31.8.10
August...die she must
Summer is slowly fading, and life as we know is about to get better (thank you college football, crisp air, apple pies, pumpkins and fall leaves). This last month has passed too quickly, but not without good adventures. Little Fat started crawling and refusing to take his bottle unless he was fed a higher quality of food first, such as mashed bananas.
We took the little nipper on his first overnight camping experience as well as hiking in Stony Brook State Park to see the local scenery. I think he did better than both Lisa and I, however, no one was carrying us and he had much more padding for a bed than we did.
I've been really busy trying to finish up a quality project at work. It has seriously made me an absentee father/husband, working 12-13 hours a day. Lisa has been great in picking up my slack though and doing everything. It has also been fun to see the slobber monster grow. Not only is he able to produce copious amounts of saliva at the drop of a hat, he is mobile enough to spread the love all around the house. He has a hard time sitting still and really doesn't care too much for his toys, he is much more interested in what you have. The best part is that when he gets really excited, he does the most amazing impression of squealing like a girl. That's my boy. Talented.
We took the little nipper on his first overnight camping experience as well as hiking in Stony Brook State Park to see the local scenery. I think he did better than both Lisa and I, however, no one was carrying us and he had much more padding for a bed than we did.
Stony Brook
Bobo along for the ride
he was so tired he left a good mark on his face from the pack
Out Cold
We also went to a Rochester Redwings game to eat Simply Crepes and enjoy a perfect evening out. Bubba really liked the game and got pretty excited at everything going on around him, but still managed to take a nap halfway through.
Frontier Field
I've been really busy trying to finish up a quality project at work. It has seriously made me an absentee father/husband, working 12-13 hours a day. Lisa has been great in picking up my slack though and doing everything. It has also been fun to see the slobber monster grow. Not only is he able to produce copious amounts of saliva at the drop of a hat, he is mobile enough to spread the love all around the house. He has a hard time sitting still and really doesn't care too much for his toys, he is much more interested in what you have. The best part is that when he gets really excited, he does the most amazing impression of squealing like a girl. That's my boy. Talented.
22.7.10
funny
I like dumb jokes. They make me laugh. I was in Lowe's the other day and this older gentleman that was working there asked if I needed some help and then asked if I would like to hear a joke. Here's what he told me.
"The receptionist at a dentist's office interrupted the dentist while working on a patient and said 'Dr. Smith, there's an invisible man in the waiting room that is very insistent on seeing you right away!' The dentist replied, saying 'well you'll just have to tell him that I can't see him!'"
I laughed all the way home.
"The receptionist at a dentist's office interrupted the dentist while working on a patient and said 'Dr. Smith, there's an invisible man in the waiting room that is very insistent on seeing you right away!' The dentist replied, saying 'well you'll just have to tell him that I can't see him!'"
I laughed all the way home.
26.6.10
hello world
Sometimes it's amazing to me to think that in spite of my lack of blogging, the world still goes on. Wow. Here are the top ten tidbits of knowledge and priceless wisdom that I have managed to add to my arsenal in the last several weeks since you have last heard from me.
1. No matter how you try and plan for things, life has a way of throwing you for a loop. There is so much that I have no control over whatsoever, and that is more than just a little bit frustrating.
2. Little Fat has the best schedule ever. He eats, he plays, he sleeps, he plays, he eats, he plays, etc... I'm jealous.
3. After getting recycled baby food all over me, pulling out mystery gunk from the drain is no big deal. Yeah, I'm cool.
4. I've yet to master a balance between work, church, myself, and my family. Anyone have any answers?
5. No matter how bad your day, when your kid gives you a lopsided grin and grabs at your face when you see him and pick him up, life is good. As my older sister would say, big cheesy sandwich.
6. Life is happier in the spring and summer. New life blooming is contagious.
7. An entire nights sleep, uninterrupted, is priceless.
8. It seems that there is always going to be something to look forward to, but enjoying the here and right now is also a good thing to take part in.
9. There is nothing like fresh, homemade salsa. Yummy.
10. Life is good.
I know. Surprising knowledge. Take it for what it is worth, and remember to smile.
1. No matter how you try and plan for things, life has a way of throwing you for a loop. There is so much that I have no control over whatsoever, and that is more than just a little bit frustrating.
2. Little Fat has the best schedule ever. He eats, he plays, he sleeps, he plays, he eats, he plays, etc... I'm jealous.
3. After getting recycled baby food all over me, pulling out mystery gunk from the drain is no big deal. Yeah, I'm cool.
4. I've yet to master a balance between work, church, myself, and my family. Anyone have any answers?
5. No matter how bad your day, when your kid gives you a lopsided grin and grabs at your face when you see him and pick him up, life is good. As my older sister would say, big cheesy sandwich.
6. Life is happier in the spring and summer. New life blooming is contagious.
7. An entire nights sleep, uninterrupted, is priceless.
8. It seems that there is always going to be something to look forward to, but enjoying the here and right now is also a good thing to take part in.
9. There is nothing like fresh, homemade salsa. Yummy.
10. Life is good.
I know. Surprising knowledge. Take it for what it is worth, and remember to smile.
12.5.10
Explosion at 36,000 feet
The title is slightly misleading. This isn't about an action/adventure flick, although there is some action and adventure, both of which were quite dirty.
This last week we traveled to Laramie to witness one of life's great events, a UW graduation. Lisa's youngest sister, Erica, was graduating and most of her family was going to be in attendance. Thanks to the recent addition to our family, we were deemed worthy of an invitation to the occasion. The real action/adventure occurred as we were high over the heartland of America, traveling from Newark (hidden jewel of the East) to Denver. His royal fatness was busy being as cute as normal when suddenly an aroma akin to the south end of a north bound skunk was detected wafting through the cabin. Upon further review, the stench was found to be coming from Bobo's hinder parts. Yeah.
I drew the short straw and got to wedge myself into the bathroom and change stinky pants. That is when the main action/adventure took place. Out the back. Up the front. Out the sides. Greenish/brownish/yellow sludge oozing from places that shouldn't be oozing. All over. Literally. Awesome. 45 minutes later, he was clean, I was dirty and we managed to squeeze out of the bathroom and back into our seats. Adventure over for the time being. Unfortunately, little fat got a little sick and shot liquid gross out of both ends all weekend long.
The trip was a success. We got to see family and friends and enjoy the wonderfulness that is Wyoming. And more importantly, on a scale of 1 to 10 in the traveling department, Capo got a solid 9.5 out of 10, being docked points solely for the incident mentioned above. Really though, how can you hold such disgustingness against a face like this?
And just because he's styling, here's the little flirt again.
This last week we traveled to Laramie to witness one of life's great events, a UW graduation. Lisa's youngest sister, Erica, was graduating and most of her family was going to be in attendance. Thanks to the recent addition to our family, we were deemed worthy of an invitation to the occasion. The real action/adventure occurred as we were high over the heartland of America, traveling from Newark (hidden jewel of the East) to Denver. His royal fatness was busy being as cute as normal when suddenly an aroma akin to the south end of a north bound skunk was detected wafting through the cabin. Upon further review, the stench was found to be coming from Bobo's hinder parts. Yeah.
I drew the short straw and got to wedge myself into the bathroom and change stinky pants. That is when the main action/adventure took place. Out the back. Up the front. Out the sides. Greenish/brownish/yellow sludge oozing from places that shouldn't be oozing. All over. Literally. Awesome. 45 minutes later, he was clean, I was dirty and we managed to squeeze out of the bathroom and back into our seats. Adventure over for the time being. Unfortunately, little fat got a little sick and shot liquid gross out of both ends all weekend long.
The trip was a success. We got to see family and friends and enjoy the wonderfulness that is Wyoming. And more importantly, on a scale of 1 to 10 in the traveling department, Capo got a solid 9.5 out of 10, being docked points solely for the incident mentioned above. Really though, how can you hold such disgustingness against a face like this?
And just because he's styling, here's the little flirt again.
14.4.10
2.4.10
ci si va avanti
I sometimes feel that in order to post something on my blog, something special or amazing needs to happen. It's a good thing that my life is fairly extraordinary and has allowed me to post so many amazing things up until now. I actually do think that my life is rather ordinary and am thankful for that. I am grateful for the ordinary boringness of daily life. I find that I do better with a schedule and although I do sometimes get tired of the same old routine of work, family, church and little bit of other things thrown in there for some added spice, I like it. It's like one of your favorite dishes. There's a reason you eat it a lot, that's because it tastes good. That is how life has been lately. Just good routine. Going to work, which has been busy because I took a new job with lots of new responsibility, but that has been challenging and new and even fun. Church is also good, Lisa and I have been serving in the same callings for the last three years, which is the longest either of us had ever served in one calling. It has been good for the both of us and forced us (or maybe given us the opportunity) to stretch some to serve in those callings. Family life has been quite great lately. I think that I'm naturally a homebody and just like to be at home, so throw in my wonderful, amazingly talented and gorgeous wife and a little bundle of smiles, diapers, and puke, and it makes it more difficult to want to go and do anything else. Life is good. Boring and normal is great. Nice.
4.3.10
23.2.10
lessons learned & gratitude
It's been two weeks since we got the call to pick up our little guy. Oh, how much our life has changed in that time. For starters, my TV viewing has drastically declined, while my baby viewing has increased exponentially. I'd also like to think that as a fledgling father of uncertain duration, I have added a few new abilities to my meager skill set. Those of you much more versed in the child raising process might not even give a second thought to some of my recently accrued knowledge, but I find it valuable for the time being.
Lesson #1: Wake a sleeping baby only at your peril, especially from a deep sleep. This ranks up there on a badness scale of actually believing your wife when you ask what is wrong and she says, "nothing."
Lesson #2: A baby can take a simple thing, such as milk and turn it into a monstrously disgusting tidal wave of green sludge that explodes from the diaper to cling to every little fold of baby skin. If you smell something funny, hand the baby off.
Lesson #3: The baby sleeps when you are awake and wants to be awake when you want to sleep. I had heard this for a long time, but it is one of those cases where the reality of it is a lot harder than the theory.
Lesson #4: I have a wife? I know that there is another person that lives in our house and helps to take care of the baby, but our interaction doesn't go to much beyond that. How do you find that balance between, baby, husband/wife, work, personal time? Or are husband/wife and personal time a thing of the past at this point?
Lesson #5: The amount of projectile vomiting is proportional to the number of burp clothes and items of clean clothing available to the baby. If one burp cloth is within reach and everything else is in the laundry, then the baby will produce enough regurgitated formula to cover approximately half of a football field. Truly one of science's many mysteries.
My other thoughts right now run towards gratitude and humility. We have seen an amazing outpouring of love from so many people it is truly amazing. From people at church feeding us for more than a week, to people at work donating money to help as well as food and gift cards. I've never been the recipient of service like this, and it has been surreal. We are surrounded by ministering angels.
The whole process is somewhat frustrating for me in that I have no control whatsoever over the situation and I struggle with that. I do however take great comfort and strength from all the prayers offered on our (and more importantly the little guy's) behalf. Thank you and I would hope that you would continue to keep us in your prayers.
11.2.10
and then there were three.......and no sleep
Yesterday was quite the day. I was minding my own business, working diligently in my office, when my phone rang. I'm making this sound quite ominous aren't I? It was foster care calling and they said that they had a four week old boy coming into care either that night or the following day and wanted to know if we would be willing to take him. After extracting my heart from my throat I said I'd call my wife and call them right back. This was actually our second call, from foster care. About a month ago we got a call asking us to take in two children and neither of us felt good about it, so we said no. As we talked on the phone yesterday, we both felt pretty good about everything, we said a little prayer over the phone, still felt good, so we decided to take the plunge. I called back, said yes, we'd love to take the little grunt in, what was the plan? The plan was they were still out looking for him and that they would let us know as soon as they could whether it would be the same day or the next for pick-up (sounds like a pizza delivery). At about 4pm, I got the call saying the baby was in and that they closed at 5pm so we needed to get going to pick him up. Both Lisa and I ran home, pulled out the car seat that we had purchased about two months ago and Lisa drove to the drop-off (again, sounds so un-baby like) while I fiddled around in the back seat trying to become smarter than the car seat (more difficult than you might think...maybe not for those of you who know me well). The pick-up was the best part, it was like curb side to go. I called when we were about ten minutes away and said we'd be there right at 5pm. The caseworker said she would come downstairs with the baby and meet us as we drove up. We drove up to the curb, she walked out with a tiny little baby
Here's the captain
and a couple of garbage bags of formula, clothes and diapers, and we were off, both of us wondering how that had just happened. To make a long story short, we spent the rest of the evening (and most of the night) staring at this strange little being that has entered into our home at least for a few weeks.
Is this for real?!?!
Very strange. But also very good. We'll call him the captain, since he is already in charge of everything and running our lives. I think that we'd gladly keep him forever, but we'll see what happens. Life is good, if a little more tiring than it was a day ago.
Lisa has a new target for her camera, Captain beware.
1.2.10
Shallow Chris
While we were out and about in the bubble for the celebration of the coming together of two families through wedded bliss this last Christmas, I went and watched Avatar in 3D with my dad, brother, brother-in-law and nephews. We thought it was great. What an amazing science fiction adventure on another planet with great effects and technology to make it all work. I liked it so much that when we got back to Rochacha, I took Lisa. She even liked it. Recently, I have seen several posts and reviews slamming the show for it's anti-American rhetoric. It mostly had to do with portraying the awful soldiers who embodied the death and destruction of their home planet earth as American Marines. I was a little confused and felt a little dumb maybe, because to be honest with you, that thought never crossed my mind. It is quite possible that I'm a little simple in that I don't think too deeply, especially when entertainment is involved. If there are hidden agendas and messages, they are lost on me, because as my wife could tell you, if you don't club me over the head with what you want me to know, it just won't sink in.
This also made me think of The Golden Compass that came out about a year or so ago and how it caused an uproar among the conservative Christian groups because the author of the books upon which the movie is based is a professed atheist and wants nothing more than to spread his vile message of we are all alone-ism, there is no god belief (according to those groups). I have two thoughts about this, the first being, I read the books and really liked them. I never got any whiff of anti-God feelings in the books at all. The basic story line is good vs. evil, with the evil appearing mostly in the form or the Magisterium, or church. That means he hates god and wants us all to feel the same way? Does that mean that books like The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons are awful and fuel for the atheist bandwagon because the tend to put the Catholic church in a bad light? I don't think so. Again, this could be another case of Chris being too shallow to pick up on those subtle clues that don't just jump right out and announce themselves with banners and neon lights. So the second thought I had was, OK, if he has an agenda to spread his message of science over religion....who cares? I spent two years working to bring religion to people and don't I believe that others are free to act according to their beliefs and even try and convert others to their beliefs? If you don't want to watch it/read it, don't. When people didn't want to listen to me in Italy, they didn't. Fairly simple.
Since I am confessing my simpleness and some of the things that I have enjoyed entertainment wise, I guess I should lay it out there that I have read a series of books involving dark evil magic, full of witches and wizards and even children. I think the most atrocious thing though is that the children even performed magic. I know. Horrendous. But even worse......I liked them. Maybe there's a support group for that. Has anyone heard of HPA? Harry Potter Anonymous?
The point of all of this silliness is that I think you find what you looking for. If you are looking to be offended, you will be. If you are looking for the bad, you'll find it. That is all.
Is this how I come across???
This also made me think of The Golden Compass that came out about a year or so ago and how it caused an uproar among the conservative Christian groups because the author of the books upon which the movie is based is a professed atheist and wants nothing more than to spread his vile message of we are all alone-ism, there is no god belief (according to those groups). I have two thoughts about this, the first being, I read the books and really liked them. I never got any whiff of anti-God feelings in the books at all. The basic story line is good vs. evil, with the evil appearing mostly in the form or the Magisterium, or church. That means he hates god and wants us all to feel the same way? Does that mean that books like The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons are awful and fuel for the atheist bandwagon because the tend to put the Catholic church in a bad light? I don't think so. Again, this could be another case of Chris being too shallow to pick up on those subtle clues that don't just jump right out and announce themselves with banners and neon lights. So the second thought I had was, OK, if he has an agenda to spread his message of science over religion....who cares? I spent two years working to bring religion to people and don't I believe that others are free to act according to their beliefs and even try and convert others to their beliefs? If you don't want to watch it/read it, don't. When people didn't want to listen to me in Italy, they didn't. Fairly simple.
Since I am confessing my simpleness and some of the things that I have enjoyed entertainment wise, I guess I should lay it out there that I have read a series of books involving dark evil magic, full of witches and wizards and even children. I think the most atrocious thing though is that the children even performed magic. I know. Horrendous. But even worse......I liked them. Maybe there's a support group for that. Has anyone heard of HPA? Harry Potter Anonymous?
The point of all of this silliness is that I think you find what you looking for. If you are looking to be offended, you will be. If you are looking for the bad, you'll find it. That is all.
3.1.10
the famcation...
The happy new couple
We took a big break over Christmas to travel and be with family. It was fun, but we are in desperate need of a vacation from our vacation. We flew into the middle of the bubble and spent three days running around like crazy getting ready for Katie's wedding.
Temple Square
We did get the chance to visit with family and try and get to know our new brother-in-law, Jameson amidst the madness of pre-wedding hoopla and craziness. Anyway, they got married. Most importantly, centerpieces were made, food and flowers came together and there was dancing. Yeah.
The whole gang
After the wedding, our traveling adventure took us to the great state of Wyoming. It was good to be back in the homeland, where it's so incredibly cold in the winter that it makes your boogers (or dried nasal mucus according to wikipedia) freeze the instant you step outside. We went up with the entire Faerber family to Louis Lake and stayed in the cabins for a few days over Christmas.
Penelope, crazy sledder
It got even colder when we got up to 9000 feet, but we had lots of fun in the form of eating, sledding, eating, snow-mobiling, eating, reading, talking, snow-shoeing, eating, cutting down 30 foot Christmas trees and eating. We had fun.
Dutch oven turkey and stuffing in sub-zero weather
2.12.09
il Giorno di Ringraziamento
We had a great turkey day. As always, Lisa did a fabulous job of documenting the occasion. We had family come (it's great to have family within driving distance) and got to enjoy a good weekend of eating and relaxing. I think that is almost the perfect combination, food and relaxation. While everyone was taking it easy, I got to sneak away and fish in the rain on Irondequoit Creek, it was great. Here and here are some of the great recipes we tried this round of bird eating. Hope you all had a good one.
18.11.09
La pazienza รจ la virtรน dei forti
Now that we have done everything we can for foster care, it's out of our hands. I find myself struggling with this. There is nothing for me to do, so it has become a game of waiting. I sat staring at my cell phone today for a good 20 minutes, willing it to ring. It didn't work. I am in dire need of patience. Let me know if you find any.
15.11.09
avanti . . . sempre avanti
It seems that in spite of my best efforts, life continues to go forward. We have been fairly busy with work and church and getting ready for certification the last few weeks. We finally had our last home study done on the best day of all, this last Friday the 13th. Good thing neither of us suffer from triskaidekaphobia. Here is the nursery.
We had our annual service auction in the branch on Saturday. Food was eaten, fun was had. In that food and fun debauchery, we also managed to provide enough food for at least 15 families this coming Thanksgiving. I managed to score a photo shoot from a friend, Scott Kipphut (check out his Facebook site), and donated a five course Italian feast to be cooked by yours truly. The great part is that I would have cooked it anyway, and now I get to do it with friends.
Lisa has quite a bit going on with the stake young women. With super Saturdays, young women in excellence and other things, I sometimes get to see her, if I go to young women's activities. Life goes on. It is good. Even though it seems as if our life tends towards the non-stop cool and not-so-cool action, we have fun. What can I say. As fall fades slowly and gradually into winter, here are my words of wisdom for the day. Don't eat yellow snow.
We had our annual service auction in the branch on Saturday. Food was eaten, fun was had. In that food and fun debauchery, we also managed to provide enough food for at least 15 families this coming Thanksgiving. I managed to score a photo shoot from a friend, Scott Kipphut (check out his Facebook site), and donated a five course Italian feast to be cooked by yours truly. The great part is that I would have cooked it anyway, and now I get to do it with friends.
Lisa has quite a bit going on with the stake young women. With super Saturdays, young women in excellence and other things, I sometimes get to see her, if I go to young women's activities. Life goes on. It is good. Even though it seems as if our life tends towards the non-stop cool and not-so-cool action, we have fun. What can I say. As fall fades slowly and gradually into winter, here are my words of wisdom for the day. Don't eat yellow snow.
26.10.09
The Happening
Don't let the title fool you, the trees have not staged a full-scale revolt in the Rochester area by releasing harmful toxins into the air and overriding man's natural survival instinct. Sorry for the spoiler. The trees actually have been changing, however in a more benign fashion.
A little over a week ago, Lisa and I voyaged through the beautiful, bucolic setting of western New York and eastern Pennsylvania on our way to the big city. The leaves were pretty, like this one, except that there were lots of them.
While we were in the city, we were able to engage in two of our favorite activities. Lisa got to shop and I got to eat. We are quite the team. We also met up for the day with Paige Hobby, Kimball's wife, who was visiting her family in western Canada (I'm a little vague on exactly where, so I'll say Calgary) and some cousins in NYC. We laughed a lot. Made fun of Kimball a lot, and wished that he was there to hear us making fun of him.
I'm the big bald one in the middle.
I've reached the tipping point of more hair on my face than on my head. I wonder if there's a support group for that? I like this group's motto, "If you can see skin, you're in!" I digress. I think we walked about 30 miles in one day, and it was on Dan speed (that was Kimball's cousin's husband, who was gracious enough to act as tour guide all over the city, wearing his hardcore Vibram shoes, that propelled him at slightly less than race car speed down the sidewalks) but that was good, because it helped burn off the 10,000 calories that I consumed during the day. Fun times were had by all, as we cruised through central park, Washington Square Park and too many stores to name. Thanks Paige for traveling more than 10,000 miles to see us. Wow. I used 10,000 twice (now three times) in a couple of lines. One was hyperbole, the other was me being a dork to look up how far it was from Sydney to Calgary to NYC. I make my wife proud.
In other news, Wyoming is 4-3. I think they'll knock off either Utah, BYU, or TCU. Here's to hoping it's BYU. That is all.
5.10.09
A Packer Conference Weekend
Lisa and I had been looking forward to this past weekend for quite a while. I used to love conference weekend just for conference, but now I love it because it also means a weekend off from our typical Sunday duties. It's like a vacation from church, but without missing church. We should have conference more often. That's what I say.
On Saturday we were driving around in the pastoral (that one is for you Kimball) Finger Lakes area of western New York enjoying the brilliant blue sky and the beginning of changing leaves. The very definition of relaxation. It wasn't until we got home that Lisa put the weekend (at least up until that point) in perspective.
You see, we had gone dancing the night before at a country western bar with some friends, because we knew one of the members of the band and wanted to go and support. On Saturday as we traveled along the scenic Seneca Lake, one of my motives was to visit a few of the many wineries on the lake. This one is our favorite. We've gone there the last couple of years to get some of the best grape juice (and yes I do mean grape juice and not "grape juice") that I've ever had. While on this scenic tour, we also got some pumpkins, homemade candies, cheese curds, fabric for some quilting projects and some wine.
After our adventurous day, Lisa made the comment that I had treated her to a first-rate conference weekend so far. On Friday we went dancing at a bar and Saturday we spent part of the day at wineries and bought some wine. What a great way to prepare for spiritual feasting. When put that way, I think it paints a not so flattering picture of me and what I put my wife through, although to be honest she was a willing participant. Truth be told, if given the chance to redeem myself, I'd probably do it all over again.
And just so you don't think too many bad thoughts about me, I did buy the wine solely for cooking.
I promise.
On Saturday we were driving around in the pastoral (that one is for you Kimball) Finger Lakes area of western New York enjoying the brilliant blue sky and the beginning of changing leaves. The very definition of relaxation. It wasn't until we got home that Lisa put the weekend (at least up until that point) in perspective.
You see, we had gone dancing the night before at a country western bar with some friends, because we knew one of the members of the band and wanted to go and support. On Saturday as we traveled along the scenic Seneca Lake, one of my motives was to visit a few of the many wineries on the lake. This one is our favorite. We've gone there the last couple of years to get some of the best grape juice (and yes I do mean grape juice and not "grape juice") that I've ever had. While on this scenic tour, we also got some pumpkins, homemade candies, cheese curds, fabric for some quilting projects and some wine.
After our adventurous day, Lisa made the comment that I had treated her to a first-rate conference weekend so far. On Friday we went dancing at a bar and Saturday we spent part of the day at wineries and bought some wine. What a great way to prepare for spiritual feasting. When put that way, I think it paints a not so flattering picture of me and what I put my wife through, although to be honest she was a willing participant. Truth be told, if given the chance to redeem myself, I'd probably do it all over again.
And just so you don't think too many bad thoughts about me, I did buy the wine solely for cooking.
I promise.
21.9.09
My Life
We bought a crib. It is already set up. We have no idea if/when we will ever obtain some type of offspring to put in said crib. My hopes however, are high.
It was a good weekend of sunny-ness and being outside and BBQing. We served in the temple Saturday morning and then served as chef and chef-ess at some friends' laid-back reception. We cook a mean hamburger and hotdog. Sunday was equally as beautiful. Leaves starting to change. Bright blue sky. Church meetings at the Hill Cumorah. Then even more BBQ goodness. White hots. Yum.
Naps were taken, relaxation occurred. Life is good.
It was a good weekend of sunny-ness and being outside and BBQing. We served in the temple Saturday morning and then served as chef and chef-ess at some friends' laid-back reception. We cook a mean hamburger and hotdog. Sunday was equally as beautiful. Leaves starting to change. Bright blue sky. Church meetings at the Hill Cumorah. Then even more BBQ goodness. White hots. Yum.
Naps were taken, relaxation occurred. Life is good.
8.9.09
What I did this summer
Lisa has been giving me grief for not writing anything for a couple of months, and my excuse has been that it's summer, I'm busy doing things that I will then be able to write about for the rest of the year. So, to back that up, and in honor of kids everywhere returning to school and reporting on what they did for the summer, here goes.
We worked over the kitchen, see Lisa's post here, because I'm too lazy to write one myself. We refinished cabinets, fixed some walls, moved appliances, painted, put up wallpaper, refinished light fixtures, put in a new light fixture and replaced old blinds. It ended up looking good, and was more work than I thought it would be.
We went to Cape Cod, but you already knew that, because that is the one thing that I did post about. It was fun.
We went camping with 20 teenage girls in the Adirondacks and called it Young Women's High Adventure/Drama. I have learned that if you put that many teenage girls together for a long enough time period, drama is a natural consequence. It's kind of like when you mix two hydrogens with one oxygen, you get water. Maybe I could write an equation representing this phenomena and patent it. Again, because I'm too lazy, here is Lisa's version of the events, with lots of nice pictures. It was a fun time, I got to fish and be outside in the mountains (hills) of the Adirondacks. The day we went on our long hike (10 miles) our big group splintered into three smaller groups of slow, medium and fast paced. Lisa stuck with the slow group, not because she is slow, but to encourage and push them on. I went with fast group, which consisted of three girls who were all runners. They wanted to run. The whole way. Up the the mountain. I made it to the top with them, but I could hardly walk the next day, and it took me a good week to be back to normal. What happened to the days of playing basketball for five hours and getting up the next day and doing it again?!
We made a quick trip to Utah for my grandma's memorial service. It was good to be able to see lots of family, especially on my dad's side, that I hadn't seen in 15 years, and some for even longer. It was a nice, simple service. I also got to meet and try and intimidate Katie's boyfriend Jameson. I know what you're thinking. Very intimidating. It looks like he will be a permanent addition to the family, so I was mostly nice. We had a lot of fun with my whole family together, which doesn't happen too often as we are all spread out pretty good. I also discovered on this trip why red eye flights are cheaper. They're awful. We left SLC at 1am going to Atlanta. Airlines already pack you in like sardines, and I'm not the smallest sardine in the can, so trying to catch a few minutes sleep was no small accomplishment. We finally got back to Rochester about noon and promptly crashed for the next six hours. Red eye flights = yuck. Again, look at Lisa's post.
We started the mandatory training courses (30 hours) to become foster/adoptive parents in New York State. It has been an interesting journey, leading up to the point of even starting this process, and then in the classes as well. The classes have generated lots of good fodder for many discussions in the Packer home as we work through wanting children, not being able to have any right now, and how we are going about trying to rectify that. We should be certified by the end of this month, so there are possible big changes coming to our home.
I've read lots of books this summer, gone on walks with my wife, tied flies for the upcoming fall fishing season, gone to baseball games, and spent a lot of time at work and at church, or church related functions. We've had a lot of BBQ, planted some new flowers and tried to get the grass to grow better under the maple trees. I'm open to suggestions on that last one.
It has been a satisfying summer, although I must admit that I can't believe that it is already gone. But that's OK, because the greatest season is now upon us. College Football Season (also known by many as fall). Besides football, I'm also excited for fall leaves/scenery/food. It's going to be a really busy fall for us, with a plethora of church activities awaiting, but we are looking forward to a trip to NYC the third weekend of October, and then maybe some family visiting for Thanksgiving, before we head back to the land of promise for the holidays. Lest there be any confusion as to where the land of promise is (although I'm not sure how anyone could mix this up), it's Wyoming.
We worked over the kitchen, see Lisa's post here, because I'm too lazy to write one myself. We refinished cabinets, fixed some walls, moved appliances, painted, put up wallpaper, refinished light fixtures, put in a new light fixture and replaced old blinds. It ended up looking good, and was more work than I thought it would be.
We went to Cape Cod, but you already knew that, because that is the one thing that I did post about. It was fun.
We went camping with 20 teenage girls in the Adirondacks and called it Young Women's High Adventure/Drama. I have learned that if you put that many teenage girls together for a long enough time period, drama is a natural consequence. It's kind of like when you mix two hydrogens with one oxygen, you get water. Maybe I could write an equation representing this phenomena and patent it. Again, because I'm too lazy, here is Lisa's version of the events, with lots of nice pictures. It was a fun time, I got to fish and be outside in the mountains (hills) of the Adirondacks. The day we went on our long hike (10 miles) our big group splintered into three smaller groups of slow, medium and fast paced. Lisa stuck with the slow group, not because she is slow, but to encourage and push them on. I went with fast group, which consisted of three girls who were all runners. They wanted to run. The whole way. Up the the mountain. I made it to the top with them, but I could hardly walk the next day, and it took me a good week to be back to normal. What happened to the days of playing basketball for five hours and getting up the next day and doing it again?!
We made a quick trip to Utah for my grandma's memorial service. It was good to be able to see lots of family, especially on my dad's side, that I hadn't seen in 15 years, and some for even longer. It was a nice, simple service. I also got to meet and try and intimidate Katie's boyfriend Jameson. I know what you're thinking. Very intimidating. It looks like he will be a permanent addition to the family, so I was mostly nice. We had a lot of fun with my whole family together, which doesn't happen too often as we are all spread out pretty good. I also discovered on this trip why red eye flights are cheaper. They're awful. We left SLC at 1am going to Atlanta. Airlines already pack you in like sardines, and I'm not the smallest sardine in the can, so trying to catch a few minutes sleep was no small accomplishment. We finally got back to Rochester about noon and promptly crashed for the next six hours. Red eye flights = yuck. Again, look at Lisa's post.
We started the mandatory training courses (30 hours) to become foster/adoptive parents in New York State. It has been an interesting journey, leading up to the point of even starting this process, and then in the classes as well. The classes have generated lots of good fodder for many discussions in the Packer home as we work through wanting children, not being able to have any right now, and how we are going about trying to rectify that. We should be certified by the end of this month, so there are possible big changes coming to our home.
I've read lots of books this summer, gone on walks with my wife, tied flies for the upcoming fall fishing season, gone to baseball games, and spent a lot of time at work and at church, or church related functions. We've had a lot of BBQ, planted some new flowers and tried to get the grass to grow better under the maple trees. I'm open to suggestions on that last one.
It has been a satisfying summer, although I must admit that I can't believe that it is already gone. But that's OK, because the greatest season is now upon us. College Football Season (also known by many as fall). Besides football, I'm also excited for fall leaves/scenery/food. It's going to be a really busy fall for us, with a plethora of church activities awaiting, but we are looking forward to a trip to NYC the third weekend of October, and then maybe some family visiting for Thanksgiving, before we head back to the land of promise for the holidays. Lest there be any confusion as to where the land of promise is (although I'm not sure how anyone could mix this up), it's Wyoming.
7.7.09
Cape Cod
We were able to take off a few days and forget life and have an actual vacation. We camped on Cape Cod, at Paine's Campground. Nice. Quiet. Peaceful. Loved it. We were able to do lots of sightseeing, relaxing, and soaking in the beauty of the area. We rode our bikes around, went to the beach,
and made tinfoil dinners the first day. Then on the fourth, we saw an old light house,
whales, interesting people, walked in the Provincetown Bay and found shells, ate incredible fish and chips and watched fireworks from the beach.
On the fifth, we mostly just relaxed and laid on the beach, played in the water, saw some seals, caught fish out of the ocean, and watched a picture perfect sunset. The only bad part of the whole trip was that unfortunately, we had to come home.
We now have to get back to the normal flow of life. We met with the home finding service for foster care/adoption in Monroe County last week, and we start with our mandatory classes this week. We have ten weeks of classes and lots of paperwork before we can be certified, so we will see what happens. It is exciting to think of having a child in our home by the end of this year. Maybe that is pushing it a little bit, but we'll have faith. Life is good.
Cahoon Hollow Beach
Chris & Lisa on the beach at Cahoon Hollow
Lisa walking along the beach at Cahoon Hollow
and made tinfoil dinners the first day. Then on the fourth, we saw an old light house,
Lisa at the Cape Cod Light
whales, interesting people, walked in the Provincetown Bay and found shells, ate incredible fish and chips and watched fireworks from the beach.
Chris in the bay at Provincetown
Looking out over the bay at Provincetown
Fireworks from the beach - life is tough
On the fifth, we mostly just relaxed and laid on the beach, played in the water, saw some seals, caught fish out of the ocean, and watched a picture perfect sunset. The only bad part of the whole trip was that unfortunately, we had to come home.
Chris fishing in the bay at Wellfleet
Sunset from the bay at Wellfleet
We now have to get back to the normal flow of life. We met with the home finding service for foster care/adoption in Monroe County last week, and we start with our mandatory classes this week. We have ten weeks of classes and lots of paperwork before we can be certified, so we will see what happens. It is exciting to think of having a child in our home by the end of this year. Maybe that is pushing it a little bit, but we'll have faith. Life is good.
Sunset through the grass at Wellfleet
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