Year End Review

2007 has been an exciting year for the Walls family. I think I will title it "2007: The Year of Change". I guess every year is filled with change especially when you have young children, but this year brought about many changes and much adjustment.

2007 started with Daniel turning 5 and a fun filled day at Legoland with Tutu, Papa and Nana. Also in January Sammy graduated from his crib to a big boy bed. Sammy took a big step when he joined Daniel in Teacher Laurie's preschool class at the beginning of February. The spring was filled with fun trips to Disneyland, the East Coast to see lots of relatives, a four day backpacking trip in the San Jacinto Mountains for me and a family retreat with our church in our local mountains. In June Daniel graduated from preschool. A week later the boys and I were in Oregon visiting my sister and her family. We moved Daniel into Sammy's room and reclaimed the studio/computer room. We spent the summer swimming at the pool, Daniel in summer camps at City Tree and both boys attending VBS at church (I got to have a full week with no boys for the mornings, Yippee!). We ended our summer with an amazing trip to Hawaii where we stayed at a beach house on Oahu. The boys got to meet their great grandparents and a plethora of other Hawaiian relatives. At the end of August I celebrated my 33rd birthday (am I really that old?) and Dan and I celebrated 10 years of marriage (has it really been that long?) In September Daniel started full time Kindergarten and Sammy started preschool at City Tree. Since I found myself with so much free time on my hands (yeah right!) I started working a little bit for my old company. Dan and my Dad trained for a bike tour from Rosarito Beach to Ensenada that they both completed in 3 hours and 5 minutes, not too bad. October saw tragedy in San Diego as fires raged throughout the county, but was also a time of celebration as Sammy turned 4 years old. We got to spend Thanksgiving with my sister and her girls. Daniel lost his first tooth. Just a few days ago the boys took their first trip to L.A. with my parents all by themselves. Dan and I got to spend three days in the house all alone (simply wonderful).

We will ring in the New Year with root beer floats and mint chip shakes, yum. We sure did fill the year with fun memories and can't wait to see what this next year holds in store for the Walls family. Stay safe and Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

The stockings have been opened and the boys are dancing around anxiously in front of the Christmas tree. Santa has indeed come! Merry Chirstmas everyone. Happy Birthday, Jesus!

Baby it's Cold Outside...

It was in the thirties when I woke up this morning and let me tell you it was C-O-L-D! It could have snowed if there was rain...well probably not, but it was cold. I mean this is San Diego, the finest city, the city of sand and sun and temperatures in the thirties just will not do. The rain and chilly weather are making it feel like Christmas is looming near and I guess it is just around the corner. Our house is looking quite festive. We have decked the halls and trimmed the tree. The stockings are hung by the chimney and the lights outside are aglow. Yes, there is definitely Christmas in the air although we are more coughy, sniffly and hard of hearing than merry and bright.

This year we splurged and bought a noble fire instead of the cheaper douglas fir for our Christmas tree and boy am I glad. The extra ten bucks is worth all the time saved vacuuming up dropped needles. I know I say this every year, BUT... I think this is the best Christmas tree yet. The boys loved decorating the house and tree, although they were a little anxious to get everything out and start in on the fun before the adults were quite ready.

So it is beginning to look and feel a lot like Christmas, although I wouldn't mind if it felt a little less like Christmas, maybe by 20 or 25 degrees. Jack frost has been nipping at my nose too often these mornings.

One Down...

Daniel was so excited this morning as he told me the news that the tooth fairy had come during the night, took his tooth and left a dollar in its place. Last night I whipped up a little tooth fairy pillow to house the lost tooth. I did not want to risk Daniel or Sammy waking up as the tooth fairy searched around desperately for that little tooth.

It turns out that Daniel was not the only one to lose his first tooth yesterday. Two of his classmates also lost their first tooth, all within an hour of each other. Daniel's teacher told me that Daniel actually pulled his out during library time and boy was he excited. Sammy seemed just as thrilled and ran around telling all his friends at school. Sammy was going to try and stay up so he could catch a glimpse of the tooth fairy, but was fast asleep when she made her appearance.

I was a little nervous as I snuck into their room last night to make the exchange. Sammy is such a light sleeper. But I got in and got out, no problem. Daniel's other bottom front tooth is loose so it will probably not be too long till the tooth fairy makes a return visit. One down, many more to go.

A Late Night Visitor

We had a visitor tonight. Inflation has reared its ugly head once again, because when this visitor used to come to my house all I got was a 'Bright Shiny Penny!' (Make sure you use fake enthusiasm when you say 'Bright Shiny Penny!'). Daniel made out with a whole dollar! Kids today, they just don't know how good they have it!

As you can imagine, Suzy is beside herself with Mommy level five excitment. Daniel is pretty excited too. We caught him gazing into the bathroom mirror tonight. This is his quote,

"I look old, maybe... 13!"

The teenage years have begun. Wish us luck.

Advent Breakfast

The Christmas season has officially begun! December 1st already, and I can hardly believe it. Today definitely had a wintery, Christmasy feeling to it. A storm blew in yesterday bringing us much needed rain and it is cold and blustery outside. Every year our church starts off the advent season with an advent breakfast for the kids. Food, singing, crafts and fellowship was enjoyed by all.

December is probably my favorite time of year (although I could do without the endless coughing, sneezing and runny noses). I love all the sounds, sights and smells of the Christmas season. I love how people open their hearts at this time and are just so giving. I love the Christmas story and celebrating the birth of Christ. It really is all so awesome!

Welcome to the World, Baby Girl

Claire Ariella

Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2007

1:44 PM

8 lb 9 oz.20.5"

I am so excited! Dan's longtime friend and coworker and his wife welcomed their first child into the world today. A baby girl! I haven't seen any pictures yet, but I am sure she is as sweet as pie. It seems as if we have been waiting for the arrival of this baby for a long time. It is a very big deal at Dan's work because of the six families in the company there are 9 boy offspring and no girls. Until today at 1:44 p.m. that is. I think Claire with be doted on very much.

I made these adorable little shoes for Claire. Are they not the cutest things ever! They were so easy to put together and such fun to embellish. I can't wait to see that sweet, sweet baby. Do you think her parents will let me keep her for a little bit. Just a day or week or two or three...?

Congratutions, John and Galit!

Wibbly, Wobbly Tooth

Daniel has his very first loose tooth, and according to the dentist, who we saw last week, that tooth is not long for the world.

Maybe a month of so ago, while brushing Daniel's teeth, I noticed that his left front tooth was a tiny bit wiggly. Now it is loose enough that I feel a little bit queasy when I see his tooth wiggle around. Last week Daniel told me that while playing with his loose tooth he head a little crack. I didn't let on that I was a little grossed out by that bit of info. Yep, I don't think it will be too long before the tooth fairy makes a visit to our house.

This is such a big milestone. If not for Daniel, for me. It seems strange that I have a kid old enough to be loosing his baby teeth. For the past six years, so much has revolved around teeth coming in, not falling out. Daniel was an extremely early teether. He got his first tooth at only three months old, and had all his teeth, minus molars, by nine months.

Daniel was not an easy teether. Each and every tooth caused both Daniel and us much pain. I am still not sure who suffered more. When Daniel's molars came in, he whined for a month straight and would wake up in the middle of the night crying and nothing we did could soothe him. Sammy was a much better teether, but nevertheless I was ecstatic when his last second molar made its appearance.

So far this loose tooth doesn't seem to bother Daniel, but only time will tell. I know it can't be too comfortable having a wobbly tooth while trying to eat, so we will have to see how Daniel copes.

I just can't believe we are already at this stage. I can't imagine Daniel with a missing tooth. I can remember having loose and missing teeth. Really, Daniel can't be that old. Can he?

Super Chargers

This is by no means a sports blog, and I have no intention of changing that, but I think that sports can offer life lessons if you are paying attention.

As you can probably determine by the title of this blog entry I am a fan of a football team called the San Diego Chargers. Last year this team had a great season, won fourteen games and only lost three. They even had the MVP playing for them, LaDainian Tomlinson, who set numerous NFL records during an amazing season. Unfortunately they are not playing as well this year. Currently they have won four and lost four, and yesterday's game was a debacle. What has changed and how can I use this in my life? What are the life lessons?

Well, one thing that has not changed is the players. They are almost exactly the same, just a year older. If they were an old team then you could then have an 'ah ha' moment, and say the team got old. That theory won't hold water too well due to the fact that they are not an old team, by NFL standards they would actually be considered a young team. So we will have to look elsewhere. Coaching.

The Chargers had their top offensive and defensive coaches leave to take jobs elsewhere, they then fired their head coach. Their top three coaches from last year were all allowed, or encouraged, to leave. Why did they fire their head coach you ask? Good question, the head coach and the General Manager (usually the head coach's boss, also the guy who obtains the players through one method or another) did not get along. At all. One of the excuses for the firing was the lack of success in the playoffs. You see, one of the three losses last year was in their first game of the playoffs against New England. It was an ugly game, lots of poor plays by the players, but the Chargers still had a great shot to win it. But they didn't.

Still haven't gotten to any of the life lessons! Get to the point! Hey, you get what you pay for with this blog. If I want to write a dissertation you will just have to suffer through it. Either that or stop reading.

Life Lesson #1: Leadership Counts
Same players, worse performance, leadership seems to matter. As I was coming into work this morning I was thinking that the same thing applies to my boys. My boys are who they are, my job as a parent is to give them their best chance to succeed. Daniel and Sammy are very different from each other, they both have their strengths and weaknesses, but different strengths and weaknesses. Suzy and I have a job that requires we help the boys figure those strengths and weaknesses out, and how to emphasize the strengths, and be able to handle the weaknesses. If we do a good job with that then the boys will have a better chance at growing up to be productive members of society. If we do a bad job, then they will have more hurdles to overcome. Leadership matters. It can help, or it can hold back.

Life Lesson #2: Don't Overreact
The Chargers partly fired their coach because they weren't winning in the playoffs. They had an amazingly successful year, but lost at the end and that was too bitter of a pill for the management to swallow. Now they are paying for it. My boys really are good kids. Ninety plus percent of the time they behave just how I would want them to. One of my flaws as a parent is that I overreact to the less than ten percent of the time when exceptions occur. I need to be better about appreciating and enjoying the ninety plus percent of the time. Things aren't always going to go perfectly, as a parent I should be able to handle the 'blips' and move on. Don't overreact, don't hold a grudge. The Bible says don't let the sun go down on your anger.

Life Lesson #3: Stay Calm
It seems to me that disasters happen not as a result of one thing going wrong, but a series of things going wrong, one leading to the next until you are standing in a Tijuana jail thinking you had one too many shots of tequila. The Chargers lost their playoff game, they then lost their offensive and defensive coordinators, and then they lost their head coach. If they had stayed calm and dealt with the situations is a dispassionate manner they may have had more success in navigating that difficult time. Instead they acted in the heat of the moment, and now are paying the price. One of the areas that I struggle most with as a parent is staying calm. Nipping problems in the bud, so that they don't become full disasters. Staying calm in the moment. Easier said than done.


So, if you are still reading that means a couple of things, you weren't turned off by the sports analogies, you survived my preachy blogging, or you are my wife. Congratulations on any of those three things. I hope that people out there who don't enjoy sports now better understand that sports can offer things beyond the superficial. At least for me they can lead to reflection, and hopefully some improvements in my parenting. Go Chargers!

Jack-O-Lantern

This year Tutu and Papa got to join in the fun of carving the Halloween pumpkins. I don't know who enjoyed it more, Tutu and Papa who probably haven't carved a pumpkin in a while or Dan and I who got to sit back and watch the slimy mess from a distance. Actually, with Tutu directing, the boys and surrounding environment stayed impressively clean. Tutu is the queen of clean!

I would have to say Papa probably enjoyed the whole process the most. He meticulously cut and carved those two pumpkins into masterpieces.

The boys enjoyed digging into the mushy insides and cleaning out all the seeds and pulp. Even Daniel who tends to shy away from slimy, messy things dove right in. We let Daniel draw a face for his pumpkin, but he drew a complicated Halloween scene instead of eyes, a nose and a mouth. Papa and I looked at each other not quite knowing what to say. How do you tell a five year old there is no way you are going to try and carve his pumpkin masterpiece? Tutu came to the rescue showing Daniel some faces he could choose from a magazine. He seemed content enough with that idea and picked a face. Sammy picked a cat face.

After the pumpkins were finished being transformed into Halloween jack-o-lanterns we brought them outside and lit them up. So cute!

Can't wait for Halloween!

Happy 4th Birthday, Sammy!

A look at birthdays past...

Welcome to the World!

1st Birthday!

2nd Brithday!

3rd Birthday!

4th Birthday!

Almost 4!

Tomorrow is Sammy's 4th birthday! I can't believe it. I mean 4 years old! My youngest! When did that happen? It seems like overnight. Strange that 4 years ago there were also devastating fires burning in San Diego. Boy has my life changed in these last four years, in just the last year too. My sweet, sweet, chunka, chunka baby is a big boy.

We celebrated Sammy's birthday on Friday. We have the tradition of having our family and our old neighbors, Bela and Maracela who are like family, over for birthdays. Sammy's birthday has always had a Halloween theme, which makes things very easy, lots of balloons, candles and yummy cake. This year was fun because Daniel and Sammy could help decorate for the party and even helped make a pin the eyes on the pumpkin game. We had pizza and cake, friends and family. Just perfect! Sammy was tickled opening all his presents, one of the few times out of the year that he gets new toys.

Tomorrow we will have pumpkin pie to celebrate his special day. Yummy! It is funny looking back over the last four years because although Sammy has grown and changed so much he is still so much like the baby and toddler he was. He is still so smiley and happy. That kid sure knows how to have a good time! He is curious and never afraid to try something new. Sammy rarely complains or whines and always seems to enjoy whatever he is doing. He is still so silly and people always tell me that they love to just watch Sammy. And he still knows how to melt my heart in a heartbeat.

Sammy may be turning four, but he is still my sweet snuggle buggle and he still lets my hug and kiss his sweet, soft cheeks. Happy Birthday, Sammy! You are such a big boy!

The End is in Sight

Well, it appears the end is finally in sight. The fires are still raging, but the firefighters are finally getting a handle on them and are putting projections on when they will be fully contained. Evacuations are slowing down, and people are being let back into their houses. This week has been such an emotional roller coaster for the city of San Diego. I am thankful that this time the fires were far from our home and sad for those who have lost so much. But in every tragedy there is triumph and the city of San Diego has definitely triumphed. The way the city has pulled together and taken care of friends, family and even strangers has been absolutely astounding. Evacuation centers had to ask people to stop bring food and supplies because they were becoming overwhelmed with the amount of donations being dropped off. The radio and Internet were filled with people asking how they could help. Simply amazing.


School was canceled all week and we have been trying to stay indoors, so the boys and I are going a bit stir crazy. I have been trying to keep them from destroying the house and each other will trying to maintain my sanity. All and all the boys are doing well with everything. They know there are big fires in San Diego and that Daniel's teacher and a classmate were evacuated, but I have reassured them that our house is safe. Sammy got a little teary eyed thinking about the animals that might get stuck in the fire, but that was about it.


We have also been very lucky because the air quality has not been too bad. Because the fires are to the North and South of us and the wind is blowing West we are not getting a lot of smoke over us. The mornings seem to be the worst, but by nighttime the smell is barely noticeable and we have been able to get out and take the boys around the neighborhood to stretch their legs. During the Cedar fire we had ash constantly falling from the sky and air quality was so bad you didn't want to have to go outside at all. Of course the Cedar fire came within less than five miles of our house, so we were affected much more.


Despite all the chaos, Tutu and Papa are still coming down to help us celebrate Sammy's 4th birthday! Hopefully I-5 will not get shut down again. I am looking forward to getting back to life as usual. Thanks for all the prayers and keep praying for the city and people of San Diego.

Spooky

It is getting a bit spooky around here and it doesn't have anything to do with being so close to Halloween. The media does love to over-dramaticize everything, but is easier to do that when things just look eerie out. The sky is dark, the sun has a halo around it, and there is that distinctive smell in the air. Whenever we would move back to San Diego from where ever growing up, the first brush fire would bring back the memories of that distinctive smell. Kind of like a barbeque, but not quite. In fact, walking around the neighborhood last night with the boys looking at Halloween decorations we smelled barbeque, but I think that it really was just some chicken on the grill.

The fires are bringing back strong memories of four years ago, just days before Sammy was born. Memories like standing outside our front door talking with our neighbor. Looking across the valley to see firetrucks up on the next ridge. Trying to figure out if we were supposed to evacuate. Poor Suzy wondering if we would be able to get to the hospital for our scheduled c-section. Fires getting so close to work that a couple of guys going to grab all of our computers. Fires jumping the 52 Freeway and getting way too close to our favorite Japanese restaurant, Niban.

Now it seems like things are about the same. Fires surrounding San Diego city proper. Evacuations from places that I have been riding my bike through. My co-worker has gone home this morning because the fires are just across a freeway from his house. This morning Suzy and I kept hearing barking, but we couldn't figure out where it was coming from. When I walked outside to catch a ride to work (can't walk, air is too nasty out) I talked with my neighbor and she told me her house is full, some friends were evacuated late last night, and she now has two dogs, three cats and a bird, in addition to the three cats she already has. A crowded house. Well, that at least explains the strange barking.

The reassuring thing to us is that we live in an area that people are being evacuated to, not from. But please keep the people who have been evacuated and all of the emergency personnel in your prayers. Talk about hell on earth for those people.

The Power of Prayer

One of the things that we are going over in our Sunday School class on parenting is praying with, and praying for, your kids. Praying for Sammy and Daniel is no problem for me, mainly because I need all the help I can get trying to figure out how to do this whole 'father' thing. Praying with the boys has always been more of an issue. They tend to get a bit distracted. When they say grace for a meal inevitably the other one is starting in on dinner early, or playing with his fork, or leaning back in his chair, or... well, you get the picture. Then when we say our prayers at night Daniel generally is pretty good, sits their quietly, but Sammy is a squirmer. Here, there, everywhere. I have tried having him lie down, sit in my lap, kneel at the side of the bed, nothing much works. So, the other night Suzy and I decided to try and split them up for night time prayers, and I don't know how it worked for her, but Daniel and I did great. Typically I ask the boys what they would like to pray for, and I just go from there. That night after I was winding down Daniel actually jumped in and added some good stuff on his own. It was surprising, and actually very heartening, to know that he is starting to understand about praying and talking to God.

This morning on a bit of a whim as I was about to leave I called Sammy over to me and we sat by Daniel and prayed for his day at school (today is a day Sammy stays home with Suzy). We prayed that he would have a good day, that he would have fun with his friends, learn a lot, respect his teacher, and Sammy was jumping in on the prayer with me. There is hope. If God can get a not quite yet four year old Sammy to pray with me for his brother then there must be hope.

So let us know if we can pray for anything for you all, I don't know what God's answer to the prayer will be, but me and the boys, we can surely ask!

Pumpkin Time

I can't believe it is already that time of year! You know, when time seems to go into warp drive. Sammy's birthday, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, the New Year and finally Daniel's birthday. It is like a whirlwind of excitement and activity. The first trip to the Pumpkin Patch always seems like the launching pad to me.

I have been to quite a few pumpkins patches since having my first child. All have been very fun, but I think this one, Victoria's Gardens, has been one of the best. You never quite know what to expect when going to a new pumpkin patch. Will it smell of cow manure the whole time? Will there be a good selection of pumpkins? Will there be a hay maze or petting zoo? The pumpkin patch the Kindergarten class went to today had it all. We took train and hay rides, jumped in jumpy tents, slid down giant slides, ran through a corn maze, took a pony ride and pet and fed the animals. The kids had so much fun it was fun just watching them.

At the end the kids all got to pick out a pumpkin. The only requirement was that the pumpkin be about the same size as your head. Lucky for Daniel he inherited his father's very large noggin.

I am so glad I got to participate in this fun event with Daniel's class, but I am wiped. I don't know about Daniel, but I think it will be an early bedtime for me. And I get to do it all over again on Monday with Sammy's preschool class.

So now there are pumpkins on the porch. There is no denying that the holiday season is upon us. Let the good times roll!

El Caballo!

So... we are driving up the coast of Baja California. We spent Friday night in Ensenada, and we were supposed to catch a shuttle up to Rosarito in the morning on Saturday for the start of the ride. The shuttle wasn't where we thought it should be, so after parking our car (Bob's Volvo, which we weren't absolutely sure we would ever see again), we had to ride our bikes around downtown Ensenada looking for the shuttles. After a few miles and much consternation we stumbled onto the secret shuttle spot, loaded up our bikes and headed north. The shuttle was packed full of twenty five people who all seemed the same, but all were very different. The riders were nothing if not eclectic, young (saw a kid who was probably about six on the back of a tandem with his father), old, skinny, fat, gringos, Mexicans, you name it, we saw it. The conversations on the shuttle ranged from political debates to training rituals (it was a long ride).

So... we are driving up the coast of Baja California. We come around the bend and up ahead I see a cloud of smoke and hear some squealing brakes! The big truck in front of us just slammed on his brakes and swerved around something in the road! Our driver, a young person who didn't speak much English, starts muttering under his breath, clearly rattled, trying to figure out what is going on. Then, through the smoke emerges... a horse? In the road? Just running around in the slow lane. No rider, just the horse. Please keep in mind that the road that we are on is analogous to the I5 here on the West Coast, or the 95 in the East. It is the major North-South freeway in Baja California, and there is a horse jogging? cantering? in the slow lane. Our poor driver slowed quickly, very quickly, and started honking his horn. The horse didn't really care. Along it went, with enough of a weave to its journey that going around wasn't really an option. After what seemed like a mile, but was more like a hundred yards, the horse veered off the side of the road and headed inland. The driver just muttered some more and then sped right up as if nothing happened. Ah, the resiliency of youth.

It was quite an interesting start to our day.

Made It

We made it. No accidents (for us at least) and no injuries (to us at least). It took us just under three and a quarter hours (the exact time is hard to say since the start is a bit nebulous). Our ride was pretty hard, but fun. Riding up to Rosarito in the shuttle the morning of the race is a bit daunting. You are in the shuttle for over an hour, seeing parts of the course, seeing the hills you will be climbing, all the while thinking, 'I have to ride all this way on my BIKE!' But once you get going it went much quicker than I thought. Actually the first twenty miles really flew by.

More stories to come, but I wanted to publicly thank and congratulate Bob, he did really well on the ride, and was a lot of fun to be with in Ensenada. When we got to the finish line we were looking around, but didn't see anyone older than him. It was very impressive. Nice job, Bob. Way to go.

Rosarito Ensenada

I am getting a bit nervous. Tomorrow around noon I am heading south, way south, different country south, with my father-in-law, Bob. We are staying tomorrow night in a town called Ensenada, which is in Baja California. Early in the morning on Saturday (6 AM wakeup, are you ready Bob?) we grab a shuttle up the Baja coast to a town called Rosarito. Then, at around 10 AM PST, we take off with 10,000 other cyclists on a fifty mile journey along the coast of Baja back to Ensenada. Although this ride is billed as a party on wheels I am still a bit nervous. There is a hill in the middle of the route (about 22 miles in) called El Tigre. When we scouted the route a few weeks ago it seemed like a pretty good hill. In fact the whole route seemed like it took a long time to drive, much less ride. I am hoping to finish in about three and a half hours. That is a long time for me to be on a bike. Since I ride to work pretty much every day I am very used to spending time on my bike. Usually that means about 30 minutes. 30 minutes, three hours, what's the big deal?

Anyway, I am getting a bit nervous. Not for any valid reason, I have been training, and am in good shape. I think that it has to do with me being adventurous. I am by nature not a 'risk taker'. I like sure things. Going to Mexico to ride bikes with a bunch of other crazy folks is not my standard weekend. As I get older, though, I am realizing that taking a few risks is not a terrible thing. I am trying to appreciate adventure, trying new things. Taking the longer path through the woods. That sort of thing. Hopefully this attempt at taking chances doesn't lead to me in a Tijuana jail with poor Bob having to bail me out, but there is only one way to find out!

Wish me luck...

Week 2

So today was the first day of the second week of school. I think we have worked out a pretty good routine. The night before school we have the boys pick out their clothes for the next day. Dan gets the boys up at around 6:45 am and gets them dressed and teeth brushed. I get their breakfasts ready by about 7:10 and then we are out the door by 7:45. It is a little hectic getting breakfast ready and trying to remember all the bags and blankets and papers we need to bring with us, but all in all it has been good.

Sammy and Daniel appear to be having a great time in school. When I pick them up they are beaming and energized (how they can have so much energy after all day at school I don't know). They don't appear to miss me too much, though they give me lots and hugs and kisses when they get home, but I sure do miss them. The house is strangely still and quiet and seems less full of life without them here. It is funny how when the boys are in the house I often crave just a moment of peace and quiet and yet when I have the house to myself and all the peace and quiet I want, I miss their little voices. I guess after almost 6 years of being around my boys almost constantly, it will take some time to get used to having extended time away from them.

I have to say this transition has been pretty smooth. The school has been awesome and I couldn't be happier Daniel and Sammy's teachers. The boys are happy and that makes me happy. And if Mama is happy, as Dan likes to say, then every body's happy.

My Country Boys

Sometimes a story and pictures just can't capture a moment or memory. Sometimes you just have to be there. This was one of those moments. Luckily I had my camera on hand.

First Day of School

Today was the BIG DAY. My little baby boy of not so long ago went off to kindergarten. I could tell he was both excited and a little nervous, but he did not cry or beg me to stay with him. I gave him a kiss and he gave me a kissing hand (if you don't know what a kissing hand is, read the book 'The Kissing Hand', it makes me bawl every time) and he was off. Amazingly enough I didn't cry, although I wanted to. Mostly I just wanted Daniel to have fun and enjoy school.

All day long my mind strayed to what Daniel might be doing, how he was behaving and if he was doing okay. I was feeling a little down and depressed and Sammy must have been playing off my mood because he was a wreck after dropping Daniel off.

When I went to pick up Daniel at the end of the school day and talked to some of the other moms in Daniel's class I found out that I was not the only one who felt a little disoriented and sad throughout the day. But then the door opened and there was Daniel with a big smile on his face. Daniel's eyes lit up when he saw me and he ran to me a gave me a great big hug. Just what the doctor ordered.

I was only able to get a little bit out of him about the day's events, but he told me he had fun and made friends. Relief.

My little boy is now my big boy. I am so proud of you Daniel and I love you so very much.

And He's Off

Sammy and Suzy have taken Daniel downtown for his first day of kindergarten. Suzy last night was pretty nervous, worrying that she would get him there on time, worrying about the logistics of battling for a downtown parking space, worrying about a little bit of everything. After being a guy for a while and trying to fix it, I ended up just letting her worry. Daniel has been worrying too. He is worried about not having any friends there and worried about having to take a 'long nap' (his words). Two out of the last three nights he has woken up with a bad dream. Needless to say I was a bit concerned about how he would be this morning, but when I entered the boys room at 6:45... he was happy. He had a big smile on his face, and quickly went to put on his snazzy new school uniform. Boy, did that put me in a good mood. Seeing him be excited about his first day, what a relief. Hopefully he comes home today in as good of a mood. Pray for Suzy and her parking spot!

Tenth Tin Anniversary

Today is Dan and my 10th anniversary. Now that may not sound like very long to some people like my parents, who celebrated their 37th anniversary yesterday, but for me that is almost one third of my life, so I consider this anniversary a pretty big one. I mean, ten years!

Dan and I are not quite conventional when it comes to our anniversary. Most married couples, at least this is what I think, celebrate their anniversaries by the husband buying flowers and/or a gift for the wife, the gift usually being some type of jewelry or such. Since I have never been much of a store bought jewelry type of person, Dan and I decided to buy something together instead of buying gifts for each other. The anniversary gift to ourselves could be anything. Just something we both agree on. It could be something as simple as matching Tony Gwynn 3000 hits t-shirts, something as practical as a Dyson vacuum cleaner or something that just catches our fancy as we walk by, like our air chairs. We have yet to decide on our anniversary gift this year. I have been thinking and thinking, but all I have thought of is a nice new sewing machine, and I don't think Dan will go for that...

Just out of curiosity I looked up the traditional wedding anniversary gifts and found that the 10th wedding anniversary gift is tin. Not too exciting, but better than the first anniversary gift of paper. The diamond is the stone of the tenth, very nice, and the flower of choice when celebrate ten years of marriage is the daffodil. A bouquet of bright yellow daffodils in the summer might be a bit hard to get though.

This year we are going to celebrate our anniversary a day late. Tomorrow the boys are spending the night at Nana's. Yippee! We will have a nice romantic dinner at a favorite restaurant of ours, The Godfather. Then we will have the rest of the night and morning to ourselves. Pure heaven.

So here's to 10 great years and hopefully many, many, many more.

Say?!?

When Sammy was learning to talk if you said something that he didn't understand his response was a loud and clear, 'Say?!?'. At that point in his life Sammy and I were getting on each other's nerves fairly regularly, and probably as a result of that 'Say?!?' would grate on me each and every time. For a while now we have been getting along much better, and I realized that at some point my attitude on 'Say?!?' has changed. What used to be grating and annoying has changed to endearing and funny. Now it has become a bit of a cliche in the house, he still says it a lot, and when Suzy and I hear it we smile, look at him and respond back with a loud and clear, 'Say?!?'. It has become one of the examples of the funny things that our kids say that make us smile.

Probably my favorite saying of the boys now, and one that I want society at large to pick up on, is 'tippy'. Now, we are all familiar with the common English usage of 'tippy top' to mean something that is all the way at the top. Daniel started to extend the use of 'tippy' to cover much more ground. It really was an under utilized phrase. For example, when building Legos, Daniel will say, 'No, Dada, that piece goes on the tippy bottom.' Or while listening to a Jack and Annie story on books on CD he will let us know that the story has reached the 'tippy end'. Sammy has picked up on the usage, and now has incorporated 'tippy' into his daily vocabulary as well. I haven't yet used it here at work, but I fear it is inevitable.

Since today is Suzy and my tenth anniversary I would be remiss if I didn't say Happy Anniversary to the tippy best wife in the world. Happy Anniversary, Suzy, I love you.

Me at 33!

Yesterday was my birthday. Yep, I am now 33 years old. WOW! I still wasn't used to being 32 and now I've moved on to 33. This birthday also means that I am now only 2 years away from being 35 and that is only 5 years from 40 and then sooner than I know it I will be 50. Pretty frightening, huh? Boy, how the years have flown by. And on Thursday Dan and I will be celebrating our 10 year anniversary. Just amazing.

I had a great birthday. I was spoiled with so many cool presents, including a heart made out of Legos from Daniel, a beautiful handmade purse from my sister and a hand knit shirt from Nana. We hung around the house and relaxed yesterday as we are all trying to get back on San Diego time. Dan made a delicious Cajun shrimp dinner and got a mint ice cream cake from Cold Stone Creamery. Delicious!

This year I will find myself in a new stage of life. Daniel will be entering kindergarten in just a week. In addition to being a stay-at-home Mom, I will be learning how to be a school Mom. I also hope to get back to working a little bit while the boys are both in school. This is definitely going to be a transition year for me and I will have to adjust to a new daily life. I am both excited and scared to be leaving the familiar and venturing out into the unknown. But I have had 32 great years and each year seems to get better and better, so I know this year will hold many great memories and experiences. Here's to 33! Hip-hip Hurray! Hip-hip Hurray! Hip-hip...

Hanauma Bay

Yesterday we decided to brave the crowds at Hanauma Bay in the hopes of seeing some amazing sea life. Being only ten minutes or so away from the famed snorkeling beach we decided to head out early and see what adventures we could find.

We arrived nice and early, around 8 a.m., but we were definitely not the only people hitting the beach early. Already there was a crowd of tourists waiting to go down the the bay. Why was everyone waiting, you may ask. Well, Hanauma Bay is very different from the Hanauma Bay I visited years ago. My memories were of parking at the top of the bay and then lugging all your beach paraphernalia down a steep hill to the water. This time we had to pay to park and then we were surprised to learn we had to pay $5.00 a person to get into the beach. After paying we were required to wait to watch a 9 minute educational video about Hanauma Bay. Finally we were free to go down to the beach.

I have to admit that I was seriously wondering if the whole thing was going to be worth all the money and hassle, but it definitely was because Daniel actually went out snorkeling with Dan and Papa. And the best part of all was Daniel saw a sea turtle. After all the years I have gone out snorkeling I have never spotted a sea turtle, and my son's first snorkeling experience includes a sea turtle sighting. How exciting! My Dad said Daniel didn't take his head out of the water the whole time they were out there.

I thought Sammy might give the snorkeling a try, but he was happy to just float around in the water while I tried to point out fish swimming below him. I didn't get to go out too far because I was tugging Sammy around, but I did get to follow along behind a rather large humuhumunukunukuapua'a. There is something about the quietness of being under the water, watching fish so close you could reach out and touch them and the oneness you feel with the ocean that makes snorkeling such an awesome experience. I am so glad Daniel was able to experience it.

Snorkeling must be very engrossing because before we knew it it was already time for lunch. We packed up our gear and said our goodbyes to the bay. Back when I was a kid we had to hike back up the big hill with all our bags feeling much heavier than when we arrived. I am sure we complained the whole way up. Luckily there is now a shuttle that will take you back up to the top, for merely one dollar a person. My dad and I were ready to hike it back up, but looking back it was probably worth the dollar not to hear my kids complaining or having to carry them.

I am glad we went even despite the crowds, hassles and fees. Daniel swam with a sea turtle! So totally worth it.

Back to Hawaii

I am sitting here on a plush sofa staring out over the Pacific ocean. Earlier this morning we visited with some family friends/extended family up in Kaneohe Bay. What an amazing place to visit. Living here for over six years I lost my sense of wonder at the amazing beauty here. Immediately on the first evening here just a few days ago, the wonder came back. Papa and Tutu invited us to spend almost two weeks here at the beach house they rented for the month. Papa is already convinced that next year he wants to get the same house again. Just down the beach from Bellows, we are literally just feet from the Pacific. Sammy has been serenading us with requests to 'go to the ocean'. So much so that on our first day I think that he got washed off/showered four times. It is a good thing that this place comes with a huge closet filled to the brim with towels. I, of course, got toasted the first day, and spent most of yesterday in doors trying to calm my burning legs down. That didn't preclude an early evening walk with Papa, Suzy and the boys searching for crabs last night.

The one story from yesterday that I wanted to get down before I forgot is from our visit with the boy's great-grandparents, Thelma and Homer. They live in the middle of Oahu in an area called Mililani, which was about a 30 minute drive away from the beach house. After stopping for a short visit with the family we made a quick run to the Walmart that is just down the street from Homer's place to pick up some stuff for our house. As we all were walking back to the car, Sammy, in all of his worldly wisdom said, 'Can we go back to Hawaii?' 'Uh, Sammy, we are in Hawaii.' 'No, this isn't Hawaii'. And looking around we all agreed that no, the Walmart parking lot really is not Hawaii. So we rushed back to the great-grandparents place so that we could return to Hawaii.

I just paused again, so I could stare out at the blue, blue ocean for awhile. The boys are both 'napping', Tutu, Papa and Suzy went to the store, so it is just me and the sound of the surf. I didn't think that vacations with the boys could be a vacation, but so far there definitely have been moments where I have actually been able to relax and enjoy myself. Thanks Tutu and Papa, for inviting us out. When do we come next year?

A Contest

A momentous event occured in the Walls household today. Suzy and I have moved Daniel's bed into Sammy's room. It is something that we have talked about fairly regularly over the last year. For various reasons we have put it off, but we wanted to do it this summer, before Daniel starts school in the Fall. So far it has gone great. Okay, it is now 8:03, and we just put them down 3 minutes ago.

So, what is the contest? Glad you asked. We have decided to offer a 25$ gift certificate at Amazon to the person who correctly guesses how long this lasts. By 'lasts' I mean we move the boys into separate bedrooms again. Suzy and I are not eligible. Put your guesses in the comments. If you can't comment, email your guesses to us and we will put them in there for you. Guess whatever you want. One week, ten years. It is totally up to you. The winner will be the guess that is closest, without going over (in honor of Bob Barker retiring). Good luck, and let the games begin!

A Great Idea

I have come up with a great idea. Well, actually I came up with this idea the last time I suffered from a bad head cold, but this latest cold that wreaked havoc on my poor sinuses reminded me once again of my great idea.

My great idea is this... drum roll please... invent a drug that blocks your sense of taste and use it for weight loss. I kid you not. I think it is a great idea! I went for about 10 days without being able to taste a thing and let me tell you it definitely takes away any desire to eat. I ate only to stop any hunger pangs. There was no enjoyment and I had no desire to overeat. And since a low-fat cracker tasted no different than a cookie, it was easy to make a healthy choice.

Although I think a drug like this would do wonders to take off the pounds quickly, I don't think it would become popular because, well, it really sucks not to be able to taste. To see a Krispy Creme doughnut and know what pleasures it holds and then take a bite and taste nothing can become quite depressing over time.

I have to say that I am so glad to be able to savor the sweetness of a strawberry once again. And chocolate, oh, chocolate... I just couldn't do without that taste. But if you really want to drop a couple of pounds quickly, go out and catch yourself a nice big sinus infection. Trust me, it will do the trick.

Today's Ride

Part of the adjustment that we are making as a family is that I am no longer going home for lunch. For ten years, all of my time with RCK Controls, I have gone home for lunch. Now with Daniel in school Suzy needs our van to pick him up in the afternoon. That means that I am carless. That also means I need to find things to do during my lunch hour.

Today's adventure for me was to go on a long bike ride. I was hoping it would be about an hour, but it ended up about 90 minutes. My boss, who is an avid rider, suggested heading up Pomerado Road. I gave it a shot, and have tried to document my journey through a Google Map. I don't know if this will work, but here goes: My Route

I'm Back Baby

Despite Suzy's lack of faith in my motherboard replacing skills, as you can see, we are back. Maybe not better than before, but certainly not worse. The kind folks at Dell sent me the replacement motherboard, and it took me about two hours this afternoon to pop it in and run it up.

But wait, you ask, why are you home this afternoon? Why are you not at work? Thank you for asking. Today Daniel went to his first day of Summer School (sick yesterday), and Suzy has gone off to pick him up. Normally Sammy would go with her, but he has succumbed to the bug that has been ravaging our household. I am coming to realize that it is only a matter of time for me. I will fight the good fight, but I fear that there are no winners in this battle, only survivors.

At least it has given me a chance to hone my computer repair skills. The other good news for us is that our new computer (a father's day present for me, what a wife I have), has been shipped and even as I type this it is on its merry way south from Riverside. I am hoping that the big Dell box will be waiting for me when I get home from work tomorrow.

Trouble on the Home Front

There's trouble afoot at the Circle K. Okay, I admit that is a bit of a dated reference. We here at the SanDiegoWalls household are going through a bit of a rough stretch. Suzy and Daniel have been hit hard by a bug that is dwelling in their respective skulls. Daniel wakes up in the middle of the night screaming that his brain is broken. He describes the pain as, 'My brain is being squeezed out the back of my head.' Suzy, on the other hand, is having a hard time falling asleep at all. She has a brutal cough, bad sinus problems, and just a general bad time. Sammy and I, so far, have escaped. I don't know how long that lasts, but hopefully until the other two are better.

On top of that Daniel is supposed to start summer camp tomorrow. We thought it would be a good idea to send him to some of the summer school programs at the school that he will start at in the fall. Tomorrow the Science and Exploration week starts, but unfortunately he will miss at least the first day.

To top if all off, my Dell died. To be a bit more precise, we think that the motherboard has gone to where ever motherboards go in the afterlife. I chatted with Dell support today and they are sending me out a new motherboard. So, if you send us an email over the next few days, odds are I am not going to get it. I will be checking the walls.dan at gmail.com account, or my work account would work, but our standard home email address is done for the short term.

East Coast Trip 2007: Accommodations

Back to the East Coast Trip memories. When planning this trip we definitely were considering how we all (five adults, four children, two cats) would fit in one house. The last time we went to visit Jeff and Cassi they were talking about moving. More than talking actually. I think that we did cruise through some neighborhood possibilities when Daniel and I were there in 2006. Well, soon after we left, Jeff and Cassi made the plunge for a new place, a place so new when I looked it up on Google Maps it was a dirt lot. Nice house Jeff, it doesn't even exist.

Well, it turns out that Jeff and Cassi have great taste in houses because it did turn out to be a beauty. A huge place in a wonderful neighborhood. The kind of place you dream about when you are starting a family. Plenty of room for the kids, a nice park nearby, lots of kids living nearby. In talking with Jeff during the pre-trip planning stages he mentioned that there is a room upstairs near where the boys would be, or we could have my mom stay upstairs and Suzy and I could be down in the basement. The basement was finished, and had its own bathroom. I immediately piped up for dibs on the basement apartment. Nana could deal with the boys if they needed something, I had visions of a little vacation get-a-way for me and Suzy.

A quick story, so that I can remember it twenty years from now. The house has a main floor, an upstairs (bedrooms) and a basement (big kids play area, another bedroom). Sammy somehow lost track of the other kids and I saw him head upstairs. I paid attention and I saw him wandering up and down the hallway up there. I went up and asked him if everything was okay. He looked a little confused, and said, 'Where's the basement?'. I took him back down to the main level and showed him the door the leads down to the basement, he was very relieved and thankful. It was then that I realized that Sammy had never been in a house with a basement before. The whole concept was a bit foreign for him. By the end of the trip he had it mastered, though.

Back to the accommodations... The three boys were initially going to all sleep in Alex's room. I thought that would be fun for them, and was willing to put up with a little goofing around in the name of cousinly fun. I think that survived two nights. Sammy just couldn't handle it. The idea of having two buddies in the room with him just drove him to complete distraction. He couldn't bear the thought of sleep when there was so much fun to be had. This discovery, combined with the fact that Alex was feeling under the weather, led to some unusual and particularly dynamic sleeping arrangements. Daniel would be in Nana's room to fall asleep, I would lug him into Alex's room when they were all asleep. Daniel and Sammy would be downstairs in the play room, Daniel would be in our bed downstairs while Sammy was in the play room and Alex was in his room. By the end of the trip I was pretty tired of carrying around a heavy sleeping child and gently laying him down without disturbing him or any other small sleeping forms nearby.

All in all it worked out well considering the conditions. Poor Jeff and Cassi had to make a trip to the emergency room in the middle of the night for Alex, unfortunately it was closed. Thankfully the boys, and Suzy and I, slept through that incident. Jeff and Cassi have a beautiful house that we are looking forward to invading again sometime in the near future. And Suzy and I learned that our plans for the boys sharing a room starting this summer might not go as smoothly as we thought.

Next up... Road Trip!

Bachelorhood

I am a bachelor for the week. The boys and Suzy went to Portland to visit Suzy's sister and her family. My first act as a bachelor was to spend my lunch break yesterday at Fry's Electronics (100 ft ethernet cable, awesome!) and at Performance Bike Shop (new bike pump, new odometer, pedal straps). Yesterday afternoon I was not looking forward to going home to an empty house so I stopped off and picked up a large sausage pizza from Filippi's. I am conducting an experiment, how many consecutive meals I can ring out of that one pizza. My hypothesis was six. Wish me luck.

Since I didn't go home for lunch (standard operating procedure) I went on an extended bike ride with my co-worker, Tony. We headed north for half an hour and turned around. The nice thing about going north for us is that we get to ride through Miramar Marine Corp Air Station, and on the way back a jet flew over us on its way in to land. It couldn't have been more than 100 feet directly above us. The sound was deafening, and the spectacle of having the sky filled with this plane was amazing. A very cool end to a good ride.

Suzy and the boys get back Saturday. I might need to order another pizza. Maybe pepperoni this time...

School's Out

Well, school is out for us and our summer has officially begun. Yes, Daniel and Sammy had their last day of school today. Daniel had his last day of Preschool. I am a little sad, though we will still be going to Teacher Laurie's summer school and I have the whole summer with the boys.

The kids had a fun day making hand prints and recording their height and weight on their last day of school. After snack they had ice cream sundaes with a cherry on top. YUM.

This summer will be very busy with an upcoming trip to Oregon, visits to Tutu and Papa's house and a much awaited trip to Hawaii. In between we will be having summer school, swimming lessons, vacation bible school and all the other fun stuff you do in summer. We will be busy, but I am going to enjoy every minute of it.

Our Garden

Last week one of the Moms working in the boy's preschool told me about a conversation she had with Sammy about our garden. Sammy said how much he loved his garden and went into detail about all the yummy things he picks and eats in the garden. I have to agree with Sammy, I love our garden. This is my favorite time of year in the garden. The flowers are flowering and the fruit and veggies are just asking to be picked and eaten ripe from the vine or branch. Sometimes we can't even eat the stuff fast enough. It is probably a good thing we have a small backyard or we would be overrun by tomato, zucchini and pea vines. Two of our favorite this year are the blueberries and baby tomatoes. If you have never had a tomato picked fresh from the vine then you are missing out. And I have about 5 beets the size softballs in my fridge that I have no idea how to prepare. June in the garden is truly the best.