Newsboys

The family went to the NW Washington Fair tonight and watched the Newsboys. The fair always does a pretty good job of attracting good Christian bands. The past couple years we've also seen Jars of Clay and Third Day. I was planning on posting these in order, but I'm too tired to move them around so in no particular order...


Right before the concert was supposed to start there was a lot of commotion and people were all having their pictures taken with this guy. I thought it was lead singer Peter Furler, but it wasn't (though they do look a lot alike). So if anyone recognizes this guy let me know.

Jamie and I saw Paul Colman in concert back when he was with the Paul Colman Trio. Now he's lead guitar for the Newsboys.

He ventured off into the stands about halfway through the show.

I was able to walk up pretty close to the stage and get some good close up shots.

Quite a few of the pictures include the drummer, Duncan Phillips, with a warrior face. Peter and Duncan had a pretty good drum battle at the end of the concert. Unfortunately being in Lynden it didn't include their signature revolving set.

They had a big smoke screen at the end. The rounded cover kept all the smoke in and you couldn't even see the band for awhile. Well, off to bed.

Golf

My parents bought Kobe a set of golf clubs last year for his birthday. He had some lessons last summer and I think we've gone to the driving range once since then. Last weekend all the boys and a few neighbors were in the backyard making divots, so I decided maybe we should go to an actual golf course. The weather was nice this afternoon so I decided it would be a good day for a family golf outing. Jamie was excited about the golf idea...so she could have some quiet time to read at home. So the rest of us headed to Raspberry Ridge.

I started to second guess my decision about halfway through the first hole. The course was pretty busy on a Friday afternoon and we weren't moving very fast. Christopher had already sustained a blow to the head by Colton because he thought he'd go stand next to him to give him pointers while Colton swung his club. By the third hole the boys were starting to get the hang of it though. We were right on the heels of a few blue haired ladies the rest of the way. It may take a few more outings for them to figure out the whole golf etiquette thing, but it's been 9+ years for the boys and they still don't get the whole dinner etiquette thing so I won't hold my breath.

Here are a few pictures of them in action.

This would have been a good picture with Baker in the background if the clouds hadn't started coming in.

And my favorite, Colton's warrior faced swing. They all had fun and the fairways still have some grass left (I find it interesting that they charge less for "juniors" to golf, it seems like they should charge based on the amount of damage to the course that certain age groups will inflict). All in all I think everyone had a good time.

Colton is 9!

Colton turned 9 on Sunday. Halfway to adulthood (or maybe 1/3 or 1/4 of the way depending on who's definition you're using). We started off by having his birthday party for Jamie's side of the family on Thursday. We usually combine his party with his cousins. They don't seem to mind sharing the spotlight. Grandpa is still trying to lobby for one annual birthday party for everyone but I don't think we'll be adopting that anytime soon.

Megan and Morgan turned the big 13. They keep getting bigger but the clothes keep getting smaller. I tried to get Jamie just to buy sweatpants and sweaters but she wouldn't listen.

Tyson and Tyler modeling their Husky wear.

Back to our house for Sunday's Laird family party. Not sure what this present was but he liked it.

His brothers were happy to show him how to use it.

Grandma with two of her granddaughters.

Jamie got a good shot of Naomi studying the grass

Daphne posing for a pic

Kobe (with his shirt from church still on) showing Uncle Arthur good blocking form.

Colton trying to set a good example for his uncles by reading a book.

Proper bocce ball form.

And the impromptu family picture.

And I couldn't resist adding this one. The boys always beg to sleep on the couch and we give in once or twice a week. I was leaving for work and had to snap this picture of them sprawled out. I don't know how kids can sleep so contorted.

From the Onion

Your feelings on global warming aside...this was funny...

EARTH—Former vice president Al Gore—who for the past three decades has unsuccessfully attempted to warn humanity of the coming destruction of our planet, only to be mocked and derided by the very people he has tried to save—launched his infant son into space Monday in the faint hope that his only child would reach the safety of another world.
"I tried to warn them, but the Elders of this planet would not listen," said Gore, who in 2000 was nearly banished to a featureless realm of nonexistence for promoting his unpopular message. "They called me foolish and laughed at my predictions. Yet even now, the Midwest is flooded, the ice caps are melting, and the cities are rocked with tremors, just as I foretold. Fools! Why didn't they heed me before it was too late?"
Al Gore—or, as he is known in his own language, Gore-Al—placed his son, Kal-Al, gently in the one-passenger rocket ship, his brow furrowed by the great weight he carried in preserving the sole survivor of humanity's hubristic folly.
"There is nothing left now but to ensure that my infant son does not meet the same fate as the rest of my doomed race," Gore said. "I will send him to a new planet, where he will, I hope, be raised by simple but kindly country folk and grow up to be a hero and protector to his adopted home."
As the rocket soared through the Gore estate's retractable solar-paneled roof—installed three years ago to save energy and provide emergency rocket-launch capability in the event that Gore's campaign to save Earth was unsuccessful—the onetime presidential candidate and his wife, Tipper, stood arm-in-arm, nobly facing their end while gazing up in stoic dignity at the receding rocket, the ecosystem already beginning to collapse around them.
In the final moments before the Earth's destruction, Gore expressed hope that his son would one day grow up to carry on his mission by fighting for truth, justice, and the American way elsewhere in the universe, using his Earth-given superpowers to become a champion of the downtrodden and a reducer of carbon emissions across the galaxy.
"Perhaps he will succeed where I have failed," Gore said.
Despite the child's humble beginnings, experts predict the intergalactic journey may have some extraordinary effects on Kal-Al's physique, eyesight, and, potentially, his powers of quiet, sensible persuasion.
"On his new planet, Kal-Al's Earth physiology will react to the radiation of a differently colored sun, causing him to develop abilities far beyond those of mortal men," political analyst Sig Schuster said. "He will be faster than a speeding Prius, stronger than the existing Superfund program, and able to leap mountains of red tape in a single bound. These superpowers will sustain him in his never-ending battle against conservatives, wealthy industrialists, and other environmental supervillains."
Although Gore and his wife voiced regrets that they could not accompany their son on his journey, they tried their best to equip Kal-Al for life on his new planet, providing the infant with a Keynote slide-show presentation of all human knowledge, a self-growing crystal fortress from which to monitor glacier shrinkage, and a copy of Al Gore's 1992 bestseller, Earth In The Balance.
The baby was also wrapped in a blanket emblazoned with the Gore family crest, which, because it is made of Earth materials, will be invulnerable on the new planet. It is hoped that one day it will be fashioned into a colorful costume for the boy to wear while fighting wrongdoers.
"In brightly hued tights, it will be harder for people there to ignore him when he takes on his new planet's lobbyists, auto manufacturers, and enemies of justice," Schuster said. "A bold and eye-catching unitard will give Kal-Al, last son of Earth, a formidable tool for protecting his new planet, a power more awesome than any his father could have dreamed of: the power of charisma."
http://www.theonion.com/content/news/al_gore_places_infant_son_in