A couple Sundays ago after church the girls were doing art projects in the office upstairs where Tina was working on the computer. I went downstairs to see what Spencer was doing, half expecting to find him playing PS2 in the family room. I was pleasantly surprised to see him in HIS room, writing and drawing in his journal... to candle light! [NO, Spencer wasn't playing with matches! Tina had lit candles in the kids rooms after church] I asked him why he didn't have his overhead light on and he said he didn't need it. I asked him why he wasn't using his lamp and he told me the bulb was blown out. Spencie and I ended up having a great, low-tech afternoon together. He showed me what he'd been doing in his journal, we played best 3 out of 5 at darts and then played Sorry (Now that's a classic board game, and I almost had Spencer convinced that they were called board games because kids played them when they were bored, but he wised up) It was a blast. I've been endeavoring to do more and more things with the kids that don't involve the laptop, TV or PS2. I think I'm gonna try to coax the kids into trying snow shoeing with me so we don't have to wait until Spring/Summer to hike and climb.
Without question, the best steak I have ever had. I was in Seattle with my boss for a tradeshow in mid-November. We had a few hours to kill before our flight back to Spokane, so Doug treated me to dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse near the Washington State Convention Center. Wow. I never could have imagined thinking that a 12oz Filet that cost $45.00 could be worth every penny, but it was. Of course it didn't hurt that it was on the company, but it was truly amazing. They have a slogan there that says, "If you've ever had a filet this good, then welcome back." Their website describes their signature steaks like this... "This is the place that showed the world how great a steak can be. Carefully selected and aged for tenderness. Cut thick to ensure juiciness. Seared to perfection at 1800 degrees. Seasoned simply with salt, black pepper and a touch of parsley, because a steak like this needs nothing else. Topped with fresh butter that sizzles seductively on your plate, announcing the arrival of a great steak." That pretty well sums it up. Tina teases me for describing the whole dining experience in a manner that should be reserved for a sexual encounter, but I can't help myself. It was freaking awesome. Thank you Doug and the Decal Factory for the best meal I've ever had. Doug and I both agreed that our wives would have made far better dates than each other, but it was a great meal nonetheless. Even the service was as impeccable as the food. I highly recommend Ruth's Chris to anyone.
The kids kill me. I was organizing closets on Sunday afternoon and anytime I do this, they ask me if they can have everything I pull out. I grabbed my yoga mat and block out and Maddie and Sophia ate it up...set it up and found the video and went to town....then I turn around and the next things I see is Spencer joining in. They did the complete video! Maybe this could be a good tool when they are driving me crazy!
This face truly goes with the hair! And actually none of these pictures truly capture how wild this morning was. She must have had a pretty hard nights sleep! yikes!
Days after she got over having to change from white rice to brown rice she came to me and asked if I would take a picture of her silly face. I am glad she caught up with the rest of us. And she has also decided that the brown rice is just as good as the white rice.
Felix Unger and Oscar Madison have nothing on my two oldest children. If I didn't know otherwise, I would swear that Madeline and Spencer couldn't have come from the same DNA. Perhaps a couple small incidents, which occurred within minutes of each other on the same Sunday morning a few weeks ago, capture it best: Just before we left for church, I was standing in the bathroom as Spencer came down the hall. He couldn't see me and didn't know I was there. As he dilly dally'd down the hall (still without his shoes or coat on as the rest of the family is ready to go) I hear him singing to himself, "I love my dad more than my butt." Fast forward 20 minutes to the parking lot at church: As Maddie jumps out of the van, she notices that someone has left a lighter laying in the gravel and immediately blurts out, "Oh, like that's not a safety issue!" A couple weeks later, I rented Mr. Bean's Vacation for the kids. When I asked the kids if they liked it, Spencer's exact words were, "It was SOOO hilarious!" Maddie: "It really wasn't that funny dad." With Miss Sophia in the mix, it is quite possible that no three kids from the same family are more different than our trio. I think it's the hardest and best thing about getting to be their dad. I can honestly say that as much as they drive each other crazy, they wouldn't know what to do without each other.
