Picture Day

Yesterday was picture day at school. After traveling for the first three days of the week across several different timezones, my first challenge was getting a 7 year old girl dressed up for picture day. Of course, Mom had picked out an outfit that Roo hated, so the burden was squarely on me. Mommy, I hope this meets with your satisfaction:

As mentioned, I was traveling all week. First to Las Vegas for a day/evening for a career fair and some networking. Then off to Atlanta for two days for an annual business aviation conference. It was quite the whirlwind, with little sleep in between (I can't sleep on planes, probably a good thing). The wifey and I almost literally passed each other in the airport, as she was heading out as I was heading in. Luckily, we got to spend some quality time at the playground this past weekend before the madness started. It was a gorgeous fall day:

Rainy, Pizza kinda Friday

For the last two days we have been stuck under low clouds, gusty winds, and lots of rain. The local weatherman has even used the term "nor'easter" to describe the weather system. It is the kind of weather that, at the airlines, would leave us sitting around crew rooms for hours on end, wishing we could somehow get up and leave - for home, a hotel, anywhere but there. Closer to home, it was the perfect kind of Friday to go out for pizza and frozen yogurt. We decided to try Pizza Fusion out by Trader Joe's, and then hit Verry Berry next door for the coup de grace.

Unfortunately for Peeka, she didn't get pizza, only sliced bananas (the vast majority of which ended up on the floor):

Roo, on the other hand, did get pizza. You can tell from her expression that she was thrilled:

Actually, this was before the pizza arrived. The food was terrific, and I highly recommend both places for their respective cuisine.

In closing, let's just say never give a baby desert unless you are prepared to deal with what happens when you take the desert away. That's all on that subject for now....

Mr. Mom: Day 1

Today was the first day of three that I am home with the girls while the wifey is away on business. As a pilot, I am methodical, and like to follow checklists. It is my belief that when you follow the checklist, things happen as the manufacturer says they should. Today was one of those days around the house. The checklist for babies says that by 8 months they should be starting to use the item known as a "sippy cup". Sometimes, checklist items need to be done more than once.

Apparently she thought she was supposed to put it in her lap and attack it like a badger, or something:

On the second try, she meets with more success (with a little help from dad):

That's it for tonight. It's 12:30 am and the badger will be up shortly.

Nothing is worth more than this day.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Moments...

So my wife always tells me that I don't do a good job of capturing moments. I don't take enough pictures. I don't take enough video. As usual, she is right. I'm the first one to admit that, when it comes to photography, I'd rather wait for "just the right artsy" composition to come along than to snap away at everything in between.

I tried this whole blogging thing once before - I kept a blog about my flying adventures. What I eventually found was that I was having a hard time coming up with material; flying was actually pretty boring (which is EXACTLY how I like it, but that's a topic for another time...). Eventually I let the blog go altogether, although it is sneaking around here somewhere. Recently (yesterday), I was struck with the realization that I had the best subject matter right under my nose: my three beautiful girls.

I am a member of a pretty cool online aviation community. A year ago, another member was lost to a tragic plane crash. He left behind a lovely wife and two beautiful daughters. As we approach the one year anniversary of the accident, the blog that he and his wife kept was passed around the website. The circumstances hit very close to home for me, which make it even more difficult to read through. But what struck me the most is the beauty and grace of their life, all of it captured in this blog (and the strength with which she continues the blog.)

Life is but a series of moments strung together to form but one longer moment within the "big picture". These moments do not last long, nor does our opportunity to experience them here on this earth. This is my attempt to capture some of our moments, and share them with the world....