On to the Championship!

Too late to post much, but my team won the State Semi-final game tonight 2-1 in OT.  We play tomorrow at 7:30 at North Central College in Naperville.

Click here for more info.

Timothy Soccer- Headed Back to State!

Well... after a back-and-forth regular season (my team is just now 13-12) the Timothy Christian men's soccer team is back in the IHSA class 1A state tournament final four for the second time in 2 years.

Here's a link to the latest: click here

Here's some more press on our sectional championship on Tuesday night:

Chicago Tribune

Chicago Sun-Times

The Daily Herald

The Elmhurst Doings

The State semi-finals and finals are at North Central College in Naperville. We play on Friday, October 30th at 5:30 in the Semi-final game vs. Peoria Christian. The championship game is on Saturday at 7:30 PM and the 3rd place game is on Saturday at 5:30 PM.

Good News

Just wanted to give everyone who was interested a quick update on my job search status for this coming summer (law schools are insane, but they do things this early). I know several people have been interested, concerned, and/or praying about this and I wanted to thank you for that. Also, a special shout out to Kyle and Kelly for their direct suggestions and help - definitely appreciated.

Anyways, I just received word from a great firm in Milwaukee that I have an offer for this coming summer. I got the message in a coffee shop, and it was about all I could do to refrain from belting out "Old Hundredth" (which maybe I should have just done).

So to recap - relief, joy, thanks, prayer, praise, etc. Looks like I'll be pretty close to home this summer.

Bohemian Rhapsody Mimed

Rudi and Anna + nothing to do on a Sunday night = this

East Coast Trip

It may be true that "neither rain, nor sleet, nor gloom of night" will deter a postal worker from his or her appointed rounds, but it is certain that these mere trivialities will never deter a VanDrunen from a vacation. You want proof? This past week, Grandpa and Grandma (a woman related to him by marriage) and my Mom and Dad came out to visit me and some of the choice selections of the East Coast. After 4 1/2 inches of snow through Pennsylvania, they safely arrived in cloudy New Haven. Though the weather huffed and puffed, it would never blow our spirits down (cheeseball, I know).

Thankfully, their courage was rewarded with what I thought was a great trip. I'll give you the run down:

Friday: After a long trip, there was little time to do anything but eat, so we ate the famous Pepe's Pizza. While it might not quite give Aurelio's a run for its money, it is about as close in goodness as anything on this planet can be. I recommend a white pie with mozzarella and shrimp.

Saturday: A tour of historic New Haven and the Yale Campus. I learned a lot about the University and later in the day was able to attend a speech with the newest Justice of the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor - an alumna from '79.

Sunday: We attended my church, which apparently met the approbation of all. Then we soldiered on through the fierce wind and rain to Newport, RI. There, we experienced the fantastic Vanderbilt mansions. For those of you who are unaware of what this might be like, think Birchwood in the '80s.

Monday: This day was all about history. We visited Plimoth Plantation (spelling critics beware - no standardized spellings in the 17th century mean you cannot fault me here), which had a replica Wampanoag village and English Settlement. Not content with our daily allotment of historical inspiration, we moved on to the town of Plymouth, where we saw Plymouth Rock and a replica of the Mayflower.

Mom is studying up on the traditional Wampanoag recipe for duck so she can share it on the blog

A self-aggrandizing picture of me next to a ship, this time an almost precise replica of the original Mayflower

Tuesday: Can you see Boston in a day? Perhaps not, but we came as close as any mortals should. You might think walking the freedom trail would be easy. After all, it is just a physical red line that you have to follow across the city. Yet if it can go wrong it will, and somehow we briefly lost our way. Finding ourselves back on the beaten track we proceeded to take in some of the great sights of the town - Paul Revere, John Handcock, Sam Adams, and the victims of the Boston Massacre's tombs; The Massachusetts State House; The oldest continuous restaurant in the U.S.; the Bunker Hill Memorial - yes all 294 steps of it; and finally the U.S.S. Constitution, also known as "Old Ironsides," which is still a commissioned naval ship.

The Massachusetts House of Representatives

Sam Adams's grave - I swear I didn't put that there

Old Ironsides - I think we should sail it to Somalia and go back to defeating pirates, which is what this ship does best

Wednesday: Mystic Seaport. We climbed aboard the last wooden whaling vessel, learned a lot, and even got to taste whale blubber for ourselves (just kidding). If anyone is remotely interested in history, water, sailing, commerce, art, craftsmanship, etc. I would highly recommend it.

Desperately trying to look tough next to the Amistad

The last wooden whaling ship in America

Thursday: Who needs history when you have live whales? I never did get the whale keeper to tell me how much oil you could get off a Beluga, but I had a good time nonetheless. Getting dropped back off in New Haven, my portion of the journey was completed. The long trip back home was the task of travelers more seasoned than I.

Recipe #4

Baby Back Ribs -
Heat oven to 200 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan with foil for each slab of ribs and cover with foil. Cook about 4 1/2 hours. Transfer ribs to grill and apply favorite BBQ sauce for short while - don't burn. In non-grilling weather - (most of the year in Chicago) uncover ribs after cooking and apply BBQ sauce to both sides - brown under broiler. Enjoy!
(Use caution when removing pans from oven as there is usually grease/liquid that can spill. I'm speaking from experience. Drain off the grease before broiling.) Mark's favorite BBQ sauce is sweet baby ray's. Other favorites?
This is a great recipe to use on a Sunday when you are at church all morning.

Recipe O' the week... back in action

FYI: we're entering week 4 in the Yous Kids Recipe O' the Week.  Kim and Mike are up.

Is it week 2 yet?

Sorry, we were so busy going through all of our fantastic recipes time got away from us. Here is the recipe for a great Chicken, Broccoli, Cheese casserole that is wonderful even re-heated. (Sorry about the Cheese part Mom, you probably won't like it.)

6 Chicken Breasts (cooked & cubed, uncooked leads to lots of bathroom visits)

10 oz. pkg. frozen broccoli

8 oz. Cheese Wiz (You got my Cheese Wiz boy?)

1 Can, Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 Can, Cream of Chicken Soup

2 Cups uncooked Minute Rice

1/2 Stick of Butter

1/2 Cup of Water

Directions: Combine butter, cheese and soups in saucepan. Melt together. Add remaining ingredients, putting in water last.

Bake in 9" x 13" pan @ 350 degrees for one hour.

Enjoy!

Millie

There was a sad day in the VanDyke family last weekend when we found out that our dog Millie was hit on Route 8. She is greatly missed. We've had her since 1999, so it's going to be weird without her. So from now on when you come visit to Kouts, you won't be greeted by a friendly beagle :(

My Father-in-Law on WGN's News at 9:00

So I get a call from Grandma VD on Saturday night asking if my Father-In-Law lived in Westmont, and if he were named Tom Day. When I confirmed that both of these items were correct, she said, "I think that he was on the news tonight talking about this Erin Andrews/Stalker story."

Well, Grandma's got a set of eagle eyes, because yes, indeed, my father-in-law gave his "man on the street" perspective to this news story: "It's absolutely shocking. I can't believe it." Play the video above and wait for 1:54 for his moment in the sun. (I was glad on a side note that he was repping Timothy Christian with some Timothy wear... though all you can see is red).

Trollstock

Tonight was Trollstock, Trinity's annual talent show. I played piano with a band including Vinnie Adams, Greg Hartnett, and Adam Perez (some of my friends from school). We played a medley that Vinnie put together, and to top it off, we all dressed like nerds. We went to a thrift store to find ridiculous-looking shirts, and we bought reading glasses at a dollar store. The good news: WE WON! Here are some pictures because words can't describe our nerdiness.

State Farm Agent Brian Gesch: Online in Video Format... Check it out!

Yous Kids,

My dad's just launched a sweet new feature on his website... check it out (click here).

He appears (sings, talks, and basically is Brian being Brian) in video format for your viewing enjoyment and for your insurance needs on the right hand side of his website: http://www.briangesch.com/.

Click play on the video and watch the magic.

Like a good neighbor, Brian Gesch is THERE!