Joel is crawling fast, able to climb stairs, and stand up on his own. This was a lot for a week. Relatedly, he has been eating a lot.

I cannot remember all that I wanted to post, but I will give it a shot. Last weekend was a good time of having Randy and Casey over so we could play with Randy's 1998 Mustang. We replaced all 4 struts, 4 springs (3 were broken!), the oil, and the front pads and rotors. It went reasonably well, except we had to also replace a bad tie rod end and that experience took several hours of wrenching and head-scratching. We made a minor adjustment a few days later, and now all Randy has to do is worry about his camber, and the car should be fantastic for a long while.

That Sunday we went to Okemos, MI so we could be with Pastor Jim on his induction into Faith Lutheran. We also saw his sweet house and generally sat around and chatted. It was a good time, but I was super tired that whole day.

Anne's parents had been with us since Wednesday and they just left a few hours ago (Sat afternoon). It was a good time seeing them play with Joel. Anne and I actually went on a date! That was quite refreshing. We also all got together on the front room project. It is painted and re-situated. My parents gave us their old couches, which are very comfortable. It is like getting an addition on the house because that big room was a wasted space until now.

I took thursday afternoon and friday before noon off work so Nate Miller and I could go to the Flaming Lips, Death Cab for Cutie, Sonic Youth show at the Blossom Music Center near Cleveland. It had been forever since I have been anywhere other than Detroit. It was a beautiful and interesting venue, and the bands were decent (though perhaps a little too "programmed" feeling for my tastes). Flaming Lips had a good show--they have stage antics that made the show pretty cool. It was a very needed break, and I liked it a lot.

Today has been getting the front room in some order, grilling a little, seeing Anne's parents off, and lawn maintenance. I need to leave now to hit the Jr Grand Prix in downtown Toledo. Maritz should be hitting the championship race in a little bit.