Catching Up
Michael: Michael recently ran for student body office for the position of Safety Commissioner. I still don't have a good idea of what this all entailed, but since there were 5 students running for the position, I knew there was a good chance that a defeat wouldn't bother him too much. It was a great experience for him; making posters, writing a speech, and then giving a speech to his school. The girl that won is such a neat girl, so Michael was happy for her. Michael also turned 10 last month and had a Wii birthday party. He had some friends over to play video games and our house has never emitted that level of volume before (I even asked our neighbor about it). I had no idea 5 boys could make that much noise. We gave Michael a guitar for his birthday and he is already learning so much. The guitar comes much easier for him than piano does. Can you guess who he takes after?

Daniel: Daniel is new territory for a 6 year old. He is so funny and frustrating; such a constant contradiction. He wants to be so independent because that is what they teach in kindergarten, but he doesn't understand that he has to obey when he gets home. "I'm gonna get some marshmallows." (His favorite food.) "No, Daniel, it's almost dinnertime." "Well, I'm just going to have a few." "No, Daniel, you need to obey." "But it's just a few... waaaaaaaa." Sigh... And then he can be so funny. This morning we were lounging around in our jammies (no school today) and he said "MOM, why do you still have your jammies on?!" "Well, Daniel, YOU still have YOUR jammies on..." and then he just laughed and laughed at that. Saturday, Tim and I went to the $3 movie theater and Daniel asked why they were going to Nana's house. So I teasingly told him that we wanted to go have fun without him. Any other day, he would have laughed and joked right back, but yesterday he started to cry. Sigh... Like I said, constant contradiction. And it doesn't help that he is so cute without his two front teeth; try not to laugh at a 6 year old when he is trying to be serious. Today he wanted to wear shorts so bad, and when he asked if he could wear short pants, I told him sure. Fifty two degrees is plenty warm for shorts!

Tim: You can catch updates on Tim's blog, but the most recent family news is his truck. It has a hole in the radiator. And while his truck is not exactly family, it does put a strain on our hectic life with one car. If it was nice and sunny, this predicament would not be an issue, but who wants to ride a motorcycle in the rain?

Tracy: After Thursday, I will have implants. Sorry, I couldn't resist the pun... I already have one implant and the next one this week will make it two. My #6 tooth (or lack of) will be getting a nice titanium post pounded into my upper jaw. Three months ago, I had that #6 tooth surgically removed and a bone graft put in. But the worst is over and hopefully this will be nothing more than an inconvenience. I actually heal pretty fast and my tolerance for pain is surprisingly (shockingly) high. Except that I don't handle needles very well. Did you know that in high school I actually half-way fainted in Biology when we had to do blood typing? I had to dive for the girls' restroom to heave. And I had to drive an old truck to my tiny country high school? And I just don't dance or do well in sports? And I would prefer jeans or sweats to fashion? Hmm, who does that sound like? Yes, Cindy, I am in fact a Bella! Go to Cindy's blog to see who she is. By the way, if you are considering the vampire movie, just say no! They should have paid ME to sit through that. Stick with the books.