Hi all. It has been a long month so far. My month started out with a suicidal bird and getting stuck in Honduras while waiting for the airplane to be fixed. Then a week of ground school for 10 hours a day. That alone is enough to tire a guy out. But then I had 4 - 16 hour days and one 9 hour day. Needless to say I have been too tired to do much of anything, especially blog; but I'll try to catch you all up on your favorite Floridians.
First, Grandma Ortiz came down to help Kathy out for a week while I was so busy. Kathy and I had our 2nd date since Julia was born and went to see "Little Fockers". I'm sorry that I didn't get to spend much time with you Grandma Ortiz but I really appreciate you coming down.
Kathy was very excited to have her mom for a whole week and they managed to do plenty of shopping! They even went and got us all some new pictures of your favorite baby. Kath has been working hard with the kid, the house, her husband (so kid number 2), and all her projects she has going. I don't know how she manages to find the time for everything, but she gets it all done.
Julia has seemed to master the art of reverse crawling - so she is officially mobile! Now all we have to do is get her going forward and we will be in business. She can't wait to go and run with her puppy. Speaking of her puppy, we have a video that I'll have to get put up. Julia loves her dog and thinks it is the coolest thing whenever Dagny moves or pretty much does anything. Julia screams in delight every time she sees the dog. Julia is babbling so much and we had a "raspberry" fight back and forth the other day till my lips went numb. I can't wait till she starts talking, but her noises warm my heart.
Dagny spent last weekend with the pastors family while he was away on a retreat all weekend. Gloria, his wife, likes having Dagny around to bark at strangers while Pastor Stuart is away. Dagny had fun playing with all the kids, but we missed her greatly and couldn't wait to get her back home to us.
Jem spent a few days enjoying a Dagny free house and really enjoyed sleeping with Grandma Ortiz every night.
Finally, I will be participating in the annual Crop Walk this year. The Crop Walks are ecumenical, interfaith community events. The funds help support the worldwide programs of Church World Service. In partnership, CWS supports self-help development, meets emergency needs, and helps address the root causes of poverty and powerlessness. I am asking for donations to be sent to help me in this endeavor. My goal is to raise $150.
- $30 is the cost of 3 pairs of rabbits to increase families' incomes.
- $100 is the cost of field and garden seed for six families.
- $150 can provide 3 farm families with everything they need to make succulent, nutritious and marketable honey - training, hives, and equipment.
- $500 can provide 4,000 lbs of food for a local food bank or provide up to 400 meals in a soup kitchen.
Please consider sponsoring me in this event!
We had a couple other important birthdays this month. Grandpa Ortiz celebrated his 64th birthday on January 2nd. On Thursday, January 20th, Olivia Christine Low was born. We regret that we couldn't be there, but we have Skyped a couple times and the newest cousins have "met" over the Internet. We are so happy for Dave and Christy and we can't wait to get back to Michigan and visit. Then, on Friday, January 21st, our two oldest nieces shared a birthday, and they even got to hang out for a little bit since they were both in Chicago. HAPPY BIRTHDAY Isabella and Mia. We love you very much. Isabella and Rebecca were in Chicago for a dance competition. We can't wait to see some video of their performances. I think that's about it for now we love you all and can't wait to see you again.
Here are some pics of her latest photo shoot!
Bananas mixed with prune juice - my favorite!
