A bit of sun between the snow…

Last week, before more snow fell on the East Coast, there were a few bright and sunny days. On one of my days off, we drove down to the park by the house (because we were too lazy to walk to the two blocks over). Paul ran around, yelling “Chase me, Dad!” Which, of course, was difficult for me, due to the fact that I was too lazy to even walk to the park. But I managed to run a few circles around the playground and throw the ball at him. Here are a few pictures from that most eventful day.

Hey, hey! No cameras, no cameras!

Like Father, like Son.

Here I come!

Whatchoo want me do?

Just Dad and Paul in the park.

Just Mom and Paul in the park.

And even Adam "Frank Hotdog" Sellers came along for the fun!

But of course, the snow came, and the park is once again blanketed. Oh well, it will be spring soon! Or at least we hope so.

An American Mormon in Washington

Last weekend, a former returned missionary flew out from the land of Zion to spend a few days with us. And while it pales in comparison to God’s Promised Land in that salty valley out west where he came from, he did enjoy his stay here in the nation’s capital. In all of his travels around the globe over the past few years – from the long inhabited hills of Poland, to the untouched glacial slopes of New Zealand, the war ravaged sands of Iraq, and recently the untamed waters of the Amazon in Brazil – he had never set foot in this part of the United States. So we had a fun couple of days checking out the sites that DC has to offer.

Paul and "Brand-em" stopped by to check out the Washington Monument, along with just about every other monument/memorial.

Ok, I'll walk with him... just as long as he's not keeping me...

Teaching Paul good habits, like walking on this ice above frigid water. The Reflecting Pool was iced over enough to walk on, at least until an angry DC police officer yelled at everyone.

Even Mom and Adam tagged along! Here checking out the WWII memorial.

And we finally found the Marine Corp Memorial, just outside of Arlington. Pretty impressive, and a lot bigger than I expected.

It's always good to have visitors, and having not seen him in almost two years, it was cool that he was able to hop on a flight and come out. Ah, the benefit of working for an airline!

Bring on 2010...

The old year is gone and the New Year is here! Ok, so it was here ten days ago, so you probably already knew that. But here are a few pictures from Christmas, the big snow, and just Paul being Paul.


This one, for example, would be just Paul being Paul. Loads of fun playing out in the snow, even for a Florida Boy.

Say Cheese! Or say... snow!

Yep, we got a lot that day. How much? A lot.


Seriously contemplating something.

And this was our Christmas Tree... before it was overloaded with Paul presents, and then shipped off to the recycling bin.

And this is Paul riding in style on his Lightning McQueen racing bike! Bring on the Tour d' France!

And Paul the Builder. Can he fix it? Nope, but he sure can break it.

That's all for now. It's gotten quite cold around these parts, so we haven't been out much to take pictures. That whole frost bite thing is slightly unpleasant, so we'll be hiding out inside for a while longer.

Oh boy... another one...

This week we discovered that Frank Hotdog is in fact, a boy. Thankfully for him, because if he was a she, then that would be a horrible name to have to explain. That brings the tally up to two children for this small family. And that would make him the third Sellers boy of this generation, the sixth Sellers grandson, the second Unbehend grandson, and the first of Paul’s little brothers. He is on schedule to launch April 15, 2009 and - if we can convince Paul to call him by anything other than the above referenced label - will be named Adam Michael Sellers. Here are a few of the sonogram pictures:

When I saw this picture I immediately noticed the resemblance to his older brother... other than the fact that he is lying still, something Paul never does.

Here, he is either smiling, crying, or dealing with a bad case of gas. Or maybe all three.

And this is the more traditional sonogram photo, I suppose. I really can't tell what's going on here, but the nurse said Becky may have to come back for more measurements because he was curled up in a ball most of the time. So we'll see. But otherwise, so far so good, healthy and growing as he should be. Halfway there already!

It's Christmas time in the city...

Yes, I know, it’s been a while. But ‘tis the season to be jolly! And things are looking somewhat like Christmas around here… or at least feeling like it. Against Uncle Ted’s reassurances that snow would never even think of falling in Maryland, we got seventy-eight inches of fresh powder last week. People were snowshoeing through the city and digging tunnels to get out of their front doors. I even noticed that a gaggle of penguins moved in across the street, though most of them were mauled and eaten by the polar bears. Ok, maybe it hasn’t been that bad. Maybe we only got about two inches and it melted off in a day. But it sure looked like winter for a moment. It is, however, cooler than cool, as in… ice cold. We had to buy one of those new inventions - or at least I never saw one in Florida - they call it an ice scraper, I guess? And scraping ice at 5:30 in the morning before work is about as fun as removing your own fingernails with a rusty bottle opener, which I thoroughly enjoy.


Even with the sun out, there's no stopping the blistering cold in these northern lands.

Yes, Paul's thoughts exactly. Why, Mom and Dad? Is warmth really that bad?

Just taking a few driving lessons in preparation for Frank Hotdog's arrival.

Paul and his mother and his winter coat and his mother's winter coat.

Ah ha! I see you trying to hide from the arctic winds!

The Senators are not sleeping in their seats today... they're frozen dead.

Ok, maybe it's not that cold... at least not cold enough to ever dampen this kid's spirits.

And now I've run out of ways to tell you that it's been cold here. Of course, for our western readers, temperatures in the 30's are most likely warm at the moment. But for those of us who were still walking on the beach at this time last year... yes, this is cold enough.

Rally Boys! There's Paul, standing like a stone wall!

Get behind the Virginians! Ah yes, the great state of Virginia. I would never turn my back on the state that I love so much. Ok, that wouldn't be Virginia. In fact, I try to stay out of Virginia if I can, for the simple fact that if you change lanes without signalling on one of their highways, they lethally inject you. They're serious about their traffic laws over there in the south. Which is another funny thing. Today we had to drive north to get to the South. Crazy. We took the short drive over to Virginia to see the battlefield at Manassas, or Bull Run, depending on whether you're a Yankee or a Rebel. Since I'm not a big fan of baseball teams that buy championships with hundreds of millions of dollars (and since I always root for the side that loses), I must be a Rebel. Anyway, here are some of the highlights:

We pretty much have a picture of Paul behind a cannon at every major battlefield in the States. So here is another one. You can see how amused he is.

Here we are, hanging out with General Jackson. This is where he earned is nickname Stonewall, for standing his ground and fighting off them dirty Yanks.

Paul took a moment to bask in the sunlight. It was a little brisk, but an otherwise beautiful Sunday afternoon to spend at the park.

Pick me up, Dad. Yeah, not as easy as it once was. The kid is getting bigger by the day.

And here he is with his mother and younger sibling, still known only as Frank Hotdog.

But it was another good day exploring the sites around the city and yet another battlefield. But we are not done yet, there are plenty more out there, so we'll have plenty more to post about! Just have to get another day off sometime...

California Dreamin'

Last week, Becky and Paul made the long flight across the country to visit her grandparents in San Diego. As can be expected, she took a few pictures during their trip. It looks like they had a great time, eating out, swimming in the pool (in November), going to Legoland and the Zoo, and otherwise just kicking back in sunny Californ-I-A. Check it out:

Gotta see the sights! Checking out the waters at Seaport Village.

Ahhh... warm water, just like Florida.

Shoo fly, don't bother me.

I really have no idea what to say about this one.

Soaring through the sky at Legoland with Grandpa Bill!

Who lives in a Pineapple under the sea? Paul's good buddy, Sponge Bob.

Gotta keep the pool clean.

Well, he had an excellent time with Great Grandpa and Grandma, and when he got off the plane he told me all about it. I'm glad they had fun, and hopefully next time I'll get to go along!