The Mamu and Halloween

This posting goes out the the one who has single-handedly saved the Burns home from melt-down for the past 3 weeks. Lisa Hinton, affectionately known as "Mamu", lovingly and selfessly took care of all of us and Avery around the clock (including 3am feedings) until she loaded the plane for Ohio on Friday. This first picture shows our affection for her. The last picture shows our effect upon her.








Oh, yeah, we carved pumpkins. The one with the glasses was actually designed by Madison. Kale needed some "help" with his.





God Bless the warrior

My Former LIfe

It pays to search the internet for your name sometimes.

Be sure to read the caption.

Home Construction Report #7

The West Wing really progressed quickly this week. From one Friday to the next, we went from dirt to frame. The following is a guided tour of the West Wing... hosted by Madison.











The Main room looking south (away from the street)










The main room looking north










The closet










The Bathroom










The hallway to come into the main room










Our bedroom's new closet

Concrete Angels and Hormones

A cheap Californian substitute... the Concrete angel











This is homage to the greatest hormone-induced neck blotch I have ever witnessed








A little Avery










Other wired children excited about the West Wing

Home Construction Report #6

Well, an exciting and productive week on the addition of the West Wing. Please note the models included in each picture.

Ohio Slackers

You know that posting pictures from Ohio only takes about 15 minutes of prep time on blogger.com. Uploading a sweet pic of a prego Aubrey or of a 70 lb carved pumpkin that the Burns clan is eager to see would be a really cool thing, though it might take a little while to upload over one's father-in-law's archaic dial-up.

The Sweetness of Meat

As I gazed into my large styrofoam cup of deep-pit cooked beef, I came to face a sad departure. Once again, I have come to the yearly "last bite" of my grandfather's frozen meat stash. Truth be told, I never even heat the meat. I just use a fork to chip-away at the frozen brick of shredded beef for about a month.

So Grandpa... this is for you. Thanks again for a delightful 32 oz cup of exquisite frozen beef!

Avery Grace..... Again

Here are a few photos of very proud siblings and their new little sister

Home Construction Report #5

Well, we got our permits and the concrete flowed. Sorry, but i forgot to take a picture of the finished slab. That will come soon.

Avery Grace Pics #3

Here are some more pics for your viewing pleasure

"Jumpoline" Splendor

Sheer bliss... a big thanks to all the loved ones in the big "O" state, who pitched together to get the trampoline for the kids. I have only had time to set up the trampoline itself, and not the safety cage... but it is coming.




I got this shot of Madison being raptured off of the trampoline...
note the "shekinah"

They have jumped on the "jumpoline" for 3-4 hours since yesterday morning.

Avery Grace Pics #2

There were some more pictures of Avery and the hospital stay that were uploaded to this site, but it seems like technical difficulties are preventing them from loading at this time.

More to arrive soon

Madison Noel's 5th Birthday

So, it is official. October 07 will always be Avery's birthday and the next day, October 08 will be her big sister's birday. So, Madison enjoyed her birthday in several ways including a mass of gifts, the presence of both Grandmas, the return of her mother, the arrival of her new sister and with the largest over-frosted piece of cake ever (complete with pink and purple icing flowers). Kale even got in on some of the action with a few gifts for him from Ohio.

She will be celebrating her offical party with a few under-aged friends in the coming weekend so that she feels special amidst the arrival of another family member

Avery Grace Pics #1

Well, here are the pics as were promised.

Burns Now 5

It is my joy to announce that the Lord has blessed the Burns home with a new member. Avery Grace Burns was born at 2:45pm on October 07 at Corona Regional Hospital. She is 19.5 inches long and 7 lbs and was landed after a 10 hour labor and a 10 minute fight. Pictures will follow soon. Melissa and Avery will be coming home from the hospital on Saturday, October 08 around 4pm and celebrating Madison's 5th birthday with the remainder of the day.

Thanks for celebrating the Lord's blessings with us!

General Update

Well, no posts in a couple of weeks. The latest word is that the new baby is on her way and will definately be here by Saturday... one way or another. This self portrait was taken by madison... along with about 80 othe fine photos of the inside of our house.
Grandma came down for a visit the other day and struck this sweet pose with 2/3 of her favorite grandchildren.

More action photos coming soon