I haven’t posted Luke pictures in forever, so one of my pre-going back to work goals was to put up new pictures. We had tons of fun together over the summer, and I feel so blessed to have a job where I can spend so much time with him.

It’s only been two months, but I’ve been enjoying it!

Since my last post we went camping as a family, something we hadn’t done in 20 years or so. It was fun cooking together, hiking, and playing in the Big Sur river. On the way home we stopped in San Luis Obispo and visited the farmers market. Crazy busy, but fun.

Then last week we went to Vegas for a friend’s 30th bday. Stacie saw a show, I dropped $25 on the dodgers, and overall just had fun with friends we don’t get to see enough.

Now I’m dreading going back to work, but I’m enjoying what time I have. Starcraft 2 is amazing, and I would play it every waking moment if I could.

My other interest as of late are “designer” vinyl toys. It started with some neat limited edition Android toys, but then I discovered there are all sorts of different ones available. These come in a “blind box,” where they are wrapped in foil. Some versions are rarer than others. They’re 3 inches tall, and about $7, but they’re way neat. I managed to grab a couple before they sold out, and I pulled duplicates!

That’s it for now. Hope everyone is enjoying their summer.

We’re a week or so into summer, and we’ve been staying busy.

• Finished God of War 2 after finishing the first a few months back. I can now play God of War 3! Very cool (and bloody and mature) games.
• To go along with the gaming, I bought a new TV for our bedroom. Idea is I need something to entertain me while I scan family photos. Picked up a 42″ Samsung plasma for only $500…but I’m returning it for a slightly more expensive Panasonic. The Samsung makes a high-pitched buzzing sound, and it’s super annoying.
• Work on our bathroom started today, so we’ve been busy picking out a bathtub, tile, vanity, etc. We remodeled the other bathroom last year, and really hadn’t ever used it. Starting today we have to, and it’s super nice. Feels like I’m in a hotel!
• Yesterday I did 2.25 miles on the local High School’s track. It was a nice surface, but hot! I’m excited by my progress too. After my last setback, I started short at .5 miles, and I’ve been slowly adding to it. Not only is it my longest run barefoot…but my longest run ever. I also did my fastest one mile time the other day. I’m feeling pretty confident in saying that landing forefoot/midfoot can be just as good as heelstrike.
• Bought L4D2 for $11, so I can finally play with those of you that have it. Though the first time I played for any length of time, it made me motion sick. Perhaps I was sitting too close, haha.

That’s about it so far. Going to Lucille’s today for my bday. Thanks for all the birthday wishes.