Jack's Second Christmas

Well, we just got back from Ponca where we had a great time celebrating the Christmas miracle. Jack had a great time. It was also a time for reflection to notice how much he has grown in the past 19 months he has been alive. We were struck by the similarities of two pictures we took about a year apart:

Jack 2006

Jack 2007

Both pictures captured him perfectly at the time it was taken. The similarities are obvious. He has the same, expressive eyes, the same obvious joy and love for life, and the same basic face. The amazing thing are the differences. A year ago, getting Jack to smile was a simple endeavor, just about anything would get him going. Now it is a bit more of a challenge. Don't get me wrong, as kids go, he is about as happy as they come - constantly smiling and giggling. However, he no longer performs for the camera like an organ grinder's monkey. His face and eyes are definitely more expressive now. He has hair.

Anyway, Caren and I thought you might enjoy these pictures side-by-side.

For those who haven't noticed, I've uploaded over 150 pictures from Christmas, and 8+ videos are uploading as I write this. More pictures are to come when I get the film (yes, I wrote film) back. i also have a ton of video, but it is a chore to offload it from the camcorder right now, so that will have to wait until I have the technology, the time, and the effort to get it off and edit it.

New Videos and Pictures!!!

Yes, we've been slackers. Between work, school, and home we haven't thought much about posting pictures in a long time. For a few minutes, we also go ambitious and decided we would "clean up" the pictures before posting them by removing red-eye, cropping, and other small edits. Unfortunately, this ambition meant that we went even longer without posting.

On another note, my free video service decided it wouldn't be free anymore. The bad part about this is that now I have to pay. The good part about this is that I can now upload any file size and length, so the quality is a bit better than it was before (although not full resolution). I'm also better able to organize them, so look for dated folders on the video home page that will help you figure out if you've seen the latest videos.

I'll be adding all of our video in the higher resolution over the next few weeks because it takes a LONG time to upload. I'll be starting with the newest video and working my way backwards. To kick off this new video clip setup, here is a great video of Jack enjoying his new T-Ball set that his Nan got him. All of the videos are available by going to http://videos.kreusch.com.

After Christmas, I plan on building a new, more powerful home computer that will allow me to actually edit videos and burn DVDs a lot easier. As such, I am hoping to press a full-resolution DVD for use on your TV and sending it out to anyone who is interested. I'll keep you posted!

The Virtual Yard Sale is Open!!!

For no particular reason, Caren and I decided that this fall was a good time to take stock of our possessions and throw out the crap! Rather than just back the Explorer up to Goodwill and push everything out as we drive off with the tires squealing, we decided to hold a Yard Sale with some friends. Next Saturday (9/22/2007) we will be holding our Yard sale in Plano with our friends Ben and Elizabeth.

Sometimes one man's trash is another man's treasure. However, sometimes one man's trash is another man's, well, trash. With this understanding and a basic knowledge of microeconomics, we decided to take the stuff that wouldn't fetch a good price laid out on a sheet on a lawn and eBay it.

You can view our Virtual Yard Sale at http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZjkreusc

If you want to visit the real one, it is on 9/22/2007 in Plano. Email me for the time and address.