Baby's First Home Video

Introducing...

Our little bundle of joy at 7wks.

Visions of the Future

So I've written a little poem, complete with illustrations. Here it is.




This is my wife as she is today,



And this is how she'll look next May.


Ok, so that's probably not exactly how she'll look, but hopefully you get the idea.:-) Oh, and we're coming home for Christmas!

Summer

Hello! Lots of posts today. Scroll down to see them all. I'm trying to catch up on the massive amounts of back photos I have. We've been very busy this summer, traveling all over the country. I must say, there's a lot of beauty and interest to be had here, and a lot of culture and history. And, of course, some awesome views of these Eastern Skies.

You know, a lot of people don't think the sky has much to offer around here, but I beg to differ. Of course, I do live in a place known for its clear and beautiful skies. The weather this past week has been the best we've ever experienced--definitely better than when we arrived a year ago!

It's been a year, can you believe it? School starts again in less than two weeks, we go in a week before that, but for now, I'm going to squeeze every last drop out of my remaining vacation. Here's a few pictures of the past year that I don't think I've posted before. Enjoy.

Heartbeat - Fame!

I've been working on the Heartbeat! video a bit over the summer, so I thought I'd give you a sneak peak. Here is the opening number, "Fame!"

Laoshan

Last fall, we went out to a place called Laoshan. Some of us decided to cycle there. It's about 30 miles away over some rugged mountains. Cars can take a tunnel through the mountain, but bikes aren't allowed, so they have to go over. But, hey! One of the guys had heard about a shortcut, so we decided to try it.

In retrospect, we like to say that we invented a new pastime: the Hike'n'Bike. See, sometimes you're biking like you'd expect, sometimes you're pushing your bike up steep, underused footpaths, sometimes you're team carrying bikes across ravines, over boulders, and through old, washed out riverbeds, and sometimes (all too rarely), you're flying down the side of a mountain, bouncing over rocks, dodging trees and peasants, and trying not to fly over the front of your handlebars. The Hike'n'Bike. Try it today!

In the end, we made it to our destination, and it was worth it. Enjoy the pictures below. I didn't take all of them, but I thought they were worth posting nonetheless.

Heartbeat!

Middle school drama Heartbeat! opens tonight! Our middle schoolers have worked really hard, and it's going to be a fantastic show. If you're in the area, come out and see it!

Coming Soon

Since November I have been spending nearly every free moment editing together our production. The fruit of our combined labors is almost at hand. View the trailer below.

He is Risen!

Spring Trip!

From 7th Grade Spring Trip 09

Every spring, our school sends grades 6 through 12 on trips around China in order to learn more about Chinese culture and deepen the students' appreciation for their host country. This year, we went with the 7th graders to tour Shandong Province.

From 7th Grade Spring Trip 09

We stayed overnight at Weifeng in a nice hotel with an attached amusement park. From there, we headed to Zibo where we explored a cave, visited an aviary, played on a ropes course, hiked up a hill, and stood on a piece of the Qin Dynasty wall (kinda like the Great Wall, but smaller).

From 7th Grade Spring Trip 09

Next, we headed to Qufu, the birthplace of Confucius. We stayed two nights there and saw his home, his grave, and the temple dedicated in his honor. Later, we played Capture the Flag between the outer wall of Qufu and its moat.

From 7th Grade Spring Trip 09

From there, we headed to Taishan, the holiest mountain in China. We climbed to the top, ascending about 3,000 steps along the way (we started halfway up the mountain), reaching a final elevation of over 1500 meters. We stayed overnight at the top of the mountain, then headed home the next day.

From 7th Grade Spring Trip 09

The trip was a blast and the kids were great! I can't wait for Spring Trips next year. Enjoy the pictures. :-)

Pictures, Pirates, Pantos!

If you haven't found it yet, I have an album of backstage pictures from the Pantomime here (the same ones as in the slideshow below). More pictures, including onstage pics, are here, here, and here. Finally, there are many pictures from the pirate scenes specifically here, but you'll need a Facebook account to see that album. For those of you who don't, I've added some of my favorites to the end of the slideshow below. Enjoy.

Broken Legs

All our hard work over the last 6 months finally paid off today with two shows. We have a third show tomorrow, so if you haven't seen it yet, please come out and support your local Panto!

I have a lot of backstage pics, and I'm hoping to get some onstage ones soon. As for those of you wondering about my costume, here it is.

From Robinson Crusoe

When you're big in China...

Drama continues to be a big part of my life here. I've become involved with the International Drama Group here which performs mainly British Pantomime. Our next show is



I play the part of the villain, notorious Pirate Captain Blackbeard. The story was picked up in the local paper. You can read the (translated) article here. (And yes, that is my Keep Grace Weird shirt in the photo.)

Happy (Chinese) New Year!

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

It's the year of the Ox here, and the city is celebrating in style. In the land of cheap, plentiful fireworks and lax civic restrictions, everyone's a pyrotechnic artist. The fireworks have been going literally non-stop on all sides since about 6:00pm. In the city, every building serves to echo and magnify the reverberations so that each explosion sounds like ten. The fireworks aren't just the little crackers you get in the States, either (although there are plenty of those). I'm talking about rockets 50 feet in the air, triple bursts of color, and on and on, displays grander and more intricate than any civilian show you've ever seen on the 4th of July. Walking down the street, you feel like there must be a war going on somewhere. I expect to have video soon.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2009!

We just returned from Beijing, and I realized that I'm about 5 sets behind on my picture posting. So without further ado, here are a few more views of our fair city decked out in both autumn and winter colors. These pictures were taken at different times from the top of a 25 story office building downtown.



As you may have already heard, it snowed recently. Here are some views from our apartment and around town.



Enjoy the holidays!