Verse of the day

"As in water face reflects face, so a man's heart reveals the man." Prov. 27:19

This is special verse for Jennifer and me. It basically, says that a man's heart reveals his true nature. It get's past the superficiality and goes to a person's actions; that's his character. Something like judging based on the content of a man's character (apologies to Dr. MLK Jr.).

I have always had a mental picture of a mountain lake, like this picture, with an incredible reflection.

There are more neat stories about how this verse has been a part of our relationship from early on, but many of them are Jennifer's and I'll let her share them if she wants to :)

What a game

OSU 34, Cal 21

Thanks to my brother-in-law who scored two tickets to yesterday's game, I got to witness one of the more memorable wins in Beavers football history. What a game!!!

There's not much more to say. It is so much more amazing being there in person.

This picture is the Pick Six by Keenan Lewis that sealed the game. It happened practically right in front of us (we were in the scoreboard endzone, four rows up).

What are people thinking?

Here is a sad story about what's going on in Nebraska - and a lesson in unintended consequences.

OMAHA, Nebraska (CNN) -- Nebraska officials said they're concerned about an apparent rush by parents to drop their teenage children off at hospitals before lawmakers change the state's troubled "safe haven" law.

Four children have been dropped off at Nebraska hospitals in the last two days.

The latest cases came on the eve of a special session of the Legislature on Friday to add an age limit to the law. On Thursday, a boy, 14, and his 17-year-old sister were dropped off at an Omaha hospital; the girl ran away from the hospital, officials said. A 5-year-old boy was left by his mother at a different hospital, officials said.
The day before, a father flew in from Miami, Florida, to leave his teenage son at a hospital, officials said.

"Please don't bring your teenager to Nebraska," Gov. Dave Heineman told CNN. "Think of what you are saying. You are saying you no longer support them. You no longer love them."
Nebraska's safe haven law was intended to allow parents to hand over an infant anonymously to a hospital without being prosecuted. Of the 34 children who have been dropped off at hospitals, officials said not one has been an infant.

All but six have been older than 10, according to a Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services analysis.

(acknowledgement to CNN.com)

Safe Haven law sounds good in theory, but the repercussions are significant. Perhaps these kids will be better off, perhaps not. There are all kinds of factors that precipitate each abandonment (let's call it what it is) - mental/emotional stress, economic crisis, abuse, drugs, alcohol, behavior problems, etc. But there is no good excuse for a parent to treat their child like this...not when there is so much help available in this country.

Frankly, I hope they track down the dead-beat parents. They should not get out of their parental duties, because of inconvenience. Pray for these kids to find better homes.

I'm a fan, but not that much

Jennifer told me that I should post something on my blog about how my favorite baseball team, the Red Sox, won their two recent World Series titles in years that we had a new child: 2004 and 2007. Last year, I watched the Red Sox win while we were in the hospital after Cole's birth.















This year, no Hanson offspring and no championship. Sorry Sox.

The Pensieve

Sometimes, when I have too many thoughts in my head, I wish I had one of these....













How great would it be to have your own, personal pensieve, just like Dumbledore?

Total Money Makeover

Saturday was a great day for us. Jennifer and I were blessed with tickets to Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover Event in Portland (part of the gift included watching the kids for the afternoon - thanks Wally and Carolyn!).

Dave Ramsey is in the business of helping people achieve "financial peace." He teaches about getting intense about eradicating debt, having a savings safety net, and getting saving and investing in your future. He's helped millions through his best-selling books, radio talk show, training tools, and live events. Want to know more: http://www.daveramsey.com/


Until a few months ago, we weren't really familiar with Dave Ramsey though. I was talking over some financial decisions with Jennifer's dad. He mentioned that Dave Ramsey might have some advice on his website that would give guidance.

We made the decision to attack our last bit of debt - Tim's student loan. I'm glad to say that Jennifer and I are presently DEBT FREE (not including mortgage). At the time it seemed so risky....we sold all of our HP stock - taking advantage of a 0% capital gains tax rate for our income bracket - and paid it off. That was only 3 weeks before the entire stock market did a tailspin. Certainly God had a plan to kick us into action at just the right time.

Next up is getting a serious budget in place that can allow us to invest aggressively (I mean dedicating a greater income percentage) and pay down the mortgage.

I'm looking forward to reading more from Dave Ramsey and applying the tools. I'm also interested in finding ways to help others with these tough issues. Here are some sobering statistics:

• 70% of all consumers live paycheck to paycheck (WSJ)


• This year, more people will file for bankruptcy than will graduate from college (Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Expenditure Survey)


• The typical household has $38,000 in debt, and the total consumer debt is nearing $3,000,000,000,000 (trillion) (Consumer Reports Money Book)

This is "normal" in America. If that's the case, then I want to be weird!

One of Dave's favorite sayings is "if you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else." What this means is there is a lot of effort and sacrifice required, but the pay-off is big. Dave admits that he has his critics, but he can only point to method that is simple and has worked for millions. What better track record do you need?

This stuff not only helps in finances, but it helps marriages, mental health and more. Do you know how much divorce costs?

My other favorite quote of Dave is "this is the same advice your grandmother gives, but we'll keep our teeth in." So thanks Grandma....and thanks Dave. Keep up the good work!

Cole's birthday

Cole had a 1 year old birthday party. He had a blast at his. Sophie had even more fun opening all of Cole's presents.

Almost here

I have a confession to make. Jennifer and I like HSM (High School Musical, for those who don't know what that means). We first say HSM and HSM 2 over a year ago. They were cheesey and funny. These movies are permanently saved on our DVR.

The third installment is coming out soon. But alas, it's a theatrical release, rather than television like the first two. So I don't know when we'll get to see it. Oh well. Something to look forward to.

Go Wildcats (get your head in the game)!

http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/highschoolmusical3/

The Great Pumpkin

It wasn't Charlie Brown and Linus....it's Sophie and Cole!

What a day! Actually it was only a little over an hour. It was sunny and bright (hence all the squinting). Sophie so wanted to help drive the tractor for the hayrides, but couldn't bring herself to be next to a stranger. So we settled for this rusty heap instead.

November 4th can't come fast enough

Only 25 days to go..... The end is almost in sight! Hallelujah.

I follow politics. I admit it. I've written to my congressman (Rep. DeFazio and I disagree about most things). I registered to vote before my 18th birthday. And I'm in the minority among my peers who grew up in Oregon to have actually voted at a polling location (has it been 13 years of vote-by-mail???).

I followed the presidential race going back almost two years since the first candidates announced themselves. Now, I have politics (and campaign) fatigue. I haven't even been able to bring myself to watch the any of the debates. The economy and the lousy Economic Stabilization Bill (aka The Bailout) have really made me sour on our government leaders.

The first of two state voter's guides arrived yesterday. Oh joy. In most cases I already know how I'm voting, but I usually have to study the ballot measures closely. I'm an self-admitted ideologue (conservative values) and tend to vote Republican. I'll be voting for McCain. I like the future prospects for the party with Gov. Palin and Gov. Bobby Jindal (LA.) gaining a lot of experience.

Standing Boy

This is my boy.

Cole is crawling like crazy. He likes to pull up to standing. And just yesterday, he began thinking it was fun to let go. Usually that involves a carefully controlled fall on his rump. This time it was 10 seconds of free standing!

This kid is reckless! He's out-of-control. I'm going to have to rein in this behavior.

Seriously, have you ever seen a kid so cute. He cried when I left for work today....aaaaaahhhhh. This evening, Sophie told me that "she liked me a little."

"How little?"

"This little." (showing me thumb and index finger pinched together so close only air molecules were getting through).

"But you love me, right?"

"Yes."

It's a Mommy Phase right now.

Jennifer ordered personalized Christmas stockings for our family now that we're complete. SOPHIA and DAD arrived today (MOM and COLE must be on back order).

Missions Update

This is a newsletter from my high school friend, Mason. He is a missionary in Papua New Guinea. Here's an update from them.

Click on the image for a larger view.

Paint Job

I haven't done too many of these since my college days....that is paint a room. I definitely haven't done it in my own house. Jennifer and I are pretty into our neutrals. But we gave Sophie's room a pink makeover.

She gave us this line after the work was done and she was supposed to be getting a bath, "my room is pink; my room is wonderful!"

When I see this much pink in a room, I think of the line from Steel Magnolia's (yes I've seen the movie - more than once - so drop it).

"What are your colors, Shelby?"

"My colors are blush and bashful."

"Her colors are pink and pink. It looks like the chapel's been hosed down with Pepto Bismol."

Sophie loves it and it's her pink room. We want to repaint the ceiling and Jennifer wants to do a stencil border on the wall.

Here's to pink rooms.

In closing, may I say GO RED SOX. They just beat L.A. (Anaheim) Angels 3-2 to advance to ALCS. Jed Lowrie of Salem, OR got the game-winning hit and RBI.

My Job

This is not me

This has been an emotional, awkward, difficult week at work. Last month, the organization I work for notified some people that their jobs were being cut. This was their last week.

Those of us who remain feel regret over the loss of friends and colleagues. We feel relief that we still have a jobs, but there is also a sense of uncertainty about the future. When will the next round of job cuts occur.

I'm too young to know how this company used to be in the glory days of Bill and Dave, but apparently it's changed a lot.

I'm so thankful I find fulfillment outside of work. My family, my church, my friends. I'll be praying for those looking for jobs. I'll also be thinking more about my future and direction in life.

I'm back

Well it's been a long time away from the blog.

In the Feb./Mar. timeframe, we were struggling with Cole's sleeping and just didn't have time for other things. Good news!! For the past 3 months, Cole can mostly sleep thru the night. He still takes short naps but he's a sweety. Sophie calls him Colie.

Here's Cole with cousin, Logan on Father's Day.

Favorite Things

#1 - Dish Network - cheaper than our local cable utility and they gave us a DVR. Wow, I never realized what I was missing without the DVR. It's awesome! We record our shows to watch later. We record lots of things for Sophie. It's worth every penny.

Baby trick #57

If your baby likes to be bounced, patted, or gently shaken - and most do - this trick might help. Use an exercise ball to achieve a rhythmic bounce.





This is like a light-switch with Cole. Fussy to quiet in a few bounces most of the time.