Flying High

The look on his face says it all!

Turning Thirty

Well, I promised more thoughts on this milestone birthday, so here they are.

I have decided that 30 is a very nice age to be. No, really! I always thought that completing the third decade of my life would bother me (maybe because our culture tells me I should be bothered), but when the big day actually came, I found that I wasn't. In fact, I think I did more freaking out (as in, "oh, my goodness, I'm getting old!") on my 26th birthday than I did on my 30th!

Maybe part of it is just being really content with the stage of life that I find myself in. Married for almost 8 years now... one precious little boy to mother... looking toward a future of mission work "somewhere" in Africa. Some people become parents and discover their life's work in their 20's, but Rusty and I certainly don't regret waiting until we were older to start our family. I truly believe that we are better parents because we waited. Certainly, I feel more centered, more able to make the necessary sacrifices, and more secure in our relationship. And as for figuring out what we want to "do" with our lives -- highly overrated! Life isn't any fun without at least a little mystery. (Rusty, can you believe that I am saying this? You should be proud!)

In all seriousness, as I join the ranks of "30-somethings," I just pray that I have gained at least a little wisdom and maturity in my 20's. I mean, with all of the life experiences that have been packed into the last 10 years, I certainly hope I have learned a few things! And I look forward to applying that knowledge and experience to the next decade of my life and beyond. Looking back, I think I can probably say the same thing about my 20's that I have about every other stage of my life -- college, dating, being single, high school -- "It was fun while it lasted, but I don't think I would want to go back and do it over again. I'm enjoying where I am right now too much."

Yes, 30 is definitely a very good age to be!

And Rusty is just glad that we are both finally in the same decade of life again!

Have Wheels, Will Travel

Retro Baby

More pictures of Alex in some of Rusty's old baby clothes. These outfits are already a little too small, so I had to grab some pictures while I still could! For more pictures like these, scroll down and click on the Flickr badge on the right of the screen.

April Recap

Well, hello again. Sorry it has been so long since I've updated. I seem to have lost my enthusiasm for blogging lately; however, I was inspired to post after seeing the Marcum's, the Chan's, the Whaley's, and Roxanna's updated blogs. I'm afraid this post will be long and rather rambling, but I promise there will be several pictures to keep things interesting.

Rusty asked me to share these pictures of Alex ready to hit the slopes. They were taken sometime in January, I think, on the day Rusty took Robbie and Johnny up to the mountain for some snowboarding fun. Alex sure enjoyed getting to try on Cousin Johnny's snowboard boots and goggles!

To recap the events of April:

From March 29 - April 4, we journeyed "down South." The primary purpose of our trip was to attend a conference on Tanzania Missions. The conference was held at HUT, Harding University's "mission training camp." We had heard about HUT for several years, but this was our first time to see it in person. It is a very special and unique facility. Unfortunately, we did not take any pictures while we were there, but you can click here to see some of the pictures and a video on Harding's website.

The conference itself was a wonderful time of reconnecting, networking, dreaming, and praying about the future of missions in Tanzania in general, and our possible role in that specifically. We shared the facility that weekend with a group of 20+ college students, all of whom were planning summer mission trips to various points around the globe. Their youthful enthusiasm and zeal was heart-warming to see -- and so contagious! We both came away feeling refreshed, encouraged, and hopeful about the future. Being around like-minded people, people who have a passion for God and His Word and His mission is always such a blessing.

This picture was taken at HUT right after the intercultural worship service on our last morning there. Thanks to Sam Shewmaker for the picture! Oh, I almost forgot to mention that, since we were the only people there that weekend with a child, the staff graciously allowed us to be the first people to sleep in the newly finished apartment, which they affectionately dubbed "the honeymoon suite!" It has its own bathroom, living area, and a small bedroom. It even had a kitchenette; although we had all our meals with the rest of the group, it sure was nice to have that microwave to warm Alex' bottles! We had come prepared to "rough it," so that was a nice surprise!

The conference ended on Sunday, and since we were really just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Memphis, we headed over there for a few days to visit friends. We made it to Senatobia, Mississippi in time to attend evening services at the Thyatira church of Christ, where Rusty used to work. After church, we went out to dinner with some friends, and since it was my birthday (more on turning the big 3-0 later), I was "honored" with a pie in the face! Yes, that's right -- after dinner, several of the wait staff came over to sing to me, and then out of nowhere, a whipped cream pie covered my face! Everyone had a good laugh, except for Alex, who was very upset by it all. Unfortunately (again), Rusty didn't know what was coming, and so he wasn't ready with the camera. (Oh, darn!)

The two days we spent in Memphis were a real whirlwind. The Whaley's gave us a place to crash at night, even though they were out of town for most of the time we were there. (Thanks, guys!) We reconnected with old friends at the grad school and at Highland Street church of Christ, where I used to work. We drove back down to Mississippi to spend more time with some of our friends there. We enjoyed the 80 degree weather and quenched our thirst with that delicious, Southern "sweet tea." On a more serious note, we also spent several hours talking to Danny and Katie Reese about their dream to do mission work in Angola, and seeing pictures from their survey trip last summer.

Having dinner with Ms. Mary and Ms. Earline

Alex tried fried catfish and hushpuppies for the first time and loved 'em! What can I say? He was, after all, conceived in Mississippi!

And now for the big announcement! Rusty found out that he can graduate next spring if he can go full time in the fall and spring semesters... and, we paid our housing deposit for an on-campus apartment. So, it's official -- we are moving back to Memphis this summer! It feels so good to finally have a plan after months of floundering. There is still much that remains to be done here in Portland before we go, and the next couple of months promise to be extremely busy, but we are seeing "the light at the end of the tunnel," so to speak.

Back in Portland, we enjoyed a very low-key Easter. Alex hunted for Easter eggs on the front lawn, but we waited until Tuesday because Easter Sunday was cold and rainy. We have been trying to enjoy the few days of sunshine that have come our way this month. Alex loves playing in the yard when the weather is nice and cries every time we bring him in. And we are continuing to sort, pack, and get ready for an estate sale, which is scheduled for the end of June. Right now, our plan is to leave Portland after the 4th of July. I have a lot more to say, but I'll save it for another time, and just leave you with a few pictures of Alex enjoying the spring weather.

This is for all our friends in Japan. (Roxanna, do you recognize the shirt?)

Alex loved picking up Easter eggs...

... and putting them in the basket.

Do you think I might be up for parole in, like, 17 more years?

Do you like my outfit? It was my Daddy's!

Beach Trip

Two weekends ago, the three of us went to the Oregon Coast. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were spent at Camp Magruder with the Metro Church youth group. Rusty was the main speaker for the weekend and he did a great job -- the theme was "burdens -- laying 'em down and taking 'em up." Christ calls us to lay down our burdens at his feet and rest in his love... but as Christians, we are also asked to bear one another's burdens. Good stuff -- even for the "old folks" who were there!

Sunday night, we took advantage of a free night's lodging at the Tolovana Inn in Cannon Beach. This was something Rusty's mom had purchased at a benefit auction for Columbia Christian Schools and never used. It was expired, but we called and they said they would still honor it. So we enjoyed some much needed r&r... playing on the beach... swimming in the pool... soaking in the hot tub... eating Mo's clam chowder... enjoying the gorgeous view from our balcony. And my personal favorite -- since our room was a suite, we put Alex to bed early in the back room and Rusty and I slept on the hide-a-bed in the living room. We stayed up late talking, watching Part 1 of the season finale of Battlestar Galactica (boy, have we missed a lot -- can't wait for it to come out on DVD!), and fell asleep with the window open listening to the sound of the waves. Heavenly!

Enjoying the view from up high

Eating sand... YUM!

Alex was not afraid of the water at all. In fact, when we set him down on the sand, he ran straight towards the waves, yelling the whole way!

Alex and Mommy

Chasing the waves

The rock in the background is called Haystack Rock (for, um, obvious reasons).

This was Alex' first time in the pool. Although you can't tell from the picture, he really loved it!

Alex and Daddy

Fun to be One!

Isn't he just adorable?!

Not that I'm biased or anything!

Photos by JCPenney Portrait Studio

Please email me if you would like to see the entire gallery, and I will send you the link and password so you can access the images online.

More Birthday Fun!

We had several good friends and their families, as well as relatives from my side of the family over to the house for a birthday party on March 3rd. I went with a Sesame Street theme for the table ware, and made "Hokey Pokey Elmo" the centerpiece. We had finger foods, punch, and cupcakes. In lieu of gifts, we asked everyone to bring an item for Alex' baby time capsule which he will open on his 18th birthday. (Thanks to my friend Kari for this wonderful idea!) Some of the contributions were very creative. The Ranums brought a USB drive with headlines from newspapers around the world on March 3rd. I just hope USB drives aren't completely obsolete by 2024! My grandma Nadine brought her and my grandad's expired passports from when they went to Kenya for the first time when I was just a baby. Other cool items were a menu from Baja fresh from the Loffinks, and a pair of baby shoes from my Aunt Dyana in memory of the fact that Alex loved to play with shoes when he was little. Rusty included a couple of 2006 mint coin sets. By the way, we haven't sealed up the time capsule yet, so any family and friends out there who still want to contribute something, please feel free!

Alex got to try a chocolate cupcake this time, and he thought it was just as delicious as the "funfetti" cupcake he had on his actual birthday. Here he is relishing every bite, and all the attention.

The one-handed cupcake smoosh.

Finger-lickin' good.

I LOVE CHOCOLATE!

You're kidding, right? I don't get a cupcake every day?

Trouble Getting Up In the Morning?

Okay, normally, this blog is simply a place for us to keep friends and family updated on the goings-on of our daily lives. If you visit our blog on a regular basis, then you know that, for the most part, you are spared political rantings, preaching, or unsolicited endorsements for the latest cool technological gimmick. In fact, being the doting parents we are, we mostly post pictures of our adorable son. Truth be told, this is probably more "Alex's blog" than "Rusty and Laura's blog." But, I digress...

I was skimming through a catalogue that came in the mail the other day when I saw this ad. Rusty can testify that I have not laughed so hard at something in a really long time. And after I picked myself up off the floor, I thought, I must blog about this! Like Dave Barry, I must preface this by saying I swear I am not making this up! In fact, you can click here to see for yourself.

So this is the ad I saw:

Flying Alarm Clock Makes You Get Out of Bed on Time!

Trouble getting up in the mornings? When the alarm sounds, "time flies" when it launches its propeller that emits a nagging siren noise that will for sure annoy you right out of bed! To turn the alarm off, you have to get up, find the propeller, and return it to its base!

You have got to be kidding me! Would anyone really buy this?! If you are the kind of person who would actually consider owning this alarm clock, (for $24.98, batteries not included) please post a comment because seriously, the only thing I think it might be good for is an episode of Seinfeld (if they were still making them, that is).

Birthday Video #1

Hope you enjoy these four videos of our Birthday Boy. The lighting was not that great, and there is no sound for some reason, so your imagination will have to add the sound effects.

Birthday Video #2

Alex shares his cupcake with Daddy.

Birthday Video #3

Alex opens a cool present from his Auntie Ronda.

Birthday Video #4

Alex watches Hokey Pokey Elmo sing and dance.

Alex' First Birthday

We had a small family party at the house on the evening of the 28th. Very simple... just dinner together, followed by cupcakes and presents. Alex seemed to thoroughly enjoy all the attention, not to mention the balloons, and he knew exactly what to do with the cupcake we put on his tray. The pictures below tell the story better than I ever could!

Alex in his birthday bib and hat

Alex demonstrates how to eat a cupcake. Clockwise from top left:

1) Pick up the cupcake with both hands.

2) Eat the frosting first!

3) Smoosh the cupcake all over your face.

4) Share with Daddy.

Alex and Mommy

Alex got some clothes and cool Baby Einstein bath toys from his Auntie Ronda, plus a Costco size box of diapers and baby wipes. But the best present was the "Hokey Pokey" Elmo, who sings and dances when you squeeze his hand.

Birthday videos to follow soon! Stay tuned.

One Year Old!

It's pretty amazing what can happen in just a year...

February 28th, 2006

7 lbs. 1 oz.

20 inches long

One year later...

February 28th, 2007

23.5 lbs.

31 inches long

Happy First Birthday, Alex!

Tryin' on Daddy's Shoes

Wow, size 13? Daddy, what big feet you have!

Okay, first I'll put the shoes next to each other on the floor.

This takes a little coordination!

Ummm, I think I've got a ways to go before I catch my dad!