A Steve Post

Steve started a new blog, and he has already put me to shame by posting 4 times in 2 days. You can check it out HERE.

He has also been saving up for a new electric guitar (his other electric is about 10 years old, which just makes me feel old because it was almost brand new when I met him!) and we went and picked "her" up last night. For those that aren't used to the gear talk, guitars are always girls, just like boats and cars.

So the plan was that he was going to get the new guitar at Guitar Center because he had about $150 in gift cards there. However, Sunday, he just happened to look on Craigslist and there she was...the exact guitar he wanted, about a year old and hardly played, and the price tag was $125 cheaper. (My friend Sarah sings the praises of Craigslist on her blog, so if you want to know more about it, click on her name and go check it out.)

So the guy that owns the guitar (for those that care...it is a Gibson Les Paul in vintage Mahogany...my husband is going to be so proud of me for knowing all that) agreed that he would take cash + the guitar center cards, which was really nice of him.  But it probably means he was just excited that he wouldn't have to hand over all the cash from the sale of the guitar to his wife - he would HAVE to spend those gift cards on more guitar gear.  This is the way that the twisted minds of musicians work.  ANYWAY...He lives south of Dallas and they arranged to meet in Arlington at 7:30pm last night.  Being the supportive wife that I am (read...I had been home with the kids by myself all day and thought staying at home all night with them alone didn't sound like the deal of the century) I put the kids in their pj's and we loaded up to make the hour drive over to Arlington.

Now, I hope I don't have any Arlington readers to offend, but I haven't heard the nicest things about the town.  Sure, they have Six Flags and the Ballpark at Arlington, but the town is just old, sort of run-down, and isn't known to be the safest of places.  So we pull up to this old Guitar Center, which is sort of secluded in this weird off the beaten path area, and we park to wait for the guitar guy to come.  I asked Steve, "So did he tell you what he looked like?"  Steve says, "Fat and bald with a goatee."  When the guy pulls up in an old police car, my danger radar immediately goes off.  I mean, who drives an old police car?  Are you even supposed to drive those?  Seemed sort of shady.  Then, he gets out of the car, and he should have described himself as HUGE (I am guessing in the 350 lb. range) with a shaved head and a 10 inch goatee. So I panicked a little inside, because there are also 2 other large people in the car, and I am picturing them showing Steve the guitar, Steve pulling out the money, someone punching Steve, and them taking off with the guitar.

So I say to Steve, "Are you sure you're ok?" (like he is going to just stay in the car with his wife) and he looks at me with this funny look and gets out.  Then they went inside with the guitar to use an amp to play it, and I was stuck in the ghetto, dark parking lot with the boys in the back seat.  So I did what any girl would do...I locked the doors and I called my Mommy.  What she was going to do from an hour away tucked inside her warm, safe house neither of us was sure, but it felt better to be on the phone with her then to just sit and stare at all the people walking around in head to toe black in the parking lot.

****Side Note**** I do confess to being a random car-door-locker.  And by that, I mean that we will be driving down the road and see someone that looks like this:

Or this:

and I reach over and lock the doors. It drives Steve crazy because automatic locks are so loud and he is convinced that people can hear it outside the car...

So of course, the guy was super nice and I shouldn't have worried about anything  He even sent a follow-up thank you email to Steve today talking about what a pleasant transaction it was and how he appreciated Steve showing up on time, etc.  I am such a judger.

And here is Steve with the new girl in the house...

Climbing, Climbing, Climbing

It is official. We have a climber on our hands.

Caleb just turned 18 months, and the world is his jungle gym. I was hit by a stomach bug/food poisoning (not sure which it officially was) on Thursday night, so Husband-of-the-Year Steve got Seth ready and took him to school while I laid on the couch trying not to think about the potentially undercooked salmon I had eaten the night before. Caleb was parked in front of the tv by Mother-of-the-Year (but I think I catch a break for using the tv as a babysitter when I am sick) and I accidentally dosed off. When I opened my eyes I found him standing


We have also


Oh, the carefree life of a toddler that has no idea of the pain he will be in for if Mom or Dad are not there to rescue him one of these days. If he is really unlucky, he will catch Seth on a bad day, and Seth just MIGHT be curious to see what happens if he gives Caleb just a little push off one of his high perches.

"Silas is a Blog Star"

I saw that written on another blog and I thought that was so funny. Not a rock star, or a football star, or a movie star....but a BlogStar. Welcome to 2008....

So if you are not in the "know", this is Silas the BlogStar, sporting some serious cheeks:

This is Silas the BlogStar with his mom Amy and his Dad Josh (the other picture I had posted has been removed to protect those who did not like the photo of themselves :-)


And this is me with Silas the BlogStar:

I will be asking for his autograph in a few years when he is old enough to write his name.

Our Chaotic End to 2007

Happy New Year everyone! Lot's has happened since my last post, and even though I would love to start with pictures from our recently concluded trip to Colorado, I must go back and hit a few events that happened at the end of 2007.

Steve turned 30!! At first, we were going to plan a big party, then he decided as the time was drawing close that he didn't want a big party after all. His birthday is sandwiched in between our anniversary (we celebrated 6 years on December 15th) and Christmas on the 25th, so sometimes life just seems a little too crazy during those 10 days to adequately celebrate all the big events! So I surprised him with a small come and go afternoon at our house for cake and cheesecake, and about 20 of our friends stopped by to wish him a happy birthday!


Seth had his last day of preschool on December 21st, so I was busy the day before baking cookies for the end of year party and baking pumpkin spice bread for gifts for his teachers. Seth's preschool is a huge blessing for us....he has great teachers, it is a small class so he receives lot's of one on one attention, and it is in the public school system so it is free! The downside is the level of Political Correctness that the state has imposed on the schools. So they can't have a Christmas party, because there are too many other religions that would be left out. Now, they can't even have a holiday party, because people were offended by the "Christmas party in disguise". Sooo.....they now have a nursery rhyme party without even a hint of Christmas trees, snowflakes, or gingerbread men. Huh? We got a flyer in mid-December inviting us to the party and asking us to dress Seth in a costume that reflected his favorite nursery rhyme. So begrudgingly, secretly wanting to smuggle in a nativity scene in my bag and dress Seth up as a wise man, I made him a t-shirt with this on it....

It was fun to be in the classroom with Seth and see how he interacted with his classmates and teachers. Here is Seth with Mrs. Lerman (left) his speech therapist, and Mrs. Carrero (right) his teacher.

And Mrs. Kassem, his beloved teacher's aide. While Seth is at home playing in his room, I hear him talking to Mrs. Kassem and playing games with her. So cute.

I got to help him make an Itsy Bitsy Spider out of pretzels and chocolate icing.

Then....the craziness began! We had the weekend to get ready for our family Christmas on Sunday at my Mom and Dad's, wrapping presents and making food. Steve and I had both been sick most of the week, and things started getting worse Saturday. He had to go to the Doc-in-the-Box that was open on the weekend, and they said he had bronchitis and a sinus infection. Sweet. So I had to rush around getting him medicine and "being sick" supplies (kleenex, juice, etc.) while feeling pretty bad myself. He was not able to sing, and was scheduled to lead worship the next morning at church so he had to find someone to fill in for him. Sunday, Caleb and I started going downhill, so first Steve and I both went to our Christmas Eve service rehearsal, then I went to the Doc-in-the-Box, then I took Caleb to the Acute Kids Care clinic that evening at 7:30pm. What a way to celebrate! We were all trying to get well because we were leaving on a flight for Colorado on Christmas morning. On Monday morning, Christmas Eve, we did our own little family Christmas.



Then we were at our church from 1:30pm until 6:30pm getting ready for and singing and playing at the two services. That evening, we finished packing and prepared for getting up VERY EARLY to leave for the airport with my whole family for our White Christmas in Colorado! Whew.