Back to School, Back to School.....

Man, real life set in hard this week. I had a ton of homework that I was suppose to do over the break, but hey it's a break right. So I had to stay up till 2am doing homework monday night. On tuesday I was very tired and still had an unreasonable amount of work to do, so I was a bit grumpy to say the least. I e-mailed a class mate to make sure I hadn't missed anything on monday when I left class on time (my professor loves to go over and I have to walk across campus to get to my next class.) He said that instead of the 14 or so 'suggested' problems that we were suppose to do over the break, he was just having us turn in the 3 'required' problems. So my work load went from outrageous to laughable. It's funny how we get all worked up over nothing isn't it? Well, my attitude got much better and wound up spending a pleasant evening with my fantastic wife. The one thing that I miss about not having kids is being able to spend time with Sarah. I did like to do whatever I wanted to on my few days off, but that's not that big of a deal. The problem is that even when Sarah and I are home at the same time, there is another person pulling for our attention. Luckily that person is also a reminder of how much we love each other, so I'll let it slide I guess. All jokes aside, I have been blessed so very much by having Sarah in my life. For those of you who don't know her well; she is very bright, beautiful, extremely responsible, always does whatever it takes to get things done, and best of all she loves me. Even when I've ticked her off a bit, I still know that she loves me. I'm not sure why she does, but it's awesome. On a practical note, I'm not always very good at being extremely responsible, but Sarah has helped me become much better in that respect. And I like to think that I've helped her loosen up a bit and not take things too seriously.
Well, baby's up and I better run.
charlie

Mr. Mom

I just spent a very interesting spring break getting a taste of what Sarah did for the first 3 months of Dylan's little life. It's awesome to get to spend time with Dylan, but there are many challenges to being a stay-at-home parent that I had not yet experienced. I was prepared for it not to be all fun and games (games being a bit advanced for Dylan at this stage), but there's nothing like experiencing things first hand. What gets you is basically a combination of loneliness and not enough time to your self (if that makes any sense). There is a definite longing for adult conversation. Don't get me wrong, I truly enjoyed our time together; but around Thursday I must admit that I was looking for a serious break from diapers and feeding and making funny faces that she usually didn't find very humorous.
That being said, it really was a good week. We got to play with Mary, Henry and Maggie which was a blast. We also got to introduce Dylan to new cousins which we always love. I'm attaching a picture of Dylan with Seanna and Sky; Sarah's sister Jenny's girls. Jenny and her husband Fenton came in to town for the week with the girls and we really had a good time. Dylan also made out like a fat-cat since now she has two cousin's worth of hand-me-down clothes. If you guys are reading this, I hope we get to see you again soon. As Jim Farnsworth has always told me, family is really what life is all about. I think family is a great avenue for God to teach us many many things. The problem with family is that you can't pick your family, but I think that is awesome. It stretches us sometimes, but it teaches us to love others even when we don't necessarily see eye-to-eye. You may not agree with your crazy uncle Ned's views, but it's still nice to see him from time to time cause he's your Dad's brother and part of your family's history. Your sister may drive you crazy, but you'd travel around the world to help her if she were in trouble. I think it's a great example of unconditional love that most people don't experience anywhere else. I feel very fortunate to have such awesome family.
Here's a video of Dylan making cool baby noises (Lee Y. I know you love these)
charlie

As life flies by

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about how I'm creeping up on 30 and I'm not sure when it happened. I'm getting e-mails about 10 year reunions, I have a niece, a nephew, and a daughter; But I don't really feel much different from when I was 16. I still like starwars, I wish I could play video games every day, my sense of humor hasn't changed all that much (farts are still funny). I guess I just feel a bit like the kid in Big; I'm twelve but I look older and no one is buying me food anymore (well, technically my wife is giving me money to buy food now that I'm in school, but you know what I mean). But then I think about how much I have changed. I've been married now for almost 7 years! I don't go home right after school or work and hang out with Lee or Mac, I come home and take care of my daughter and hang with my beautiful wife. I try to pick up after my self, and though I may not always succeed, I am way better than when I was in college (ask Lee). I do the dishes before they smell like rancid food, I cook dinner often since Sarah get off work after I get off school. I'm really nothing like I was when I was 16 except that I'm me. I always thought that I would feel different when I got older.
I saw some really cool pictures the other day of my wife's family. Some of them were very old. My wife's grandfather is an incredibly sweet man and has a great love of family. He made us some CD's with pictures of his wife, her family, and then of him and her together with the kids. It's really incredible to see a picture of a 25 year old man or woman that you have only know since they were 65. It makes you realize just how little separates us from our older selves. Sarah's mom was so cute as a kid (and is very beautiful today in her 30s), but it was fun to see a look in her eyes at 13 that I have seen many times since I have known her. It makes me feel like it's ok to be a man that feels like a boy.
Anywho, I'm going to post a really long but cute video of Dylan. There is also a lot of silly talking and noise making by Sarah and my self. Some of you may want to skip to the end cause she does her best tricks then, but I figured the grandparents and great-grandparents would want to see the whole thing. Hope you enjoy!
Charlie

Awesome news!

Lee and Christy are having another baby! Man, I can't wait. The more babies the better I say. Of course I grew up with Christy, and Lee and I have been really close ever since we spent every hour of every day together our freshman year of college. Ever since they started popping out beautiful little girls I've been hooked. I remember doing matrix moves with Anna when she was old enough to hold her head up, and then changing Lee's brakes while Norah picked up the filthy nuts and bolts. I just love having them in my life. If you wanna see pictures of their girls (trust me you do!) then check out Lee or Christy's blogs which are linked on the right. It's fun thinking about another little one running around the Younger house. Congratulations to both of you, and here's hopin' the sickness only lasts 2 weeks this time!

Sorry to all of you who wait for my updates on pins and needles, I know it's been rough, but my computer was down for a while. While we've been on hiatus lots of cool stuff has been going on in Dylan land. She smiles much more now, and she holds her head up all by her self. She found her hands the other day and has been chewing on them since. She "talks" a lot as well. She's taken to filling her diaper while standing up for some reason as well. It's a lot of fun, and anyone who wants to come by just give me a call, I love to show her off. Pray for Sarah this week if you think about it, it's her first week back at work and I know she's missin' Dylan. OK, I'll stop blabbing and get to some cool pics and vids of the last couple weeks.