18, 21, 23

If you haven't been following GirlTravelOR's blog, the following pictures, taken at 18, 21, & 23 weeks, might come as something of a shock.

 

I'm happy to report that mother & baby are both doing well. No complications that we can see, and we Hope it continues that way.

We had a wonderful time at Christmas back home with our families. To think, the next time we see them, they'll be Grandparents (and Uncles, and Aunts)! It's hard to believe, but it's exciting to think about.

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.

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.

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.

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!

First Impressions

Wow, so much has been happening! We've been so busy, I don't know where to begin. How about I just throw up some pictures, eh?



I haven't taken many pictures, just a few when we got here, and then some again today as we wandered around town. Hit the link above to see the album with captions.