Ten Months Today!

Paul turned ten months old today.  That is just incredible to me.  His milestones thus far include hand clapping, nose identifying and to a stand pulling.  Pretty sure that's bad grammar, but it kept them in a series.  I actually managed to catch the last one with the camera today.  He did it first on the couch.  I missed that one.  Then he did it on Daddy's work boxes by the front door.  That one I caught.  The pictures are below.

It has been such a long week here.  Erik has been away on business for three days now.  One more to go.  Three cheers for friends Becky and Holly who saved the lives of my children today.  If I hadn't left this house we might all have made the 5 o'clock news and not in a good way.  Do you know a single mom?  Help her escape from her house.  Kidnap her and take her for coffee.  Invite her for pizza and help her put her screaming toddler in the car, even though your neighbors are looking out their windows at you.  Whatever you do for the least of these you have done for Him.  He said so.  Matthew 25.  The sheep and the goats.  Check it out.

Here are the pics.

I almost didn't get this shot.  The other attempts involve him doing his best to take a dive over the arm of the chair.  No injuries were sustained during the taking of this picture.

One of the few things Luke and Jorge are willing to share.  Luke spontaneously said, "MIO!" today while they were fighting over a toy.  That's Spanish for, MINE!  I had to ask Adriana, my English student, what Luke had said.  Who taught him that?

Right after this shot was taken Paul proceeded to climb up on the lower box headed for the taller one.  I wasn't ready for that one.  Watch out world.

So Very Fun

There are many fun things I could tell you about this evening, but I think the most exciting is that I'm typing at your from my new MacBook.  AAAHHH!  It is sleek and super neato.  Three cheers for stimulating the economy.  I especially enjoy supporting a cool company like Apple.  Everything they make is beautiful and functional.  I sound like a commercial, but I can't help myself.  They also aren't prone to being attacked by viruses.  That is a big hint about why a new laptop was needed, not just desired.  Sheesh.

Other super fun news:  My neighbor came for her first English lesson today!  We had missed each other numerous times and I was so excited to see her smiling face today.  Her two kids played with my two kids while we had our first lesson.  It was so much fun and I can hardly wait for next Wednesday afternoon.

Last bit of fun, albeit bittersweet, news:  Today was Luke's final BSF for the year.  He learned about the resurrection of Jesus and told the story to a friend of mine as we were leaving the building.  That's definitely cooler than the computer.  :-)

Here are the pictures, taken Sunday evening as Luke helped Daddy and Grandpa put together our new pantry.  Enjoy!

After this experience, Luke asked me if Daddy was Bob, the Builder.  So cute!

Today's Story

Today was Luke's second to the last day of BSF for the year. That went so fast. Each Wednesday when I pick Luke up from his class, we walk back through the sanctuary to get to the parking lot. On our way we usually stop and talk with my teaching leader, Kathy, who always asks Luke what he learned in the story that day. Her own daughter, now a law student at Stanford, went through BSF beginning at the age of two. Today's story was about Jesus' crucifixion, death and burial. I seriously had no idea what Luke was going to say. This is how it went:
Kathy: "Luke, what was today's story about?"
Luke: "It was about sin." (I just about fell over when he said that.)
Kathy: "Yes, it was. Did Jesus hang on the cross to pay for all our sin?"
Luke: "Yeah. And then they put him in a cave and put a big rock right over the hole."

The interaction ended there, but later on at home when we prayed over lunch, I expressed my gratitude to Jesus for dying on the cross for our sins. Luke, who usually pipes in with "Protect everyone," changed his prayer to "Thank you, Jesus."

In other news, my sister has inspired me to include more video on the blog. I shot this of Paul this afternoon. The quality isn't the greatest, but I love the way he moves things around and is interested in the little details.

Park Play

We had a fun surprise this morning. A friend from BSF called and invited us to a park play date. This is especially delightful because Mondays are typically a long, tedious day for me. We drove to a new park and enjoyed the swings and the big toy. This was the first time Luke played on the big toy all by himself. I didn't actually get any pictures of that because at that point Baby Paul was eating. It was a great time. :-)
At this moment Paul is crying in his crib and Luke is yelling in his. So much for good naps after time spent outside. Maybe next time!

Luke is saying, "I just think this is a horse." Yep.

I'm said this picture isn't well centered and that I cut off Paul's cutie curly hair. But it's still cute.

Fun and Crazy

Rarely do I take the opportunity to update you all on my personal endeavors, partially because they aren't many in number. Today, however, I will take a moment to celebrate with you the upcoming completion of my thesis. Back in August 2004 I completed all of the coursework for my Masters in Education. The final submission of my thesis paper was all that remained before the degree could actually be conferred. Through a series of somewhat trivial events, that paper, although entirely completed, was never submitted. The entire tale would be too boring to relate, but it involved a great deal of bureaucracy and tedium. I gave up. The finished thesis sat lonely on my thumb drive, ignored and shunned.
It came to mind a few months ago as I was realizing that my last group of ninth grade students are graduating from high school this June. It was pleasant for me to think back on them and all the others with whom I learned during my six years in public education. It was unpleasant to think that I had left something unfinished that concerned one of them. My thesis is a case study written on the experience I had while working closely with a recovering teenage drug addict. My primary question of inquiry was how can the classroom teacher help the recovering teenage drug addict succeed academically. I knew it was time to pull out the thumb drive.
My in-laws took the boys for an afternoon while I printed out the single longest piece of writing I have ever done. I mailed it off to PLU to be approved by the APA Guideline Girl. This is not her official title, but it's the one I like to use. It was a rather interesting two weeks waiting for its return. I kept thinking, "She's probably going to send it back and tell me to forget it." This did not happen. Instead it arrived yesterday with relatively few red marks and a bunch of paperwork regarding publication rights and the Library of Congress. Wow. I was pretty stinkin' excited. The next step is the "fancy" paper print, followed by important signatures and then a binding. Like a book. By me. That's fun and crazy.

Another Short Post

Baby is waking up. Toddler's movie is almost over. I still need to shower. T.M.I. Pictures are from this morning. Enjoy. :-)

Happy in the playroom while Luke sleeps in a bit. VERY rare.

This book is very interesting to Paul. It has little "windows" that slide open and shut.

At breakfast, Luke just had to feed Paul.

Too cute.

For Oma

The Oma is missing her boys. Who can blame her? Here are a few shots from the past week to satiate her and the rest of the fans.


Paul has found a new use for his saucer. It is a great place to sit. We only do this when Luke is asleep because it's not something we want him to take apart while Paul is using it the other way.

We had some nice weather and Luke got to spend some time outside "working" in the yard. Both he and the trucks needed a bath afterward. :-)