What I am Thankful for - 2020 edition

 Wow...this year has really been different.  Makes one take a step back and think of all the things we have taken for granted.  Every year at Thanksgiving, I try to reflect on the things that I am grateful for.  This year, that list looks a bit different. 

Let's just get my family and friends out of the way as a given.  I am always thankful that I have been blessed with amazing people in my life.  

But, I want to reflect on more this year. 

This year I am grateful for the following:

• Healthcare workers.  Recently, I heard someone say, "Did you know doctors and nurses can quit?"  I mean, I knew that, sure.  But, I didn't really think about it.  They can quit.  But, they haven't.  They are going to work every day, in full PPE, taking care of people at risk to their own health and the health of their families.  These people are the heros of 2020.  Thank you for doing what you do.  
• Desmond's teachers.  Last year, nobody really knew what they were doing.  We were all winging it, hoping that things would be back to normal in the fall.  They weren't.  But, Our Lady of Guadalupe Middle School stepped the Eff up!  I can not overstate how active they have been.  Remote teaching is challening, I am sure.  But, they are doing it!  And, not by simply sending a list of assignments.  Desmond is "in school" from 8:30 - 3 every day.  Granted, it's via the internet, but his teachers are right there, on screen, teaching class and answering questions.  I went into the year wondering if it's worth it to pay the $800 a month for remote learning we could offer Des for free through public school.  The answer is 1000% yes!  This is levels above.  Desmond will be absoultey be ready for 7th grade. 
• Owen's teachers.  The Mount is another story altogether.  Because they are part of an assisted living facility, they haven't had to close.  And, while many kids have been pulled out by their parents, nothing has been made easier for the staff.  They have to wear masks ALL DAY.  They have to communicate with parents via email and phone instead of in person.  And, they still have to deal with all the gooiness that is a toddler and their 20 toddler friends.  And, Marie, the Director.  Bless that woman!  She gets hollared at every day by parents that don't think they're doing enough.  They are doing their best, and their best is pretty damn great. 
• Delivery workers!  Mail men and women, UPS drivers, Amazon delivery, etc.  Your companies (Amazon in particular) are profiting off of this pandemic while you are the ones putting yourselves in harms way.  By doing so, you are keeping us all socially distanced.  It seems like such a mundane thing.  But, we would be screwed without you.  Grocery stores would be packed, even more restaraunts would be forced to close, and Christmas would be cancelled!  Thank you for bringing us everything we need. 
• Scientists.  The geniuses bringing us a vaccine with unheard of haste!  It's been less than a year and the state of Washington is talking about delivering vaccines to the most at risk people and front line workers by Christmas!  Thank you for the sleepless nights and all the time away from your families!  Thank you for also pushing ahead dispite the insults being lobbed at many of you from the most powerful person on Earth.  You are selfless and we are grateful 
• Everyone that follows the rules.  Mask wearers, social distancers and those that stayed home for Thanksgiving.  Even with a vaccine, this virus is going to hang on for a LOOONG time if people can't start following the rules.  To those that wear their mask in public, thank you!  To those that stay 6 feet (or more) away from me and my loved ones, thank you!  To those that thought of our country instead of themselves and opted for a meal at home instead of a meal at Grandma's, thank you.  This all sucks.  But, American's have been known for coming together and sacrificing for the greater good...until 2016.  But, for those that care for others, thank you for what you do. 

I feel like the end is near.  We're in a really shitty time at the moment.  But, part of me feels like this is a last ditch effort by the darkness that has been consuming us the last few years.  Covid is spiking, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.  How far away is the light?  I think it's closer than we realize. 

Life remains beautiful.  Hard.  But, still beautiful.  I am grateful to get to live it.  

Thank you for reading!  I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

(disclaimer - photo is from 2019 as I am not allowed to reveal the 2020 photos, yet)

2019 highlights!

Life, as always, was very blessed in 2019.  Here are some highlights!!

January

Nothing really happened in January.  So, here's a picture of Owen with his Moses stick. 

February

Kimmy and I took kidless vacation.  A 10! day cruise of the Caribbean. I hope we can do it again sometime.  I love this woman!  

March

Desmond's 4th Grade Volleyball team finished the season UNDEFEATED! 

And, I got to finally see my Zags play in the NCAA tournament!  They won the first game but lost the second.  Oh, well...there's always THIS YEAR!

April

Owen befriended the neighborhood squirrels.

We visited the parental units and said goodbye to a Lake Havasu landmark.

May

I joined a Beach Volleyball team!  We got our asses kicked by 20somethings.  But, we had a great time!  And, I didn't die! 

Kimmy got to meet Laura, one of my 13 favorite cousins!!!

Lots of visitors this month as we had 3 grandparents here at once!

June

Desmond's school choir got to sing the National Anthem at a Mariners Game. 

Which meant Owen got to attend his very first pro ball game!

July

Desmond completed one of his biggest Lego sets...an award from Dad and Bonus Mom for finishing the year with Straight As

He also performed as one of the Sailors in a summer production of Mary Poppins. 

In the meantime, Owen found his own performance style. 

August

Kim and I split up to tackle 2 sets of Grandparents.  Kim and Owen went to visit G&G Romine. 

And Desmond and I went to went to Lake Havasu to visit G&G Pankow where I proceeded to take zero pictures of the Grandparents, apparently. 

AND...Desmond and I got to schmooz with Weird Al!

We wrapped up the month by taking the boys and Desmond's BFF to Great Wolf Lodge.

September

I left my job at Google and started a new role at Alaska Airlines.  But, we had to hit the Google arcade one last time. 

(Desmond is still unhappy with my decision)

The boys started the new school year!

Kim finally partook in my Seahawks season tickets!

We made a bunch of new friends while drinking and raising money for Providence Mt. Saint Vincent. 

(That guy waving...his name is Kevin!  Actually, it isn't.  But, that's what I called him all night.)

And...Desmond and I climbed the Space Needle for the 2nd time raising $1300 for Fred Hutch!

October

Check out our super cute family photos!

November

Kimmy took me to my favorite sushi place for my birthday (it's becoming a tradition)

And she ate squid. :-) 

Owen got promoted to "Big Boy Bed!"

Desmond and the 5th Graders at OLG got to host Grandma and many others at the Over 65 luncheon. 

And Desmond learned to do Improv!

December

Owen started soccer at Lil Kickers with his school buddy, Scarlett

We got this crazy dog! 

Desmond and I took a big boys trip to Disneyland. 

And Desmond FINALLY went down Splash Mountain!!!

(I told him there would be a camera so he had to make a great face.  After I saw the picture, I asked, "Was that face your fake pose or was that real terror?"  He said, "Maybe a little of both.")

And...we did Christmas in our matching jammies. 

All in all, a good year!  Sure, the Mariners are still terrible, the Game of Thrones finale was a huge letdown and Jennifer Lawrence has still not returned any of my phone calls.  But, damn...I love this little family of mine.  

Peace be with you!  Let's go nail 2020!!! 

Check out this dog

So...we did something I wondered if we would ever do.  We got a freakin' dog!!!

Allow me to introduce to you...Bernadette Peters Pankow!

Here's the story.

Everyone knows that Quincy Pants was my boy.  I won't lie...I still miss that dog.  But, let's be real.  Blind, deaf, allergic to humans...he was high maintenance.  So, when he passed away, not only did I need time to mourn my best buddy...but, we needed a break.

Also, there's the little fact that dogs are messy and my wife is a neat freak.

It's been at least a year, probably a bit more, that I have been not-so-subtlety hinting that I would like to get a new pup.  Desmond, as well, has been asking when the time will come.  And Owen...well, this kid LOVES puppies.

I'm not sure when exactly it happened, but at some point, Kim started expressing an interest in Doodle breeds.  Now...I have never really liked Doodles.  I don't like the course fur (but, the no-shedding is a major plus for Kim) nor do I like how trendy they are.  Everyone, nowadays, is getting a Doodle of some kind.  Labradoodle, Sheepidoodle, Cockadoodle (that's a cockapoo/Poodle mix), the list goes on.  However...as I said to her, if it gets me a dog, I can learn to love a doodle.

Then, she introduces me (Kim introduces me...I didn't find this) to the Bernedoodle.  A Bernese Mountain Dog/Poodle mix.  I love the Bernese.  Big, fluffy, smart, etc.  We have some friends that have one and I think the dog is amazing.  Kim shows me this Bernedoodle breed and I am intrigued.

Oh...she also starts following, like, 27 breeders.

On a couple occasions, she would say to me, "OMG, Look at this puppy!  I want her!"  But, it was never the right time.  We have a 2 and a half year old who STILL doesn't sleep in his own bed all night.

But then...something changed.  Kim shows me this picture:

Along with a caption about how this sweet girl is the last left in her litter.  Kimmy must have thought she was lonely or something.  Because we decided to go meet the breeder.  But, we weren't going to get a dog.  I am going out of town this weekend, we have Christmas, we still have a toddler and we're going on vacation in the spring.  Let's just go, meet the breeder, see the dogs and maybe get on the list for a spring litter.

Yeah...that didn't happen.

We got there and there is this little furball.  Very quiet.  The breeder said nobody wanted her because she was so quiet.  They thought there was something wrong with her.  Kim, however, LOVES the idea of a quiet dog.

So...somehow, we brought a dog home.

And she is SUPER SWEET!  She's very shy.  We finally heard her bark last night (about 32 hours later) when she didn't want to be crated.  She is a cuddle bug!  She's still getting to know us a bit.  And nighttime is hard (she wants to play at 2 AM), but we'll get there.  She's really good at going potty outside (which is amazing!)  Now we just need to get her crate trained and sleeping through the night.

Anyway...my Instagram followers should expect a lot of puppy photos in the near future.

Have I mentioned how cute my kids are?

Not to mention my whole family.

Thanks to Nikki Womac, OLG mom, photographer and all around awesome person.  She donated a photo session to the school auction which Kim and I purchased.  She's one of those great photogs that take candid photos while you live your life.  Unfortunately, Kim and I are terrible and awkward models.  At least our kids are adorbs.  Take a look.

Merry Christmas from the Pankows

Greetings!

The end of the year is approaching.  But, before we close, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!  I hope you get to relax and I hope you find some peace during this time.

I will (hopefully) get my annual end of year post up next week.  But, in the meantime, please enjoy this Pankow Christmas Jammies picture and this video of Opie giving baby kisses.

Conversation Pieces - Whats better? Maui or Target?

Ok, I am sharing this story second hand.  Hopefully, I am able to properly convey it as it happened.

The scene is the car ride home from work.  The characters: Desmond and Kim.

Desmond: "I am jealous of Max R. and Edie?

Kim:  "Why?"

Desmond: "They get to go on vacation for spring break!"

Kim: "Oh yeah...where are they going?"

Desmond: "Max R. gets to go to Disneyland and Edie is going to Maui."

Kim: "Maui?!  Maui is one of my favorite places." 

Desmond: "I know.  Mine too."

Kim: "Well, Grandma is visiting for spring break this year.  And she'll probably take you to Target."

Desmond: *pause* "I honestly don't know which one is better!"

Kim:  "Really?  I know which one is better."

Desmond: "Yeah...I know.  Maui is better.  They have a Target in Maui." 

Conversation Pieces with my DAD! Why you don't want your college team to win

I'm a Zag!  Through and Through!  I love my Bulldogs!  The time I spent at Gonzaga coincided with the Cinderella years of the basketball program.  That first year when we went in and made it to our first Elite Eight after knocking off #2 Florida State!

Gonzaga has made the tournament every single year since then!  However, we still have yet to make it to that coveted Final Four spot.  People call it the monkey on Mark Few's back.  Whatever...I wouldn't trade Few for anyone.  It will happen.  Hopefully tomorrow!  We are really excited for when the day comes.

But, every year the excitement reminds me of a conversation I had with my dad many years back.  I don't recall exactly when.

My dad went to Michigan State University.  MSU has made their share of Final Fours and have even brought home 2 National Championships.

Once again, I was excited for my Zags!  As I am every year (even when I know deep down it won't happen) I knew for certain that Gonzaga was going ALL THE WAY!

To which my dad tells me, "You don't want them to win."

Me:  "Why not?"

Dad: "Because as soon as you do, you get phone calls saying, 'Did you see how good the team did in the tournament...would you consider donating?'"

New York City! (get a rope)

Just got back yesterday from my very first trip EVAH to New York City.  Took Kim with me.  Primarily, I brought Kim along because it was her 40th birthday and I thought it would be rude of me to leave her behind while I was enjoying myself in the Big Apple.

You are going to get 3 posts out of this trip.  The first is this one!  A basic run down of our trip.  The 2nd is my review of Aladdin, our first official Broadway show!  Finally, a ranting piece on how annoying it is when people bring their babies into first class.

Ok, part 1: GO!

So...Kim turned 40.  Months ago (I swear, it wasn't 2 days before her birthday) I started thinking about what to do.  40 is kind of a milestone.  I mean, I know people say 50 is really the new 40 and that you don't really hit middle age until 50.  But, I think that's BS.  I know darn well that I ain't gonna live to see much past 80, even if I make it that far.  So, let's stick with 40 being "Over the hill."
I bounced around a couple ideas.  Either, throw a big party in Seattle.  Maybe rent out a dinner cruise or a winery or something.  Or, maybe a fun trip somewhere.  Hawaii, again?  Europe?

Then, I had to remember that there was a good chance Kim would be pregnant.  Surprise!  That turned out to be true.  So, let's not do anything involving drinking (winery out) or anything that would be too difficult to do pregnant (long trip to Europe or even sitting around pregnant in the sun in Hawaii out).

Hey, neither of us have ever been to NYC.  Let's do that!  We can rely on cabs so we don't have to walk any more than she can handle.  And, everything is pretty darn close.  So, NYC it is.

Fast forward 6 months.  Her tri-cities besties decided to join us.  One of them currently lives in NYC so we also had a rad tour guide.  Here are some pics.



We flew into Newark, NJ.  Immediately on decent, I could tell that New York is just a little bit bigger than Seattle.


Since there were 5 of us that needed transportation, I figured I would just rent us a car.  That car became a limo.  After a bit, the driver pulled over so we could hit up the liquer store and the 4 non pregnant people could put back a couple bottles of bubbly on the way to the city.



Our first full day, we began by visiting the 9/11 memorial.  Now, I could not get a good shot of this to save my life.  For such a powerful monument, my little phone simply could not do it justice.  Here is one photo, but this scene was so so much more amazing than this crumby picture portrays.



We were discussing the significance of the memorial.  If you haven't seen it, I'll try to describe.  There are two fountains.  One in each of the footprints of the Twin Towers.  There are two layers.  The top layer, waterfalls splash down into the second layer.  From there, there is a square hole.  Water falls over the edge into the hole.

Someone suggested it symbolized the waste of life.  Someone suggested the emptiness left from the attacks.  I suspect it's both of these.  As well as the silence of death.  You couldn't hear the noises from the city in this place.  I admit...I teared up.  I don't believe I have ever teared up at a memorial.  Granted, this is the first tragedy of my lifetime that I have reflected upon at it's memorial.  But, it was very very powerful.

Then, there is the Freedom Tower!  The new World Trade Center.  Wow, what a building.



After the World Trade Center, we headed over to 30 Rock to see Jimmy Fallon rehearse his monologue for that night.  Pictures are strictly forbidden!  And, given that it was Kim's dream to make out with Jimmy Fallon, I didn't want to jeopardize their meeting, so I didn't take pictures.  The experience was fun.  Was it worth the hour and a half of standing in line to watch a 15 minute rehearsal...mmmmm, I'm not sure.  Maybe for Kim.  If we had been able to get into the show taping, it would have been worth it.  It was pretty cool to see Fallon.  He seems like he really loves his job.  He gave us a quick history of the Tonight Show and of the studio where it's filmed then went into his jokes.  Most were hilarious.  Some were so so...the best part was watching him strike a line through the ones that didn't get the biggest laughs.

That night, we had dinner at Buddakan.  Apparently, it was on Sex in the City.  Michelle (NYC friend) made us reservations.  I admit, going in, I was a little, "I'm probably going to spend a ton of money and leave hungry."  But, boy was I wrong.  I mean, it wasn't cheap, but it could have been worse.  And I was definitely NOT hungry after.  This place was Bomb!  Highly recommend it if you're in the neighborhood.

Ok, moving on.  Saturday morning, we took a 3 hour tour (just sit right back and you'll hear a tale) of  the Hudson River and New York Harbor.  Here are some pics:

NYC Skyline


Unfortunately, Kim couldn't see anything because her hair was in her eyes.



Not sure which lady is prettier, here.


Empire State Building


UN Building



I know, I know...I'm 12.  But, I couldn't resit.  #YuckTheFankees


We also saw Ellis Island, tons of bridges, the Bronx, Harlem, Brooklyn, and more stuff.  All while enjoying a 4 course meal and booze!

Hung out in Central Park for a bit after.  And, I managed to only take 1 stupid picture:


Why did I post this?  I'm not really sure.

But, one of the girls got this one on her phone from the fancy pants overpriced bar at the park:

The final noteworthy event...Aladdin at the New Amsterdam Theatre.  Our very first "Broadway" show actually performed ON BROADWAY!!!

Overall...it was a total blast!  Kim handed it like a champ, despite being 12 months pregnant.  Great food, great sites...LOTS of people.  I had to close my eyes in some of the cab/Uber/Lyft rides because I was convinced we were going to crash or kill someone.  Would totally go again.  

Desmond really wants to go.  Very glad he wasn't there on this trip.  Not because I don't love to travel with him.  But, because I got detached from my adult counterparts at times in the crowd.  I would have a panic attack trying not to lose my kid there.  I told him maybe when he graduates 8th grade.  I still remember doing a tour of Washington DC in 8th grade.  Maybe we'll lump the 2 together.  

Speaking of Desmond...he's already 60% done with the gift we brought him.  The box says 12+.  But, that's not stopping him.  

 And, I shall close with this adorable picture of my lovely wife and me in Times Square.  Ain't she adorable!!!