Mad Skillz

All of our children were recently caught demonstrating their talents on video. Here's a sampling:

David had the opening solo at the Jazz concert.


Sarah taught a very important lesson at the school variety show.


Hannah was a shining star at her choir concert.


Seth decided to bust a move at the Children's Museum.


Because I've never posted a video on the bloggg before, I thought I had to upload to YouTube then link from the Bloggg. As a serendipitous result, bigger versions can be seen on our YouTube Channel (devin8r).

While the cat's away...

With Mom being out of town, Seth and I decided to take a trip to the Children's Museum yesterday, and we had a great time. After a short romp through the playground, we made our way inside (running in front of the buses full of field trippers) and frolicked away.


Seth didn't bother to erase the board before he wrote our names on here, and the D's didn't come out too clearly, but each of the three words is a different color for easier deciphering.


He even managed to squeeze in a short nap.


This kid is cute!


We spent quite a bit of time in the puzzle area.


After the museum, we made a stop at Wendy's to better acquaint ourselves with the Value Menu. Seth gave the whole trip a big Thumbs Up.

Favorite Shoes

I believe most people have had the experience of not being able to get rid of their favorite pair of shoes. I mean really, how can you get rid of something that has become so form fitting that they are just an extension of your body? Hannah feels that way about her "sparkly shoes" which were given to her by her best friend Brenna. Unfortunately, they have seen the end of their days but not in Hannah's eyes.

Earth Day Paper

I realize I might be the only one who thinks my daughter's writing is hilarious, I'm OK with that. I just love the way her personality shines through in the things that she writes. You can almost hear the inflection in her voice as you read some words and the way she thinks about things can be very unique. The mispelled words will correct themselves in time, I just hope she never loses the desire to write exactly what her sweet little heart is feeling. I just need to record Hannah's paper and maybe share a smile or laugh with anyone else out there:

"Happy Earth day. It's Earth day so that meaaaaaaans that we plant trees or flawers or plants or enething and thes ar some things you do evry day but most on Earth day and it is. Turn of lights when you leav the room. turn off water and take out trash and pick up garbeg and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and a millen times a millen a lots. You see ther are a lot of things to do on Earth day we have this day to clean up the Earth and mace the trees healthy and to mace the world helthy and stay that way so evrything will be helthy even people. Go Green!!!"

Birthday memories

What does a birthday boy think about? It was a very busy day going to preschool in the morning and getting to bring the snack for the first time. Then he got to help make his birthday cake which he had designed several weeks before his birthday by printing out the picture (all on his own) of Woody the Cowboy and telling me the cake had to be "blue with yellow polk-a-dots". Thankfully, he forgot about the polk-a-dots. He helped mix the batter, pour and bake it. Then sat with me for two hours while I made Woody telling me what should be fixed and what we should work on next including giving me specific instructions on the colors of the words in the bubble. I was surprised he sat with me for so long...I guess he wanted to make sure I did it right!

Or maybe a birthday boy thinks about how much he loves his Grandpa?



I'm sure his presents came to mind...how he planned the whole thing, picking out the wrapping paper and how his mom is so wrapped around his little finger that he got exactly what he wanted: Toy Story Mania for the Wii!

He also had his heart set on the Lego versions of Buzz and Woody--a little advanced for a 4 year old unless you have a big brother to help you! (It was so sweet to watch David help him build Zurg, so patient and helpful. These two are best buddies!)


It was a fun, busy day with lots of excitement! Seth has grown so much this past year in many ways. We are so grateful for the help of his Preschool team who have worked with Seth's communication delays, sensory sensitivity, and flexibility issues (all symptoms of Autism). He has progressed so quickly with the help of many people. Seth is such a joy in our lives with his constant enthusiasm for life! He loves to move his body, sing (current favorite song: "Real Gone" by Sheryl Crow), and JUMP, JUMP, JUMP! Every little thing is a BIG deal to him (that includes the good with the bad); it all helps us appreciate the details in the world around us. He actually does take the time to smell the flowers on the side of the road, admire every rock, pay attention to every sound and the wind on his face. We love you SETH! Happy Birthday!

Blogger has a potty mouth

I just posted a comment on somebody else's blog, and here's the 'word' that I had to type in for security purposes. Now my challenge for the day is to use it in a sentence.

It's a piece-of-cake

Cake, cake, cake...it's coming out our ears! Thankfully, my family loves to eat all the scraps, mistakes, and experiments. I've been trying to take better pictures of my cakes, trying different angles, close up shots, different spacing in the picture, etc. I would love any feedback or tips from all of you photographers out there. I also want to know what is appealing when you look at pictures of my cakes so I know what is best to put on my website. SO, here is the first test: I'm putting several shots of a wedding cake I just did. What do you think should go on the website?
A. Conservative

B. Landscape

C. From the Top

D. At an angle