posted December 7th, 2005 by George
Well, I’ve been working on a new photo album. It’s not quite where I want it to be yet, but I have decided to go ahead and expose it to the world. I’m using a software called Gallery2. This is an open source project that I have been watching for a few years now. I tried it out in the earlier days, but wasn’t completely sold. But with this latest version, I’m convinced that it’s the coolest photo album software out there.
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Filed under: Geek Talk on December 7th, 2005 | 3 Comments »
posted December 6th, 2005 by Shannon
This morning, the kids and I headed out to do some shopping. Within walking distance from the first store was a Goodwill. Inside Goodwill, in the toy aisle, was an EleFun game. Emily played this game at a friend’s house MONTHS ago and has been asking for one ever since. They usually cost somewhere between $13 and $17. The EleFun game on the Goodwill shelf looked like it had only been played a few times. It included all the original pieces, plus 4 working C batteries (usually not included), for $1.99. How can you turn that down? The 4 batteries alone would have cost more than that! We bought it and had a good discussion about the price difference and what a good deal we got because it was used, blah, blah, blah.
And then what did I do next? It was lunch time so we stopped to eat. I spent almost $12 and got up from the lunch table with 2 kid’s meal toys and temporarily satisfied tummies. Why did I make such a big deal to Emily about how we just “saved” $11 and thenI go and spend $12, without even thinking twice, on something that’s so temporary? Arghh.
(By the way, the EleFun game WAS a big hit at our house tonight. We have been trying to play more games with Emily in the evenings and this is one of the first times we have played a game that Nathan can actually participate in as well. We have definitely gotten $1.99 out of it so far.)
Filed under: Family, Thoughts on December 6th, 2005 | 4 Comments »
posted December 3rd, 2005 by Shannon
Today was the first Saturday in a very long time that we have not been out of town and have not had something to do most of the day. How refreshing. George’s Kamut/Oatmeal/Pecan Pancakes were eaten. Short-sleeved things were boxed away and long-sleeved things were pulled out. (Obviously some short-sleeved things were left out for 80+ degree days like today!) Places-to-go and things-to-do were marked off the list. Parchessi was played (and won by Emily). Relaxing was done.
It was a nice family day – we should really do this more often!
Filed under: Family on December 3rd, 2005 | No Comments »
posted November 29th, 2005 by Shannon
We get frustrated by all the greed and commercialism that we see this time of year. At the same time, many of us are also annoyed (and frustrated and some even angry) when retailers, employers, etc. remove the word “Christmas” from their holiday vocabulary. It’s Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. It’s a Holiday Party instead of a Christmas Party. It’s the Season of Sharing instead of Christmas Cheer. And for a lot of Christians, that annoys, frustrates or angers them. But why? Every time someone says the word Christmas, do you REALLY stop and think about Christ? If the lady behind the StuffMart counter says Merry Christmas, will those two words really shift the focus off of my purchases (whether it be bananas or an IPod) and back onto Christ? And what good is my faith if I am relying on the StuffMart employees to remind me what this season is to be about?
We complain that the retailers are taking Christ out of the season. But didn’t we already do that? We as Christians sure spend quite a bit of time during this season doing holiday stuff (list-making, house-decorating, gift-buying, card-mailing, cookie-baking, party-attending). Contrast that to how much time is spent really reflecting on Christ (whatever that really looks like in real life). Sure we might light Advent candles and read Luke 2 a few times, but does that really compare to the hours I spent doing all of the other holiday stuff?
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Filed under: Faith, Thoughts on November 29th, 2005 | 5 Comments »
posted November 28th, 2005 by Shannon
We made it back home Sunday morning at 12:15am. We had 3 Thanksgiving celebrations (only 2 of which involved turkey and dressing), slept at 3 different homes, and spent 22 hours in the car. We saw 6 grandparents, 4 parents, 5 siblings/siblings-in-law, 6 aunts, 6 uncles, 20 cousins/cousins-in-law, 11 first cousins once removed (I had to look that one up), and 1 nephew. (My apologies if I left anyone out!) We attended Grandpa’s funeral, saw a monsterous model train display, picked cotton from the side of the road, played Parchessi, decorated a gingerbread house, helped set up and participated in an Open Source Christmas Tree, attended a craft fair, and picked out this year’s Christmas pajamas. Whew! It was a very good 9 day trip, but we were also very glad to be back home!
Filed under: Family on November 28th, 2005 | 2 Comments »
posted November 23rd, 2005 by Shannon
My turn. In no particular order, I am thankful for:
Snuggles, giggles from my children, Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark Squares, grace, computers, WordPress, wildflowers, George’s smoothies, God’s patience, parents, Emily, Nathan, our third child that we never got to hold, parents-in-law, conversation, friends that are real and let me be real, sisters, sisters-in-law, Celtic music, God’s miracles found in nature, grandparents, George’s music selections (most of the time), friends that stick by me when I don’t make sense, freedom to disagree, crayons and finger paint and the accompanying messes.
Filed under: Thoughts on November 23rd, 2005 | 3 Comments »
posted November 23rd, 2005 by George
Not necessarily in any particular order; here are just a few of the people, things, etc that I am thankful for.
Shannon, Emily, Nathan, tickles, Coffee, The Holy Spirit, Cheerios that crunch underfoot, my job, Parents, Parents-in-law, the Discovery channel, my wonderful wife, friends that actually listen and care, Grandpa, authors that make me think, chips and salsa, the Internet, my digital camera, GRACE, a lake to sail and a wind to power my boat, sleeping children, Grandparents, a family that loves to go camping, “milk-stash” kisses in the morning before leaving for work, Louis Armstrong’s music, a tree to climb, brothers and sisters, open source, Raj, saw dust and the tools that make it, health, time…
Filed under: Thoughts on November 23rd, 2005 | No Comments »
posted November 22nd, 2005 by George
I have really been struggling with what to write regarding the events of the past few days. Some things are very hard to capture into words. On Thursday afternoon of last week, I received the call I have been dreading for some time now. My Mom told me about the passing of my Grandfather. There are few things in this life that are harder than the loss of a dear loved one. This picture is from the last time we were together. I am holding my daughter Emily, my brother is holding Nathan, and Grandpa is in the middle.
We had to make some quick adjustments to our Thanksgiving travel plans, pack to be gone for over a week, and leave for Wichita Falls on Friday. The funeral services were held on Saturday. It was a very nice service that brought back so many great memories of my Grandfather. He was a wonderful man and a great role model for us all. I have always felt close to my grand parents. I grew up a block away from them and they were a big part of my childhood. As I grew, I began to see more of my Grandfather’s character and personality. My life has been truly blessed in many ways by him. I am of course saddened to have to say good bye for now, but I also rejoice in knowing that he has entered into the fullness of joy with Christ.
Filed under: Family on November 22nd, 2005 | No Comments »
posted November 16th, 2005 by Shannon
Had the kids officially weighed today. One weighs 32.6 pounds and the other weighs 31.8 – anyone care to guess which is which?
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Filed under: Family on November 16th, 2005 | 2 Comments »
posted November 11th, 2005 by Shannon
The kids and I headed out to the zoo today. Usually we meet friends at the zoo but this time we went solo. It was a nice. I was able to talk more with the kids (and now that Nathan is talking a lot more, that was really fun) and they had more say in what we did and saw. We had a nice leisurely lunch in front of the elephants, who were particularly active today. We saw several exhibits that we haven’t taken the time to look at in a while. It was just overall a particularly nice morning with the kids. We only had a couple minor mishaps.
One was when Nathan was one rung shy of climbing in with the rhinos. Whoever designed that retaining wall never had a climbing toddler! It’s a horrible design. The bottom half is about a foot and a half of concrete, which is low enough for my talented son to quickly hop on top of as if it were a step stool. Then the bars on top are HORIZONTAL! My son sees that wall and his brain says “Cool, a LADDER!” Let it be know that moms run VERY fast when the situation calls for it.
The second mishap was Emily bumping into a bee. Read more »
Filed under: Adventures, Family on November 11th, 2005 | 4 Comments »