One of the traditions that started several years ago with my family is Friday Pizza Night.  We don’t all go together every Friday night, but you can guarantee there is at least one person going!  Here are a couple of shots from a typical Pizza Night!

I had my camera over at my parents house this afternoon and followed Cooper around with it while Ella took her nap.  Cooper’s life is really pretty interesting.  Here are some of his favorite things!

He is a really big fan of climbing these days.  It’s a good workout and helps to maintain his stunning bod.

Once he gets to the top he likes to kick back and relax with a toy.

Maybe watch a little Cosby.

Those Cosbys are hilarious!

Another thing Cooper likes to do is look out the window.

Sometimes you get a better view if you stand.

Or if you smoosh your face against it.

He really cracks himself up when he does that!

Occasionally his view out the window is impeded by the blinds.  Cooper knows it’s important to plan his next move carefully.

He has found that the best method to deal with the blinds is to reach as far as he can, pull the string to a manageable level, and insert the wood pieces into his mouth.

After that he likes to take a walk.  He’s still not so sure about this area of his life, but once again, thinks it could do some good things for the bod.

He likes to end his walks with a good tickle to work his abs.

He really loves his mommy.

And he’s a pretty big fan of his Aunt Kelly, or at least he pretends to be so that she will give him diet coke and cookies.

After this kind of a day it’s always good to eat some pizza.

Sometimes while he eats pizza he likes to stare at the fan.

He really only eats the pizza so that he can move onto the real love of his life:  ice cream.

Yeah, that’s an ice cream beard.

Cooper likes to wrap up his day with a bath.  Here he is with his buckets.

Here are some of his other favorite bath toys.

The End.

In October I am going to New York City with my parents for the first time ever!

I need your help!  What are somethings that I can’t miss while I am there.  I’m not talking about shows, but more like places to eat, places to go, etc.  What should we do?

Steven Curtis Chapman and his family did a great interview today on Good Morning America about the tragic loss of their youngest daughter and how they are grieving with hope.  It is definitely worth checking out.

I just finished watching Randy Pausch’s lecture on Time Management that he gave at the University of Virginia.  I highly recommend watching it yourself because there are some great takeaways in it and he is a great speaker, but if you don’t have time, here is what I got out of it:

“The Time Famine”- You need systemic solutions and change fundamental underlying processes to make a permanent change

Being successful does not mean that you manage your time well.  Managing your time well makes you successful.

If you are going to run with people that are faster (smarter) than you, find the right ways to maximize the skills you do have.

Why am I doing it? What is the goal?

Why will I succeed?

What will happen if I don’t do it?

What am I doing that someone else could do?

How am I wasting other people’s time?

Don’t focus on doing things right, focus on doing the right things.  If you do the right thing adequately, it’s much more important than doing the wrong things beautifully.  

Experience comes with time, it’s really valuable, and there is no short cut to getting it.

Good judgement comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgement.  If things aren’t going well, that probably means you’re learning a lot and it will go better later.

You can always change your plan, but only once you have one.

Your inbox is not your “To Do” list.

You make time for important things by electing not to do something else.  Opportunity cost.

If you are going to delegate something to someone, give them authority with responsibility.  

Have an agenda for your meetings and make them no more than an hour, except in special cases.  Insist that people turn off their phones because if it is worth our time to be there, then make sure people are not half there.

If you are reading email, you are not on vacation.

A couple of months ago I posted about our Letters To The Next President series and website.  Check out the letter that Chuck Colson wrote to the president on our site!

I have a lot of talented friends, but my friend Sarah continues to amaze me with her beautiful pictures.  Her blog has been in my sidebar for a really long time, but if you have never linked over, now is your chance!  Go check out her latest pics from their trip to the San Diego zoo.  She has a great eye!  I have been with her when she has her camera and she has a God given ability to walk around and see beauty in even the most simple things.  Go check her out!  Here is a sample that I ripped from her blog!

2008 Michigan Football Schedule

Ella just finished her gymnastics camp and the theme was the Olympics. They got medals today and she was telling me that she was the United States. She didn’t know what that meant and I was trying to explain to her that the United States is the country that we live in. I thought I had really gotten through to her when she said, “You don’t live in the United States, you live in an apartment.”