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Merry Christmas!

We didn't get around to sending out holiday cards or updates this year... er... or any other year for that matter. But I've gotten a bunch in the mail and have really enjoyed seeing pictures and reading updates on people. With each card that finds its way into our mailbox, the more convicted I feel that I really should reciprocate. Unfortunately for me, it's already the night of the 22nd... plus, who has time to scrounge around for people's current addresses? I know, I know, it's a lame excuse. But for now, you'll have to settle for our e-holiday greeting. Lame? Perhaps. But it's the best I can do for now. (By the way, thanks, Hannah, for the heads up on a site where I can pull off something like this.)

Click on the picture above to read our update and see pics.

As a warning for those who read my blog regularly, the pictures won't be anything new since (being 20 lbs heavier) I'm really not in the mood to take pictures of myself right now... then again, the updates won't be anything new either since I regularly update this blog... agh. I'm starting to wonder why I even bothered... Well, this was sent to non-blogger readers, so you can just consider yourselves "in the know".

Another photo dump

 I know, I know... isn't there more for me to say than show a million photos of my boy? Probably... but I don't have the energy or brain power right now... so photos will have to do. Besides, aren't "pictures worth a thousand words"? If so, then I've said more than enough...  

Large versions of these photos can be found here.

Here are a few more pics of Caleb during Halloween in his shark outfit. On the right are the Weis with Justin the ferocious lion.

This is the most GQ our boy has ever looked. It's sad when your children have nicer clothes than you do. (Side note: one of his favorite past times is picking up leaves. He's got a million toys inside the house, but he'd rather pick up leaves. Figures...)

     

And here is Caleb sporting Victor's favorite hat. If you look closely, you'll see the dinosaur spikes on top.

Other favorite past times: climbing and sliding (on my proud craigslist purchase), playing with Victor's... ahem, I mean, "his" train set (another proud purchase off a Black Friday sale), and wearing Daddy's shoes

     

One of his most recent words is "go"... usually referring to making his cars or trains run... except he says it with extreme gusto ("Gooooooo!") The other day, I was tidying up the house. When I walked into his room, I found him in his laundry basket (as demonstrated below). When I asked him what he was doing, he turned to me and said, "Go!" I think he wanted it to be a car.

    

The next few photos are of Caleb dancing to his favorite tune of the moment "Wheels on the Bus". He tries to copy the actions, but it just turns out looking like random, jerky movements. Still cute, nonetheless.

     

Much to Gong Gong and Puo Puo's (Grandpa and Grandma's) chagrin, he still sucks his thumb. I do wish he would stop, but I have to admit that it's handy in certain circumstances... like when he has to try to calm himself down after a tantrum. Luckily, he only sucks when he's in his bed with his blankie.

And finally, some kiddo portraits. I can't believe how much he's grown up. He's turning 18 months (1 1/2 yrs) in  just a few days. Now I know why parents always say that their kids grow up too fast. Time flies when you're having fun.

  

     

   

photo dump

It's been awhile since I've had a big photo dump. Hope you enjoy as much as we do! :)

our cute little 16 month old ball of energy

he thought he was hilarious putting his blankie over his head.

happy hour... the boy loves his milk.

a favorite past time: making a mess for mommy...

goofy faces

caleb's favorite church activity. everytime we near the sanctuary, he points and grunts until we take him to the drums.

daddy, the paparazzi

the flash! it's burning my eyes!

caleb begging daddy to be "all done" (see the waving hands? that's his sign language for "finished")

checking out the pumpkin patch

where are you going, daddy?

the chicken and ... the shark? (that's emi, by the way, in case you can't tell.)

An Ode to Guh Guh

yes, yes... everyone loves their siblings. i know. but my brother has got to be one of the coolest around. what prompts this post, you might ask? a weekend of neediness... and answers from the man pictured above.

so victor and i would willingly admit that we are not the most handy people around. not by a long shot. but my big brother is mr. handy-man-extrodinaire. just call him "josh the builder". he finds joy in fixing things himself. he's always been like that, ever since i can remember. when we were younger, he drove my parents crazy by taking things (usually electronics) apart so he could "see how they work". i'm not sure if he was always able to put them back together, though.

anyway, on to the ode.

why guh (my big bro) is awesome, reason #1: our home has always had a fairly large laundry list of "things to fix" or "things to update". We, as mentioned above, are not handy people... although i try to pretend to be on occasion. i call him up this weekend to ask him a question (which i'll mention below) and happen to tell him about this laundry list. he's planning on coming back to visit for christmas, and he offered to do them all for us while he's here!! woo hoo! now, on the one hand, i feel bad for asking him to take his vacation time to do work for us, but on the other hand, i know that he enjoys doing stuff like that. so i'll just stick to the "other hand". :)

why guh is awesome, reason #2: this past week, i purchased something off craigslist that needed some serious cleaning up. victor was so grossed out by it that he didn't want to have anything to do with it, and asked me to sell it. while i know i could've gotten our return on the purchase, i was sad. i really wanted to keep it. i tried cleaning it with some good ol' fashioned elbow-grease, but it just wasn't cutting it. what did i do? call my brother, of course. he told me how to clean it off... and after a few hours in the backyard this afternoon, i'm proud to say that we'll be keeping the purchase...

why guh is awesome, reason #3: (this one was the most important to victor) victor's ritual these days is to come home after church and turn on the tube to see how the football games have been playing out so as to check on his fantasy football team. we came home this afternoon, victor turned on our tv, and found... nothing. nada. a black screen. after some investigation, we come to find out that our tivo "live tv" function isn't working. that means we can't watch anything on tv, and can't record anything new. the only thing we can do is watch already recorded stuff. PANIC. tivo has been a necessity for us, especially after having caleb. my brother actually gave it to us for christmas 2 years ago (hmm... that merits a "why guh is awesome reason #4). so after a lot of fiddling with cables and rebooting, etc, etc... victor was fairly certain that our tivo had died. (tragedy!) BUT... of course, who do i call? my brother! and sure enough, he gives us a couple of suggestions... presto, change-o... tivo is up and running again. peace is restored.

of course, there are many many more reasons why i love my bro, but this weekend, he was truly the hero of the chiao-lin temple.

thanks, guh guh. what would we ever do without you?

Team Hoyt

the first time i heard about this father-son team, i was watching oprah (yes, i watch oprah frequently when i get the chance) sometime last season. i was so moved by their story. today, i happened to be reminded of them in this man's blog (see below). i was boo hooing shamelessly as i wached the video. maybe it's all the pregnancy hormones coursing through my body right now... or maybe it's the conviction that i'm always in fear of having a child with severe disabilities. would i have the courage, strength, and selflessness to love and care for a child like rick... and to the extent that dick does? my only solace is knowing that God gives grace beyond measure.

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"My dad is the Father of the Century"

Oct 20th 2006 1:31PM by Roger Sinasohn
Filed under: Health and Safety, Lifestyle, Dads

I'm glad I was working at home when I came across this story; most of my co-workers are not the sorts who think very highly of a grown man crying. This is a pretty cool story of a man whose love for his son drove him -- literally -- to Herculean feats of strength, endurance, and courage. If you're the sort who tears up easily, make sure you have a box of tissue handy before reading this or watching the accompanying video.

Rick Hoyt was strangled by umbilical cord during birth, leaving him unable to control his limbs. Doctors told his parents were told he'd be a vegetable for life and that they should put him in an institution. His parents were a little too stubborn for that, however. When he was 11, he got a computer that he could control with his head, allowing him to communicate for the first time. When a classmate was paralyzed and the school organized a run to raise money for him, Rick typed out "Dad, I want to do that."

That was the start of it all. Dick Hoyt, out of shape and not used to running more than a mile, tried his best to push his son the five miles. "I was sore for two weeks," he says. That day changed everything, however. Rick told him "Dad, when we were running, It felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!" Who could forget that? Not Dick Hoyt. Since then, Team Hoyt has done more than 200 triathalons, dozens of marathons, and even six 15-hour Ironman Races in Hawaii. Tomorrow, they'll run/swim/bike another Ironman together.

My dad was a pretty awesome guy. He did a lot for his kids and for others. But I have to give Dick Hoyt credit. As his son Rick said, "No question about it, my dad is the Father of the Century." Read the article, watch the video, and be prepared to buy more Kleenex

Coming: March 1st

email from jenn: will you be reigning queen or will you be yielding to a princess?

my response: alas, the queen will be dethroned.