Katherine's Dance Pictures, Timmy's Sick Day, and Julia's First Day of Kindergarten

What Timmy did when he was home sick. 

Was he feeling to good to be home? Well, he was too sick to go!

He used every Lego!

Julia's first day of Kindergarten!

Here she is on August 26th, 2009 in Mrs Briggs class.

Pumpkin  (Apple, Banana, Zucchini) Bread

I created this recipe for 2 reasons. First, I love quick breads, but they are so full of sugar and fat that they are more like a dessert. This recipe preserves the flavor and moisture of the original with 1/2 of the fat and 1/2 or the sugar of most recipes. It also contains whole grains for  half of the flour.  It's a healthy snack.! My kids love it, and they can make it themselves. It is very easy. Secondly, pumpkin is the only vegetable besides carrots that have a good source of vitamin A for food storage. This recipe helps rotate a large can of pumpkin puree.

This recipe makes 4 large loaves or 8 mini loaves.

Wet ingredients

4 1/2 cups canned pumpkin (or mashed banana, or finely grated zucchini, or applesauce)

1/2 cup vegetable oil 

1 TB Vanilla

6 beaten eggs 

2 1/2 cups sugar (substitute 2 cups brown sugar and 1/2 cups white sugar for zucchini recipe)

1 cup milk (soy milk)

Dry Ingredients

3 cups whole wheat flour

2 1/2 cups white flour

1 cups quick oats

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp ground all spice

4 tsp baking soda

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease 8 mini loaf pans or 4 regular bread pans.

2. Mix the wet ingredients into a large bowl with a whisk until thoroughly combined. Whisk the dry ingredients in a different large bowl until completely mixed. 

3. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. Add the chocolate chips (optional).

4. Pour the batter into the loaf pans until they are 2/3 they way full and place the pans spaced out on the center rack of the oven. Bake for 35-40 minutes for the mini pans and 45-50 minutes for the larger loaf pans.  You will know they are done if they spring back when you touch the loaf in the center. If it collapses, add 2-3 more minutes and check again.

 

5. When finished baking, put pans on a cooling rack for 15 minutes, then release the sides of the bread with a dull  knife if needed. Take the loaves our of the pan and cool on the rack for another 10 minutes before serving.  Serve with a little butter and milk. Store loaves in the refrigerator in plastic wrap or Ziploc bags (2 per gallon bag).

Japanese Gyoza (Potstickers)

I learned to make this recipe when we lived in Japan. It's been almost 20 years since then! Gus and I ate Gyoza in Tokyo, Shizuoka,  Kansaii, Kyoto, Kobe, and little places along the way. We started to develop ideas for what we thought was "good gyoza". To us, this meant that it had a balance of pork and vegetable and  the right blend of onion, garlic, and gingers so that one flavor didn't overpower the others. 

We had our worst gyoza in Iberaki on a night when we were traveling, exhausted, and hungry! Needless to say, this is a strong memory of soggy, cabbage filled gyoza!  Our best gyoza was made at a chain of restaurants, famous with the Missionaries who went to  serve in Japan. It was called "Gyoza no Osho" or "The King  of Gyoza." They served lines of 6 gyoza at about 200 yen a piece.  If you could eat 10 lines of gyoza, you could get them for free. Many a missionary tried, and failed or made themselves sick! 

One story Gus loves to tell is when they picked up his new companion, Elder Stewart, a small town boy from Logan, Utah, just after he arrived from America. They took him to Gyoza no Osho and ordered the usual line of gyoza.  At the table was a bottle of red clear liquid, brown liquid and white clear liquid. You mix these together to get the sauce that is used to dip the gyoza in.  Someone told Elder Stuart that the red  liquid was the mildest of the 3 and that he should use plenty of that when mixing his sauce so that it wasn't too hot. Elder Stuart did as he was told and soon seemed very uncomfortable. He was drinking lots of water, his nose was running, and he was loosening his tie. He said something like, "Wow! If this is the hot stuff, I would hate to find out what the brown and white sauces are like!" 

At some point, maybe from the snickering, he learned that he had been dipping his gyoza "Rayu" or  hot chili oil. The brown liquid was merely soy sauce, and the White was Rice vinegar.  I have included the recipe for the sauce here also. It is inseperable when serving gyoza. Simply add more red chile oil if  you'd like to loosen your collar or make your nose run too!

 

This gyoza recipe is one that I was taught from a Japanese friend of mine when we lived in Shizuoka. It was a good one! The only difference is that I don't steam the cabbage before chopping it. I have tried it both ways and haven't noticed any difference in the gyoza'a flavor when it is added raw instead. It cooks up just the same. This eliminates a a cumbersome step.

We make gyoza from time to time for visitors, but lately we just do it for the kids! It is a special favorite of Sam, Timmy, and Julia. The day we took these pictures Dad, Katherine were in Germany and Rebekkah was at Girls camp. The four of us ate all 75 in about 2 meals! YUM! No guilt whatsoever! Hope you like it!

Gyoza Ingredients

A scant 1.25 lbs of ground pork

1 1/2 TB  grated ginger (about a 2x1 inch piece)

1 1/2 tsp pressed garlic (3 cloves)

2 bunches of green onions chopped in small pieces up to the dark green portions

2 cups  cabbage leaves chopped into tiny pieces (this is about 1/2 of a medium head of cabbage. Avoid the  thick core of the cabbage)

1 tsp salt

1 TB soy sauce

96 (2 packages) round gyoza skins (raviolli wrappers) or Square wonton wrappers in  the produce refrigerator section at the grocery store. The amount you make will vary depending on how much fill you put in them. 

Directions for Assembling Gyoza

1. Put all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Wash your hands well (or use food handling gloves) and mix the ingredients by squishing them through your hands until it appears evenly mixed. 

2. Prepare 2 cookie sheets or metal baking trays by spraying them lightly with cooking spray.  Fill a small bowl with water and get a tablespoon to scoop out the meat mixture with.  It helps to have 2-3 gyoza makers!  I use 1 to fill the gyoza skins and one to seal them. 

3. Place about 1 TB of gyoza mix in the center of the gyoza skin. (See Timmy above for an example). To seal the gyoza skin, put your finger in the bowl or water and then wipe it around the edge of the gyoza skin. Fold the skin in half around the meat and then press the edges together. They will seal beacause they are wet. 

4. You should now have a rectangle  or half circle with a lump of meat in the center inside. Now, place your finger into the water again. Wipe the water around the edges of the front (or top)of the gyoza (not the folded center). Then fold the ed the gyoza. You can also finish the gyoza by using your finger to flute the edges like you are making small pleats all the way around the edge. They look authentic and fancier this way! Then place the gyoza in lines on the cookie sheet. (See at Sam's picture above.) 

Cooking Instructions

1. Get a frying pan (non-stick preferrably) with a lid. Spray with cooking spray or baste with vegetable oil so that the entire pan is covered. Heat the frying pan to medium-high heat. Place the gyoza in lines of 5-6 gyoza a piece. That way you can flip them easily with the spatula (See picture directly above). Wait for it to turn a light crispy  brown , about 1-2 minutes,  (See picture on opposite page) then use a spatula to turn the gyoza over. Be careful to get under the gyoza completely or it may break open. 

2. Next, add  1/2 cup of water to the frying pan. Put the lid on and wait until the water is completely absorbed. Take off the lid and  wait until it begins to sizzle again. Remove the gyoza with a spatula.

Finally, serve with the gyoza dipping sauce over short grain, sticky rice. It's EASY! Try it!

Dipping sauce 

Mix in small bowls for each person.

1 part soy sauce (about 1Tb per person)

1 part  rice vinegar (it is much milder than white vinegar)

1/2 tsp sesame seed oil (per person)

1/2 tsp hot chili oil (rayu) or more if you like

Funny Julia"isms" this week

Friday night, January 23rd

Rebekkah, if you keep kissing me, I'm not going to invite you to my birthday party.

Friday Afternoon in the car to pick up the kids

Julia: I know everything

Mom: You do? Wow! I don't know anyone who knows everything but Heavenly Father.

Julia: I'm just kidding. I don't know everything!

I just know a lot about purses, food, and Kung Fu

Mom: You do? 

Julia: Yeah. You know, about black purses--like that one right there. And, food-- like the kind you cook--like pumpkin bread, and Kung Fu!

Wednesday after preschool, January 21st

"Mom, guess what? Julia, Jordan, and Jesus all start with J!!!"

Here is Julia's Song she sang while coloring 

(I was writing it down madly after I heard the first  2 lines):

Tears are coming to my eyes

Because I ate too much bananas

And then I watched Pink Panther!

My Ears are cold,

My Eyes are cold,

My head is cold ,

My eyes are watering. 

Everybody loves their family!

Everybody loves their cats!

Everbody loves their waterguns!

Everyone that's boys loves Spore! (A computer game we have)

Everyone loves the swingset to be on. 

Everyone jumps high in the air!

Everybody loves each other.

Everybody loves Jesus.

Timmy's Special Day

Finally! We are writing about Timmy's Baptism day. He was baptized on December 8th, 2008.  He was so excited that he could hardly wait for the day to finally come. On the lower left he is pictured with his Gus (Dad) and his cousin Ethan Black (who was baptized by his dad, Uncle Bob). Timmy waited a month so that he could do it with his cousin up in Ogden, Utah. One the far left is a picture of our family before the meeting. 

It was a great experience!

 

The Hart Aunts, Uncles, and Grandparents from Idaho came and so did the Levitre cousins & Grandparents from Utah. After the baptism, Timmy said he "felt good" and was happy. After that, he received a Priesthood blessing & was given the gift of the Holy Ghost to guide him through his life.  The Grand kids sang a beautiful song & the Grandmas gave the opening and closing prayers. To the left is Timmy after his Baptism. 

After the Baptism, we went over to Aunt Lisa & Uncle Bob Black's house. They made delicious BBQ pork sandwiches with lots of trimmings, salad, and chips with soda. It was an inside picnic. The day was beautiful and warm for December. 

We appreciate all the driving, cooking, and effort that everyone contributed to make this a wonderful occasion. 

We love Timmy! We all love his gentleness, eagerness, enthusiasm, good heart. We are pleased that he wanted to be a witness for Jesus Christ & follow him by being baptized. We have great hope his choice will bring him happiness!

 

My Very Important Japanese Presentation!

Today was my turn to do the Japanese presentation. I didn't speak to university and government officials. Instead, I presented to another important group of people--Julia's preschool class. I was asked to introduce them to Japan. 

They learned how to count to five, make Japanese animal sounds, and sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" in Japanese. They loved to sing in Japanese and make frog and dog sounds (gero gero and wan wan)! We also read the story "The Funny Little Woman" which is about a Japanese lady who gets into a predicament with monsters (oni), Shinto Gods, and a magic shamoji or rice paddle. After the book we talked about how to make our own rice dumplings by putting salt on your hands and then patting and squishing the leftover rice into a ball. 

Next, we tried on a yugata or summer kimono with the wooden shoes that men and women wear during the summer holidays. Finally, after looking at some beautiful pictures of Mount Fuji, Sakura (cherry blossom trees), waterfalls, and forests, we ate! The kids tried ebi (shrimp) flavored chips (most of them wanted seconds). Ms. Martha, our teacher/neighbor, said they tasted like fishstick crackers. We also ate chocolate covered cracker sticks and rice paper candy. They were thrilled about when the rice paper wrapper melted in their mouths. 

I had a great time introducing the kids to Japan. 

My favorite moment was when one little girl, Annie, said "I can't eat those, I'm allergic" 

I said, "Oh, you are allergic to rice? Are you sure, because these taste like jelly beans!"

She decided maybe she wasn't allergic.

She tried the candy anyhow and then wanted more!

Next time, maybe I'll bring squid jerky or seaweed! What do you think?

I'll bet they'll all be allergic!

To come later.... TJ's special Baptism day.   

How To Top The Last Blog Entry?

Well, it's not possible.

I can't type in Japanese or translate it or read it. So, this is really short.

Isn't Gus an interesting guy? We had the best time in Japan. It was a great way to start our life together. I'm glad to be married to someone who has taken me on so many adventures.

Read Gus's entry. It's more interesting than my commentary.

Trip down memory lane...

Going through the boxes of mementoes in my closet and the garage, I came across some things from 1990 when Cindy and I were newlyweds and living in Shizuoka Japan.

Here's a picture of where we lived. We lived in the lower left of the map, just to the left of the mountain right on the coast. At the top right, you can see Mt Fuji, which we could see from where we lived.

In one of the boxes, I came a across a talk I wrote for the commencement ceremony for the foreign students at Shizuoka University. It was a very formal affair. I was selected to represent all of the foreign students, and I had to read the speech in front of the University president and other big wigs and somebody from the Ministry of Education (the Japanese government agency that funded our year in Japan). Probably nobody but me will find it interesting but I had fun typing it in and trying to translate it. Translation follows the original.

答辞

夏休みに、日本最高の山であり、日本のシン
ボールでもある富士山に登りました。四時間
以上も苦労して、やっと山頂に到着しました。
とても疲れました。もう二度と登りたくはあ
りません。しかし、ご来光は感動的でした。
日の出は僅か十秒ほどで終ってしまいました
が、ぞれは深い印象を与えました。

静岡大学での留学の体験もあっという間にお
わてしまったように感じます。けれども、振
り返てみますと、一年という短い時間でした
が、すばらしい思い出がたくさん出来ました。
この思い出は私の宝物です。けっして、忘れ
たり、捨てたりはいたしません。

ホラ、外人だ、と小学生にいわれたと、静岡
から見た富士山、留学生のスキー旅行、先生
とのマンツーマンの勉強とお話、千代の富士
と大乃国の引退、唯一人のアメリカ人として
全くわからない和製英語を先生に聞いて笑わ
れた授業、一階の電気屋さんに洗濯の排水を
流してしまった時に笑って済ましてくれたこ
と、鈍行で広島まで行た旅行、妻のシンディ
と浴衣を着て揃って安部川の花火大会に行た
夜、雪がなくて少しい淋しかった静岡の冬、
クイズ番組が多くて面白い日本のテレビ、ド
ラマが馬鹿らしくて日本のつまらないテレビ、
いつもとても親切に助けて下さった教務係の
方々、日本人のやさしい心、相手を考える日
本の習慣と言葉使い、などなどは私の思い出
あります。

こんなにためになる勉強と、経験をさせてい
ただいたことを心より感謝しています。また、
文部省の研修生として勉強できたこと光栄に
思っております。研修生を代表してお礼を申
し上げたいと思います。

わざか一年間だけでしたが、おもいで豊かな
一年だったといえるでしょう。まだまだ未熟
な私たちですが、日本の習慣、日本の文化、
そして日本人の心を少しは理解できるように
なったと思います。そして、自分のことも理
解していただけるようになったと感じます。

帰国しても心は日本に残るでしょう。帰った
らホームシクになるかもしれません。

このすばらしい機会を与えて下さった文部省、
静岡大学ならびに静岡県民、そして日本の皆
様に心から感謝したいと思います。

最後に、皆様の御健勝と、静岡大学の一層の
御発展をお祈りいたします。ありがとうござ
います。

一九九一年九月十七日
ガス・ハート

Formal Reply

During summer break, I climbed Mt. Fuji, Japan's tallest mountain and a symbol of Japan
itself. After more than four grueling hours, I finally reached the summit. I was so tired. I don't
ever want to do it again. But the sunrise was impressive; it only lasted about ten secounds, but it
left a deep impression.

My experience as an exchange student at Shizuoka University feels like it lasted just a moment
too. But when I look back, even though the time was so short, I made lots of wondeful
memories. These memories are treasures. I'll never forget them.

Gradeschoolers yelling "Hey, a gaijin!", the view of Mt. Fuji from Shizuoka, the ski
trip with the other exchange students, studying and talking one-on-one with my advisor, the retirement of
Chiyonofuji and Onokuni (famous sumo wrestlers), the class period when everyone laughed at me, the lone
American, because I was completely baffled by their "Made in Japan" English, the time when we flooded
the electronics store below our apartment with our laundry water and the owners just laughed it off,
riding the "slow train" all the way to Hiroshima, getting dressed up in yukata and going with my
wife to the fireworks show at Abegawa, the snowless, and so slightly lonely, winter in Shizuoka,
Japan's interesting television with all kinds of quiz shows, Japan's boring television with
ridiculous dramas, the people in the department office who were always so kind, the kind heart
of the Japanese people---these are my memories.

I am truly grateful that I was given this opportunity for such useful study and experiences. Moreover,
I feel honored to be selected as an exchange student for the Ministry of Education. Let me express
thanks on behalf of all of the exchange students.

It was just one short year, but a year filled with memories. We are still inexperienced, but I think
we have come to understand, at least a little, the customs of Japan, its culture, and the heart of
the Japanese themselves. And, in turn, we too feel that we have been understood.

After we go home, our hearts will still be in Japan. Perhaps we'll feel a little homesick.

I would like to express my sincere thanks to the Ministry of Education, Shizuoka University, as well as the
citizens of Shizuoka prefecture for providing this wonderful experience.

Finally, I pray for everyone's health and the continued development of Shizuoka University. Thank
You.

Sept. 17, 1991

Gus Hart

Our Mixed-up Holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

This year we are doing things all mixed-up! Today, we took some family pictures. Then, we decided to decorate the tree because Gus and Rebekkah will be in Boston after our Thanksgiving trip. Rebby looked devastated when I suggested we decorate while they were gone next week so we did it early. Last night, after we put up the tree, I was tempted to sleep by it in the glow of the lights, but my bed called to me. Rebby did though! In the end, we managed to get the ornaments on with only breaking 4 of them-- 2 before any were even hung. Julia put all of her ornaments in one spot on the tree. It was fabulously dense and sparkly. My favorite ornaments are the ones the children made at school and church, usually wrapped in a brown bag and delivered to us on Christmas day! Aren't those the best? After we decorated, the children insisted that the cats were photographed with them too. 

Before decorating, we decided to get some family pictures. The last decent ones we had are 2 years old. Since I haven't been good about scheduling professional pictures, we opted for the tripod, timer and the backyard. We have a great one of me running to my spot and arranging bodies. I also didn't add the photo of when Tim pinched Sam and he flipped out and then, I flipped out! Some memories aren't worth preserving. Why does this always seem to happen during family photo shoots? For a few minutes, we all felt too sad (or mad!) to smile until Katherine (our oldest) started making silly jokes and getting everyone to lighten up! Then, the real smiles returned. Thanks to Katherine for turning a tense moment into a humorous one. Back inside, everyone was happy when the ornaments were pulled out. Our evening just got better and better.

Happy Thanksgiving to our dear Family and Friends.

We are so thankful to have you in our lives. We love you and appreciate your friendship, encouragement, company, and support.

During this season, I just wanted to mention a few of the things I am grateful for.

-Thank you, family and friends!

-I am deeply thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am grateful for what Christ did for me and all of God's children, for his love, example, and sacrifice. 

-I am thankful for an encouraging and loving husband who is a great friend and father.

-I am thankful for our children. I appreciate their unique personalities and talents and enjoy the wonderful company that they are to me

-I am grateful to have a home, food to eat, electricity, a vehicle, and plumbing!!! (I'd be a lousy pioneer). These are amazing gifts.

-I am grateful to live in a free country

-I am grateful that my children can receive and education.

-I am grateful for books, computers, medical care and even dentists!

There is so much more to say! 

Life is great!

Have a great week. 

Love, 

Cynthia

The Animal Guessing Game

Tonight we had a good hour in the car to "kill" on the way home from Bountiful, so Julia suggested we play "The Animal Guessing Game". It's like 20 Questions except that it's usually 60 questions and the person who is "it" has to think of an animal that we guess. 

Here were some of the questions that someone in the family invariably asked each time.

-Is it a Cuttlefish?

-Is it a Giant Squid? 

- (Julia) Is it a really really big, huge, giant squid?

-Is it an Echidna?

-Is it a Marsupial?

-(Mom) Is it a Chicken?

-(Timmy) Is it nocturnal?

-(Timmy's turn) What's a mammal again?

-We said no imaginary animals, but one time Sam picked Sasquatch, because he's a "mystery" animal and not imaginary. (IE: no one one has found him yet, but they have "seen tracks")

-One time, I was thinking of guessing a Tasmanian Devil for the fun of it when Timmy was "it", but I didn't. Then, no one could guess what his animal was. When he revealed the answer, it was........ a Tasmanian Devil! I think we are on the same wave length!

-One time, Gus was "it" and so was I!!!! After the kids guessed, Katherine asked some "afterthought" questions to make me feel better: Does she sing? Is she beautiful? Is she funny?

Thanks Kath. 

-Julia kept telling everyone to be quiet.

-Gus kept saying he "had a really good one" and wanted an extra turn.

-Sam kept saying, "My turn! I called it!"

-Katherine said, "I'm not guessing anymore!"

By the time we were to the house, no one was asking questions that made sense. Rebby asks, "Is it a mammal?" Timmy says "Yes!" Then, Rebby asks, "Is is a Shark?" Timmy says "NO!"

Mom asks," Is it a Basilisk?" Kath asks, "Is it Julia?"

It just kept going downhill. No logic whatsoever.

We recommend that you do not play this game for more than thirty minutes. Especially if you are tired or playing with strange people or have seen National Geographic specials on the Giant Squid or the Cuttlefish.

Powerful Bumps

Julia wanted to watch Hercules this afternoon during her quiet time. We were talking about how tough he was. She said, "Yeah, it's because he has those bumps all over him. They make him powerful!"

 I said, "Those bumps are called muscles!" 

She said, "Yeah those bumpy muscles make him so strong! He has them everywhere!" Then, she started to sing a "bumpy" song. The lyrics were. "Bump, bump, bumpy, bump, bump......" and so on and so forth.

So guys, whose says that the girls don't notice! Even four year olds are impressed by a few bumps!

Funny things the kids say...

Last night TJ (8) was soaking his hand (infected finger). To pass the time, I made him read to me. We were reading this great picture book, Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems. This is one of those books that we read to Julia (4) about once a day. On one page, TJ got stuck for a second on the word decided. Julia looked over my shoulder and matter-of-factly said, "decided!" TJ looked at me incredulously, as if to say, "how did she know that?" (she doesn't know how to read yet, of course.) I looked back at TJ. "She has the whole book memorized," I said. "Oh," he said indignantly. "That's cheating."

Today after church Rebekkah was meeting with the bishop (birthday interview). I was sitting outside with Julia, listening to her talk with one of the bishop's councilors. He remarked that she moved like a ballerina. "Your whole family is talented, singing, piano, dancing," he said. "And we're artists!" she says confidently (referring to the fact that the whole lot of them were drawing and coloring in sacrament meeting.) "But we don't draw until after the sacrament," I reminded her. Very indignantly, as if my remark had been condescending, she says, "You don't need to tell me that! I'm four years old!" Sheez, Dad.

The Tale of Princess Ariana.

Julia told me this story during today. I wrote down what she said immediately after while she was eating. The wording is almost all hers.

"Once a upon a time, there was a princess named Ariana. She lived in a VERY village. She had to clean her room. It was too much work, so she left the planet. She went to a being planet like earth. She went to build an Ark, but it was too much work. She asked he father for help. He did very hard work on it. There was a bad storm and they lived in the Ark with her family and the animals. The planet was called Jupiter. Then, she went on a bumpy ride to a farm and picked a pumpkin.

The End.

Just a couple of editorial notes: I did ask her to clean her room today and it was "too much work". Also, we read Noah's Ark last night. I'm sure you can place the pumpkin reference. 

Halloween Week!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

We celebrated for days!

As I walked through crowds of costumed children at the Elementary School Friday morning, it occurred to me what I love about Halloween.

 It was the chance to pretend. The children were contagious with happiness, imagination, and excitement to get be whatever they wanted to be for a day. Little girls got to wear wings, wigs, princess dresses, and lipstick. Little boys got to be tough superheroes, or monsters. They were thrilled to be something or someone else! 

Here are some of the highlights of our week of fun!

• Julia wore a costume everyday-- all day! At preschool she was the Little Mermaid. My favorite part of the Halloween program was when her wig came off during the singing. 
• Julia was "Pinkalicious" Halloween. She told dad that she got to wear "jewelry, lipstick, and curls". I was so glad she chose this costume because the Ariel wig was a pain! 
• Sam and Rebekkah made their own bows and arrows with Gus's help. As you can see, we had a real Medieval theme going. Sam looked very brave and convincing. Rebekkah actually learned achery in P.E., and it is her favorite sport  now.
• Timmy was Percy Jackson at Scouts in addition to being a Vampire on Halloween. Although not pictured, Gus made him an orange "Camp Half-blood" shirt for the Scout party. We enjoy these books and recommend them to you. Surprisingly, lots of people recognized his character!
• Katherine went to the same party 3 times on Halloween night (as she is learning to find directions). She actually made it after coming home finally and seeing a real map. She won second place in the costume contest (thanks to Aunt Jen). She was gorgeous. We were afraid to let her leave the house alone.
• Rebekkah had planned for months to be Susan from Narnia and fit the part. She can now use the curling iron like a Veteran. 
• I was a pumpkin! I got to read Halloween stories to Timmy's class for their party! I read "FrankenFrog" and a story about an Alien who came to visit on Halloween. I read to 5 groups and was pretty hoarse by the end. I sure love to read to the kids though. 
• Gus (not pictured) wore an orange shirt that said "This is my costume!" Where was the camera?
• Sam mummified Julia at his class party. He was great with her.
• We had a wonderful time with the Abbotts while our kids went around the neigborhood on Halloween Eve. We had hot cider, cards, salsa and chips, and watched "Hook" when the kids came home. It was a treat for us! 
• An important "Thank You" note.  Halloween costumes were made possible by the dilligent duo, Aunt Jen and Grandma Lynda, who scoured the thrift stores and their costume closets for these fabulous costumes. Every year the seem to find exactly what the kids have be wanting to be! My contibutions were Tim's black pants, Julia's pink and green undershirts and the wig. Oh yeah!-- and the curls on 2 of the girls and their lipstick.
• Finally, I made tasteless chili on Halloween. This was not a highlight of the week. I think it won the prize for being most flavorless dish I've ever made. I kept wondering if I was sick or losing my sense of taste. It smelled fine, but no matter how much salt, spice, or extra tomatoes I added, it still tasted like nothing. I tried to eat it again this morning and threw in some of the left over Salsa from last night. I was amazed at the difference. If you ever have this problem... try salsa. 

A Balleter! (ballet-er)

She's not having a fit. She's not sick. 

She said, "When I grow up I want to be a Physics, a Teacher in a Class, and a Balleter!"

The other day, I found her in graceful, frozen positions all over the house- on the floor, the couch, in the kitchen, the family room. 

She was showing me how you do ballet.

There is a lion sleeping in my bed

The harp started to play. It soothed the beast and next thing we knew, she was asleep! I've always thought that all baby animals are cute. You just want to take them home and keep them as pets.

Gus's Trip to Germany, South Africa, London Fall 2008

To meet with some collaborators, I visited Erlangen and Stuttgart in Germany, and Cape Town South Africa. On the way home, I stopped to see my brother- and sister-in-law in London.

This is the Rokoko Hotel in Erlangen Germany where I stay sometimes. If you know anything about the history of mathematics (or physics), you'll be interested to know you can walk a few minutes from this spot and see where Emmy Noether grew up. I just happened across it by accident when I was visiting a couple of years ago.

While in Erlangen, I spent an evening at a Spanish restaurant eating tapas. This is Aliyah, my friends' (Daniel and Kathrin) little girl. Fortunately she had Old McDonald's Farm in English.

In Stuttgart, I spent a couple of days at the Max-Planck-Institut for Metals Research to work with my friend Alejandro Diaz-Ortiz (who is from Mexico but whom I met in Montreal but now lives in Germany). We're working on a number of projects together. This is a photo of the guesthouse at the institute.

It's a huge lab with a dedicated guest house with probably 45 rooms for visitors. They pay all my expenses when I come---so I invite myself often ;-). The institute is out in the country side. The village, Busnau, where it is located probably only has 1000 people. There's only one store, one restaurant, and one bar. It's about 20 minutes from downtown Stuttgart. On this trip, I attended church in Stuttgart (usually I go to church in Erlangen). It was an international ward (there's a big US base nearby).

I left Stuttgart for Cape Town. In the Stuttgart airport, hanging in the lobby were several antique airplanes and this really cool "glider". They had a sign up about it...but it was all in German.

I arrived in Cape Town after an overnight flight. My host was excited to get right to work...so I had a shower and went straight to...see penguins.

On the way, a whale waved at me.

I stayed in a really nice bed-and-breakfast near the university.

We had a busy couple of days at the office. On the day I was heading to London, my hosts had to leave before me for a wedding in Zimbabwe. So I spent a couple of hours on the famous Table Mountain in Cape Town. The cable car was really neat. The floor rotated as the cable car moved so that you got a view from every angle. A newly graduated masters student took me around. His name was Osei. He had been a high school teacher for many years and then had come back to school to become a materials scientist.

On my way home I stopped in London to see Cindy's brother and his wife, Micah and Tat. I have lots of cool pictures from that part of the trip, but this blogger interface stinks, frankly, and it's taken me days to try to get the layout decent and I'm just going to give up or this post will never see the light of day. So instead let me just say that in London I squeezed 2 weeks worth of sightseeing into two days. Here's a partial list (without pictures) of the cool things we did or saw.

• Dropped off my luggage at the flat after flying all night from Cape Town. Went to Burroughs Market. Ate some yummy food.
• Saw Southwark Cathedral, walked across the London Bridge.
• Went to St. Paul's Cathedral (lots of really famous people buried here) and climbed all the way to the top of the dome, looked out over London.
• Went to a fancy French pastry shop for pistachio macaroons and hot chocolate.
• Walked to the famous Temple Church which was rude enough to be closed.
• Walked through Covent Garden where Eliza Dolittle meets Henry Higgins outside the opera theater.
• Walked down Drury lane (you know, the muffin man...)
• Saw the outside of the Royal Courts of Justice (UK's supreme court)
• Saw a really big Masonic temple
• Walked down Charings Cross road but (because we are muggles, I guess) couldn't see the Leaky Cauldron.
• Ate at a hip Japanese restaurant called Wagamama (means "spoiled one")
• Saw much of the British museum. Among many other cool things saw the real, live (OK, it's not alive) Rosetta Stone.
• Ate ice cream from a cool shop called Scoop
• Ate Indian food at a place called Masala Zone
• Ate chocolate with Micah and Tat that I brought from Germany.
• Saw General Priesthood meeting at the UK church headquarters...but on Sunday morning because of the time difference.
• Drove past Buckingham Palace in a taxi (taxi drivers in London are amazing...story for another day)
• Went to the Victoria & Albert museum.
• Ate great steak and french fries at a French restaurant (wow, best fries ever)
• Attended evensong services at Westminster Abbey (we sat in the choir seats!). This was incredible. On the way out, Micah noticed that we walked right past Isaac Newton's crypt in the abbey.
• Saw the National Gallery (Monet, da Vinci, Picasso, van Gogh...you name the artist, we saw their work).
• Saw the map that changed the world in person.
• Picadilly Circus, statue of Horatio Nelson, some other famous church, monument to Ghandi...

What Sam and Tim said while playing Civilization.

Civilization is a computer game that is a lot like Risk. There are armies and you build up you own country. Sam and Timmy were playing it on the kitchen computer while I was doing the dishes.

Here's what I remember.

Timmy: "Okay Sam, now we need to do the thing that's like candy."

Sam: "Yeah, all the countries need to make treaties next."