Olá from Portugal

It's time for another Daddy post, though no cute Mikey sayings this time. I just wanted to say hi and let everyone know that I'm having a great time in Lisbon. I miss my hot wife and my chubby boys, but I'm past the halfway point, so I'll see them soon enough.

For those who don't know, I'm doing a legal internship with the largest firm in Portugal. I've had a LOT of work in both English and Portuguese, and they've been very good about letting me be involved and keeping me here 'til all hours.

Just to share a few funny things about Portugal that I had forgotten since my mission (8 YEARS AGO!). Every morning I walk by a nice lady who is mopping the sidewalk in front of the building where she works. Seriously, mopping the cobblestones...with a mop. This morning I saw a bunch of guys doing some kind of work on the side of a building, suspended by mountain climbing ropes and harnesses while using jackhammers and such. It was like watching a weird, giant puppet show with 9 or 10 of them dangling around up there. I also just saw a fire truck pass under my office window, and laying on top of it were two wooden ladders, like what we use to put up Christmas lights. In a city full of very few buildings less than at least five or six stories high, I'm not entirely sure what they're planning on doing with those ladders. Christmas is 7 months away.

Love, Lance

Never leave your kids alone in the bath...

Some of you may remember at Christmas when we got Luke a little bath seat so that he could easily bathe with Mikey and sit up and be safe. Well despite his now plentiful skills in all sitting, balancing, crawling and maneuvering, we have continued to bathe him in his seat just because it keeps him in place and I felt he was safer and more contained. So while bathing Luke, I don't really leave him ALONE, alone, but I usually do things like put laundry away in the rooms on either side of the bathroom and therefore walk back and forth in front of the bathroom.

So a few days ago I was doing just such a thing and needed something downstairs. So I looked in on him happily splashing away and sprinted downstairs for a sec. Well as soon as I got downstairs I heard a little "something" happen upstairs so I turned around and sprinted up. Now the bathroom is right at the top of the stairs and as you come up the stairs his little chair is centered in the door and normally you see his little face peaking over the bath looking back you. But his little face wasn't there! Even more panicked I reached the bathroom finally to see this:

The little stinker got out of his chair and was just standing there grinning at me as if he knew perfectly well he accomplished something new and something he maybe wasn't supposed to have done!

Being relieved, I started laughing at him and he quickly joined in. Well no more bath seat for this kid!

Walking?

I think we're still a little ways off from the real thing, but we're practicing and so cute doing it!