Nathaniel loves babies.  He’s adorable when he gets around them…so sweet and tender. 

We spent a day in Alabama visiting Dustin and Joli (and Ryli and Silas and Baby Malachi), and Nathaniel OUT OF THE BLUE comes up to me while we’re paying for lunch at the Cracker Barrel–and this is the conversation that transpired:

“Dad, can you get your stuff back?”

“What stuff?”

“Your stuff.  Can you get your stuff back?”

“Nathaniel, what are you talking about? What stuff?”

“Your baby stuff.  I WANT A BABY SISTER!!”

(shocked and awed)
“No, honey.  NO.”

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Just want to post a few pics for your enjoyment:

At the Burbank airport on the way to Nashville.

Rhythm Recording day at Ocean Way, Studio B

My sweet, sweet family on Day 3 of recording.

Aren’t we a handsome bunch?

Some of the kids singing on Day 3

Day 4 of recording: drama and solos

Kids on Day 4

Nathaniel getting ready to read a drama part for the play.  This was his little cubby for the day.

Noah, Silas, Nathaniel, & Ryli in Alabama

We’ll be home in a couple of days! See you all soon

People are having babies left and right. 

A week or so ago, Christy’s brother’s wife had a baby.

We visited some people this morning that had a newborn.

And our friend Melody had a baby on Saturday.

We showed the kids a picture of Melody’s newborn and Noah turns to Christy and says, “WE ARE THE ONLY ONES WITHOUT A BABY!!”

HAHAHA!

No Noah.  YOU’RE the baby.  Except now you’re 6 years old.  And we’re DONE having babies.  Forever.

Sorry, bud.

I can’t think of any more efficient and proper way to do this except to make a list.  So here goes nothin…

1) Melody and Chris had their baby today.  Congrats to baby Bennett!  He’ll always be Humperdink Holz to me…we’re sad to not be there to support them in this new part of their life.  But I guess there’s always next weekend…

2) Scott Douglas got married today.  I’m SO sorry that I missed your wedding, Scott.  You are a dear friend and I am bummed to not share this happy day with you and your new bride.  Many blessings on you both, I’m so happy you found each other!

3) I have successfully not eaten sweets for several months now, and I’ve shed 25 lbs as a result of my discipline.  After going a few months STRICTLY not eating desserts, I resolved to eat one every now and again on special occasions–birthdays, meals with others where it would be socially awkward to decline, and so on…but it seems like this week there has been a “special occasion” every freaking day.    Not that I want to be obsessive about it, I just don’t want to “fall off the wagon” (so to speak).  I feel much better when I’m NOT habitually eating sweets–physically and mentally.  It makes a huge difference in my blood sugar when I consume something with the simple carbs/sugars.  I can feel the sugar rush and drop.  It’s no fun and something I don’t want to be in my life on a regular basis.  I need to be a taaaaaad more disciplined this coming week…

4) Our Nasvhille trip is going SMASHINGLY.  I cannot wait for you all to hear the tracks.  Our experience here is coming to a close, but it has been more awesome than we could have imagined.  We feel tremendously blessed and honored to be doing this…

5) For some reason, I forgot to pack socks.  I have no white socks, no black socks…no NOTHING, except the ones I was wearing.  I was going to buy some more, but I’ve been busy in the studio, so I’ve worn the same pair like 20 times in a row…I guess their going to be my “lucky socks” from now on.  I’ll only wear then to Nashville.  HAHA.  No really, I need to get some today.  The Great Sock Debacle of 2009 needs to end.  Now.

We’re headed out in just minutes…
I guarantee we’ll face the inevitable questions from Christy…

Did I forget to unplug the curling iron?
Did we leave the stove on?
Is the front door locked?

No, No, and Yes.  It’s alllllll good…

I feel like we’ve been packing and preparing for this trip for YEARS, so I definitely feel ready…

I even called ahead to confirm car rental and hotel reservations. 

We could barely sleep last night.
SO EXCITED!!

Tomorrow our family heads to Nashville!

The four of us are headed out to record a kids musical for Word Music that Christy wrote. 

Woo Hoo!

We’re so excited…can’t wait to visit with friends, can’t wait to hear our music in the studio…and we can’t wait to hear all of this hard work come to fruition.   Christy has really done a superb job writing this (in my humble and oh so non-biased opinion), and it’s been a blast for us to do together. 

I’m sure we’ll take pictures…

Fall is a weird time, especially this Fall.  I can’t put my finger on it, but I think it has to do with the fact that it rained all day Tuesday and then on Thursday it was 95 degrees.   The weather has been really disappointing.

Or maybe it has to do with the fact that I don’t really like Halloween. 

Or maybe it has to do with the fact that Christmas is almost here…which means lots of rehearsals and performances and all kinds of stuff to do–and THEN–being the horrible gift-givers that Christy and I are–finally purchasing a meager amount of Christmas presents and cards on…say…oh…the 26th…and then carrying the guilt of being such inconsiderate, unloving Holiday folks…

But today during orchestra practice we played a piece that felt REALLY Christmasy, and I got in the spirit of things for a moment…and it felt joyous.

But Christmas feels more like Winter than Fall, and I like Winter.

Not Fall.

Fall is dead to me.

My church in San Diego is hiring a Multimedia Director. 

Check it out and apply here. 

Good luck!

I was going to write an introspective entry about the fact that we’re flying out to Nashville next week to record a musical that my wife wrote…and how cool it is going to be…and the emotions that accompany such a journey…

But honestly, right now the main emotions I feel are panic, frustration, stress, and anxiety…BECAUSE MY INTERNET IS DOWN at home.  !!!!!!!
I can’t send any emails from my home computer with attachments…I can’t upload Pro Tools sessions to my iDisk…or do any of the hundred things I normally do on a day-in and day-out basis in order to do my job.  And of course it had to happen this week, the week before we leave…

And now everything is taking twice as long because of the gazillion work arounds + time on the phone with AT&T trying to get it fixed + time with the technician that comes out to fix it + him telling me he can’t fix it + all of the copying of data to external drives and trips to Starbucks to upload files (what I’m doing right now) and the eons of time wasted due to this incredible inconvenience. 

I know I’m wallowing…I know, I know, I know…(wah wah)

I guess I had no idea how much I rely on the stupid internet in order to live.

I know there’s a lesson the Lord is trying to teach me in here somewhere…I JUST KNOW IT…but I’m too caught up in the moment right now to see it…

OK…I better go, only 2 more hours until this 600MB file is done uploading (thank you, slowestinternetconnectiononplanetearth).

1,000 frownie faces.

I snapped this photo the other day while walking past.

And I start thinking to myself…

Wait a minute–this is odd.  Don’t “vacancy/no-vacancy” signs appear only on motels and such?
Why in the world would a senior apartment complex have a “no vacancy” sign out front?
Is there ever a time when they would need this sign? 
Are people dying here left and right to necessitate a DAY-TO-DAY informational sign to let people know just when they can move in?

WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THIS SIGN?