Road Trip vid

Tip from Dad #1

I think I need a new series of posts called "Tips from Dad". Since childhood, I've planned on writing a book about my father (he has a crazy interesting life) and have never known how to start -- maybe it can just be a collection of tips, like "How to land on an aircraft carrier", "How to get out of being arrested in Poland", "How to fix your 17 year old Celica with a paperclip and chewing gum", and "How to escape the Coast Guard that is chasing you because you and your sister burnt down a banana grove on a Florida island".

Anyway, the first tip: How to fix your squeeky dresser drawers. (Yeah, it's less exciting than the above teasers, but it's what I'm doing right now.) Get some soap or a candle, rub it on the wooden parts of the frame and drawer that touch, and voila!

Thanks Dad.

Quick Updates

HELLO friends! So much has been going on: we are in our new home in California, had a great trip. Luke started at Mozilla. I'm starting a new job Monday. Ellen is coming out here to be our nanny for the summer. More on ALL of that later.

For now:

Therese and Jesse are parents! Meet Emma Marie, gorgeous little girl. We can't wait to see her in person. They are in NYC.

Karen and the Navy volleyball team won the US Armed Forces championship! Karen was then selected to be on the ALL US ARMED FORCES team -- she's flying to Brazil to play in the world championships. They'll be playing awesome teams like the Chinese (their military team is their Olympic team, whoa). I hear that a personal corpsman/masseuse will accompany each team member??

Luke Wagner, M.S.

He defended and submitted his (190 page) thesis last week, completing the requirements for his MASTER OF SCIENCE.

Here are 5 non-computer-science reasons why he's great:

1. He is excited about the future and content in the present, a difficult and wonderful balance in a person.
2. He looks really great with a beard.
3. He is an excellent father. He makes Scott laugh so much and thinks about how he will raise him to be a responsible, contributing member of the world.
4. He always considers me his teammate (albeit a teammate with a penchant for flowers).
5. He can pack an apartment into boxes with very little help from me.

I'm a lucky gal.

All-Navy Karen

My little sister (5'11" ish) is in Maine training with the ALL NAVY volleyball team! 15 women are there now, scrimmaging and training and competing for one of the 10 places on the team that will compete for the US Armed Forces National Championship at the end of May. Isn't she cool?

When Karen was in 7th grade, she decided she loved volleyball. Back then she was a teeny little thing wearing size 00. She worked hard, lifted weights, got a growth spurt, and played varsity for the Lady Mavs in high school. She was offered a spot on the Air Force Academy volleyball team, but decided to be an A&M nuclear engineer instead. In college she won a few intramural championships with her Pink Ladies team (named for the apple variety).

I'm proud of her because of her determination and drive. I'm loving seeing her so excited about a sport. And I'm going to make Scott learn some team sport well enough to enjoy it in adulthood because, let's face it, there just isn't much opportunity to high kick after high school. (... but I do dance really well around our kitchen whenever Luke plays me Fergie or Beyonce!)

[INSERT PHOTO OF TEENY KAREN IN MIDDLE SCHOOL VB UNIFORM HERE ...]

Happy Mothers' Day!

Hey Mamas! Hope you had a wonderful day. I did -- and I'm looking forward to many more years of motherhood and hoping I can live up to the examples set by my mom & Luke's mom.

We took a little family swim to finish off the lovely day:

Scott Wagnon-er

My parents are great at refinishing things, and Dad re-did the Radio Flyer wagon Karen and I used for Scott.

before & after

Isn't it gorgeous? It's like new but better. It's vintage. Scott slept in the cradle they saved, is rocked in the rocking chair they used for us, eats our the high chair that Dad refinished for him, and will ride in this restored wagon! Way to be green, Granddad!

Scott says: Thanks Cap!