We wish you a Merry Christmas!!

Zee and Teo play with their Christmas toys

Go Diego, Go!

West Java Hills

The day after Christmas the family headed up to the West Java hills (Puncak) with friends. Zee and his buddies Aidan (also 3+ years old) and Colin (5) headed off for a hike.

Lily and the boys in West Java

chillaxin

After all of the holiday festivities...Zee and Teo unwind on the sofa.

Cruising up the river in Borneo

Our room at the Rimba Lounge

Apparently Julia Roberts stayed in this very room. Zee has no idea who she is but based on the reaction we get when we tell the story he's quite sure he would like to invite her to come swimming tomorrow.

Zee and Teo cool off after a day of hiking in Borneo

Borneo

We just got back from a four-day trip to Kalimantan (aka Borneo). It was a quick 1hour10minute flight from Jakarta followed by a 2 hour boat ride up river but it was out of this world!

After a short trek into the bush we came across a feeding station where orangutans came down from the trees to get some bananas.

The orangutans we saw had been reintroduced into the wild after being cared for by researchers. Many of their not so lucky kin lost their lives when loggers or miners cleared land in the area.

MERDEKA!

On August 17th, the Dickey family and friends celebrated Indonesia's independence by participating in the Kemang Club Villas party complete with sack races and a bicycle parade.

Daddy represented in the sack race.

READY!

SET!

GO!

Zee electrifies the parade with his super trike.

In My Next Life I Want to Be an Actor

Do you recognize anyone here?

Watch it below or here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQXJxWeGggs

Barney and Friends

On Sunday we went to see Barney....I know I know. We went with some friends whose son is the same age as Zee. The boys dug it and I have to say I almost broke into song singing "I love you, you love me". I now understand why the song is used at GITMO and other torture sights. The song is still in my head. Zee has asked if we can go back again....always a positive sign.

Saturday Taekwondo, A burger, and a birthday

Hiiiii Yaaaaa! Shouted one of the boys in Zee's Taekwondo class. It was Zee's first day and I was not quite sure how it would go.

There were six very young students in total in the class and the teacher was a young girl with the Korean garb, a black belt, and an a Muslim head covering. She wore a smile but I approached her with caution. I stayed in the class much of the time and was pleased to see that Zee was performing the moves and hitting and kicking the bags. There were two older brothers of 9 and 10 who beat on each other most of the time and I could see Zee forming a small grin on his face and a twinkle in his eye as the older brother kicked the younger one in the stomach and made him bend over gasping for breath. I wondered if Teo will become Zee's new punching and kicking bag....Hiiiii Yaaaaa!

After Zee's lesson V and I met some friends for lunch. I realized how hungry I was as the sauce and fixin's in the hamburger ran down my fast and hands. I looked up and found Vanessa eyeing me? How uncouth and uncultured I am I thought as I forgot my manners as I wolfed down the cow...but then I looked over and saw my buddy's face full of grease and cheese. I had forgotten how good a burger tasted...especially doused with melted Blue Cheese..............yummy for my tummy.


After lunch we hopped a bajai to our friend's son's 3rd birthday party. It was nice and included a water balloon fight, food, and pinata; however, a closer look revealed a sense of PTSD among all the parents present - yep, us too. At times, when you took the time to pause and look around I noticed the thousand yard stare, the sleep deprivation noted in the baggy droopy eyes, the aging taking place right in front of your face as one of the children slipped and fell or took a water balloon in the face......and then the cry and the immediate shock of wondering if it is your child that wakes you up for your slight stupor or if it isn't your child whose child is it and what is the situation and was it your child creating the crying....the trauma of parenting was evident upon further analysis. I must note that most of the crying was caused by the fathers tossing the balloons at each other which ended up missing and plastering the kids......boys will be boys.

Sleepless in Big Smoke

Do you notice how the majority of the posts on here are about sleep, the boys, and lack of sleep. I just received an email from my brother-in-law stating he has now gone 23 hours without sleep. It reminds me of Peace Corps when all the conversations revolved around feces and whether or not your stools were solid. Solid days were good days and far and few between....like sleeping is for parents with young kids. It is a right of passage and your sleep patterns will never be the same. It is a given that you will be sleep deprived and when you get sleep it is a good day.
"How are you buddy?"
"Hey, thanks for asking! I'm solid man!"

Last night was not SOLID and I would have rather had diarrhea to be honest. More so for Vanessa because she took one for the team and allowed me to sleep because I had stayed up the previous night. Poor V walked around with little man and stayed up until 0300 with Teo who has a nasty cough and just couldn't go down. She is now in bed with mastitis confusing night with day and day with night and forgetting to feed after a dazed day at the job. She'll have to miss open house.

School was full on today but good. It's always good though. I have to video tape my classes and critique them which is always fun and interesting and I am trying to find engaging ways to have the students analyze articles for bias, facts, and opinions. Today we focused on the not so good looking Chinese singer who was replaced by a better looking girl who lip synced and was chosen by the Politburo to put a positive image on China (but don't tell the Chinese this). The kids dug it and I had them choose which girl they thought was prettier and which one they would select before reading the article......guess which one the chose?


You can check out the CNN piece on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euLkuijBGaI

Of course the next article is about Chinese journalists at the Olympics told to avoid sensitive issues. Golly gee? Seriously?

I am about to go to Open House (it really should be called open school for parents) to meet Zee's teachers. Vanessa has just texted me to make sure I ask if Zee is being polite. She is bummed that she can't make it. I will have to represent the family and get the skinny on Zee man. Apparently he does think one of the girls in his class is pretty. He even told me her name. Scandalous.

I am on tonight with Teo and you can rest assured that it will be a long one. It has been awhile since I have ran in the morning and I may have to forego blogging to go for runs in the afternoon.

Sleep tight.

Warriors Unite

Here is a follow up to the the conversation yesterday with more detail about being inducted into the hall of fame. If any of you have information about any "Lost Warriors" please direct them below.

Warriors,



Its time to unite and celebrate our 1988 State Football Championship. We

will be inducted into the Mesa's Sports Hall of Fame this fall.
The ceremony will take place November 24 at 6:30pm at Westwood High School.
Please contact Brent Weinberg at bpweinbe@mpsaz.org for more details.
I am trying to organize a team get together before the ceremony.



War Eagle - Tear it up Westwood!!!



Weinberg#88



*Please forward this email to all 1988 Westwood Warriors State

Championship Football Team Members.

Not so fast

So I actually received an email from my Dad today which was a great sign. The email was chock full of humor and it was evident he was happy about getting a 'get out of hospital free' card. He seems happy to be back at the Eagle's nest and Mom was apparently fast asleep due to exhaustion and stress. My Dad, get this, even signed up to be on FaceBook. Whoooa!

Last night was another joyful parent moment. I finally put the training wheels on a piece of junk bike my friend loaned me so that Zee could ride like the wind. Indeed he did. It just so happens the chain didn't want to stay on so I had to continually put it back on. Zee went in and got a wrench and handed it to me so that I could fix it. Thanks buddy.

After our ride and snack I put Zee to sleep and decided to work on my computer to see if I could get it to work again. A virus has rendered it useless. Suddenly I realize it is already 11:00 PM. I go down to find Vanessa typing still typing away on her computer. You can say that being a superhero pretty much sucks in Vanessa's case because she rarely gets to sleep anymore. I go up to bed and listen to my podcast but can't sleep. I realize it is 1:30 AM and I hear noises downstairs. Vanessa is still going strong. Saving the world is a 24/7 gig and you get no overtime. I cannot sleep because I know Teo is due to wake up any time and I my body won't relax....yep 1:58 AM, as if on cue, little man let's out cry. I walk in, give a rub, and.....rub....rub...Teo stands up and continues to not want to sleep. Last night he was down for the count. I walk away and lay down....the crying continues. Vanessa has finally come to bed and reminds me that Teo has been crying for 20 minutes. It is actually 18 minutes according to my stopwatch...ughh. Zee has joined us after being woken by Teo's screams. He actually went into Teo's room trying to help his little bro out while still in a daze....those boys are going to be inseparable. It is 2:30 AM...and I give Teo a rub. He appears to go down and five minutes later he is up again. It is going to be a long night. I figure I should do some lesson planning so I setup at the computer and at 0300 I go back and rub Teo. Five minutes later he appears to be sleeping. I tip-toe out but to no avail. He is screaming again. I continue to work on school until 3:30 AM and give Teo more rubs....until 0400. I have to send a message to my running pals not to wait for me...I am skipping the run again. My reputation is in a sullied state. Vanessa finally picks Teo up to feed him at 04:30 AM and I finish my lesson. I grab a shower at 5:15 AM and then hop a taxi at 5 past six. While in the taxi I rememberVanessa has fallen asleep with the boys. I try to ring her but there is no answer. Zee will need to catch the bus soon. ...fortunately he just does as I found out later.

I received an email today from an old high school friend. He was actually the quarterback of my state football championship team. He found me through FaceBook. In his message he tells me that our high school football team is being inducted into the hall of fame and he wanted to know if I could make the induction ceremony. It was funny. Just one line but it conjured up some pretty amazing times....I am wondering if my parents might be able to go in my place instead. Anyway, if you know of anyone or have any contacts from the football team let me know. Apparently the ceremony will take place November 24th but I don't have the specifics as of yet.

We are putting on a school dance on Friday and then V and I are expected to be at an adult soirée afterward....I'm spent already looking forward to the weekend. We have teacher open house for Zee man tomorrow....yippeee.

Elated

The nice thing is Dad is doing great. He is back to cracking jokes and has found his pipe and cups of joe to make him smile again. What was originally thought to be a possible heart attack looks like a case of acute pancreatitis. Thank goodness! Except that Dad may need to alter his diet. Uh Oh. One of the downsides of living so far away is trying to gather information from a variety of sources. Thank goodness for our new hi speed connection and Skype. I have been able to touch base with Mom, sister, Uncle, Friend, and Dad about his condition. I was even able to bypass the front desk at the hospital and call Dad directly while still hooked up to multiple machines and completely high on drugs. Not the best time to catch him while wondering what his state is while here in Big Smoke. It appears the doctor will remove his gallbladder which appears to have built up too much sludge and is in a state of disrepair. This will take place in the next few days and my Dad will be discharged until the appointment is made. This is because the VA is backed up and others need to be tended to before my Dad.

I want to tell you all how much we all appreciated the nice responses from all of you. Very thoughtful and kind.

On another positive note it appears the sleep training is happening. Teo dropped off close to 7:30 PM and didn't wake up until 0200. I rubbed him for a few minutes and voila...he was snoring zzzzs. Sweet. I thought I was dreaming and tip toed my way out of the room and back upstairs to my bed. Zee didn't come up until 0230 to join us and was confused as to whether he should snuggle with Mom or Dad so he just put one arm on Mom and another on Dad. Gotta love that. Teo slept until 0500 and we then knew it was a cry for food so all is well on that front. I may even get to join my running pals at 0400 again.

Sleep Training Day 7

It's 2:06 AM and I thought rather than lie in bed and wait for Teo's next cry I should blog and make use of this time.

I spoke to my Mom two hours ago who informed me that they are still doing tests on my Dad and that they would most likely be moving him to the VA in Phoenix. My Mom was still not convinced that they knew exactly what was happening. They will continue to run more tests because it appears, from my research on pancreatitis it is difficult to tell and it is different if it is acute vs chronic. My Mom thinks it is acute leaning to chronic. It appears my father's diet may have to take a drastic turn to a more healthier fare. If you know anything about pancreatitis or have any recommendations please comment on the blog or email me directly.

Teo has woken up at 9 PM 11 PM 12:30 AM and 1:30 AM. I am hoping he will now sleep until at least 0500. I am expected to run with friends at 0410 but not sure if I will make it. I guess it depends on whether or not Teo is sleeping. I'm going to try to get a few winks in before the next outburst.

I was told it takes 13 days to sleep train a child Teo's age. This is day 7 so I have a few more sleepless nights ahead. These are chaotic times indeed. Fortunately it is Independence day on Monday and this means a three day weekend....yipppee.

Daze 2

Teo slept slightly better which is a plus because it means I get to sleep more too. It is 0545 on Friday morning and I check my email and notice emails from friends and family updating me on my Dad's situation. I call Mom to check in on Dad's status. It appears they are calling it pancreatitis and will be starving my Dad for the next few days to run more tests to find out more. My Dad was still in a great deal of pain and I imagine is also going through some severe withdrawal from not being able to smoke or drink coffee.....I can only imagine the caffeine headache he is having. Mom was on her way to the hospital.

Our Anniversary

August 14th was our wedding anniversary. We actually celebrate two dates...the one in which we eloped in Africa and then the second wedding we shared with family and friends. I was already in a daze from being sleep deprived and up another half night trying to sleep train Teo and keep him in his crib and out of his Momma's bed when Vanessa said, "Happy Anniversary!" It was only 0600 and the taxi driver was knocking on my door reminding me that he was waiting outside to take me to school. Zee looked up at me briefly as he laid on the ground and rolled his bajai around. "Huh?" I had forgotten our anniversary in this chaotic time of our lives.....

The whole family is just getting over the jet lag from the trip home, school is back in full force for me and Vanessa is back at work.

I arrive at work and turn the computer on and access my personal email. There is an email from both my Uncle and my Dad's email address. The subject line reads "DAD". I quickly quick on it and find that Dad has had stomach and chest problems and has been rushed by ambulance to a heart clinic. My own heart feels as if it has skipped a beat. My Uncle's email verifies the incident. I quickly try to ring my sister and there is no answer. I ring my Dad's cell phone and it doesn't work. I try my Uncle's number and it won't work. I finally call my close friend who picks up and says he already has the news and is about to board a plane and will email me in an hour. I quickly go to a 7:10 am meeting and get a call from Vanessa who has just seen the email. I leave the meeting and class starts at 7:30. There is a break and I finally try my Dad's cell phone. My Mom picks up and tells me that my Dad is now going through extensive tests but they do not know for sure what is happening.

Vanessa sends me an email alerting me that an acquaintance of ours who we met and partied with here in Jakarta has been murdered in Afghanistan. I had seen the link to the article and showed my students but had not had time to peruse the article. I wanted to check it because one our good friends and Vanessa's former boss is there .

Here is a link to the article:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080813/ap_on_re_as/afghan_aid_workers_killed

Nicole was a very smart and switched on girl. I had really connected with her and wanted her to come and speak to my class about journalism, reporting, and global issues......

I met Vanessa for drinks and dinner after the day and we discuss the events of the day, plans for a possible return home, a toast to us, and hop a taxi home to put the boys to bed.

It's now 10:30 PM and I call to check with Mom about Dad. No one knows much but they now think he will be moved to another location because they believe it is not the heart but the pancreas. My Mom mentions that my father was apparently sleeping and snoring when they did a check on his lungs. The specialist asks my Mom is my Dad is a smoker. "Oh yeah", Mom replies, "Big time." The specialist replies, "Hmm, that is weird because his lungs look pretty clear for a smoker." At this time my father suddenly sits up (remember he was snoring) and gives the specialist checking his lungs a high five. My Mom is still at my sister's house so I ring the hospital. I get lucky and ring the room and my Dad picks up. He is in obvious pain, groggy, and his breathing is labored. He apologizes to me and tells me not to worry in true Dad fashion. I let him rest and tell him I will call back later.

I feel like I end the night the same way I began the day....in a daze...

Zee's first day at school

Zee attended his first day at school today. I think Momma was more nervous than Zee. I received an email from a colleague whose daughter is in Zee's class. Apparently, Zee is already one of her BFFs (Best Friends Forever). I think Zee had fun but I will catch up tonight. I had a good night last night sleeping with Zee. He actually slept until 0400 today...Saweet. I need to catch up a bit before Teo's sleep training begins...ughhh. Vanessa is still behind in her ZZzzzzs but hopefully will be caught up in a few years....I mean days.

Today was my first day of school and it went smooth. Tomorrow I will get the other half so I will have more to tell at a later time. I actually did an interpretative dance for about 100 kids today describing my summer.....along with some colleagues beating on bongos and tambourines.....As Vanessa says, she now has 3 boys.

Here are some pics from Zee's birthday

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8IauGTRq3csUm&emid=sharview&linkid=link4

Enjoy.

Home and a huge Poo Poo

It is nice to be home. We returned yesterday after a wonderful stay in San Francisco, CA, Chandler, AZ, Prescott, AZ, Globe, AZ, Mule Creek, NM, back to Chandler, AZ, Portland, OR and back to Jakarta, Indonesia via San Francisco, Narita, Japan, a night in Singapore, and alas....we are home after a 45 minutes taxi ride from the airport....a walk in the park.

Zee gave us a scare because he was ill and had a bulging ear drum and after a checkup for both of the boys at the Children's Hospital in Portland we just had to hope for the best. Fortunately Zee can still hear us as we tell him to quit tackling his little bro.

After emptying the suitcases upon arrival I crashed out, literally, along with Zee and Teo. At 12:00 midnight Zee was wide awake and I could hear Vanessa "feeding the kitties" in the toilet. Uggghhh. We don't even have kitties....

I am at school now and feeling very jet lagged. While in a meeting I received an SMS (text) from Vanessa informing me that Zee had apparently made a huge poo! Now get this, not in his pants, but in the toilet. Yep. Apparently he had been saving up so much that it created a splash so big that both Vanessa and Zee got sprayed in the face as they watched in disbelief....now that is a big poo poo. Way to go Zee! This earned him two match box cars and that probably explains all the stomach problems Zee was complaing about and my fear that he may have an appendicitis....oh the joys of parenting.

The whole family were traveling rock stars and I gave Vanessa a high five after we made it....I felt like we had just completed a freakin' marathon and all ran it together. We definitely qualified for Boston....

I will post pics soon but meanwhile here is a link to shutterfly.....enjoy...and you don't have to sign on with a password so don't sweat it. Just click here and then click on view pictures:

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=9CbsmTlo1YhA

More to come later.

This is a what it was like....I guess Zee is a pants man....click here but parental guidance is recommended: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFVoLz88hiU

America, here we come!

We can't wait to see grandmas, grandpas, aunts, uncles and cousins!

Happy First Birthday, Teo!

Our sweet Teo turned one. He is a walking, giggling super baby. We had a picnic complete with water balloon toss and bobbing for apples. Thank you, grandma and grandpa for the cool duds.

Teo and Vanessa are entered into the Guiness World Records

Vanessa and her team set a new record today. Over 1000 pregnant woman showed up to make a pledge that they would breast feed their babies rather than use formula. A very nice achievement! Well done V!

Baby Teo with the Governor of Jakarta

SuperZee

I had just given Zee a bath and he was trotting about in the nude – all smiles. He was donning his choice outfit. He refused to put on a diaper and 'jamas so I let him run amok for awhile. We played under the covers and I made my legs appear like a huge rock and mountain under the sheets as Zee imagined himself summiting a real mountain peak before he would then jump or roll off the top of the soft down peak. “Yippeee...Helicopter, Daddy” he shouted. And Daddy, acting as both helicopter and operator, propelled Zee skyward as he pretended to be SuperMan – his words. I told him to clap his hands as he steadied himself precariously on the top of my extend legs and flattened two feet. “Kick your legs, stretch out your hands” I said to him. And he did them all with a grin and would then proceed to roll himself off of the balance beam until he tumbled to the mattress and bounced up and down. Then he decided to climb into Baby Teo's crib to get his fire engine. While in his little brother’s crib he locked eyes with me and started jumping up and down laughing and screaming. He liked being naked...it seemed to provide him a sense of independence, autonomy, and excitement. Suddenly, he got that look in his eye. Not the evil eye, mind you. No. You know the look I am talkin' about. The LOOK that makes a parent blurt out, "Oh no, oh damn, oh s***!” but I realized I was seated too far away, just out of reach when it happened.

Zee looked me in the eye and I watched as he bounced into the air and took flight as if he was living out his dream of becoming SuperZee. It was beautiful to watch his chest clear the top of the crib but then his midline, precisely his penis, thumped the top of wooden gate and sent him somersaulting. It was dazzling, audacious, and gutsy, and I was proud to be his father at that moment, but the reality soon hit home. It was that Master Zee had made this astonishing airborne flight because he trusted Daddy to catch him, to save him, to soften the landing...but it was only Zee, the atmosphere, and fate controlling his flight pattern as his small exposed buddy spun fiercely in the air and I was left to witness the crash landing. I would have given him a 9.5 on form but his dismount was disgraceful. He landed on his head and his back was contorted and his feet tumbled over his head onto the mattress on the floor. This is where he lost the points. It's always the dismount. As a Dad I was both elated at my son’s adventurous spirit but also fearful that I had brown crowned my boxer shorts. Zee glanced up at me wide eyed, a bit in shock, and speculated whether or not he was still in this world. I went into EMT mode to make sure he had not suffered anything more than psychologically trauma and wondered how I would get him to the closest medical facility. I could seek a psychotherapist at another time. Zee was holding his wrist, and pointing at his present boyhood and future manlihood. He had suffered a minor abrasion on his waist from the crib and I soon resorted to the art of distraction. As soon as I said the word "ice cream" there was a pause in the sniveling and then....it was over. Zee and I were walking hand in hand to the store for an ice cream bar – and of course Zee was now in a diaper and pajamas and Dad had changed his boxers.