The Spoon

And I thought meal time was messy before? We've just entered the new phase of using the big boy spoon all by yourself.

Sure it took about 20 minutes for him to finish the yogurt. And sure it took about 20 wipes to clean up the mess. But the huge smile and giggle as he felt so big was worth it.

Just please tell me that it won't always be that messy. :)

I'm A Winner!

In the words of Diana Ross...

I'm a winner
I'm a winner
Yes, I am
She's a winner
Yeah, yes I am
She's a winner

As my whirlwind of summer traveling ended this weekend, I found out some fun news that I won a blog giveaway contest. Baby Blog Addict gave away a $40 gift certificate to Word Candy. Fun! Now I'm trying to decide what to order. The prices are pretty inexpensive, so I'm considering something for the playroom, Tate's room, and maybe something framed for our black & white wall of family photos.

More pictures from all of the travels coming soon.

Another Downside of the DVR

I experienced the ultimate downside of the DVR awhile ago, but then it recently happened again with yet another reality show.

I rarely see commercials these days because the limited TV I do watch is recorded on the DVR with the exception of a few minutes of local news here and there. So imagine my shock (yes, I don’t use that word lightly) when I read on Susan’s blog that one of my favorite shows had already started a new season. Shock people…I had no idea and had obviously missed all of the promo commercials for it!

So now that the DVR and I are friends again, I am all caught up on Project Runway Season 5.

Is it just me or does it appear that a requirement for the contestants this year is that 1/3 of your body must be covered in elaborate tattoos? If that doesn’t make them look cool enough, then it appears that speaking in third person or adding “licous” to regular words does.

No matter, I love, love, love this show….which is pretty ironic considering I have absolutely NO idea how to even sew a button.

Make it work Kelly’s blogalicous friends!

So Proud!

My list of things to blog about keeps getting longer, but I had to first post what happened tonight:






Walking isn't quite his preferred or most coordinated mode of transportation yet, but he loves being able to go about 10 feet. And of course, we love it. I know it's a big moment for every parent, but my heart is just about to burst with pride knowing how hard he (and we) have worked at this.

I'm sure there are many, many more bruises (notice the one on his cheek from walking by the window sill) to come in the next few weeks as the wobbliness works itself out, but it is all worth it to see that smile on his face.

And here's an outtake for our special features section:

You Tube Fun

I have lots of things in my head that I want to post including vacation pics, a book review, and more fun summertime pictures. But after sweating my brains out on our nice evening stroll, I'm just not feeling like it. For now, here are two videos that crack me up. Enjoy!

I know this has made the rounds on websites and blogs, but I still think I could watch it every day. If only my British accent was as good as I think it is when I walk around saying "Charlie bit me...and that really hurt."



And this children's music video Cheese by Mr. Richard is hilarious and so true. Ahhh memories...one of my early jobs out of college was booking children's musical acts for an outdoor arts and entertainment festival. They are interesting breed.

Clear the Way!

While we were in Lake Tahoe last week, Tate really got the hang of walking while someone was holding his hands. So once we got home, the push toy walker was a breeze for him. I think there's still some time before he's completely walking on his own, but it looks like that time will be here soon.

We are so excited for him and proud of him. And as you can see, he's pretty excited himself.

2008 Strzinek Summer Series #3

This is way overdue, but I had to make sure and include a post about Tate’s first ever Vacation Bible School. It’s actually not called Vacation Bible School at RHCC, but you get the point. So his first ever Summer Spectacular was pretty spectacular. All three of us were impressed along with the 4,000+ who attended throughout the three nights.




This year’s theme was Jonah and after the classes, there was a musical of the story covered over the three nights. I wasn’t sure how Tate would do at that portion since it was well into the evening, but he liked watching the big chorus acts, bounced and clapped to the music, and LOVED when the huge fish came down and swallowed Jonah. He watched that fish the entire way down from the balcony, across the stage, and out of the auditorium. Ever since then, I can get a big laugh out of him when I say “Jonah, Jonah, Jonah” in my Jaws voice. My favorite part of the musical was the Nineveh song to the tune of Thriller.

Wade & I helped out in the 4s class and got to have fun with another big fish. I can’t take any credit for this impressive craftsmanship. Several people spent several days and nights putting it together (big props to the B's, O's, and O's). The kids loved it, and we all had a fun time!

I know that we have some time before Tate comes home with a memory verse or craft of his own, but I still loved watching him enjoy himself. And I loved thinking about all of the Summer Spectaculars in the years to come and all of the wonderful things he’ll learn.

Want To Be Friends?

After hearing a ton of conversations and all of the buzz about Facebook, I gave in. It's a funny thing to me...asking people if they want to be friends. Then there's the whole inferiority complex about whether or not you have enough friends. But hey, they've sucked me in. Now I've got to figure out what a wall is and why someone would want to be poked.

So if you're on Facebook, let's be friends!

A Fun Fourth

We had a fun and relaxing Fourth of July. We tried to go as low key as possible considering we had just come home the night before from a week-long family vacation (more on that to come).

Our 4th actually started on the 3rd as we were driving home from the airport and saw the City of Roanoke fireworks. I was pretty pumped to get to check fireworks off the list early and with no traffic. We just pulled off the side of the road, hopped out of the car, and watched. For his first time to see fireworks, Tate seemed interested but not necessarily as mesmerized as I thought he might. It was still a fun first.

On the 4th, we headed to a neighborhood parade full of firetrucks, candy, and lots of waving at the "ca" (Tate's new word for car). We wrapped up the day with swimming and ordering pizza. What more could you ask for?

Happy Birthday America!