Hello everybody!
I wanted to fill everyone in on what has been happening in our lives lately. Shea's vocabulary grows and grows and his enunciation of words he already knows gets better each day. He's started putting words into short sentences too. His favorite phrase: "Go Outside?" It's too bad that he doesn't realize it's 30 friggin' degrees outside. Still, we bundle him up and put him in the stoller or backpack. He enjoys it for 5 minutes or so and then just waits for it to be over. Shea's also been exploring coloring (okay, making marks on paper) and climbing. He's testing us at every turn, whether it's putting the crayon against the wall and smiling at us, or climbing on top of anything and everything. Ah, the joys of raising an independent and curious child!
The reason we can't document any of these events is that the "security" features on our computer corrupted our photo software, deleting every digital picture we've ever taken. After much searching, I found them somewhere else on the harddrive, but wasn't successful at fully restoring them. All this has taken up so much space on the harddrive that I've gotta buy an external harddrive to backup the entire harddrive so I can fix things. So, please be patient with us until we can get things back in order. Also, our camera has not been working very well, including the autofocus not working, the lens getting stuck, and the flash operating on occasion.
In other news (pun intended), anyone reading the local papers these days knows what I've been going through lately at work (www.gloucestertimes.com - search for fishing articles). In short, the District Court in Boston just threw out regulations I helped write nearly 3 years ago, but didn't suggest replacement regulations, causing chaos and uncertainty in the fishery and everyone to blame my agency for causing the ruin of 400 years of fishing heritage. According to one journalist, me and my agency are Communist rogue minions colluding with the U.S. Coast Guard to wage war on righteous blue collar middle class innocents, dedicated to the complete ruination of everything holy to God and country. Let's just say, it's been a busy few weeks full of "interpretative" journalism and public rancor. I've been working long hours and weekends, with little time to pursue the 900 other things I've wanted to do - most importantly, spend time with my family. Needless to say, I'm exploring what other things I can do for the next 30 years that will provide us with a decent lifestyle, but allow me to enjoy it at the same time.
Luckily, I've been able to bang a few nails now and again - my type of therapy. Jess has been kind enough to take care of Shea for a few weekends when I haven't been working to allow me to frame out a playroom in the basement. I've been encasing the sewer pipes and water meter, putting storage shelves and bins underneath and building a closet behind the stairs. I'd show you pictures, but...I can't. I'll post some soon enough. It's coming along nicely and Shea likes to play among the studs and shelving units for now. I hope to get some sheetrock up shortly and finish it all up after a few more weekends of therapy. It'll look good, I promise.
Anyway, thanks for your patience. We'll keep you updated. I hope everyone is well!
Love,
Doug, Jess, and Shea
"Hey, I can be funny, just watch!"
"Rambo ain't got nothin' on me!"
Peekaboo!
Hershey's kisses taste much better when you get it all over your face!
Easter egg hunt. Shea ended up grabbing the head of the turtle statue too. Yanked it right out!
Thanks to Uncle Eric, Shea got to explore the fire truck and rescue truck! He even got an honary badge and helmet!
Fire truck! Woo, woo!
Future firefighters of America
What a contented look on that face. It was good to be home.
"Balloon!"
Me and Mommom!
"Hey Uncle Steve, I wanna bee-ah (that's Shea talk for beer)!"
Sometimes being around family too long can get ugly...just ask Paige! :-P
Not quite the "I wanna twirl" dance common at most Phish/Grateful Dead shows, but close enough - Brooke and Paige enjoy dancing around the room.
Wagon ride with Paige.
I just love this picture. It captures his essence, I think.
I think I may send this image to Peta. What do you think?
"I evicted Skittles from her cat bed because she couldn't pay the rent. Hey, these are tough economic times for everybody!"
"I'm practicing to be a member of Blue Man Group." 
"Is that dog doing what I think he's doing?"
"Why do you insist on taking pictures of me getting dressed, really?!"
"I was not NOT licking toads."
"I could rip this moo cow doggie toy to shreds in seconds...watch me!"
"Is this snow suit slimming? I like custom-fit garments. So much more functional than store-bought clothes!"
"I can work an outfit in any weather!"
"They say black goes with everything. I'm not so sure about the fit though."
"These boots fit much better. How do you like the stars? I'm not too keen on purple, though."
"You can never beat a pair of comfy sneakers though."
"Every good outfit needs accessories like a hat. A hoop for a hat, I say! It's seasonally appropriate. It is March Madness, after all!"
"However, the classic helmet never goes out of style. It could even go with the monkies on my pajamas!"
"Does this helmet go with these boots though? That is the question."
"I think it does, but I must have taken a wrong turn at Albuquerque"
"Oops, I did it again!"
This stream is just beginning to freeze.
This one's getting closer, but is still free flowing.
This one wasn't so lucky.
It's amazing what nature can do with two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. Thank goodness for crystal lattice structure! Yeah, I'm a dork. I did get a B+ in organic chemistry.
Today, we took a walk down Federal Street. Salem is gorgeous, even in winter.
Unfortunately, winter can take a toll on cameras. The auto focus stopped working during our walk. Perhaps that's a good thing. I'm probably more handsome this way.
Manual focus works just fine though. 
From this vantage point, I can peg you with snowballs all day! You're mine biatch!
