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Well months of preparation, thinking, planning, worrying, learning, etc has come down to a few final days. The closing for the bank loan and the company should happen on Friday...Lord willing and a few more signatures get collected. The Landlord that we lease from is being difficult and not wanting to sign a subordination agreement, and the bank wont fund the loan unless he does. I think in some way he's pulling a power trip being that he can. I am praying that he realizes what he's doing and doesn't stop this whole 9 month process just because he feels like it. I wish we were in the days that a handshake meant something and that all of the legal stuff that makes people nervous could be left alone. So if all goes as hoped we will be Vision Engineering on Monday.

I hope I'm ready for it all and know that the past few months of stuff is probably just preparation for the future. I try to stay relaxed about it all and not worry but it is difficult. There are still a lot of details to take care of for the new company as well as keeping the work coming in and getting done. We are still slow but I also trust that things will pick up when all the transition is completed and nerves settle down.

Thanks for checking in.

I heard from the bank yesterday that the SBA has approved my loan! Now it is on to finishing up the contract and getting all the painful details put together to get things moving. The bank is shooting for an end of the month closing so there is lots to do before then. I'll try to keep this up to date but surely haven't been as of late :).

Not sure how many more to go but the bank approved the loan! Now it goes off to the government to get approval from them. They say that it should go pretty smoothly provided we have all our information together. I'm praying that it does and that this portion of it can be done and I can move on to other things.

I'm realizing the older I get the more I don't know and the more things I could improve on. I've realized this before but sometimes events in life make you aware of it again. I go along thinking that I've conquered some character flaw or thing I want to change in my life just to see another one up the road that is coming at me. I guess that's the way things are in this life. I hope I can be half the person I think myself to be one day. I know I've got a lot of work to do.

Well, once again its been a while...so I should probably write an update.

The bank that I was using, the one that said took us in this direction in the first place, and the one that said they could do it, turned me down. They could not get the warm fuzzy feeling that I was talking about and I think were too close to the deal. They were the bank for the seller and were becoming close to being the bank for the buyer. Well, you can be assured that they won't be the buyers bank any time soon. So, I went to a bank that is local to my home town and one that I think is eager to get some things done. They are now in the process of catching up to what we've been doing the past few months and from all indications believe that they can do the loan! I should know in the next week or so if they have blessed the deal and then can hopefully write another update with the good news.

I am still expecting great things. I guess we'll see in a year or so.

Thanks for reading!

Since I have two kids I can relate to a phenomenon that it seems like everyone is looking for in many areas of life, a warm fuzzy feeling. My one and a half year old seeks it from his Mom or his blanket, my four year gets one from her blanket and from reading books, I think we never grow out of it...

The bank right now is looking for one as well. They are dancing around things trying to get that feeling so that they can move one step closer to closing on a loan. I have given them all the financial information that they were looking for and last week it looked like they were ready to write a letter of intent to loan. Then someone did not feel good about a portion of the deal and now wants more historical financial information about High Country and how this division that I'm purchasing did over the last few years. The problem with that is it was one company and the different divisions were not broken out so to create the history is really just making educated guesses about how to split everything up. We see it as a waste of time but if it makes the bank get that feeling they are looking for then I guess its worth it. I just don't see how taking one company's financial history applies to a different company's future. It is like taking the historical information of Kmart and applying that to Walmart's future and we all know how that played out!

I am getting tired of the game and just want everything to be finalized and go through. We had set a closing date of September 20 something and I'm hoping that we can still make that date. It has been since May that this thing started and it seems to be taking way too long. I continue to trust that God works all things for good and believe there is no stopping this, its just finding the parties that want to get on board and finish the deal. I hope I don't have to start the process over with another bank but that is not out of the question should this one decide that they can't do it.

Thanks for checking in!

So as I go along this process of acquiring a company I am learning a lot about how this whole thing works. I'm sure it will be information that is not used much in the future but I guess it is good to learn about anyway. I guess many things in life we learn once and then may not ever use again but that doesnt mean that it wasnt worth learning. So the "letter of intent" is mostly finished and we are getting one step closer to having an actual sale of the branch.

At first I thought that this letter was going to be a big thing but really its just a formallity it seems and really doesnt say much other than the basic idea of the sale of the comapany...that everyone is going to play nice and be respectful. I guess that's how the attorney's make their money by being the teacher on the playground, keeping you out of the principle's office.

The next step in this process is for me to get a lot of loan stuff done and finish up my business plan. We are going away to Glenwood this weekend so maybe I'll have a little time to put into more writing. I was wondering if I could just write my plan in Blog and just refer them to a few posts....probably not.

This Sunday we got up early and went out to breakfast for Mothers Day before going to church. We used to be able to go out sometimes after church but then they moved the service back to 9:30 so its almost too late for breakfast after church...Anyway we got done early and went to a park that is near the church and just killed time for about 45 minutes. We were looking for a place for the kids to play but there wasn't a playground at this park. We all had fun anyway exploring and wondering around. Ben fell and skinned his knees about 4 times so he didn't enjoy the uneven surfaces but he pulled through. Our kids are getting so big already! It is nice sometimes to just be forced to do nothing and run around the park for a while.

The last few weeks have been very busy for me and with a lot potentially going on for our future. I will write more later when I am able to. For now I continue to pray for wisdom and enjoy the times I an run around the park with the kids!

This weekend I watched Hotel Rwanda (I am a parent so I don't get to see movies when they are in theaters, thank you netflix). I really didn't know what the movie was about other than a guy who saved some people in a Hotel in Rwanda. I was a teenager, or just coming out of my teens when this event happend and didn't really watch the news as I was in college and had other things on my mind. Anyway, I had no idea the magnitude of the genoside that occured there and i'm sure is happening elsewhere in the world. I was saddended by how brutal and evil people can be, and it makes me wonder why they are that way.

Then there was the shooting today at Virginal Tech...a little closer to home, not genoside but senseless killing and evil just the same. It makes me wonder what I am supposed to do about it, if anything. It makes me sad that there is this kind of evil in the world and makes me wonder how I can raise my kids realizing such evil and still be able to trust people and have a good heart. I think at this point I want to raise them to be able to defend themselves, have some street smarts, much wisdom, and be sensitive to God's direction.

No one knows how they are going to react in an extreme situiation and it is definetly easy to second guess things and have hindsite in almost every situation, but I hope that If I am ever presented with an extreme situation that I will have the wisdom to know what to do, the training to do it, and the fortitude to stand up to it. It is always surprising to me that in these situations the "gunmen" usually kills himself, that its not done by someone else defending the people, its seems that its almost never the police. The person finally decides that they've caused enough evil and ends it. It just seems like it doesnt have to be that way.

Well, I hope that you are blessed today and that you and I have the guts to stand up to evil when we face it.

Last weekend we took a quick trip to my parents house. I had to go to a workshop for Hunters Education on Saturday so we figured we would just spend a couple days with my parents. It was good timing since things this week slowed down a little at work and it was easier to get away. It is amazing how a little time away from the "normal" life can recharge you and help you to feel refreshed. It was just a short charge so I will need more soon but it was nice to be away if even for a weekend.

Today is my Dad's birthday! Happy Birthday Dad! He's 59 I believe and I've never been able to keep my parents ages straight for some reason. Anyway, I hope that I can raise my son as good as my Dad raised me, and by God's grace build on what Dad put into me and load it all up into my son (and daughter for that matter). Early on in life I remember wanting to hang around him and always see what he was up to. I remember many nights or afternoons holding the flashlight for him while he worked on the car and having to be careful not to move it so that he could see. Doing so let me see how he did things and learn how to do them myself. Dad can pretty much do anything and he put that into me somehow as well. I remember him having to fix the car or some other appliance at home and not really knowing how to do it or what he was getting in to but just diving in and taking things apart until he found what was wrong and what needed to be replaced. I've found that most of the things we use every day are really pretty simple mechanically and you can usually fix them yourself if you have the guts to start taking things apart.

Dad also taught me...
How important it is to have a relationship with Jesus and how life is so much better with Him by your side.

The importance of loving your wife and taking care of her.

That you don't have to always say what is on your mind that it is sometimes better to hold your tongue for the appropriate time, people usually listen better that way.

How to enjoy the outdoors whether you are cutting wood, fishing, hunting or whatever.

How to use a shovel, pick, ax, tractor, saw, tools, hammer, broom, gun, fishing pole, etc. and most importantly your head.

Many many other things that are too many to mention.

I hope your day is blessed Dad, I love you.

So as I passed my 33rd birthday I woke up yesterday morning for my run and was trying to think about my first 33 years and what I have accomplished and wondering how my next 33 years would be. I fully expect to have two more runs at 33 years and live to at least 99 so I figure the next set of 33 need to be better than the first. I don't think I regret much of what i've done so far I think it has been pretty good and fairly productive.

Sunday our pastor taught about finding God's will and revealed that God pretty much has had one plan for all of time...to redeam people back to him. God's will doesn't change our calling and preparation as to how we fit into that plan is the only thing that changes. That was kind of a revelation to me (although I'm sure I didn't state it as well as he did). So as I pass 33 I wonder what my ultimate calling is going to be and how I am being prepared for the future. That is one of those impossible questions to answer but still makes you wonder.

I want my next 33 years to be more helpful to people and to do my best to raise my kids to follow Him and have Kids that will be be a blessing to people as well. I pray that they will learn from my mistakes and take a step forward rather than having to learn on their own. If I had my choice I would have another vocation where I could spend more time with my family and still enjoy a day's work. I guess we will see what the next 33 years has in store.

Well, my wife talked me in to doing a half marathon in June so I have started training again. The first week or so was not much fun, sore butt, tired legs, tired in general, etc. I have to get up at 5:20 or there about to have time to workout before going to work. I like it once i'm up and going but it is hard many mornings to get myself out of bed and head out to run, or out to swim, or the gym. Hopefully it will all be worth it.

Last year I think I did 4 triathlons and a couple other running races, on top of Marion's races that she did (that I didnt do) it made for a lot of weekend events. I think I am going to step it back a little this year, I guess we'll see, I usually end up doing one or two that I did not plan on doing just because they sound fun. I guess it is keeping us in shape and gives us something to shoot for.

The picture that I posted below is on the Oregon coast that I took in 2005, I have it as my computer background and have thought of getting it enlarged to hang on a wall somewhere but havent done that yet.

Thanks for stopping by.

It seems like almost every day one is faced with lots of choices to make. Everything from easy choices like deciding to get out of bed to whether or not one should move or make a career change. Honestly I don't know how we do it at times with so much going on and such potential to make some bad choice that could drastically alter our path. I think maybe some are more reactions without really going through the "choice" poriton of our brain. One thing that I think we choose every day is our attitude and mood for the day or the hour, or the moment. I believe at some level we can choose our reactions to things that happen to us or around us as well.

It seems that many people (myself included) let their world get to them and choose to have a bad attitude or get angry at something that is really nothing in the grand scheme of things. I've even seen people destroy their day, week, and longer over something that wasn't even true. Believing that the way they see things has to be right and then choosing to have a bad attitude or be angry at the situation, only later to find out that they were wrong in the first place. Then they have to decide whether or not they will admit that they are wrong or just go about being angry and continuing in their self deception.

I tried to make a consious decision this year to try and not worry myself about things I have no control over. The decision has most of its impact at work but I think it works throughout. Last year I was not very happy much of the time because I tried to change things I really couldn't. That led to frustration and my own choice to be unhappy. I guess my motto for this year (which I will have to remind myself every day) is "choose this day how you will serve" The bible says "who you will serve", and I work on that too but, if I'm a grumpy, upset, angry Christian what good does that do me or anyone else?

This last weekend we headed up to Breckenridge. We really did not want to go all week as the weather was looking like it was going to be bad. We had originally planned on a weekend away for just Mom and Dad but since the weather was going to be bad we lost our baby sitter and were going to have to take the kids. It ended up being a great weekend anyway! Yes there were times when the kids were not so good and they could have used much more sleep but overall it was fun and nice to get away for a couple days.



Today is also Marion's Birthday! Happy Birthday Marion, I love you and I am so blessed to have you in my life and have you as the mother of my children. I pray that you are blessed today.

Thanks for visiting my blog, see you next time.

So I discovered MySpace, a co-worker introduced me to it, and at first I really did not see the reason for it but after you get to looking into it, it is pretty fun. You will have to go check it out and maybe create your own space. You can find old school friends, and family and even see who knows the people you know. I have discovered that the amount of people with a MySpace profile from your school, or where ever, is inversely proportional to your age! It seems that the younger you are the more people who are likely to have a page. Anyway, I hope you are able to try it out and have fun with it, CAUTION...you can waste a lot of time.
http://www.myspace.com/erictuin

As you have probably heard the end of this year brought us much snow! You probably can not tell quite how much it was from this one picture but it was enought to make me want to get a snow blower for these times! The picture is after we shoveled our driveway and the pile of snow it created. Megan liked to play on it and slide down and put her face in the snow and generally just enjoy the snow.

I had the last week off from my normal work which was nice I was able to get some of my home projects done.











I tiled our downstairs bathroom as you can see in the picture and painted it as well. It is a nice change from the carpet and all the white walls we have in the house, it made us want to paint more soon.

Overall it was a good week off, I hope your 2007 is blessed!