Thank you all for making this such a wonderful Christmas for our family. The girls were overwhelmed with gifts and we were overwhelmed by your generosity.

We were actually able to do something special this year. Our morning activities were video broadcast via Skype all the way to Kansas City so that Ray and Kristin could “be here” with us. It was pretty cool…

Well have pictures posted depending on if there is internet access in Williamsburg where we will be staying. We’ll be coming back around the new year so we’ll see you then!

Our days without children seem like a distant memory and in those times when we can sneak away without the offspring it seems like all we do is talk about the kids. I know this is probably typical but its funny nonetheless.

Through all the difficulties, challenges, and trying times, the ups and downs of life, the adventures, and the quiet evenings at home love has always been there.

Happy Anniversary!

As with most, since our last post things have not settled down a whole lot. I have been working a lot of hours including many of the past few Saturdays and Sundays. This has left a lot of work on the home front in the lap of Erin. On top of that, Kate has been giving us some new challenges.

In turns out the poor kid has bad acid reflux so now we have her on a regiment of peppermint flavored Zantac. We aren’t sure but this also may be related to the fact that all of a sudden she wanted nothing to do with bottles anymore. We are in the process of deprogramming her and that is taking a lot of work and a ton of patience. We’ll get through it though…

Alex is really, really, really excited about Christmas this year. It should be a blast watching her open all of her presents…and boy are there a lot! The day after Christmas we pack up and drive down to Williamsburg where we will meet my family and spend some time at a resort there.

We have some new pictures but you’ll have to go look at them yourself. I don’t have time to post them now. I will try my hardest to get some video of Alexandra singing her little heart out up. She really loves to sing.

All for now…Merry Christmas!

This has been a big year for our family. We have seen our share of struggles and adversity and along with all of the rest of the world are trying to deal with the current economic challenges. Despite these things we have an abundance of things to be thankful for.

We have a wonderful two year old who brings us joy each and every day. This year we have watched as her personality really started to develop. She has learned how to talk and more importantly SING!!! She loves to sing and dance! We survived the potty training phase without too much strife. Alexandra is no longer a toddler. She has become a full blown kid!

This May I completed my Master’s Degree program at Penn State. I am now a Master of Engineering in Systems Engineering. This was a big step forward for us and was the culmination of almost three years of hard work and sacrifice. This accomplishment has already opened additional doors for my career and I have been presented with a wonderful opportunity to advance my career.

Most notably, this year the newest member of our family arrived. We are so thankful to have been introduced to Katharine Avery. The transition has been challenging, but we expected nothing less. It is strange to think that we are now a family of four. She is a healthy growing baby. Just this past Tuesday she had her 8 week checkup. She now weighs in at 11 pounds, 9 ounces, a full 5 pounds bigger than her birth weight! We were all kind of shocked by that! She has become much more active and we are entering the time where she will start to become a little more interactive…we are excited about that!

I could not write this post without telling you all how thankful I am for my wonderful wife. She works so hard each and every day to make our lives what they are. She works through a seemingly endless string of chores and laundry, continuously picks up toys and cleans messes. She is a great mother to our children and a wonderful wife to me. I love her very much and could not imagine my life without her.

Our Day

Erin’s mom flew in a couple weeks ago and her dad joined us last Saturday. Much to their surprise Erin’s sister Kristin showed up this morning to join us for turkey day (it was a big secret). Our bird is in the oven as I type and we should be eating in about an hour.

Happy Thanksgiving! There are plenty more pictures up on the pictures page…

So, what did we miss? Well, Erin’s sister Kristin was here for a few days back in mid-October and my mom was here in late October. We had halloween (or halloweeny as Alex calls it) and Alex had a grand time saying “trit tor treat” although she started getting greedy half way through.

Besides that stuff we have just been busy trying to acclimate to being a family of four. Kate is nearly 8 weeks old now (when are we supposed to start keeping track in months? So confusing…) and she has really filled out. She is much more solid and we are finally free of the eye goop phase.

She doesn’t sleep as well as Alex did a this point and that is certainly taking its toll on Erin. I think we were very lucky with Alex and we became spoiled by her wonderful night time sleeping (although day naps is another issue altogether.

So by this point you must be wondering where all the pictures are. So, I will stop typing (its all I ever
do anymore) and get to the media…

Behold: The last month in pictures…

Attack of the SISTER!!

ENJOY! It’s catchy!

Now back to your regularly scheduled blogging…

- Soviet Leader Nikita Khrushchev, 1959

We are in uncertain times right now. There are a lot of things wrong in this great country of ours that need to be addressed. In my mind it is unfortunate that this year is an election year and that all these issues are being exploited for political gain. We are dealing with a struggling economy brought about by greed and bad decisions. We are paying ridiculous sums of money for natural resources. Every time we turn around we hear about another scandal our elected officials are involved in. On top of that we have brave young men overseas fighting to defend our rights and freedoms. In the midst of all these distractions the partisan infighting going on right now is dangerous.

In conversations with Erin we have discussed and agree that the goals of both Democrats and Republicans are largely the same. We all want great educations for our kids, affordable healthcare, and financial security. The difference in philosophies between the parties represent different means to the same end. This is a somewhat blanket statement and certainly does not mean that there aren’t differences on certain topics (think gun control and abortion). So why all the hate?

In less than three weeks America has a decision to make. We will have to choose which philosophical paradigm best fits with how we think our country should be run. I acknowledge that most voters have already made up their mind and that is ok but if I can convince a single person with the content of this post then I have made a difference.

I was raised in a very Republican household. I believe our alignment with this party was more on the basis of moral standards than economic or foreign policy. I still consider myself a conservative and I find many ideas presented by the left to be so incredibly “out there” I feel that my head may explode! I will ask you to forget that now. Forget that I am a Republican. Forget that you are a democrat, Libertarian, or independent. We are Americans!

I highly disagree with the modus operandi employed by the Democrats on most policy issues. While it would be nice if each and every person made good money, had all that they needed and then some, and it didn’t require a lot of effort, this is not a reality. That is an idea called a utopia. They simply cannot and will not exist. Many have tried, none have succeeded.

Socialism and Communism are structured to bring about Utopian societies. The main problem that arises is that ineviably two classes emerge: those in charge and those not. Those in charge live comfortably, have all they need and enjoy life. Those not in charge toil meaninglessly through life…just ask the Russians.

Surely by now you have heard of story of “Joe the plumber”. A few days ago Joe did something that needed to be done long ago. He brought Barack Obama to the mat. He, just for a second, got the Big O to reveal his true intentions. Make no mistake, I believe the Big O to be a straight up Socialist. THIS SCARES ME! With Democrats in control of Congress and Big O in the White House dangerous legislation could be passed that will change the way America is. Obama’s declared intention to “spread the wealth around” should be a red flag to every single person in this country.

Sure, Obama says 95% of Americans will not see an income tax increase, which may be true. I may not make $250,000 a year right now but I would like to think that sometime in the future I may. The policies put in place today can have a lasting impact, even reaching into my retirement! So how does Big O increase spending and decrease income tax? He taxes companies. What do you think the companies will do? They will lower costs and raise prices! The end result is that jobs are lost and that tax hike on them gets passed back to you anyways!

Obama told Joe the Plumber that he just wants to “spread the wealth around a bit”. Be very wary. Robin Hood prided himself to be a man who stole from the rich to give to the poor. The law was painted as corrupt and unfair. The thing is that no matter how you shake it, he was a THIEF. He stole!

Barry-o wants to help the poorer among us. I commend him for that and agree that something needs to be done. His plan is to retool or introduce new social programs to the tune of billions of dollars (coming from the rich and the corporations no doubt). Just sit there and think for a minute. What has the government ever done in an efficient manner? Name me a single thing that the United States government performs well in! I have studied social programs and how they work and what their effectiveness are. Most data shows that many of these programs have a greater negative impact than a positive one. They exacerbate the situation. The government’s response? Put more money in the system. That’ll fix it! Except it doesn’t. It hasn’t.

For the poor I’m sure the idea of spreading the wealth around sounds great! Why not! Free money is always great! The problem is that wealth redistribution (directly or indirectly) will hamper the engine that runs America: Ingenuity.

Let me frame it another way. Why should I work hard and put forth a lot of effort when they lazy guy next to me slacks off all the time and gets paid the same as me? Where is my incentive to achieve? Why should a person go through years of medical school to make the same wages as somebody who mops floors?

Our tax structure as it is already favors the lower income in the country (see my post here for a simplified explanation of our tax structure called “Barstool Economics”) While it would be nice for everybody to have health insurance and retirement benefits they are privileges granted to those who can afford it and have prepared for it, not something we have a right to have…not something the government should have to provide for free. Does the constitution mention a right to healthcare? What about retirement?

This topic hits close to home for my extended family. Many of you know that my dad was born in Cuba. He left there to come to America when he was young. From the stories I have heard passed on from my grandfather things were bad. Originally, my grandfather was a rich man in Cuba. He was a farmer with lots of land and fields. They had acres of coffee bean and livestock. They had all they needed and then some. When Castro and his regime took over my grandfathers farm was confiscated. The government took what he had spent his life building, broke it into pieces and handed out.

What the Big O is suggesting is much more subtle. There will be no sweeping changes made…not initially anyways. It will start with a tax hike on the rich and a tax cut on the middle class. Where will it stop? Think about that. When you go to vote, think about that.

I didn’t realize when I wrote this post that my brother had written an excellent piece over on loPEZdispenser.com. He asks the question “Does the American Middle Class Really Believe in Wealth Redistribution?” He then tries to explain why much of the Republican base (hardworking middle class) will vote for McCain even though they stand to benefit financially from Obama’s tax plan. Its a good read and I recommend you check it out.

This weekend we went to Highlands Orchard and picked some apples with our friends the Rohners. While there we also ran into the LaGarde’s and the McLaughlins. It was such a nice day I guess we all decided to enjoy the outdoors.

Alex seems to like getting her picture taken again (after a long hiatus). She especially loves to make silly faces and say “CHEEEEESSSEEE!”

Below are some of the picture highlights. As always you can see the full set of pictures in our photo album or by clicking here.

On Saturday, Erin’s sister will be arriving to stay with us for several days. After that we have no scheduled visitors until the end of October.

I think we are all adjusting pretty well. Alex probably has it the hardest since she doesn’t quite get what is going on. Sunday night we actually got a five our stretch of sleep. The baby is doing well but she does like to be held. This is completely contrary to how Alex acted so we aren’t quite sure what to make of it all.

Sisters

Of course everybody is asking who we think Kate looks like the most and wonder if her and Alex look alike. I decided to put up some side by sides of Alex and Kate and then let you make the call. Below Alex is on the left and Kate is on the right.

So what do you think? Dan, Erin, or Alexandra? Leave a comment and let us know.