Obamanomics

Holy moly. Much has changed in our little world since the last time I posted a bloggy. We originally started doing this so that we could feel like we were keeping folks up-to-date without having to actually keep them up-to-date. However, it has become kind of a "we really oughta update the blog" thing. Which, if you think about it, is pretty much the same as "we really oughta call those guys and see how they're doing." Oh well. As I was saying, much has changed, and not much stays the same from day to day anymore. It's kind of mind blowing. The Sinclair gas station just south of BYU's campus kind of is my barometer of change. I know things aren't yet stabilized each morning when I drive by on my way to work and school and am surprised by the gas prices listed lower than the day before. Some days after reading the New York Times, I come home convinced that the absolute smartest thing for us to do is to buy a house as soon as possible. The next day I come home absolutely convinced that the smartest thing to do is to take my family along with a chicken or two and some cornseed and build a mud hut out in the bush somewhere. Whatta world! Either way, I think we can all agree that we now officially live in a society where no one is expected to live with consequences of their choices and actions. Whether I choose to live in a hurricane prone area, buy a bundle of sub-prime mortgage-backed debt, commit petty crimes, build a substandard product for premium price, supply dictators and warlords with weapons and financing to protect my "interests" only to later topple them to obtain more "interests", or just buying a house that's way bigger than I need, the government and the courts are there to make sure that I have a warm bed to sleep in each night.

IN other news, I have an incredible little family, have you noticed? Tonight, Mae said "I want some pie." Of course, we obliged. She is learning so much every day, it never ceases to amaze me. Her mama is a champ of all champs. She is working so hard making gifts for everyone for Christmas, and she still finds time to teach sewing lessons, fulfill her calling, and taking care of our home. Whatta woman. As for Ike, he now rolls across the floor along with puking, laughing, and pooping. A star.

Merry Christmas all!

Beautiful People

What I've been doing while not blogging, Part III

Thanksgiving down in Monticello was by far one of the best yet! We all got as sick as dogs with a mysterious illness that spread like peanut butter throughout the entire clan. The initial symptom was nauseating burps that tasted like yeast, and it went downhill from there. (Since of course, you were curious.) But, we didn't let that stop us from eating ourselves silly, playing lots of board games, watching many movies, and taking a wild excursion into the tundra for a Christmas tree. It rained all weekend, and so there was plenty of mud. Ben was excited to have some off-roady Subaru commercial moments, but it turns out that the AWD on the side of our vehicle is just decoration, because our sporty car was the only one that completely stuck. The mud was so heavily encrusted on our wheel axels, that we had to remove the tires and clean them out in order to get our wheels to turn at all. A slightly lesser drama was the fact that at first I hated our tree. I tried to suffer in silence as all of my male relations, (and a few of the cheerful and stalwart females) pushed against my car, up to their knees in mud. But, as it turns out, I love the tree, and so all their labor was not in vain! Here are some highlights from the trip, my favorite of which is the shot of my dad demonstrating to my nephew Rawl what fun it is to sit on a mattress, and that any big boy who goes potty in the toilet can also enjoy the privilege of doing so. Josie somehow was able to bypass all of those stipulations. Hmmm...

What I've been doing while not blogging, Part II

Yeah, Mae and Ike are still around. Growing like dandelions. They adore each other, as you can see. Or rather Mae adores "Itey" and Ike adores everything, including Mae, but also including dirty socks and plastic bags.

Things I have been doing while not blogging, Part I

Our first possibly annual Costume Ball of Special Magnificence!!

Imagine... dreamy lights, whimsical jack o' lanterns, fresh flowers, amazing food, swirling fog, costumes, dancing! Butt freezing, frog strangling cold!

I LIKE IKE

Well gang, let's talk Ike. He really is a swell little chap. He has Ben's ears. I thought Mae had Ben's ears when she was born, but she doesn't. She has Ben's mom's ears. Here is a diagram to differentiate the two models:

The Ben Ear: (
The Carol Ear: /

(This is a view from the front, if you follow me.)
And an unfortunate genetic trait that my two kids do have in common is their mother's purple-white skin. It looks great on them, though. They pull it off five hundred times as well as I do. Ike has fuzzy white hair, and a little boy face. He smells so unbelievably good. I sniff at him all day. What a world for our little son... I mean, so much shady business going on all the time. His mama, smelling him all the time, his big sister helping to "burp" him on his face, and giving him very sloppy kisses, his daddy, lapsing into fits of loud protest every time he has a bowel movement. Strange. He is bringing us so much dadblasted happiness and joy, and giving us constant cause to wash our bedding. Ah, Ikey. We likey.

He's here!!!

Benjamin Ike Henderson was born on Thursday the 14th of August at 08:30 weighing in at 7 lbs 14 oz. Healthy as a horse and handsome as...someone really handsome. I'll let Eirene fill in the details, but we're all doing great, and Mae is loving her new baby brother. Enjoy the pics!

Ben

The Big Scabby Apple

What to say about our recent trip to NYC? The following is our NYC Update At-A-Glance, for those of you strapped for time and energy. (Namely, myself.)

Sights We Saw:
1. Brooklyn
2. Chinatown
3. Central Park
4. Eighth Church of Christ, Scientist
5. Museum of Natural History
6. The Subway System
7. A drunken man
8. New Jersey
9. The Atlantic Ocean
10. Times Square
11. The Angel Moroni on 66th St.
12. Grand Central Station
13. Sbarro

Experiences We Experienced:
1. Being, apparently, the only white people in all of Brooklyn.
2. Wishing we were dead, or in other words, hauling a stroller, a baby, and luggage for two adults and one baby, up and down flight after flight of nasty subway staircases.
3. Figuring out that the reason they keep the lights in the Natural History Museum so low is because of a serious dust problem.
4. Eating dirt in Central Park. (Mae relished in this experience exclusively.)
5. Fishing a cigarette butt out of Mae's mouth in Central Park. (Every mom's worst nightmare
realized.)
6. Undergoing a mysterious resurrection at the beach.
7. Witnessing a drunk man fluent in both English and Sign Language professing his love to a woman doing a cross word puzzle on the bus.
8. The Lion King on Broadway! (Amazing, guys.
Really.)
9. One Rolex watch (fake) $30
10. Pinpointing the stench at Times Square as a combination of raw sewage, garbage seepage, urine, B.O., cigarette smoke, and imitation perfumes.
11. How crying will improve customer service by about 95%.
12. How granola bars get very old when you eat a steady diet of them.
13. How one milk addicted, sleep deprived 13 month old can VERY nearly ruin a vacation.
14. Noticing how the staff of a Jamba Juice is
fairly universal: teenage girls, with the token lurpy, gay boy.
15. Navigating the subway system without getting lost once. (Thank you, thank you)
16. Stepping in every freshly discarded wad of chewing gum from Far Rockaway to 81st St.
17. Noticing how Obama crazed NY is. He is a pop icon. His face is on glittery T-shirts and
handbags. Obama is Hannah Montana, pretty much.
18. Peeing in NY public restrooms about every five minutes... and wishing I was dead.

Lessons We Learned :
1. If you are in a wheelchair, or have a stroller, do not take up a residency in Manhattan.
2. An airplane is the last place you want to be if you are even remotely pregnant.
3. Milk goes bad.
4. Do not EVER travel without photo ID. Unless you aren't particular about catching flights, and don't mind being treated like a criminal.
5. A true friend is one who will volunteer to babysit your child while you spend a romantic and strollerless day in the city. (Thank you Aundi.)
6. It is worth it to take lots of pictures, even if you feel touristy.
7. Never sacrifice comfort for fashion. Never.
8. Cheap diapers are a waste of money.
9. Having a baby on the subway breaks down awkward barriers like magic.















































































The truth is, we had a marvelous time. But we'll be recovering for the next month, so don't be surprised if we are still NYZ's (New York Zombies.)

The Luck of the Irish

Have you ever heard that saying, "When it rains, it pours?" Well, its absolutely true. For the most part, that is. I mean, it may not 'pour' but it is usually a fairly good drizzle. If you're thinking actual rain and you live in Utah, well, then its not true at all. Sprinkles are all we see, with pours only lasting a minute or two. But if you're thinking of more intangible things, you'll know what I'm talking about. For instance, I had quite a few Delta SkyMiles saved up from all of the flying I did in South Africa. Eirene very studiously searched, figured, and planned out how we could use them before they expire along with our Economic Stimulus money to take a little trip to New York before our baby boy comes. She ingeniously figured and planned such that our entire trip with food, airfare, some spending money, and even a Broadway matinee of the Lion King for just over $300. Quite impressive, eh? Anyhow, not a full day after she had purchased tickets, some unexpected expenses popped up. A couple parts for the car to make it pass inspection, a few more things needed to get the motorcycle up and running to save on gas. These things all seemed to purposefully wait to show themselves until right after we had committed to spending money on our trip. Not exactly pouring rain, but definitely enough of a drizzle to make you question your decision to leave the jacket at home. My mom always said that we have Irish blood in us. Since I know nothing of our geneology, I just attributed my Irish blood to the amount of Lucky Charms I ate. Either way, if Irish luck is good luck, then Henderson's aren't blessed with it. Experiences like this have made me come to the conclusion that for us, money problems are like the UTA 831 bus that I ride to campus. I'll wait for hours and not see a single one, then four show up all at once as I'm walking away from the bus stop. The good news is, we are fine. We are still going to New York, and we're going to enjoy it! If the car parts happen to add up more quickly than expected, that's why we save.

Ben

My Predjudice

This morning in between church meetings, I sat in the foyer of our chapel jotting some thoughts in my journal as a conversation between members of the other ward began around me. A Hispanic woman was asking a young man about his service as a National Guardsman in Iraq. An older lady soon joined in by telling about a program she'd seen on television that showed an airplane that was hit by primitive arrows flying over remote parts of Africa. She was astounded that there were still "uncivilized" people living in the world and expressed her opinion that we Americans must have surely been obedient in the pre-existence to receive such blessings here on earth. While I know Bruce R. McConkie may have construed a similar opinion as doctrine, I have personally gained testimony to the contrary. Hearing this conversation further ingrained into me an even deeper desire to serve our country through diplomacy throughout the world. I feel that while gaining increased understanding and appreciation for others, my family will be able to also help friends and family here at home overcome prejudices and misconceptions. Many of these misconceptions seem to be formed when people attribute a doctrinal status to statements of opinion by general authorities in personal writings. Hopefully we can all be willing to give a bit more weight to conference and church publications than we do to books written on the side.

Camera Vs. Wild

Our darling daughter made a command decision last week. She was tired of hearing her parents complain about the family camera. "The flash is rubbish," "The pictures always come out pixelated," "It turns everything blue..." So, she took matters into her own hands. I found the camera on the bathroom floor. No one knows how it came to be there, and Mae, who has a very limited vocabulary, has not disclosed any details of her uncanny act. But this we know: somehow, she was able to get the camera out of its case, off of a very high shelf, drag it into the bathroom, install a very long crack down the middle of the screen, and arrange the possession of the camera by demons... or water. When you turn the camera on now, the lense, of its own accord, zooms in, and then out, and then in, and then out, about four times, and then closes, and a little message displays on the screen that says "Please turn camera off, and then on again." And if you follow these instructions, you enjoy a repeat performance. And yes, while we indeed hated our camera, it was better than a finger in the eye. And Mae's timing was quit bad, because now we have no visual evidence that she has started to walk, and has had her first camping trip, where she tore open her first birthday presents by campfire light, and then squealed with delight as her pyromaniac cousins Avery and Parker tossed the wrapping paper and ribbon into the flames with vigor. We have no way to express how truly filthy she became over the weekend, stumbling about in the dirt and rocks of the Uinta Mountains, or how happy she was to eat dirt for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I have no visual reminder of how attractive a husband is when he is fishing, or chopping wood, or plugging the daylights out of beer bottles from no trivial distance with a .44, or how excellent he looks with a few days of facial hair. The one relief to all of you, is that there is also no evidence of how truly unburdened I was over the weekend by social customs, such as showering, tooth brushing, leg shaving, or even clothing changing. I really embraced mother nature, out there in the wild, and I'm glad none of you have to see that side of me. It is my one solace for having no camera over Memorial Day weekend.

Maebe, Maebe not

Lately, I have been a little addicted to sewing, and Mae has reaped all the benefits:

This little number shows off nicely my newly discovered skill of shirring. (Translation, the bunchy elastic stitchery around the waist and sleeves. It adds a bit of boho to anything!) Please note my adorable model's little pigtail. Sure, it looks a little post-nap, but hey, that is a pigtail, friends!These little green pants were supposed to be capris. I guess I over-estimated the length of Mae's legs. And at this point, my model was really starting to lose her patience, and so I indulged her a little, and let her maul the camera. This was ample payment for her sufferings.


Ruffly Amy Butler samari pants never hurt anyone. I think I'll wait until she can walk to put these ones on her. And maybe until she grows three inches taller, too. (Yes, Mae is kissing her reflection passionately in that photo. She's a little Narcissistic, I'm afraid.)

And Mae has two teeth. Count 'em and weep! Plus, she's cute.


And, truly, what blog can be called complete without some spaghetti footage? I didn't make anything in these last three pictures... except for Mae. And the Spaghetti. So... I guess I'm pretty talented and stuff.