Beth and David, Annika and Matthew

Matthew's Second Birthday Party

2009-01-25T07:02:00.000-08:00

Saturday was Matthew's birthday party. We celebrated at home with Nana and Papa; Nicole and Jason, Janina and her friend Janine, Jen, Matthew and Catherine (Ken had a test review session for his CPA exam); and Brett, Michele, Zander, and Sierra. The theme was the movie Cars, and Matthew loved his Lightning McQueen cake. Happy Birthday, Matthew!

Mormon Family Night

2009-01-19T05:07:00.000-08:00

Several weeks ago I read a blog entry on Slog, the very liberal Seattle-area blog that I follow, about the idea of protesting a Mormon family's house on Family Night in response to the Church of Latter Day Saint's financial support for the ballot measure that outlawed gay marriage in California. The blog entry was critical of the protest, explaining that Mormon folks set aside one night a week to spend as a family with no TV, etc., and the idea of protesting a family during family night was not such a good one. So that night I said to Beth, "Do you know what my takeaway was?" And she replied, "You want to protest outside a Mormon family's house?" !!

We had our first successful "Mormon" Family Night on January 19. The Monday before we had planned on having a family night, but dinner that night took a while to cook and clean up. So this week we had pizza from Noli's New York Style pizza for dinner, which left us with plenty of time. We combined Family Night with Fold a Huge Pile of Clothes night. For the most part, Beth and I folded clothes and took photos and video while Annika and Matthew played trains, danced, and jumped around to music that sounds more appropriate to a speakeasy rather than an event inspired by a religious practice. However, a definite success and the start, one hopes, of a long series of Family Nights that will begin always with pizza for dinner.

Pillow Fort

2009-01-17T12:39:00.000-08:00

On Thursday night we made a pillow fort in the living room after dinner. It was amazing how quickly we trashed the living room.

Annika's New Sweater

2009-01-15T04:11:00.000-08:00

Annika got her new sweater in the mail last night, and it fits perfectly. She wore it all evening. Thanks, Grandpa!

Snowy Day in Chicago

2009-01-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

We decided to get out the sled and get some lunch out today. First Beth took some photos of me with Matthew in a cover for her Web site. Then, after much ado, we took the kids out to Jimmy John subs on Foster.

Cuddling in Bed

2009-01-04T09:52:00.000-08:00

This Sunday morning after New Year's, we lounged in bed before getting up and making whole wheat airplane and train pancakes. Matthew and Annika were ghosts for a while.

X-mas trip to Kentucky and Cincinnati Train Museum

2008-12-30T16:28:00.000-08:00

Monday morning after Christmas we headed down to visit the Kentucky Leistensniders. We met at Brooklyn Pizza for lunch, where we continued to pass onto our children that, as Paul said, you know you are eating real pizza when you can fold it and when oil drips off it. The Chicago Leistensniders need to find a real pizza place in Chicago, where we have not enjoyed real pizza since the unfortunate closure of New York Style Pizza on Lawrence and Damen.

Soon after we got to the house we headed over to the park with the dogs. Clay made more progress in three minutes teaching Annika how to pump her legs on the swing than I have made in three or four years of effort. Matthew loved the dogs.

Matthew, as usual, loved the swing and held onto his car the whole time.

At night the kids and dogs played around for a while before our steak dinner. We played Wii bowling and golf late into the night.

R (Kentucky Beth) joined us in the evening after work and would be unable to go to the museum the next day because of work. Next year we'll arrange the trip over a weekend day so that we can get more photos of R.

The next morning we got up, had breakfast, packed the car, and headed up to Cincy. We got a bit of a later start than we had planned, and we hit some traffic caused by pothole filling on the way. After we got through the traffic, we stopped at Penn Station, a great sandwich place in a town south of Cincy. Turns out there is a Penn Station just five minutes away from Dan and Norma's house in Springboro! I expect to be eating some more of their toasty and tasty baked subs in 2009.

After we got up to the Train Station museum in Cincy, our first stop was Holiday Junction, where Clay got some ideas for his model trains,...

... Matthew and Annika played with some toy trains, ...

And Annika took a ride on the kid train.

Next stop was the hands-on exhibits at the Duke museum. Annika spent a lot of time in the Water Works area, where she got quite wet.

Matthew would still be in the toddler area if it were up to him.

He particularly liked rolling a ball down a ramp.

Paul and Clay had gone straight from Holiday Junction to the Natural History Museum. After a while, we joined them at the wonderful ice age exhibit. Annika rode a wolf and everyone had a great time. We stopped for a quick bite of ice cream at the museum's beautiful ice cream parlor, and then parted ways, with Paul and Clay running to see some of the History museum before it closed. We headed to the car and both Annika and Matthew were asleep within ten minutes. We had planned on getting to the museum earlier to spend more time there, but the Chicago Leistensniders were plenty exhausted and happy by the end. Perhaps next year we'll try to work in an Omnimax movie. -David

Ice Skating in Dayton

2008-12-28T16:58:00.000-08:00

Tonight before dinner Janina, Beth, Annika, and David went to an ice skating rink that is close to Dan and Norma's house. Janina was the best skater, and she took the video of Beth, David, and Annika. Toward the end, you can hear Janina laugh as she is almost hit by another skater.

The Princess Tent

2008-12-26T17:03:00.000-08:00

Dan got a princess tent for the daybed in the basement, and for the last couple of nights Annika has slept down there with Dan and/or Beth. Here are Annika and Matthew playing in the tent during the day.

Last night Beth and Annika slept on the pullout single mattress below the daybed with the tent on it. They are on the "porch" of the princess tent. Papa (Dan) slept up in the tent. I went downstairs to wake up Beth and Annika at around 10:00 am, and I found them snuggled up. Super cute. Click on the picture to see a close up.

And then a few minutes later Matthew helped me wake them up. -David

Matthew and Annika Dancing to "The Polar Express"

2008-12-20T08:45:00.000-08:00

Beth and Matthew at Virginia Beach

2008-07-27T09:12:00.000-07:00

Photo: Ann Leistensnider

Matthew with flowers at Nicole and Jason's wedding

2008-07-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

Annika the flower girl at Nicole and Jason's wedding

2008-07-19T08:56:00.000-07:00

Annika and Nicole at rehearsal dinner

2008-07-18T09:07:00.000-07:00

June 2008

2008-07-11T21:15:00.001-07:00

Picnic in the park. This was the only picture I could get of Annika in which she was not holding some sort of kung-fu chicken that came in a Happy Meal in front of her face.

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Blue Silk Rhombus Didymos

2008-07-11T21:11:00.000-07:00

Naptime seal of approval.

On Papa's computer

2008-07-11T21:10:00.000-07:00

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You talkin' to me?

2008-07-11T21:06:00.001-07:00

April 2008

2008-07-11T21:05:00.000-07:00

April 2008

2008-07-11T21:04:00.000-07:00

On the way out to a birthday party at Pump It Up, the 2008 birthday party venue of choice around here.

February 2008

2008-04-10T11:16:00.001-07:00

13 months old

February 2008

2008-04-10T11:15:00.001-07:00

13 months old

Have you seen Flushed Away?

2007-10-01T20:11:00.000-07:00

I have--quite a few times. And now, I've also seen it shot frame-by-frame on a Fisher Price KidTough digital camera.

Matthew on the ferris wheel by Annika (her sepia period)

2007-09-29T18:13:00.001-07:00

Annika and David on the ferris wheel at Navy Pier

2007-09-29T18:12:00.001-07:00

At the GSB International Week Family Picnic by Annika

2007-09-29T18:10:00.001-07:00

Matthew by Annika

2007-09-29T18:09:00.001-07:00

Matthew by Annika

2007-09-29T18:06:00.001-07:00

Annika with Annika's camera by Mommy

2007-09-29T18:03:00.001-07:00

Mommy and Matthew by Annika

2007-09-29T18:01:00.001-07:00

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5 months in the cradle

2007-07-26T18:45:00.001-07:00

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Mother's Day at the park

2007-06-15T15:15:00.002-07:00

Roddy Butt

2007-06-15T15:15:00.001-07:00

2007-06-15T15:12:00.000-07:00

2007-06-15T15:10:00.000-07:00

Aunt Colie and Matthew, May 2007

2007-06-15T15:09:00.000-07:00

"Stickers" Annika

2007-06-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

Annika and Matthew, May 2007

2007-06-15T15:04:00.001-07:00

May 2007

2007-05-05T18:41:00.000-07:00

Matthew after a bath.

April 2007

2007-05-05T18:38:00.000-07:00

April 2007

2007-05-05T18:37:00.000-07:00

Go Dog Go!

2007-05-05T18:35:00.000-07:00

Annika running around in the park after seeing Chicago Children's Theater's performance of Go Dog Go!

2007-05-05T18:33:00.000-07:00

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April 2007

2007-05-02T08:22:00.000-07:00

April 2007

2007-05-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

2007-03-29T08:02:00.001-07:00

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I win again!

2007-03-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

I win!

2007-03-14T17:20:00.001-07:00

Sleepy Boy

2007-03-14T17:19:00.000-07:00

Matthew in a high back carry

2007-03-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

Matthew--7 weeks old

2007-03-14T16:05:00.000-07:00

Matthew-4 weeks old

2007-02-26T10:22:00.000-08:00

Annika lets Mathew borrow Dingla-Doone

2007-02-26T10:21:00.000-08:00

Annika and Matthew cuddle

2007-02-26T10:19:00.000-08:00

Matthew at 6 days old

2007-02-06T16:14:00.000-08:00

Annika holds Matthew for the first time

2007-02-06T15:45:00.000-08:00

Matthew comes home from the hospital

2007-02-06T15:43:00.000-08:00

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Annika has a tea party

2007-01-09T18:56:00.000-08:00

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Princess Curls

2007-01-09T18:54:00.000-08:00

Cole and Annika chilling on Christmas

2007-01-09T18:52:00.000-08:00

Santa pays a visit

2007-01-09T18:51:00.000-08:00

2007-01-09T18:50:00.000-08:00

Renee gives Annika French braids

2007-01-09T18:49:00.000-08:00

2006-12-14T20:16:00.000-08:00

Zoo Lights November 2006

2006-12-09T17:12:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving 2006

2006-12-09T17:11:00.000-08:00

Yes, we put the tree up before the turkey was cold.

Halloween 2006

2006-12-09T17:08:00.000-08:00

Fairy princess Annika.

First Day of School

2006-12-09T17:07:00.000-08:00

September 2006

2006-12-09T17:05:00.000-08:00

Annika and Nana at Great-Grandma Warrell's 80th birthday dinner.

August 2006

2006-12-09T17:02:00.000-08:00

August 2006

2006-12-09T17:01:00.000-08:00