To the MOON!

I believe I have mentioned here before that I'm a bit of a nut about the American Space Program. Everything about it fascinates me, and whenever the chance to see any real space memorabilia up close has presented itself, I have always taken the opportunity. My kids are also fascinated by the stuff, so for Spring Break this year, Jordan and I took Sarah and Jack to the rocket center in Hunstville, Alabama.

When you get to Huntsville, it's pretty hard to miss the full scale mockup of the Saturn V rocket on display at the entrance to the center. Standing as tall as a 36 story building, you can see it from virtually anywhere in the area.

They have a new building at the center that was just dedicated in January of 2008. It houses the original test version of the Saturn V. It never actually flew, but instead was the source vehicle for all of the engine, transport, and assembly tests.

While we were there, we took in a 3D movie about Mars. Here's Sarah sporting her 3D glasses.

There's also a Zero Gravity ride outside by the rockets. You strap in and are hurled upward, feeling zero-g for a couple of seconds on the way back down. Unfortunately Jack didn't quite make the height requirement, so he hung out while the rest of us took off.

There were a number of flown items from each of the Apollo moon missions, including this flight suit worn by John Young while inside the Lunar Module on the surface of the moon. John Young is my personal hero. Here are a few of the things he did in his lengthy NASA career.

• He flew on the first manned flight of the Gemini spacecraft with Gus Grissom aboard Gemini 3.
  
• Flying again as Commander of Gemini 10, the mission was the first dual rendezvous with two Agena Target Vehicles.
  
• He first went to the Moon aboard Apollo 10, flying the Command Module solo - the first person to do so in lunar orbit.
  
• He flew to the Moon again as Commander of Apollo 16 and was the ninth man to set foot on the Moon.
  
• He is listed in the Guiness Book of World records as setting a speed record for travel on the surface of the Moon with the lunar rover (11.2 mph!)
  
• He was again Commander on the maiden flight of the Space Shuttle.
  
• He flew the Space Shuttle again on the very first Spacelab mission, also making him the first man to fly in space six times, and is the only man to have commanded Gemini, Apollo, and Space Shuttle missions.
  
• He worked for NASA for 42 years and retired on December 31, 2004 at the age of 74.
  

This is one of the modified Hasselblad cameras used during the Apollo 11 mission, the first time man set foot on the Moon.

These are plaster casts of Neil Armstrong's hands, taken to make custom gloves to be worn on the surface of the Moon.

This is the Command Module "Snoopy" in which John Young, Ken Mattingly, and Charlie Duke rode to the Moon.

Here's Sarah trying her hand in the original Apollo command module simulator.

Jack shows us the shuttle Pathfinder, which was the first Space Shuttle mockup used for construction and transportation testing. It never actually flew, and is in fact hollow. The fuel tank, however, is the very first shuttle fuel tank constructed, used for all of the static launch tests of the shuttle system. The lower two engines on the back end of Pathfinder are the actual engines that flew on the maiden voyage of Columbia, the very first Space Shuttle flight. The booster rockets are inert mockups.

A Boy and his Bat

If you keep up with this blog you know how much I love my children, Sarah and Jack. They are just phenomenal kids. I'm very lucky.

This is Jack. He's 8 and he loves baseball. The day these images were taken was on the weekend after he was smacked in the mouth by a line-drive during practice. There's even a pic below of the sore in his mouth, EWW! (I waited until a few days after the blood went away. Trust me, it was not pretty.) Not only did he not miss his game, but he batted like a champ, cracking a two-run single and a two-run double to help his team win a 12-10 game.

I was not so sure his heart was in it back when he was playing T-ball, but I think he really likes it now in his second year of coach-pitch.

I love you, Jack-Jack.

A Big Girl Haircut

As promised, here are the images from Sarah’s first “big girl” haircut. My favorites are the ones with the lolly-pop. No matter how hard she tries to be big, I think she secretly wants to remain small.

I love you, Bear.

Easter Babies

Jack and Sarah spent the weekend with us for Easter. They are getting so big. On friday I took Sarah to have her hair cut for the first time in a nice salon. I'll have pics to share of that event later this week, but you can already tell from these images that she looks fantastic. Special thanks to Jordan for helping the kids with their Easter outfits. She's fast becoming their own stylist.

God, I love these babies!

Happy Birthday, Jordan

The love of my life turns 25 today.

She is my best friend. She makes sure I don't leave the house wearing clothes that don't match. She loves me when no one else does. She's so smart and so witty and so good at her job. She really has become quite a success. At 25 she has graduated from college, become the greatest step-mom in the entire world, purchased TWO homes, had a couple of jobs where she blew everyone away with her grace, style, and organizational ability, and now she has become the president of Kevin Barre Photography. Not many people can claim as many accomplishments before turning 25. The best part is that she makes it all look so easy.

I love you, J.

Happy birthday.

St. Louis, Part 2

As promised, here is the second set of images from my recent photo excursion to St. Louis: Pet Portraits!

Here kitty kitty kitty.

Dueling Powerbooks

Who, besides me, finds this image funny? This is my father-in-law, Tom Badgett, along with my daughter, Sarah, from this past weekend.

Christmas, Part II: Emma and the Bunny

Our lab, Emma, received a Christmas gift this year from Jordan's aunt Libby and uncle Warren. They got her a bunny from the American Kennel Club.

I didn't figure she would react to it the way she has. At first she looked at it strangely like she was waiting for it to move. When it didn't, she gave it a good sniff. Finally, she picked it up and trotted all over the house with it like she was going to hide it like a bone. In the process, she bit down on it a little too hard and it squeeked at her. I guess the squeek made her think it was somehow still "alive," so she commenced to shaking it furiously until it was "dead."

Over the next couple of days she carried it with her everywhere. Occasionally she would bring it to me and drop it in my lap or at my feet. She didn't do this to get me to play fetch, I think she did it as an offering.

Emma carries that bunny around like it is an egg, always very gently. I'm not sure what she thinks about that bunny, but I am sure she loves it.

Christmas, Part 1

Christmas has been huge this year. It always is, particularly for my kids. They usually get to celebrate by opening presents about six different times. At their mom's house, at my house, at multiple sets of grandparents' houses (they have four sets). It always seems like they open presents for about a week.

This year we started the celebration early with Jordan's sister, Rosie and her significant other, Don. They came from St. Louis on Saturday, the 23rd. They were tons of fun to have around. It turns out that Don and I are amazingly like-minded (keep the faith, brother). Oh, yeah, and they brought a case of wine with them.

On Christmas Eve, the four of us went to Chris and Autumn’s for dinner. Like me, Chris loves to cook and apparently has a tradition where he invites a select number of couples over for a fancy Christmas Eve dinner. More power to you, man. I always end up doing all of my wrapping and such on Christmas Eve, so I was more than happy for him to do the cooking. It was a great spread, and the company was fantastic. Hopefully they will include us in their tradition for years to come.

My lovely wife, Jordan with Chris.

Here I am with Chris’ lovely wife, Autumn.

Petrea with her Papi...

Petrea had a great time putting her finger in Jordan’s key lime pie and then sticking it in my mouth.

My Wife is In Love...

Too bad it isn't with me. No, Jordan is truly, madly, deeply in love with David Duchovney.

Last year we discovered NetFlix in a big fat way. Since then, we have practically stopped watching TV altogether. Seriously, about the only thing we watch is James Woods’ new show, Shark, thursday nights on CBS. We try not to miss that one. Here's the scoop...

With the kids, and jobs, and the new house, and dogs, and photography, and everything else that goes along with modern life, we find it really hard to sit down on a regular basis and watch TV. Almost every night there is something way more pressing that needs to be done during “prime time.” Enter NetFlix.

With Netflix, we can order an entire season of a show and watch every episode, from the beginning, on OUR schedule. AND there are no commercials. AND the shows are in widescreen. AND the shows have great digital sound. But my most favorite thing about watching the shows on DVD is that if by some chance the planets align and we have the time to pull an all-nighter and watch six episodes of something back-to-back, we can. I'm tellin’ you, television nirvana.

So we started out with CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. You know, the one in Las Vegas. We worked our way through all of the seasons of it. Then it was on to CSI: Miami. Bada-bing! We tried watching Northern Exposure (I loved it, she didn't). Next up, Numb3rs; another crime show on CBS. Devoured it.

And then something happened. I sheepishly asked Jordan if she would like to watch a few episodes of the X-Files. These were DVDs I actually owned. I figured there was no way in hell she was gonna watch some quasi-UFO-crime-something-or-another show with me. Boy was I wrong. Turns out, J has a serious thing for David Duchovney. I mean like she's ready to bump off his wife kinda serious.

I'm pretty sure Jordan would throw me to the curb in a heartbeat to run her hands through DD’s hair just once.

You’re welcome dear.

Random Image Wednesday

Today I'm posting a few images just because I like them.

You're thinking, “How is this different from every other day?”

Well, it isn't.

This is one of my favorite images of Jack. I think it captures his personality just about perfectly. It isn't new, but I love it anyway.

Thanksgiving, Part 2

As promised, here are a few more images from Thanksgiving.

Angels Among Us

Jordan's mother, Lynn, is a saint. I'll tell you a little bit about why I think so.

I have already talked about how our dog, Cooper was killed over Thanksgiving. Jordan, the kids, and I were not there when it happened. I was pretty upset about that initially. I felt like we had always been there to take care of him, since he was a pup, and somehow, in his most dire moment of need, we were not able to be there for him. I hope that those of you who are not dog lovers can try to understand that those of us who are really love these animals like they are people. Cooper was as much a member of our family as either of my children. Lynn Hutton is a dog lover. When none of the rest of us could be there, Lynn was. She was the one who found Cooper on the road and had the horrible task of bringing his lifeless body back up to the house. As I already said, I regret that I couldn't be there to help, but in our absence, I feel certain that Lynn was the best person for the job.

Something cool about Lynn is that she also writes a regular column—Cross Currents— for one of her local town newspapers. It's a religion column, which makes sense, since she is a minister with the United Methodist church. Occasionally she will weave little bits of the goings-on of her family into her column. I felt sure that this event would make its way to print somehow. As she is a much better writer than I am, I will let her speak for herself. From the latest edition of the Halls Shopper News...

Angel in a Pickup Truck

Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. (Hebrews 13: 2 NRSV)

There really are angels. I met one the other night. The truth is, I didn’t recognize him as such. It was only much later, when Jordan asked, “Did you get his name?” and I admitted that I had not, that her stepson Jack said, “Maybe he was an angel.”

Jack is eight years old, all boy, and not given to flights of fancy. (Well, he is a Star Wars fan of the first order, but he understands the difference between movies and everyday reality.)

Startled, I turned and looked at him, considering that possibility. “It is true that he was driving a white pickup truck,” I admitted, which in my part of the world might be considered an appropriate angelmobile.

The reason this angel appeared in our lives is a sad one. Once again, in eerily similar circumstances to the last time, we lost another dog at our house. Cooper, Jordan’s border collie-Australian blue heeler mix, left the back yard and went across the road. He didn’t make it back.

I was dog-sitting when Cooper and Emma asked out, and following the usual protocols, I put Emma on a chain attached to the run. Cooper, being the more trustworthy of the two, was released on his own recognizance. Emma asked back in quickly, but no Cooper. I started calling and whistling, going from door to door, growing more and more uneasy, and finally started out the front door to see if he had gone next door. That is when I saw the white pickup truck stopped across the road with its lights shining onto something in the road. There were other cars stopped, trying to pass safely, I suppose. I was off at a dead run, hoping against hope.

When I got there, a man came toward me from the pickup. “Is he yours?” he asked softly.

“My daughter’s,” I managed. Then, “No, it’s not!” In the darkness, the fur didn’t look right; the texture was all wrong. (It would be much later before I figured out why.) I knelt and checked the tag. It was Cooper, after all. I half-lifted, half-dragged him out of the road, and ran for the house again, to get something to carry him home in.

When I went back, the man was still waiting. “Can I help?” he asked, and the two of us carried our sad burden and placed it gently in the garage. He turned to leave, and it was the first time I had really seen his face. Brown hair, brown eyes, maybe a beard. I was in shock, and already dreading having to tell Jordan. But his heart was in those brown eyes, and I saw compassion and understanding there. I wanted to ask his name, but introductions seemed bizarrely out of place. I wanted to shake his hand, but I realized my own hands were covered with blood, and so refrained. I thanked him again, and he was gone.

Conveying the news to Jordan was even more painful than I had imagined. It was not until the next morning when she started asking questions about who had helped me. She went to the subdivision across the street and set about tracking down the white pickup. It took two false leads to finally find the angel.

His name is David Owen. He and his wife Angie have a dog, a Boxer. A friend driving down our road saw Cooper, and called David to make sure his pet was safe. David decided to come down to the scene and do whatever he could to help.

He was not a passerby. He left the comfort of his home, got in his truck and drove to the scene, not because he had any stake in it at all. He just knew that an animal was hurt, possibly dead, and that somewhere a pet owner cared about that animal. He parked out of the road and shone his headlights onto the scene to warn approaching drivers. And he waited.

It was a kindness that in some small way began the healing process in Jordan’s broken heart. Someone who didn’t know and love Cooper had gone out of his way to be caring. A stranger (read, angel) understood how devastating such a loss can be.

Jordan said later, “He did the right thing. He did what was not expected, not required, not easy, but right.”

There are angels among us. One of them is named David.

Thank you, Lynn. Thanks for raising a wonderful daughter, for being a great mom, and being one of the many angels among us.

If you would like to read Lynn's column in its original form, you can do that here.

Thanksgiving, Part 1

I figured it was time to post a few images of the other members of my household. These were all taken over the Thanksgiving holiday.

First, this is Jack. He's 8 and the greatest little boy a parent could ever ask for.

Next up is Emma. She's our blond, and boy is she. Since we lost Cooper, Emma has been the beneficiary of all of our displaced love.

Here's a little detail I shot of an old rusty plow, just for good measure (note: the plow does not live with us.)

Check back soon for part 2.

Daddy/Daughter Ball

The little angel standing next to me is not so little anymore. That's my daughter, Sarah. She's 10, but from these pictures you would never know it.

We went to a Daddy/Daughter Ball a few weeks ago. It was a complete blast. All of the little girls had on their fancy gowns, and all of the daddies were doing their best not to look awkward (with mixed results).

Sarah and I had the most incredible time. When the ball ended, I took her out for a steak dinner. She is such a great kid. She even shared my anchovies with me on my salad.

I love you, Bear!

Check out all of the pics here.