Hiking, web development, best practices, and general awesomeness
While a newborn girl has been a pretty big event for our household, the largest adjustment is dealing with three little ones. Even relatively simple things like grocery shopping is next to impossible to do with only one parent. I can't even imagine how I'd take all three of them hiking or to the zoo…
Our third child, Charlotte Emerick, was born early on February 13, 2017. She's our first daughter and the first granddaughter on either side of the family, which is evident by the amount of pink that has recently invaded our house. The pregnancy was easier for Katie this time around, with only a few…
Now that 2017 is officially up and going it's about time to solidify some of my goals for the new year. I already talked about how 2016 was for me and hinted at a few areas of growth that I want to focus on moving forward. Which may be a bit optimistic, as Katie and I will be welcoming a little girl…
As 2016 draws to a close, I've been more reflective than normal about how the year went. In a lot of ways it's been a good one. Work is going great, especially considering how I was thrust onto a brand new team using unfamiliar technologies in early January. My boys are growing up fast and I can…
Thanksgiving Day is one of the few weekdays that I truly take off from work. Katie is busy with cooking and I like to spend the time with my boys doing things that we usually avoid on the weekends, like checking out popular hiking areas in the Supes. There was one destination in particular that I…
Taking Noah on a camping trip has been on my list for some time now. He and Thomas have been hiking with me for almost two years now, and Noah in particular (who is almost three and a half now) asks a lot about all the backpacking that I wander off on. Katie is also very interested in getting Noah…
Blinding morning light shone hot over the Superstitions, pouring over the highlands around Bluff Springs and Coffee Flat and trickling onto First Water Trailhead. Katie and I moved like two well-practiced machines under the hot sun. There were sunhats to put on the kids, sunscreen to apply, snacks…
A few miles from our house in Gilbert is a little county park that I have barely explored. Well, maybe I misused the word 'little'. San Tan Mountain Regional Park is over 10,000 acres and offers miles and miles of trails. Until now the only loop I've really explored is the Goldmine/Dynamite, both…
Over the last few months I've been taking my older son, Noah, out on hikes around Phoenix. For the first few I kept him in a carrier strapped to my back. He was too young to walk far over the rough ground of a hiking path. As long as I brought some snacks, a sippy cup with water, protected him from…
On the morning of January 5, 2015, Thomas Neal Emerick was born, our second child. He arrived in a small hospital in Mesa, Arizona after a drawn-out pregnancy that was filled with anticipation and far too much stress. We had a few close encounters over the last few weeks, late-night visits that we…