September 14

Settling in for a long winter's nap, Jennie arrived home from her exhausting week at work and went straight to bed. Not anxious to interrupt her from hibernation, I suppose I should wake her around 8 or 9 to supply her daily vitamins, give her a little supper in bed, and tuck her in for more sleepy time. She has always been a light sleeper, so I must tiptoe through the house and be mindful of the dead. While I am perky and full of smiles after sleep, Jennie is quite the polar opposite.

Lace 'em up, hockey fans! Today marked the first day of on-ice drills and scrimmages for the Predators. As the final game day roster of 23 is whittled down from 55, I will post minor league and junior reassignments as well as releases. Here is how they are divided up to begin camp:

"BLUE" team roster;
C - D.Legwand, S.Nichol, R.Peverley, J.Smithson, N.Spaling
LW - M.Erat, D.Hordichuk, A.Pihlstrom, Mark Santorelli, O.Setzinger, V.Sjodin
RW - J-P.Dumont, P.Hornqvist, M.Ellison, J.Ortmeyer
D - J.Blum, G.de Vries, C.Franson, A.Henry, T.Laakso, M.Matheson *, A.Sulzer, S.Weber, M.Zidlicky
G - C.Mason, M.Daigneault *, D.Grumet-Morris

"WHITE" team roster;
C - J.Arnott, R.Bonk, C.O'Reilly, Mike Santorelli
LW - V.Fiddler, M.Gelinas, J.Guerriero *, J.Vigilante, K.Wilson
RW - J.Langfeld, R.Maki, A.Radulov, A.Thuresson, J.Tootoo, S.Willis
D - R.Dietrich, D.Hamhuis, K.Klein, V.Koistinen, J.Niskala, R.Stehlik, R.Suter, N.Yonkman, G.Zanon
G - D.Ellis, P.Rinne, J.Smith

-= KEY =-
* = free agent invitee
BOLDED PLAYER NAMES ARE NHL REGULARS...



Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 13

Today is a glorious day for an old hockey roue like me! Hockey season officially opens today for the Nashville Predators with physicals and other off-ice activities.

I spent a few hours mowing my yard and pulling every type of weed imaginable last night, but you can barely tell. I have my work cut out for me this Fall (eliminating all the crab-grass, ouchy thistles, and volunteer trees from various mulch beds all around my house). I really dread digging up the fairly established, yet dead shrubs in my back yard (even though I supplied water, Mother Nature's never ending 105 degree heat was too much to propitiate the lawn). Did you lose any plants or shrubs?

Poor Jennie had an absolute egregious day at work yesterday! Many more of those and I honestly believe she will be enjoying her pregnancy from the couch holding the remote control...

CEREAL FOR GEEKS LIKE ME...


LINK OF THE DAY: Top 10 freeware applications nobody knows about...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 12 ( 14 weeks pregnant )

Happy Hump Day!

Today is the final day of no hockey for the summer. With training camp opening tomorrow, I will be able to enjoy the punishing body checks and highlight reel goal scoring once again. After a tumultuous summer of ownership change speculation and relocation uncertainty, the business side can be placed on the back burner and the on-ice product will take center stage.

Jennie received a suspicious postcard in the mail over the weekend from the Advisory Council on Child Safety. It said, "please join us at DoubleTree Hotel for the Getting Ready for Baby show featuring a gift bag worth over $100". Well, Jennie and I believe you never get "something for nothing" so we began researching. It turns out that this is a SCAM -- similar to the high pressure sales tactics of time share selling. No offense to anyone who actually likes time shares (I just prefer to stay away from them myself). The "Babee Tenda" products (overpriced cribs and high-chairs) are presented and pushed on new parents using out of date safety information to scare the future parents into spending thousands of dollars. Oh yeah, and the $100 worth of free gifts is nothing more than an envelope full of coupons (i.e., JC Penney portrait studio, etc). What is this world coming to?

One week from today is Jennie's next ultrasound and doctor visit!



LINK OF THE DAY: 10 photos taken at the right moment...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 11

Today marks the 6th anniversary of 9/11. Our thoughts go out to those who are grieving on this plangent day.

Typical rainy day traffic here in Nashville. Rubbernecking, wrecks every 2-3 miles along the roadway. A drive that normally takes 20 minutes is taking greater than an hour this morning. Full of solecism, I am constantly asking myself, "why not move to the rural bliss of Maine or Washington state?" Three words: family, job, hockey.

LIFE IN THE BIG CITY IS CRAZY...


Jennie is enjoying a well deserved day off of work today. I would guess she is snoozing to the gentle pitter-patter of the rain.

LINK OF THE DAY: The World's Worst Credit Card...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 10

Only nine more days until Jennie's next ultrasound! We are anxious to see how the baby is developing. If shooting pains, heartburn, and general discomfort are a good sign, then the baby is progressing well. Jennie's exhaustion is starting to take its toll on her mood. Is there such a thing as pre-partum depression? :)

Hockey training camp begins this Thursday for the Predators and I couldn't be more excited! The first pre-season game is September 20th with the season opening the first week of October.



LINK OF THE DAY: Chocolate to the extreme...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 9

Today, Jennie and I will attend her work's annual employee party (it seems they are eliminating the yearly "Christmas Party" to go with more of an autumnal theme). From what I understand, the turn out is not expected to be all that great...

We made a detailed list of a hundred chores to do around the house yesterday and spent several hours attacking that list. Unfortunately, writing a blog entry yesterday was the furthest task from my mind -- oops!

We shared a nice lunch with some friends (Mike & Tori) yesterday at Jason's Deli in the Boro. Catching up on the latest news and events, we had a great time.

Jennie has experienced varying degrees of heartburn several times per day since Thursday.



LINK OF THE DAY: The *new* Seven Wonders of the World...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 7

Another dreary, overcast day in paradise! The clouds above are salient with rain, but only a mere sprinkle has fallen the past few days. I keep crossing my fingers and toes that we will enjoy a nice "gully washer" over the weekend! It would be supernal to sleep during the melodious trickle of Mother Nature's tears.

Tomorrow will be the first Saturday Jennie and I have "slept late" in nearly a month. She is still suffering from nausea, fatigue, and "pregnancy brain" (also known as forgetfulness). Otherwise, Jennie is doing well and appears to be in good spirits.

Jennie's morning sickness is now occurring randomly throughout the day. Some days she might have several episodes and other days, she is fine...




LINK OF THE DAY: Have you damaged your lungs from eating microwave popcorn?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 6

Yesterday afternoon, Jennie vehemently dry heaved into a plastic grocery bag. She called me at work and questioned when this "morning sickness" would subside. Everything I have read indicates the second trimester is supposed to be a "feel good" time with only occasional, mild heartburn and activity returning to normal.

This morning Jennie heard Maggie (our Cairn terrier) barking outside by our garden. Scurrying down the deck stairs, Jennie spied to see if Maggie had located a baby bird or a feral cat. Lo and behold, Maggie was looking up at back corner of our house. Our puppy dog, protector of the manor, had found an intruder! The culprit? The relatively new Dish Network satellite dish affixed to our house... hehehe Maggie still barks at vacuum cleaners, door bells ringing (especially ones from TV commercials), and when someone knocks on a wall or cabinet, so why not the satellite dish too?

Ever had a dream where you woke up laughing, but once awake, you had no clue why you were giggling? This happened to me three or four times last night. Maybe Wendy's puts some kind of "laughing" dream chemical in their salads?


A luxurious colony for the birds...


LINK OF THE DAY: The joys of power napping?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 5 ( 13 weeks pregnant )

Lucky 13! Jennie's body is rapidly progressing into the middle trimester this week. Her uterus should have the dimensions of a coconut by now, and the baby should be the size of a jumbo shrimp (3 inches from crown to rump). Maybe her morning sickness will begin to subside in the coming weeks?

From BabyCenter.com : Your Pregnancy at 13 weeks --

Despite the small proportions, there's a fully formed baby inside your womb now. Much more proportional than it was a few weeks ago, his head is now only about a third the size of his body. His tiny, unique fingerprints are already in place. His kidneys and urinary tract are functional, and he's starting to urinate out the amniotic fluid he's been swallowing.

Have a happy hump day!



LINK OF THE DAY: How To UnGOOGLE Yourself...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

September 4

After 1,400 miles of round-trip driving, Jennie and I made it home "safe-and-sound". I will share some anecdotes of our journey around lunchtime today. More to come later!

First, I must get caught up with several hundred emails here at work...



EVENING UPDATE: As I strolled into the house after a long day of work, I realized the blog was calling my name. After dinner, Jennie and I will continue unpacking from our trip to the eastern coast of North Carolina. It was nice to see everyone under one roof -- twenty people, three dogs, and a raccoon!

My new brother-in-law, Lance, and his bride, Daina (my sister) were wed on the beach Saturday just before dusk. Jennie and I left the reception a little early (she was feeling a little nausea). While we enjoyed playing in the ocean (Jennie's first aerobic activity of her pregnancy), nothing can compare to sleeping in your very own bed after a long road trip!

LINK OF THE DAY: Are you too smart for your own good?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.