Adventures in Self-Defense

Today was Professional Development Day at Richland.  The theme for the day was about student and employee safety.  For one of the breakout sessions, we had one of six choices.  I chose the one about self-defense, mainly because there was going to be a martial arts instructor there, and I wanted to learn what to do if a student were to go after me in a classroom.  However, he wasn't able to make it, so the entire presentation was from the Police Department, and I discovered that it was mainly about what to do if you are attacked in public.

Well, I was expecting the presentation to be about what to do if you are randomly attacked in a classroom, but instead it was about things such as how to use pepper spray to fend off an attacker, and taking preventive steps such as storing your purse in a car.  I then turned around and found that I was the only man in the room, with about 12 other women present.

On the plus side, I learned that it's best to leave my purse at home and take only my ID and a debit card when shopping, and to leave it in a money clip in my pocket so that thieves don't try to steal my purse.

In the end, it was not one of my prouder moments in my time at Richland.

Thank you!

I'd like to offer a BIG thank-you to Angie's aunt Jenny for coming down and helping paint all day, to Hannah Osborne for watching Noah today, and to my parents for picking Noah up and staying with him for a few hours while we finished. I'd also like to thank Angie and Jenny for painting all day while I just put up painter's tape. They don't care for taping, and I don't mind getting out of painting, so it's all good. We would be up to our necks in housework if it weren't for all of our friends and family!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody.  One of the happiest days of my life was the day that I met Angie.  She is the most wonderful wife, and such a great mother.  I am so happy and blessed to have her in my life.  We will be celebrating five years of marriage later this year, which is so exciting.  I love you, Angie.

Fun Times at the Manatee Park

Here is the first of what I hope will be many blog entries about our recent trip to visit Angie's parents Bill and Linda at their winter home in sunny Florida.  On our first day there, we went over to the Manatee Park, located near Fort Myers.  This park is located near a power plant, and the warm water near the plant provides the manatees a place to go when temperatures cool down.  There had been a cool spell right before we arrived in late December, so the place was full of manatees.

Here are a few fun pictures we took at the park:

Here, Noah is gently reminding us not to feed the alligators.  Contrast this to a picture taken at the same spot the previous March:

I also like this self-portrait we took back in the nature trail.  Angie is quite adept at self-portraits.

Finally, here are a couple of pictures that we took near the big manatee statue.

As you can see, we enjoy taking pictures near large, inanimate objects (see here, here, here, and here).

This is a great place to spend a short while if you are in the area, especially if there is cool weather.  Along with watching manatees, they have a butterfly garden, picnic areas, and a playground for the little ones.  It is also very affordable - all you have to pay for is parking at $1/hour.

This was just the beginning of a great trip, and I thank Bill and Linda for bringing us down.

Some Interesting Observations From Noah

There are a ton of things that I want to write on this blog when I have the time, but here are a few quick ones about Noah from the past week:

1) When we got home from vacation earlier this month, Noah looked at our two cats and said, "Hi Daphne, Hi Big Striker."  Suddenly, he was calling Striker "Big Striker."  We don't know when Noah learned the concept of "big."  In fairness, Striker is about twice as big as Daphne.  Noah also calls me "Big Dada" from time to time.

2) We were at Wal-Mart last week when we bought some Christmas candy canes from the clearance rack.  Noah really wanted to open the package.  I said, "we have to buy it first."  Noah must have thought I said "we have to bite it," because he began biting the package, and he wouldn't stop.  He was determined to eat those candy canes in the store.

3) Finally, Noah likes anise seed cookies.  I think everyone on my mom's side of the family needs to be made aware of that.

Every day is a fun adventure with Noah, that's for sure.

Operation Christmas Child

I thought I would finally end my eight-month blog hiatus to promote a good cause. This month, Operation Christmas Child will be collecting shoeboxes of gifts to send to needy children in every corner of the world. This is a ministry of Samaritan’s Purse, a great organization that seeks to help those in need throughout the world, bringing people out of hopeless situations and into a relationship with Christ. You can see the work they do by clicking here. One of the biggest undertakings lately has been the relief efforts in Haiti, where they will stay for as long as it takes to get everyone back on their feet again.


Operation Christmas Child is of the biggest events held each year. It requires little effort on our part. All you have to do is take a shoebox and fill it with small gifts. It does not have to be wrapped. Angie and I have done this for the past few years, and it has not been a financial burden at all. I recommend finding a dollar store or toy store and you should find more than enough.

The national collection week is November 15-22, 2010. You can look here for a place in your area that is picking up shoeboxes.  You also can give online if you're having a busy week.

Let’s face it – even during times of high unemployment, this is still the most prosperous nation in the world. We can help share this wealth with others by doing such a simple act. It is also a great way to get in the holiday spirit, and to start the holiday season with goodwill.

Today's Parenting Tip

Here's today's parenting tip:

If you are holding your one-year old son in your arms, and he's not wearing any clothes because he's about to take his bath, then the worst possible thing you can do is make him laugh hysterically.

Today's parenting tip was brought to you by Pampers.  Contain those leaks with Pampers!