Last night your Uncle Chris and I got together and had coney dogs for dinner. I said to him, "You know why we like coney dogs?" He said, "No why?" I said, "Because we're both awesome."
Which got me to thinking about a wonderful, fun little exchange you and I used to do when we were together. You were about four years old when we began doing it.
It would start by one of us saying to the other, "You're No. 1."
To which the other would respond, "No, you're No. 1."
Then we'd both say at the same time as pointing at the other, "We're both No. 1!"
You're No. 1 to me, Kieran!
I have created this site so that my son, Kieran Edward Bignell, will be able to easily find me, his father, Rob Bignell, and so that he will know that I love him, that I always have, and that I always will. Against our wishes, we have been torn from one another's lives and kept apart, separated by distance and time. But one day, Kieran will seek me. Kieran - I am here for you. Come to me.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Monday, April 22, 2013
One year ago today: Poppy Festival
A year ago today, you, Jane, and I went to the Poppy Festival in Lancaster, Calif. We started the day by going on the rides at the kid's carnival.
You asked if we could go on the Tilt-a-Whirl, and it didn't look so bad, especially as we'd gone lots of spinning Disney rides, so I said okay. Boy, was I wrong! We both got off the ride all green in the face and staggering. You turned to me and said, "We're never going on this thing again!"
In the picture, you might notice there's a big slide in the background. You and Jane went down it together several times. Then we went to have a little picnic lunch and looked at some of the displays, like the quilting club and NASA booths.
But then the day starting getting hot, as is usually the case during late April in the High Desert, so we headed home.
Here's a whole bunch of pictures form our time at the fair together!
You asked if we could go on the Tilt-a-Whirl, and it didn't look so bad, especially as we'd gone lots of spinning Disney rides, so I said okay. Boy, was I wrong! We both got off the ride all green in the face and staggering. You turned to me and said, "We're never going on this thing again!"
In the picture, you might notice there's a big slide in the background. You and Jane went down it together several times. Then we went to have a little picnic lunch and looked at some of the displays, like the quilting club and NASA booths.
But then the day starting getting hot, as is usually the case during late April in the High Desert, so we headed home.
Here's a whole bunch of pictures form our time at the fair together!
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Our last visit to the Mojave air show
A year ago today, we attended our last air show at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, Calif. We usually went to it every month, though sometimes we'd skip the ones during the hottest months of summer and coldest months of winter.
This show was neat because they hosted a robot competition in which college students built robots to do tricks. You enjoyed watching them! You also got to sit in a lightweight experimental aircraft and to see the first privately owned spaceships!
I always enjoyed going to the air shows with you. We had a lot of fun at them learning about airplanes and spaceships and even got to meet some interesting people, like the actor who played Worf on "Star Trek."
Here's a whole bunch of pictures from our adventure!
This show was neat because they hosted a robot competition in which college students built robots to do tricks. You enjoyed watching them! You also got to sit in a lightweight experimental aircraft and to see the first privately owned spaceships!
I always enjoyed going to the air shows with you. We had a lot of fun at them learning about airplanes and spaceships and even got to meet some interesting people, like the actor who played Worf on "Star Trek."
Here's a whole bunch of pictures from our adventure!
Saturday, April 20, 2013
My email to you for April 20, 2013
Here is my email to
you sent April 20, 2013, in case you do not receive it.
Dear Kieran,
How are you doing today? I am doing fine, thought I miss you
dearly! The good news is that we get to see one another again in just a few
days – on Friday, April 26! I am looking forward to seeing you again.
How did your concert go on Sunday? I’d love to hear you sing
the songs you performed that day. What were the song titles?
When we were together, you
always liked to sing in the car when we were listening to Beatles CDs. Your
favorite CD by far was “Please Please Me,” which was the Beatles’ first record.
Among the songs on it that you’d liked were “Boys,” “Misery,” “Anna” and “A
Taste of Honey.” You also liked to listen to their greatest hits from 1968-1970
and to their CD “Revolver.”
Given that you enjoyed playing the piano so much during our
last visit, I shall have to see if there is a Beatles song I can teach you on
the piano. They wrote many of their songs on a piano even though they later
played them only with guitars and drums. Pianos and keyboards do appear in some
of their songs. Their songs are quite complex, though, so maybe we should start
with something simple and work our way up to them?
What kind of things are you learning about in school? You
must be up to letter W, I bet! Are you still studying the oceans? We used to
live very close to the Pacific Ocean and went to a lot of aquariums and beaches
there. I bet you have a lot to contribute to class given all of your great
experiences. Have you told your classmates about the Aquarium of the Pacific?
Speaking of ocean animals, did you know that the Minnesota
Zoo has new penguin chicks? One was born on March 2 and the other on March 21.
There are very furry looking! You actually can watch the penguin chicks on your
computer (Just like Curious George once did!); the zoo has a webcam that shows
them during the day and early evening. Just click onto the word “webcam” to see
the penguin chicks! Be patient with the link, though; it takes a few seconds
for the webcam to start.
I bet the penguins like our wintry weather. Having lived
almost your whole life in California, I bet you’re wondering where the warm
weather and sunshine is! It’s about this time of year where we used to live in
the desert that the days were getting too hot to be outside; we could only go
out to play in the morning and the early evening. Don’t worry, spring soon will
be here!
Have you read any good books lately? I have. The book was
called “My Spring Robin,” by Anne Rockwell. It tells the story of a girl who
goes for a walk one day and sees a robin. She then notices other signs of
spring’s arrival. What signs of spring do you think she sees? Perhaps you can
find the book at the city library when your mother takes you there to check out
books or for children’s activities.
That is all for now. I miss and love you very much! I will
see you on Friday!
Love,
Dad
Friday, April 19, 2013
Hiking Vasquez Rocks four years ago
"Kieran to Enterprise..." |
We'd gone hiking there before in January 2009 but didn't really know our way around! So I did tons of research and found where all of the show sequences were filmed and mapped it out.
We started by going to the "Friday's Child" episode rocks then we did "Gorn Rock" where the famous fight scene was filmed. We brought along our "Star Trek" toys to take pictures of at each sight!
Here's a bunch of pictures from adventure in 2009!
Thursday, April 18, 2013
A picture of you and Grandma Bignell
In all of the pictures Grandma Bignell gave me of the time you lived with her and Grandpa Bignell, there weren't any photos of you and her together! That's probably because she took all the pictures!
I finally remedied that oversight on Friday. Here's a picture of her with you from that day.
Grandma Bignell was born after the Second World War in Eau Claire, Wis. She grew up in rural Fall Creek, Wis., and graduated from that village's high schoool in the mid Sixties. She married your Grandpa Bignell about a year after graduating; they were married in Arkansaw, Wis.
She spent most of her life as a homemaker and running with farm with Grandpa Bignell. She did earn a CNA license later in life, though. She loves to gardan and some of her most pleasant memories are of you helping her in the garden by wearing the plants when you stayed with her.
I finally remedied that oversight on Friday. Here's a picture of her with you from that day.
Grandma Bignell was born after the Second World War in Eau Claire, Wis. She grew up in rural Fall Creek, Wis., and graduated from that village's high schoool in the mid Sixties. She married your Grandpa Bignell about a year after graduating; they were married in Arkansaw, Wis.
She spent most of her life as a homemaker and running with farm with Grandpa Bignell. She did earn a CNA license later in life, though. She loves to gardan and some of her most pleasant memories are of you helping her in the garden by wearing the plants when you stayed with her.
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Attending Scandinavian Festival
Viking encampment, April 17, 2010 |
At the festival, we looked at Scandinavian cars, dogs and food. We also went through the Viking encampment, where you got to hold a big Viking sword (see the picture at above left). We also got you a cool Viking helmet as well as a Norwegian flag! A couple of years later, we would go to a different Viking festival near San Diego.
Here's a whole bunch of pics from our trip!
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