Fun Easter at the Ranch

We had a great Easter with Andrea's family at "The Property." Andrea's older brother and his family, and one of her younger sister's (except Melissa who is on a mission), and her younger brother were there. To top it all off, her grandparents from Utah also flew out (unfortunately her grandfather is sick with cancer so it made the visit extra special). It was a great time! I always love getting to talk to Andrea's grandfather--he's super smart and a spiritual giant who always seems to inspire me to increased faith. He told us some great spiritual stories about his parents and his time working in the LA temple.

The only downside to the weekend was Mackay and Beckett's health. Both were sick (Beckett was whiny and wanted to be held the WHOLE time!)...and one of their cousins even threw up a few times while we were there! The real treat, however, was beginning to show its ugly head when Mackay complained about a sore "knee" on Easter before we left for home. Stay tuned for more on that...

Look at the focus on Mackay's face!

Andrea with her Walker grandparents.

Rocket Time

Because Andrea is in Cub Scouts at church (not by her choice mind you!), Mackay and I were lucky enough to get to join in on the space wood derby (like pinewood derby but with rubber band propelled balsa wood rocket ships that race along a string stretched the length of the basketball court). I helped him assemble it, but he painted it himself (Andrea actually helped paint the glitter paint on it).

With the right rubber band and propeller, the rocket shot all the way across the gym! He even won a medal (with the rest of the scouts...everyone was a winner!). Here's a few pictures.

The Winners

Here it is...see the world debut...

The Winners...my movie about the half marathon.

It's better full size and full resolution, but hopefully you'll enjoy it anyway...

The Winners (2008) from Be Strong on Vimeo.

Sub 2

Andrea and her friend Melissa ran the Dallas Half Marathon on Saturday (her first half marathon was last year in Virginia). They pretty much rocked it--and they hit their goal of doing it in under two hours! They even placed 9th and 10th in their age bracket! Check out the results here. And if that weren't cool enough, I got video of it and am in the process of making a fun little movie about their feat....stay tuned...

We stayed at my sister Carin's house. Thanks sis, we had a great time hangin' with you and the fam!

For Melissa's play by play, check out her posting.



Check out their sweet Texas-shaped medals! I want one!!!

Potty Training Part Deux

So we finally decided to potty train Mackay for real. He has been going Number Two on the potty off and on, but without a washer and dryer we weren't too keen on taking the plunge and potentially all of the wet clothes it would entail (we finally got a washer and dryer so felt it was time to suck it up and save the money from diapers). Mackay has gone four days now and I am happy to report that he has only had a partial leak or two--nothing major.

Before we started a friend of ours gave us the idea to buy a big package of matchbox cars and then give him one each day he remained dry (we are also doing a sticker chart with a Cars stickers over each day he is dry). Needless to say, he loves getting the cars each day. Yesterday Andrea took him to Costco and I guess she put him in a diaper for that trip in case there were issues with finding a potty and all of the travel. As they were on their way home, he had to go pee and Andrea told him that it was okay just this time and that he could go in his diaper, which he then did. I guess when she was putting him back in his big boy underwear, he was worried that he wouldn't get a car because his diaper was wet. Andrea, however, reassured him that he would still get the car. What a cute big boy Mackay is becoming!

Update: I just talked to Andrea. Mackay had a couple of accidents today, but I'm still confident that he's getting the hang of this potty training thing.

Andrea's DC Trip

Andrea had a sweet trip to DC to see all of her MANY friends. I've invited her to add her thoughts on the trip and perhaps a few pictures too...so stay tuned...and bug her to do it if you want her report!

New Year's Celebrations With Kids

So perhaps it's an excuse. Perhaps we just don't know how to have a good time in our "old age." Whatever it is, these pictures pretty much describe our party life with kids. We did go to a friends house on New Year's Eve, but Mackay actually fell asleep on my lap at 8:30 p.m. or so, making it difficult to actually celebrate with friends until the clock struck midnight. That's ok, we made it to midnight Europe time, right!

Mackay and Beckett...buddies...going to party.
Couldn't quite make it to midnight...

Year in Review

We hope you all had a great 2007. I thought you would appreciate seeing Andrea's Christmas letter.
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2007 is not a year we will forget too quickly. Marc and I celebrated our seventh wedding anniversary and experienced our “seven year itch” a little differently than most. We thought it sounded like a great idea to sell our house, quit his job and move to a new state and a city we had visited just once before (maybe this was just a joint mid-life crisis a few years early). Many of you might have heard us talk about a move for the past four-plus years so we thought it was time to spring into action. In July we left Virginia—our home since 2002—and made our way to Marc’s parents’ house (equipped with a new portable DVD player and lots of fruit snacks of course!). We spent the 4th of July on Grandpa's new boat and enjoyed watching the festivities over the water. Our next stop was a fun family vacation with my family on Lake Travis just west of Austin (unfortunately the lake was flooded so we couldn’t go boating on it the entire week we were there).

After that, the reality of our decision really sunk in and we became vagabonds for the next three months (it is that gypsy blood from my Dad I guess). We spent time in Austin with my brother, Cory, at “the Property” with my parents, and in North Texas with the Marc’s two sisters and their families. We are very grateful to our families for helping to make our transition as painless as possible and for all of their generosity!

In October we settled into Austin at last and got a short-term lease of our very own. The boys have never been so happy to play with all of their toys before! They played together in their room for hours. By this point we were still waiting for that job offer and starting to sweat it just a little bit; but right before Thanksgiving we got two offers in Austin.

Marc started his new job with Freescale Semiconductor the first week in December and is doing business intelligence and market analysis. His return to the cube was a challenge for him after being free for so many months, but it will do until he becomes independently wealthy and can retire. Marc spends a lot of time with the boys and amazes me with his patience and energy.

I am not as busy as usual, but I am hoping to get some regular activities as I meet more people and learn the area. I ran my first half marathon this year and loved it so I am looking forward to another race in February.

Mackay is becoming such a big boy. He gets mistaken for a 5-year old often and I have to remind myself that he is only three (and a half). His accomplishments for the year include learning to ride a bike (with training wheels), write his name and go to the bathroom in the toilet (almost has it down…HOORAY).

We think Beckett is going to be our little clown. He has such a funny little personality and likes to make us all smile. He has acquired a love for sandboxes, animals and Cheetos. He says quite a few words and mimics just about everything Mackay does. They are really becoming good buddies.

We really love it in Austin and are excited for the chance to give it a go here. If we knew what we were in for when we decided to go on this adventure, we probably would have stuck with our comfortable routine, but where’s the fun in that, right!? We know the Lord has blessed our family this year and we are thankful for His goodness and mercy. We hope this holiday season finds you all well and that you will continue to have success in all your endeavors. We are thankful for the birth and sacrifice of our Savior and remember Him this Christmas season.

We love you and look forward to seeing you all soon!

Chasing the Train

I made this movie of our trip today with Andrea's parents and her sister (and her boyfriend) and brother down to Kemah Boardwalk--the boys loved riding on the merry-go-round and the train. It's the first movie I've made with iMovie '08. Fun to make. Perhaps I missed my calling in life! :)

A Christmas Double-Hitter

After visiting Marc's sisters in North Texas for Christmas, we headed south to visit with Andrea's parents--it got a little warmer but still left us wishing for the 70s that we enjoyed just a week earlier. Andrea's sister, Julie, was visiting from out of state (which means that we don't see her as often as we'd like) as was her youngest brother, Adam. Julie's new found boyfriend also visited, which was an added bonus. It was great to see everyone, even if it was only for a short few days. Unfortunately Marc had to work on Monday (New Year's Eve) so we weren't able to stay for Andrea's parents' famous party with fireworks and good hometown country fun! Perhaps next year...

Beckett loves Cheetos...need any more proof than this?
Mackay and Beckett got to feed the longhorns...we're definitely in Texas!