The World of Riju

Tiny Dancer

2012-01-07T13:01:00.001-08:00

Tiny Dancer, a photo by Alverdi Photos on Flickr.

New Photos just uploaded!

EMILY NICOLE

2011-11-19T22:32:00.001-08:00

Untitled, a photo by Alverdi Photos on Flickr.

Our little girl Emily has arrived! We have uploaded some photos to show her off a little.. Take a look!!

Chocolate Shake

2011-11-03T14:35:00.001-07:00

More Photos

2011-08-21T13:51:00.001-07:00

Untitled, a photo by Alverdi Photos on Flickr.

Flickr has been updated, go and see...

Spirit Filled

2011-07-03T19:35:00.001-07:00

p110.mov Watch on Posterous

Just a brief glimpse of Dixon dancing this morning during worship service..

Beating the Heat

2011-06-05T17:57:00.001-07:00

Joe Cool Style

Photographer

2011-06-01T12:28:00.001-07:00

Mothers Day

2011-05-09T13:02:00.001-07:00

Rays

2011-04-30T20:24:00.001-07:00

Outside Having Fun

Boppy Fun

2011-04-28T13:34:00.001-07:00

BABY NUMBER THREE

2011-04-22T14:14:00.001-07:00

Giving a wave! :)

ONE YEAR OLD!!

2011-04-13T15:55:00.001-07:00

Hudson One Year Old

2011-04-03T19:52:00.001-07:00

Untitled, a photo by Alverdi Photos on Flickr.

..and more photos on Flickr...

Playtime

2011-04-01T14:16:00.001-07:00

Top Flicks 2010

2011-01-13T16:26:00.001-08:00

I was going to make a list of my "Top Ten" Movies of 2010, but then I realized I may not have even seen ten movies this year I liked enough to include on a list, so then I just thought I would list may favorie films from what I did see. They are in no particular order:

1 - True Grit

2 - Book of Eli

3 - Inception

4 - Toy Story 3

5 - Shutter Island

So, I guess that would be my favorite 5 of 2010. Three of those I actually managed to see in a theatre. That's amazing in itself.

Notable runner ups would be:

Iron Man 2

Robin Hood

How to Train a Dragon

and The Expendables

and the worst movioe I saw this year? Easy...

Twilight: Eclipse

There are a lot of movies I haven't seen that I wanted to, such as

Red

The Social Network

Get Low

Tron: Legacy aka Tron 2

Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows Part 1

But I will have to catch those this year when they hit blu...

I did it!

2011-01-03T23:01:00.001-08:00

Snow Gaze

2010-12-24T16:50:00.001-08:00

Dad & Dixon

2010-12-19T10:09:00.001-08:00

FireSanta

2010-12-18T23:16:00.001-08:00

Shades of Dixon

2010-12-13T21:42:00.001-08:00

Dapper Hudson

2010-12-12T19:35:00.001-08:00

Family Christmas

2010-12-11T07:29:00.001-08:00

Baby Gate Tree

2010-11-26T19:21:00.001-08:00

I'm not sure the gate adds to the ambience

Feel the Chill

2010-11-23T11:21:00.001-08:00

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Cool Cool Boys

2010-11-20T20:33:00.001-08:00

At the Father's Feet

2010-11-20T11:14:00.000-08:00

The other night, Hudson, who was surrounded by all his toys and playing very happily, dropped what he was doing and crawled over to my feet and looked up at me, wanting me to pick him up.

…and I was struck by a thought, that this is the relationship God desires from us. Though surrounded by the world and all our toys, and all the busyness that life presents us, we would instead be at his feet, gazing up longingly, and desiring him.

Just as Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, we should make the right choices with our time.
You learn so much being a father! :)

Hudson's First Tooth (and more..)

2010-10-01T18:06:00.001-07:00

Hudson's First Tooth
Originally uploaded by Alverdi Photos

More Photos up on Flickr :)

Hudson @ 5 Months Old... (a few days over)

2010-09-14T14:08:00.001-07:00

Hudson @ 5 Months Old... (a few days over)
Originally uploaded by Alverdi Photos

Even more photos posted... getting sick of them yet?

Family Photo

2010-08-27T09:33:00.001-07:00

Family Photo
Originally uploaded by Alverdi Photos

Julie has shot over 700 Photos this month, so it makes sense that we have a few more to show off... enjoy!

Smile Baby

2010-07-19T22:15:00.001-07:00

Smile Baby
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

NEW Pictures of Hudson up on FLICKR!!

More photos of the boys

2010-06-12T19:11:00.001-07:00

P1040485
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

We have posted more photos of Hudson and Dixon for your viewing pleasure :)

Me and my Taggie

2010-05-10T23:12:00.001-07:00

Me and my Taggie
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

New Photos of Hudson and Dixon up on Flickr! You know what to do!

PLAYGROUND

2010-04-28T23:18:00.001-07:00

P1030887
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

More Photos of the boys are up on Flickr! Go see some!

Hudson

2010-04-06T15:18:00.001-07:00

Hudson Awake
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

Welcome Hudson to the world! Pictures up on Flickr! More coming soon!!

Official Due Date Nonsense

2010-03-28T06:40:00.001-07:00

I don't think I will ever believe that children are born on time. Dixon was two weeks late (actually only 13 days...) and now here we are just a couple of days past Hudson's due date (or exactly on his due date depending on who you ask) and he is currently a no-show! Trust me, I am willing to wait for him as long as possible, but I just wish he was here already... :)

It started just over a week ago, Friday the 19th to be exact, when Julie was telling our Doctor about how her hands and arms had been going numb, and how she was feeling somewhat faint that day. The good Doc ordered some blood tests, a glucose test and because Hudson measured a centimeter shorter than the week before (which would be two centimeters shorter than he was supposed to be at that week) he also lined us up for a ultrasound.

The Blood tests popped up flags all over the place for stuff, glucose mainly I think, and a UA showed high protein, and when Julie took the 1 hour Glucose test on the following Wednesday before the ultrasound, well she failed it by posting a blood sugar level of 172. Yowza! So, then that set off alarms as well...

Fast forward to Friday, the Doc asks Julie to come in and do another Glucose test. This time the 3 hour test, which is a stronger mixture, and that test she "failed" because 7 minutes or so after she downed that kool-aid concoction from hell, she threw it up. That sent her to the Urgent Care clinic where they took her blood pressure, and stuff like that. The Doc came down and talked to us and told us because of the results of the first glucose test, and because she didn't finish the 2nd test, we were just going to proceed as if she had gestational diabetes. obviously something that is easier to deal with when you have a few months before your due date, than when it IS YOUR DUE DATE, however with a proper diet it can be managed and lowered so that the baby isn't born with a high blood sugar count. So we went home with the number of a dietitian to call and a blood glucose meter to test her blood sugar levels.

And just so you know, her blood sugar levels have all been within normal ranges, or slightly lower, since we have been testing. I wonder what she ate that one day...

Anyway, yesterday we go to providence to do what is supposed to be a simple "non stress test," and it really was, Hudson was so good the nurse was like, "well, this will be quick." But they took Julie's blood pressure and it was slightly elevated for her, which would be something like 130/70 instead of her normal 110/60, and then when we were just about to leave they did another UA, which again showed high protein, and that mixed with the elevated blood pressure is a sign for Preclampsia. Oh oh... that means we can't go home.

So, more blood tests, more waiting, our doctor happens to be in the building and sits down and talks with us and tells us that even if Julie just has mild Preclampsia, or none at all, just that mixed with everything else in the last couple of days, he would recommend inducing TOMORROW (Sunday). That would mean we would be admitted that night (Saturday.)

Wow. All right. Change of plans. But wait, it's not over yet. ALL the blood tests come back NORMAL (Thank You Lord!) and so the Doc says, well we could wait a day or so if we wanted, but still we would rather be safe than sorry. So we set a tentative plan to be admitted Sunday night, and induced Monday morning. But first, Julie asks if she could run her blood pressure again, and so they do a series of blood pressure checks, every ten minutes for 30-40 minutes, and guess what?

Her blood pressure is FINE every time. No Preclampsia at all they say. (Thank You Lord!) So, once again plans are changed and the we are sent home with a 24 hour urine test and the results of THIS test will decide if we are admitted before Thursday night. Those results we should have 7 hours from or so...

Just so you know, Julie is having mild contractions here and there, she doesn't even feel them all the time but they are picked up on a monitor. When she does feel contractions, or pains, or whatever they are, they usually stop her in her tracks... all this other stuff could be a moot point here soon, that is what I am praying for anyway. Right now Julie is cleaning up the boys room, straightening stuff and cooking some hard boiled eggs.

All I have to say is this, if I didn't have faith that God is bigger than all this, that he works all things for good, for his glory, for those who believe in him, if I didn't believe he was faithful, then these last couple of days would have been really stressful.

Thank You Lord for your hand over all of this!

The #41 Hat Trick Post

2010-02-28T14:40:00.000-08:00

So, what does the #41 have to do with Julie and I this month? Well, it is quite interesting how the number 41 features so prominently in our lives during February of 2010. Here is some #41 trivia for you, first, I turned 41 this month, second, on the 23rd of this month, Julie and I celebrate our 41st month-a-versary (Yes, we still try to celebrate month-a-versary's) and on the 14th (41 backwards...hmm) we will be 41 days from the birth of our second son, Hudson. That is the #41 Hat Trick. Of course baby Hudson could be early... :)

Speaking of the baby, the pregnancy is going perfectly fine, no health issues, all the tests were great and despite morning sickness, heartburn, bouts with acid reflux and lots of vomit, Julie is doing marvelous! Dixon is all about the "baby," wanting to listen to the babies heartbeat on the computer, and calling every one of his stuffed animals a "baby" as he puts them to bed, or wraps them in blankets. Dixon just got a toddler bed, which he has been sleeping in for almost a month now, and he points at the crib and says, "baby!" in anticipation of his little brother's arrival. Of course, every time he is playing with one his "babies" and throws it across the room, or drops it on the floor and body slams it, I start to worry a little... lol... but Dixon will be a great big brother and we are looking forward in anticipation for Hudson's arrival!

As I write this, Team USA in Hockey just tied TEAM Canada to force overtime in the Gold Medal game. The Sun is out, it is close to 60 degrees out on the last day of February, Dixon is napping, Julie is packing baby clothes. We are blessed with jobs, blessed by our jobs, our ministry here in Keeler's Corner, and blessed by our friends and our family. We live life loving God with our hearts, mind and soul and loving our neighbor.

Life couldn't be better.

Chocolate Crazed

2009-12-28T13:23:00.001-08:00

Chocolate Crazed
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

More Photos of Dixon up at Flickr!

Fireman Dixon

2009-12-11T07:04:00.001-08:00

Fireman Dixon
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

More photos up on flickr. Check them out by clicking on the fireman...

BABY JELLYBEAN = BOY JELLYBEAN

2009-11-20T14:59:00.000-08:00

We had our 21 week ultrasound today, and among all the things we found out, one of course was that Baby Jellybean is a BOY! Woo! We will have a pair now! What to do, What to do... hmm, first we have to come up with a name... any ideas?

The 18 Month/18 Week Update!

2009-10-23T20:19:00.000-07:00

Hey All,

So Julie will be 18 weeks pregnant this Monday, and Dixon just turned 18 Months old on the 16th. Hence the 18/18 Update. So how are things in our camp? Well, tiring. lol. Julie just got over a bout with some food poisoning, and Dixon has been teething (we think) for the last week or so and has had a low grade fever, and a constant runny nose and a "on and off again" cough... Then, to top it all off I caught a cold or something last weekend, which just started innocently with a sore throat, then after a couple of good days, I turned into a completely congested, stuffed up and sneezy mess of myself. I am feeling a tad bit better as I write this.

So, onto the updates:

First, Julie had her monthly baby check up last week and everything was ok. Baby Jellybean's heartbeat was great (somewhere in the high 150's) and everything is on course for a March 28th delivery. We have scheduled our ultrasound appointment for the 20th of November and then we will be able to find out (hopefully) if Baby Jellybean is a Boy or a Girl... I'm sure it is a girl, Julie wants another Boy, so let the betting begin... Remember November 20th we find out, maybe.

Second, Dixon had his 18 Month checkup and he is doing great as well. Except for one thing, which the doctor has more of an issue with than we do, which is that Dixon has dropped to the 8th percentile for his weight. He weighs just around 22/23 pounds now, and though WIC told us they thought that was good for his height, our doctor wants him to get his weight up. His height is in the 50th percentile for his age. Anyway, Dixon eats 3 meals and has snacks throughout the day, and this last week, really hasn't wanted to eat dinner at all, but gets his food without a doubt. The Doc also wants Dixon to drink more milk, but the boy doesn't really like milk at all, so we feed him cheese, yogurt and smoothies quite a bit to compensate. Though today, he drank most of his cup of milk. He really loves orange juice however... The Doc also checked Dixon's throat, ears and lungs (just because of his runny nose and cough) and all were fine, and since he has no fever currently, the Doc agreed with us and said it was more than likely just due to teething. He is just a few teeth away from having them all in... Gee, he should probably go see a dentist now...

Dixon is just a joy to watch right now. I swear he is an engineer in the making. He loves to take things apart just to try to put them back together. He loves to stack the boxes of kleenex up, take them down and then stack them up again. He takes the caps off of pens just to try and put it back on. He loves reading his books, he has started to draw and color, and his new thing is to point to your belly button and say, "baby" because Julie has been teaching him about babies in preparation for him being a big brother. The other day I handed him a old USB flash drive to play with, and he ran right over to the laptop and tried to plug it in to the USB slot. Who taught him that? I never did. The kid is a genius I tell you. He takes our keys and walks over to the door and tries to unlock it, luckily he can't reach, and Julie often has him help her put stuff away when she is cleaning and he is a great help as seems to know where everything goes, even if we do find some items in strange places later on. If you are reading a book with him now and he sees something in the book that he recognizes (such as a duck, a cat, a teddy bear, a ball, a horse etc...) he will immediately get up and go find his toy that matches the picture and bring it back to you to show you that it is the same as in the book... we were reading one of his sign language books and we came to "cracker," and he said, "coocoo" (which is how he says cracker) then did the sign for cracker, and if I didn't understand all of that, he went and pointed to the crackers on the table to show me as well... guess he was hungry :) Well that is enough about my brilliant son for the time being.

Third, hmm... what else? Lets see. Our work here at Keeler's Corner is going good. We are just starting to get the swing of things now and feeling comfortable in our "Community Team" shoes, though we aren't sure yet just how the new baby will change things. One thing for sure though, we will need a bigger apartment.

Work at Kenmore Camera has been busy to say the least. The "recession" hasn't hurt us at all, and we just finished our 4th annual 2009 Expo at the Lynnwood Convention Center this last weekend, where we doubled what we did the year previous and packed the center with people. How many I don't know, but 5000 wouldn't be a bad guess.. easily could have been more. We have some changes in store as we are adding a class room here soon (across the street from the store) and are looking to continue steaming ahead into the new year.

Julie and I are taking a vacation in December and flying down to Amarillo to spend Christmas with her parents. This will be the first vacation we have taken in close to 3 years and the first we will have taken with Dixon. He gets to fly on a plane! I pray that works out ok :) It will be a great time and I am really really looking forward to some downtime during the holidays.

Well, that is all for now. I think I will go have some Pumpkin Pie now...

I Found a BIG one

2009-10-22T17:53:00.001-07:00

I Found a BIG one
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

We have NEW photos up on our Flickr Site!

12 WEEKS PREGNANT - BABY JELLYBEAN

2009-09-12T09:31:00.000-07:00

Until we know otherwise, Julie says we just refer to this baby as "baby jellybean." (I think she borrowed that from Darcy) Anyway, for your viewing pleasure, with a heartbeat of 154 bpm and measuring 5,5cm from crown to rump.... Baby Jellybean!

Imagine a Red Wagon...

2009-08-28T10:24:00.001-07:00

Imagine a Red Wagon...
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

The Calvin and Hobbes Collection now up on Flickr

All Play...

2009-08-27T20:10:00.001-07:00

All Play...
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

More Photos of Dixon uploaded today! Have fun looking!

Psalm 37:3

2009-07-19T10:39:00.000-07:00

This is something I did in my IBS class back in April 2007 , and I just came across my notes so I thought I would post it.

Psalm 37:3 - "Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness."

Now, I was studying the word "cultivate," which in the Hebrew is "ra'ah" meaning "to break up in preparation for planting," or "to imply oneself to improving or developing" and the word is also used for "pastor" or "feed."

This reminded me of one of my favorite verses, which is Hosea 10:12, which reads "Sow with a view to righteousness, Reap in accordance with kindness; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD Until He comes to rain righteousness on you." As you can see, I emphasized the area that makes me think of cultivating.

So, this all led me to looking at the Psalm in different translations. Now when I first read the verse in class, I read it in the NIV which reads, "Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture." My first thought after reading this was, "hmm... enjoy safe pasture, kinda gives me the picture of putting my feet up, sitting in the lawn chair in the shade and enjoying a cool drink of somekind. Really taking it easy." However, that didn't fit my picture of cultivating at all. So then I looked at the NASB, which I quoted above and then the NKJV, which says, "Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness." and a picture started to form in my head... let me put the verses all together in the order that I see it working;

1st - "Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness." (NASB)

2nd - "Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness." (NKJV)

3rd - "Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture." (NIV)

Do you see the picture I see? First, you must cultivate, then you can feed, and after that you get to enjoy the safe pasture.

To me this verse, using the three different translations, can be applied this way:

A relationship with Jesus takes work on our end. It is not just all about "kicking it back" and "enjoying our safe pasture" first we must cultivate our fallow ground, get it ready for planting, for improving, and then we can sow with a view to righteousness, we can seek the Lord and feed on the faithfullness and mercy of Christ, with a hope of the promise to come, which is eternal "safe pasture."

Just my thoughts. Hope they make sense. What do you think?

The Pouring out of Grace

2009-07-15T13:10:00.000-07:00

I hear this phrase a lot.

"God poured more grace on me today" or "The Lord has poured out more grace on me today" or something along those lines, and a couple thoughts hit me, so bear with me as I try my best to put my thoughts down to be understood...

My first thought was, is this phrase even in the bible? And this is what I found... Not really. The closest phrase I found was in the New Testament. 1 Timothy 1:14 to be exact, and only in the NIV as far as I can tell, and it says this, "The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. "

So, I went to the Greek and a literal transliteration of this passage would read, "Increased beyond but the favor of the Master of us with trust and love the in Christ Jesus," or in other words, as the NASB puts its, "and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus."

Now, it doesn't look like the word "poured" was even really in the original Greek, but even if it had been, notice it says, "was poured" not "is being poured," as well as, "was poured out on me abundantly." In other words, you received more than you deserved.

Which leads to my second thought. When someone says, "The Lords poured out more grace on me today," to me it implies that somehow you ran out from what he had given you previously. It was like the Lord gave you a supply of grace, you sucked it dry, and the Lord slapped himself upside the head saying, "Wow. I never saw that coming. Better give them some more." Uh, I don't think so. The bible says that the Lords grace is sufficient! (2 Corinthians 12) That means, it is more than enough, it is ALL you need! You can't run out! In Psalms 45:2 it states when grace has touched your lips, you are blessed FOREVER! Not just for a day or so, but FOREVER!

The Lords grace is MORE than abundant!

So, all that to just say this, is the Lord pouring more grace out on you today? or are you just taking hold of, accepting more and more, the abundant grace that you have been given in Christ Jesus?

Hmm? What do you think?

WHAT A COUPLE OF WEEKS....

2009-07-02T11:17:00.001-07:00

It has been awhile since Julie and I actually posted anything other than pictures of Dixon. If we did nothing else, the photos of our boy would be fine, however I thought we should maybe take some time to say a few words about how life has been lately. It has been an interesting last couple of weeks to say the least.

First, a little bit about Dixon :)

He is a little boy now. At 15 months old now he bares no resemblance to the infant he was just a few months ago. Now he walks. Yes, for almost three weeks now he has been toddling around everywhere. He is very independent and doesn't really want you to hold his hand as he walks. Like all of us when we first ventured out into the unknown on our own two feet, he started quite wobbly and had three major bumps to show it. First he smacked into the corner of the shoe rack and hit himself right behind his left ear, then the next day he fell backwards and landed on the metal strip between the carpet and the linoleum. His last major spill was when he fell face first and punctured his lip with his tooth. All major "Owies" I assure you. He has been much more stable since those, but we know that this is just the beginning and we are preparing ourselves for the scrapes and bruises to follow. Though I wasn't too worried about him, I was a little worried about whether Julie and I would survive this "learning to walk" stage. Yikes! I am pretty sure that my hair will be completely gray soon...

This last weekend he had his first hair cut. That changed him overnight. I swear we came home from Eastern WA, with a different boy than what we left with. He looks so mature it is scaring me. He expresses himself very well now, both in facial gestures and in voice. He is already more technically minded than his folks, has figured out how to use the iPhone and our MacBook, plus he can turn the Xbox 360 on, as well as the TV. Not only that but he can of course get into all the cupboards and drawers. He loves to help organize the towel drawer :) The other day he took my car keys and walked to the door and was trying to "unlock" the door so he could go outside I guess. I just had to laugh... so I guess I better watch him and make sure he doesn't try and take the car for a spin...

We love him! he is our little boy and he is growing up way too fast!

In other news, we lost someone who was very dear to us. Julie's grandma passed away on Saturday, June 27th. Grandma Violet is an amazing woman, who is now living life eternally with her savior Jesus Christ. We were blessed to have her in our lives, and we were blessed to have seen her just the week before and be able to tell her we love her.

I will always remember how, just 6 days after Dixon was born, Grandma Violet (with Aunt Launa and Aunt Kay) drove over the pass in the middle of the night just to come see Dixon, her new great grandchild. I was quite surprised when I received the phone call from Julie telling me we had visitors!

Here is a photo from that Visit in April 2008.

We will miss you Grandma Violet! Love You!

So for now, Julie and I are busy as always. Between my working at Kenmore Camera full time, our work for Community Northwest, which is our ministry here at Keeler's Corner, and our time with Church, we manage to fill most of the hours in our day. Though stressful and tiring at times, we stay faithful to the path that the Lord has laid out for us, knowing that seeds are being planted and that love is being given. We are extremely thankful for the blessings that the Lord gives us daily and hopefully soon we will find time to catch up with our friends that we miss dearly. We keep you all in our prayers and we thank you all for your prayers!

Rich, Julie and Dixon :)

Father, Daughter and Grandson

2009-06-26T14:42:00.001-07:00

Father, Daughter and Grandson
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

New Pictures on Flickr. Check them out!!

Happy Happy Boy Boy

2009-05-18T17:48:00.001-07:00

Happy Happy Boy Boy
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

New Photos up at Flickr! Go Enjoy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

2009-04-18T21:07:00.001-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

Dixon turns ONE YEAR OLD! Pictures at Flickr! Look now!

DIXON, A SPOON AND A BOWL!!

2009-03-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

He just picked up the spoon and started using it. We didn't even coach him. Of course he didn't use it very long... wished we could have filmed more but we were stunned at first... :)

Assume the Position

2009-03-14T11:17:00.001-07:00

More Photos of the Boy!! Look Look Look!!

THE DRIVER

2009-02-20T11:55:00.001-08:00

He picked up on how to do this without any effort. He can't turn or stop but he can scoot...

You thought I was joking about the car keys didn't you?
Here is another one for your viewing pleasure

10 MONTHS AND TAKING ON THE WORLD!

2009-02-13T22:23:00.000-08:00

Dixon is 10 months old (in a couple days but who is counting...) and he is growing up before our eyes in ways that we wish he wouldn't. Right now he is in the "Where did he go? He was right here a second ago" phase. He is playing on the floor, we blink and he disappears like an illusionist. You see he has started rolling. He is a master roller now. He can roll 12 feet in seconds flat, pivot on his stomach and keep rolling like the obstacle wasn't even in his way at all. And to add to that, he has started doing the "Army Crawl" as well. On his stomach, pulling himself forward using his elbows. I think currently his record, as of this writing, is 8 crawls. I am telling you though, our son is a genius and he will be crawling like a pro in no time. Much to our horror I am sure...

I am a mean, mean, Dad, so today I teased him by not letting him go to Mom when he was hungry and she was ready to nurse him. Instead I held him under the arms and stood him up on his feet and told him that if he wanted to eat he would have to walk over to Mom. Much to our surprise he took 2 steps right away, and then with a little coxing he took two more. Mind you he was giving me a piece of his mind the entire time, but wow, what a way to motivate the kid. Maybe I shouldn't do that... hmm..

Dixon loves electronics. Today he rolled/crawled over to the stereo and started pushing buttons, turning the sound off and back on again. He always wants my iPhone (to chew on mind you, not call with, but you never know, maybe he has some buddies to text I don't know about..) and one of his favorite toys (that his mom wishes he didn't play with) is the xbox controller. He is a guy all the way!

That being said, he loves books as well. They all taste delicious to him. Some he eats the pages right out of and others he chews on the edges and spine, but he loves all his books. One of his favorite books (that he hasn't eaten completely) is "pat the bunny" he knows all the moves and usually does them before you even have to say anything. I told you the kid is a genius.

He loves chewing on his toothbrush.. er, brushing his teeth I mean, and taking baths. If you know what is good for you you won't take him out of the bath. He will let you know what he thinks about that.

Right now he is in to pointing at everything. Often he will point at you, then point at something out of his reach, then back at you, then back at the object again. This means, "hey buddy, get that for me will you?" I find this very humorous, however if I am not fast enough at getting whatever it is that he wants, Dixon does not find it humorous. (He doesn't always get what he wants however.)

A couple of days ago he received his first "Flesh Wound." I like to call it "Battle Damage" to make it seem more manly, but he was just playing in the clothes basket when he toppled it over and hit his face on the wire rack in the hallway. He now has a shiner on his right eye. It didn't faze him a bit, but his mom was quite shaken by it. He is just preparing us for what is too come, I can just imagine... I don't want too, but I can...

Anyway, our little boy is growing up and I am floored when I think that his 1st Birthday is just around the corner. He isn't allowed to grow up that fast. We have rules here, are you listening to me Dixon? Dixon? Oh where did he go now, and where are my car keys?...

THE ROLLER!

2009-01-17T08:01:00.000-08:00

Dixon turned 9 months old yesterday
and today we treat you with this video.
Shot by his mom, produced by his dad
and starring none other...

Plus we have new photos up on Flickr...

WHAT THE DUCK!

2009-01-14T10:33:00.000-08:00

If you aren't a fan of "What the Duck" then head over to the web site and check out the comics and see the greatness for yourself!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

2008-12-31T23:56:00.001-08:00

Dixon wishes all our friends and family a "Happy New Year!"

Roller Baby

2008-12-31T20:06:00.001-08:00

Roller Baby
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

Right after this he rolled around twelve feet across the floor towards the kitchen... he isn't walking yet but this kid is a mover and a shaker!

Dixon's 1st Santa Photo

2008-12-21T08:53:00.001-08:00

His first Christmas, his first Santa... sigh, the time flies
Dixon's 1st Santa Photo
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

DIXON IN A MANGER!!

2008-12-14T22:28:00.000-08:00

Sure, we could take the time to tell you what has been going on for the last month and a half but... nah, we will just show you pictures of Dixon instead...

FLICKR HERE

WHAT A WEEK.... OH, WHAT A WEEK.

2008-11-02T22:12:00.001-08:00

This week we moved. Quickly. I could go into detail on why but I will save that for a time when I can actually think. However, a fantastic opportunity presented itself and well, to make a long story really short... here we are. We will be emailing out our new info to all of you soon but as you can see in the picture above, we still have some work to do... But, just so this post isn't a complete waste of your time, we did upload some new pictures of Dixon as well. :)

GIVE ME THE SPOON AND NO ONE GET'S HURT!!

2008-10-21T21:06:00.000-07:00

Here it is in its unedited glory. For your viewing pleasure. Dixon trying solid food for the first time. Woo Hoo!

SIX MONTHS OLD!!

2008-10-17T22:58:00.000-07:00

It seems like just yesterday that Dixon was born. Yet, it was just yesterday that he turned 6 months old. He is growing up before our eyes way too fast. Rolling over from his tummy to his back and back and forth, sitting up on his own, talking a mile a minute some days, and sticking anything and everything in his mouth that he can get his two hands on. He has to put those two teeth of his to use for something, doesn't he?

Yesterday we fed him his first taste of rice baby cereal, which though he loved the idea of holding a spoon, he didn't seem to care so much for the taste. We captured it on video and soon we will post it for your viewing pleasure.

Today, we took him in for his 6 month well baby check up. He passed as usual with flying colors. He weighs 18lbs 8 ounces and is 26.75 inches tall, which would be the 75th percentile and 65/70th percentile respectfully. He received his second round of the DTaP shot and so far seems to be handling it just fine. He didn't even cry when the nurse poked him with the needle. We will be getting his shots spaced a week apart this time, just to help him not have the 106 degree temperature like he did a couple of months ago with his first round of immunization shots.

BACK FROM THE HUNT!!

2008-10-08T20:55:00.000-07:00

We needed sustenance and when provision is called for, the men are called to action. Dutifully the men trekked out on "the hunt" and came back conquerors! Oh yeah! Oh, and we have other photos up as well... FLICKR

Jumpa ROO!!

2008-10-03T23:16:00.001-07:00

Jumpa ROO!!
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

I know we haven't posted any photos lately but here is a video to tide you over for now... and there are two new photos posted as well :)

Sunset Smirk

2008-09-13T21:55:00.001-07:00

Sunset Smirk
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie's Photos

We don't get too many chances at a family shot, since I am behind the camera most of the time, but thankfully we had Dixon's Aunt Jen to take the shot! We have new photos up on Flickr... Check them out!

SEPTEMBER COMETH...

2008-09-05T15:54:00.000-07:00

Yes, it is September already and as Dixon closes on 5 Months, we celebrate by having posted over 300 photos of our son our Flickr site. Have you seen them all? Are you sure? Better go Check Them Out...

He Laughs! HE LAUGHS!!

2008-08-24T09:59:00.001-07:00

Yesterday may not have started out good for Dixon, with a fever of 106 possibly due to his tetanus shot he had the day before, but by the end of the evening, feeling better and in good spirits, with his dad making funny faces at him, Dixon started laughing, which caused his dad to start laughing, and then Dixon kept laughing because his dad was laughing, because Dixon was laughing, and then his mom started laughing because Dixon and his dad were laughing, and we all just laughed and laughed and laughed. This boy can laugh! Too bad we didn't get that on video for everyone... oh well...

4 MONTHS OLD AND A GROWING BOY HE IS...

2008-08-22T22:54:00.001-07:00

4 months old, 26 inches long and 16lbs 6oz, Dixon is doing great, and the doctor thinks he perfect! "You must get a lot of compliments," he told us concerning the charming smile and good looks of our son. Why yes we do, thank you doc. This boy is a winner. He got his first round of shots today and handled it like a champ, (compared to how his dad might have handled it, being stuck in the thigh 4 times with a needle,) cried for a few minutes, and then calmed down and was easy going until a few hours later when he decided to be really cranky about the whole thing. However, he took some tylenol, then a nap and woke up to find that he was being baby sat by Grantie, Nana and Aunt Betty, as his parents snuck out to a Aquasox game, and that made his whole evening! Let's see how much sleep he gives us tonight...

Our Wedding Video

2008-08-13T21:38:00.000-07:00

Here is our wedding video, as shot by Benny Deason!
For those who haven't had the pleasure...

More Dixon and Family Reunion Shots!!

2008-08-12T23:07:00.000-07:00

We have more photos of Dixon posted, as well as shots from his trip to "The Family Reunion" held at Deception Pass this last Sunday. He quite enjoyed himself and, of course, was the hit of the party if we say so ourselves... they all are on our Flickr page...

OVER HILL AND OVER DALE...

2008-08-04T22:12:00.000-07:00

Dixon took a little trip (his mom and dad came as well) over the pass to see his great grandma, his aunts and his cousins. He had a blast, he loved to see them all, and they loved to see him. Photos can be found at our flickr site...

Smile for the Camera!

2008-07-24T21:25:00.001-07:00

More photos of Dixon for your viewing pleasure, click on the picture for all the cuteness...

TWINS

2008-07-18T13:15:00.000-07:00

Julie shot this with her cell this morning. So cute we had to post!

DIXON: THE AMAZING WONDER BOY!

2008-07-11T08:21:00.000-07:00

While at work I was asked by a lady who had a nine week old, and just found out I had a 12 week old son, "do you find any time for sleep? we don't..." and all I could politely say was, "we do pretty good. Our son is doing good." But of course, I really wanted to brag about the fact that Dixon sleeps 6 to 8 hours a night and has pretty much since he was a month old. I think it pretty much runs 50/50 on whether Dixon wakes up himself or we have to wake him up. When he does wake up himself, like this morning, he just lays in his crib and talks and coos. He very seldom wakes up crying, not that he doesn't cry mind you. The other night Julie and the woman's group were hanging out at Greenlake and he cried pretty much all the way home. And it wasn't any piddly little whimpering either... no this was a torrential rage! Guess he liked hanging out at the lake...

Dixon is growing so fast (we unofficially have him at close to 25" in length and maybe 14 0r 15 pounds now) that he wears 6-9 months clothes for his length and 3-6 months in his torso. He will be 3 months old on Wednesday next week. He is too tall to fit in his bathing tub on the side that he should be on, yet when we stick him on the other side we have to hold his head up all the time because he doesn't quite have the strength for that yet. He is almost there. He still really doesn't like tummy time, he puts up with it, but he moves his arms and legs fast an furious when on his back and I swear that if I just flipped him over during one of these flurries, he would just scoot across the floor lickity split. His dark hair, which for the most part all fell out, now is growing in blond and light brown, though it is getting darker by the day one wonders if it will ever get as dark as it was at birth.

He eats his hands all the time now, they are his favorite toys. Actually he really likes to chew on one finger. Julie wonders if he is in early stages of teething, so she has started giving him teething toys, which he will hold and chew on for awhile but then drops them like the rest of his toys, so he can go back to chewing on his fist or his finger. Though he reaches out and grabs things quite often, he isn't quite into holding things yet.

He is all smiles and giggles now. He doesn't laugh quite yet, but he has managed a few chuckles. He loves it when you bounce him (thanks Grantie) and even loves it more when you make silly faces and noises. He even likes it when you take his photo. I am sure that he will be laughing up a storm here really soon.

He just had his morning bath and massage and now is sitting in mom's lap and just taking it easy being the amazing wonder boy that he is.

Looking cool in my Beany

2008-07-07T22:19:00.001-07:00

Looking cool in my Beany
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie

Hey, Dixon here. Why don't all of you cool people pop on over to my photos page and view some of my new pictures... they are the best if I say so myself! Just click on my picture to go to Flickr....

4TH OF JULY

2008-07-05T19:26:00.000-07:00

Our 4th ended with what sounded like WWIII happening outside our apartments, but it started much calmer as we spent the day hanging out with Uncle Scott & Aunt Jen. We had great food, great fun and Dixon learned how to play Monopoly...

...which resulted in Uncle Scott having to change a diaper. Dixon didn't complain and he even let Uncle Scott play with him afterwords.

Chatting Away!

2008-06-25T19:40:00.000-07:00

Hey, Hey everybody. Dixon is doing a little chatting and we thought we would share it with you all. This is pretty much a normal day for him now. Talking to us like this... by the way, his voice is the cute little one, the other voice belongs to his dad... look at how he just continues to swing his arms... love it!

Laughing with Dad

2008-06-20T10:08:00.001-07:00

Julie went trigger happy with the camera, we have new photos to look at... Just click on the photo to take you to Flickr

DIXON'S 2 MONTH CHECKUP

2008-06-19T20:19:00.000-07:00

Dixon had his 2 month checkup (it was supposed to be a well baby checkup, but he was a little under the weather with the flu bug..) and pretty much as we expected, he was top of his class percentile wise. Turns out his 24 1/4 height is 90% taller than the rest of the class, and his 12.5 pounds is 75% better than the rest his age. He is well fed and his cheeks are starting to fill in :)

Health wise, despite the flu or whatever, he is doing fine. Color is good, lungs sound great and he is charming everyone with his smile... when they aren't poking or prodding him and sticking him with needles that is...

He is holding his head up more and looking around, loves to sit propped up so he can see what's going on and talks and talks and talks... He has started grabbing and reaching for things, though he isn't sure what to do if he actually gets hold of something, but the other day he was absolutely loving the fact that he could reach out and touch the curtains while on the changing table. He would manage to flip the curtain back, which would allow him to see outside, and that would bring a huge smile. He sure is growing like a weed.

OLD FRIENDS AND NEW FACES

2008-06-15T22:45:00.000-07:00

We had visitor's this morning, Hayato, his sister Kumiko, and their mom. Hayato and his mom are here from Japan and they took the time to stop by and visit old friends and make new ones. The irresistible draw of Dixon...

Hayato, Scott, Julie and Dixon

Hayato, Dixon and Julie

A FATHERS DAY DEVOTIONAL

2008-06-15T09:42:00.000-07:00

We have been studying Genesis during our Friday night Bible studies, and a Father's day message came to me when I was least expecting it, in Genesis chapter 22.

Most of us probably know the story, Abraham is tested by God and the Lord asks him to sacrifice Isaac as a burnt offering. The spot the Lord picks is Mount Moriah. Hebrews tells us that by faith Abraham offered up Isaac, believing God could raise him up from the dead. The whole chapter is a picture of Christ and the atonement that is his sacrifice on the cross. What a picture of Christ we see in Isaac, a willfully obedient son to the point of death. He even carried the wood for the fire on his back up the mount, and of course Mount Moriah, the spot that the Lord picked, which later in this exact spot would be Calvary. The whole chapter is full of Christ.

One really interesting thing to me was one of the "first's" in this chapter. We see the first use of the word "love" in the Old Testament. In verse 2, God tells Abraham, "take now your son, your only son, whom you love." The first use of love in the Bible is a love between a father and a son. What's really interesting is that the first use of love in the New Testament is in Matthew 3, verse 17, when a the Lord speaks from heaven declaring that Jesus is his "beloved son in whom I am well pleased." Also the love between a father and a son. The same goes for the gospels of Mark and Luke as well. The first use of Love in the gospel of John is John 3:16, which declares "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." And this brings us back to Genesis 22, in which Abraham was willing to give his only begotten son, and we see how this love is obediant, sacrificial, and a foreshadow of just how much our father loves us. What greater love is there than a father for his children? None. The Lord "provided himself a lamb," the love of a father for his son, for his children, is the ultimate act of love ever shown. Amazing.

A SMILE FOR DAD

2008-06-13T16:42:00.001-07:00

MORE PHOTOS AT OUR FLICKR PAGE, GO TAKE A LOOK!!

Hangin' Out

2008-06-10T21:42:00.001-07:00

Hangin' Out
Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie

We have added a few more photos. Go check them out by clicking on the photo...

MY NEW TOY!!

2008-06-09T18:44:00.000-07:00

New video of Dixon sitting in his 3 in 1 rocker swing... the infant seat!!

SOFTBALL HAS STARTED!!

2008-06-08T10:54:00.000-07:00

Softball has started for the summer season. We won our first two games and are hoping for more of the same for our third game next week. Come out and root for the team!!

All games are played on Sunday's at Lynnwood High School! You can see our schedule here. We are "The House."

Dixon is all dressed up and ready to root his dad on!!

DIXON AND HIS SWING ROCKER

2008-06-07T20:19:00.001-07:00

Originally uploaded by Rich & Julie

Friends from our church got together and dropped by with a surprise gift for Dixon (and for us too...) What a blessing it is! This is a great gift and once Dixon was in it he quit fussing and eventually he went to sleep...

THIS IS A WINNER!! DIXON LOVES IT!! THANKS EVERYBODY FOR THIS GENEROUS GIFT!!

The World of Riju

Tiny Dancer

EMILY NICOLE

Chocolate Shake

More Photos

Spirit Filled

Beating the Heat

Photographer

Mothers Day

Rays

Boppy Fun

BABY NUMBER THREE

ONE YEAR OLD!!

Hudson One Year Old

Playtime

Top Flicks 2010

I did it!

Snow Gaze

Dad & Dixon

FireSanta

Shades of Dixon

Dapper Hudson

Family Christmas

Baby Gate Tree

Feel the Chill

Cool Cool Boys

At the Father's Feet

Hudson's First Tooth (and more..)

Hudson @ 5 Months Old... (a few days over)

Family Photo

Smile Baby

More photos of the boys

Me and my Taggie

PLAYGROUND

Hudson

Official Due Date Nonsense

The #41 Hat Trick Post

Chocolate Crazed

Fireman Dixon

BABY JELLYBEAN = BOY JELLYBEAN

The 18 Month/18 Week Update!

I Found a BIG one

12 WEEKS PREGNANT - BABY JELLYBEAN

Imagine a Red Wagon...

All Play...

Psalm 37:3

The Pouring out of Grace

WHAT A COUPLE OF WEEKS....

Father, Daughter and Grandson

Happy Happy Boy Boy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

DIXON, A SPOON AND A BOWL!!

Assume the Position

MORE VIDEO FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE!!

THE DRIVER

10 MONTHS AND TAKING ON THE WORLD!

THE ROLLER!

WHAT THE DUCK!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Roller Baby

Dixon's 1st Santa Photo

DIXON IN A MANGER!!

WHAT A WEEK.... OH, WHAT A WEEK.

GIVE ME THE SPOON AND NO ONE GET'S HURT!!

SIX MONTHS OLD!!

BACK FROM THE HUNT!!

Jumpa ROO!!

Sunset Smirk

SEPTEMBER COMETH...

He Laughs! HE LAUGHS!!

4 MONTHS OLD AND A GROWING BOY HE IS...

Our Wedding Video

More Dixon and Family Reunion Shots!!

OVER HILL AND OVER DALE...

Smile for the Camera!

TWINS

DIXON: THE AMAZING WONDER BOY!

Looking cool in my Beany

4TH OF JULY

Chatting Away!