Our first date

Now I know I’ve written about how much I love this woman, and how much she means to me, but at the time I had no idea just how much. Back then we were still very nervous of one another. We had both been through the wringer and done some rather questionable things. However, we decided to put all that aside and try our hand at this thing like for realz.

The plan for the night was to get all fancied up, head to M.F. Sushi, then to Flip Flops. Dinner was perfect. Jess had never eaten sushi in “the big city” and she’ll tell you right away, that city sushi trumps the Griffin stuff any day. After dinner we head out the car and BLAM! I notice there is glass all over the ground and instead of a passenger window I have a hole. In addition to the window being gone, so is my GPS. We assessed the situation, hit up some of Atlanta’s Finest, and an hour or so later were on our way with a “you know you really shouldn’t park here with electronics in plain site, have a good night”. Woot! Thanks for the head’s up officer lady ma’am.

Rather than drive around with the wind and glass blowing through our hair, we decided to stop by the office and get a trash bag to cover the window. As it turns out, that was a pretty good idea. We got to see the city from 17 floors up in the Centennial Tower. It was a clear night and you could see all the lights and the night was turning out to be pretty amazing.

We still had the itch to dance, so we headed down to Flip Flops. Neither of us had been there and didn’t really know what to expect. As it turns out this was the perfect place for us. It was a cheap cover, strong cheap drinks, and loud dancin’ type music. By the end of the night we were on top of a table dancing around like a bunch of fools owning that place. We eventually decided to roll outta there and hit up some Waffle House. After all, there really is no better place in America than a Waffle House at 4am.

So that was that. A night where not everything went according to plan, we got broken into, but it lead to something better. We didn’t know what to expect, but also didn’t want to expect anything other than having a good time. A year later and we’re not nearly as broken but we’re still expecting to have a good time. I love this woman more than the day before and will keep on loving here. This date was the catalyst for our amazing relationship and I can’t wait to have many more amazing date nights.

Jan Turner - Day 1

This post has been a long time in the making. Well, more like a month in the making. The story goes a little something like this.

Jess and Chase had been wanting a puppy for ages, however we were extremely reluctant due to the fact that we live in an apartment. There are extra fees, the clean up, the 2 flights of steps, the noise, etc. All that adds to to a very problematic situation. Couple that with the fact that our schedules didn’t really give us a lot of time at home and we just were destined to not get a new addition to our family any time soon.

Well, as soon as Jess started back to school it became apparent that the overall mood and stress of our current living arrangements was not conducive to a happy life. So after much deliberation and and a rash decision to “just go SEE the puppies at the pound” we headed to the Atlanta Human Society.

We wandered around a bit, looking at various dogs. Some were terrorizing other dogs, some were shredding paper and tipping over their food bowls, there were the howlers, the barkers, and the ones that just laid there and didn’t move. Puppies of all shapes, sizes, breed, were to be had. We let Chase pick his top 3, a dog named Marsha, another dog who’s name I do not remember and Jan. It was funny cause Marsha and Jan were next to each other and all we kept thinking was the Brady Bunch. We eventually decided on Jan. She wasn’t too crazy, she seemed to just light up when we came near, she had a certain light to her that made Chase happy and brought some warmth to our family.

We started the paperwork process and then Chase got to spin the magical wheel to see how much we would have to pay for her. I reckon they were running some sort of special. We ended up getting here for like $50! That made me happy since she was listed at like $150. So we loaded up our new pup and headed off to the pet store get her all manner of things puppy related.

Once we got home we set everything up, her cage, some bedding, food and water bowls, toys, etc. but all puppy wanted to do was just lay there. I reckon in our minds we had this vision of a new puppy just running and jumping and biting and chewing and all things that you see puppies do. Our puppy seemed down. Well that didn’t last too long. After a few days, Jan was exuding puppy.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Over the next few weeks, Jan’s personality really started to shine. She is still very timid when it comes to going outside. She really doesn’t like cars, but she LOVES people and other dogs. We’ve taught her to sit and fetch. She’s a very smart dog and generally brings happy times to our family. Having a puppy has certainly brought some new challenges to our lives, but it’s also brought a bunch of joy. Our cat Jojo is still on the fence. They don’t HATE each other now, but Jojo isn’t a playful animal like Jan.

One thing we still struggle with is having her cooped up all day while we’re at work. Jess has a killer commute and my hours are never the same from one day to the next. The good news is that in less than a month we will have a huge yard for her to run around in. The Sniper’s have got themselves a new place with a big fenced in back yard. Puppy girl will have an abundance of outdoor freedom. No more will we have to worry about her being in her tiny cage for hours at a time while we’re out rock climbing or running marathons. Gone will be the days when she just spends hours running from one couch to the other under the table into the office to the other couch and then back again. The neighbors won’t be pissed at us when she whines at 4:30 am and wants to go out and/or play.

Jan has been an adjustment, but a welcome one. I love her to death and I know Jess and Chase do as well. Getting her was a hard decision to make, but I’m glad we did. She’ll be a companion for a long time and I’m so happy to have her light and her joy be part of our lives. Stay tuned for more pics and videos of our new addition…and future additions.

Wrestle Cake!

For Chase’s 8th birthday we decided to make him a Rasslin’ Cake. He’s pretty much the biggest wrestling fan on the planet right now and Jess and I are bound and determined to elevate or cooking/baking arsenal. So, after several failed attempts, scouring of the interwebs for the perfect recipe, several trips to hardware stores and/or cooking supply stores, and countless hours standing in front of the oven, we made the best cake we could. It may not have been the perfect cake, but to our 8 year old, it was magical.

The party itself was a ton of fun. We had it at the bowling alley in Griffin. Chase and several friends spent the day bowling, playing arcade game, eating pizza and cake, and generally having a great time. He got a ton of cool presents. Everyone had a great time! In addition to all the kids having fun, the adults did as well. Speaking of adults, this was the first time Jess’ mom and my parents got to meet. They seemed to get along really well! I have a feeling they’ll be seeing a lot more of each other at future functions!

This was my first birthday with Chase and I can’t tell you how great it felt. I really did feel like a dad. Getting to watch him interact with the other kids, watching the joy on his face when he opened all his presents. Cheering him on while he bowled. Helping him try to get that elusive strike. It all just felt right. I can’t wait until 9, 10, 21, 30, etc. He’s such a great kid who deserves the world, and I intend on being there to give him that.

The Pics:

El Savador Sunsets.

Now I will say that the laid back feeling was put on hold for our travel day. Here’s what I knew: 1) We were at LEAST 2 hours from the rental car place. 2) Where was that rental car place again? 3) Every time we venture out on four wheels, we get lost. 4) We had buddy passes 5)There is only ONE flight from San Salvador to Atlanta, GA a day.

Needless to say we left pretty early. We enjoyed another beautiful drive and were confident about directions so we were able to relax and talk and take pics and enjoy what may be one of most beautiful places I have ever been. I found myself envying the country that only a few days prior I was cursing at. It was raw, untouched, un-superficial, and happy. I remember wondering what the native people would think of Americans if they visited our home.

Beautiful Country!

So we made it…and everything was smooth sailing. The bridge was out, again. We drove through the river, again. We were stopped by the policia in a routine traffic stop and made it to the rental car place with time to spare! They took us to the airport, bags checked, gate found, snack had…we were ready! Then…the stress began. Have you ever flown on standby? Well, it’s one thing to fly standby on a flight that leaves every 30 minutes, it’s another thing entirely to wait for seats on a flight that happens once a day! The gate filled up, fast. No one at the desk could tell us if we were getting on. I tried taking a head count of the people at our gate…there at least 100.

Ben: “Umm…ok. Maybe we should start thinking of a plan b?”
Jess: Biting nails. “No. There is no plan b. There is only plan a. Which is us, on that plane.”
Cue hispanic man who sits in one of the few empty seats (beside me) dressed like a soldier only he’s not, but he does know his English expletives and smells likes he’s been up drinking for about oh, say, three days.
Hombre: “I’m sick of this fucking country…you? The police stole my laptop…and you know…I got a little pissed off…you know? Those police back there? points behind us to three cops… They are the ones…they are pissing me off following me. Hey amigo..to Ben…take this back to your friends…yeah?”
He laughs…and hands Ben a homemade ‘cigar’ with God knows what inside of it.
Ben: Politely “Oh no thank you…I’m gonna pass this time.”
Jess: Oh my God we’re gonna be stuck here forever…

All dramatics aside, they loaded the plane for about 20 minutes before FINALLY calling our names. Biggest sigh of relief ever! And..it was first class. We watched a movie, had a great meal, and prepared to be home. I miss my nino so much I wanted to kiss his cheeks off when I saw him! We landed and were high on life. We made a beeline for baggage claim and were going to book it home because a very, very important finale was coming on that night! Last snag of the trip: no luggage. None of our three bags had made the trip back to Los Estados Unidos. We claimed the luggage as lost and made it home just in time to order a pizza and crash. Thankfully..the luggage showed up later that week!

Love and Weddings in El Salvador!

We have souvenirs and memories from the trip that I will never forget. Jude and Neal are such a beautiful couple inside and out and being a part of their beautiful wedding was an honor. Adios El Salllbaaaddoooorrr!!!!!

Where we're going, we NEED roads.

Jess was the driver and I was the navigator. I had my maps, my phone, and my eyes on the road. She was driving and not missing a beat. We soon realized that to get around this place you had to drive like the locals. The locals drive like they just don’t give a damn. So I had her going left and right and here and there and all over the place. We finally turned down what we Google thought was the road where the hotel was. As it turns out, it was simply a dead end on a cliff. We sat there for a few moments, took a few deep breaths, and started driving again. I can’t say how amazed I am at Jess’ calmness during all this. We were driving around people and busses and bikes and all manner of things that were jockeying for spot on the road. She zipped around here and there it was amazing.

Where the streets are paved with people and busses and cars

I finally got in touch with Neal and he informed us that the hotel was in the south west part of town. We were currently driving through the north west. So we hauled ass down that way, and finally in a bold move on Jess’ part, asked a local for directions. This lady didn’t understand a bit of English, and we sure as hell didn’t understand her. What we were able to communicate was “Holiday Inn Santa Anna”. She understood, gave us some very detailed directions in Spanish using land marks like “banco” and “St. Nicholas” and making some sort of hand gesture like we’d be driving around a circle. We jetted away and sure enough we passed a bank, a big sign that was for some St. Nicholas thing and went  through a round-a-bout! Next thing we knew we were at the hotel. I’ve never been more excited in my life. Jess shared in this joy. We felt so accomplished and proud of ourselves. We had overcome a LOT on this 3 hour journey and made it. There was no obstacle we couldn’t overcome at this point.

So we met up with Neal, quickly changed clothes then hopped back in Pedro for our trip to the location for the wedding. Luckily, we were following someone. After a mile or so, we soon realized this was going to be an interesting ride. The roads kept getting steeper and steeper. We were climbing further and further into the clouds. Once we finally got to our destination we had a beautiful view of the city. We had to be like 3 miles in the air (probably not that high, but it felt like it). The location was beautiful and the wedding got started as soon as we got there.

Contrary to most weddings I’ve been to, or been part of, this one was almost a “figure it out as you go” kinda thing. There wasn’t a ton of organization, but that was part of the fun. I was told to walk in with Neal, then wait, but now go, but you were supposed to stand over there, ok, now you all go sit down and BOOM, I now pronounce you husband and wife! It was a short and sweet ceremony, where unbeknownst to Neal and Jude they had to say their own vows. They totally winged it and it was perfect.

True happiness!

After the ceremony, we did the usual every possible picture combination possible thing. The food was traditional El Salvadorian and fantastic. We danced, talked, laughed, and just enjoyed ourselves. The Bishops had a beautiful wedding. Everything turned out as it should. There was no “backstage drama”, all the guests were happy, and it was a wonderful time. I love seeing my friends happy, and to be there on this day of ultimate happiness for both of them was an honor. To share it with the woman I love most in this world, made it unforgettable. This was quite possibly the best wedding I’ve ever been to….so far.

As the day went on, the clouds rolled in. At first, we thought something was on fire, but as it turns out, it was just the clouds rolling UP the mountain we were on. Knowing our luck with driving and visibility down to about 10ft, SJ and I decided to roll out before the weather got any worse. We hopped in the car and took off down the mountain. Jess was now a pro El Salvadorian driver and handled the roads like a champ. We were soon below the clouds and well on our way back to the resort. We made it in record time and quickly got into our bathing suits so we could enjoy the evening by the pool. After all it was our final night in this place and we wanted to make the best of if.

Oh fog!

Our final day in El Salvador had come to a close. We had witnessed our friends getting married and survived another journey in a foreign land. The next day was our final adventure and what an adventure it was going to be.

The next day was Thursday. Jueves. (I do remember some things from High School!) We started the day off with a massage on the beach. It was JUST what my body needed after travel day and we walked out of the tiki huts feeling fannnntastic. We hit the pool asap and had cold drinks in our hands. We were ready to take on the challenges of language barriers and enjoy the beauty that was around us. What we were NOT prepared for…was the sun. Somehow, the idea to dab on a lil sunscreen escaped both of us. We don’t put it on at home…probably won’t need it here, right? Wrong. Only a few short hours later we realized just how burnt we were. Despite our efforts to put on sunscreen after the fact we decided to head inside for a siesta and to get out of the ball of fire.

Just a few hours too late!

Viernes. Needless to say we were sunburned, but we were feeling more and more comfortable with the surroundings at Decameron. We figured out what to eat (and more importantly NOT eat) at the restaurants and found a modest little spot on the beach to spend the day. It was covered by a tiki hut umbrella thing to block any unnecessary sun. We did some exploring in the ocean and took lots of pics. We relaxed and we had some talks that brought our relationship to an even better level. We needed this trip. We also needed the day of relaxing to prepare us for the following day…Neal and Jude getting married! On Sabado…we continued our journey…

Beautiful day to be in love

The map that saved our lives!

When Neal asked us to come to his and Jude’s wedding, I wasn’t sure that an excursion to another country would fit within the things we were going to be able to do this year. However, after much deliberating, Jess and I decided to do it. So we budgeted out the next few months and booked the trip. The events that followed were something I will never forget.

The morning of the trip sprang on us faster than we thought but we were ready. Chase was dropped off with his dad and we hit up the airport. We had buddy passes so we were on stand-by. No worries, we were about 5 hours early to the airport. It was freezing cold at the airport as well as on the plane. Being in first class certainly helped, but it was still chilly. The notion of anything cold soon evaporated. From what I remember it was about TWO THOUSAND DEGREES in El Salvador when we got there. The humidity was off the charts and it was a new kind of heat. Something the likes of Georgia just doesn’t have. No worries. This was a tropical adventure.

Our car "Pedro"

Having never been out of the country, Jess and I were ill prepared for the lack of U.S. Citizens and anyone that spoke english. We managed to round up our luggage and get to the rental car place. I had enough sense to pre-book us a car so we were quick to actually get in the car and get on the road. Despite not being able to speak the native tongue we were able to communicate as needed. The car they gave us was this 1992 Nissan Sentra that had seen better days. I’m not sure if they realized a) who was going to be driving this car and b) what country they were in. The roads were rough at best. Never-the-less, we made the best of it, and Jess, me, and “Pedro” (that’s the name we dubbed our car) were on our way.

It took about 30 mins to figure out where we were exactly, but once we got going it was an awesome drive. That is until we made it to the river that we had to drive through. Apparently, the roads in El Salvador aren’t their highest priority and a recent storm had washed away one of the bridges. Thankfully, the local children were gracious enough to navigate us down a dirt path through the actual river (about 12″ deep) to the other side. I will forever be grateful to the little children of El Salvador.

The rest of the ride was pretty straight forward. It was about 2 hours driving through gorgeous country side and cliffs overlooking the ocean. You could see mountains way off in the distance that dwarf anything I’ve seen before. The camera was all a flurry. With no music to keep us company, we resorted to talking to each other. It’s a foreign concept that seems be long gone from some relationships, but not this one. We talked about the cows and people on bikes. About how the people there seem to have a simple life. How no one seems to harbor any sort of ill intentions or desire to harm or wrong us. People were just nice there. The country was “untouched” as Jess put it. With out the distraction of a radio or technology or Facebooks and Twitters we really got to reconnect. That ride was something I will always remember.

Around 3pm El Salv. time we rolled up on the hotel. It was a stunning place and we figured surely, there would be other gringos there and someone to speak our language. Again, we were mistaken. All the hotel staff and guests and armed guards were either from El Salvador or from El Salvador. This didn’t stop Jess and I though, we were going to make the best of it. It took us a while to figure out what was going on, but we soon realized that at 3 they start checking people in. We were all (like 200 people) into a big conference room where we were assigned a number. This tiny little card with “88″ was all we were given. Up on stage there was a guy that sounded like a cross between a Spanish auctioneer and a monster truck announcer was going to town. We saw people check their cards, then head up to one of five booths. We deduced that they were calling out the numbers. Jess knew enough Spanish to know that “88″ was “ochenta y ocho”. So there we sat, listening for the those 2 words. Eventually, our number was called and we worked our way through what the host lady was saying at the booth. We got our key and a map of the hotel and headed to our room. The room was very nice. It was a million degrees outside, but inside, it was nice and cool.

The end of day one

After some unpacking and re-gaining of our bearings we donned our bathing suits, some towels and hit the pool. The resort was all inclusive, so the drinks were free. However they were served in the worlds smallest cups. Jess and I fixed that problem with a trip to the gift shop. We got our huge coffee mugs and were set for the rest of the trip. The rest of the afternoon was spent just walking around the resort, making sure we knew where everything was (bars, restaurants, spa, etc). Dinner was at Pastafari (a fusion of Italian and Jamaican food… still not sure that’s a successful combo). We wanted to hit up the shows or “discotech”, but sadly we were exhausted and decided to call it an early night. We had survived our first day in a foreign country where only about 1% of the people spoke our language. We had driven a tiny little car literally “over the river and through the woods” through streets lined with cows, old ladies on bikes, people selling shoes, DVDs, mangos, and children. It was an adventure. It was unforgettable, and it was only the beginning.

Sniper Chef

Today was Mother’s Day, and I have to admit, it was the best one in recent memory. I got to spend it with my two favorite mothers, my own mom and Jess. What made it so great was that it was low-key, stress-free, and full of love.

This morning, Chase and I got up and made Jess a fantabulous breakfast (biscuits and sausage gravy). Then we sat around and just chilled before heading over to my parents. Usually an afternoon at my folks is filled with stress and hustling and moving food from here to there and dozens of family (which I love the family, don’t get me wrong) and all the usual stuff, but today was different. It was just Me, Jess, Chase, Mom, Dad, Heather, Jason, and the twins. We grilled up some burgers and dogs while Chase ran around outside. Then we had a lunch and just enjoyed some time chatting and playing with the kiddos. After helping with some stuff around the house, it was time to head back to Sniperville and enjoy some downtime with my own little family.

We took a short little nap before Jess jumped right into her first writing assignment for her masters program. I have to commend her on sticking with it. She’s been out of the world of writing and learning and going through the learning process for a while, but she did it. I read her paper and it sounds like she hasn’t missed a beat.

After the paper was done, we put Chase to bed and just enjoyed the rest of the night on the couch watching some TV and just being together. It seems like only a shot while that Jess and I have been together, but at the same time, it feels like a lifetime. She means the world to me. She is a fantastic mother to her son and she is a great woman to me. She is strong, independent, caring, understanding, patient, and eager to grow with me. She’s there for me when I am down and need some help getting back up, and she let’s me help her when she’s not at her peak. We work together, listen, understand, and strive to make every day better than the previous.

I love this woman who has come into my life. I love her for everything she is and everything I know she will be in the future. I will try my hardest to remind her every day how special she is to me and how much I truly do love her.

Thank you Jess for being you. I love you.

Game ball!

Being from Philly, SJ’s mom gets tickets to the Braves vs. Philly’s game every year they are playing in Atlanta. It just so happened that this was one of those years. Also, with Jess’ spring break coming up she decided to take a look at the Braves schedule to see if there were any games that week we could take Chase too, it just so happened that the Braves were playing the Philly’s that week. Jess gave her mom and ring and come to find out, she had 4 tickets. We totally jumped on board with that and were all set for some good old fashioned ball game fun.

Chase went to the Braves game on Sunday with his dad and was totally stoked to go to anther game, but he wasn’t sure when that would be. We didn’t tell him we were sitting on 4 (3 + Jess’ mom) tickets. When he got the news, he just about passed out. He was SO excited. The look on a seven year old’s face when they get something as cool as 2nd row baseball tickets is just priceless.

So the day came, and off to Turner Field we went. Traffic was typical for game day, but it was all good since the weather was perfect and we were all in such great spirits! We got to the park, and started walking down to our seats. It was then when I realized just how close we were. I had been to several games before, but nothing like this. We were literally within arms reach of the field. So we sat there, cheering the Bravos, enjoying some beers and dogs and just having a great time.

The Braves lost that day, but that was totally over shadowed by the look on Chase’s face, when he got a game ball. This wasn’t one of those balls you can buy from the souvenir shops, this was an actual ball that was in the game. I swear he couldn’t put the thing down. He just kept twirling it around, examining every scuff and grass stain and marveling over it. The smile on his face totally made the night. I can’t wait to take him back to the park for another game.

So that was the Sniper’s first ball game together. There will be many, many more. Not sure if anything will top this one. Thank you Kathleen for the tickets and the experience.

Perfect Sunset

It all started with an email I received on Tuesday Apr 6th.
Jess:
while I was walking around monitoring my kids…i came up with the BEST idea.

I know it’s going to be a long week for both of us, so I want us to have something to look forward to….so do me a favor? keep your plans for Friday night free. the whole night. I got a lil something up my sleeve.

We both knew that Friday didn’t really have any thing going on, and Jess could sense that I was feeling a bit of the gloom monster. So she cooked up this crazy idea. She wouldn’t tell me, but she did send me several hints though out the week. Actually, they were “sniperhints”.

Tue, Apr 6, 2010 at 10:49 AM

Plans are in the works…there’s so much to do,
our date is gonna rock; I can’t wait for the view!

Tue, Apr 6, 2010 at 12:59 PM

Timing is crucial, I cannot tell a lie,
5:30 is the time to be ready by!

Tue, Apr 6, 2010 at 1:50 PM

These details are getting much harder to hide…
wouldn’t you love it if our date was outside??

Wed, Apr 7, 2010 at 7:58 AM

Thanks for an awesome start to the day,
and our secret date is only two days away!

Thu, Apr 8, 2010 at 10:47 AM

There’s one thing I’m confident to bet…
alcohol on Friday you’ll probably regret!

Thu, Apr 8, 2010 at 12:55 PM

One last thing, to prevent the blues,
wear comfy clothes, especially your shoes!

Fri, Apr 9, 2010 at 10:44 AM

There isn’t a lot that’s left to be said…
in the bag please put the blanket that’s red

By this time I was super intrigued as to what she had planned. My initial thoughts were of Stone Mountain, but then it kinda swayed from that. While getting ready for the date on Friday night, I put on my shorts, a t-shirt, and my shoes. She said that I should probably wear something a bit more exercisey. So I switched over to my running shorts and shirt. This threw me off even more. I was thinking that maybe some sort of bootcamp or race or something.

As it turns out, it was a hike up Stone Mountain, followed by a light dinner while watching the sun set, then a hike back down. I was STOKED when I found out. I had only ever been up there once and that was this past winter. Back then it was way too cold and we had Chase so staying up past sunset was ill advised. This time however, the weather was perfect and we got to watch the whole thing.

It was a great experience. We found a cozy spot, sat out our food, enjoyed the chatter of other people around us, shared some good laughs, etc. It was just a great date. One that I won’t soon forget (or hopefully ever).

After the sun set, we decided to start heading back down. However, either the uber Gatorade or the crisp air or something made us decide that it would be a good idea to run down and see how fast we could go. It was actually a ton of fun. I had a backpack so it was a bit wonky for me, but we zoomed along, jumping from rock to rock, darting here and there between the trees and slow people. Of course we had to stop and/or slow down every now and then, but for the most part it was rush running down the side of a mountain. I can’t wait to go back and do it again.

So that was that. A date that didn’t involve excessive quantities of drinking or dancing or being up until the ass crack of dawn. No exuberant  amount of money was spent on a dinner and waiter. It was simply two people enjoying the company of the other person and a huge piece of granite. I’m eager to hike back up and improve the pace on both the up and down. I love Jess for coming up with the perfect date. I will certainly have my work cut out for me to top this one.

For anyone that cares to join us, we have a parking season pass so we’ll be going back quite often.