Cancun

Booked our weekend for Cancun. Shelly and I, with the twins will be staying in the Oasis Beach All Inclusive 6 days. We leave on the 18th of Feb, arrive home 23 Feb. Fun in the sun and beach, I cant wait. Michelle and the boys are very excited. I'm hoping I like the hotel. Never stayed there before. But I've been feeling a little stressed out, so this will be a nice relaxing weekend. I'm looking forward to snorkeling, something they have never done, and maybe a day tour to maybe the ruins. I'm also excited about taking pictures, I haven't had the opportunity recently and cant wait to experiment some more. The twins agreed, with some arm twisting, to let me take pictures of them. I told them that I get one hour a day, no questions asked. lol. So I have my own Carlson Twins. So look here and Flickr, soon, Hopefully they will turn out beautifully. I'm sure they will,, I'll have beautiful beaches , and handsome models. Namarie

Message to Tom

Most songs remind us of a time or place. Instantly transports us back to when we first heard it. Sometimes songs remind me of a person. I probably could name a song for just about every body in my life. This song reminds me of you. Its by my favorite singer. Celine Dion And it came out around the time you were a little boy. I've printed some of the lyrics,and added my comments so you would know a little about what was going on with me at that time.

When you call on me
When I hear you breathe
I get wings to fly
You started life, blue and not breathing,, the umbilical cord was around your neck, and you and Timmy were so small,practically as big as my hand. I could carry you and Timmy in the palms of each hands.
I feel that I'm alive
When you look at me
I can touch the sky
I know that I'm alive
When you bless the day
I just drift away All my worries die
I'm glad that I'm alive
I was going through some very tough times at the time of your birth, I didn't know who I was or what I was all about, and didn't think I had the strength for life. Sometimes I was weak and darkness and shadow crept into my mind. You boys were born and my life changed, God took me out of myself and placed you firmly in my hands and heart. You would crawl into my room looking for me, everyday calling my name,,Telling me that you needed me and wanted me.. That you love me,,, and that's all it took,,,, Thank you ,, Uncle Max ,,,,,

Costumes ll

Seems I'm not the only one who likes to dress up, in costume,,, Birds of a Feather !

Queenstown Gardens Last Day

This was our Last Day in Queenstown. October 2006. A total day of relaxation, no stress. Tomorrow we will have to get on a plane for almost 24hrs. The Twins are here showing you what they did EVERWHERE! ALL THE TIME! Every time the bus stopped and there was water close by, They threw rocks. A boys favorite passtime.

The Rohirrim-Riders of Rohan

We are riding in a beautiful place called Glenorchy, south of Queenstown, South Island New Zealand. This Is Toms first time on a horse and he was really nervous. When we arrived I come to find out, we would by riding English, Then I became nervous! I figured the boys would chicken out when they realized there was nothing to hold on to. But they persevered, mostly because Raewyn told us that all the horses were in Two Towers/Return of the King. Of course Tom get the only horse that was actually in the movie. his horses name was Oscar. What an appropriate name. Timmy rode Ginger and I had Seth. Our guide was Per. He was fantastic, we all enjoyed him. At one point, while I was taking a picture, Tom's horse takes off down a hill, and spooks my horse, which also goes running after,, I have one hand on the reins and 1 hand on the camera. We managed to get control of our horses. Tom was OK, Thank God, he wasn't scared. Per was cracking up he said we looked like 2 American Cowboys. What a compliment! In this clip, Tom and I are waiting for Per to get Timmy. His horse was a little stubborn.

Mt Ruapehu

Volcanic activity at Mount Ruapehu is increasing and an eruption could occur at any time, scientists warned on Tuesday. The volcano, famed as a location in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, last erupted on September 25 2007, spitting two metre boulders distances of up to two kilometres. Ruapehu’s elevated alert level has not been changed, but scientists said on Tuesday that activity within the mountain was greater, with high levels of gas spewing out, a warmer than average crater lake and ongoing volcanic tremors. “The volcano remains in a status of unrest and the possibility of further activity remains. If further eruptions occur, they may occur without warning,” Geological and Nuclear Sciences (GNS) said in a statement.


This is a place that we visited, when we were in New Zealand. The sites of Mordor, Emyn Muil and Mt Doom, were all filmed here. The spot where Sam and Frodo were lost amid volcanic lava flows and where they first met Gollum. Gollum's fishing pool, where Andy Serkis was careful not to plunge over the waterfall! This was the spot were we hit a blizzard. See the pics below.

12 MAY 1993

05 MAY 1993
Originally uploaded by Gandalf.
This is the day that changed my life forever. The Twins were born. We almost lost Thomas, he was born second and he had the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. He was born not breathing and a little blue. Thank you Lord for giving Tom the strength to fight his way back. Both Boys were so tiny, they could fit in the palm of my hands. My first thought upon seeing them for the first time, was that they looked like tiny little birds, they even chirped. This event truely, changed the course of my life. I'm so blessed. Happy Birthday Boys.

The Greatest Thing

This post was initially posted March 19th, 2007 from Thomas
Hello there,
It has been four months since I was able to smell the flowers in hobbiton, climb and see the mountains, and been able to live a lifetime chance. Many things have changed since New Zealand. I still have been doing good in school. I’m about to go to High school. I just got done with a basketball league and my team came in first. I’m in baesball now, I just tried out for a team. I don’t know what team I am on. I still miss New Zealand and I always think about it and I wish I could go back to it. I look at pictures and I almost start to cry because I miss it so much. Some people still ask me how much fun my trip was. I say it was the greatest trip of my life. It was the greatest trip cause I was with two of the greatest people in the world. I met some of the coolest people I could meet. I think when I get older I will go back and smell the flowers of hobbiton. The people I miss in New Zealand is Vic and Raewyn, they were the greatest tour guides in the world. I miss Heather and Vivian too though. They were two fun people to hang out with. The greatest thing I miss is, my Uncle successfully guiding two young hobbits through Middle - Earth. Namarie.
Your Friend, Thomas
P.S. I love you very much Uncle Max… you are The Greatest Uncle in the world.

Europe

The Twins and I, having started planning our new vacation for this year. They want to go to England and Scotland. While I don't mind that suggesting, I'm think of more. I think it would be nice to travel to a few countries, like France ( at least for 1 day, I loved Paris), and Italy. I saw in a travel magazine, some European tours, where we would travel to 4 or 5 countries. The one that really caught my eye, was London to Rome. I thought this might be nice, because we could have a bit of everything. If I or they, find that they really really like a certain country, then we could always come back to it, another time. Why not get a wonderful taste of Europe. Money is really tight. Overtime is almost non existent. So fingers crossed. Prayers offered. That's my side. The Twins of course have their part. Excellent grades and good behavior..... Max