My Birthday.

I turned a very young and spry 37 on March 27. Jodi and I had a great dinner at The Chop House (half off the food on your birthday, folks!), then we met friends at a new place near Eastown, The Winchester. That was fun, then Saturday night a group of us had dinner at a new place called The Victory Club. It's on the site of the old Lena Lou, which was a great old Ada bar and happens to be where our wedding party, well... partied, the night before our wedding (after the rehearsal dinner). Good times to be sure.

Evie.

She's very sweet.

A New Procedure.

Connor is learning something new. C'mon, I meant reading!!

Kristi and the Kids.

So far these two are the only nephew and niece. She's got chances at more though, unlike MB.

More Kids.

Connor with his new 'mean and threatening' face, Evie in the Poof chair, and Evie in the getting started in the Boppie!

Holland.

Big "guy's night out" in Holland. Much fun had by all. Note T. Cotts holding court...

The Kids.

More of the usual. It's why you folks stop by, assuming any of you do anymore.

New Puppy.

Lack of updates, I realize. I update Facebook more these days and getting to this one as well as the myriad other data related backups and updates take their toll. At any rate, MB & K got a new French Bulldog named Milo. He's great.

Valentine's Day.

Saturday we went to Holland for Valentine's Day, after a nice dinner at Centennial CC Friday night. The lake was angry that day, my friends. Like an old man trying to return soup in a deli. I fell in a bit, but we have a nice new gas dryer that did just what it was supposed to do.

Mommy and Evie.

Just photos... I don't know that we did a lot mid-winter, with an infant and a toddler. We probably did something.

A New Cousin!

Caleb Jehu Wilterink was born February 6, 2009. Mom and baby did well and are now home!

More Kids.

The Kids.

OK, I will admit one of my favorite new things: The phrase "the kids". It used to be "the boy", or just "Connor", whatever. Now there are two, so it's plural. Something about that really appeals to me.

Our Bast Family Christmas.

We always celebrated Christmas Eve by going to the Methodist candlelight service at my Grandparent's church in Southold, NY (North Fork, Long Island). Then at home we'd have a light dinner, and open gifts.

That was our tradition, my whole life. While that can't happen these days, it doesn't mean it can't happen again.

This year, given all the unexpected excitement, we were truly blessed. Both my parents, who live out of state and usually miss these kinds of events, were in town for Christmas... so when our precious little Evie was born, they were both within about a one hour's drive! (Jerry & Wendy were of course here, and we spoke with Sandi & Bob who cannot wait to visit and sent their love.)

The Bast side of our family celebrated Christmas this year on Saturday, December 27, in the afternoon and early evening. It was pretty great. Everyone was, as always, too generous, and everyone made promises, as always, that next year they would not spend as much. It was a really fun and generous event.

December 26.

Friday came right on schedule, and it was actually a pretty great day. I left early for the hospital, but not before my generous sister-in-law offered to come over. She straightened things up around the house and watched Connor, while I went to pick up Jodi and Evie from the hospital. That went swimmingly, and we arrived home safely in the Jeep. The rest of our First Day Home together was pretty great, and we of course started adjusting things for a family of four. I'd say we had frank and open discussions about a picket fence and a dog, and 0.4 more children, but we didn't.

Later, Christmas Day.

I went to the hospital next, for a fun filled day of configuring, and re-configuring, a really bad arm chair from the '70s. I also watched marathon sessions of "American Justice" on A&E. (For those of you who may not know, it's hosted by Bill Curtis. Actually, if you didn't know you would find this out quickly enough, as he let's you know before and after every break. I think his exact line is, "I'm Bill Curtis, and this is ... blah blah blah".)

Oh, and I hung out with Jodi and little Evie (!), who were happy to have me. It was great when my Mom came by in the afternoon, her first trip from Holland all week (really bad MI weather on top of, for those of you keeping track, a horrific train ride from Chicago that left Sunday night around 5:00 PM and only arrived in Holland on Monday morning at about 4:00 AM).

So this was Christmas Day... Evie is very new and very cute, and we all spent the day together. I left around 6:30 and got Connor at Jerry & Wendy's (thanks!), then finally... and I mean, finally... I got home with the little man, and we Just Hung Out. It was the Little Man and it was Me. I think we watched "It's a Wonderful Life", but Connor was goofing around and I was mostly doing computer stuff. I may not have painted this as the most merry of Christmases, but for us, it was.

P.S. In the photo, Connor is talking to Mommy later at night; I think they both came away sensing a real "meeting of the minds". My Dad could tell me the Latin phrase for that, or a lawyer probably could. Or these days, I could just Google it.

Christmas at the Wilterinks.

I finally got some sleep after the quietest Christmas Eve I have ever spent. Connor and I got up pretty early on Christmas Day, and I got him ready all by myself! We went to Jerry & Wendy's for a big breakfast and gifts, and Connor got to play with all his cousins.