Welcome, Jack!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!!!

Announcing John ("Jack") Oliver Breitenstein, named John after father and grandfather, and Oliver meaning peace. He's weighing in at 8 lbs 12 ounces "standing" 20 3/4 inches tall.

This barrel-chested guy has thighs like a turkey leg, and huge hands! He's got bright blue eyes and a full head of dark hair, though taking in the pale brows and lashes, we might have another blondie! Taking after the whole peace (Oliver) motif, he seems pretty laid back. Jack is healthy and we're both doing great; we came home yesterday!

Thanks for all the prayers.

Pregnant with Keri!

She's due July 11, and Jack's coming tomorrow!!

Last kid pics with only three!

Losing the training wheels--!

Painting on the deck this afternoon; he and Will shared paintings a lot and had a blast. They were covered. After going to the park, we've had a great day.

Audio: "Wy-WEEEEE!"

Will's getting the hang of his scooter!

Baden all decked out in cowboy gear!

Jack comes TOMORROW, folks! Yahooooooo!

A few pics of our last days as a family of five...

Recent kid pics

What do I say to this?

I just went up to the boys' room where they are supposed to be sleeping. However, Ramona Forever on CD was playing, and I was pretty sure I knew who'd started it. He protested:

Baden: No, when Daddy came up, I said he could start Ramona over or start the quiet CD!

Mom: Oh, okay. I'm sorry, Baden. I was wrong.

Baden: C'mon, Mom! You know the husband is in charge of the wife!!

Mom (uh, momentarily at a loss for words): [Pause] You're right. And Daddy and I act as a team. But who's still in charge of you?

Baden: You're still in charge, but the husband is the in-chargest!

Good readin'

My publisher/boss and I were having a great conversation about good books last night, and I thought I'd compile a brief list for others of you who consider fiction and/or memoirs a great escape. I use fiction for entertainment, to broaden my understanding of other people/times/places, to understand the market, and to appreciate great writing. (Please don't hate me if they're not you're thing. :) So please note that because of this, many of these (if not most) aren't from my own worldview.

Christ the Lord: Road to Cana (Anne Rice)
Interpreter of Maladies (Jhumpa Lahiri)
The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
Three Dog Life (Abigail Thomas—actually a memoir)
Monster (Frank Peretti; kind of pop fiction, but still an interesting read)
Dream When You’re Feeling Blue (Elizabeth Berg)
Ellen Foster (Kaye Gibbons)
Breathing Lessons (Anne Tyler)
Peace like a River (Leif Enger)
The Appeal (John Grisham)
When Crickets Cry (Charles Martin)
Some Wildflower in My Heart (Jamie Langston Turner--writing's much better than the title)
Palace Walk (Naguib Mahfouz)
Girl Meets God (Lauren Winner)
Hood (Stephen Lawhead)
Madman (Tracy Groot)
Safely Home (Randy Alcorn--a little preachy, but worth the insight into Chinese persecution)
Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas)

Happy reading!

Tips to save time and or money

1) http://www.zennioptical.com/: I rave about this site. I purchase my glasses and Corinne's here. Yes, prescription lenses are included. After shipping, I paid $12.95 for mine, and about $27 for Corinne's, which are titanium and flexible to the point you could wring them out. I am dead serious about the pricing, and we received them in about 2 weeks (except when they got caught in customs...though I doubt there were any weapons of mass destruction in my glasses). Customer service requires about a 5-10 minute wait, but is good service.

Tip: You'll need your prescription (you can't get it over the phone with HIPAA, so you'd have to pick it up or have it faxed), and your pupillary distance from an optometrist, who uses a machine. I measured my own and am satisfied--they tell you how on zennioptical.com--but it was nearly impossible with Corinne and ended up affecting her vision (her optometrist was generous enough to use the machine and still let us save the $170 of getting the glasses there, but ask gently, of course).

Also, I have a wide face, so the measurements of the width of the glasses were important to me (they give all of them to you in millimeters). Might want to have your old glasses handy to test the length of the temples, etc. I mean, it's not foolproof; it's ordering online. But to me, if I spent an extra $13 in saving $170, I was okay with that!

2) Printer ink cartridges: I just saved a bundle at http://www.inkredibleinkz.com/. It’s 1-3 day shipping (free with orders over $25), satisfaction guaranteed, and I paid $20 for 5 cartridges—2 black, three color! I usually pay $40+. Beats running to Office Depot!

3) Microsoft has some tools called Power Toys that are developed by Microsoft but not supported by them, but they’re really helpful. I’ve downloaded their image resizer, and it’s a whole lot easier to use photos from my digital camera.