The Swarrell Life

My sister came down this weekend to visit, it was really great to see Coleen and Jason. This is the first time they have been able to see Trinity, so it was fabulous to have them down. This was also the first time they have visited the new house as well. That's a long time! It's funny how time flies. I know we don't get up there nearly as often as I would like. Here is Coleen with her neice: Pretty comfy already, even though they just met! We call this her jailbird outfit for obvious reasons! For all the big Trinity fans out there here are some more pics of the little bugger. The lighting in the living room isn't so good. I wish that our flash wouldn't wash everything out. Then we wouldn't have to settle for blurry pictures. I hope that Jason's pictures turned out better. Tummy times are getting better, look at her hold that head up! She's so cute, it's ridiculous! I like these next photos because of the scale. Autumn took them while I was holding Tr...

There are new pictures and movies of Trinity coming, just haven't put them on the computer yet...

But in the end it really doesn't matter who wins an argument, because that doesn't change how we treat people, it just makes us feel better about being right. I found this video through a tweet from the author of a blog I read and thought that it was pretty relevant to life today. I have written recently about a friend of mine going to prison; accepting and loving people wherever they are is certainly my flavor of the day. The great thing is that in this video you can substitute just about any other form of socially "unacceptable" behavior in place of "gay", and although the song wouldn't rhyme anymore, it reflects how I feel about accepting people where they are. I am no better than anyone, it is just that my mistakes aren't as public. For instance, a little white lie is much easier to swallow than a mistake that is against the law of the land. So, how do you feel about it? Is it just easier to write someone off because they have made a mistake. I...

Typing sucks right now because I cut the tip of my finger with a "safety" razor. Annoying. Most of my type happens with that finger, never did take typing classes. This post may take forever to make it from my brain to the page...post...whatever. I suppose I should have a point to this post, don't really have one. I mentioned my friend that is going to prison, talked to him this evening. It is really hard to talk to someone who is looking at 17 years of prison time. We had a good talk, but sheesh it's a different conversation that one you have with your neighbor about the weather. You get to the point quickly, no extra words if you can help it. It can be frustrating because there is nothing I can say to make him feel better. I tell him any news I have heard, tell him that I love him and pray for him whenever I think about him, which is fairly frequent as of late. I hate the lack of access I have to him. I can write a letter, but it takes soooo long. I can receive phon...

Here are a couple of videos of Trinity, she is so cute. Have I said that enough? It is really amazing to be a part of her life, to be able to participate in another life to this extent. We really are blessed as parents to be able to raise children and enjoy them. They sure are fun! In this first one, she is playing on her gym, batting the noise maker. The second one is tummy time...with sound effects!

I have a good friend who is going to prison. It is a new experience for me, one that I am not happy about and most definitely not comfortable with. He made some major mistakes and now he is suffering the consequences. In fact, many people are suffering the consequences of his actions. But that's not the only thing that I am uncomfortable with. What bothers me is my natural inclination to assume the worst about him and act on it accordingly. It is as if part of me wants to believe the worst about him. Now, don't misunderstand me, I am not pretending to know what kind of a person he actually is. He deceived many people and committed grevious acts that have damaged all of his relationships and hurt many, many people. I am included in that group of people. I am hurt and part of me really wants to be indignant and judgemental about my friend and what he has done. I don't know him because in my eyes he is not the same person I thought I knew. The part that bothers me is that I na...

I have been having an attack of the conscience lately, in regards to our dog. She has been driving me bananas lately with her desire for attention. She has not been getting a lot of attention because of the baby and she is often a nuisance in our eyes. It's not her fault, she's always loved attention, she just doesn't understand. So I feel bad. I had Autumn get her a little treat the other day, it's been keeping her happy and occupied...I wonder why. To understand the scale of this picture, the dog weighs 115lbs. The bone is about a foot and a half long. Yummy dog treat! She might look like she is having fun with the bone, but she is actually protecting it. I was out in the yard, on mine patrol, and she was worried that I was going to take her bone from her. I would walk away and she would follow me, and then when I would walk towards the bone, she would walk right beside me, speeding up when I sped up. She loves her bone!

First of all, let me say that I have the cutest baby on the block, no joke. Her smile is so much fun and she is getting so interactive that it's driving me crazy! She is so much fun to be around, whether I am feeding her and she falls right asleep, or if she is laying on a blanket pumping her legs like she's running up hill. It sure is fun and for unexplainable reasons, her smile is so rewarding, it just kills me. Below is an example, stinkin' cute! Last night as I was sitting in the big chair feeding Trinity her last bottle of the night, I swear to you that I had all sorts of profound thoughts. Really, I did. Honest. But they flew away along with my consciousness and here I am left with really jumbled thoughts as I fight off yet another little cold. I used to be able to think clearly, but not so much anymore. It is driving me a little bit batty. That's okay, I'll trade clarity for my daughter any day of the week. Twice on Sunday. Speaking of Sunday, this is what we...

As I mentioned before, we had Trinity's portraits done last weekend. Instead of posting the best of those, I have decided to post the bad shots. Just remember, she's my daughter and I think that she is cute in ALL the shots. Some of them are more entertaining than others, that's all. Enjoy.

As Autumn mentioned on Friday, Trinity slept for about 7 hours, crushing her past record of 6 hours NO PROBLEM. It is funny because we tend to rely on her consistency to help us plan our day. She usually wakes up around 4-4:30. So we planned to go to Boise at around 8:30, after feeding at about 7:00-7:30. Well, she slept until 6:00. I know, I know, "babies change everything, you just can't plan!". Well, we usually can. She's that consistent. No worries though, we loaded her up to go to Nampa for her first portrait session. We really wanted to get her in the studio right after she woke up and fed. That is when she is her most awake. Well, it wasn't going to work unless she slept for the whole drive over. Wouldn't you know it, SHE DID! I'll post some more portraits later, but here's one of my favorites: We stayed at my Dad's while we were over there and went to church with him and Sue on Sunday. It was good to visit where they worship, and also to al...

As I type this, it is 5:28 a.m. and Trinity is still snoozing away! For the past few weeks she has been sleeping 4.5-5.5 hours at night (very nice) but tonight she has trampled that record. It has already been 7 hours since her last feeding and she's still sleeping (and yes, I did check to make sure she was breathing). I'm almost giddy! If it wasn't for the excessive weight of my breasts right now I'd jump up and down! Oh, just so no one is confused this is Autumn typing--not Aaron. :) Here's a picture of our good little sleeper on her Aunt Amy's arm a few weeks ago:

How do you spend $80 million too much? That much money doesn't just slip through the cracks. The Washington Independent reported this morning that the treasury department overpaid trouble banks : In efforts to stabilize troubled banks, the Treasury Department overpaid those institutions by nearly $80 billion, the head of a bailout oversight panel told lawmakers Thursday. Elizabeth Warren, who chairs the congressional panel overseeing the Troubled Asset Relief Program, said Treasury officials chose not to risk-adjust the government’s investments in troubled banks, instead paying “a uniform price” regardless of each bank’s health. As a result, she estimates, taxpayers have spent $254 billion on capital investments worth just $176 billion — a difference of roughly $78 billion. Seems like if you are doing your homework, this can be avoided. Also, Andrew Sullivan asks how often can you lie and still be considered for president in 2012. Evidently at least once or twice. I'll stop...

I think that in the future I will be just as embarrassed as Trinity by these movies, mainly because of the ridiculous baby babble that comes out of my mouth. Oh well, that's the beauty of parenthood; there is now a valid reason for making a fool of yourself. I've been making a fool out of myself for years for no reason at all. I knew having a baby was going to be good for me! This first one is the "naked baby" shot that I will use to embarrass her when she is a teenager: This next video is great because you get to see Trinity doing what she loves to do, and that is to kick and move after she eats. What the video doesn't show is how fussy she was for the next hour and a half after I shut the camera off. Turns out she is growing, because she was HUNGRY! Here's your minute of zen:

That is what I often am about posting on this blog. I need to stay on top of it so you are as up to date as possible. The latest is that I had a big adventure last weekend...it was just me and Trinity ALL WEEKEND...just the two of us. It was a great confidence booster to me that I could handle it by myself. Autumn and I have talked about needing time to get away every once in a while and this was a great test to see if we could walk the walk. So, while I was slaving away at home, this is what Autumn was doing... Looks like fun to me, but that nothing compared to what Trinity and I did! We read books, we visited friends, we went to a swim meet to watch some friends swim, we went to a fund raiser for Baker City Best Friends, AND we were able to sleep for at least 5 hours a night...sweet! My Dad and stepmom (from here on out, referred to as Opa and Oma, German for Grandpa and Grandma) came over from Boise to visit for the afternoon, which was a nice visit: After that we had a nice time wa...