941 pictures for the month. First cut got it to 45 pictures. Second cut got it to 27. So then I added some others to get 33. Then one last cut down to 31. :-)
2014-10-03 01:21 UTC – Alex still “arting” whenever he gets the chance. This is a nice swirly one.
2014-10-05 00:23 UTC – Roscoe REALLY needed a bath.
2014-10-05 23:59 UTC – More art. This time something more realistic. It is a plant growing out of a pot.
2014-10-06 20:15 UTC – October was also a big comeback month for Portal and Portal 2. Alex had taken a break from them for a few months, but spent MANY hours on them this month!
2014-10-10 02:46 UTC – We played through both Portal and Portal 2 from start to finish. In both cases Alex did most of the early levels, then handed it over to me. This is right as we finished up Portal 2 and the turrets were singing.
2014-10-11 03:12 UTC – Alex took my phone and took a bunch of pictures of himself and of his trains. This was the best of the bunch.
2014-10-11 15:38 UTC – It is important to Alex that his hair reaches his mouth.
2014-10-12 04:17 UTC – Tortilla Face
2014-10-13 19:56 UTC – Hat Head
2014-10-14 05:11 UTC (picture by my mom, time is when I got a copy of this, not when it was taken) – Mom Selfie
2014-10-14 06:39 UTC – The boys sleeping
2014-10-15 01:08 UTC – Rainbow from our front porch
2014-10-15 16:52 UTC – Pumpkin Patch Field Trip!
2014-10-15 16:53 UTC – A friend from school leads Alex to the good pumpkins
2014-10-15 17:01 UTC – Alex didn’t want to pick
2014-10-15 17:10 UTC – So we helped pick one
2014-10-15 17:59 UTC – Here’s the crew that came in our car as we were leaving. They look thrilled, don’t they?
2014-10-18 21:35 UTC – We had been talking about how he needed a haircut, so Alex started doing it himself. We caught him after just one cut though. Amy had to take pictures.
2014-10-18 21:35 UTC (picture by Amy) – One of Amy’s pictures of Alex and the hair he cut off
2014-10-18 22:18 UTC – Of course, after that, Alex had to cut my hair too.
2014-10-19 17:55 UTC (picture by Amy) – A squirrel came to visit our back patio
2014-10-20 02:02 UTC – My mom and Alex work together on an activity book
2014-10-21 01:24 UTC – If you look REALLY carefully, you might find Alex hiding from us at the store. Hint: Look closely at the four manikins, one of them might not be the same as the others.
2014-10-25 03:24 UTC – Amy and Shane at Amy’s birthday dinner a few days after her actual birthday
2014-10-25 05:17 UTC – Amy glares at me as I take a picture of her birthday outfit
2014-10-25 05:24 UTC – Amy’s birthday cake, made by Brandy
2014-10-25 05:37 UTC – Alex and Amy eagerly await the presents. Maybe one of them is more excited than the other.
2014-10-26 05:14 UTC – Crazy Alex attacking me
2014-10-27 01:58 UTC – Grandma Ruth watches Alex make a drawing for her
2014-10-27 06:24 UTC – Someone fell asleep in my lap.
2014-10-31 01:59 UTC (picture by my mom, time is when I got a copy of this, not when it was taken) – Alex getting ready to come home after carving a pumpkin at Grandma Ruth’s house. Ready for Halloween night! (Which happened on November 1st UTC in Seattle, so that will be in next month’s pictures…)
1076 pictures for the month. First pass narrowed to 70. These are the 30 that best represent September.
2014-09-01 06:39 UTC (Picture by Amy) – An Amy Selfie to start the month. (Yeah, yeah, I already used this one on her birthday post.)
2014-09-01 21:44 UTC – Alex chases after Amy at Bumbershoot
2014-09-02 02:19 UTC – Alex and me joining the family after a quick romp through the fountain at Bumbershoot
2014-09-02 04:36 UTC – Amy comforts Alex after he tripped and took a bad spill while running after her to get into the EDM venue at Bumbershoot. After this he was done for the night.
2014-09-03 16:58 UTC – First day of school for Alex
2014-09-05 01:19 UTC – We didn’t even know we had an apple tree, but one day we noticed this hanging off a tree in our front yard. We think it is the tree’s very first apple. Awww…
2014-09-07 19:44 UTC – Brandy accidentally made a sculpture out of frosting.
2014-09-11 21:53 UTC – Alex plays in a balloon room at a local mall. (Posted before as part of Alex through the Years.)
2014-09-11 22:13 UTC – Alex and I built a robot! He knocked it over seconds later of course.
2014-09-12 20:28 UTC – Alex’s class at school prepares for his birthday ceremony, where the birthday kid circles a candle representing the sun once for each year of their lives, while the parents show pictures of them from each year and say something brief about what the kid was like each year. Brandy and I were participating, so no pictures of the actual event.
2014-09-12 22:21 UTC – Once we were home, it was time for our own birthday celebrations, and Roscoe got to wear the birthday hat from school.
2014-09-12 22:22 UTC – Grandma Ruth got to wear the hat too.
2014-09-12 22:48 UTC – Brandy made a train cake for Alex.
2014-09-12 23:11 UTC – Alex with a present from Grandma Ruth.
2014-09-12 23:14 UTC – Alex opening a present from Amy.
2014-09-14 05:27 UTC – One of Alex’s presents was a lego set from Papa Bill and Grandma Cathy. Alex has been getting more into Lego lately. Here he diligently follows the instructions to assemble this set.
2014-09-14 05:45 UTC – And here is the final product. Alex assembled it almost entirely himself, following the instructions in the booklet. He only asked for help on one or two of the many steps in the process. In the following days, he did several other lego sets too.
2014-09-16 23:48 UTC – A few days later, it was time for my birthday. Alex wanted Brandy to make me a train cake too, but Brandy was sick at the time, so instead Amy and Alex went to the store. Alex picked this hamburger and fries cake for me instead.
2014-09-17 00:19 UTC – Amy presents me with my biggest present, from her and Brandy. Can you guess what it is? (It was a much needed new chair for my home office.)
2014-09-20 22:31 UTC – Grandma Ruth took Alex, Roscoe and me on an adventure in a nearby park. This was the start of our hike.
2014-09-20 23:22 UTC – The destination of the hike was a little area on the shore of Lake Washington. Roscoe and Alex spent a few minutes playing in the water!
2014-09-20 23:34 UTC – After the hike and playing a bit, Roscoe was ready for a bit of a rest. We had a picnic. Roscoe patiently waited to share.
2014-09-21 00:02 UTC – Alex and I climb up on a large tree that had fallen over and leaned over the lake
2014-09-21 00:04 UTC – Alex does not seem impressed as he dismounts from the fallen tree.
2014-09-21 00:07 UTC – After the tree, there is some time for some more splashing at the edge of the lake.
2014-09-21 00:18 UTC – Then it was time for the hike back to the car. Everybody was a little tired by this point. But we had to keep going.
2014-09-21 01:50 to 01:56 UTC – Once back in the car, a certain someone couldn’t quite manage to stay awake.
2014-09-23 01:11 UTC – Uh, he is not supposed to climb up there.
2014-09-26 00:31 UTC – My mom and Sara. A good team.
2014-09-27 22:24 UTC – Alex told Brandy that he wanted some fresh paper and markers and such. Brandy got him this new art desk thing. Since then Alex has been “art-ing” every chance he gets, producing many many pages of drawings and paintings and other things. He uses that desk almost every day now!
I took the last week off from work for the purpose of working on a variety of personal projects.
The above is the timelapse from my home office webcam for my last real day of vacation. Hit play to start it. I’m currently experimenting with a fisheye lens so you can see the whole room, although with a bit of distortion. But this way you can see what Alex, Roscoe, and if you don’t blink Amy too, are doing in the room, rather than just seeing a closer view of me at my desk. :-)
It has been a good week. I got a few things done, although of course not as much as I would have liked. I made a decision early in the week not to worry too much about it, and also use the time to just take it slow and relax a bit. So I didn’t push myself. I’m still a bit under the weather and tired… and I’ll probably end up trying to finish a few more things over the weekend even though that is harder when Alex isn’t in school. So I’m not sure I’ll head back to work fully relaxed and rejuvenated, but it was still good to take the week. I should use my vacation and personal days a bit more than I do. I always end up leaving those on the table because I don’t use them.
987 pictures from August. First pass narrowed it to 75. Culling it down to 31 for this post. The last few killed were hard choices as usual.
2014-08-01 00:50 UTC – We start out the month with Amy in a cat hat.
2014-08-02 03:06 UTC – Alex is getting better and better at walking Roscoe.
2014-08-02 19:39 UTC – Roscoe always likes to rest after his walks.
2014-08-04 04:25 UTC – We sometimes put Alex in a cage.
2014-08-04 04:33 UTC – Alex playing with a wooden car by the light of a night light.
2014-08-09 21:31 UTC – Alex will follow his sister to the ends of the earth… or to a science demonstration for kids at my company picnic.
2014-08-09 22:00 UTC – Alex chasing a ball at the company picnic. And yes, the “picnic” was inside. No grass or trees to be seen.
2014-08-09 22:10 UTC – Once Alex was tired of the picnic, we walked a bit in the city. Well, I walked. Alex rode. He is about 45 pounds now, so this usually doesn’t last too long.
2014-08-09 22:40 UTC – When we were done exploring, we hung out in Pioneer Square for awhile until Mommy could swing around with the car and pick us up.
2014-08-09 22:55 UTC – This seagull kept watching us.
2014-08-10 16:51 UTC – One Sunday I accompanied my mom to a church where she was doing the fill in minister thing for the day.
2014-08-10 18:28 UTC – Here she is doing the meet and greet thing after the service.
2014-08-10 19:30 UTC – After the service, time for a day trip to Canada! Observe the grandeur and majesty of the border crossing!
2014-08-10 20:24 UTC – We found a small tourist town to have lunch in.
2014-08-10 20:32 UTC – My mom was wearing this owl. It kept staring at me.
2014-08-10 21:13 UTC – We saw some pretty views along a river.
2014-08-10 21:24 UTC – We saw some train stuff.
2014-08-10 23:18 UTC – Then we went to a park across the channel from the Vancouver airport. (Click to enbiggen the panorama.)
2014-08-10 23:22 UTC – We watched some big planes take off.
2014-08-10 23:28 UTC – And a bunch of little ones too. These were taking off from the channel of course.
2014-08-11 03:09 UTC – Then after dinner, we headed back to the US. Much shoddier and more run down border crossing this time.
2014-08-13 01:46 UTC – Back at home, all summer long, Alex almost never missed a day playing with the hose. He would water the lawn, all the plants and bushes, the cars, himself, and anybody crazy enough to get within range.
2014-08-22 03:50 UTC – Later in the month I took Brandy to a concert.
2014-08-24 18:24 UTC – At school Alex is starting to learn geography.
2014-08-30 01:44 UTC (photo by Brandy) – Then we went to a fair. We went on this slide. Amy went first while Alex and I waited at the top.
2014-08-30 01:44 UTC (photo by Brandy) – Then Alex changed his mind and didn’t want to go. But it was too late. So I held his hand. I was not supposed to do that. Because I essentially ended up dragging him down. And since I was holding onto his hand, he spun onto his side. This was scary and unpleasant. There were tears. But he forgave me a few minutes later.
2014-08-30 02:01 UTC – Amy and Alex went fishing. Eventually Alex caught one of the fish and won a toy car.
2014-08-30 03:14 UTC – After dark, there were lots of lit up spinning things to watch.
2014-08-30 03:26 UTC – Amy won a donut, but let Alex wear it.
2014-08-30 03:53 UTC – Alex had said for months that he did not want a haircut until he could put his hair in his mouth. Now he can, but he has changed his mind. He still does not want a haircut.
2014-08-30 04:50 UTC – At a certain point, Alex was done and just bolted to head back to the car on his own. He was headed the wrong way of course. I caught him and we walked back to the car together. Amy and Brandy joined us awhile later. :-)
1285 pictures from July. First pass narrowed it to 76. Then culled down to 31 for this post…
2014-07-05 04:50 UTC – Grandma Ruth and Alex waiting for fireworks.
2014-07-05 05:04 UTC – And then the fireworks began!
2014-07-05 05:13 UTC – I took lots of pictures of fireworks, but two will suffice here.
2014-07-05 05:26 UTC – After the fireworks the people across the pond start leaving under the light of a cloudy moon.
2014-07-07 18:27 UTC – One of the neighbors dogs, who always barks back and forth with Roscoe through our back fence, got loose. We saw it walking by and called it. It came running, straight to our door, to bark at Roscoe through the door. Roscoe excitedly barked back. The neighbor dog wanted to come over for a visit! We did not let it in. We took it back to its own house instead. They were both disappointed.
2014-07-11 22:47 UTC – Alex’s first eye exam. Doesn’t need glasses yet… but maybe next year!
2014-07-12 16:36 UTC – See the story above. Alex did not forget. Later when we were out at a local mall, he fished the quarter out of his pocket, and headed over to a little train ride that goes back and forth for a minute when you put in a quarter. But it was out of order, so he asked me to keep the quarter for him. But he very much remembered the quarter he had earned, he knew where he had kept it safe, and he knew what he wanted to use it for.
2014-07-16 04:53 UTC – Beating the heat with a fan
2014-07-19 18:33 UTC – Roscoe was very excited that Uncle David was visiting, but jumping on him to get attention was not encouraged, and he wasn’t getting attention just standing there, so Roscoe got up on the couch where Uncle David could reach better to get a good welcome.
2014-07-19 19:51 UTC – Aunt Ann and Uncle David talk to my mom over lunch.
2014-07-19 19:52 UTC – My mom explains something to Seth and Jinn
2014-07-10 21:17 UTC – Aunt Ann and Uncle David in the after lunch picture taking session
2014-07-20 00:20 UTC – Sometimes snuggles involve licks. A few seconds later Alex licked him back.
2014-07-21 20:32 UTC – Then Papa Bill and Grandma Cathy visited. We took a ride on the light rail to the airport!
2014-07-22 21:01 UTC – Since there was going to be a big Minter family get together, this meant it was time to pass on a family tradition. This is Lucy Lumphead, as she was when we received her shortly after Alex was born. (Click the pic to make it big enough to read the note.)
2014-07-22 21:06 UTC – And here is Lucy Lumphead as we passed her along to Cousin Maya’s family. Brandy made the new costume. I wrote the new note. This doll has been being passed around in the family every few years for the last 74 years. (Click the pic to make it big enough to read the note.)
2014-07-22 23:08 UTC – My dad and his sisters Diane and Susan, all together at the same time for the first time in years.
2014-07-22 23:16 UTC – Cathy at a quiet moment during the get together.
2014-07-22 23:41 UTC – Alex plays tetherball while Cousin Ella runs by.
2014-07-22 23:48 UTC – Cousin Luca holds Kai, the youngest member of the clan.
2014-07-23 01:35 UTC – Cathy with Kai
2014-07-23 01:37 UTC – Amy drew an octopus.
2014-07-23 01:38 UTC – Kai plays the piano too.
2014-07-23 01:45 UTC – Amy, look how high I can jump!
2014-07-23 02:18 UTC – At one point, Alex asked me if we could take a walk. Then he whispered and asked me if I could please ask his cousins Mia and Ella if they would come with us. Ella thought this was a great idea, and asked permission to take us to the playground at their school. So Mia and Ella took us to the playground. Seconds later Alex and Ella were doing this.
2014-07-23 02:24 UTC – Mia and Ella are Alex’s favorite cousins. Especially Ella. We visit rarely, but Alex really enjoys spending time with them when he can.
2014-07-23 02:39 UTC – Ella throws sand while the others watch. Of course within moments, they were all throwing sand.
2014-07-23 02:52 UTC – The girls were amused because when it was time to walk home, Alex gathered a load of sand to carry home in his shirt. Halfway back, he dumped the sand and with their help transferred it all to his shoes, where it was easier to carry home.
2014-07-23 18:35 UTC – Roscoe angles for some attention from Cathy
2014-07-23 18:36 UTC – Posing for a quick photo before Papa Bill and Grandma Cathy go home.
2014-07-23 18:37 UTC – One more with just the three generations of Minter men.
30 pictures selected out of 481 for the month. It was a slow month, with no big “events”, but the final narrowing was still hard!
2014-06-01 02:31 – Mom singing with her church choir.
2014-06-02 15:51 – Mornings are hard. Someone really doesn’t want to wake up for school, and often doesn’t until we are already there.
2014-06-03 02:44 (previously posted)- If June had a theme, it was probably home improvement. It started small, with me changing the battery in a smoke detector after it had been beeping for YEARS.
2014-06-06 02:22 – At the end of year ceremony at Alex’s school, Alex was not thrilled about standing up front to sing.
2014-06-06 02:28 – But he would pose for a picture with his teacher.
2014-06-06 02:28 – Picture taking patience was exhausted when it was time for the picture with the assistant teacher though, so time for a duck face!
2014-06-06 04:28 – This thing is a microphone, right? The school presentation is over, NOW I can sing!
2014-06-07 18:09 – A typical pose with Roscoe and Alex together while Alex builds worlds and trains on the iPad.
2014-06-07 19:15 – Joining the new fridge from January, the new oven/microwave combo is finally complete. Brandy has been very excited because it is an INDUCTION stovetop, and the Microwave also has a convection oven mode. And they are shiny.
2014-06-08 20:29 – Sometimes, when the weather is agreeable, Alex rides his wagon to and from school instead of taking the car.
2014-06-09 01:56 – Alex “reading” a Magic School Bus book in the car.
2014-06-10 00:41 – The weather has finally warmed up enough to play in the sprinkler! When properly bundled up of course.
2014-06-10 05:07 – Playing with Daddy’s glasses
2014-06-12 20:27 – I moved to a new desk at work. It has a view.
2014-06-13 02:54 – Next home improvement thing. Brandy put up a ceiling pot holder thingy. These were just the starter pots. It is much more heavily loaded now.
2014-06-14 01:18 – Alex and I sat outside and watched while my car windshield was replaced after a flying rock cracked it. (I’ve been meaning to post a timelapse of the repair, but haven’t gotten around to it.) The beginning was exciting, but toward the end Alex was getting bored and sleepy.
2014-06-16 05:48 – OK, you can’t tell from the picture, but this is me working on the next home improvement project. The projector we used as our primary TV died, and this is me up on a chair getting the new replacement projector all set up.
2014-06-19 21:50 – Amy and Alex hanging out on a sunny day
2014-06-19 21:5? (Photo by Amy) – Amy takes advantage of the moment to grab a quick Alex portrait.
2014-06-23 01:11 – How do we play with the dog Alex? Well, obviously, put a broom on him, then LIMBO!
2014-06-23 03:18 – Alex asked for a rainbow cake, so Brandy made one.
2014-06-23 05:17 (Photo by Alex) – Sometimes Alex takes my phone to take his own pictures. He took this portrait of Roscoe. I chose not to include the pictures he took of the floor, the ceiling, or his foot.
2014-06-25 22:38 – Another home improvement pic. No, not the coffeemakers. No, not the lazy susan under them, although that is new too. I neglected to get a really good picture of it, but the tiled backsplash on the wall is all new. Brandy put it in by hand over the course of a few days, replacing the plain wall that was there before.
2014-06-27 15:56 (Photo by Amy) – Selfie by Amy
2014-06-28 06:40 – Alex can draw people now!
2014-06-28 06:47 – And not just ANY people. Alex is very clear… this… is… BATMAN.
2014-06-28 06:51 – He is getting pretty darn good at writing his name too!
2014-06-29 02:49 – Making new train levels again, this time on my iMac. He starts from scratch and builds the track, adds trains, and then builds the landscape with mountains and lakes and buildings and all. His software of choice is all from the Trainz family.
2014-06-29 23:31 – For the first time in forever, Roscoe gets a BATH. (Alex insists it was a SHOWER though, since we used the hose and didn’t actually put him in the tub.)
2014-06-30 07:32 – Of course, at the end of each day, it is always nice to cuddle and fall asleep.
April was difficult. Started out with 979 pictures for the month. Narrowed down to 77 in the first pass through looking for pictures worth posting. Then had to narrow it down to 30 (one per day) for this post. The last cull was tough! Anyway, here goes…
2014-04-02 02:01 – Alex riding his bike, for real!
2014-04-06 21:58 – Goggle selfie
2014-04-12 07:39 – Roscoe cuddles up to sleep
2014-04-19 21:57 – Amy (and Alex) at the Space Needle
2014-04-19 21:58 – Alex conspiring with Cousin Lev
2014-04-19 22:58 – Still conspiring, now under Alex’s new umbrella, under watchful adult eyes
