Farewell Party

John and Kris threw a wonderful farewell party for us Tuesday night. We just invited a few folks from the church that have encouraged, supported, and befriended us during our time in Milwaukee. Timm graciously took all the pictures, so you won't see him. Kris is convinced that Ben can say her name, although it comes out Aunt "Ta-Ta," which of course is very close to Kris.

Ben was very active throughout the evening . . . until he discovered the ice chest. He stood in front of the various coolers for over 30 minutes shoveling ice, or picking up ice cubes and dropping them in some of the flower pots on the deck. Whatever makes you happy, Big Guy.
A picture of the proud couple-to-be. My cousin Jenny and her fiance, Aaron. They're moving South, too--Racine.
The theme was "Wisconsin." John cooked brats and folks brought lots of cheese and custard. Our good friend Emmy brought Wisconsin shrimp.

It's been a great four years here and we really enjoyed talking about our move to Arkansas with all our Wisconsin friends. We'll certainly miss this place--the church, our little Cedarburg, the big city, and the winters. Oh yes, we'll miss the winters.

What Winter Will Do To You

Result #472 of living through Wisconsin winters:

Late in May Ben wanted to go outside. So, he did the natural thing--something we've done since last September. He grabbed his gloves and hat and gave them to Jules. As my mother said, "it's a hard life up here."

You snooze, you lose

Just an old favorite. It's a bit fuzzy, but it's too priceless to delete.

I know that the graduation pictures are incomplete. Even though there was much excitement, not many pictures were taken. We'll (I'll) do better next time. However, thanks to Aunt Linda, there were a few taken at the party. Here's my favorite.

Love you all: Jake, Jules, and Ben (especially Ben)

more fam pics

Our good friends, the Coster's, hosted a small graduation party for our family. The food was great and the rain held. Here are just a couple with Jules' parents . . . and the star of the event.

Graduation

It's official. Here's the proof. We had a great time at Graduation. My folks, Jules' folks, my Aunt Linda and Uncle Bob, my grandparents (Gables), and the Gable Junior's were all around for the weekend. We also celebrated cousin Jen's wedding shower. It's hard to believe that this graduate school whirlwind is all over--now on to a bigger adventure in Arkansas.

I Can Do It!!!

We may be gluttons for punishment, but we're letting Ben feed himself right now (sort of). He likes the spoon whether there is any food on it or not.

fairly random

I know it's hard to see, but around Ben's neck is a Cinco de Mayo medallion. It has blinking lights and is sponsored by Corona. Our waiter liked Ben a lot.
We call this "rock the bunny." Ben loves his horse, so he lets some of his toys enjoy the same fun.
Happy Mother's Day. Ben would not cooperate for a group photo, so Jules had to ride this one solo.

just before bedtime

We're renters. Ben mows the living room carpet.

This is Ben's new hobby. Our apartment faces a very busy intersection. He loves to stand inside and yell "Cow" everytime a car passes. The louder the "cow," the bigger the car/truck. He can now open the door by himself, which poses different problems. We tried to get Ben to say "Happy Birthday, Grandpa Curt," but he just points and says, "Ahh shabbat shabbite cowww."

"Chicks Dig Me"

Here are a few random pictures of Ben wearing his new T from Auntie Andie (Ben calls her Aunt Apple--we interpret!?).
The horse was a hand-me-down gift from folks at the Y--he loves to rock.
Another cheap toy. Give the boy two paper bags and he'll run circles around the house just making noise. He loves to put various things in them, especially his nook.
When I was in high school, a certain English teacher of mine yelled at me in front of my peers for using the word "chick" to refer to girls. Now this same teacher's daughter buys my son a t-shirt with the word "chick" on it and no picture of fowl anywhere. The injustice of it all.
This is the new thing. He can get up on the couch all by himself.

"

Happy Frickin Spring

April 11, 2007 Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Luckily, the forecasted 10-12 inches only turned into 2-3 in the Northshore area. The popular sentiment around campus today was, "you've got to be kidding me."

Happy Easter

We went over to the Gable's for Easter. Kris filled plastic eggs with fruit snacks and animal crackers. She gave Ben a paper bag and he actually looked for eggs and put them in his bag. It was hilarious and suprising. The last picture tells the real story of Easter. Ben got sick and that turned into pink eye. He's much better now, but he looked like a little raccoon most of the weekend.

new haircut

There have been times after a new haircut when I have just stripped down and started marching. It's a good feeling. Ben's got a helluva talent with the swiffer, too.

The park

We finally got a little reprieve from the nasty winter weather. Ben loves the park. It sits right next to Cedar Creek, so it's filled with ducks and geese. It's a big treat to go see the "cows."


No, he would not go down the slide. He just likes to sit up there and watch the older kids play.

our little Ruthie

I showed these pictures to my students on Wednesday. They gave an appropriate, "ahhh, isn't she cute." Then they laughed when I said,"that's my brother." God love him.

Here are a couple pictures of the happy family. This is for those of you who don't check Nate's blog.

Uncle Jake

Although I have no picture, my niece Ruth Cannon Stratman (Ruth = Bible; Cannon = my maternal grandmother's maiden name; Stratman = stuck with that one) was born last night around 10:30 in Wilmington, NC. She is 7 lbs. 5 oz and 19 inches. Nate said she has brown eyes. Take a look at Nate's blog for a picture. Ben is very excited to have a cousin only a year younger than he. Keep the prayers coming for them.

Happy St. Patty's Day

There's not a lick of Irish in us, but Jules is always up for "themes." Happy St. Pat's.

This is Ben working on his NCAA tourney bracket. He made a rookie mistake and picked too many upsets, but he'll bounce back in the second round. Sorry to Great-grandpa Gable, but Ben picked VCU over Duke. He doesn't know better. He did pick Marquette over Michigan St. and just gave me a death-glare at the end of that one.

Defense day

The Department Admin. Assistants (Deb and Sandy) bought me a little cake to celebrate my defense. They also bought one for Ben (see third picture). The second picture is self-explanatory. One of those pics that will come back to haunt Ben when he's a teenager.

We're trying new foods

This is the only way Jules will agree to change Ben's diapers.

Cool Jeans

Instead of spending 50 bucks at Abercrombie, just let Ben crawl around in them for a few months.

more snow

Nascar: Uncle Nate would be proud. This car was another gift from a Dunwood parent. He likes to go backwards, get out, and then push it around.

It's been snowing and sleeting all day. The forcast says that the Milwaukee area will get about 24 total inches this weekend. We'll see.