Birthday Boys!

Yes, the boys have turned three. Fortunately, we didn't have to have three parties for them... only two. Naturally, we had a Thomas the Tank Engine cake. Without really planning it, all of the youthful attendees of the first party were boys, including our neighbor, Jayce, and the Lowe boys. Of course, the Zabriskies and the Maynes family came over, too. The second party happened (we didn't plan it this way, really) to include their little girl friends. Grant has decided that he likes presets, a lot. Their teen-aged girl friends helped out with everyone's new favorite game, Monsters From the Bottom Bunk! Now let the three-year-old adventures begin!

KidFest!!

In my pre-kid life, I used to set up for trade shows all the time. In fact, I am no stranger to this very venue - the Oregon Convention Center. But back then, it was all pesticides and stuff. So killing bugs and weeds vs helping kids love the outdoors (and FIND bugs and weeds)....duh. Kid shows are MUCH more entertaining!


Everyone helped. Evan said his job of building a frame out of pvc pipe was just like playing with giant tinker toys. And in case anyone out there doesn't already know - he's a very, VERY smart guy! He's my best employee. I also appreciate how he pays for all these projects.
All our hard work was rewarded with a peaceful ride home.




Grant and Cole helped by staying out of the booth, and loving the other attractions at KidFest - like reptiles, face painting, bouncy houses.....you get the idea. It's not like they suffered through the show.
Here's our booth, and the two heaven sent angels (Mona and Kelly) who helped with the boys and Bryn, and made it possible for me to do what I absolutely love: Sell outdoor gear for kids! And sell, we did!

Kelly (standing) is a programmer/engineer who works with Evan, and has been a huge blessing to our family. I'm not really sure what we do to deserve these amazing people in our lives, but we LOVE 'EM!

Old King Cole

He's the boy of 1000 faces but his favorite face is a smile.

Crunching Picasso

For the boys' birthday this week, one of the gifts they received was a watercolor paint set. They sat down the night they received it and made their first efforts at painting. I was gratified at how thoughtful they both were about it. At first we had to help them understand the order of things: water, paint, paper, repeat. After that they made the painting their own and each had a distinct style. Cole's effort is a picture of Thomas the Tank Engine and his friend James. You can clearly see Thomas' blue wheels and blue smile and James' red wheels. We are titling it "Thomas and James with Flowers". Grant had a very definite repeating style where he would dab the brush in each color in order before applying it to the page. It made a pretty consistent gray-green color which he methodically covered most of the page with. This one we are calling "2:00AM - View from the top bunk" Here's a video with Grant explaining about other uses for paint brushes and demonstrating how he achieved that color.

Cruncher Broadcasting System

The boys got their first major network air time this week. We are participating in the KidFest Norhtwest Portland show with our Outdoor Adventure Kid company. The organizer called Sue up last week and asked if she would like to be on the Better Portland morning show on the local Fox affiliate. Here's the result: http://www.kptv.com/video/18803077/index.html. You'll want to skip to the 2:15 point to see the relevant portion. The boys were not so much camera shy, as just plain uncooperative, but they're still two-year-olds for another few days. Once they turn 3 they're going to be well behaved, obedient, and start earning their keep (by taking their modeling roles seriously.) Right?

Vandalism Reported at Cruncher Residence

At 11:30 am, Friday, Feb. 20th, a local mother reported a disturbing discovery to authorities. Detectives were dispatched to the residence immediately.
The CD player, although still intact, was suddenly ejecting any and all CDs. A top investigator/mechanical whiz was called on site with hi-tech equipment* to get to the heart of the sound system. After struggling momentarily with the "home repair proof" assembly, he finally cracked the code and made a startling discovery. Vandalism, rather than planned obselescence by manufacturers, was the possible culprit. It appeared that a "calling card" of sorts had been left by the vandal. Whether the business card reveals the mischief-maker himself or someone else, is unclear.** However, the individual pictured is wanted for questioning.
Authorities have asked for neighborhood residents to report any suspicious activity, and any sighting of this person of interest (enlarged for investigation):

Investigators considered the victims fortunate. In other cases, pennies were put in the CD player, causing complete system failure, requiring replacement .

*"Hi-tech equipment" refers to a tool kit gift to the whiz by his father when he was 14.

**All evidence is presented exactly as found by detectives, to which they found the carelessness of some criminals amusing.

Lunch With Daddy

Sue was out and about today on a super secret mission (more on that later) and she stopped by my office just before lunch. I took her and the Crunchers to my favorite teriyaki restaurant. Bryn had just eaten and was on her way to sleep. The boys were fascinated by the chopsticks. After watching me take a couple of bites Cole wanted to try. First the one handed approach. And then the two handed approach. Grant also tried it one handed. His facial technique is perfect. He found success quite by accident when he stabbed the piece of chicken. Success! Naturally, Cole copied this much easier technique, even though he had been quite successful with his two handed attempts. Mmm, meat on a stick. Meanwhile, Bryn sank quietly into the sunset.

Just for Giggles

Family Fun Night

I know everyone out there wants to come on one of the (soon to be) famed Simper Family Fun Nights. (FFNs) But - sorry, it's just the family. We'll let you all in on one, though. They are incredible adventures, and only happen a few times a month - RANDOMLY - whenever someone belts out "Family Fun Night." So far, this spontaneous method of fun has never been thwarted, because no catastrophes can happen that fast, so we've never been disappointed. The only rule to FFN is that, at some point in the night, ice cream must be consumed.

ENJOY!

Gene Pool Party

Lately, it seems like EVERYONE we run into is compelled to analyze who looks like who in our little gene pool. Not that we mind - genetics are inherently (no pun intended) fascinating since we are wired in every way to see that a little piece of ourselves lives on after us. So we really want to know what our loyal followership thinks: Who looks like who, here? (FYI - Cole is on the left, Bryn, then Grant)
Alright, time for the "pool" party to be over, and the slumber to begin. Kisses from Grant...
then kisses from Cole.
Grant begged - "I want Brynie to sleep in my bed!" Trust us, Grant, in literally the blink of an eye (or the flash of a camera), she can go from this....
to this.

Zabriskie Theater

Like most 3 month olds, Bryn is just starting to show emotion on her face. Papa Z tried to help her out. Try to guess what emotion is shown in each picture. That's right: joy. Here's another: Hmm, we think that might be dyspepsia. This one should be easier: Clearly it's some sort of melodrama villain with an under bite. Here's one where Bryn was the teacher: Yes, apathy is obviously her strong suit. Here's another one where Bryn has talent: We think she might have anger management issues. Maybe Mona will be able to elicit some more expression from her. I doubt that terror was what Mona was hoping for. At least Cole knows how to express himself. As long as the subject is trains, he's an expert.