my life as a dad

Happy Birthday Henry

2011-12-06T23:08:00.001-06:00

Our sweet Henry turned 1 today.

Michele's masterpiece - a Curious George cake.

Mesmerized by the candle.

Taking a photo of a photo.

All 3 playing on the sofa.

3 generations at Thanksgiving.

Sweet Summer

2011-07-16T17:56:00.007-05:00

Henry at 7 months

Hamming it up

Pool party in our front yard...

...and coloring with sidewalk chalk.

It's been a good summer. Lots of trips - Cedar Falls, IA for the funeral of my favorite uncle. Then on to Wisconsin Dells where we met up with friends and relaxed for a few days. Next was Poplar Bluff, MO to visit my grandparents over July 4th weekend. This coming week we're heading to Springfield, MO for Michele & the kids to visit family & friends while I go to a conference in KC. When we get home, I'm taking Sam to his first concert - one of our favorite singer/songwriters is playing a show in Peoria.

And thinking of shows, we're hoping to host a house concert. Wouldn't that be fun?!

We've seen Eric twice in concert and he's another one of our favorites. We'll let you know if the house show becomes a reality. Meanwhile, add your name to the list and maybe Eric can have a midwest run on the In Your House tour.

Introducing... Henry!

2011-01-27T23:33:00.004-06:00

Finally... a few photos of the new guy!

Henry Nicholas
Born 12.6.10
Weighed 9.0 lbs at birth. Now about 11 or 12 lbs.
And I've managed to forget how long he was.
He's basically half the size of Eva! She's just now reaching 21 lbs.

Sam & Eva were a little hesitant at first, but it only took a few days for Henry to become one of the gang. They love to snuggle on him.

Hero Boy Rescues Mom

2010-08-03T22:19:00.004-05:00

Michele posted this on Facebook today. In her words...

Among the many projects in our new home is figuring out why doors won't close. So, my Monday project was to fix the door jam to the basement bathroom. In the process, I got myself locked in the bathroom with Eva and Sam on the other side.

After taking the door knob off from the inside and not being able to get the latch to move (thank goodness I had been using a screwdriver) I decided to scale the wall of the shower and climb up through the drop ceiling. Being pregnant I decided there would be no possible way for me to climb over the wall and jump down ...to freedom (w/o injuring myself, the baby and taking the whole ceiling down with me).

So, I called for Sam. Looking down at him from the ceiling I told him I was stuck and needed him to get the phone. He said, "Oh...ok Mom I'll get the phone." After what seemed like an eternity he came back with the phone, climbed on a chair and reached up to hand me the phone.

I proceeded to call Rob's office (the only local number I know) knowing he was in a work meeting. But what was I to do? Fortunately, he called back immediately and rushed home. In the meantime, I tried again to use the screwdriver to move the latch and was able to free myself! I have to say Sam is my hero. Of course he says, "I'm not a hero Mom...I'm Sam." :)

Coming Alive

2010-06-17T22:11:00.003-05:00

We've been busy since our last post. Here's a quick summary:

I received a promotion within the company and am now CFO of Galesburg Cottage Hospital.
We moved at the end of February... in the aftermath of a snowstorm. Apparently we like a good challenge.
Our old home sold 14 days after we listed it. We miss that home. And our neighbors.
Our new home is lots of work. The prior owners didn't put as much love into it as we do. We've made it better, but still lots to do.
In the process, Michele has learned how to repair drywall and wire new lights. She can repair drywall better than the pros.
We've made several new friends, mainly because of this place.
We recently found out we're going to have another one of these! It's scheduled to arrive a few weeks after this.
Sam and Eva are pretty excited about this new development. They're rooting for this. Eva thinks we should name it after her.
Sam turned 3 a few weeks ago! His favorite things are playing with / tormenting his sister and wrestling with Dad. He's been potty training the past several weeks and has almost mastered it.
Eva is now 20 months old! Her favorite things are snuggling with Mom in the early morning hours and putting up with Sam. She is very much a lightweight and weighs only about 19 lbs. This has prompted some concern by our new pediatrician. We're awaiting results from some blood tests.

Helping Mom bake Sam's birthday cake.

Admiring Mom's masterpiece.

Michele is now an expert at custom cakes.

All dressed up on a Sunday morning.

Big smiles after enjoying chocolate shakes.

Catching up

2010-01-14T22:11:00.004-06:00

We enjoyed a fun Christmas with both sides of the family. For photos with my side of the family, check out my sisters' blogs here and here.

These photos were all taken while we visited Michele's family. And they're all taken with a fancy Nikon digital SLR that belongs to Michele's sister Angela. Wow, what a nice camera!

I finally caught some photos of Michele with the kids. She loves on them all day every day, yet we rarely capture the moment on photo. (Could be the fact that she spends all day cooking, cleaning, changing diapers, playing with them, teaching them, disciplining them, giving them baths, washing all our clothes, and the list goes on.) It was great to capture these photos of Michele having fun with them!

We also captured some great photos of Michele's family:

Almost all the grandkids (missing Richie)

All the kids (8 of them!)

All the kids + all the grandkids

In other news... we're moving! In early December, I spent a week helping a sister hospital complete their annual budget. It worked out so well that they asked me to come there permanently. It's a great opportunity and a nice promotion. If you'd like more details, send us an e-mail at rgasaway at hotmail dot com.

Double trouble

2009-12-15T21:57:00.004-06:00

Enjoying a cold frosty one.

Goofballs.

Eva comforts Sam as he faces his fear of Santa.

Reading a few books about baby Jesus.
We bought the kids an early Christmas present - the Little People manger and drummer boy sets. They love to play with them, and they're great visual aids when we read.

Look who's walking!
She's been practicing for several weeks. And in the past few days, she seems to have mastered it.

Holiday photos

2009-12-08T22:22:00.003-06:00

I'm about 2 holidays behind. At the rate I'm going, look for Christmas photos in February!

We are fortunate to have great neighbors all around us. This year we went trick-or-treating with the family next door. They have a little guy named Noah who's just a few months younger than Sam. Noah dressed up as a fireman, Sam was a train engineer.

What a team.

Noah, me, Princess Eva and Sam

Eva, Noah and Sam love riding in the wagon. This is Noah's wagon, but we're talking to Santa about delivering a wagon of our own.

A great shot of Sam smiling. As a baby, he loved to smile for the camera. Now we have to catch him in the moment. Many thanks to our neighbor Jamie (Noah's mom) for catching this one.

This sums up fall for me. A relaxing afternoon outdoors, playing in the leaves.

Cookie monsters

2009-11-15T21:23:00.004-06:00

A few weeks ago, Michele baked some cookies then went upstairs for just a minute. She came back down to Sam saying, "Mmmm Mama, cookies." A single cookie was missing from the cooling rack. Eva had chocolate smeared on her face.

Sam was more than happy to re-enact what transpired.

Not wanting to be alone in this crime, Sam shared his first cookie with Eva.

...who is so happy about it that she's giving her scrunchy smile.

Michele baked cookies again just the other day. Eva crawled into the kitchen and cried and cried until Michele finally picked her up. As soon as Eva was in Michele's arms, she reached down, snagged a cookie and chowed down.

I'll say one thing: she's a fast learner.

Celebrating Eva

2009-10-17T16:04:00.006-05:00

Several photos from Eva's birthday and the days that followed.
We sure love this little girl.

A page is turned

2009-10-01T21:35:00.006-05:00

Today we celebrated Eva's last day being zero!

Sure, tomorrow's the big day for her. And perhaps more so for Sam, who is keenly aware that her birthday is coming. (Tonight at bedtime he insisted tomorrow is his birthday too!)

But today I reflected on the past year since her birth. Here are a few of my favorite photos.

Getting ready to leave the hospital, wearing the same dress that Michele wore home from the hospital when she was born. (2 days old)

Getting to know Sam -- and vice versa. (5 days old)

Celebrating the New Year. (3 months)

Relaxing in the bumbo chair. (5 months)

All smiles on July 4th. (9 months)

Modeling her new barrett. (11 months)

Enjoying our backyard. (last weekend)

Fun photos

2009-09-24T23:03:00.003-05:00

Eva loves to play with Sam's Tonka truck, which of course has given Sam a renewed interest in it. It was Sam's big gift for his 1st birthday. Hard to believe that Eva turns 1 in a week!

Having fun with Mom just before bed.

I can't believe how big he's getting.

Here's a preview of his Halloween costume. We're not much on store costumes so Michele used her creativeness and came up with a train engineer. Sam + trains = Heaven. Don't let his serious face fool you - he loves this costume and wants to wear it all the time!

What a happy little girl.
...until bedtime, when she feels compelled to curse at us for thinking she should have to fall asleep all by her lonesome! Thankfully she konks out in about 5 minutes. Come morning, she's forgiven us and all is right with the world again. Until naptime...

Muchas gracias

2009-09-10T22:24:00.005-05:00

Many thanks to my family for making my 35th birthday a memorable one. In the photo above, Sam is helping me blow out candles while (left to right) Eva, my nephews Payton and Landon, and Michele cheer us on along with the rest of my family.

Our own Strawberry Shortcake.

Many thanks to Michele's parents and extended family in Orlando for sending Eva several fun outfits!

Finally got out the bike trailer. First time all summer. Eva enjoyed her first ride while Sam watched out for her.

Sam peeking out the window.

Cousin Landon joins us for a photo on Labor Day weekend.

For more fun photos from Labor Day weekend,
check out my sisters' blogs:
Heart of Life
Bealor Family

Chrome

2009-09-03T23:30:00.005-05:00

I'm always on the hunt for new tunes. But at the same time, I'm forever frustrated when I buy a CD (I still prefer the real thing to digital downloads) only to find that one or two songs are good but the rest are fillers.

Meet Eric Peters. We just met him a few months ago ourselves (both figuratively and literally). I've read about Eric occasionally over the past few years. He's part of the Square Peg Alliance, which is essentially a group of independent singer/songwriters who support each other's music. We've loved the music of other Square Pegs for years now, but for whatever reason, I was nervous to take a chance on Eric. Must be that fear of buying a turkey.

Earlier this summer, I found one of his older CD's on clearance and the cheapskate in me whispered, "Go for it." What a great decision that was. His songwriting is flat out excellent, some of the best I've ever heard. And, as is generally the case with gifted musicians, he somehow gets even better with each new release.

We've since bought 3 more of his CDs. And we caught 2 of his shows over the summer (see photos below - Eric's in the white shirt.) And we decided to become a "patron saint" and donate a few extra bucks to help him produce his latest CD Chrome. (As a thank-you from Eric, all the patron saints are listed in the liner notes. Pretty sweet, eh?)

To give you a sampling of his songwriting genius...

From the CD Scarce, the song "Radiate" feels like it was written with me in mind:

As I grow up, I want to smile at doubt
Look back here at where it all came out
I learned what it was all about
It was clear as day

His newest CD Chrome was just released last week. The song "Reality Came Crashing Down" talks about his dream to become a famous musician, only to have reality hit hard. One of the verses stands out to me - perhaps as advice I'll someday give Sam & Eva:

Son, don't waste your words tuned to a whim

Cast out your net and slowly drag it back in

Your catch may be small and your belly may burn

But live for the language that speaks few words

Live for the language of love

Tonight the chorus of that same song is speaking to me, as I'm swallowing the reality of a missed opportunity. The chorus says:

Our dreams don't mean that much

If we can't find ourselves

In the dust that shapes the ground

When reality comes crashing down

Highly recommended might be an understatement. You can read more about Eric on his website. Be sure to check out these posts where you can listen to full versions of 2 songs:

Chrome

I Will Go With You

VBS

2009-08-11T21:15:00.002-05:00

Not long after we moved here, Michele got connected with a playgroup at St. John's United Methodist Church in Edwardsville. Super nice people. (And that's an understatement.) Even though Sam & Eva are young, Michele thought it'd be fun to take them to Vacation Bible School this summer. So she took them to St. John's VBS last week.

In hindsight, it was more work than fun - especially since Michele took the kids by herself. But I loved hearing the stories of Sam's excitement at craft time. The last night was a fun night that ended with the local fire department spraying water from a ladder truck. Sam loves firetrucks so it was exciting to see one up close. It took lots of encouragement, but he finally got close enough to the water to get a little wet.

Management Material

2009-07-28T21:38:00.004-05:00

Miss Photogenic
Eva turned 9 months a few weeks ago. She's weighing in at just over 15 lbs - a light-weight for sure. But her doc's not worried, as most kids get leaner when they become more mobile.

"Mama, Dee-Dee, Train!"
Sam ran into the kitchen and announced this to Michele a few weeks ago. Translated: Eva was standing by his train table. It was the first time she'd pulled up and stood on her own. Since then, she's become a pro. She's also army crawling and quickly figuring out how to crawl on her knees.
"Dee-Dee" is Sam's nickname for Eva. Not sure how he came up with it - he can say her name. But it works.

O Happy Day
Took this photo as I was heading out the door one morning. Everyone was awake and super happy. Almost had to call in sick!

Management Material - Exhibit A
While we do yardwork, Sam supervises.

Management Material - Exhibit B
Further proof that Sam and I are related.

Monkey lips

2009-06-15T22:33:00.003-05:00

We've been having lots of fun taking baths lately.

Meanwhile, we're still eating Sam's birthday cake. (Don't worry - Michele froze it.) Of course anytime you eat birthday cake, you need hats! And you've gotta sing too!

Back in May, the four of us went to a Cardinals game. For the Cardinals fans, it was the game where Albert knocked out the "i" in Big Mac Land. We didn't see much of the game (babies and ballparks don't mix), but we heard that the ballpark cameras showed us for about 10 seconds on the jumbo-tron. Which would normally be exciting, except that they showed us scarfing hotdogs while trying to corral Sam & Eva!
P.S. The photo is Eva wearing Sam's outfit from last year.

Sam's big day

2009-05-27T23:26:00.002-05:00

Happy Birthday to our big guy! 2 years old already.

Those eyes

2009-04-30T21:54:00.003-05:00

What are you looking at?
Michele took this today and thought it was hilarious.

A half second later
She looks like a doll.

Photo shoot

2009-04-29T23:09:00.003-05:00

The best is yet to come
This past Saturday, new friend & photographer John Gaughn came by our home to take some family photos. I have this vision in my mind of photos that capture Sam & Eva's personalities - the laughter and smiles we see every day. It didn't quite work out that way, as Sam was more interested in playing with John and his cameras and Eva gradually lost patience as hunger pains gave way. But odds are John will find some gems, perhaps a random shot when we weren't paying attention. Those are often the best ones. Unfortunately John's computer crashed later in the weekend, so we're patiently awaiting its rebirth. He sent us this one photo prior to the crash. Stay tuned for more! In the meantime, check out John's galleries here and here.

Dressed in yellow, she said Hello
A few hours prior to the photo shoot, Aunt Tara and baby Isaac came by to visit. Isaac is due to arrive around June 12th (Tara's birthday!) and Eva can't wait to meet him.

There's that smile
Miss Eva lights up our lives.
She'll be 7 months old on Saturday.

Fingerpaint!
Michele recently whipped up a batch of homemade fingerpaints and introduced Sam to one of life's best combinations - making artwork while making a mess! Special thanks to our friend Janene, who shared this recipe in the TimberRidge cookbook.

Truck, truck!
We're borrowing my dad's truck for a few weeks, using it to pick up a load of mulch to spruce up our yard. Sam is obsessed with it. Wherever we go, he cries when we get there because he doesn't want to get out. Must be a guy thing, this love of trucks. We're taking joy rides whenever we can!

Shiner

2009-04-16T22:34:00.003-05:00

You should see the other guy.
Or at least the gas meter. Yes, Sam and the neighbor's gas meter got to know each other. A little too well. The gas meter is not your friend. (Or maybe Sam was just giving it a piece of his mind -literally- after seeing some of our winter utility bills.)

Roy?
No Sam, that's Quigley. But he's a likeable dog too.
Quigley is my parents' dog. Sam got to know him at Easter.
Sam is working on saying Quigley - comes out "Quigey".

Speaking of Easter
Here's our latest attempt at a family photo.
Taken Easter Sunday... after church... in desperate need of naps.
I'm surprised it turned out this well!

Isn't she the cutest baby ever?
You know it's the truth.
(This is one of the dresses Michele found at the garage sale a few weeks ago.)

She's a happy baby too
And she's got a tooth! Michele just discovered it yesterday. And today Michele discovered that a second tooth is on its way! And Sam is working on some molars. Ah, tooth pain... it's no fun.

For more Easter photos, check out my sister's blog.

Lots more photos that are blog-worthy (Aunt Sarah's visit, our trip to the Zoo, Sam riding a go-kart at Uncle Forrest's home, the Easter Egg Hunt at my parents' home, our visit to Purina Farms, the list goes on.) Hope to post those soon!

See Sam Dance

2009-04-14T23:38:00.006-05:00

Video courtesy of Aunt Annie & soon-to-be Uncle Matt.
Thanks guys!

The music didn't seem to upload,
but he's dancing to Hank Williams (I think).

You can also view it (with better sound quality) here.

Top of the mornin' to ya

2009-03-23T22:32:00.008-05:00

It reads "Wee bit o Irish"
Courtesy of Aunt Annie - Thanks Annie!

An early conversation.

That's my boy.

And that's my girl.

Someday this'll be your car...

Yard sales rock

2009-03-12T22:32:00.006-05:00

Last Saturday was Kid Mania. It's an indoor garage sale held at the local high school. The cafeteria and gymnasium were packed with vendors. The amount of stuff for sale overwhelmed me. Thankfully Michele navigated the waters like a pro.

Strategically, we arrived an hour before it ended. Well, maybe not exactly strategically... but it worked in our favor. At that point, the sellers just want to unload the stuff.

Cool toy for Sam = $1
Michele was iffy on this one, but she scrubbed it and now it looks better than new. It's a Little People garage, complete with 3 cars and the Michael character. Sam loves it.

Clifford the Dog long-sleeve shirt = 25 cents
I was scoping a table with Sam and he spotted this like a trained professional. "Dog! Dog!"

Baby sling = Free
The gal selling it told Michele to take whatever she wanted. The sling instructions note it can hold babies from newborn to 24 months. Seriously? 24 months? So Michele tried it out with Sam... and he probably enjoys it more than Eva.

Michele also scored some snazzy dresses for Eva for just a few bucks each. Stay tuned for photos of those.

Didn't find these chairs at a garage sale, but we're excited nonetheless. We've been hunting for kitchen chairs for months. The table is an old one that my dad refinished. It looks great, but the old chairs we have don't match and we only have two. We finally found these new chairs online at Target. They have an antique look that fits great with the table. And I put 'em together myself. Which isn't exactly difficult, but felt rewarding anyway.

And with the new kitchen chairs in place, Miss Eva has graduated to the high chair! She's pretty excited about it. Now she's at eye level with us during mealtime, which is fun. Except now with 2 ladies at the table, Sam & I really have to watch our manners.

Row, Row, Row

2009-03-04T22:48:00.006-06:00

Our latest adventures...

Rowing the boat

I've worked up my own version of this timeless classic. You can play the whole song in one chord (G). But what fun is one chord played ad nauseam? So I mix it up with a few wild chords (D and C) and throw in some thumb picking on the bass notes. Then we ad lib the words a little. And before you know it, Sam is swinging his arms to the beat and Eva is staring at us like we're nuts.
She's very perceptive, that Eva.

And she sure is cute.

Like father, like son

When we aren't making music, Sam and I are getting in shape for the summer months. We love to lift weights together. It's important to pump iron like you mean it. Growling is key. Especially when you're lifting an entire pound in each hand.

Eva is sticking to low-contact sports for now.

And she requires lots of snuggling with Mom,
often in the early morning hours.

Life is good.

Love Is...

2009-02-14T20:58:00.005-06:00

...Hugging your sister

...Sharing cards

...Surprising Dad with cookies

...Surprising Mom with a necklace

...Wishing the kids took longer naps

Dog-gie?

2009-01-26T23:13:00.012-06:00

Ever since my sister Ann, her boyfriend Matt, and Matt’s dog Roy visited at Christmas, Sam reminds us daily that we need a dog of our own.

Sometimes he’ll go all day without saying a word, but then suddenly remember at bedtime.

Case in point:
Me: [Tucking in Sam, saying a prayer for him, tickling his toes, and kissing him goodnight.]

Sam’s response: “Dog-gie?” with the gie a few syllables higher, as if to question whether we’re getting one anytime soon.

Aside from getting a pet (which we're not quite ready for), any suggestions?

Matt and Roy

Sam playing with Sadie, the Burns' dog
(good friends from KV who hosted us for our December visit)

Cool Stools -and- A Night Out!

2009-01-24T21:53:00.003-06:00

Here are better photos of the custom designed stools that I mentioned in my last post. Thanks again to Michele's sister Angela for the artwork.

Friday night we went out for the first time since Eva's birth! (Unless you count our romantic dentist appointments a month ago.) My folks came over to watch the kids while we went to the hospital's annual holiday party. It's traditionally held in January to help ease the busyness of December. I was honored for 10 years of service, which is a little humorous since I've only worked here for about a year. But I worked in Kirksville for 9 years, so it's 10 years total with the company. To give me a hard time, my coworkers simultaneously cheered and booed as I was honored.

Hanging on to Grandpa's finger.

Mimi went ga-ga.

A rare (though not necessarily good) photo of the two of us!

Christmas, Part 4a

2009-01-22T23:45:00.004-06:00

Finally taking some time to post more photos

from our trip to see Michele's family.

Michele's parents gave step-stools to all younger grandkids. Then Michele's younger sister Angela customized them by painting each kid's name and a design on the top. You can't tell in this photo, but Sam's has a car theme. Eva's has a flower. Very cool.

Papa talks with Eva.

Sam meets cousin Annemarie,
who's just a few months older than Eva.

Uncle Dave hugging on Sam.

Christmas, Part 4

2009-01-14T22:12:00.004-06:00

The day after Christmas, we headed south to visit Michele's family.

The parachute was a hit!

Cousin Hannah meets Eva

Papa reads to Sam

Cousin Richie hanging with Sam

Lots of photos from our time there. I'll post more later.

Christmas, Part 3

2009-01-08T23:15:00.004-06:00

The weekend before Christmas, my family got together at my parents' home. Nephews Payton, Jace, and Landon spent quite a bit of time working on their hand-eye coordination,
courtesy of Nintendo DS.

Meanwhile, Grandmother loved on Eva, who's sporting her Santa hat (or the Pope hat, as we like to call it!)

It's finally time to open presents!
(In the inset, my Dad is corralling Payton.)

Who needs presents when you look this good?
(In the inset, Sam is phoning his friends to tell them about his gifts.)

After the weekend, Aunt Annie and her boyfriend Matt spent a few extra days at our home. We took advantage of their help by letting them watch Sam & Eva while we got the car fixed and visited the dentist. It's amazing how difficult those simple tasks can be when you've got two little ones occupying all your time.
Thank you Annie & Matt!

Christmas, Part 2

2009-01-06T23:03:00.004-06:00

Sam's big gift was a Rody. A local toy store sells these. It's an inflatable horse made out of thick rubber, similar to an exercise ball. Supposedly it can hold 400 lbs. Hopefully we'll never find out!

Moose slippers - awesome.

I found Eva a soft baby doll from the same local toy store. Michele liked it so much that we bought a similar one for her niece. The doll is called a Sweet Pea because it slips into a pea pod. It reminds us of Grandma G - she used to tell us that we were "two peas in a pod".

Wandering through Target, we found this 12' diameter parachute on clearance. It took us back to elementary school memories of playing with a parachute in gym class. Sam loves it! We're betting it'll be fun to play with for years to come.

During December, Michele made a list of all the Christmas traditions she'd like to start with our new little family. One of them was baking a birthday cake for Jesus. So Christmas Day evening, we blew out one candle and enjoyed some delicious cake.

Christmas, Part 1

2009-01-04T22:56:00.003-06:00

Christmas Eve

We do our best to read a story or two to Sam & Eva every evening. We are fortunate to have numerous Golden Books -- mostly hand-me-downs from our families. About 15 of those Golden Books are Christmas stories. Every evening during December, we tried to read one or two of these books. The stories range from Santa to Frosty to Jesus. In the photo above, it's Christmas Eve and we're reading about Jesus' birth.

Christmas Morning

Sam slept in! We finally woke him up at 10:00. While he was still sleeping, I took the photo above.

Before we opened presents (or even showed Sam all the presents under the tree), Michele made a big breakfast. Sam (a.k.a. Linus) kept his blanket close while Michele cooked.

Eva relaxed in her bouncy seat and did what came naturally -- looking cute! She already smiles big, but it's hard to catch a photo of it. Every time she sees the camera, she gets serious!

After breakfast, we headed to the living room. Sam's initial reaction was a very funny "Oooooo!" Sort of like "What do we have here?!"

I'll try to post more soon.

Giving Presence

2008-12-27T13:53:00.007-06:00

First, a very sincere thank-you to my sisters for the conversations that resulted from my last post. It's always hard to talk about sad memories, but sitting down to leave blog comments and share e-mails gave us time to gather our thoughts and share some meaningful memories. My sister Nancy shared some thoughts and memories on her blog. You can read that post here.

November and the winter months that follow are always a difficult time for me. The anniversary of my mom's passing and the short daylight hours make me long for spring and new beginnings. And those heavy thoughts were somewhat multiplied this year with sad news that two of my sisters have friends who lost spouses in the past few weeks, both due to cancer. Both have young children. One has a blog where friends wrote about her battle with cancer, and now a celebration of her life. If you're interested, check that out here.

December turned out to be a very busy month, much more so than I anticipated. The first weekend, we visited dear friends in Kirksville. It's always a mixed blessing to go back. We want to visit everyone, but it's next to impossible to have meaningful visits when they're so short and rushed. For those we did see, thanks for your flexibility as we generally dropped in unannounced, whenever Sam and Eva's naps and eating times would permit. For those we missed, especially Michele's good friends from Kirksville Middle School, we hope to see you sometime soon.

Once we returned home, I found myself in a hole at work and spent the rest of the month digging out. That meant numerous hours away from home, very little family time, and extra stress on Michele as she took care of Sam & Eva by herself for two straight weeks. I arrived home very late, after Sam & Eva were asleep, and often left before they were awake. Twice I worked all night. When you’re in the middle of a mess like that, I don’t know what the short-term solution is. Long-term, our goal is to learn from our mistakes and not repeat them. But in the short-term, we just tried to keep our heads above water and survive.

We only made it to church once, but somehow the message stuck with me all month. The topic was "Giving Presence". Wordplays like that can often make me cringe. But our pastor has a way of sharing ideas in a laid-back, entertaining manner that gets right to the point without being preachy. This idea of "Giving Presence" is something we all know: Christmas should not be about the presents, rather it's about the time ("presence") we spend with each other. It was also a call to spend less of our money on ourselves and donate more to those who are truly in need. Here's an excellent video from a group called Advent Conspiracy that summarizes it well:

With thoughts of the Advent Conspiracy in mind, Michele spent several hours this season making some meaningful presents. For me, she made two photo frames using cardboard and wrapping paper. One has Sam's name in cut-out letters and the other has Eva's. I was wanting some sort of frame to hang on my door at work and (hopefully) insert new photos every week to entertain my co-workers. These are perfect. Now I just have to do my part!

The other meaningful gift Michele pulled together was baking dozens of cookies for her family and organizing them in Christmas tins. Special thanks to my sister Ann and her boyfriend Matt for spending a few days with us and helping bake! Unfortunately, the gift exchange with Michele's family got a little crazy, as the younger kids were super excited to open presents. So Michele missed personally giving the cookies to her brothers Forrest and Jonathan and her sister Aimee. But hopefully they're enjoying them at least half as much as Michele enjoyed baking them!

Right now I'm enjoying giving lots of "presence" to our little family. I'll post new photos soon...

Remembering Mom

2008-11-30T23:42:00.004-06:00

We recently found a great donut store near our home. One Sunday morning a few weeks ago, I drove Sam to this store and we brought home some donuts to enjoy with our new little family. The donuts lasted into the week, and one morning I brought one to work and enjoyed it about mid-morning with a cup of coffee. In an instant, it took me back to childhood and Saturday nights. My mom used to make homemade donuts on Saturday evenings. They were for our family to enjoy Sunday mornings before church, but my dad and I would routinely steal a few on Saturday night and eat them with a cup of coffee while watching the original home improvement show “This Old House”. I can’t imagine how a 5 year old can enjoy coffee, but I did. I liked to dunk the donut in the coffee and then eat it. Every time I taste that combined flavor of donuts and coffee, it takes me back to that memory.

Today is the 26th anniversary of her passing. I was eight years old, in 3rd grade. It was a shock. A non-smoker with lung cancer. I remember she had ear aches over the summer, then eventually went to a doctor in September, just after school started. She was diagnosed at a local hospital and then came home for a weekend. We took a few photos that weekend, otherwise I might not remember it all these years later. But I remember reading a book to my mom, some patriotic book that had to be summarized in a book report due that Monday. That was the last weekend she was home. On Monday, she went to St. Louis and spent her remaining weeks in the Intensive Care Unit at St. John’s Mercy Medical Center. My dad visited her most every evening after work. My 3 sisters and I visited as much as possible, probably 3 or 4 times a week. There wasn’t much we could do during our visits. She was hooked up to all sorts of machines, with breathing and feeding tubes preventing her from talking to us. We would write short notes to her on pieces of scrap paper. I remember taking a warm, damp washcloth and washing her feet. What pain she must have felt as a mother, seeing the 4 of us there and undoubtedly knowing that she wouldn’t see us grow up. Early on the morning of November 30, 1982, I remember hearing the phone ring and running into the darkness of my parents’ bedroom. My dad was up and getting dressed, telling me to go back to sleep. Later that day when we arrived home on the school bus, our pastor ‘Brother Ed’ was waiting in our family room with my dad. He told us the sad news and my sisters cried. I remember not knowing how to react, just feeling numb. The funeral was a few days later, our home church packed with family and friends. At one point during the funeral, I looked up to my dad and saw a tear roll down his face. It’s one of the rare times in my life I’ve seen him cry.

Our family doesn’t talk much about my mom. It’s painful to talk about. When we have talked, I’m often surprised how they remember things that I don’t. I’m hoping my sisters and other family who read the blog might be inspired to type a few comments with their memories. Or if you've lost someone close to you, feel free to share some memories of them too.

We miss you Mom. You’d be proud of us – and your grandkids. I can’t wait for you to meet them someday.

She is the Rising Sun

2008-11-24T23:32:00.003-06:00

As Thanksgiving approaches, it's hard to express how thankful I am for the family that we'd hoped and prayed for, for so very long. We are truly blessed.

Music has played an important part of my life. I remember my mom playing guitar when we were young. I grew up playing trumpet, and in the last few years picked up guitar and found a new home playing with our church band. There's an indescribeable feeling that comes with playing as part of a team. I'm not much of a sports player, but I imagine it's similar to the feeling of playing on a winning sports team. You have a role that only you can play. And when it all comes together and everyone plays their part, it's like magic. Now that we've moved on, my guitar playing consists of entertaining Sam, which is still quite rewarding - just in a Dad sort of way, seeing a little guy watch me strum "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" as I encourage him to sing along.

Even more than playing music, I enjoy listening to music. Discovering a new artist or a new CD that surpasses expectations is a treasure. It was incredibly rewarding a few months ago when I ran across "The Ill-Tempered Klavier" by Ben Shive. "The ill-tempered what?" you ask. I don't know, I haven't figured out that title yet. That's part of the beauty of this CD. Ben doesn't lay it all out for you. But his music is beautiful and it makes me think. And tonight, as I heard "She is the Rising Sun," I thought of my beautiful wife and our beautiful family and how thankful I am that we have each other. Here are the lyrics:

She is the Rising Sun
Ben Shive

I would say that I was lost in space
Shivering stone in a lonely sky
I was sinking in my silent grave
And I was drowning in the dark
Until she woke me with her light

She is bright as the morning
Fair as the evening wanes
There is warmth in her fingers
Light on her lovely face

She is the sun
She is the rising sun

And there's a hole in the pocket of the midnight blue
And I am slipping through like a lucky dime
And I'm running like a boy in brand new shoes
And when I'm flying by Orion, she is shining in my mind

She is on my horizon
Rising to wake the dawning day
She is drawing me homeward
Driving my tears away

We are dancing in orbit
Marking a season's turn
And though I cast her reflection
She is the fire that burns

She is bright as the morning
Fair as the evening wanes
There is warmth in her fingers
Light on her lovely face

She is the sun
She is the rising sun

Happy Thanksgiving to my rising suns.

Bedtime, Steak & Shake, and the Santa Parade

2008-11-23T23:40:00.003-06:00

Bedtime

We're fortunate that bedtime is a happy time. Sam loves to go to bed. He listens to music and falls asleep on his own. Eva is getting there too. She's sleeps in a playpen in our room. Within the last week, she's started to sleep for longer stretches. Her current record is 5 hours, which our pediatrician considers a full night's sleep. She seems to have an upset tummy more often than not. The bad news is that chocolate seems to be the culprit. So Michele is forcing herself to resist her chocolate temptations!

Monday Morning Update:
Eva slept 6 hours straight last night!!

Steak & Shake

We treated ourselves to Steak & Shake this past Friday night and had a great time. Our waiter was excellent and as we were leaving, he gave us 2 hats. Sam loves them!

Santa Parade

Saturday we went to the annual Santa Parade in Granite City. We invited some good friends from Kirksville who have also relocated to the St. L area -- Shaun & Jenny and their kids Isabel and Atticus. Last time we saw them was at a Cardinals game back in April. It was great to catch-up and the kids loved the parade. Isabel brought a bucket to collect candy and she filled her bucket 3 times! The parade was impressive with 100+ entries. It was cold but fun.

We're really enjoying our new double-stroller. It's a Baby Jogger City Mini. It was pricey but you definitely get what you pay for. Very high quality, incredibly easy to push, and it fits in the trunk of our Honda Civic with quite a bit of room to spare. And at just under 30" wide, it's narrow enough to fit through doorways. We searched for several weeks and read endless reviews. If you're looking for a side-by-side, I think this is the best stroller for the money.

Tough Guy

2008-11-12T00:11:00.004-06:00

Miss Eva's Halloween costume

(courtesy of Aunt Annie!)

Uncle Sam

Sam entertaining Eva

Our new double stroller!
Despite Sam's facial expression below, he loves it.
He helped me put it together, then climbed in and insisted on a ride around the house.

And lastly, our Tough Guy

Last night Sam fell down our stairs. Michele was at the bottom and leaned up to catch him. Then they both landed hard. It was scary to say the least. Sam cried hard, but the only damage is a rug burn on his nose (thankfully).

Sam takes his first steps!

2008-11-02T21:46:00.002-06:00

We were super excited last week when Sam took his first steps! We've been working with him off and on for several months, and last week he finally took his first steps on his own. When he tries walking on his own, he gets so excited that he laughs and falls. But last week, he made it back and forth between Michele and I several times. His current record is 5 steps in a row.

Celebrating with Dad

(I was goofing around and wearing Sam's socks on my ears.)

Eva was snoozing on the sofa.

And this was Mr. Sam's Halloween costume! As you can tell, he wasn't too excited about it. In fact, he didn't even wear it on Halloween. (We took this photo a few weeks ago.) The Halloween tradition in our new neighborhood is a little different. There's a big Halloween parade on the 31st, so most kids go trick-or-treating on Oct 30th. We had beautiful weather both nights. On the 30th, Sam and I stayed outside to welcome all the trick-or-treaters. Sam got so excited watching all the kids that he screamed at them and his whole body shook! It was hilarious. The parade on the 31st was packed, so we didn't get to see it as close up as we'd have liked. But we went with some new friends & neighbors who have a little guy (Noah) who's just a few months younger than Sam. Sam and Noah had a great time hanging out and eating Cheerios while we enjoyed the parade from a distance.

A Poem for our family

2008-10-23T17:02:00.004-05:00

by Denese Young (a college friend)

Congratulations, Michele and Rob
You've come quite a ways
From lonely single students
Back in your college days
To happy married grown-ups
With jobs and bills and stuff
And the knowledge that things you own
Are really not enough.

You prayed and finally got your Sam
And, oh, you were so glad.
You wanted so very much
To be a mom and dad.
And now you've got your Eva,
So you can shout "Hip-hip-hooray!"
Congratulations, once again
To the Family Gasaway.

Many, many thanks to our families and friends for all the kind words, letters, e-mails, meals, and gifts as we welcome Eva to our lives. Michele's healing process is going well, Eva is already growing up too fast, and Sam is a super big brother.

The past few weeks have been busy, but I'll try to get back in the groove of posting photos more routinely.

Sam and Eva

2008-10-09T23:05:00.003-05:00

Home Gets Sweeter

2008-10-05T22:44:00.005-05:00

We headed home on Saturday. When Michele was born, she wore this same dress home from the hospital. Her parents brought it just in case we had a girl. My parents bought the pink booties without even knowing about the dress. Also note the ankle bracelet - a little extra security at the hospital. Special thanks to Brenda, a good friend at work who let us borrow a car seat until we figure out what brand will work best for a car seat and double stroller.

Here we go!

Big brother Sam is already a helper.
If he stands on his tip toes, he can peek in her playpen bassinet. When she cries, he rushes over to see if he can help.

A new life

2008-10-03T21:11:00.004-05:00

Some photos from the past few days...

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.
Michele and Eva are doing great
and may get to come home on Saturday.

Early Arrival!

2008-10-02T18:59:00.002-05:00

It's a girl!!!

Eva Catherine
7 lbs even
19 inches long
Born 3:49 am 10/2/08

Mom and baby are doing great. C-section was scheduled for 7 am this morning, but Michele's water broke just after midnight. So the baby came early!

Eva means 'good news' and Catherine is in memory of my mom. After struggling to have kids for so many years, it's such an unexpected gift to have 2. We are so blessed.

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. I'll post some photos in the next few days.

Vote now!

2008-09-29T18:38:00.005-05:00

Uncle Sam needs your vote! (Actually it's "Brother Sam" and this Cat in the Hat hat is the closest thing we could find to an Uncle Sam hat.)

It's baby week! Our new baby could arrive anytime, but Thursday at the latest. Vote now on whether you think it's a boy or a girl! Winners earn bragging rights - "I knew it was a ____!"

~ flexiPoll: free online web poll ~

Counting the days

2008-09-11T22:57:00.004-05:00

In just 3 short weeks (or less), Sam will lose his "only child" status! He seems to be taking the news pretty well. Below he's snuggling with Mom after a nap.

Michele still takes him for walks. Here he's snacking on some frozen "Go-Gurt" as they get ready to head out.

A few weeks ago, Michele's older brother Forrest & his family visited. They enjoyed playing with Sam at a nearby park, then we enjoyed a tasty dinner together after I got home from work. Sam was asleep by the time we thought to take some photos!

And finally, a few silly photos...

In case you're wondering, that's a trash can. Grandmother Lawson randomly bought it on sale and gave it to Mom. But Mom didn't have a need for it so she offered it to us. Sam thought it was much too nice for trash!

Garfield... without the cat

2008-09-11T22:40:00.004-05:00

One of the best sites I've ran across lately is Garfield Minus Garfield. Just like the name implies, it's the same Garfield comics, except Garfield has been removed. As the site notes, the result is "a journey deep into the mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness and depression in a quiet American suburb." It's a little suprising how taking out a character gives the strip a very different feel. Can you think of any other strips this might work with? Maybe "Calvin Minus Hobbes"?

Happy Birthday (to me)

2008-09-05T23:10:00.004-05:00

Unfortunately, Michele didn't feel well today. So I stayed home from work part of the day and got to help out with Sam a little more than usual. Michele had hoped to surprise me by meeting me for lunch at work and baking a cake later, so it wasn't the day she'd hoped for. But it was fun to spend some extra time with Sam -- and that made for a great birthday. Hopefully Michele feels better soon!

Time for a trim

2008-08-19T22:32:00.003-05:00

Not long after our Charlotte vacation, we decided it was time for Sam's first haircut. Michele's dad was nice enough to trim his sideburns a few months ago, but it was starting to look shaggy all over. I wanted to hold out as long as possible. Something about that first haircut felt like we were crossing a line and couldn't go back.

Emily, a new friend from our church, performed the honors while Sam sat on my lap. Afterwards she gave Sam a snazzy certificate that reads, "This is a real official piece of paper saying that I was real brave and didn't scream or fuss too much when they took me to this place, covered me up with a sheet thing and cut my hair. As of today, I am a BIG KID!"

Leaving on a jet plane (part 4)

2008-08-14T22:10:00.003-05:00

Our vacation to Charlotte was more of a stay-cation for Annie. We spent a lot of time just hanging out at her home and relaxing.

We went to a park 2 or 3 times and Sam loved swinging

Michele tries on Sam's sun hat

Sam loves on Michele after eating dinner on Annie's deck

Hanging out at an area pool

Playing on the bed

We had a GREAT time and we're hoping we can make the trip again soon. Thanks Annie!!

Leaving on a jet plane (part 3)

2008-08-12T22:43:00.003-05:00

Another highlight of our trip was visiting the Lazy 5 Ranch, an exotic animal drive-thru park. Annie & Matt visited this ranch in May, and Ann noted what a racket it is. You pay money to get in, you pay money to buy the animals food, then you drive around and feed the animals. Meanwhile the owners sit around and get rich. Why didn't we think of this?!

Leaving on a jet plane (part 2)

2008-08-07T22:18:00.003-05:00

One of the highlights of our trip to Charlotte was visiting the US National Whitewater Center. During the summer, every Thursday evening is the Subaru River Jam featuring "great local music and the best sunset around". Well... the music was so-so, but it was fun to see the whitewater (even if it is man-made)! We're already looking forward to taking Sam and Baby G on a multi-day whitewater rafting trip.

Go Cards

2008-08-06T23:45:00.002-05:00

Michele bought Sam a Cardinals hat this week and we can hardly believe how excited he is to wear it. When he's not wearing it, we store it on our coat rack. Today he pulled himself up by the coat rack, then sat down and cried. Michele went to console him and then figured out he just wanted his hat.

He likes to adjust it himself. He wears it low on his ears. We'll pull it up a little and he'll pull it back down. It reminds you of a real ballplayer adjusting his hat.

Leaving on a jet plane (part 1)

2008-08-05T22:11:00.006-05:00

Mid-July we took our first family vacation.
We flew to Charlotte, NC to visit Aunt Annie!

Just a few days before our trip, Sam got pink eye. Arrgh, matey!
(I wanted to get him an eye patch
so we could talk like pirates the whole trip.)
Thanks to Mom, the doc, and some very expensive eye drops, it healed up in just a few days.

Even though we don't see Annie often enough, Sam warmed up to her in no time. In fact, he was so excited about our visit that he rarely took a nap! He stayed up late almost every night and woke up early too.

Ann brought home some fun toys from her job. Sam's favorites were a Mr. Potato Head Suitcase (one tater, lots of possibilities) and a toy that involved 4 balls, a hammer, and a contraption that you pounded the balls through, then they zig-zagged back and forth as they descended, and then fell out the bottom. (It's hard to describe -- Annie/Michele, feel free to provide a better explanation.)

I'll try to post more photos of our adventures soon...

photo of the day

2008-07-09T23:02:00.002-05:00

puttin' the boy to work

2008-07-01T21:58:00.003-05:00

Michele decided it's time Sam earns his keep. We've talked about duct taping Swiffer Sweepers to him so he can clean the floors as he crawls. If you'd like to rent him out for the afternoon, give us a hollar.

good news

2008-06-23T22:29:00.004-05:00

We're behind in sharing the good news about our latest ultrasound - everything looks great! They looked at detailed images of the kidneys, heart, and spine - and all looked normal. We also met with a doctor and talked about the low-set ears. He explained that low ears are incredibly difficult to diagnose because the angle of the ultrasound can make the ears appear low when they really aren't. From what he saw, he thought the ears looked fine. Thanks to everyone who sent a kind note or shared an encouraging word - we sincerely appreciate it. Here are a few photos from the ultrasound:

The baby appears to be smiling
(and my co-workers think he/she is giving us the bird!)

Still being knit

And here are 3 shots from Sam's photo shoot a few months back.
(I had the scanner out to scan the ultrasound photos, so I thought I'd scan these too.) We're so blessed to have this little guy. He's going to be a great big brother.

Sam's big day

2008-05-28T00:08:00.004-05:00

It's amazing how fast a year can go by. One year ago today, Sam arrived. We still remember the doctor exclaiming, "It's a boy - it's definitely a boy!" Today we celebrated Sam.

His first Happy Meal.

The party begins!

Sam's big gift - a Tonka truck!

Sam's favorite gift - the boxes!

Sam's birthday cupcake.
(Much more manageable than a full-size cake!)

Extra special thanks to Michele (Mom) for making today memorable.

knitting follow-up

2008-05-20T22:11:00.008-05:00

On Monday, Michele and the new baby had their monthly check-up. Based on the ultrasound, the doc has 2 concerns - the baby's ears look a little low and the placenta is also low. A low placenta can cause problems during the pregnancy. But of more concern, low ears can indicate potential mental & physical problems. Our doc is optimistic that everything is OK, but we have a Level 2 Ultrasound scheduled for June 3rd so they can find out more. It's hard not to worry. Please keep us in your thoughts & prayers.

On Saturday, we went to an art fair with some new friends. Sam loved being outdoors and was especially fascinated with one of nature's works of art - a leaf!

I wonder what he's thinking.

Boogers
(actually it's Sam's new favorite food - zucchini)

knitting

2008-05-18T22:05:00.004-05:00

Below are photos from our ultrasound just over a week ago.
I can't help but think of Psalm 139:13.

mom's day

2008-05-11T23:30:00.003-05:00

Taken a few weeks ago -- Sam was up a little early one morning and played with Michele while we ate breakfast.

Hanging out in our back yard last Saturday

Our Mother's Day gift -- a body pillow for Mom & the new baby!

After a great Mother's Day morning, Sam was ready for a nap.

The best gift of all -- peace and quiet for Mom!

the ball game

2008-05-07T22:18:00.002-05:00

Last Tuesday, Sam went to his first Cardinals game! My employer owns 4 season tickets in the Bank of America Club -- just up from 3rd base, with all the food you can eat included. We invited some good friends from Kirksville who recently relocated to the St. L area. The Cards beat the Reds 7-2. What a great way to enjoy Sam's first game!

Crusing around the stadium before the game

Go Cards!

The Hoffeditz family (minus Atticus) celebrated Isabel's 3rd birthday!

the money shot(s)

2008-04-10T21:12:00.006-05:00

We just had some ridiculously expensive
(ahem) I mean priceless photos taken of Sam.
[Melanie: Would you take photos for us next time?!]

We bought 5 x 7's for the grandparents.

Aunts & Uncles, we have your choice of wallets:

a new beginning

2008-03-30T16:31:00.005-05:00

Hard to believe it's been nearly 2 months since we moved! We're sort of in a no-man's land. I know we were ready for a change, but we desperately miss the small town feel we had grown accustomed to. The going to the grocery store and inevitably running into a handful of people we knew. Those type of relationships take years to build, and it's quite an adjustment to start over from scratch.

Moving day!

Our new home

Sam tries out a new doo!

The many faces of Sam

Easter Sunday!

----------------------------------

Thinking of new beginnings and such... we have another new beginning on its way. Michele is 12 weeks along! Most every day we look at each other and say how amazed we are that another one is coming. We hoped and prayed for Sam for so many years. It's almost unbelieveable that we're going to have two about 16 months apart!

a message from sam

2008-02-24T20:21:00.003-06:00

i was surfing the web the other day
and saw that my dad hadn't updated my site for awhile... dad and mom have been busy since we moved,
so i thought i should help too.

this is what i look like (photo courtesy of me).

we went back and forth to kirksville for awhile,
so i got to hang out in a hotel room.
this is me playing my drums (and keeping mom entertained).

we spent one weekend at grandmother & grandpappy's condo.

when we finally got back to my new home,
i couldn't wait to sleep in my own bed!

the end.
love,
sam

see Sam sick

2008-01-09T20:35:00.000-06:00

Sam has had a terrible cough for the past week. He looks all cute and happy... and then he gets to coughing one of those deep hacking coughs, and you'd swear he sounds like a grown-up. I guess there's no such thing as a baby cough.

Taking it easy on Sunday morning.

Even when he feels sick, he's almost smiling.

Sam's first day sick.
It was probably the Cowboys bib that got him gagging.

Chowing down a Ritz.

It's hard to tell in this photo, but Sam hates the Dallas Cowboys. He's just wearing this bib because his Uncle Jonathan gave it to him for Christmas... and he's sick, so if he barfs all over it, it's sort of a blessing. (Just kidding Jonathan!)

"Touchdown!" For whoever Dallas is playing, of course.
Sam has great dreams.

In other news... we're smack dab in the middle of our last week in Kirksville. We've had a few months to mentally prepare, but it always seemed several weeks off. Now that it's almost upon us and we're counting down the days and having some final farewells with friends and co-workers, it's beginning to sink in. I don't think it'll fully hit us until Monday and Tuesday next week when the packers and movers arrive. Hopefully Sam will be feeling better by then.

We're blessed that we have a home to move to. We had become frustrated in our house hunting and had temporarily put our efforts on-hold when a beautiful home that was well out of our price range had a tremendous price drop. It's nicer and bigger than we need, and we don't have near enough furniture to fill it. But maybe we'll find a used pool table somewhere and make a game room in the basement!

We're also blessed that my dad has made several trips to our new home to get it cleaned and ready for us. Our family can attest that if Dad's lawyer career hadn't worked out, he could've been a professional cleaner... a real professional cleaner. He drove over at 6 this morning to unlock the doors so our carpets could be professionally cleaned. And then he stuck around all day so he could take apart the oven and refrigerator and clean every square inch. Then he went through all the kitchen cabinets and pulled out all the old contact paper. He called me at work around 5 this afternoon -- he was just then heading back home -- and he told me everything he'd accomplished. Dad has always struggled to say, "I love you" but he sure knows how to show it. Hopefully I'll find a way to pay him back. Or pay it forward to someone else.

I'm also blessed that Michele has put in so much time and effort to get our current home ready for sale. (It's still available if you know anyone interested.) She's also spent several days going through our closets and cleaning things out. We're amazed at how much stuff we've accumulated in 10 years of marriage. We're donating everything we don't need to a local mission. We like our local mission because they don't charge folks anything. People are just welcome to come and take anything they need.

Meanwhile I'm spending long days at work training my replacement here. We'll be back at the beginning of February so I can walk him through another month-end financial close. It's a lot for anyone to learn, and through it all I'm learning to be more patient.

We'll do our best to share our new address with everyone via e-mail, but if we accidentally overlook anyone, please send me a note at rgasaway@hotmail.com Thanks!

still wishing for a snowsuit...

2008-01-03T21:41:00.000-06:00

The weather outside is frightful, so Michele & Sam have been entertaining each other indoors.

Sam feeds himself... sort of. At least he's happy about it!

Checking out the cool bumper pad.

"I didn't do it"

"I can't wait to stick those babies in my mouth!"

Sleeping like Mom (hand over head, holding Mr. Puddles). Ok, maybe Mom doesn't sleep with Mr. Puddles anymore. (Unless that's my new nickname)

Just for Luke

2008-01-02T21:13:00.000-06:00

Once again, those Zartman boys wished for light sabers
for Christmas. (What is this, 3 years running?)
Their wish came true... for the 3rd year in a row.
But you can never have too many light sabers,
especially when crazy Aunt Tara & Uncle Luke like to duke it out.
(Scroll really fast and these photos look like a flip book!)

Tara: "Luke, I am your wife!"

Luke: "Not for long."

Tara: "Me Mercy!"

Chillin' with my homie

AAAH!
(Photo courtesy of Jace Waring)

Catching up

2008-01-01T21:27:00.000-06:00

December was a busy month. Here are some of our favorite moments:

Sam's first snow

Answered prayer

Some of Sam's favorite toys - Baby Einstein blocks

Farewell to Tomcat, who's moved on to UMKC to finish his bachelor's degree. Dad came up one snowy Friday afternoon to help him move. We're sad to think that in just a few short weeks, no Gasaway's will call Kirksville home anymore. We've had a good run, though, and it only seems appropriate that as the first ones here, we're the last ones to leave.

Sharing a laugh - How precious life is

Just for Nancy

2007-12-31T22:38:00.000-06:00

Aunt Nancy gave Sam some holiday boxers and socks for Christmas. He wore them to a New Year's Eve party tonight. The best part for Sam was eating the socks!

The waistband around the boxers reads, "99% nice, 1% naughty"!

6 months today!

2007-11-27T20:52:00.000-06:00

Who knew 6 months could fly by so fast?

Toupe Sam

Michele's brother Mark (who is officially the last immediate family member to see Sam) mentioned that Sam always smiles. So... we had to show Sam's unhappy side.

Now he's really mad.

Oh boy, here comes the sign language.

And then bedtime comes... Sleep little buddy. Tomorrow is a new day.

Just photos...

2007-11-11T22:43:00.000-06:00

Our first Halloween

2007-11-04T21:41:00.000-06:00

Thanks to our friends, Sam had 2 costumes for his first Halloween! He was a pumpkin during the day... but by nighttime, he'd become a monster...

Trick or Treat!

2007-11-04T21:18:00.001-06:00

Michele & Sam made a surprise visit to see me at work on Halloween. Here Sam is hanging out with my friend Mike.

Our first trick or treater's were the Chrisman's! Michaela and Jacob were excited to see Sam. Michaela dressed up as a dancer. Jacob dressed up as a cat -- check out the mouse crawling up his shoulder!

Cassidy and I help hold up Kenley's costume -- dirty laundry! A few years ago, Cassidy dressed up as dirty laundry (one of our all-time favorite costumes). Now she's passed the costume down to her younger sister. Gotta love those Halloween hand-me-down's!

Shaun & Jenny with Isabel and Atticus. Jenny hand-sewed Isabel's dress (after her sewing machine broke)! Atticus the turtle is already 2 months old... and about the same weight as Sam. Jenny is a great bargain hunter -- she found Sam's monster costume for $1 and let us borrow it.

Greg & Stacey with Lauren the cat. Our friendship with Greg goes back to our early years at Truman. Now Greg works in the Alumni office and Stacey works with me at the hospital. They're also the proud owners of the "McPherson Mansion" -- a house that Ann, Tara, and I all called home at one point or another during our college careers.

Good times

2007-10-28T21:35:00.000-05:00

Our lives have never felt more complete. Sam is truly a gift from God.

Getting ready for the Truman homecoming parade

Checking out Grandpa (Rob's dad). My dad spent 3 full days with us helping fix up the windows in our living room. They are Anderson windows from the 60's and the wood frames were in poor shape. We were considering replacing them, which would've cost a few thousand dollars. But my dad though he could take them apart and refinish them. He did and they look great. Total cost was about $80 -- $60 to replace the dual pane glass in one window and about $20 for misc repair items. Thanks Dad!

Chillin' with Mom. We are so blessed that Michele is able to stay home with Sam. I always knew she'd be a great mom, I just wish the journey hadn't taken so long. We still look at each other and are amazed that we have a little guy. He's only 5 months old but it's already hard to imagine life without him.

Reading with Dad. It's become our evening routine. Just before Sam's last snack of the day, I give him a lotion rub-down and change him into his jammies, then we read a book. Michele received numerous books as baby shower gifts and Sam's room looks a little like a library. He has two large bookshelves (thanks to Grandpa & Grandmother Lawson). It's fun picking out a story every evening. My current favorite is "Goodnight Moon". Sam's favorites are the ones with sounds! Above we're reading "The Frog goes Ribbit". It has a built-in button that makes a ribbet sound.

Nice bib, Sam! I'm pretty sure he picked that one out on his own. Michele likes to lay down and lift Sam up on her legs. She does sit-ups while Sam giggles!

Aunt Nancy visits!

2007-10-21T21:51:00.000-05:00

We had a special treat a few weekends ago when Aunt Nancy and cousin Jace came to visit. Nancy did a great job summarizing the weekend on her blog. Here are a few photos:

Checking out Aunt Nancy

Having fun with Jace

Jace, Uncle Tomcat and Aunt Nancy playing Guesstures

Sam tries cereal for the first time.
"What are you shoving in my mouth, Mom?!"

It's taking some time, but Sam is starting to get the hang of eating with a spoon. So far he's tried rice cereal and carrots (fresh ones pureed by Mom). Mmmm-mmmm.

We have a winner!

2007-10-08T23:50:00.000-05:00

Blog posting has been sparse lately as we've been terribly busy looking into a potential job opportunity, visiting family, family visiting us, and just keeping pace with life. But we were excited tonight when we saw the blog comments and read Melanie's verse to our song:

When I'm sick she rubs my tummy,
Pats my back and wipes my bummy,
That is why I like my Mommy better.

Thank you Melanie! Great verse! It reminded me that I need to post some photos of you and Michele from our visit a few months ago... and apologize for not visiting on our last trip to Springfield a few weekends ago...

Best friends

Melanie's kids - Rilla, Aulden, Whitman & Georgia (holding Sam)

Having fun with Mom
(taken the same night as the photo in our last post)

Getting ready to go outside!

That is why

2007-09-20T22:39:00.001-05:00

It's no secret that kids like their moms more than their dads. (Especially when some moms have an unfair advantage of hanging out with them all day while the dads are slaving away at work to put bread on the table.) Anyway, it's inspired a new song...

"That Is Why"

Mommy plays with me all day long
Then Daddy comes home and sings me silly songs
That is why I like my Mommy better

When she gives me a bath, she cleans between my linty toes
When I get slimy boogers, she picks my little nose
That is why I like my Mommy better

OK, your turn! We need help writing more verses to this song. Post a comment and Michele will pick a winner!!

And while you're thinking up rhymes, here are some photos to inspire you:

Having fun with Mom

Loving on Mom

Visiting Uncle Tomcat and making friends with Spiderman

Supervising Mom's work as she stains some quarter-round boards for our dining room project

Impersonating Pop

One great day

2007-09-15T23:52:00.000-05:00

We celebrated my birthday a few weeks ago. Having a new person in the family sure made it special. Michele & Sam walked up to the hospital and brought me a picnic lunch. We had to get the car inspected, so the scenery for our picnic was the local auto repair shop. The lady behind the desk at the repair shop has a daughter who's a former student of Michele's, so she got a kick out of seeing Sam. The guys doing the inspecting saw we had a baby and made an extra effort to work up our inspection faster than usual. It's small town goodness.

My birthday falls towards the beginning of the month, which is our busy time at work as we close out financial statements for the prior month. So my birthday was a busy workday. But I got home around 7-ish and enjoyed a simple, yet wonderful evening at home with a quiet dinner, some play time and bath time with Sam, and a movie with Michele. Our movie was "The Astronaut Farmer" -- pretty good, especially considering we hadn't seen a movie in months.

Here are some photos from the past few weeks:

Playing on my birthday

Smiling for mom

Tummy time!

Starting a new fashion trend

Saturday morning

Soldier Sam: Mission Mommy

2007-08-22T23:10:00.000-05:00

by Mom & Dad
The first in a series of silly short stories.

Sam woke up hungry. Really hungry.

“I wonder where Mommy is,” thought Sam. He looked and looked but couldn’t find his mommy.
Daddy didn’t know where Mommy was either. But Daddy had an idea.

“Why don’t you go undercover and try to find Mommy?” suggested Daddy.

Sam had never gone undercover before. But he trusted Daddy and he listened to Daddy’s idea.

“We’ll call you Soldier Sam,” said Daddy. “Your camouflage clothing will keep you safe.”
Soldier Sam followed Daddy’s instructions and began searching for Mommy. He laid on his tummy and crawled. Then he opened his eyes wide and looked all around.
“Wait a second… is that Mommy under my crib?!” Sam thought to himself.
Sam was relieved that Mommy was safe. And he was even more relieved to know that his tummy would be full again soon.

Before and After

2007-08-21T23:28:00.000-05:00

Before... (thanks to Aunt Tara for the cool shirt!)
And after... (thanks to Rob's co-worker Steve for the onesies!)
Sam got so excited that he made a mess in this one and got to wear both of his Cardinals outfits today!
And to top it off... the Cardinals won tonight's game! Woo-hoo!

You can always come home

2007-08-15T23:04:00.000-05:00

Several years ago while randomly listening to Christian radio, I heard the "The Chasing Song" by Andrew Peterson. I was immediately drawn into the depth of the lyrics -- it wasn't the typical, predictable stuff you usually hear on Christian radio. The words were crafted together, yet they were honest and personal. I started following Andrew's music, and over the years we've seen him in concert several times (most notable is the annual "Behold the Lamb of God" Christmas show that Andrew and friends perform at the historic Ryman Auditorium once each December). Through Andrew's music, we've learned about other musicians who have a similar approach to songwriting. Most of these musicians are now part of the Square Peg Alliance. (I'll write more on the Square Pegs in a future post.)

About a year ago, Andrew and his friend Randy Goodgame (whose music we're also hooked on) got together and recorded 18 songs they'd written for their kids over the past few years. The end product was a CD called "Slugs & Bugs & Lullabies". It's one of those CD's you feel awkward buying when you don't have kids... so thankfully Sam came along and we had a good excuse to finally order a copy! OK, truth be told, I actually picked it up before Sam arrived -- you know, so he could become familiar with the songs while he was in the womb... (yeah, now I remember, that's why we bought it early...)

Fortunately, this is one kids' CD that you don't have to feel guilty buying as an adult. The first 13 tracks are the "Slugs & Bugs" section, filled with some hilarious songs. The last 5 tracks are lullabies that they wrote just for their kids. One of the standout lullabies is "You Can Always Come Home". I was hoping to work it up on guitar and play it at church on Fathers Day, but things were too busy with Sam just a few weeks old. Maybe another time. Anyway, thought I'd share the lyrics, as they make me think of our new life as parents and the way my parents must have felt when we were little, but also the way our heavenly Father must think of us. You can also hear the tune (and see someone's kid) on this YouTube video here.

"You Can Always Come Home"
by Andrew Peterson

I love you today and I love you tomorrow
I love you as deep as the sea
I love you in joy, and I love you in sorrow
You can always come home to me

There once was a man who found him a treasure
Buried out under a tree
He sold all he had just to own it forever
The treasure is you, you see

I love you today and I love you tomorrow
I love you as deep as the sea
I love you in joy, and I love you in sorrow
You can always come home to me

There once were some sheep safe on the farm
And one little lamb got loose
The shepherd went out and carried it home
That little lamb is you

I love you today and I love you tomorrow
I love you as deep as the sea
I love you in joy, and I love you in sorrow
You can always come home to me

5 More Minutes

2007-08-13T22:21:00.001-05:00

For the past several evenings, we've taken Sam for a walk after dinner. Tonight I took him out by myself to give Michele a little break. We walked for about half an hour. Sam got a little fussy on the way back, so I did what I've been doing lately when he gets fussy. I made up a song and started singing it to him. It's sort of my personal version of "Whose line is it anyway?" where everything's made up and the points don't matter. I just make up lyrics on the spot and attempt to rhyme them. Of course, I try to keep it clean! Here's what came out tonight:

5 More Minutes

5 minutes and we'll be home
5 more minutes, we're not alone
5 minutes soon will pass
In 5 minutes we'll be home at last

5 minutes make up the day
5 minutes and we'll all play
5 minutes, I can hardly wait
Just 5 more minutes, now don't be late

5 minutes and we'll be home
5 more minutes, we're not alone
5 minutes, they never last
5 more minutes and the day is past

Too bad you can't hear the tune that goes along with it!

Now we're back safe at home. After the walk comes bath time, then a lotion rub down, then a snack with mom, then bedtime. He dozed off during snacktime tonight, then woke up when mom laid him down to rest... so now he's back up again for another snack. And the power of music again is comforting him. This time, it's Eva Cassidy's Songbird. If you haven't heard Eva, you should go out and buy one of her CD's. She wasn't really "discovered" until after her untimely death. But her voice is timeless.

Here's Sam after a bath the other day:

10 years ago today...

2007-08-09T22:02:00.000-05:00

Wow, these 10 years have flown by. Lots of milestones: earning our masters degrees, me passing the CPA exam, Michele being named teacher of the year for our school district and earning National Teacher Certification, paying off student loans, buying 4 different cars over the years (the Grey Dog, the Batmobile, El Pilote, and the Blue Bullet), buying our home, taking several fun vacations -- most of which involved taking lots of risks with wilderness whitewater rafting -- and of course, having Sam.

Some of the best times for me have been the whitewater trips to Colorado, Tennessee, Idaho, Utah and North Carolina. Idaho was the riskiest (our first multi-day trip, camping out 6 nights in the wilderness, huge rapids at times). Utah might've been the best overall trip -- a 4-day run down the Green River in Dinosaur National Monument. We had so much fun, we went back the next summer with Michele's youngest brothers Mark and David. Some day I hope we can head back out there with Sam to conquer the rapids, enjoy some nights under the stars, and grow closer together. That's the best part of the river trips -- growing closer together. It probably sounds strange that getting away from absolutely everything (including electricity and plumbing) could ever be fun. But they've truly been some of the best times, and the best stories that we can ever tell. Thanks for 10 wonderful years, Michele. I hope we have at least 100 more!

10 hours ago today... (give or take)

I was able to take a day off work and enjoy some time at home with Michele and the little guy. We had a relaxing day -- took a walk, took a nap, took some time-out to enjoy each other. Tonight some good friends watched Sam while we went out to eat. It's one of those days I wish we could wake up tomorrow and do all over again.

And the winner is...

2007-08-06T23:30:00.000-05:00

Tara!! Congratulations on winning our first ever "Where in the World is Sam?" contest! You named the correct location of the photos below: Aunt Nancy's home! Sam tried to visit her a few weeks ago but she was nowhere to be found.

Tell her what she's won, Bob:
Tara, you've earned the privilege to see one of Sam's best photos to date! Check it out:

What about a consolation prize?
It only seems fair to give our runner up, Sarah, a special prize. Sarah, how about this priceless photo of you and the world's cutest baby:
Bonus photo!
We took Sam to the pool and all the babes hovered around him. He's a chick magnet!

where in the world is Sam?

2007-08-02T23:23:00.001-05:00

The first installment of our new feature: Where in the World is Sam?

Sam took a road trip a few weekends ago... Any guesses who he tried to visit?!!

Auntie Annie visits from North Carolina!

2007-07-26T23:27:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe that it's already been a month since Auntie Annie's visit -- and I'm just now posting photos! Sorry everyone! The photos have been hiding out in our laptop. I finally took time tonight to pull the photos over to our desktop where I do all my posting.

Ann (Rob's sister) putting the moves on Sam. He just melted in her arms.

Sam's first bath! He pulled off his umbilical cord and chucked it across the room (no kidding!) a day or so before Ann arrived, so we figured that was his way of telling us that he was ready for a deep cleaning. But he had second thoughts once he got wet...

Tummy time! Sam loves mirrors. For the first few weeks, he slept in a playpen bassinet that faced a full-length mirror. One day we caught him looking at us in the mirror! Maybe that's normal, but it seemed pretty amazing to us. In the photo above, Annie's giving Sam a back rub. She's a speech therapist and she works with PT's and OT's, so she's picked up on all the tricks to keeping babies happy. Who knew that babies like massages?!

A group photo courtesy of the camera self-timer.

This is a photo from Easter weekend that I stole off of Ann's camera. Everyone went in different directions this Easter, but Ann, Nancy, Michele, and I were able to get together for a few hours at Susan's home. Nancy left before we thought to take a group photo. Sorry Sug!

We had a great visit with Annie and hope we get to see her again before Thanksgiving! Maybe it's time for Sam to take his first plane ride...

family fun

2007-07-17T23:49:00.000-05:00

We had a great time last weekend with Aunt Susan (Rob's sister), Uncle Ron, and cousins Landon & Payton coming to visit.

Landon poses with the big guy as we get ready to head up to the Friday night concert on the square. Each Friday evening during the summer, our local arts association organizes a concert. Some shows are great... others, well, aren't. But it's always fun to get outdoors and enjoy some music. This particular Friday night featured local blues band Deadwood. They were great. They're usually just a trio (lead guitar, bass, and drums) but a few songs featured a blues trumpet player -- probably a Truman student. Since I played trumpet back in the day, I really enjoyed it. Too bad I didn't think to take a photo of the show!

Aunt Susan helps Payton hold Sam. Check out Payter's new glasses! At first, he wasn't quite sure what to think of Sam... but before the weekend was over, he was hanging out with him non-stop.

Landon's grandparents on the Zartman side found a toy guitar that Ron had as a kid. That's inspired Landon to become a guitar player. He spent a good part of the weekend strumming an old classical guitar that my mom used to play when we were kids. Mom would be proud.

It's almost bedtime! Well, for Landon and Payton anyway. Sam sleeps whenever he darn well pleases. Just kidding... Sam's a good sleeper for being 2 months old!

The highlight of the weekend for the boys was Saturday afternoon at our local aquatic center. Landon went down the slide about 50 times, Payton had lots of fun playing, and Michele ran into several students who were really excited to meet our little guy.

my dad's tougher than your dad

2007-07-12T23:05:00.001-05:00

They haven't really given each other any good eye contact since they were born (3 days apart). But here's Tobin and Sam eyeing each other in their first stare-down. I'm proud to say that Tobin blinked first.

Clockwise from left: Dora (Tobin's big sister), Wendy, Michele, Isabel (Can't see her, but she's at the bottom of the slide. She belongs to some friends who are addicted to seeing Harry Potter movies on opening day), Jeremy, Tobin (blinker), Sam (stare-down champion).

leaving our mark

2007-07-12T22:20:00.000-05:00

After already donating thousands of dollars to our alma mater in exchange for tuition, room & board, and eventually degrees, it was a little hard to swallow giving them $100 more to buy a brick. But... we finally caved in and left a little something to make the family proud:
Good thing only 4 of the 6 Gasaway kids attended Truman -- we almost ran out of space!

Here's a shot of the courtyard where the bricks are laid. It's right outside the newly renovated Magruder Hall (a.k.a. Science Hall). That's Michele & Sam hanging out by our brick.
And here's a shot of what used to be the Catholic Newman Center on Truman's campus. It was struck by lightning and completely destroyed by fire on Wednesday, May 30th -- the day we came home from the hospital with Sam. We must've been exhausted... because while we remember the strong storm, we never heard the fire sirens. We heard about the fire the following day from our good friend Wendy. She saw the flames from her hospital room (the same room that she and Michele shared for a day).
We weren't involved at the Newman Center, but we did go to a few dances there during our college days. It's sad to see the building destroyed. You can check out more photos here. Hopefully they'll be able to rebuild soon.

a day at the park

2007-07-07T13:46:00.000-05:00

City parks are one of the best reasons to live in town -- especially if they're within walking distance. When we were young, I remember visiting my grandma in Greenfield, Iowa and being amazed that right across the street from her house was one of the best parks known to man. I'm sure in reality it was just a skimpy little park with some old swings, a beat-up see-saw and a rusty merry-go-round. But when you're 4 or 5, I couldn't imagine anything better. We didn't visit Grandma Ehm that often, but I always looked forward to seeing her and playing at that park.

Today we live just a few blocks away from one of our city parks. Michele and Wendy are already making a routine of going on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. The other day, I rode my bike and met them there after work, and we took a few photos (with our new digital camera!).

A great weekend

2007-06-20T19:21:00.000-05:00

Aunt Tara (Rob's sister) holds the big guy

Mrs. W (Michele's mom) and sister Sarah

Forrest (Michele's dad) and sister Angela

Taking a nap on Grandpa's lap

Hanging out with dad, and looking pretty concerned about the St. Louis Cardinals who can't seem to win a game for anything.

We had a great time, and we're already looking forward to this next weekend with Auntie Annie visiting from North Carolina!

Dern technology

2007-06-16T12:34:00.000-05:00

Sam arrived 3 weeks early... before I had a chance to buy a digital camera (I know, it's pretty amazing we've never owned one. I guess we've always been satisfied with our 35mm). As I mentioned in an earlier post, we've been blessed with great friends. Jeremy & Wendy let us borrow their digital camera for a few days until Tobin arrived. Then Greg & Stacey let us borrow theirs... and now we've had it for 3 weeks and still haven't bought our own! But my procrastination has finally caught up with me. A few days ago I tried to pull 2 weeks of photos off their camera... and the memory card tells me it must be formatted, which will presumably delete all photos. We'll track down a real photographer on Monday and see if there's any hope of retrieving the photos... but I don't think there's much hope. Anyway, that's why I haven't posted any new photos lately.

One of Sam's favorite aunt's is visiting today -- and she brought her digital camera. (Thanks, Tara!) Here's a good photo of him napping:

Letters to the Editor, Vol. 1

2007-06-13T10:36:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite songwriters, Andrew Osenga, has just released a Web CD.

Couple of cool things about this project:

It's available by download only (click the photo above for a direct link). If you like the music, he asks for contributions through Paypal.

He asked his blog readers for ideas for all the songs. They threw out ideas and he worked several of them into song lyrics.

He found some software where his blog readers could record background vocals and send them to him. He received more than 50 replies, and he meshed them all into one of the songs as a chorus. He calls them "webground vocals".

From inception to completion, he spent 20 days total on this project.

Pretty amazing!

Hey everyone, meet Sam

2007-06-02T22:10:00.000-05:00

After some heated arguments, a few tears, and an arm-wrestling match, we finally agreed on a name... Samuel Robert Gasaway. Well maybe it wasn't that dramatic. But we did struggle with a name -- there are just too many that we like! We finally settled on Samuel because of the Old Testament story of Hanna and her son Samuel. For many years she prayed for a baby and finally God gave her one. We can identify, as we've hoped and prayed for a child for about 5 years. Samuel means "God heard me".

We've been blessed with great friends, two of whom are Jeremy & Wendy. They had a son arrive on May 30th -- Tobin Rockford Isaac Osborne. Michele and Wendy were roommates for a day. Here they are showing off their baby boys:

Baby G arrives early!

2007-05-27T19:55:00.001-05:00

Born at 8:29 am on Sunday, May 27th. 7lbs 4oz, 20 inches long. It's a boy!!! Still working on a name. Mom and baby are exhausted but doing well. Thanks for your prayers. More photos soon...

Tossing cookies

2007-04-11T18:53:00.000-05:00

My streak has finally come to an end. It lasted 7,311 days (give or take). Not bad by any measure. But still... it's a streak I'd like to have continued forever.

What streak, you ask? Tossing cookies. I think the last time was junior high -- something like 20 years ago... or around 7300 days (20 years x 365 days). At least that's the last one I remember. I stayed home from school because I felt sick. And that meant staying next door at Grandma G's. She fixed some delicious homemade vegetable soup for lunch. Afterwards I was resting on the couch... and then that undeniable urge came.

That same urge overpowered me at work on Monday evening. Fortunately everyone else had already gone home for the day. I had just talked with Michele and told her I was feeling awful and coming home soon. Then it happened. Thankfully my trash can was within easy reach.

The surprising part? It wasn't that bad. I mean it wasn't great by any stretch. But after it happened I felt 10 times better... and I actually kept working a little longer, knowing it probably wouldn't be the last of the cookie tossing and I'd probably need a few days off.

I was right on both accounts. I won't elaborate on the additional cookie tossing, but I did take off 2 sick days on Tuesday and Wednesday. And in between the sleeping and cooking tossing, it occurred to me... this could be the last time that I'm home by myself for a long time. A baby is coming!!

New Question of the Week:
How long is your streak? (When was the last time you tossed your cookies?!) If there's a memorable story, please share.

My answer to last week's question:
I'll go with Country Kitchen. Our local restaurant has some great food... but the smokey smell is overwhelming, so we rarely go there. I'm hoping they do a deep cleaning once our smoke-free ordinance kicks in!

Also worth mentioning:
Grandpa Lawson e-mailed a reply to last week's question:
"Rob, your blog update and question are too complicated for me --- but I will comment with one word----probably totally out of context----TWINS!!!!"

Breathe Easy

2007-04-06T01:02:00.000-05:00

In Tuesday's election, our town passed a no-smoking ordinance that bans smoking in most public places, namely restaurants and bars. That's great news for non-smokers like us, and hopefully the smokers will eventually come to see it as great news. The ordinance kicks in on July 1st.

My employer (the local hospital) is in the transition period of enforcing a no-tobacco policy on our grounds. The buildings have been smoke free for years, but patients, visitors and employees could still smoke outside on hospital property. So the outside smoking is going to be banned soon. I think the enforcement date is coincidentally July 1st too.

Anyway, all these new rules have inspired me to ask a "Question of the week"!

Question of the week:
What restaurant would you go to more often if it was no-smoking?

Post a comment and share your thoughts! I'll share my answer in the next post...

Michele

2007-04-01T23:35:00.000-05:00

Michele is my beautiful wife.

This photo was taken a few weeks ago at my parents' home in rural Missouri.

This one was also taken a few weeks ago...
It's hard to believe that we've been married for almost 10 years. The time has flown by. We've hoped and prayed for children for years, and had all but given up hope. So when we found out that Michele was expecting, we were overjoyed.

Welcome!

2007-02-12T22:58:00.000-06:00

I'm creating this blog to share some of our lives with family and friends (and the rest of the world!). Hope to post more soon...