Who is that Masked Girl?

From Winter Formal

From Winter Formal

Here are some pictures of Rebecca when she attended a Masquerade Ball last weekend. She's both beautiful and practical as she bought this dress at Goodwill for $10!

Snowman Committing Suicide

From 2009-01-19

I didn't get this at first. The kids tell me they got it from "Calvin and Hobbes."

"Help Me Make a Dummy of Myself"

These were the words Rebecca came to me with this morning! Turns out she was wanting to make a sewing dummy using a process she had seen on the internet. She wore an old shirt (actually two of them because she needed it to be long AND she needed it to be a turtleneck, and she didn't have any long turtlenecks she wanted to sacrifice). I wrapped her in duct tape and then cut a slit up the back when we were through. Before it was over, her hands were starting to turn purple and she nearly fainted. I guess I wrapped a bit too tight! Here are some photos:

Before:

From Jan. 22nd

Getting started:

From Jan. 22nd

Before cutting - oh, to be this skinny again!

From Jan. 22nd

After I cut her free:

From Jan. 22nd

Now, she just has to stuff it! I'm glad I have a daughter that likes to sew and can make her own formal gowns!

Christmas Review

OK, I know it's been a long time since Christmas. I haven't blogged in over a month now. I was thinking I had an excuse of being out of town for two weeks, but then I realized that I blogged while I was out of the country, so that's not an excuse. I guess the main excuse is that I was actually WITH the folks who usually read my blog, so there didn't seem to be much point.

We were fortunate to be able to spend lots of time with family over the holidays. We always have lots of fun moments. Here is a favorite picture of a silly moment:

From 2008-12-29

These are my sister's kids. And some folks think homeschoolers are weird! This picture just proves that we don't have a monopoly or anything.

Here's another interesting picture that came from having lots of cameras lying around. It's a picture of hands from oldest to youngest (Dad, Mom, Ann, Carol, me, Katie and Lisa). A few observations - first of all, Lisa has really pale skin! Secondly, it's obvious that no one in the family uses any nail color or wears jewelry beyond wedding rings! I never realized we had that in common.

From 2008-12-29

These next two pictures summarizes what my house looks like after a Christmas of Lego and nerf funs.

From 2008-12-29

From 2008-12-29

I'll try to make sure it isn't a whole month until I post again!

Happy Anniversary, Jingle!

Here's what Jingle looked like a year ago:

From new puppy

And here's what she looks like now:

From new puppy

In a way, we all still wish she was small, because she really was the cutest thing!
But now she's housebroken and trained to the electric fence, so she's not much trouble at all. She also knows how to come, sit, stay and roll over (her favorite).

Break A Leg!

From Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Rebecca, Caleb, Noah and I have been performing in the "Best Christmas Pageant Ever" this week in Kingsport. Today Terry's parents and his Great Aunt Josephine came to watch.

I get to play a middle-aged church lady. Do you like my gray hair?

From Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Here's a cute picture of Noah:

From Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Rebecca doubles as an angel and a fireman. Quite a combo:

From Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Happy Thanksgiving

Hello everyone!

Since we aren't with any extended family this Thanksgiving, here is our Thanksgiving greeting! I put a different version on the Panasonic website (www.livinginhd.com) that has audio provided by Jim Fickley (one of our pastors at Redeemer Community Church). His audio is higher quality and totally original, but I kept the low-budget hymn on this version because I know my family appreciates hymns.

Fall Leaves

From Fall Leaves

Most of our leaves came down during a rainstorm last weekend, but there are a few left, and we wanted to take some more pictures before they were gone entirely. These pictures were all taken a short walk down the street from our house. We've tried to take lots of fall pictures because we are putting together a Thanksgiving video for Panasonic. It has been a fun project so far. It's always good to reflect on what you're thankful for.

From Fall Leaves

From Fall Leaves

From Fall Leaves

From Fall Leaves

From Fall Leaves

Learning About the Election

We've been having fun these last two weeks learning about our government and the election process. To me this is one of the most important subjects to learn about because some day they will need to VOTE! I can't believe how many people vote but know nothing about how government works, the issues, etc.

We've spent some time in our Bible lessons discussing what makes a good leader. We've also read about the Constitution, the Capitol and the White House. Hopefully, we'll get to visit Washington, D.C. in the next year and they will remember some of what we've learned. We've also had fun watching Schoolhouse Rock videos about the government and excerpts from Saturday Night Live. Here are some pictures of the kids with their projects, at our county Republican headquarters and with our yard signs. We've got a lot more to learn between now and next Tuesday.

From HS for GOP

From HS for GOP

From HS for GOP

From HS for GOP

From HS for GOP

It's been said that we have the kind of leaders that we deserve, so we should pray, "Lord, make us deserving of better leaders."

Our Evening in Puerto Rico

OK, so we really didn't spend the evening in Puerto Rico! But we had a real treat last Friday night when Lillian and Raymond Isaac (natives of Puerto Rico) invited us over for some traditional food. I had been talking to Lillian about how to cook plantains, and it seemed a little complicated. I told her she'd just have to demonstrate, and I'm glad she took me seriously! Caleb was also very interested in the cooking process.

We had sweetened plantains (you use very ripe ones for this):

From Puerto Rican Food

And we also had double-fried plantains (made with green ones and served with a sauce for dipping):

From Puerto Rican Food

We also had a salad made with avocados that Raymond had actually brought from Puerto Rico (you can legally bring in certain kinds of fruit):

From Puerto Rican Food

We had roast pork:

From Puerto Rican Food

and rice with "pigeon peas":

From Puerto Rican Food

We also had pina coladas:

From Puerto Rican Food

and pineapple flan:

From Puerto Rican Food

We also had a little birthday cake that I brought along since it was Terry's birthday!

From Puerto Rican Food

Besides all the great food, we had a great time visiting with our new friends. We have known the Isaacs very casually for years, but this year Lillian and the boys are participating in the TEACH Co-op, so we've been able to get to know each other much better. They live less than five minutes from our house. We are trying to figure out what to cook for them. Any suggestions?

Weekend Getaway

Terry and I spent this past weekend at a cabin near Gatlinburg. Terry's parents kept the kids in Knoxville, so we didn't have to worry about the subtitle on this sign when we hiked to Charlie's Bunion.

From charlie's bunion

I don't know who Charlie was, but apparently he had some pretty bumpy feet.

From charlie's bunion

We also hiked to a spot called "The Jump Off." I was tempted, but Terry talked me out of it.

From charlie's bunion

You could see Mt. LeConte from both the Bunion and the Jump-Off. Mt. LeConte is the second highest peak in Tennessee and infamous for the hike we took there without a trail in 1992.

From charlie's bunion

All in all, we hiked for about 10 miles.

We're Back!

I decided to start putting content on our regular blog again. I'll still add some to our China blog, but we are actively "living life" here in Johnson City, and I thought it my be time for an update about that.

Today we decided to get out and enjoy the fall color. We headed to Erwin, Tennessee and went to where the Nolichucky River intersects the Appalachian Trail. We hiked about 3 hours on the AT. It was a beautiful day - warm and sunny! Here are some photos:

From nolichucky hike

From nolichucky hike

From nolichucky hike

From nolichucky hike

From nolichucky hike

Our fall has been a busy one so far, but we've been trying to get outdoors and enjoy the weather. Earlier this week we took a group bike hike on the Creeper Trail. We've been going to lots of soccer games (Rebecca, Nathan and Caleb are all playing). Co-op is in full swing and Rebecca and I are both teaching classes this semester. Rebecca is also learning to drive! Caleb and Noah were both chosen for parts in "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" at the community theatre in Kingsport. They start rehearsals this week, but fortunately the soccer season is coming to an end, so we will pretty much replace soccer with theatre.

We're Moving!

Well, we're not really moving - we're just moving our blog - temporarily.

Panasonic asked us to create a special blog about our trip that keeps the same feel (and much of the same content) as our original family blog. So, I will probably not post on this one for a while and will spend some time today moving content to the new blog which can be found at www.seamansinchina.blogspot.com.

Unfortunately, I can't easily move comments, so please don't feel slighted if you made a comment that doesn't show up on the new blog.

The Challenge

Our kids have really been wanting to get the Olympics Wii game that is out right now. I thought it might be fitting to get it - especially for our boys that are left behind. Anyway, I gave them a challenge on the first day of school and said I'd buy the game once they all completed the challenge. They had five things to memorize (the Olympic motto, creed, oath, and two passages of scripture) and two reports each to do (one on an Olympic sport that they didn't know much about and one on a country).

Well, it's taken only about three days for them to all complete everything. Nathan chose to do a report on fencing, Noah chose beach volleyball, Caleb chose cycling and Rebecca chose the paralympics. Last night they made some powerpoint presentations when we hooked up our laptop to the plasma TV. Here is a picture of Noah getting ready for his presentation.





They are getting ready for the new game by making lots of new Olympic-athlete "Miis" for the game. They've had to do quite a bit of research as they're trying to make sure to get things like the eye color right. By the way, Michael Phelps has brown eyes, but his Mii just doesn't look right without a Speedo.

Here are the two passages of scripture that the kids have memorized. Even though they're "done" memorizing them, we can continue to glean spiritual insights from them as we discuss them in light of the Olympics.

1 Cor. 9: 24-27

Do you not know that in a race all runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Hebrews 12: 1,2

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

First Day of School!

Today was the first day of our 08/09 school year. Some years we have a special breakfast or take photos. This morning we simply had toast and sat in front of the TV watching the Today Show's coverage from Beijing. It was so cool thinking we would see those places ourselves in just 14 days!

Today we spent some time learning the history of the modern Olympic movement and practicing the Olympic motto, creed and oath. Last year the boys enjoyed (yes, they really did enjoy this, believe it or not) learning Greek and Latin roots, so probably the most interesting thing that they learned today is that "gymnos" means "nude," so gymnasium really means "a place for naked exercise." In the true fashion of 8-12 year-old boys, they talked about this over and over! We also learned that the word "stadium" is based on the "stade" which was the length of the foot race in the original Greek games, but somehow this did not bear repeating as much as gymnasium.

Each of the kids chose a sport and a country to prepare a report for to present tomorrow night to the family.


We did a few experiments from our "Sports Science" book - learning how the brain is the most important body part when it comes to success in sports. Our experiments were on reaction time (which involved dropping and catching a ruler with a partner - it turns out that Rebecca had the best reaction time)



and learning about balance (Nathan won the balance challenge!).



Probably the biggest thing that I learned today is that shots hurt!



Nathan, Terry and I had our hepatitis shot in preparation for travel. Since Rebecca has traveled to China before, she got to skip this ritual.

Speaking of ritual, we are watching a documentary tonight called "The Real Olympics" and learned that the first Olympics started with the ritual of animal sacrifice. I'm glad that won't be part of the opening ceremonies this year!

Ready, Set, Go!

Here's a picture of Rebecca with all the stuff we got in a recent package from Panasonic. We are excited about getting to trade pins with the collateral they gave us - it will be a great conversation starter. And I love the fancy luggage tags!

We also had a phone conversation this week with Panasonic and found out many more details about our trip. These are the events that we're going to be seeing:

Men's Beach Volleyball
Men's 200 M
Men's 50K walk
Men's Basketball
Women's Softball
Platform Diving

I'm probably most excited at this point about Platform Diving as Rebecca and I have been fans of Laura Wilkinson since the 2000 Olympics. I'm also pumped to see the Men's 200 M as I'm sure some former Razorbacks will be competing.

We also found out about some of the specific sites we'll see in Beijing - I'll post more about that a different time.

We also got a package from amazon this week - several books and videos to complement our unit study that we'll start next week. I've also put a ton of books on reserve at the library!



To change gears . . .



Rebecca and I have completed eight weeks of training and will be competing along with a great family friend, Laura O., in a sprint triathlon next Sunday. We did a mock run of the race this week. As soon as we exited from our swim in the lake, the heavens broke loose in a downpour. We decided to risk a lightning strike and just go for it! It was better than running in extreme heat and humidity at least. We are not competing as a team - but we'd do better if we did - Rebecca is the best swimmer, Laura is by far the best biker, and I am the best runner. But the good news is, we all finished within our goal time. The bad news is that I have not lost a pound. I do feel pretty good, though. Our families are traveling to Chattanooga with us to cheer us on.



I'll end with this picture. We took it for the latest HD challenge - we're supposed to be taking some pictures that could end up on the side of a truck. We'll take few more tomorrow as I'm not sure the ones we have are that good. Anyway, this picture sort of reminds me of how I feel right now. My family is in a photograph, and it feels both fun and scary to have your family on display.