Sara Awarded Mother of the Year
In case you missed it on the news last night, Sara was awarded Mother of the Year 2009 by the National Maternity Society. Watch the video here:
Be sure to send Sara a congrats e-mail!
Kidologist.com: Karl Bastian's Personal Site and Blog
Archive for KarlTube
Karl, Baby Fred, Gus and Others at Family Fun Night
By request via Facebook, I’m posting the family show I did at my church last weekend. A volunteer did the video from the back so the audio is the best, but you can hear the show fairly well. It was an after dinner show so unfortunately there is some ambient noise from the clean up going on back where the camera was, etc. but for what it’s worth, you’ll get to see Gus and some of my other puppets, including the scary baby routine, and some unique “Chapel only” humor as Gus picks on the whole multi-church format of our church a bit. This coming weekend our church is launching simulcast broadcasting so the opening routine with the magic drawing board has a little fun with that, to explain the context.
But with no further ado, here is the entire program in seven parts:
PART 1: Magic White Board Option for Multi-Site Churches
PART 2: Baby Fred and it Stinks to be a Baby
PART 3: Karl and Snowball
PART 4: Gus on Multi-Personality Churches, er Multi-Site
PART 5: Gus Invents WWID (What Would I Do?)
PART 6: The Gus Raps (Kids in the Word & Yo God!)
PART 7: Gus Becomes a Ventriloquist (and the Clean Room Rap)
Hope you enjoy the show! It was a fun evening and the kids seemed to respond really well. This was the first time since High School that I did an entire program with just puppets, but they had a magician last week and I thought it would be too similar to do a magic show, so I decided to do something different. Seems Baby Fred ended up being the most popular, surpassing even Gus in comments afterwards.
Luke Climbs a Lighthouse
For our 15th anniversary we are spending a week in Lundington, Michigan. There are lots of pictures still to go through, but I wanted to blog our highlight today, on our actual anniversary. What a fun day! (click on any picture to view larger, then browse back to pick up where you left off!)
Luke was just eager to get going on our 1.8 mile hike to the Big Sable Point Lighthouse which is only accessible by hiking in.
If you squint you can see a little black and white dot in the upper left hand corner of this picture… that was our destination. Would Luke make it, that was the question!
Fortunately, some friends of our who live in Ludington, who we visited with on Tuesday evening, “just happened” to give us a kid-backpack. (God is indeed sovereign, and He likes to prove it over and over!) So when Luke got tired or decided he wanted to walk in directions other than forward, we had a way to make progress without losing too much time.
But we were in no rush, so we stopped often to rest and enjoy the beautiful scenery – a strange combination of sand, water and evergreens. (I’m sparing you all my nature photography!)
Luke definitely takes after his father in having this strong irresistible urge to wander off the well marked path! Keeping him on the trail was a constant struggle! Little explorer that he is! Oh, the fun we will have in the years ahead wandering around like Lewis and Clark!
Just had to post this one – is that one beautiful boy, or what? (note the shirt!)
Once we hid from mom off the side of the road when she wasn’t looking, but she soon found us!
“Does this road ever end?” Luke asks. “We’re not sure,” we answer!
But FINALLY we arrive and enjoy our sack lunch on a bench under the shade of some trees looking out over Lake Michigan. The lighthouse behind us and the roar of crashing waves around us. Luke seemed thrilled to have arrived at our destination and is eager to explore!
Soon he is off to see where all these wooden paths lead to. Treasure? Cookies?
He finds a steel wall with steps leading up to… to what? What could BE on the other side?
It’s water! As far as the eye can see. (Luke absolutely loves water!)
Luke ponders how there could be so much water in one place. (I don’t even try to explain that this is only a lake and that oceans are even bigger.)
He decides he likes this place very much, but he doesn’t like the big steel wall!
So he finds his way around it to the BEACH! And points so I know where he wants to go!
Soon he has found a UBPT. (Universal Boys Play Thing) Also known as “a stick.”
And what do boys DO with sticks, you ask?
Why, THROW THEM, of course! (this was only one of his many victims who were cast into the sea*!)
But then it was time to do what we came here to do – CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE LIGHTHOUSE! Luke made the height requirement by less than an inch so he got to go on an adventure to new heights, literally!
Every twenty steps or so there was a window with a ledge big enough for him to sit on, and he absolutely loved sitting there and taking in the view. There are quite a few of these pictures, though the lighting was tricky for pictures to get both the view inside the fairly dark tower and the outside. I was able to get it by opening up the aperture pretty wide to get the outside in focus and not lose the inside. Until I figured that out, either you got nothing inside (like below) or the outside was washed out and all white. (TMI for most of you I know, but my photo-friends will appreciate it!)
This shot shows when we spotted mom from around 50 steps up in the lighthouse!
Not even half way up yet, and already the view is getting spectacular. (Yes, that’s mom in the pink!)
We waved and waved and suddenly Mom actually SAW US in the little window and took this picture!
We went rather slowly, but I was so proud of Luke. He did the entire thing all by himself! Here he is passing the 100th step. (and this is the only time I wasn’t immediately behind him)
Yes, that’s me and Luke 130 feet up in the air at the top of the Big Sable Point Lighthouse!
The view was wonderful and the sky was perfectly clear. It was pretty windy but it felt great.
The lighthouse was pretty busy with a steady stream of visitors and yet, when we got up there, we had the whole thing to ourselves for about ten minutes. It really was a gift from the Lord. Luke had absolutely no fear at all. The funny thing was, the only thing that scared him was some orange streamers they had hanging from the two hatches you had to come through on the stairs. They were blowing in the wind and really freaked him out. I had to hold him as we passed the orange streamers. Silly, but sweet too.
Can you spot us up there at the top of the lighthouse? Good thing mom was too scared to come up, she was able to take some fun pictures from the bottom. :)
Here’s a zoomed in version of Luke at the top of a historic Michigan Lighthouse!
VIDEO: Watch Luke at the top of the Lighthouse
All good things must come to an end. In this case, all good things have another hour long walk before they come to an end!
Not that all of us had to walk the whole way, at least one of us got the royal treatment for most of the trip back. But as I said on the walk, even as my legs and back were aching, if he rests his head on mine, I could walk a thousand miles.
It was a wonderful way to spend our 15th anniversary. Several people have seemed surprised when they found out we took Luke on our anniversary trip – but when you waited as long as we did for a little child to love, he is the highlight of our celebration and the joy of our times together. (and he does take naps)
The Big Sable Point Lighthouse can be seen for 19 miles out into the Lake. I’m so glad that on this 19th of June we celebrate that we know the Big Savior who made a Point of being the Light we can build our House on! When the storms of life hit, we don’t rely on some rusty old retainer wall to hold off the erosion of time that pounds against our lives relentlessly – we can rely on the grace and mercies of God which are new every morning! Praise God!
*for those who e-mail me my typos, the use of the word “sea” here was figurative, not literal. OK?
My Little Buckaroo
This video is just my Father’s Day present to myself. Yes, I’m a complete sap and am totally in love with my little boy. My wife often laughs at me and says, “You are so whipped” when she sees just the way I look at him or interact with him. The picture below is his first time sitting in a tree! (Granted, only for a few seconds – just long enough for the picture! But last Sunday at church he saw several kids in a tree and I stopped to talk to the kids about the tree and how they got up, etc. but it still surprised me when Luke said to me today, “Sit in tree!”
The video is all pictures of me and my little buckaroo to two of my favorite “Daddy Songs,” perhaps you’ll enjoy them too: Watching You, by Rodney Atkins and Little Buckaroo by Go Fish.
Star Wars According to a 3 Year Old
A friend sent me a link to this video on YouTube – so I snagged it* for your enjoyment here!
[flv]http://media.kidology.org/flash/kblog/starwars-3yrold.flv[/flv]
Luke loved sitting here listening to it! I can’t wait until he starts to understand and enjoy Star Wars. (no, he’s not seen it yet!)
*I snag YouTube videos so that I still have them after they disappear, get moved, or are removed from YouTube.
Home School Families – Scary?
Over the years we’ve known a lot of home school families… and may be one ourselves one day soon. (Not making that decision until the time comes. We see many of the advantages and disadvantages – so it will come down to what is best for Luke when that time comes.)
Anyway, I came across this video, and just had to post it here. Before any home schooler is offended, please know it was made by a home school dad and is just for fun! It does a good job of pointing out many of the stereotypes of home school families.
[flv]http://media.kidology.org/flash/kblog/homeschool-families-450×338.flv[/flv]
It is from www.timhawkins.net and there are some other funny videos there as well! ENJOY!
Luke Loves Christmas!
I either get teased for blogging too much about Luke, or bugged for not blogging pictures of him enough… so by popular demand, here are some pictures of Luke who is LOVIN’ the Christmas season!
Setting up the Christmas Tree was a blast! He must have walked around it over a hundred times while dad was doing all the lights and ornaments!
[flv]http://www.kidologist.com/flash/luke/luke-xmas-train-dec07.flv[/flv]
But then the train was the best part, it goes around and around and around. The best part is it is “voice activated” – I say “GO TRAIN GO” and it goes, and “STOP TRAIN STOP” and it magically stops! And now Luke can say “Go” and “Stop” to control the train too. (and no, I’m not giving away my secret to how it is voice controlled!)
Next, Luke discovered that there are presents under the tree, and he brought this one to me to open! He is doing pretty good waiting, though I did see him ripping a corner of one of Mom’s presents!
Luke has also discovered CHRISTMAS COOKIES! Yum! Yum!
[flv]http://www.kidologist.com/flash/luke/luke-at-wendys-dec07.flv[/flv]
He also enjoyed his evening out with Dad (giving Mom a Lukeless evening) where he discovered how yummy a Wendy’s Frosty is!
He has also discovered that he has to wear a LOT more clothes this time of year…
But it’s worth it if he gets to go play outside with Daddy!
[flv]http://www.kidologist.com/flash/luke/luke-at-mall-dec07.flv[/flv]
One time they went to the mall where Dad let him run around a little since he is so good at obeying whenever his Daddy says to come back. (as seen in this video!)
But Luke’s very favorite thing is just being on Daddy’s shoulders dancing to his favorite Christmas album, Alvin and the Chipmonks Christmas Album!
Christmas is so full of so many wonderful things for the hands, eyes and ears… that I feel January will be soooo boring by comparison!
Nothing brings back the Wonder of Christmas like a young child…. Luke makes our Christmas so cheerful and fun. I want every day this month to be slow and full so I can soak in his enjoyment along the way.
I hope you are having a very merry Christmas season too!
Luke Does the Elf Dance!
We dressed Luke up like an elf and took him outside to enjoy his first snow! AND WOW, DID HE TAKE TO IT! Watch this video, and be amazed!! I’m so glad I had grabbed the video camera! WHAT TALENT!
[flv]http://media.kidology.org/flash/kblog/luke-elf-dancin2.flv[/flv]
Click on comments for the secret to how I made this! BUT WATCH THE VIDEO FIRST!
