Weird....

I thought I would come to my very active (ha!) blog and write something new. I find it very weird that my last post was about my last day at Draper Lab and I could very easily be talking about my last day here at SunGard within 6 weeks.

Anyway. Over a year has gone by since the last time I posted....our son is 5 1/2 months now, Persson Bales. He's awesome! He's just a joy to be around. I walk into the house last night and my wonderful wife is scrubbing the kitchen floor. I didn't see Persson as I was walking up the stairs - I only saw Erika. I walk into the kitchen and he's playing in his exisaucer (sp?) on the kitchen floor - having a great time. In his own little play world and as long as he knows Mama is around - he's all set.

His smile literally lights up the room - it's from ear to ear - well, for him really cheek to cheek! When he smiles big it looks as if his cheeks are on the side of his head his smile is so big! People say that he looks a lot like me which I'm not sure is a compliment or not, but the wonderful things I see in him are all from his Mama - like his smile! That's her same smile that lights up a room. Oh, and the bottom lip that's always been Erika's trademark when she's upset...Persson has taken that cute bottom lip to a new level of use - his normal facial expression has that bottom lip protruding a bit further out than his top lip whether he's happy or just chillin' or sad! It's awesome.

I must say one of the best gifts God could ever give us is the smile of a child. The smiles from your son or daughter are absolutely priceless. Persson gets so excited at times he really doesn't know what to do with himself. It's like when our dogs back home used to get frisky in cold weather. When we would be outside with the dog, she would come up to me and just stare at me. Boo Boo used to stay locked in to that stare for about 2 seconds, I'd clap my hands, and then she would shoot off like a cannon and run around the house only to come back and do the same thing again. Persson gets so excited sometimes he'll get wide eyed and tense up his whole body, bring his hands up and out to his side (as if he were about to get arrested!), his legs and back get stiff as a board, and with one outburst he lets out this wonderful and joyful scream through the biggest smile - it's awesome!

Erika is a great Mama and she's loves both her boys very much. Persson's eyes light up when she's in the room and both of their favorite things to do is to be cheek to cheek with each other. There are a couple of pics of this and they're great! Erika has had a wonderful and busy year. Buying a home, to finding out she was prego, to studying for finals and graduating from Gordon College, to working multiple jobs, being an intern for the high school ministry, to raising money for Lifebridge while working another job, going through some excruciating trials in having Persson, maternity leave, going back to work, letting go of Lifebridge, taking a job being the Associate Pastor for High School Ministry at Grace while also doing a side job for a dear friend of ours...whew, I'm tired just writing all of that. Don't know how she does it all. The Lord certainly has provided the gift of energy to her! She's such a wonderful and positive influence on my life. She puts up with a lot from this ole southern boy and I can't thank her enough for the love and effort she puts into our marriage!

Well, need to wrap this one up. As I posted at the top of the blog. I'm going to be losing my job on July 24th. Tough draw but I know the Lord has some great things in store for me and my family. Ya know the only things I'm praying for is for financial provisions, a job that provides quality of life - time enough to spend with Erika and Persson, and a challenging yet successful role within a good company. I know that's a lot to ask but we'll see. Always can pray and be hopeful!

Alright...that's it for now....gotta do some other things!

Bales out!