May 2007

So I know we are kind slow with our blogg sometimes but it has been a very crazy May so far with Mothers day, our 6 year anniversay and Will's midterms right in the middle of it all. But here are some new pics of our family.

Isn't this picture too CUTE! First off it is a big thing lately for Ethan to help with cooking; he loves it. So I was making salsa and using the little quizinart you can sorta see just over Ethan's left shoulder. Well it scard him and he looks up at me and say "Momma that's scary" so I put my arm around him and he did the same to me. Too Cute!

I am not sure you will have to ask Will about this one.

Joshua had his first tooth come in on April 29. It is the bottom central incisor on his right. Anyways he likes to feel it with his tongue. So I was playing with him and sticking my tongue out at him and then he started to copy me. He such a smart baby.

Look at my Handsome little men! I love this picture.

7 months old!

Here is his officail 7 month old picture. I take a picture of Joshua every month on or around the 26th to show how big he is getting. Milestones this last month for Joshua was his first tooth which he got on April 29th and he started to sit up on his own April 20th.

So Will and I had a lovely date night Saturday May 12th. Will and I went to the Portland Temple and did a session and then went out to dinner to celibrate Mother's Day and our 6 years of wedded bliss. It was a very enjoyable evening.

Family vaction and new things

So here are our latest photos documenting some landmark events for the Green's

We just started Joshua on solids. A little later than we had anticipated. But with spring break and Challene's trip to Utah, this is how it ended up. Don't let the picture full you he really does not like it all that much. It really depends on his mood. He's much more into the oatmeal.

Joshua sat up for the first time on his own April 20, 2007. "He's more leaning on his hands than sitting up," you may say. Well, he posed that way for the picture. He was sittin' baby! See below

Granted he is still unsteady, but he does really well.

I caught Joshua sucking on his toes March 30, 2007

I liked this photo he seems to be saying "You are going to show this to my girlfriend one day, aren't you Daddy? Cuz if you do..."

I wonder wich side of the family he got this habit from? Looks familiar doesn't it Michael and Maddy?

Vaction Pictures

We decided to go to the coast for a few days during spring break. We reserved a hotel room, but were disappointed that the cheaper ones didn't offer an ocean view. Well, we got the cheap one figuring that since the ocean was a quick "90 stair" walk away anyways we would be fine. Turns out that we ended up in a room with an amazing view of the beach and ocean.

Ethan really enjoyed it too. Here he is with some binocculars looking for whales out our hotel room window. Which reminds me: While unloading our luggage we marvelled at the beauty of the ocean. Suddenly, Challene screamed, "I see one!" She grabbed the binocculars, shoved me out of the way and ran to an appropriate spot to get a better view of the "whale". Turns out it was just a boat... that or an air-breathing, constant speed going, bow bearing whale. I still give her a hard time. Especially since she physically shoved me out of the way.

We decided to buy some tickets for a boat charter and go do some actual whale watching. Right now is the time they migrate up toward Alaska so we thought it would be a good opportunity.

This is a picture from our boat just as we were leaving the dock. The boat we were in was more similar to the blue and white one on the far right. The seas were calm that day (so I was told) and everyone thought it would be an excellent day for watching whales. As some of you may know I have an intrepid ability to fall ill when in nearly any moving object. I have been in boats before and so figured I'd be safe. We even went out on a boat in Hawaii. I did get sick on the Ferry from Dover, England to France, but I figured that was an isolated event. At any event, I didn't want to take chances so I figure that my best bet was to remain in the front of the boat at all times and to watch the horizon. All was well on the trip out. Our camera, however, must not have liked the seas because it decided to be very temperamental. As it is, the only shot I got that wasn't of just water and horizon is the one below.

If you look carefully, you'll notice that there are some sea lions on that buoy. That's about the best I could do. Anyways, we got about 4 miles out and finally spotted a small pod of grey whales. The come to the surface, spout a couple of times, then arch their backs and dive down again flapping their tails in the air. It was amazing. The sad part is that we had to stop the boat in order to see them. That's when all heck broke loose. I had Joshua strapped to me in a body pack. Challene and Ethan were standing in the front of the boat with me watching the whales. For some reason, my vestibular system (inner ear) didn't take a liking to being stopped 4 miles out into the ocean. "Fire in the hole," it said to my brain! I ran (as best I could with a 6 month old strapped to me and somewhat choppy seas -- they still maintained that it was calm) to the side of the boat opposite the whales. Why? Because no one was on that side to see me hurl. As I hung my head out as far as I was willing (again, Joshua was with me) I immediately recalled the opening scenes of The Little Mermaid where Grimly stood at the side of the boat retching, is face as green as an olive (the green ones). I remember when I first saw that movie thinking, why would he go in a boat if he gets sea sick? The irony struck me as I myself release my morning breakfast banana into the grey Pacific, and, between the gut wrenching contractures of my stomach and the expectoration of the vomitous remains in my mouth, I actually chuckled softly to myself. Content that I would be fine, I joined the others back up front. Challene was anxious to get some footage of the mammoth mammals and asked me to hold onto Ethan as she worked the camera. Just as she pressed the record button in anticipation of the whales returning, round two began. You can actually hear me asking Challene to take Ethan on the video. "Challene, please take Ethan. Challene, would you please take Ethan. Challene, I need you to take Ethan." Just as the camera was put up and Ethan was safely in Challene's arms the whales emerged again. I was back in my safe spot on the other side of the boat. Well, the day went on and we followed that pod of whales, drifting with them, for over a mile. I had employed the sympathy of the cap'n, who brought me out a paper towel to wipe the emetis from my nose and mouth. All in all, it was an hour and a half of "gut-wrenching fun". I really enjoyed it. The whales were beautiful and majestic. I believe we actually got about 50 feet from one when he spouted. It was amazing. A wonderful experience that I choose never to do again. Fortunately, I took some dramamine after the excursion and it relieved my symptoms completely. That stuff is great! As it is, we never got any footage of the whales and the best picture is the one above. Looks like we'll have to rely on memories for this one.

Okay I have to put my comments in here too (this is Challene by the way). I actually think Will enjoyed the Whale watching more than I did even with him hurling over the side of the boat. I assume he enjoyed it more than I because he was not concerend with anything other than hurling. Where as I was concerned with Ethan flying over board, Will being sick, and Joshua, who was in the body pack on Will in the freezing wind, hopefully not getting hit by hurl . Let me explain further: 2year olds do not have the steadiest of feet and you add that to a boat that is going up and down like a roller coaster with me trying to steady us both... Lets just say next time I am definately going by myself.

This was taken at the Newport Aqurium. It was a really cool aquarium. They were having a special exhibit on crabs. Crabs are neat. They also have the walk through aquariums where it's like you're underwater with the fishies and sharkies. Incidentally, while walking through the tube through the shark tank, I flashed back to the Jaws (II or III I think) movie where good ol' Jaws rams into those tubes and breaks the glass and makes many people drown. I think I watched to many movies when I was young. Right, when I was young.

Here's a shot of our private beach. The water was probably near freezing, so we didn't try to swim at all. The beach was pretty facinating in its own right. So many things wash up on the shore.

Take this guy for instance. He's alone here, but about 3.5 million of his brethren were nearby. When we found our first star fish my mind was brought back to the inspirational story of the man walking on the beach throwing starfish into the ocean. When questioned as to his actions the man said that they would die if he didn't throw them back. After scanning the beach the observer mentioned that he couldn't possibly make a difference since there were tons of star fish out. The man picked one up, hurled it into the sea and said, "made a difference to that one." Boy, I'm full of good memories today.

Finally, a picture of two of my most favorite things in the world. Rocks and Sand. Challene and Ethan climbed into the cave made from the wind. We had a lot of fun exploring those beaches. They really are beautiful.

Well, that's about it, I suppose. Don't forget to read the previous update (just below) as it was done just a couple of days ago. We hope all is well with all. Leave comments and stuff.

Lovingly,

Will, Challene, Ethan, and Joshua

7th quarter

Another Spring Break gone! I'm actually already two weeks into my 7th (of twelve) quarter. It's been a raucous two weeks all ready. The schedule is funky-wunky. I suppose the best way to 'splain it is to follow suit and go through my classes one at a time. For those of you not interested....

Physical Therapy I - Just as the name implies we're learning PT modalities. Things as simple as ice and heat to complex things like Ultrasound, Electrical Stimulation, and Cold Laser. It's quite facinating and an area I think many D.C.s overlook. It can be quite powerful for rehabilitation as well as easing acute episodes. It's a lecture and lab class, so we've had some fun.
NeuroMusculoSkeletal II - NMS is a class where we learn all the diseases/disorders/syndromes pertaining to the NMS system. Part I last quarter dealt mainly with the axial skeleton (everything but your arms and legs) and part II is dealing with the lower extremity (legs). We've covered Plantar Fascitis, and Metatarsalgia so far. Those are just in the foot. We'll be moving up the leg as the term progresses. We discuss how the disease occurs, it's signs and symptoms, presentation, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment options, recovery, and residual effects. It's acutally quite complicated. It takes a lot of study time. Also a lab/lecture class. We have a separate two hour block of lab called Cast Lab. Just as you may have surmised this is where we learn how to wrap... everything. From Ace bandage to taping, from splints to plaster casts we're covering it all. It's been pretty fun so far.
Clinical Phase I - The "clin phase" series is designed to assimilate all the material we've learned in the past two years and put it together. It's the mechanics of being a doctor. It's paperwork things like taking a chief complaint history, or a more thorough physical examination history. As well as putting together exam flows for certain examinations. It's fun, but takes a lot of study time and memorization. Not one of my strong suits.
Clinical Pathology - Well, I've had regular pathology before, so what's the difference? This is kind of a continuation of my Clinical Lab class from last quarter. Here we discuss all the diseases/syndromes/conditions diagnosed by lab work. We've begun the Anemias (low blood supply) There's a ton of different anemias and each is brought on a different way. Sickle Cell, Microcytic, Macrocytic, Normocytic Hypochromic, Macrocytic Hyperchromic, Iron Deficient, and on and on. Hard to differentiate them some times. Lots of chemistry. Gosh, I thought I was done with all that!
Radiographic Technique I - Just as the name implies this is the "how to" of x-rays. In addition to positioning, it invlolves a lot of physics. I thought I was done with physics too, but these undergrad courses keep rearing their ugly heads!
Adjustive Technique Vadv - Last quarter we had the beginner portion of this course. Essentially it is extremity adjusting. We learned all the joint plays last quarter (basically assessing each joint based on its movement) and this quarter we're learning the adjustments.
Adjustive Technique VI - This is pretty much a review of all the adjustment classes so far. It's a place to fine tune our skills and learn some alternate techniques. Pretty informative
Bone Pathology I - Diagnosing radiographs. We have to be able to distinguish between trauma (fracture, break, dislocation, etc.), and anomolies (extra bone parts, not enough bone parts, oddly grown bone parts, etc.). Sounds easy enough, but it's not. There's about a bazillion different conditions all named after some crazy glory-seeking european person.
Emergency Care - Just what it says. We get CPR certified, learn first aid and all that jazz. So far, it doesn't compare to the course taken in the cub (boy?) scouts. For one, there's never any Little Debbie brand Oatmeal Creme Pies afterward.
Personal Patient Management I - More of the same, "how to be a doctor" schtick. Apparently not getting sued is a high priority for field docs. Who knew. And apparently documentation is a very important component of not getting sued. Here's where my years of Watson experience come to play. "If it isn't documented, it never happened!" Actually, that way of thinking saved me a few times. Good times.

Well, I suppose that's it. This took me much longer than I wanted, and I think the reader will probably notice my uncaring attitude toward the latter ends of this update. In addition to all the classes I'm taking, I've also started in the Student Health Center. That's right, I'm treating other students. Traditionally, 7th quarter students just treat other 7th quarter students. Seeing as how we've never done anything like that before and seeing as how there are a lot of unknown components to the whole gig they thought it prudent that we treat each other to begin with. Well, apparently (there's that word again) our class is smaller than normal, or something because I ended up with not only a 7th quarter patient but another patient as well! Talk about pressure! Now my lunch times are filled, not with studying as I normally fill them, but with treatments and paperwork. That means that I'm going to have to spend a lot of home time studying.

I'm really going now. There will be an update soon. Challene is gathering photos of our spring break trip and junk.

kay, luv you buh-bye.

Will, Challene, Ethan, and Joshua

Growing up so fast!

I know that nobody was expecting another post so soon but here it is in all of it's glory!

Here is an official 6 months old picture of Joshua. He is HUGE I say, but Will and I love every bit of him.

Here is Ethan with his new haircut. He looks 3yrs older, and as his Mother, I can hardly stand it! He is definitely growing up too fast.

Joshua is getting so close to sitting up. I am quite sure he will be doing it within the next month.

Well, it may have been short but we hope all that viewed it enjoyed.

Love,

Challene, William, Ethan and Joshua Green

SPRING BREAK!!!

Well, stick a fork in me because I'm through! Yes, ladies and gentlemen 6th quarter is done with. "So what," you may say, "we've been through this several times, what's so special about this one?" A rather bold question that was. The difference, concerned viewer, is that I have now completed 1/2 of my requirements to graduate. I'm half way done with school. If school were a pie, I'd have eaten one half of it. Not only that, but I completed part I of national boards. Hmm, how do you cram two years worth of intense schooling into a 15 hour 660 question test? Well for the National Board of Chiropractic Educators (NBCE) you are as technical and specific as you could possibly be! Needless to say, I were all a bit thrown by their (the NBCE) brazen expectations of us, but hopefully I performed well. Honestly, I don't see how I could have passed the thing, but apparently that's how everyone feels after it. We'll find out at the end of April. If I didn't pass, I'll have to take it again in September! I HAVE to pass that one or else I can't take part II and III next March, and if I can't take II and III in March, I can't take IV next September and then I can't get my license... and if I can't get my license then I'll be breaking the law when I practice, and if I break the law when I practice I'll feel morally reprehensible. And you wouldn't like me when I'm morally reprehensible.

Ahem. So, Challene and I did a little dance when I got home today. I passed all my classes despite the two weeks of utter H-E-double-hockey-sticks that I had to go through. Fortunately for me, however, I happen to have the e'er constant support and love of a wonderful woman. Who, in a moment of extraordinary foresight, set up a "Mother's Without Husbands" group designed to be a temporary family while we husbands were out studying. Each night they would gather at another's house and enjoy delightful conversation, wonderful food, and the ever pleasant romping of the children. Hmm, perhaps it wasn't exactly that smooth going, but it did it's job. I was gone from 7:00 am until 10:00 pm most days these last two weeks, so the group really kept her sane. Which is good for me. Sane Wife = Happy Husband

Here is a couple of pictures of the event when it was at Chateau De' Verde

Here Gwen, Ethan and Jessica (left to right) enjoy frosting and sprinkles as they decorate their very own sugar cookies. Liza (not pictured) wasn't feeling to festive that day, I suppose.

Gathered to watch a movie, Gwen, Ethan, and Jessica are overcome with emotion! Notice how Ethan always finds his way between the two girls. A boy after my own heart. *OW, Challene just hit me*

As long as we've got the photos going, let's continue shall we?

After bathtime, Ethan found Challene's shower cap. He paraded around in that thing, struttin' his stuff like he was... someone famous who wears a shower cap. This is all hearsay for me anyways, I was in the library reviewing Pathology. *shudders* just typing that word gives me the heeby-jeebies.

Ethan talking to "Ga-Ga" Colleen. I think he's taking some lessons from Mommy. As an aside, he plays really well with Joshy. He's such a good big brother. He makes me very proud.


In proud Capulet form, Ethan bites his thumb at me, a Montague. If only I had my long-sword!


Joshua has really been curios lately. He examines every little thing he can get his hands on. This night, he got his hands on his feet. Gosh, he looked at those things for nearly 3 1/2 minutes. For me was 3 1/2 minutes of history in the making. I'm blowing this out of proportion you say? Eh, probably.


Ooo, ooo. Here's another of Joshy. He's chillin' in his saucer. "Where's Joshy?" we'd ask, and the answer invariably, "Oh, he's on the sauce again." Say, that's two posts in a row where I refer to my infant children as booze hounds. That what living in the most liberal state will do to you, I guess.


Hey, who's that guy? Well, it aint me that's for sure. That there is Sir Daniel David Titensor Esquire III. His acapella group had an award cerimony to host up in Washington so they stopped by for a night. Check them out at tonguetiedmusic.com. It sure was good to see them. The kid there is... Danny, and the other one is... Ethan, but that OTHER one is Danny and Melissa's son Dallen (Dallan?, Dalen?, Dahlin?). He should be out of that cumbersome helmet by now, so that's got to be great for them. You know, I've never seen such upbeat optimistic-ness from anyone quite like the Danny Titensor family. Just there being there that night sure gave me a slap in the face to keep priorities where they should be: on the family.


Another of the kids. Dallen looks like little Scotty Titensor did when he was 6 months. (I've heard)


This kid has sure started to like his legos lately. He's started to build them up quite a bit, and is very systematical about the whole thing.

Ol' Double Thumbed Joshua.


Jessica brought over some fruit snacks one day while we were tending her. She graciously shared with Ethan who enjoyed the "fruits" of the snacks by showing us all his blue tongue


This is at the Children's museum downtown. At first, I thought he was standing in a big pile of the "Indian Candy Corns" -- You know, the ones with the chocolate on the bottom. I was mad that he didn't fill that bucket fuller. Then, I realized that it was just a bunch of inedible bits of rubber. I then praised him for not bringing any home.


Still at the children's museum. The redhead on the left is some kid who we don't know, but if you look closely he kind of looks like Danny Bonaduce from The Partridge Family.


I suppose the posterior of my offspring is about as good a way to wrap up the photo section as any. They still look nothing alike IMHO (look at me, I'm talking text! -- Gosh, I hope that means what I think it means!)

Needless to say, we have been looking forward to Spring break. We were planning on going to the coast for a few days to see the whales migrate and take Ethan through the world famous aquarium, but due to some unforeseen IRS issues (thank you very much E*Trade) it looks like we will have to forego that idea and settle for a movie night.

On an equi-dismal note (for some) I have a question to pose for everyone out in .com land. As you know, I've been going to chiropractic school for two academic years now (whew!) and am loving every bit of it. I'm 100% sure that chiropractic is what I want to do professionally. Recently, however, I have been considering expanding my educational base (and thus my future practice base) to include Naturpathic Medicine. Truly, there are two things about it that capture my attention: #1. With an ND license on top of my DC license I will be able to perform minor surgeries at my disposal. Though I'll be trained in all the surgeries here at WSCC, I can't legally do them in Utah. It's not within the DC scope of practice. Having had my dermatology class and being exposed to what this entails, I've only grown more and more excited for this option personally and professionally. As far as the business aspect of it, it's a win-win. The things that I would be doing (lots of cosmetics -- wart, moles, melanoma, lipoma, telangiectasia (spider veins) to name a few, also biopsies, and a bunch of other stuff I can't think of right now) would normally cost thousands of dollars at an MD dermatologists, where I can charge a measly $300 an hour! Word of mouth would be my advertising and insurances (upon realizing my lower rates) would send me patients. Business would be booming, on top of my regular practice. #2 benefit would be my legal right to prescribe certain medications. It's a limited right to only those found to be based on a natural origin... and that's quite a list. What does that mean for me? It means that the acute motor vehicle accident patient who comes in with a neck the size of a Christmas ham can have a strong anti-inflammatory and analgesic before I get in there and fix what modern day ergonomics has otherwise ruined (use your headrests people!). It opens up so many other doors for me, it's incredible. It sets me apart from the others and let's me fill a niche that people just aren't that aware of.

It would, however, be an extra two years of school (at least)! That also means an extra $65,000 in school loans (sheesh!). I would just like all of your input/opinions on the matter. What do you think? The market for this is a lot bigger here in Oregon than it is in Utah, so it will take some time for people to open up to it. I'm not trying to justify my career decisions to anyone, I'm just trying to justify the extra 65k it's going to take. So release the hounds, let me know what you think about the whole deal!

What an end to a long, long post. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Warmly,

Will, Challene, Ethan, and Joshua.

So much to say

Well, it's been a while since we've updated and so there is a lot to talk about. That means that there are also a lot of pictures included in this post. I suppose the best way to go about this is to just explain each of the pictures:


This first one is Ethan with his teddy bear. There was a two day period where he decided that he was interested in it. He hasn't touched it since. Challene had been carrying Joshua in the body-pack and Ethan wanted to emulate.


This next picture is an aftermath photo. Ethan turned two recently (see the last post) and many of you may know that this time is a challenging one. Children realize for some reason that they can get their way by throwing tantrums. Ethan threw his first (and only, so far) tantrum that day. He was screaming, kicking, crying, yelling, banging his head on walls and floors. Challene and I had never seen anything like it. We tried to calm him down to begin with, but soon realized that reasoning was just not going to get us anywhere. So we sat down, continued our dinner and ignored him. After nearly 45 minutes of this, he climbed up on the couch, curled up, and fell asleep without a single word said. Like I said, this hasn't happened again... yet.

Valentines came around and Ethan just couldn't keep off the sauce. When attempting to take it away, this was the response.


We decided to go bowling as a family one day. This was Ethan's first attempt at bowling and he loved it.


You know, Ethan doesn't like to do more than necessary with some things. He knocks on doors with just his pointer finger (oddly enough it ends up being just as loud as if he'd used his fist), and he bowls with his pointer finger. He did quite well, considering. Challene won with a 140, I came in second with a 104and Ethan third with a 94. Listen, the bumpers weren't working for me very well. They were not forgiving in the slightest.


Joshy turned 5 months on the 26th of February. This was his picture that day. He most certainly is a thumb sucker, but beyond that he is a double thumb sucker!!!

Joshua finally decided he wanted to roll over the other day. Challene has seen it several times, I have yet to view it. Thank goodness for photos or I might not have believed her.

I think this picture describes the personality differences between Joshua and Ethan quite well. This is a celebratory exchange between them for Joshua rolling over. Ethan is goofing off as usual, and Josh quietly and discreetly reaches over and tweaks his ear. Notice the apparent lack of expression on Josh's face. He's trying to play it cool, but the glint in his eyes gives it away everytime!

That's it for photos. School has been going well. Midterms were killer and finals are coming up in a few weeks. Part I of boards is the weekend before finals, so it's not going to be a fun couple of weeks. PDX lab has been quite interesting the last couple of weeks. Last week we learned the Male Genital-Urinary exam -- that was just disturbing. At least the school changed its policy and we don't perform these exams on each other any more! Now they hire people to come in and be checked out. But, if you need your prostate checked, or if you think you may have a hernia I can check it out for you. This week, was a little more entertaining. We completed our ear/nose/throat exams by performing nasal-specifics, endo-nasals, and the application of the silver protein Argerol. These techniques are designed to drain the sinuses, lacrimal ducts, and eustachian tubes.

The nasal specific uses an inflatable balloon that is stuffed inside the nasopharynx via the nose. It is inflated in three different and specific areas. It is designed to physically move certain areas up there in attempt to get things flowing right.

The endo nasal is performed for those who may have an "ear infection" or otherwise blocked eustachian tube. It's done by the doctor reaching his index finger to the back of the mouth, curling up behing the uvula (hangy ball thingy) behind the soft palate and into the posterior nasopharynx. You then twist the hand to the side, and feel for the opening of the tube. You stroke the opening with your finger, tug on the soft palate and then remove your hand. It's crazy how immediate things start flowing. For those who have been suffering with inner ear issues, the relief is incredible. The flow of stuff is gross, though.

Lastly, is the Argerol. Argerol is a silver protein which relaxes the constricting muscles (or sphincters, if you will... but most of you wont) of the converging sinuses and lacrimal ducts. You saturate two long Q-tips with the Argerol and insert them up the nose until they touch this convergence of openings. You hunch them over, give them a bucket and let them drain for an hour. For those with a serious sinusitis or congestion problem, the drainage is absolutely tremendous... and disgusting. The silver protein stains everything black. When we did it in class we didn't use the Argerol because we would have been draining all day. We just soaked the Q-tips in water.

If you were grossed out by this, you probably shouldn't have read it.

School is fun. I'm loving it. You may be interested to know that my venipuncturing technique has improved significantly. That's been an interesting class! You thought the PDX stuff was gross, don't even get me started on the Clinical Laboratory stuff. Let's just say that if your body makes it, we'll be testing it.

I will be treating in the Student Health Center starting next quarter. This is an exciting step as I'll be getting patients of my own to treat.

Well, have a splendid time, and leave comments!

Warmly,

Will, Challene, Ethan, and Joshua.

You say it's your birthday, ba da na na. It's my birthday too, yeah, ba da na na

Well, we had Ethan's birthday party last Saturday, and it was a big success. The house was packed full. Probably because we were serving delicious pizza. Megan had come the day before, and was ready and willing to help out. This was a relief to me because I am not really one for baking, or offering advice on baking. Challene has decided to make it a tradition to bake a cake for our little ones on their days, which I commend and support whole-heartedly. I just know so little of the subject that I'm not very much help and then frustration takes over. Lucky for me, Megan was there to give well placed advice. I think Challene's cake skills have grown three-fold in the last year. Yes, three-fold. She found a "ball" cake mold in Michael's and decided to give it a go. She made Ethan a baseball cake. The very second he saw it he gasped, hurriedly pointed his finger and said, "ball, ball!" Gosh that kid likes balls. That reaction made the whole thing worth it in Challene's opinion.

The Birthday Cake

The instructions recommended icing the cake in this fashion to save any frustration for not having an equi-smooth cake. I feel that recommendation was very wise. Kudos to the vendor.

Ethan just loves to blow out candles, blow on hot food, blow in your face, anything. So he was ready and waiting to blow that thing out. He didn't even want to wait for 'Happy Birthday' to be sung. He was blowing before we moved it to a reachable place.

Ethan blowing out his candles

Notice the well pursed lips and the ne'er blinking eyes. He's got great form, that one.

After dinner and cake it was game time. Challene had purchased a cheap little "pin the tail on the donkey" game. "That's cheesy," I commented reminiscent of Dave. Cheesy or not, it was a huge hit. Each of the kids (and one dad -- not me) took a turn at pinning a tail to that ol' donkey. Actually, the tails were stickers. So they stuck a tail to the donkey. It accomplishes the same thing without having to give 2 year olds sharp objects. And that, I think, made it all worth it. It was during this game when it dawned on us that Ethan doesn't have any friends who are boys (note -- I did not say 'boy friends' that would have just been wrong). There are no boys his age in the ward. I take that back. There is one boy, but he's somewhat of a bully so we don't encourage play with him. He kicked Ethan in the crotch while pretending to pop some bubbles. Ethan doesn't really appreciate him anymore. So, he's learning at an early age how to handle the ladies. Liza Woolsey, Gwen Marshall, and Jessica Turner came. Plus their parents and an additional couple who are our friends but haven't any children yet.

Ethan takes his turn

Note - Gwen (just behind Ethan) is the one who got the tail in the perfect spot -- she cheated though! We kicked them straight out of our house. We have a zero tolerance policy on cheating!

Gwen (curly hair) is right behind Ethan, and Jessica is right next to Gwen

After each of the other children finished "pinning" their tails, they took off the blindfold and ran back to their respective parents. Ethan, though, turned around and began walking with the blindfold on. He didn't seem to care that he couldn't see anything. He nearly walked into the table. We all had a good chuckle.

As reward for stalwart efforts in pinning donkey tails we gave everyone a bouncy balloon (the ones with the elastic attached). Beyond the game, beyond the food, beyond the presents, this by far was the greates hit of the evening. They went absolutely nuts! Running in circles, screaming at the tops of their lungs chasing each other trying to bounce the balloon off of the head of the nearest person... oh, the kids liked them too! But seriously, you've never seen competition until you've seen grown men attempt to bounce a balloon closest to anothers nose from four feet away.

The Madness

If you're wondering where Joshua is during all this, he slept through the entire party. I think he may be the only one on the entire block that was able to sleep during that time.

We kindly thanked everyone for ditching the adult session of stake conference for our little party and sent them on their way.