My son

I dropped Nicole off at the airport tonight for a quick trip to FL and, as expected, Brayden was not very excited to see her go. He got teary, but was not too hard to console. As we left the airport to drive back to the apartment where my grandparents were waiting, I realized that I needed gas. In fact, the light was on and the needle was on the line... not a good sign. I took a detour off the highway in an area I don't know well and hoped for the best. I finally found a station, hopped out, and began to pump. Here's where the story gets good. As I was waiting at the pump, I turned and looked in the rear window. There, happy as could be, was Brayden. He was just chatting away to himself in an empty car. It wasn't anything unusual, anything extraordinary, anything he hasn't done before. It was perfect. My beautiful son, joyful for no apparent reason. Then he saw me through the window and smiled. Smiled so hard, pointing my way with enthusiasm that said, "Hi Dad!" But what I heard was, "I love you." I love you, too, Brayden.

Science is more important than it is unimportant

Yes, yes. I know I have been a bum about posting this week and apologize sincerely. I have some fantastic videos from last weekend and promise to edit them together very soon. Until then, I thought I would put a few funny things together to entertain you in your glorious patience:

The links...

- A brilliant article on the current state of science
- Uh-oh, Jack's back
- What everyone should know

And now, after that fun, time to indulge my religious geek-dom... another "who ya gonna be" test (in which you're probably not even slightly interested):

You scored as Jürgen Moltmann,The problem of evil is central to your thought, and only a crucified God can show that God is not indifferent to human suffering. Christian discipleship means identifying with suffering but also anticipating the new creation of all things that God will bring about.

Which theologian are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

Friedrich Schleiermacher		60%
John Calvin		60%
Jürgen Moltmann		60%
Charles Finney		47%
Anselm		47%
Karl Barth		40%
Martin Luther		33%
Augustine		27%
Paul Tillich		27%
Jonathan Edwards		7%

Which theologian are you?

Stacking cups

Things are going well here -- Nicole is feeling good and Brayden has been slowly working toward a solid vocabulary. We've picked up a few tips from friends and blogs about ways in which we can increase his verbal skills. I'm sure we'll have more progress reports, soon. Until then, here's a video of Brayden's favorite toy: the stacking cups. He LOVES them. Each one is numbered (the smallest is 1 and then up to 10). At this point, he's much better with colors than numbers (as you'll see). Prepare yourself, it's 3+ minutes. BUT, it's a good time.

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

All Joyce references aside, Brayden has become quite the artist. We noticed a few weeks ago that he has begun to understand the use of small tools, so we're encouraging it. He eats his ravioli with a fork (on his own!) and has begun to LOVE coloring. Nicole hooks him up with the fatty-crayons and lets him at it. Here he is in his artist's glory:

Color, color, color

Excuse me, but you are interrupting my work

On display for the whole world to see (or the ones who come to our apartment)...

The Girata Gallery

Girata, Ode to a summer day (1 of 1)

This piece will be up on Ebay by the end of the week. Bidding will be open for 1-week, so don't delay! ;)

(I think the cow magnets pick up the subtle violet tones of the piece...)

Hot child in the city

...and the words flow like water. Each day, literally, Brayden is better articulating himself. Yesterday, he busted out with "up." Not just a casual utterance, but a very intentional pronunciation, something like this: "Uhh-hp!" There was a very hard consonance at the end. Good stuff.

Yet even with his verbal communication growing, he can always rely on his roots: crazy. Yes, he's full 'o crazy and that's what we can all play witness to, here. Glasses, the never ending joy-toy, especially when they're ones meant for his big-for-a-toddler (but not really "big") head.

Who's there?

Tadah -- it's ME!

As if the pictures aren't enough, here's a multi-sensory feast, including a sample of Brayden's favorite word, "no."

Peace out, home fries.

'nuff said.

Fun things (and lots of them)

We saw this on a friend's blog and loved it. Brayden's a pretty good split!



Then, since I can't just stop with one fun test, I decided to move ahead with Nicole and me. We're where we thought we'd be.





Well, with that, I couldn't leave out our Godson, Ethan...



...and our siblings...



This one is too funny:





Okay. I'm done now. Thank you.

12-weeks, and all's well

We had our 12-week appointment this past Friday, and everything is going very smoothly. We heard the heartbeat -- which is GREAT! -- and Nicole is finally coming out of her first trimester nausea.

Brayden's been running us ragged, between Nicole being tired more often (for good reason!) and my first week of class and all that comes with it. BUT, he's chatting up a storm with real words! I tried to get a good video of some talking, but I'm not sure how well it turned out. I did, however, get a funny video the other night of his favorite word: "no." Yes, the fun has begun.

BIG congratulations to all our friends who have recently welcomed their first baby, including Thomas Christopher Chalmers (son of Jon and Margaret), Amelia Jane Rockwell (daughter of Ben and Erin), and Charles L. Fischer IV (son of Charles and Rhonda).

Check back shortly for goof-ball pictures and video of the life of the Girata Family party.

The end of labor...

...well, at least until March (right, Nic??). Happy Labor Day week, a little ironic since you're all back at work after celebrating, well, NOT working. We had a great time at the Seminary's big Labor Day picnic. I was one of the coordinators of the event, so beforehand I was doing the crazy dance, but all was well. We had a great time and some cute pictures to prove it.

Here Brayden is beginning to drink his second cup of our special "really-watered-down lemonade" after he chomped down TWO (yes, 2) full hot dogs, along with other fixings. The little trash compactor...

Drink up

After that, he roamed, and roamed, and roamed. Here's a shot after chasing him down on the steps of Sparrow Hall.

Hey. There you are!

And then, some of the family at large.

Nic (with a little smirk)

With duh dada

King Street Blues

This week has been nothing but socialization. Tonight makes the fifth straight night we've gotten together with friends in the evening (and we've had a couple nights where we've done to multiple parties!). This is all good for me, but Ms. Wife doesn't typically bounce from party to party, night after night. BUT, she's been a great little butterfly (and has just gone to bed to sleep it all off).

Last Thursday we got together with Anh Vu, our friend from Orlando, while he was up in DC on business. We hit King Street Blues, our favorite cajun joint in Old Town.

Getting ready to eat

Food! Food! Food!

Fun with Anh Vu

PS -- Happy birthday to all the people who've recently celebrated (especially Alison, Troy, and Aaron!).