So yesterday was Sunday and the Raders met us at Saint Andrews, the church we attend, and as tradition states we headed over to Vinny's New York Pizza after mass. We had our forty minute meal because the kids have a strict 7:30 PM bedtime, and then Marc and I had what has become another tradition, the weekly trip to either Fry's, so Marc can get goodies and lunch money for his kids, or Wal-Mart, so I can get the wares my family goes through in a week. As we were talking I couldn't help but think about fate and how it has played out in my life.
If I had not been such a turd in high school, I would have never met my wonderful wife Mia. We would never have had our two beautiful boys, Jonathan and Dillon. In the same hand if Mia's dad had taken a job on the east coast as was one of the plans, Mia would have never gone to high school I met her in.
How does this all relate to Marc and I and out trips to Wal-Mart or Frys? Well, if I had not gotten out of the Army when I did and Mia had not branched Military Intelligence, we never would have moved to Sierra Vista Arizona. If I had not been looking for apartments that take pets, thank to our horse of a Golden Retriever, Einstein, we would have never ended up in Garden Plaza Apartments, and had I not issues with a printer, my family would have never met the Raders, our upstairs neighbors at the apartments. To add to that, if the Raders house had been finished on time they would have moved out of the apartments before we had a chance to meet them.
Looking at all of these variables I find it hard to believe that fate does not play a part in our lives. I have many things to be thankful for this holiday season, and I will chalk a thank you up to fate, it has made all the difference in my life.
Incidentally, Marc and I decided that the first time he was able to claim us as dependents on his taxes was after we all ate Vinny's pizza on the basketball court in the apartment complex.
Monday, November 28, 2005
We had Thanksgiving at the Rader's house again (check out Marcs blog by the way), this has become a tradition that has saved us hundreds of dollars in Thanksgiving food costs. Marc and Mary claim that they should claim us as dependants on their tax forms (we secretly agree). I think that all Americans should be as awesome as the Rader's in their quest to adopt a slodier on Thanksgiving (they incidentally adopt a soldier,Mia, and her whole family).
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Now you can see them, the two teeth that have been so elusive. This was one of those rare times when Dillon decided to show us his teeth for the camera. We are not one hundred percent sure, but we think he is now working on cutting the top two teeth. Dillon has told us in secret that he want to be gnawing on beef jerky by Christmas and that his teethare the only thing holding him back.
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Sunday, October 30, 2005
So all, we can not see it in this picture or in real life, but we can feel it, Dillon's got his first tooth!
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My son showing me his micro! (For all that are interested, Pure Pwnage (intentional mispelling) a site dedicated to mocking the life of a pro gamer.)
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Here's Jonathan iand Dillon in their Halloween Cosutmes. We had Fall Extravaganza at Mia's work on Friday so they got to wear their costumes early. We got the Tigger costume before they were born, and my mom just sent us the pumpkin outfit a couple of days before.
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Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Monday, September 26, 2005
Update Time
Hey all, I am taking a quick break from my homework to update the blog. I am worried that people are going to thnk it is a dead blog unless I update.
Well, school is going well, I am carrying a (very) full load, but I am still doing well. Right now I am on the path to a 4.0 this semester. I have been able to get a lot done in the classes where I need to work the most.
The kids are growing like weeds, they are sitting up pretty well on their own in their booster seats and they are both excited about their exersaucers. We had to run up to Tucson to buy a new exesaucer this weekend, and I must say I am impressed.
I don't think that the toys we had when we were kids were as complex as some of these things. One of the exersaucers had a swing around seat and a desk in the middle, unbelievable.
Mia is doing awesome at work, I can't tell you how many people are constantly telling me that she is amazing at her job.
We are all doing well, and we can't wait to visit everyone.
Well, school is going well, I am carrying a (very) full load, but I am still doing well. Right now I am on the path to a 4.0 this semester. I have been able to get a lot done in the classes where I need to work the most.
The kids are growing like weeds, they are sitting up pretty well on their own in their booster seats and they are both excited about their exersaucers. We had to run up to Tucson to buy a new exesaucer this weekend, and I must say I am impressed.
I don't think that the toys we had when we were kids were as complex as some of these things. One of the exersaucers had a swing around seat and a desk in the middle, unbelievable.
Mia is doing awesome at work, I can't tell you how many people are constantly telling me that she is amazing at her job.
We are all doing well, and we can't wait to visit everyone.
Sunday, August 28, 2005
"You want me to do what with what?!?!?!?!"
There it is ladies and gentlemen, the first headshed meeting between these two great minds. I think they were discussing the quantum heory and how it applies to the DJ Mixing table on their exersaucer.
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I just thought this picture of Dillon needed to be posted. If you can't tell, those are some rattle slippers on his feet. I can't tell if he looks obscenely cute or obscenely ridiculous, I think I will err on the side of cute!
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I apologize!
Sorry all, I hav ebeen extremely busy lately, I have an awesome wife who has helped push me back into school.
Right now I am taking 16 credits through 5 classes and in the middle of October that will jump to 20 credit and 6 classes, so I have not had time to contribute to the blogosphere as much as I would like to otherwise.
Right now I am taking 16 credits through 5 classes and in the middle of October that will jump to 20 credit and 6 classes, so I have not had time to contribute to the blogosphere as much as I would like to otherwise.
Friday, August 05, 2005
Three Months!
Well, it's official all, Mia and I have now kept two living human beings alive for three months. It's not so much me, I think if I were to raise our kids, they would be grunting, and scratching themselves all the time, but since Mia is the good looks and the genius behind this operation, we seem to be doing very well.
So, the question will be begged now, has it gotten easier over the past three months?
Well, yes and no, you see right now, the boys are going through their three month growth spurt, so they are not sleeping through the night, they are eating like horses, and they have started the incredible drooling that comes with the stage of teething I did not know even existed, "preeteething".
They are however getting easier to predict and understand. When it is time to go to sleep for the night, they most certainly tell us. The crying begins about fifteen minute before bed time, and the general "upsetness" follows if we do not listen to them.
Jonathan is able to roll over, and watching him do that is amazing. I think it is also amazing how much he moves in his sleep. We will place him in the far top corner of the crib at the begining of the night, and by the end of the night he has moved himself all the way to the bottom opposite corner. Both he and Dillon are laughing now as many people has witnessed.
Dillon has become so much more animated since he has figured out his smile and how to laugh. He has put on a fair amount of weight and he has started to fine tune the movements he needs to turn over. He is excelling every day in the exersaucer, more and more he is hitting the keys to light up the key boards with one hit.
I asm just amazed at the daily changes in the boys, and I can't wait to see more.
So, the question will be begged now, has it gotten easier over the past three months?
Well, yes and no, you see right now, the boys are going through their three month growth spurt, so they are not sleeping through the night, they are eating like horses, and they have started the incredible drooling that comes with the stage of teething I did not know even existed, "preeteething".
They are however getting easier to predict and understand. When it is time to go to sleep for the night, they most certainly tell us. The crying begins about fifteen minute before bed time, and the general "upsetness" follows if we do not listen to them.
Jonathan is able to roll over, and watching him do that is amazing. I think it is also amazing how much he moves in his sleep. We will place him in the far top corner of the crib at the begining of the night, and by the end of the night he has moved himself all the way to the bottom opposite corner. Both he and Dillon are laughing now as many people has witnessed.
Dillon has become so much more animated since he has figured out his smile and how to laugh. He has put on a fair amount of weight and he has started to fine tune the movements he needs to turn over. He is excelling every day in the exersaucer, more and more he is hitting the keys to light up the key boards with one hit.
I asm just amazed at the daily changes in the boys, and I can't wait to see more.
This was from our last trip down to the San Pedro river. I think looking at it and looking at the other one from the Sna Pedro Brings a sense of deja vu.
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Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Here is our newest plant, the Plumeria we got from a friend from Hawaii. This little thing has grown so much it is funny, all the leaves are new.
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Here is a picture of the buys on our very short trip to the San Pedro River, the rains started moments after we snapped this picture so the trip was cut short.
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Jonathan is trying to figure out the exersaucer, he is doing a good job at it, he can hit the buttons that light up the keyboard.
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Here is a picture of Dillon in the Exersaucer he seems to really like watching all the lights light up.
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This is a Picture from about the top of Carr Peak looking down onto Fort Huachuca and Sierra Vista.
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Thursday, July 21, 2005
Thank you Linda
Well, it was the first day with Linda, the kid's grandmother, not here to take care of them after she had been here almost a week. It was very helpful to have her around the house since she wanted to do everything in the line of taking care of the kids, and would not let me do much.
It was very nice to get a small vacation from taking care of the kids while she was down here, but after today I realize how much I really like to take care of my boys. Today was a little rough to start out, I had all four of my number two molars ( the ones in the way back) yanked out yesterday, so I would have liked to take the prescription pain medicine, but the best I could do was 600 mg of Ibuprofin, I had to stay alert for the boys.
About ten in the morning I was about to cry myself because the kids did not want to nap, but somehow, right when I was ready to go outside to get a break, they both just fell asleep, and the same in the afternoon. I realized then that my kids just knew that I needed to sleep and they let me as they napped.
So, after today, I have to say, Linda, thank you for your help, it was greatly appreciated. I also want to go on the record and say, "MY BOYS FRICKIN ROCK!!!!"
It was very nice to get a small vacation from taking care of the kids while she was down here, but after today I realize how much I really like to take care of my boys. Today was a little rough to start out, I had all four of my number two molars ( the ones in the way back) yanked out yesterday, so I would have liked to take the prescription pain medicine, but the best I could do was 600 mg of Ibuprofin, I had to stay alert for the boys.
About ten in the morning I was about to cry myself because the kids did not want to nap, but somehow, right when I was ready to go outside to get a break, they both just fell asleep, and the same in the afternoon. I realized then that my kids just knew that I needed to sleep and they let me as they napped.
So, after today, I have to say, Linda, thank you for your help, it was greatly appreciated. I also want to go on the record and say, "MY BOYS FRICKIN ROCK!!!!"
He looks soooooo innocent as he sleeps. This is Jonathan, while Linda (their grandma) was visiting, she was able to give me a lot of free time to do useful stuff, like work on the website. We enjoyed her visit, and she was here to celebrate Mia's Birthday with us.
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It was Mia's Birthday on the 19th and I tried to make her a cake, but this was the second attempt, and I had enough of trying, so as lopsided and funny looking as it was, this was Mia's Birthday cake. She Said she loved it just because it tasted really yummy!
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Monday, July 18, 2005
Many Visitors! Many new Developments.
Since the kids were born a little over three months go, we have had many visitors.
When Dillon and Jonathan were about a three weeks old, we had Lupe, their grandfather (Mia's Dad) visit us. I was able to chuckle a little bit when I saw him with the kids. The man had once been a high ranking government employee, and to me had always seemed to be stern and stoic, but once the kids were in his arms, cooing and goo-gooing enused.
About a week later we drove up to Denver, a drive that normally took Mia and I twelve hours, and stopping only for gas became a two-day sixteen hour drive. We were able to stay with some friends in Albequerque and get a good nights (I think we can call it that) sleep.
We were in Denver for the boys baptism, which was done by my Dad, Deacon Ed, and took place on June 5th, 2005. Lindsey Brunkhardt and Steven Voss were made the godparents of our two kids, and after seeing the kids in their arms, we knew we had made the right choice. We had many family and friends come to the baptism and the open house at my parent place afterwards. It was a good time and it was fun to see all our friends from Denver.
We made it back to Sierra Vista a few days later and soon enough, as it happens because time flies, Mia had to go back to work.
After the first trying week of taking care of the kids alone, Linda, the kids grandmother (Mia's mom) came down to visit. So far after the first day I am enjoying this quite a bit. I have learned something about grandparents, they love to take the kids off my hands!!! It is nice, but a bit wierd. Mia told her mom that I needed a break, and to let me sleep in. This mornig, when I woke up at night, I was scared to say the least. The firts thing I did was to dash in the nursery and find that Linda had put the kids down for their morning naps!
So, with plans to come down in October-ish, hopefully, my parents will be visiting the kids as well, and I can't wait.
The kids have changed a lot in the past two months, and this is especially seen when we visit Doug and Julie and see heir new addition to their family, Katie. She was born almost a week ago, and I can not believe that at one point our kids were like that, she is so tiny and all she does is look at us with expressionless look. That is what infants do, but she is still a beautiful baby!
I am awestruck when I see the way our kids have changed, they are now smiling at us, trying to bat their rattles that hang down on their exercise mats, and staring, almost trying to suck in everything. They are (knock on wood) sleeping through the night, and ths is due in no small part to Mia being an amazing mother. She researched and re-researched, and reverified many different ways of getting kids to sleep. The first couple of days were rough, and I thought I couldn't take it, but now after about a month, we bathe the kids, feed them in their nursery and then lie them in their cribs (still awake mind you), and they fall asleep on their own after we leave the room. To top that off, they are sleeping thourhout the night, somewhere between eight and ten hours a night!
Things have changed, and are continuing to change in Mia and my lives, and we could not feel more blessed that they are.
When Dillon and Jonathan were about a three weeks old, we had Lupe, their grandfather (Mia's Dad) visit us. I was able to chuckle a little bit when I saw him with the kids. The man had once been a high ranking government employee, and to me had always seemed to be stern and stoic, but once the kids were in his arms, cooing and goo-gooing enused.
About a week later we drove up to Denver, a drive that normally took Mia and I twelve hours, and stopping only for gas became a two-day sixteen hour drive. We were able to stay with some friends in Albequerque and get a good nights (I think we can call it that) sleep.
We were in Denver for the boys baptism, which was done by my Dad, Deacon Ed, and took place on June 5th, 2005. Lindsey Brunkhardt and Steven Voss were made the godparents of our two kids, and after seeing the kids in their arms, we knew we had made the right choice. We had many family and friends come to the baptism and the open house at my parent place afterwards. It was a good time and it was fun to see all our friends from Denver.
We made it back to Sierra Vista a few days later and soon enough, as it happens because time flies, Mia had to go back to work.
After the first trying week of taking care of the kids alone, Linda, the kids grandmother (Mia's mom) came down to visit. So far after the first day I am enjoying this quite a bit. I have learned something about grandparents, they love to take the kids off my hands!!! It is nice, but a bit wierd. Mia told her mom that I needed a break, and to let me sleep in. This mornig, when I woke up at night, I was scared to say the least. The firts thing I did was to dash in the nursery and find that Linda had put the kids down for their morning naps!
So, with plans to come down in October-ish, hopefully, my parents will be visiting the kids as well, and I can't wait.
The kids have changed a lot in the past two months, and this is especially seen when we visit Doug and Julie and see heir new addition to their family, Katie. She was born almost a week ago, and I can not believe that at one point our kids were like that, she is so tiny and all she does is look at us with expressionless look. That is what infants do, but she is still a beautiful baby!
I am awestruck when I see the way our kids have changed, they are now smiling at us, trying to bat their rattles that hang down on their exercise mats, and staring, almost trying to suck in everything. They are (knock on wood) sleeping through the night, and ths is due in no small part to Mia being an amazing mother. She researched and re-researched, and reverified many different ways of getting kids to sleep. The first couple of days were rough, and I thought I couldn't take it, but now after about a month, we bathe the kids, feed them in their nursery and then lie them in their cribs (still awake mind you), and they fall asleep on their own after we leave the room. To top that off, they are sleeping thourhout the night, somewhere between eight and ten hours a night!
Things have changed, and are continuing to change in Mia and my lives, and we could not feel more blessed that they are.
Sunday, July 17, 2005
Ramsey Canyon Trip
Here are Mia, the boys and I on our recent trip to Ramsey Canyon in Southern Arizona.
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Welcome to the New Website
Hey All,
Well, if you have made it to here, then you have found out that the old site is changing and going the way of the Dodo bird.
I really did like the service we had there, but it was just too much for me to take on with the boys and I being alone all of the time, and still trying have time to myself. I have decided that instead of trying to write all the pages and their content, it was easier for me and hopefully, quicker for me to do it this way.
I had envisioned the old site as a kind of "gathering spot" for all of the family and friends, but I felt that it was not neccesarily working out the way I was hoping. I was trying to make it so that everyone could find everyone else's e-mail addresses, photos, and news in one stop, but it did not seem to be happning this way. I had a decision to make then, should I pay for the service that 1&1 Web Hosting was providing, or should I just do it on a simpler and free forum such as this.
Then I talked to Marc, and realized that going this route and not the other just seemed to make more sense. Instead of trying to rewrite the html code for the pages every day I had the chance (which as you all know was rare), I could just hop on here and type in what has been going on with Mia, the boys, and I.
I am currently looking for a new alternative to hosting the pictures, so until further notice, if there is a photograph that you want, please e-mail me.
I am hoping that this can be much easier for all of us.
Well, if you have made it to here, then you have found out that the old site is changing and going the way of the Dodo bird.
I really did like the service we had there, but it was just too much for me to take on with the boys and I being alone all of the time, and still trying have time to myself. I have decided that instead of trying to write all the pages and their content, it was easier for me and hopefully, quicker for me to do it this way.
I had envisioned the old site as a kind of "gathering spot" for all of the family and friends, but I felt that it was not neccesarily working out the way I was hoping. I was trying to make it so that everyone could find everyone else's e-mail addresses, photos, and news in one stop, but it did not seem to be happning this way. I had a decision to make then, should I pay for the service that 1&1 Web Hosting was providing, or should I just do it on a simpler and free forum such as this.
Then I talked to Marc, and realized that going this route and not the other just seemed to make more sense. Instead of trying to rewrite the html code for the pages every day I had the chance (which as you all know was rare), I could just hop on here and type in what has been going on with Mia, the boys, and I.
I am currently looking for a new alternative to hosting the pictures, so until further notice, if there is a photograph that you want, please e-mail me.
I am hoping that this can be much easier for all of us.
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