maybe swimming's more his thing. Have you checked the pool area?"

My wife, ever the wise one, suggested after the first practice that I put the kids in smaller groups as often as possible. Thankfully, one player's father has volunteered to help me throughout the season, which makes this a possibility. Practice number two was therefore more of a success. Baby steps.

Hmmm ... group work to keep their attention. Still sounds like a college classroom.

-Democracy is okay, but only in limited amounts

In addition to basketball lessons each week, my kids are getting a little constitutional knowledge for no extra charge. Granted, it's not entirely by the book, but they're getting tastes of democracy in small doses nonetheless.

I should probably call it Chicago democracy. Majority rules still apply in theory; I just happen to rig the vote a bit.

Case in point. After our second practice we went through the process of choosing a team name. For some reason the kids weren't satisfied with our birth name of "Team Four."

And here I had developed all kinds of witty cheers that will now go to waste.

"On the glass and on the floor, we'll kick your rear 'cause we're Team Four." (Intimidating dance follows.)

After soliciting naming ideas from the kids, I narrowed their choices prior to the voice vote in order to leave them with options that didn't unintentionally offend. In other words, the curious suggestion that included the word "Whites" - seemingly well liked among the members of my diverse team - didn't make the final cut. Nor did "The Evil Eyes."

Ultimately, the Bald Eagles (or just Eagles among friends) narrowly edged out The Clevelands.

God Bless America. And God Bless Team Four.

Happy Birthday, Mrs. Taylor!

Here's Erica, the birthday girl, getting her day off to a good start during our morning coffee at - where else - Caribou Coffee in Chapel Hill.

You certainly couldn't beat the price for Erica's skim white chocolate mocha - free since it's her birthday. Thanks, Caribou!

We'll enjoy a relaxing afternoon of movies at the house before dipping into carrot cake with number candles this evening.

Happy Birthday, my love.

Our New Set of Wheels

We saw it coming. With Matt and I each driving cars that are 10+ years old, we knew that one or both of us would need to get a new(er), more reliable vehicle sometime soon. We did some browsing (but no buying) at a CarMax lot one Saturday in mid-December, and the following Thursday, Matt's Sunfire started spewing white smoke.

So, on December 19th, Matt and I headed to CarMax once more to give a serious look at their inventory and think about buying something. We had our eye on a Chevrolet HHR they had posted to their Web site. Neither of us had heard of the HHR until we had one as a rental car a couple of years ago during a trip to the Field of Dreams movie site in Iowa. It was a great car with enough headroom for Matt, so we filed its name away in our mental rolodex for when we needed to go car shopping.

With the HHR, it was love at first sight...even two years later. The one on the CarMax lot was a 2009 model that had only 16K miles on it. It had previously been used as a rental, had lots of nice features, and was in really great shape. In short, we had a hunch that it was the car for us. The test drive only reinforced that point.

We gave ourselves the night to sleep on it and make sure that we were making the right decision, and we went back on Sunday afternoon to make the purchase. So, we're now the proud owners of a new (to us) Chevrolet HHR.

Below are the photos we took of our new set of wheels. Following the photos, we give you a Taylor family exclusive video series: "The Day We Bought the HHR."





































Documentary Exclusive: The Day We Bought the HHR

Happy 2010!

We know that many of our family and friends experienced a very difficult 2009, whether due to health issues, financial strain, losing loved ones, or other life circumstances.

As we move into 2010, we hope that each and every one of you experience more peace, joy, and blessings. For those that may find this year just as difficult or more difficult than the last, we'll be praying for strength, hope, and change.

The holidays were a busy but joyful time for us, and in the days to come, we'll be sharing some of our highlights. Love to you all!