Tate's 1!!!!

Tate turned 1 on Thursday. He acted like it was just another day but I think he was just trying to be cool. One is a big deal and he knows it. Last Sunday we had a shindig for him. As Mel and I were preparing for it we didn't really take the whole gift factor in to account. The kid made out like a bandit. Dang it, Philly scored again...watching the World Series. Anyway, we can't believe a year has already gone by. It seems like just last week I was pilfering the nourishment room in search of cranberry juice and crackers for Tate.

Those were good times. I have some funny footage from his party that I will put up soon. Tate was dedicated at church last Sunday prior to his fiesta. Tate really hammed it up when we were in front of everyone. It was funny. He says "Bauer" and ball now. He attributes the name Bauer to all four legged creatures, but has an especially distinct inflection when he says it in reference to our hound. He may be the last person who actually talks to our dog. This past year has found Bauer's name being uttered far less in our home. However, he harbors no apparent ill will toward Tate. They'll be good friends someday. School is going well. I am teaching an after school study skills class and tomorrow I will start teaching a new class during 2nd period, working with students who are struggling in school. I am looking forward to it. Mel and I are staying at the Conley's while they are in Hawaii so I should be updating this thing more regularly over the next two weeks. Enjoy the video and pics:

Mel swaddled Tate last week. He didn't enjoy it.

Read the label. Thanks papa!

Rays, Hormones, and Mopey Faces

Wow. It has been a while. My school computer does not allow me to access the blog and considering I have been spending a good majority of my time there lately it has been difficult to update this thing. Having said that, I do miss it. The economy may be in the crapper but I have found solace in this: the pictures on news web sites of stock brokers who appear bummed/shocked/chagrined each time the Dow drops. If you go on a news website and look at the main page on a day where the Dow drops a considerable amount, you will surely see some Wall Street trader with his head in his hands. I am not trying to mock these people's financial losses. I just think it's funny that they have a different guy each day with the same face. I want to go to Wall Street and look really disappointed and mopey and see if I can make the front page of CNN.com. Check it out this week as the stock market continues to plummet. On a much cheerier note, Tate, Mel and I are doing well. Tate is just shy of his first birthday. He has two crooked little teeth and says "Bauer." He is getting dedicated at church next Sunday, followed by his first birthday bash. Bring a friend. This is probably the busiest time of my life. A new class will be added to my schedule this week, which will bring me to 4 overall. I chaperoned the homecoming dance last night. It was essentially a... Actually I deleted what I wrote because I cannot put to words what I saw. In short, it was grossnastic. Holler at your D-Bo. On a less hormonally unstable note, I am still working with the middle school ministry. We had hippie night on Wednesday and went shark fishing in Alameda yesterday. We caught two sharks and a sting ray. They were less happy than we were upon reeling them in. The students had fun, so did Tate. He was a natural fisherman, like his father before him. Man homecoming was gross. Enjoy the pictures (not from homecoming):
I'll post more pics later this week...

Monterey/Mel's 27!/Deej & Emily/Adios Pletch

Mel and I went to Monterey last weekend and took Tate to the aquarium. He enjoyed the jellyfish, but was more interested in the ocean itself. The kid loves water. It was Mel's birthday on Thursday so we decided to get out of town. On Saturday we had some folks over for a celebratory barbecue. Life has been good lately. Blogging hasn't been priority one so I apologize half-heartedly for the lack of posts. On Sunday Dan and Emily got married. There were close to 400 people at the Pine's house. The ceremony was really nice and the reception was fun. I was the emcee and hopefully I didn't make too much of a fool out of myself. Tate was a trooper as he endured the 100 degree heat without a nap. He danced a bit too. At the end of it all he passed out in my arms, which was pretty cute. It was fun to spend time with all of our friends. Pletcher is moving back to Texas and we had a going away shindig for him yesterday at the Hopyard. He will be missed. In other news...I got a job. I will be teaching at "high school X" in the Fall. I don't want to say the name so I won't show up on Google searches. "High school X"is the most expensive high school in the nation. It is insane. It would be ridiculous if it was a college campus. Super nice. I will be teaching Freshman and Sophomore English. It shall be fun.

Here are some photos from the past week:
Mel's Barbecue
Deej & Emily's Wedding

Probie

Josh graduated the fire academy on Saturday. Mel, Tate, and I showed up fashionably late to the ceremony. Tate decided to sleep in and we decided it would be better to be fashionably late than unfashionably not present at all. It was a super hot day so after the ceremony we set Tate's baby pool up again and Chris, Tate, and I took a canyon dip. It was lovely. The festive day was capped by a n evening win by our softball team. We are pretty horrible, but luckily we happened upon a team that was even inferior to us. Tate is starting to scoot a bit and will likely be crawling in no time. Our lives will soon be over. Luckily our spacious abode has more than enough space to permit the young squirrel to crawl where he wishes. Below you will find some lovely pool pictures and other fine photos.

Cooling Down in the Canyon

Yesterday Tom told me that I increased the value of his property. He was no doubt referring to the pool that I installed for Tate. It was rather hot yesterday so Tate and I ventured to Target to purchase a pool. He was so excited he peed himself. He really did. Anyway, I got home and filled the pool with hose water. Mind you, the hose water came out at roughly 40 degrees, just above freezing. This did not seem to bother Tate. I got in the water with him and held him as he shrieked for joy. Mel got home from work and took some pictures. It was fun. In other news, Tate is growing hair. Blonde, almost white hair. Naturally, we rub balloons against his dome to make his hair stand up. He isn't quite sure how he feels about it. Mel only has 3 days left of school and we are both rather excited. I have class tonight and then my last class is next week and needless to say, I too am stoked. It will be fun to be home with Mel, spending time with Tate and doing summery stuff. We can't wait.

My new favorite picture of Tate.