Our favorite sports team played last night. We were in 4th place and were the team in 2nd place. I took the regulars: Bronwyn, Ansley and Garrett. When I take those guys together we have never been beaten. Okay, you may not care about that part but we do. We think it's an impressive streak covering a few years.
We thought we would re-introduce a new family member to the team to see if we still would bring good luck. Anderson went with us. Carys stayed home. She isn't a huge soccer fan (yet) and she and Giovanni were both sick so Benay stayed and took care of them.
Most Inter games start at 9:00 or 9:50 at night during the week. Our only hope for letting Anderson see a game is a Sunday game. They either start at 4:00 or 6:30. Sometimes Anderson is already snoozing in his bed at 7:30 (we wake up around 5:00-6:00 every day and so we also go to bed early.....don't judge us) so we were pushing it with the 6:30 game but he did great.
He brought us some great luck. I asked him later what he thought of the game. It was his third game to go to but it had been over a year since he went to his last one. He said Inter was "AWESOME!!!!"
We agree even though Bronwyn and I missed about half the game answering Anderson's 500 questions. The boy likes to talk.
We only have two more home games to go to before our trip to the states. It makes us sad to think of missing games but we hope to see at least one more game when we come back home. It really is becoming a fun family tradition with me and the kids.
Benay keeps assuring me that no one who reads our blogs cares about our soccer team. I keep showing her the emails or comments we get from time to time saying that people are watching the videos.
So, for you guys that follow, here's your quick video of the "best moments" of the game:
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
The church and the Bible are not substitutes for God; they are means through which we make conscious contact with Jesus Christ. They are the place of encounter with the Compassionate One, who reveals himself in sundry ways and diverse temperaments. The sinfulness and vulnerability of the disciples are no stumbling block, because "(his) power is at its best in weakness" (2 Cor. 12:9).
Brennan Manning
Brennan Manning
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Big Family
This afternoon Benay and I went to Blockbuster (yes we have a Blockbuster) to rent a movie.
While we were there we saw the movie "The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl" on sale. I don't know why but Carys and Anderson LOVE this movie.
It's a movie in 3-D. The thing that sealed the deal on us buying it was that it came with 4 pairs of 3-D glasses.
We brought it home and the three of them freaked out with joy.
Wait a minute.....I said Carys and Anderson LOVED it. Then I said the three of them freaked out with joy. Was I mistaken?
No:
Who said 18 year old big sisters are no fun?
They cracked us up with the giggles and the "oohh's" when the 3-D part worked.
Just another reason why we love our big family.
While we were there we saw the movie "The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl" on sale. I don't know why but Carys and Anderson LOVE this movie.
It's a movie in 3-D. The thing that sealed the deal on us buying it was that it came with 4 pairs of 3-D glasses.
We brought it home and the three of them freaked out with joy.
Wait a minute.....I said Carys and Anderson LOVED it. Then I said the three of them freaked out with joy. Was I mistaken?
No:
Who said 18 year old big sisters are no fun?They cracked us up with the giggles and the "oohh's" when the 3-D part worked.
Just another reason why we love our big family.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Spiritual Warfare
Spiritual warfare is real. It is real and it is a war.
Click here to go to Matt's (our teammate) blog about his experience in spiritual warfare over the last few days.
Click here to go to Matt's (our teammate) blog about his experience in spiritual warfare over the last few days.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
New Photos
There is a certain grandparent who is constantly asking for new photos of Giovanni to be put on our blog.
Benay and Bronwyn took him out in the back yard (okay, concrete) yesterday and took some new pictures for his upcoming 1st birthday party. They said it was a bit of a chore because every time they put Giovanni down he took off. He LOVES to crawl and get into things. He also loves to walk while holding onto furniture or our hands. When he begins to walk on his own we are going to have to hide everything that he can reach.
We thought these pictures would satisfy the grandparents until they get to hold him next month. Probably won't but I thought it sounded good and would make them feel better.
For those of you who aren't blood relatives, sorry to bore you with the following photos but we tend to be biased and think our kids are kind of cute.
Here you go grandparents (yes we know Giovanni has a David Letterman thing going with his teeth......we like it):
Benay and Bronwyn took him out in the back yard (okay, concrete) yesterday and took some new pictures for his upcoming 1st birthday party. They said it was a bit of a chore because every time they put Giovanni down he took off. He LOVES to crawl and get into things. He also loves to walk while holding onto furniture or our hands. When he begins to walk on his own we are going to have to hide everything that he can reach.
We thought these pictures would satisfy the grandparents until they get to hold him next month. Probably won't but I thought it sounded good and would make them feel better.
For those of you who aren't blood relatives, sorry to bore you with the following photos but we tend to be biased and think our kids are kind of cute.
Here you go grandparents (yes we know Giovanni has a David Letterman thing going with his teeth......we like it):
Monday, August 24, 2009
Again?
Last week we posted a video about a horse getting hit by a race car.
Today as we ate lunch the news was on. They began talking about how one of their teams had gone out to the busiest street in Rio in the early morning hours today to film some horses. Horses in big cities aren't uncommon here. People use them to collect plastic, cardboard, anything to sell to make a living. Sometimes their owners let them loose next to busy streets to eat grass.
In the following video there are some firemen trying to flag down cars so that they would slow down and not hit the horses. The following guy, unfortunately, missed their sign:
They said the 24 year old man had already been released from the hospital. We actually saw another video of the firemen yanking (it was yanking) him out of the car right after he smashed into the wall. He was lucky they were there.
The horse? Not as lucky as the one that got hit by the race car. He died.
Before we moved here I would have looked at the video and felt some remorse for the horse. I still do but I also think of the poor person who lost their ability to carry large amounts of things to recycle and sell. More than likely he has no money to buy another one.
Living in a third world country sure makes you see things differently.
Today as we ate lunch the news was on. They began talking about how one of their teams had gone out to the busiest street in Rio in the early morning hours today to film some horses. Horses in big cities aren't uncommon here. People use them to collect plastic, cardboard, anything to sell to make a living. Sometimes their owners let them loose next to busy streets to eat grass.
In the following video there are some firemen trying to flag down cars so that they would slow down and not hit the horses. The following guy, unfortunately, missed their sign:
They said the 24 year old man had already been released from the hospital. We actually saw another video of the firemen yanking (it was yanking) him out of the car right after he smashed into the wall. He was lucky they were there.
The horse? Not as lucky as the one that got hit by the race car. He died.
Before we moved here I would have looked at the video and felt some remorse for the horse. I still do but I also think of the poor person who lost their ability to carry large amounts of things to recycle and sell. More than likely he has no money to buy another one.
Living in a third world country sure makes you see things differently.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
Photography
Sometimes Anderson gets in the mood to take pictures. When he gets in this mood he usually takes the camera, takes pictures and then puts the camera back. I don't know if he thinks no one will ever see them but it's always fun, when we look at the camera later, to see what he thinks is important enough to take a picture of. He still hasn't learned how to delete pictures so everything he takes we get to see.
Two days ago was a sneaky picture day for him.
Here is what I found on the camera:
Giovanni's school bus.
Anderson's bed.
Carys's bed.
The ever important hallway.
The computer monitor.
He is also into self portraits. Here he shows anger.
Here is surprise.
And this is, well this is just too close.
Lately he has also been branching out into film. Here is his first documentary. His award winning photo of the monitor sparked his interest into making a film about the internet. His film is short but powerful. We think you'll be moved.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Two days ago was a sneaky picture day for him.
Here is what I found on the camera:
Giovanni's school bus.
Anderson's bed.
Carys's bed.
The ever important hallway.
The computer monitor.
He is also into self portraits. Here he shows anger.
Here is surprise.
And this is, well this is just too close.
Lately he has also been branching out into film. Here is his first documentary. His award winning photo of the monitor sparked his interest into making a film about the internet. His film is short but powerful. We think you'll be moved.
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Time for a Trip
Every two years our family goes back to the states. It's a time for visiting family, friends, supporters of our ministry and sharing what God is doing here.
As you might imagine, there really isn't a good time for us just pick up and leave our lives here for 2 months and go to another country. It's always a bad time for someone in the family. Someone doesn't want to miss school (that complaint will baffle me until the day I die), someone doesn't want to miss soccer school or theater class, some aspect of our ministry is just starting to click and it's hard to just leave for 2 months, someone doesn't want to miss our summer here, someone doesn't want to miss our family Christmas time......I could go on.
Every 2 years Benay and I talk to the kids about it and then just make the best decision possible.
Recently we made the decision to spend October and November in the states. We bought our plane tickets last week. We'll be going to the states with these guys.
This is our 4th trip back to the states in 7 years and every time we use American Airlines. We have a great friend who works for them here and he always tries to get our family the best deal. This time I think he actually got us the cheapest prices he's ever gotten us and we have the biggest number going back than we've ever had.
This is the year where we will also be taking Ansley to look at colleges as she is next in line to be college bound.
Our tentative plans are to spend some time in Memphis, Tennessee; Nashville/Franklin, Tennessee; Dallas, Texas; Abilene, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; Washington D.C.; Huntsville, Alabama; Florida, Searcy, Arkansas and Grenada,Mississippi.
The list could grow depending on which colleges Ansley wants to check out.
A lot of people think our furloughs are a great time for us to relax. As you can see from the list of places to visit I don't think we would use the word relaxing to describe it.
But we aren't complaining. No matter who complains about when we go, we always have a good time in the states. Seeing people we haven't seen in a while, making new friends, eating food we don't have here and visiting different places always make the trip interesting.
If you happen to be in any of the places listed above in October or November, then feel free to look us up.
As you might imagine, there really isn't a good time for us just pick up and leave our lives here for 2 months and go to another country. It's always a bad time for someone in the family. Someone doesn't want to miss school (that complaint will baffle me until the day I die), someone doesn't want to miss soccer school or theater class, some aspect of our ministry is just starting to click and it's hard to just leave for 2 months, someone doesn't want to miss our summer here, someone doesn't want to miss our family Christmas time......I could go on.
Every 2 years Benay and I talk to the kids about it and then just make the best decision possible.
Recently we made the decision to spend October and November in the states. We bought our plane tickets last week. We'll be going to the states with these guys.
This is our 4th trip back to the states in 7 years and every time we use American Airlines. We have a great friend who works for them here and he always tries to get our family the best deal. This time I think he actually got us the cheapest prices he's ever gotten us and we have the biggest number going back than we've ever had.This is the year where we will also be taking Ansley to look at colleges as she is next in line to be college bound.
Our tentative plans are to spend some time in Memphis, Tennessee; Nashville/Franklin, Tennessee; Dallas, Texas; Abilene, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; Washington D.C.; Huntsville, Alabama; Florida, Searcy, Arkansas and Grenada,Mississippi.
The list could grow depending on which colleges Ansley wants to check out.
A lot of people think our furloughs are a great time for us to relax. As you can see from the list of places to visit I don't think we would use the word relaxing to describe it.
But we aren't complaining. No matter who complains about when we go, we always have a good time in the states. Seeing people we haven't seen in a while, making new friends, eating food we don't have here and visiting different places always make the trip interesting.
If you happen to be in any of the places listed above in October or November, then feel free to look us up.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Horse Power
Okay so I stole the title to this blog from the You Tube video. There really is no better title. I got this off a Brasilian website that took it from an Argentine newscast.
It's from a car race in Argentina. It's pretty amazing.
They said the car hit the horse at just under 90 mph. I believe it after seeing that big horse go flying through the air like a ragdoll. Pretty amazing that the driver didn't go off the course.
Just so you know, amazingly, they said the horse was fine as well.
It's from a car race in Argentina. It's pretty amazing.
They said the car hit the horse at just under 90 mph. I believe it after seeing that big horse go flying through the air like a ragdoll. Pretty amazing that the driver didn't go off the course.
Just so you know, amazingly, they said the horse was fine as well.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Wedding Day
Remember these guys?
Yesterday Benay and I spent 5 hours with them at 3 different places to get different things notarized for their upcoming wedding.
For most men that leave the chácara, sexual temptation takes the place of their previous drug addictions. That's why we have started accountability groups for these guys. It's important for them (and for me and Paulo Renato) to have a place to confess our sins and encourage each other to stay strong in Christ.
Everton, as of yet, does not have a accountability group in place in his new city but it isn't stopping him from being a committed man of God.
He and Daiana have never been married. This is very common in Brasil. A lot of people just live together. After a while the government acknowledges those unions as marriages. So, for a lot of people, it makes sense to them to live together and just "try out" things before deciding (if ever) to get married.
When Everton left the chácara, he and Daiana made a commitment to God to stay pure until their wedding day. The problem was they had no money to get married. To apply through the government for a marriage license costs about $100. They did not have it. So they have been living, with their kids, in the same house for a month, but staying sexually pure.
My (Kevin) dad once gave me some incredible advice. He told me that people in the states have every opportunity to follow Christ. Thousands of churches, religious books,accountability groups, etc. Most Americans also have the funds to go on church retreats, seminars, etc. The problem is many Americans are lazy spiritually. They don't have the desire.
For people in third world countries, like Brasil, a lot of people have no means to do those things I mentioned, but they have the desire.
My dad basically said shame on us if we allow money (which we are blessed with more than most of our Brasilian brothers and sisters) to be the obstacle that keeps someone from doing the right thing or being able to participate in something.
Here is a Brasilian family who is waiting on God's timing to do the right thing by God and our country and yet they didn't have the money to purchase the marriage license. Believe me, they are definitely a city on a hill with what they have committed to God. Many men who have left the chácara fall immediately into sexual sin. Everton and Daiana are living testimonies to God's ability to help a couple do what is right.
Shame on us, God's family, if we don't do everything we can financially to make this wedding happen.
Our house church gave the money to buy the marriage license and yesterday Benay and I were blessed to take this family to begin the process.
September 16th is the day they will sign everything before the notary. Everton and Daiana blessed Benay and myself (as well as our sister, Leni) by asking us to be the witnesses to this marriage. We will follow this up with a house church blessing and celebration at our house on the 20th of September.
Please remember this family in your prayers. They are already being a light to their neighborhood and it will only get better as some members from other house churches will be going out there in the next couple of weeks to begin a new house church in Everton and Daiana's home.
God is definitely working.
Yesterday Benay and I spent 5 hours with them at 3 different places to get different things notarized for their upcoming wedding.For most men that leave the chácara, sexual temptation takes the place of their previous drug addictions. That's why we have started accountability groups for these guys. It's important for them (and for me and Paulo Renato) to have a place to confess our sins and encourage each other to stay strong in Christ.
Everton, as of yet, does not have a accountability group in place in his new city but it isn't stopping him from being a committed man of God.
He and Daiana have never been married. This is very common in Brasil. A lot of people just live together. After a while the government acknowledges those unions as marriages. So, for a lot of people, it makes sense to them to live together and just "try out" things before deciding (if ever) to get married.
When Everton left the chácara, he and Daiana made a commitment to God to stay pure until their wedding day. The problem was they had no money to get married. To apply through the government for a marriage license costs about $100. They did not have it. So they have been living, with their kids, in the same house for a month, but staying sexually pure.
My (Kevin) dad once gave me some incredible advice. He told me that people in the states have every opportunity to follow Christ. Thousands of churches, religious books,accountability groups, etc. Most Americans also have the funds to go on church retreats, seminars, etc. The problem is many Americans are lazy spiritually. They don't have the desire.
For people in third world countries, like Brasil, a lot of people have no means to do those things I mentioned, but they have the desire.
My dad basically said shame on us if we allow money (which we are blessed with more than most of our Brasilian brothers and sisters) to be the obstacle that keeps someone from doing the right thing or being able to participate in something.
Here is a Brasilian family who is waiting on God's timing to do the right thing by God and our country and yet they didn't have the money to purchase the marriage license. Believe me, they are definitely a city on a hill with what they have committed to God. Many men who have left the chácara fall immediately into sexual sin. Everton and Daiana are living testimonies to God's ability to help a couple do what is right.
Shame on us, God's family, if we don't do everything we can financially to make this wedding happen.
Our house church gave the money to buy the marriage license and yesterday Benay and I were blessed to take this family to begin the process.
September 16th is the day they will sign everything before the notary. Everton and Daiana blessed Benay and myself (as well as our sister, Leni) by asking us to be the witnesses to this marriage. We will follow this up with a house church blessing and celebration at our house on the 20th of September.
Please remember this family in your prayers. They are already being a light to their neighborhood and it will only get better as some members from other house churches will be going out there in the next couple of weeks to begin a new house church in Everton and Daiana's home.
God is definitely working.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Saturday game
Our favorite team went to the state of São Paulo on Saturday to play a game.
After awful months in June and July we are finally playing good again and moving up the rankings. We are currently in 3rd place.
Here are the highlights from the goals scored.
After awful months in June and July we are finally playing good again and moving up the rankings. We are currently in 3rd place.
Here are the highlights from the goals scored.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
I asked God for strength, that I might achieve;
I was made weak, that I might learn to humbly obey.
I asked for health, that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy;
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of
men;
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life;
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I asked for,
But everything I had hoped for.
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.
Anonymous
I was made weak, that I might learn to humbly obey.
I asked for health, that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy;
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of
men;
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life;
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I asked for,
But everything I had hoped for.
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.
Anonymous
Friday, August 14, 2009
All purpose utensil
After all the rain and cold weather that we've had lately God has been blessing us with great weather. We've had days in the low 80's with lots of sun. We are enjoying it because the cold and rain are forcasted to return next week.
Benay and I took the little kids to the park this morning to play soccer and play on the playground.
We have lots of dogs in our neighborhood that fill up the park every day.
With dogs you obviously have lots of poo. The city puts little plastic bag dispensers up around the parks for owners to clean up the poo (it still makes me laugh every time I see it.......the dogs must be loving that) but it's still impossible to have a poo-free park.
Today, on the way home from the park, Anderson stepped his soccer cleat into a poo pile. No one knew it but Anderson.
When he got home he took matters into his own hands.
He decided he could clean off his shoes by himself.
How?
With a kitchen spoon of course!
I took him outside and explained why we really don't need to use our spoons for something like that.
He understood and then posed for a picture by his stinky artwork.
It's never dull with Anderson.
Benay and I took the little kids to the park this morning to play soccer and play on the playground.
We have lots of dogs in our neighborhood that fill up the park every day.
With dogs you obviously have lots of poo. The city puts little plastic bag dispensers up around the parks for owners to clean up the poo (it still makes me laugh every time I see it.......the dogs must be loving that) but it's still impossible to have a poo-free park.
Today, on the way home from the park, Anderson stepped his soccer cleat into a poo pile. No one knew it but Anderson.
When he got home he took matters into his own hands.
He decided he could clean off his shoes by himself.
How?
With a kitchen spoon of course!
I took him outside and explained why we really don't need to use our spoons for something like that.He understood and then posed for a picture by his stinky artwork.
It's never dull with Anderson.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Back to School.......finally
Today was D-Day for our kids. If you remember the kids' winter break was extended two weeks because of the swine flu. The swine flu is freaking everybody out in southern Brasil. Yesterday there was a meeting to decide if the kids would return to classes on Monday or if the winter break would be prolonged for more days.
Here is the headline to this morning's paper:
What does that mean?
Classes will begin again on the 17th. There was definitely some weeping and gnashing of teeth from Carys and Garrett.
We then received an email from the school saying the extra days of winter break will now be made up on 10 Saturdays. This news brought about more weeping and gnashing of teeth.
We then reminded of them of our upcoming furlough to the US in October and November. So, they will miss out on most of the Saturday classes. Aw, shucks.
Anyway, for now, it's back to school on Monday.
Here is the headline to this morning's paper:
Aulas Recomeçam Mesmo no Dia 17.
What does that mean?
Classes will begin again on the 17th. There was definitely some weeping and gnashing of teeth from Carys and Garrett.
We then received an email from the school saying the extra days of winter break will now be made up on 10 Saturdays. This news brought about more weeping and gnashing of teeth.
We then reminded of them of our upcoming furlough to the US in October and November. So, they will miss out on most of the Saturday classes. Aw, shucks.
Anyway, for now, it's back to school on Monday.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Family Night
Inter was back in town last night and Ansley and Garrett wanted to go see them.
Our city had received almost 8 inches of rain in the last 5 days.
Yesterday it finally cleared up. Inter had not played at home in a few days. We were ready to see them again and we were also ready to get out of the house after all the rain.
We didn't even let the swine flu get in our way. Every employee of Inter and every frisker (the police that give you a pat down before you are allowed to enter the stadium....see attached picture from last night) had surgical masks on. Even some fans had them on.
We also didn't let the cold get in our way. When the rain went away yesterday, the cold followed. It was in the upper 40's last night.
We had a great time together and our team won.
Here are your goals (Anderson predicted 3-0 before the game):
Our city had received almost 8 inches of rain in the last 5 days.
Yesterday it finally cleared up. Inter had not played at home in a few days. We were ready to see them again and we were also ready to get out of the house after all the rain.
We didn't even let the swine flu get in our way. Every employee of Inter and every frisker (the police that give you a pat down before you are allowed to enter the stadium....see attached picture from last night) had surgical masks on. Even some fans had them on.
We also didn't let the cold get in our way. When the rain went away yesterday, the cold followed. It was in the upper 40's last night.We had a great time together and our team won.
Here are your goals (Anderson predicted 3-0 before the game):
Monday, August 10, 2009
Happy Father's Day
Yesterday was Father's Day in Brazil. We had a great worship time and then went out to a restaurant with some of our friends. 
Afterward, Kevin opened his presents and got loved on by us all. I asked each of the kids to say what they appreciate about their dad.
Here goes:
Giovanni: He plays with me and lets me grab his ears and nose.
Anderson: I love you, Dad, and you're the best dad so much.
Carys: He's a stinker, but I guess I can live with him.
Garrett: I love him, he's the best dad in the world.
Ansley: He's funny, nice, and he likes to help people. The best dad I'll ever know.
Bronwyn: He's a huge dork. But I still love him.
(As you can see, Kevin likes to play around a lot with the kids, and vice versa. We have a lot of fun in our house.)
Me: Kevin, I am so proud of you and of our family. You only get better with time and I wouldn't have 6 kids with anyone else but you. Thanks for making me so happy.
Happy Father's Day!!
Afterward, Kevin opened his presents and got loved on by us all. I asked each of the kids to say what they appreciate about their dad.Here goes:
Giovanni: He plays with me and lets me grab his ears and nose.
Anderson: I love you, Dad, and you're the best dad so much.
Carys: He's a stinker, but I guess I can live with him.
Garrett: I love him, he's the best dad in the world.
Ansley: He's funny, nice, and he likes to help people. The best dad I'll ever know.
Bronwyn: He's a huge dork. But I still love him.
(As you can see, Kevin likes to play around a lot with the kids, and vice versa. We have a lot of fun in our house.)
Me: Kevin, I am so proud of you and of our family. You only get better with time and I wouldn't have 6 kids with anyone else but you. Thanks for making me so happy.
Happy Father's Day!!
Sunday, August 09, 2009
Friday, August 07, 2009
Stimuli
I can remember being in physical therapy school and learning the importance of babies getting proper verbal and non-verbal stimulation to help them in their development.
To be honest, with your 6th child, you don't worry as much about that as you did with your first.
A simple lunch can provide all the daily stimulus an 11 month old needs. Okay, that may not be true but you'll get the point after watching this:
To be honest, with your 6th child, you don't worry as much about that as you did with your first.
A simple lunch can provide all the daily stimulus an 11 month old needs. Okay, that may not be true but you'll get the point after watching this:
Thursday, August 06, 2009
One More Championship
It's been a while since I've put anything on here about our favorite soccer team. To be honest, since the beginning of June, we've stunk. We lost the finals of two different championships during June and July. Painful but it happens.
Yesterday we were in Japan to play in another championship. It was called the Copa Suruga. We were invited to play in it because we won the South American Cup last year. We went to play the Japanese champions from last year.
We won and brought home another trophy.
Here are some highlights for those that care:
Yesterday we were in Japan to play in another championship. It was called the Copa Suruga. We were invited to play in it because we won the South American Cup last year. We went to play the Japanese champions from last year.
We won and brought home another trophy.
Here are some highlights for those that care:
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Inspiration
If you are struggling with some kind of problem and need an encouraging reminder to keep your head up and keep going then take a few minutes and watch this video. Now that I think of it, even if everything is going great in your life you still need to check this out. It will encourage you:
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
This guy is crazy!
Sunday afternoons in Brasil are for soccer. Games are on tv from 4:00-6:00. There are also games that come on at 6:30 but they are only shown on cable channels or pay-per view. After the games on one channel comes Faustão. Faustão is the name of the man who is the host of this show. They do many different things on his show(games, videos, music, etc.). Our kids like to watch it.
This past Sunday I was following the 6:30 games on the internet and I was looking at the website for the tv station I mentioned above. A link title on their main page caught my eye.
It said "a parachute jump without equipment."
I had to go to the video. It's pretty incredible and so I thought I'd share it here.
It's a long video. The first 8 minutes or so show the different things this guy has done over the years that they have shown on Faustão's show. The video is also, obviously, all in Portuguese.
So, if you want to skip to the part where the guys jumps out of a plane just in his shorts go to around 8:45 of the video.
It's amazing how calm he looks through the entire thing. Take a look:
This past Sunday I was following the 6:30 games on the internet and I was looking at the website for the tv station I mentioned above. A link title on their main page caught my eye.
It said "a parachute jump without equipment."
I had to go to the video. It's pretty incredible and so I thought I'd share it here.
It's a long video. The first 8 minutes or so show the different things this guy has done over the years that they have shown on Faustão's show. The video is also, obviously, all in Portuguese.
So, if you want to skip to the part where the guys jumps out of a plane just in his shorts go to around 8:45 of the video.
It's amazing how calm he looks through the entire thing. Take a look:
Monday, August 03, 2009
11 months
Hard to believe but Giovanni is 11 months old today. Time goes by fast. About a month ago he started to crawl. Here is his first attempt.
I guess the chocolate pudding was like a carrot in front of a horse. It worked.
By the way, on both videos you can hear Carys calling Giovanni something other than Giovanni. He has a few nicknames. He answers to Giovanni, quigs, vuvs, baby and squiggles. I won't try to explain them all but he responds to each and every one of them.
Here is Benay a little later using a bottle for a crawling bribe.
He's an old pro now. He pulls up on and grabs everything. We are scared of what he is going to do when he starts walking. We get the feeling that he is going to be a terror.
There is a certain grandparent who has been asking for more Giovanni pictures on the blog so here are some action (reading, sleeping, watching TV,playing the guitar, etc)photos:
I guess the chocolate pudding was like a carrot in front of a horse. It worked.
By the way, on both videos you can hear Carys calling Giovanni something other than Giovanni. He has a few nicknames. He answers to Giovanni, quigs, vuvs, baby and squiggles. I won't try to explain them all but he responds to each and every one of them.
Here is Benay a little later using a bottle for a crawling bribe.
He's an old pro now. He pulls up on and grabs everything. We are scared of what he is going to do when he starts walking. We get the feeling that he is going to be a terror.
There is a certain grandparent who has been asking for more Giovanni pictures on the blog so here are some action (reading, sleeping, watching TV,playing the guitar, etc)photos:
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Swine Flu
Bronwyn and I went to the mall yesterday and we saw a couple of people wearing surgical masks. We've already shared that the swine flu is now in our state. It's been coming in from Argentina and Uruguay.
The kids winter break was scheduled to be over on Monday.
On Tuesday of last week I read in the newspaper that the teacher's association met and agreed that schools would start back at the regular time. Schools in the interior have already extended their winter break to give the flu a chance to be killed off.
On Wednesday I read that the governor of our state said all schools needed to extended their winter vacation. Based on her instructions, on Thursday we received two different emails telling the kids that they didn't have to go back to school until August 17. Needless to say, Garrett and Carys were very excited with extra time off from school (this a family gene....a sickness really.... they get from their dad.....it's called ratherplaythanstudyopathy).
Before the kids even started their winter break we were getting regular emails from their schools letting us know different things about the flu.
If we traveled to another country we would have to evaluated by a doctor before our kids would be allowed to come back to school.
We also received helpful hints on how not to get the swine flu.
Things most of us know:
Okay, that last part was a lie.
But the people in our state, Rio Grande do Sul, are taking this flu seriously.
The kids winter break was scheduled to be over on Monday.
On Tuesday of last week I read in the newspaper that the teacher's association met and agreed that schools would start back at the regular time. Schools in the interior have already extended their winter break to give the flu a chance to be killed off.
On Wednesday I read that the governor of our state said all schools needed to extended their winter vacation. Based on her instructions, on Thursday we received two different emails telling the kids that they didn't have to go back to school until August 17. Needless to say, Garrett and Carys were very excited with extra time off from school (this a family gene....a sickness really.... they get from their dad.....it's called ratherplaythanstudyopathy).
Before the kids even started their winter break we were getting regular emails from their schools letting us know different things about the flu.
If we traveled to another country we would have to evaluated by a doctor before our kids would be allowed to come back to school.
We also received helpful hints on how not to get the swine flu.
Things most of us know:
- Wash your hands before eating.
- Don't cough in people's faces.
- Don't put your fingers in your eyes, nose, ears or mouth.
- Blow your nose with a tissue, throw it away and then wash your hands.
- They also included a helpful picture to demonstrate another important thing not to do:
Okay, that last part was a lie.But the people in our state, Rio Grande do Sul, are taking this flu seriously.
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