Dan's ATV accident

My brother-in-law (miriam's brother) was in a bad ATV accident. You can see some of the details on the Block Family Blog.

thoughts by jesse and shanee on election

Jesse and Shanee (missionaries in Nepal) that we know from Truman State had something to say about the election. If you are interested go here.

too cool

The morning of luke's surgery, the kids with my mom and dad (pa, lukie boy, abby, mimi)

luke surgery - done and coming home

We are now home. Luke is recovering pretty well. He is a cute little guy. Because the doc did a good job and lukey boy is recovering well, we didn't have to stay at the hospital overnight. This is definitely a good thing because Miriam and Luke will both sleep better at home than at the hospital. Luke took a bottle of milk and ate some food, so he is doing pretty well.

Children's Mercy is a good hospital. There are parts of it that aren't the greatest but overall, I think they do a good job. Our nurses were helpful and attentive. We were also in a relatively new area of the hospital and it was nice. They have a play area with an Xbox 360, a nintendo wii, and a pinball machine (and some other toys for the babies to play with). Yeah, it is probably a good thing we didn't stay overnight in the hospital.

This is just after first seeing Luke after he woke up. He sat up like that the whole time he was wheeled to his room.

Pa and Luke taking a walk to the play area. Thanks for the help Dad!

Luke driving his truck around in the play area. He really enjoyed this.

Getting the "mandatory" wagon ride out to the parking lot. Abby was very concerned about making sure Luke got to ride in the wagon. She told Miriam this over the phone.

luke surgery - out of surgery

We have had this doc before for Abby's tonsils and adenoids removal and she is great. She is very friendly and super helpful. She was kind enough to get some pictures for us. We are waiting to see Luke. He hasn't fully awakened yet.


The before picture. In the upper left corner of the picture you can see the yellowish white area (just to the left of the uvula and just to the right of the blood spot).

The after picture (it is oriented a little goofy, sorry my fault). You can see the incision just to the left of the uvula. They removed the cyst without any problem.

what they don't say about your money

A good article about what obama and mccain won't tell you about money

I don't know much about this author. What I do know is that in the above article he hits some pretty good points. And it highlights some of my frustrations with the way both Obama and McCain campaign's are talking about this.

I have to admit, I was extremely excited when in the VP debate Sarah Palin said this

"Never will we be exploited and taken advantage of again by those who are managing our money and loaning us these dollars. We need to make sure that we demand from the federal government strict oversight of those entities in charge of our investments and our savings and we need also to not get ourselves in debt. Let's do what our parents told us before we probably even got that first credit card. Don't live outside of our means. We need to make sure that as individuals we're taking personal responsibility through all of this. It's not the American peoples fault that the economy is hurting like it is, but we have an opportunity to learn a heck of a lot of good lessons through this and say never again will we be taken advantage of."

This is a complex issue and there is a lot of fault to go around but it is not just greed on Wall Street ... there is plenty of greed on main street to go around. I myself had started down the path of financing my life with debt. Then I LEARNED DEBT IS DUMB!! Check out Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, you'll be glad (or you will be angry at me and hate Dave Ramsey).

Anyway, this is just an example of an issue that I feel like the candidates for president are just saying what sounds good instead of just saying it like it is. At least Palin mentioned that we all have some responsibility for how we choose to spend our money.

luke surgery - in surgery

Luke is now in surgery. He went int at about 1:50pm and should be done in about 45 minutes.

luke surgery - prep

Luke in his gown getting ready to go to surgery. He loves playing with his cars and of course he has his blanket with him.

Luke and his mommy sitting on the hippo (it's the table).

All in all Luke is doing pretty well. My dad (Curt) is here with us and Luke is enjoying him being here. Luke is obviously hungry as he hasn't eaten since 7am and hasn't had anything to drink since 9:30am. He should be heading to surgery soon.

Luke Surgery - Cyst Removal

Luke has a cyst in the back of his throat and will be going to surgery on this Wednesday. It is not an immediate danger but the doc said we should get it taken out sometime. So This Wednesday it is. We will update as things happen.
He will probably have to be in overnight and so Miriam will probably be staying the night while I come home with Abby. The procedure will take place at Children's Mercy Hospital. It is a great hospital.

Congressman Sam Graves, good job

Both of the Senators that represent me voted to pass the bail out bill.
Senator Kit Bond said this and Senator Caire McCaskill said this. I am disappointed that my senators felt there were only two solutions: pass the bill or suffer economic ruin. This will certainly be a factor for me in their elections in 2010 and 2012.

I choose the third option ... discuss some alternatives. It is hard for me to believe that in what folks like Bond and McCaskill are calling the greatest economic meltdown since the great depression, that we are rushing such rescue (or bailout) bill through. You would think something this serious might require a little more thought and discussion. I don't advocate doing nothing but I am not convinced this bill was the only other alternative to stabilizing the financial markets.

Congressman Sam Graves who represents me in the house voted twice against the bill and had this to say. Thank you congressman Sam Graves.

One particular thing that McCaskill said really annoyed me ...

This bill stinks but the alternative is much worse. While many Missourians may not feel it yet, with no action most of the people that live in my state will be harmed, many significantly, in a matter of months. I’m proud at least that we said no to the ridiculous proposal of the Bush administration.

Yeah, you did Senator McCaskill, way to stand up to the Bush administration (sarcasm here). I would be very interested in what is so different from the Bush proposal and the bill she voted to pass. I am calling BULL. And what a terribly low and ridiculously partisan attack to try and make her bad choice seem a little better.

My Political Disclaimer: I am a registered republican and voted for George Bush in 2000 and 2004. I have also already filled out my absentee ballot and have chosen to vote for McCain Palin and for Sam Graves in 2008.

still our baby

Abby is still our baby! She is lying in her baby's pack and play.

BABY!!!

So Abby likes it when I throw her baby doll up in the air like I sometimes do with Abby. She is very insistent that her baby gets good play time. I was lying down on the floor of our living room and Abby was laughing so much and telling me that her baby was having a great time until I accidentally got baby stuck ... on top of the fan. Abby immediately cried, "BABY!!!! AHHH!!! GET MY BABY!!!" and she was fighting back tears. Unfortunately I thought it was hilarious. What are the chances. It was truly amazing to watch and I can replay that throw in my head in slow motion. Abby was glad to have her baby back.