Leaders Reaction Course

It is that time of the cycle again - the leaders reaction course. I had fun with my camera while my students worked out the situations.

The Best Leftovers Ever

Tricia made a delicious chicken dish several days ago in the crock pot which had the chicken so tender that it would fall apart on your fork. Tonight I was in charge of the meal for dinner and Tricia suggested to me a salad with which to use the left over chicken. I heated in a skillet 1/4 cup of basalmic vineagar with some salt, basil and several sliced tomatoes. Once this sauce was hot I dropped in the chicken and let it cook until there was no more liquid on the bottom of the pan. I placed the hot chicken on a patch of lettuce with shredded cheese. What a great meal. The best leftovers ever.

Remembering President Hinckley for FHE

Tricia and I used our family home evening to visit the KSL.com website to get updated news about the passing of President Hinckley. We found several articles of interest about current news and links to archives of photos, interviews, and talks.

You Cannot Say No Until You Can Say Yes

In Stephen Covey's Book "Seven Habbits of Highly Effective People," he says that we cannot learn to say no until we can say yes. This refers to saying no to peoples requests of us, such as our boss asking for us to take on another task, or our friends inviting us out to eat on family night. If we have not already mentally said yes to going home on time or clearing the calendar for family night, we will find it hard to say no to these new tasks and invitations. We tell children all the time to say no to drugs, but unless they have an affirmative commitment that they have said yes to, why say no? At least it is something fun to do to takes up the slack time.

I have noticed that during this cycle, and Tricia has noticed too, that I am arriving home earlier than usual. Actually, I am arriving home hours earlier than usual. I am still effectivley accomplishing my work during work hours, in fact I am more efficient than ever, but I am also not staying late to work on extra projects or meticulous planning of the next day. I used to leave the Academy on a typical day at 8:00 in the evening, now I am leaving at 5:30 everyday.

I believe that this is a direct result of making firm positive commitments, a yes, to my family, education, and time for myself. This has allowed me to say no to extra stuff at work. In fact, I can say no and smile. I can say no and be confident that I am fulfilling my commitments to my students and the Academy. Saying yes it great.

Things Jeffrey Can Do

• Shake like a leaf when he gets excited
• Pull himself across the floor to get into boxes, baskets and anything on a low shelf
• Slink like a caterpillar out of his room in search for his padres or something to eat
• Put a piece of food in his mouth to eat or anything that seems to fit in his mouth
• Sit up in the bath tub and reach his floating toys
• Eat without making a mess on his face and hands
• Hold his own bottle while eating
• Finds where a sound is coming from
• Loves to hear music, if he hears it on TV he'll stop whatever he's doing and watch
• Laugh and cry at the same time
• Open a drawer and the refrigerator
• Pull himself up to a standing position, and then promtly fall over
• Travel in a laundry basket
• Crawl on our bed with no fear of heights

Snacktime!!

Jeffrey can pick up a puffed star between his fingers now and put it in his mouth. He's learning so much every single day he now likes to tunnel through the bookshelf

Photos of President Hinckley

KSL.com has posted a collection of photos of President Hinckley.

Studying the Gospel at Work

I have found on the church website, in addition to the scriptures, The Teachings of Joseph Smith and The Book of Mormon Class Member Study Guide, which has allowed me to study the gospel in the few moments I have to myself at work. I can even visit the sites while in the classroom on the instructor laptop while my students are working individually on a project or assignment. I also visit the Ensign and the First Presidency Message on line.

Come and Visit

The following are the dates on which I will not be in a teaching cycle at the NCO Academy. If you want to come to Germany to visit, these would be the *prime times to do so. Of course, this is only my schedule as Tricia can visit and travel in Germany most any time.

February 14 to February 25
March 27 to April 07
May 08 to May 19 (We are planning to visit Spain for part of the time)
June 19 to July 07
August 07 to August 18 (The MacNeil Manor is booked at this time for a visit from the distinguished Brown clan)
September 18 to a now undertermined time until the next fiscal year schedule is published.

*I am anticipating attending the Sapper Leader Course, but I do not know a time frame for this yet.

Map Reading

Back in cycle I am teaching map reading this week. It is one of the more entertaining blocks of instruction, giving me a great opportunity to get involved with the students. I can easily see who is paying attention, who wants to excel, and who is just showing up for class.

Eye Doctor

I visited the eye doctor today. I has been a very long time since the last time I had seen one. I will recieve a new pair of glasses in the mail in several weeks and be rid of these old round rims. I am also a possible candidate to have the PRK surgery done again in the near future. I will go in for another apointment later to see if I can in fact have the surgery done again.

Jeffrey's Shoes

Jeffrey is going through his shoes quickly. I love these leather shoes of his. There is something about minature clothing items that is inately cute. The wear marks show how he is moving his feet.

Happy Birthday!

I spent an evening with Tricia restocking her collection of hand made cards. She found herself short on birthday cards, so we got our her stamps, ink, colored pencils and colored paper. Perhaps one of you will recieve this card later this year.

Dr. Seuss Pajamas

I am working on a story about Jeffrey in these pajamas that make him look like a Dr. Seuss character.

Facing his Fears...

Like most babies Jeffrey is terrified of the vacuum. The poor kid shakes (literally) and screams and cries when we turn it on. You have to either vacuum with two people (one to hold him and the other to do the job) or vacuum with Jeffers in your arms. He's facinated by it, but he's just scared to death of it. He'll actuall reach up for you if it's going and he is on the floor or in his high chair. Yesterday we were cleaning and making dinner and having lots of chaos at our house. Jeffrey ended up next to the vacuum and spent a long time studying it.
He was a little hesitant to touch it, but in the end his bravery won out and he was brave enough to touch. It's apparently not too scary when it's turned off. ;)

In the end Jeffers and the vacuum became buddies...that is until we turned back on to finish the job, and the he wanted nothing to do with his new friend. (But seriously look at those eyes! I love it! Blue, Blue, Blue!)

Comments and links

When we first began the blog our settings were such that it was not possible for someone without a Gmail account to add a comment to our blog. We recently noticed this and have changed our settings so that anyone can add a comment to the blog. When you read and entry it will end with a small icon that looks like a pencil. If you want to make a comment or ask a question click on the icon and it will take you to a seperate page where you can do so. It is easy for Tricia and I to see the comments and respond to them.

We have also started to use links in our blog more. Any written words that appear to be of a slightly different color than the rest could be a link to another place on the internet. If you place your mouse cursor over the words your pointer arrow will turn into a finger icon. If you click on the words it will move to to another location on the internet where we might send you to see something for yourself that we are writing about.

Jesus the Christ

I have been listening to an audio recording of Jesus the Chirst by James Talmage. I down loaded it from the church website and placed it on my iPod. When I come home from work and am changing my clothes, or when I am working around the house I turn on my iPod and listen. I have been able to listen to 540 pages worth in only several weeks.

Making Cookies

As a family activity Tricia had us make a batch of cookies together. The cookies turned out not to be very sweet on their own, so we made some home made frosting to go on top with some colorful sprinkles.

Behind the Camera

I have been having a great time with my Canon EOS 30D taking photos of everything. I wanted a dSLR camera not only for taking better quality photos than my point and shoot digital camera, but also to take myself more seriously about taking photos. I noticed a few weeks ago at Tricia's dance recital that after it was over parents were taking photos all over the theater of their children which made it so that people were accidentally walking in front of photos being taken. I also noticed that no one dared walk in front of the professional photographer with her obviously larger camera than everyone else. There is something about having a large camera that says I am a serious photographer, don't step into my shot.

Retreat and To The Color

I selected nine volunteers from my class to bring down the German and American flag from the JMTC Headquarters. By the time 1700 comes around it is too dark to get a photo of the actual event, so these are photos of the students practicing at the WLC.

We used to practice with a bed sheet to get the pattern of how to fold down, but folding a bed sheet and a post flag are two very different things. I suggested to the deputy comandant that since we retreat the flag so often we ought to have post flags here at the NCOA to practice with. Several weeks later one flag for each company arrived making our training for the event much more effective.

MAT 116

I am now three weeks into my math class through distance learning at Axia College. My degree requires me to have two math classes so I have signed up for algebra I and II. I was a bit skepticle at first at the efficacy of learning a subject such as math over the internet, but now that I have seen the course materials I am quite impressed and confident.

I have at my disposal an on line math book, tutorial videos broken down into individual subjects; online quizes which offer assistance when requested by walking me through similar problems, and short animation videos or games associated with each section we are learning. Axia College even provides on line tutoring from an instructor when needed. Fortunatley I have my own in house tutor since Tricia enjoys algebra.

I Am Legend

I Am Legend was a great date night movie for Tricia and me. The Andrus family took Jeffrey after Tricia's dance lessons because we had heard that the movie was pretty scary and we did not want to bring a crying baby in the theater with us. I Am Legend did in fact turn out to be pretty scary and intense for both of us. Several times Tricia had to close her eyes and ask me to tell her when it was safe to open them again. Will Smith did an excellent job carrying the first half of the movie all by himself, very much like Tom Hanks in Castaway. We both recomend the movie for anyone who wants a memorable thrill.

Pop and Tot Time

I made it home in time today from work to watch Jeffrey while Tricia went to an activity. With my homework complete, I had a great opportunity for some pop and tot time.

Jeffrey is gaining personality each day. His face is expressive and able to transmit happiness with bright eyes and an open smile; contentment when his round cheeks have a rosy appearance as he explores around him, sadness as his mouth curls down and his bottom lip juts out like a bird perch, and frustration with his soft repeated cry.

Jeffrey loves to touch, and in proportion as his curiosity increases, the Velcro on his palms becomes stickier. I have often observed him passing objects from one hand to the other, almost like the beginnings of a tossing game in slow motion. In order to prevent a wave of sadness from crashing over him after taking away an object, I have learned to make an exchange of interests by handling another item; rolling it, twirling it, tapping it, or passing it from hand to hand. This advertisement of the advantages of my item makes the trade in of an old item for a shiny new one more appealing.

When putting Jeffrey down for a nap it is sometimes necessary to begin the nap with him as an assurance that naps are for big people too. Children only want to be children when it presents an added advantage, such as having Oreos and milk at Grandmas house before lunch, otherwise being big is the preferred way of being seen and treated. Like a capricious sea wave entering a bay, it is often necessary to hold Jeffrey close to calm him and pin his arms until the desire to sleep overcomes his natural curiosity of what he could be missing. The most exciting things are happening just as you are about to nap. Jeffrey twists his head back and forth like an orange being juiced in a hand juicer until he finds the perfect spot on the pillow for his head to rest. His sense of fine adjustments for his neck and head needs to be calibrated. Once asleep, his dreams carry him into the oddest and unexpected of positions. I suspect sometimes that he dreams of back hand springs, a mime in a city park, directing air plane traffic, and rowing a canoe.

Does anyone have a time machine?

I don't want Jeffrey to grow any more. He's already too big and I just want him to stay little a while longer! Every day I'm amazed at how much he learns and how quickly he figures things out. Today he figured out how to pull himself up on the crib rails. He hasn't ever done that before. He's also mobile. Does this qualify as a crawl?

He's also like a little puppy dog. He'll put something in his mouth and then drag himself around with it.

Can I also say how much I enjoy podcasts? If you aren't familiar with iTunes, they have podcasts you can subscribe to for free and there are all kinds...boring news ones...less boring music ones...but the ones we listen to every night are old time radio shows. Some are better quality than others, but they'll have an old radio dective show or a comedy show and it's fun to listen to. I can see how radio was so appealing. So if you're mourning the loss of regular TV with the writer's strike, download a few old time radio shows.

Lessons From Laman and Lemuel

As we read the Book of Mormon together before dinnner I was reminded of a memorable talk by Neal A. Maxwell titled Lessons From Laman and Lemuel. It took only a few seconds to search the church's website for the General Conference at which Elder Maxwell spoke. Our Family Home Evening lesson was listening to the talk as our dinner cooled from the hot oven.

NCO of the 2nd Quarter

In anticipation of making it back into the competition for Department of the Army NCO of the Year I took the first step today and competed in the NCO of the quarter at the Academy. In three weeks I will appear at the JMTC 2nd quarter board where I hope to continue to advance. I will be spending much of my scattered free time at work in study for the questions of general military knowlege that will be asked of me.

A Late Night Snack

We shared a few oreo and a cup of milk before going to bed. It is nice to stop once in a while to talk to each other with out any distractions and share some simple pleasures and memories.

Happy TrogDay!!!

That's right people, it's Trogday once again!!! So before you go burninating the world take a little time to work on your beefy arms. Happy Trogday 08! In case you haven't heard of Trodgor, the burninator (which is truely a shame...) The original Email from Kaiser from CA. He makes drawing fun!!

And the trodgor comes in the Niiiiiiiiiiight!

My Last Week End

I have to go back to work next week making this my final weekend for 30 days. It is a bit chilly here and Tricia did not want to be outside, though she very much wanted to get out of the house after having been inside so long recovering from pnuemonia. We decided to check out the IKEA in Nuremburg since we have so often visited the store in Regensburg. It turns out that since Nuremburg is a much larger city the store was much more crowded. We were not able to walk through with our usual ease. We did end up purchasing a table to put the computer on to lift it up off of the floor since it will not be long until Jeffrey is crawling and getting into everything less than 18 inches off of the floor.

Jeffrey did enjoy the ride both in the car and in the stroller. I enjoyed some undistracted conversation with Tricia in the car. After returning home Tricia tried out a new recipie from her cooking magazines and I put together our several purchases. Jeffrey played with the plastic wrapping and paper instruction books.

Book of Mormon

For a while Tricia and I were reading the Old Testament together each evening after dinner. Now that the new year has started and the ciriculum in Sunday School has changed to the Book of Mormon, we have decided to set down the OT for a while and read the BOM together. The Browns gave us this great edition of the book which is full of illistrations.

Chompers

Jeffers has 7 teeth now. These last three came in like the first two, with a little whining, but generally not much hoopla about it. He'll even let you feel his teeth...but you have to be quick or he'll chomp on your finger!

Combat Life Saver

I have spent the week in the Combat Life Saver (CLS) course. After Desert Storm and Desert Shield it was discovered that many of the soldiers that died over in the desert would have had a much greater chance of survival had they simply had an IV while medical evacuation was on its way. The CLS course is designed to give every soldier on the battle field the knowledge that is needed to provide first responder care. A long with the usual splint a fractured limb and stop severe bleeding we learned how to put on and loosen a tourniquete and how to put a needle into the chest to relieve the air entering the lung cavity after a penetrating chest wound. The class culmintated in a hands on exercise in which after an engagement with an enemy we found several of our squad members hurt and in need of immediate care.

Fun with Jeffrey

A Few More Photos of Jeffrey