BenSpark Family Adventures

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01185 Allison now has a positive result for COIVD. I am still fine and so is Andy. Eva is still in her room. Because Allison has a positive result I am sleeping on the couch. So, now we have two in the house with COVID and Andy and I are doing our own things today. Andy baked brownies for everyone and I made a chicken soup. I also went and picked up things at the store. It has been tough not to be at Krav all week long and now I know it is going to be tough going next Tuesday. Getting back into the program after a week off is always a challenge. Oh, and sleeping on the couch is not that bad. It is close to hot and cold snacks. I watched some things that I had saved on the DVR and ended dup sleeping fairly late. It wasn’t the greatest sleep but it is better than sleeping on my futon in the office and having my feet hanging off the end of the futon.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01184 This fat little bird was sitting outside our kitchen window this morning. We are still on COVID lockdown here. Eva is doing fine but still in her room. It is weird having her in the room but not even able to come out. However, when she is home she often spends time in her room working on her projects and crafts and things. It is just so strange though. We had dinner from Jersey Mike’s today. Jersey Mike’s was running a promotion for the Special Olympics and Allison’s parents got us dinner because Eva got a positive COVID result.

  I was given a free digital copy of the new comic book, Season of the Bruja that was written by Aaron Durán and illustrated by Sara Soler so that I could read and review it. Opinions are my own. Here is the description of the book that was sent to me: “ Althalia Cabrera might seem like any other witchy Portland hipster whiling away her days behind the counter of a freaky occult museum, but there’s more to her whole deal than a trendy pursuit of the craft. Althalia is a bruja by blood-the youngest in a long line of powerful magic users from a long-ago culture indigenous to Mexico. In her twenty years, Althalia has studied with her loving abuela by her side, supporting and mentoring her use of the family magic, and protecting her from the darkest parts of their practice’s history. But just as Althalia’s inner light and power begins to shine, the darkness of the past finds its way into her world and strikes a tragic blow, testing Althalia in ways she might not be prepared enough to s...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01183 Today Eva tested positive for COVID. This is the first time that anyone in this household has gotten a positive result. Andy is the one who was sick this weekend and because of that we did not get together with the rest of the family to celebrate my sister’s birthday. It is lucky that we did not get together anyway. So, we had Eva and Andy home today. She’s been in her room quarantined from everyone and so for nighttime prayers we went and used FaceTime so we could all be doing prayers together. Because of her positive result we cannot go to the Father Daughter Dance this coming Saturday. It would have been the first time we could have gone in 2 years and it was also the very last one for Eva’s grade school career. We do have Father/Daughter dances at Feehan but I was really looking forward to this one. I know that Eva was, too. She even went dress shopping with her friends and she doesn’t do that sort of thing. She was so excited.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01182 On Saturday when my parents and sister and brother-in-law came over for a quick outside visit they dropped off some cupcakes. We had them tonight. Eva was exasperated that I stuck my finger into the top of the cupcake to smoosh down the frosting and then pour on some sprinkles. I didn’t want them running all over the place so that is the way I did it. Just one of those strange quirks of mine, I guess.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01181 I’m back in the office this Sunday. I was supposed to be in the office last night but because Andy was sick I stayed home. I didn’t have much going on today so when I got in to work I had not yet taken my daily photo. I took a walk around the building and found the desk that has more toys and I’ve had on mine. This guy has a giant Unicron figure on it and it made me think of one of the characters in the audio book series that I’ve been listening to. The character is a dwarf that wears a horn helmet but his helmet has one broken horn. Just made me think of him is all. I have this figure, too but it is boxed up in the attic.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01180 Tonight Allison went to the Feehan Gala at Gillette Stadium. She went with a group of the teachers from SMSH because their former principal was being honored tonight. I was supposed to be working tonight but Andy was sick so I stayed home with him. Allison had a great time at the event and we plan to attend together in the future. We were also supposed to have family over to celebrate my sister’s birthday but those plans were cancelled so instead we gave Auntie Tara cards in the back yard and visited from the porch for a bit. Andy was wiped out and he went to bed at 8pm without any issue. Eva and I watched the first X-Men movie. I can say that it did not hold up that well. It was okay but I am looking forward to what is to be done with those characters when they enter the MCU. I started playing a game today that I hadn’t played since it came out back in 1998. It is called Baldur’s Gate and it is a Dungeons and Dragons game that I hope to share with Eva. I t...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01179 Nintendo gave me a free download code so that I could try out the new Booster Course Pass for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Opinions are my own. The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe — Booster Course Pass is some brand new downloadable content for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. This will includes remastered courses from throughout the Mario Kart series for you and your family to race through on your Nintendo Switch! there are destinations courses like Paris Promenade and Tokyo Blur from the Mario Kart Tour mobile game or get nostalgic with favorites like N64 Choco Mountain and Wii Coconut Mall from past Mario Kart games. The Booster Course Pass is available for $24.99 or if you have a paid Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership then it is included. The content will be released in 6 waves – 8 courses in each wave for a total of 48 courses – starting now with this first wave and extending through the end of 2023. The first 8 courses have been released and they are a blast to play...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01178 Andy has a new iPad cover. The color is Persimmon and he loves it. I think he has needed a new one for some time because the old one is definitely falling apart because of how often he uses his iPad. It is his lifeline to his friends, his primary gaming device and it helps him calm before bed. That last part must work really well because he’s now a late sleeper, but only on week days. On weekends when he can sleep in he’s up and out of bed very early. Andy double striped on his Stripe Test today and is on track again. One of the stripes that they put on his belt this time around was a Leadership stripe. His instructor, Mr. Kyle, has been working with the kids on developing a leadership mindset and I like that the school is now adding these special stripes into the mix. while Eva already earned her strip on Tuesday the class today was of techniques that are not often taught in regular classes. while my class learned strike set 9 in the morning, Eva’s class w...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01177 I was taking a walk today at the park and saw that these flowers were coming up in a few places. I am not sure if they are some form of crocus but they are out at the same time that those early flowers are at my house. It has been a while since I have taken a walk and I had been walking daily early in the pandemic. Allison and I were both home all the time so we would go for walks and would try and get 10,000 steps a day in. I haven’t been walking like that in a while but I am trying to get myself back into it so I can work up to running a few miles to get ready to retest for my Black Belt. I won’t be retesting until December or so but I know that it is going to be very difficult so I have to get back into the mindset of training. It has been difficult for me to get into that mindset after failing that first time out. I know that everyone gets to where they are supposed to be in their own time. I let the discouragement set in and with that I let myself back...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01176 today was stripe test day for Eva and I. We both had some very challenging classes to earn our stripes. Andy’s class was a pre-test day with the full stripe test to be on Thursday. Andy did really well with the nunchuk and self-defense portions of his test, which is pretty much the whole thing. He still has work to do on some of his kicks but he is trying. He missed his previous stripe test but had been to classes for all of the last session. He’ll likely test and then do an extra bit in order to double stripe this Thursday.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01175 Yesterday a new season of Fortnite dropped and it is time for me to get creating again. I have been creating content for this game for a few years now and it has made all the difference for my YouTube channel. Because of Fortnite my channel gained 6,000 subscribers. It is not a lot by any means compared to so many channels out there but it has meant momentum for growth and with each new season of the game I get to create new content that can help players. I did a lot of filming today and managed to capture this still during the filming. I think I was quite surprised to get eliminated so early.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01174 I think these guys went and popped up the other day. So, I am a bit late with this year’s photo of them. Today was a tough sleeping day. I barely slept at all. Just could not get sleeping no matter what I tried. Eventually I just got up and started making videos for this season of Fortnite. The new season dropped at 3am but people could not get on and connected until around 2pm today. I ended up making 3 videos. Hopefully I’ll stay awake tonight.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01173 Allison made corned beef hash for dinner tonight. This is one of our favorite leftovers dinner of the year. I slept for the day so not much going on with me. Eva went and helped her friend Bailey at Bailey’s aunt’s baby shower. She had a very nice time and came home with a new plant. Andy did some more time ont he treadmill and he also watched the rest of the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He did not like it and is not very much upset by Oompah Loompahs. He and Allison had to work through some guided meditations to get the thoughts of them out of his mind. He also did not like the movie because he said it was ridiculous to go through the whole ordeal only to fly away in an elevator.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01172 Andy started basketball in gym class today and because of that he came home and shot some baskets on the hoop and then used the treadmill in the basement. He used the treadmill for 45 minutes. He told Allison that he did not want to let his team down when they play in class. I’m not sure how much he’ll be using the treadmill but this is a nice start for him to do some exercise outside of karate. Maybe this will even motivate me to get back out and walking like I used to. I do have to get my running under way for my next attempt at the black belt test. Andy will have his soon enough as well.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01171 Today was Saint Patrick’s Day and in our house it is all about the corned beef for dinner. We make it a different way every year. This year Allison picked up two different Corned Beef briskets. We got point and flat. We have determined that flat is the best for corned beef hash and we enjoy eating the point for our dinner. This year I did the flat in the crock pot with vegetables all day long. I used two bottles of Sam Adams Winter Lager. This was in the pot all day long. Right before I picked the kids up for karate I used the instant pot to sauté some onions and garlic and then poured in two cans of coke added the point brisket and covered with some additional water. That cooked on high pressure for 115 minutes. The point was by far more tender. It may be the cut of meat but I think the flat may need the instant pot next time. I love how that device cooks things. It is amazing. We’d been busy the night before so Allison did not have time to bake Irish soda...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01170 Andy had another cupcake decorating class at the Creative Sewing Studio. This time out they did barnyard animals. Andy made a sheep, a cow and a pig. The poor kid was so worried that the cupcakes would get ruined on the way home that he held onto them and as a result dropped each one at least once. He was feeling really down about it, too. I think they came out great and still look very good. I’m sure that they will taste even better. We did not eat them tonight because we were stuffed. My parents came up come the Cape and took us out to dinner at Box Seats. We had a very nice visit and a great meal. I think everyone from my house filled up on the onion rings and fried pickles. Andy got a full pizza but that will last him for a few days and lunches at school. Breakfasts, too.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01169 I frequent Cumberland Farms for my gas and because I fill up using their app I often earn rewards in the store. Today I got a free Coke Starlight edition bottle of soda. This is a new limited edition flavor and the flavor is a mystery. When I initially tried it I automatically thought of cotton candy and how that is such a weird flavor for a soda. More sips in and it had more of a raspberry flavor. The actual true flavor of the soda is unknown and very split all over the internet. If you have tried it, let me know what you think it tastes like.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01168 The Everyman Jack line of men’s products has this Sandalwood scent and apparently I cannot get enough of it. I now have hand sanitizer, beard oil, face/beard wash and face lotion of this scent. Not to mention the body wash that I use is also Sandalwood. It is a pleasing smell.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01167 Allison completed her amazing work on Andy’s sweater. This is the culmination of many hours of work. She made it a bit large for him so that he can grow into it. I think that one thing that Allison learned on this one was working with dark colors is pretty difficult, especially when sewing the whole thing together. She certainly put a whole lot of love into making this for Andy.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01166 Funko sent me some of their new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures from their Pop Comics Line for free to review. Opinions are my own. Donatello is my most favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. In this collection there are both full color and black and white versions of the characters. The black and White is a chase version. These are PX Previews Exclusives and the series has all four turtles plus Casey Jones and Shredder. The style is a comic book one and each figure looks drawn and shaded as if by Eastman and Laird themselves. I love the two versions but I think the black and white is my favorite because the original comic was in black and white. I will also be making a video review of the figures before they get added to my wall of Funko figures. Here is my video review.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01165 The kids were home today because there was a professional day for Allison. she was off at Bishop Stang for the day. I decided that because it was a Friday in Lent I should go ahead and make special grilled cheese for the kids. I can’t just make it with one slice of cheese or even one type of cheese. I made them with double American plus some shredded cheese as well. I threw some Asiago, Romano and Parmesan cheeses on mine as well. I figured that the kids wouldn’t be as interested in that combination. They did love the ones I made, though.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01164 It was a bright sunny day today and so I was able to take everything out of my Krav Maga equipment bag to let it air out. I have been carrying around all of my belts from the first day I started training. I suppose that I should get a display board for them to keep them in a special place on my wall in the office. I had sort of been keeping them all in there until I had earned my black belt. I decided that I should take them out for now and display them. I was going to test for my black belt again this June but decided that I would hold off until the next time it would be available. That should be around December. Placing my belts in the office would be another great motivator towards that goal.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01163 The folks from Super Impulse sent me three boxes of their series 3 Wacky Packages 3D Puny Products for free to unbox and review. Opinions are my own.I am a fan of puns and play on words humor. That is probably why I find Wacky Packages amusing. They 3D Puny Products based on the stickers from the past 60 years at this point. Wacky Packages were a sticker series that started back int he 60s and there have been so many of them created over the years. Super Impulse has created those stickers into tiny physical product boxes recreating the humor of that sticker series. I was sent three package to unbox and I did so in the video below. You can find Wacky Packages all over.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01162 Today at Jr. Krav class Eva helped Mr. Brochu with a demonstration of the current strike set. Normally Eva doesn’t like to get in front of everyone and demonstrate but tonight I showed her a video of her helping out and she was very happy with herself. She is getting really good at Krav and enjoying it very much. I love when she acknowledges that she has such skills.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01161 Tonight was my last Nunchaku Class. America’s Best Defense offered an adult Pro-Tech class in Nunchucks and I have always wanted to try them out. I remember that a friend of mine from grade school was into karate and he had a pair. Apparently they are illegal in MA outside of formal training or something like that. It is a bit ridiculous that they are illegal but they are in MA, but not Rhode Island. Probably the one person who so popularized these weapons was Bruce Lee. He often used them in his movies and he was amazingly skilled with them. In the 80’s we had the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Michelangelo using them as his weapon of choice. So, as a kid seeing nunchucks being whipped around with skill was exciting. I’d always wanted to be able to move them skillfully. I took the class and after 6 weeks of using them I am more skilled than I was before. So going from not at all skilled to slightly skilled is a good step. I have my own pair now to practice wi...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01160 I was given a free Digimon SHODO Garudamon figure from Bandai to review. Opinions are my own. I am not a Digimon fan and have no real clue what it is all about. I was much older when the shows started airing and at the time it did not appeal to me. I was offered this figure to check out and when I first saw this character was available to review I thought it looked cool so I asked to check it out. I do love action figures and collect many. so this and the video review below is a review of the figure purely as an action figure and nothing more. I know very little about the Digimon show and the character’s role in that world. The character was part of the Digimon Adventure TV series and I think that fans of that show will enjoy this character because as an action figure it is very detailed and well made. There are many points of articulation on the figure from the arms and legs moving all the way to the ankles and wings on Garudamon’s back. This very detailed...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01159 Allison has been working on a sweater for Andy. Each night she works a little more on it. She’s getting to the point where she can assemble the sweater and soon she will be done with it and Andy will be wearing it next week sometime. This morning I met up with my friend Neil for breakfast. this is the first time that we’ve spent any time together in years. It was a really nice conversation where we caught up on so many things. We’ll try and do some more times out in the future. It was nice how things worked out today. Today also, Eva went to Feehan for the placement exam. She told us about it tonight and she was in a much better mood after taking the test. She also took the Spanish test to see if she could place into the second year Spanish. She felt pretty confident that she did well and I am sure that she did.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01158 For the past few weeks work has been providing us with sandwiches and salads. That has been nice. It would have been nicer to have them provide us with some decent headphones. I picked up a new set so that I could use them with the laptop and with my cell phone. These are wireless and they even work wirelessly with the Nintendo Switch. I should be able to have some decent headphones on while I run the switchboard in the office. I have yet to find the “perfect” solution for all the communication needs, though. Still trying to figure that out.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01157 We visited Bishop Feehan tonight for their new student open house and information night. It was an informational night filled with details for the upcoming year. I’m pretty excited for Eva to go to my old High School. I think she’s going to need a little convincing. She’s found her sarcastic genes as of late. I’m pretty good at dealing with the comments and helping to turn things into positives. One thing that the school does is they have a Summer session like an orientation. The Summer Session is set up so that each student can get the information they need before they start their High School career. I think that once she does the Summer session she’s going to meet some new friends. Some of her very good friends are also attending Feehan and so she’ll have some good people around her as she meets new people. Getting involved with clubs is probably going to be one of the most important things. Once she gets involved in some clubs and finds her people then s...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01156 Today is the start of Lent and so we had a fish dinner. We picked up dinner from Portside Fish Market because they do clam cakes and chowder. Allison and I are the only ones who like chowder, though. Andy enjoys the clam cakes but not the chowder. Eva tries a little of the clam cakes but not much. We also got some fish and chips and some coconut shrimp. Everyone liked the coconut shrimp. Was a pretty quiet day around here. It was nice to have one of those after all the busy stuff from last week.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #01155 Sure, these are not the traditional faschnauts that one can get for faschnaut day, however they are some really tasty donuts from Market Basket. I popped over there this after noon so that we could have them for dessert because Ash Wednesday is tomorrow. Most years Allison has gotten donuts ahead of time and made it so that the kids can decorate them with frosting and more. This year we were a bit off our game so I went and got a selection of donuts from Market Basket because I knew that they made some really big ones. Some year we are going to have to actually find real faschnauts, though. I wonder if anywhere around here makes them.