Christmas with the Rellers

On Sunday, Christmas Day,  we were able to spend the day with the Reller family.  Everyone was able to make it, even our new in-law Dustin.  Of course, the present opening was a little chaotic, and Carter continued asking for more presents since he finally figured out that there were usually good things in presents.  It was a beautiful celebration of Christ's Birth!

Christmas with the Bartigs

We traveled to Mark and Tricia's house on Friday to celebrate the Birth of Christ.  They had a delicious meal prepared for us and a beautiful place for us to gather as a family.  Thanks for the fun evening!

Christmas 2011

Santa visited our house a little early so we could travel south for Christmas.  Luckily, Granny and Grampy were visiting us so they were able to watch Laura and Carter open their presents.  The highlights were the "big dump truck"  for Carter and the Epad for Laura.  Thanks, Santa!

Nicolette's 10th birthday

We celebrated Nicolette's birthday on December 26.  Baby Meredith even made it out to see the family again!  Allison, Nick, and Laura were able to squeaze in a game of Monopoly and Rummy. 

How to write a song in 60 minutes (or less)

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I wrote and recorded a song last weekend and thought I would share it.  Please keep in mind it was a one take wonder - in one hour. (Don’t expect much)  Anyway, I share it just to show others just how easy a song can come together.  I have been visiting the following website;

http://bible.cc/psalms/33-4.htm

Each morning before work using the drop down bar, I choose a scripture and then do a devotional.  You should notice the site offers users a simple drop down bar format that can be used to select book, chapter, and verse.  After your selection, up pops a verse that is offered to the reader in a myriad of translations.  If you read each translation in sequence you will begin to conceptualize a “big idea”.  It really makes reading and understanding the bible much easier.  Doing this also lends itself quite nicely to writing prose.  Consequently, here is how this song came to be.  Last Thursday, I studied Psalm 33:4-5, “For the word of the LORD is right and true.”  After reading the verse, I wrote the following lyrics by replicating and retrofitting verses but kept the big idea front and center, "for the word".  Next, I grabbed a catchy tune out of my head (have lots of useless original music up there from years of playing the guitar).  Sunday, during Carter’s nap I sat down in front of our digital editor and pushed in a basic drum track using Laura’s Boss Dr 3.  The strings and a couple of effects came from her Yamaha DX7 and Oberheim OBX.  Finally, my guitars were pushed through a Tascam guitar effects processor.  Vocals… well lets just say there in lies the breakdown… One take .. and…I decided to keep it since it probably would not get much better.

The resulting cd track was mastered, finalized and converted to MP3 formatting using a “CD to MP3 ripper” (freeware; plenty of them can be downloaded off the net..just google it). The ending is totally rough and unfinished since unfortunately I still have that dissertation hanging over my head like a black cloud/had to return to the dining room and write on it some more.  

For the Word
Words and Music written by Mike Bartig

For the word
For the word
For the word
I am (sang over the top)
For the word
For the word

For your word o lord, I stand faithfully

Steadfast for you Lord, all music’s for you

Interlude

Oooooh  oooooooooooh  Oooooh 

joys at the heart and…. the soul of the praise

Your words hold truth, your statements reality

For the word

For the word
For the word

I am

I am
I stand

By your word o lord, I sing joyfully

Swirling the strings lord, layering the happiness

Oooooh  oooooooooooh  Oooooh 

Part love, part hope, part acceptance

We sing to him this, new song of deliverance

For the word

Right and true
I am
For the word
I am
I am
I am

Gary

Gary Moss our do it all friend came to our farm to hunt with his muzzleloader this morning.  And....the picture says the rest.  Gary is our all around goto guy... farm hand, farrier and most important a good christian fella.

Failure #1

Well, the verdict's in, I did not get the platte city job - Not meant to be, I guess...

Bye Bye to fall..............:-(

Christmas Recital

Laura and Amy performed a duet at Laura's Christmas recital - Both did a nice job and a good time was had by all - except maybe Carter. 

Carter Moment

Carter's favorite place in the house is behind the blue chair next to the front picture window.  Consequently, a few minutes ago as I sat in big, blue recliner listening to Carter repetitively yet calmly say from behind..."daddy get off my back",.  Business as usual, so I discounted the comments as just another one of his newest idioms/ignored it.  Everything peaked when he finally wailed at the top of his lungs "DADDY GET OFF OF MY BACK"!  Immediately I stood up, walked to the back of the chair and found him halfway under it trying to retrieve a long lost binky.  I cringed since I had been rocking back and forth on the little tough guys back all the while he was saying "daddy get off my back".  Too funny!

Christmas with Santa

I was so excited to take Carter to see Santa, because I thought he would hop on his lap like last year for a cute pic.  Unfortunately it did not work like that.  Santa had a cute little tractor for him, but Carter did not want it that bad.  He also had a pedal tractor to sit on, but Carter did not want to have anything to do with that either.  So this is as close as Carter would get, with Mom pretty close too.  Memories we are making!!

Frontenac Jr. Grand Prix

Dec. 3rd -Laura hangs out with some of the competition while waiting for her name to be called. She won 3 of 4 matches in the tournament and she played well. It was her best performance this fall.

Watch a video clip of a point from her third match - she won the best of three.



KHS Winter Dance 2011

Laura, Audrey, and Adrianna just left for the dance.  Nobody had a date, so it sounds like a lot of fun to me!  Carter wanted to go to the dance and thought their dresses were "pretty."

Happy Puke Day to You!

The birthday song...of course Carter is acting awful (as usual) but cut him some slack, he has a good reason tonight since he has blown chunks twice.  Consequently, moments ago he released (in my lap) about a gallon of a puke consisting mostly of chewed up grapes, mashed potatoes, and juice.

44

Happy Birthday Amy

Thanksgiving 2011

We spent Thanksgiving break in Old Monroe.  Carter had a blast talking to Grandma about the new quilt she is making him, reading with Papa, and harassing cousins and their friends.  Laura spent most of the weekend with Allison, as usual.  Of course, Laura had a little time to play tennis in the Woods Mill tournament.  She only won one match, but she is getting better every time she steps on the court!

Is Eating Boogers Bad for You?

Well... Just like Mythbusters Carter has decided to put the theory to test and the results are in, eating boogers is good for you and according to researcher Friedrich Bischinger similar to consuming really nasty-salty penicillin."
Seriously,In the scientific and medical knowledge communities, the act of eating a booger is called mucophagy. Furthermore, Austrian doctor Friedrich Bischinger, a lung specialist working in Innsbruck, performed research that found people who pick their noses with their fingers are healthier, happier, and more in tune with their bodies. His work also found exposing the body to the dried germ corpses helps to reinforce the immune system. In short Bischinger supports nose-picking, and encourages children to take up the habit.  Actually, come to think of it Carter has not had a single ear infection or fever since he started eating the salty morsels....:-)

A-B-C

Carter spent time tonight ripping off verse after verse of the "abc song".  Not sure where he picked it up since we have not started singing it yet. Of course, the moment he caught me trying to tape him he went into "terd" mode and stopped.. but after a little bribing with the binky he let me record a little.

Dustin and Katie Tie the Knot

Amy's niece Katie Reller Married Dustin Boyd Saturday afternoon in Old Monroe.  The weather was nice and the ceremony short and sweet! 

USTA November Rankings are Out!

The first four events for the 2001-2012 USTA Junior Circuit are complete! Laura has already secured a fourth in the USTA Jr Tennis Circuit

Uncle Donny's visit

Uncle Donny was visiting Kirksville this weekend to spend some time with Bethany at TSU.  He also spent some time at the Bartig house, so Carter made himself comfortable next to him and enjoyed some books.  Carter loves a good story with "big trucks" in it:)

More Reading Fun!

One Step Away

Ok...I found out I passed all three comprehensive exams last month and today successfully completed the oral defense of chapters one, two and three of the doctoral thesis so finally the journey comes down to a final step....dissertation.

Carter Reads at Two

Carter has been reading a little these days.  The other day Amy was reading to him when he interrupted and started reading out loud on his own.  We decided to try and catch him reading a book tonight "Blue Hat Green Hat" and as you might imagine the very moment he realized he was being taped he locked up.  Oh well, hopefully you can get the gist of how far he has come in his vocabulary by watching the following video.

Laura landed safely!

Laura left for Space Camp on Thursday, Sept. 29, and returned early Monday morning about 12:30 am.  The following article appeared in the paper about the trip.  She brought many souvenirs home and a great impression of one of the tour guides!  We are hoping she learned a little too:)

4-H Missions in Space
2011

Local Youth Attend 4-H Mission in Space in Huntsville, AL

Laura Bartig of Adair County was among 29 youth and adults from all over Missouri who recently traveled to the original Space Camp at the US Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Paired with a tour and demonstrations at Russell Cave National Monument in Bridgeport, Alabama (this archaeological site contains the most complete record of prehistoric cultures in the Southeast), the trip gave the participants a wide perspective of history, time and human progress through the ages.

At the US Space and Rocket Center, the youth participated in the Space Camp Pathfinder program. The Pathfinder program is three days of non-stop activities exploring the history, present and future of manned space flight. Participants were immersed in hands-on training for a space shuttle mission. They experienced both shuttle and space station simulators, such as the G-force, Multi-Axis Trainer, and 1/6th Gravity Chair. Guided tours through the History of Space Museum prepared participants for a team “Space Bowl” quiz competition. The teams designed Mission Patches and constructed and launched their own solid-booster rockets.  For many, the highlight of the Pathfinder program was the Shuttle Mission simulation. The trainees worked together to launch the shuttle to the International Space Station, completed experiments that approximated those conducted in space and returned their crew safely to Earth.

The trip toward home included a stop at the Spaghetti Factory in historic downtown  Nashville, TN.

The 4-H Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) program is the national priority of the 4-H Youth Development Program. Currently 5.9 million youth participate in educational activities that focus on science, engineering, and technology. 

Tennis Season Summary - 19-0 Undefeated!

Laura had a terrific tennis season.  Yet, the poor thing is caught in between going to space camp and playing in post season state qualifiers.  The dillema.... Laura leaves for the state of Alabama to attend Space Camp tonight so that means she will miss all post season tennis.  Coach is mad at Laura - Laura is mad at mom and dad who are holding their ground that she must attend space camp.  We keep reassuring her that her USTA national ranking is more important than anything else she might achieve playing high school tennis ....but it's not helping ease the pain.  :-)

Homecoming 2011

Laura's first Homecoming was a little crazy, but I think she had a lot of fun.  Parade, football game, and dance were all in one night!  Here are a few pics before she went to the dance.

Summer to Fall

Tennis Champ!

Laura beat opponents from Troy, Jefferson City Helias, and Hannibal and took home a medal.  Laura said being the only freshman player on varsity is strange enough and it felt weird coming home on the bus today with the hardware!

Amy's Crash

Amy has been begging me the past several years to enter a car in the demolition derby at the fair.  Thursday she finally took matters into her hands and side swiped a 2011 Toyota on Illinois Street.   (see picture of victims car below) Carter and Amy were both pretty PO'd about the experience but neither were hurt.

Carter Sings Happy Birthday to Dad

Note: While it looks like we are letting him stick his face in the flame - please keep in mind the camera is exaggerating the height of the fire.

Kirksville vs. Quincy

Laura and her doubles partner landed the only win in an overall team loss of 1-8 to Quincy Ill.