Remember watching Sprout?

Sprout host Nina and Star.

About the only television programming I'd let you watch during the day when you were a preschooler was public television. Living in Los Angeles County, we got two PBS stations and on cable got their Sprout network.

You loved the Sprout network and its great commercial-free kids programs. There was "Kipper," about a dog who went on all kinds of adventures, and "Fireman Sam," a show about firemen who were always solving all kinds of non-fire problems. "Calliou" was among your favorites as well, especially when you both were four years old, or the same age!

You definite favorite show, though was "Thomas the Train," which always came on at 3:55 p.m. Monday through Friday. You had this internal clock that told you when 3:55 was approaching, and just before the show, you'd come and get me. We always sat in the recliner with you on my lap and watched the show together!

Grandma and Grandpa Bignell's anniversary

Today is Grandma and Grandpa Bignell's anniversary. They have been married 48 years! That's a long time!

They met in spring 1964 while on a high school class field trip in Madison, Wis. They went to different schools but during the field trip ended up in the same elevator together! The next year, they got married!

They lived a few different places as getting their footing, but since March 1974 they've lived on their farm outside of Knapp, Wis.

I wish you were here to enjoy the anniversary celebration with them. They do, too. They took care of your for several months from mid-December 2007 through early September 2008. We all look forward to the day when we can be together again as a family.

Here's a link about them on our family website.

Recall our visit to historic Fort Tejon?

At the First Sergeant's desk in the barracks.

Three years ago today, we went to the Fort Tejon State Historical Park north of Santa Clarita, Calif. You loved it!

The park is a collection of historical buildings, with exhibits and displays, from when an Army fort was at the site in the 1850s. The day we were there, several re-enactors also were on hand demonstrating how people lived during those times.

One of your favorite things to do there was to "play" Army and "Star Wars" in the buildings. You looked at them as a giant playground!

Here's a whole bunch of pictures from our adventure!

What we did two years ago today

June 4, 2011, California Adventure

Two years today we spent the day in Disneyland!

I had just moved to San Diego and so didn't have a lot of money - one thing I did have, though, were our annual passes to Disneyland! So we started using them every weekend we were together until I got a few more dollars into my account.

We went to Fantasyland, Toontown, and Tom Sawyer's Island. That afternoon, we headed over to California Adventure for the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail! One of the cool things you did at the chellenge trail was the tire swing!

Here are some pictures from our day!

Recall playting with the Slip’n Slide?

With summer's arrival, I got to thinking about all of the fun we had at the green house in Lancaster playing outside in that warm California sun. One of the "toys" we got was the famous Slip’n Slide.

It was really nothing more than a long, bright yellow sheet of plastic with little tubes that sprayed water over the sheet, making it slippery. You then can slide on your belly across the wet surface, having lots of laughs while staying cool.

I remember you loving it, especially running through the water sprinklers (You may have liked that more than sliding across it!). Unfortunately, as we lived in the desert, the sprinklers turned our back yard into a mud pit that washed away the grass clinging to the thin, sandy soil!

So I put the Slip’n Slide away until our yard could heal. By the time it did, though, the days were too hot to be outside with temps regularly in the low 100s.

 

We get to see each other more often!

Good news, Kieran! On Thursday, in court we won the right to see one another more often! We now will get to see each other every other week.

We still will be limited to only two hours at a time, but the opportunity to see one another more frequently is better than what we've been forced to endure this past year.

Do not worry; I am continuing to stake steps so that we can see each other every week and to speak with one another each day, just as we used to be able to do when we lived in California. You are the most important person in the world to me, and I never will shirk from my responsibilities to you.

In addition, your mother also is required to email me each week about what is going on in your life and to read you the weekly emails/letters I've been sending. I will be checking with you to ensure that you know the content of those emails so that we know that those court orders are being followed.

My email to you for June 1, 2013

Here is my letter from June 1, 2013, in case you do not receive it:

Dear Kieran,

How are you doing today? I am doing fine, though I miss you a lot! I have very good news: We will be able to see one another more often – every two weeks in fact. It may take a while to get it all arranged, but soon we will get to visit one another every other week. I’m very excited about getting to spend more time with you and about all of the fun we will have.

How was your first week of first grade? What did you learn about in your first week? Do you like your new teacher? What is your new classroom like? Does your teacher have any fun field trips planned for the summer?

I recall you telling me last fall about learning how to ride a bicycle, but you had to put it off until spring. Have you gotten out the bicycle and mastered pedaling and steering yet? When I was a little boy your age, our local John Deere tractor shop also sold bicycles. While the clerk was helping my dad, I got on one of the bicycles to figure out how it might work. I started pedaling, and the bicycle took off through the store! Zip it went past the shelves of tractor parts. I didn’t know how to stop the bicycle, though, and crashed into the front counter! After that, the store clerk always kept his eye on me whenever I came into the store. By the way, don’t ever do what I did in the John Deere tractor shop. Not only was it very naughty of me but my elbow hurt like heck for the next week because it hit the hard floor.

Do you have any trips planned for the summer, such as the zoo or the fair? I will be traveling around Wisconsin promoting my book and researching hiking trails for my next one. Some of the places I’m going to are: the St. Croix River, which has neat rock formations on it; Big Manitou Falls, which is as tall as 16 houses stacked on top of one another; and Lake Superior, which is one of the largest lakes in the world (It would take days to drive around it!). I’m looking forward to going to all of these new places but sure wish you could come with me to see them.  

What did you get to do for Memorial Day? Did you go to any ceremonies? Memorial Day pays honor to soldiers and sailors who died in battle defending our country, and often there are special programs at cemeteries and parks. You’ve had many ancestors and relatives who served in the armed forces. Your Uncle George served in World War II, which was the biggest war the world has ever seen. He fought in France and Germany against the Nazis. Your Grandpa Ed (who you are named after) also served during that war and played a very important role in it; you’ll have to ask your mother to tell all about him.

How are your “Star Trek” Lego toys holding up? Hopefully they haven’t come apart! If they do, maybe you’ll be able to put them back together using the instructions I put in your bag. You always can bring them with you when we get together, and I’ll help you put them back together. I will bring some more character packets when we next get together (June 21 at the latest), and hopefully we will get the Gorn!

Well, that is all for now. I miss and love you very much and can’t wait to see you again!

Love,

Dad