Things are going to pick up soon. Samantha starts school in a week and a half. We're excited and ready for the new year. Today we're going shoe shopping. She's outgrown all of her shoes. A few weeks ago she got to go back-to-school shopping for the first time. She loved all the new clothes. I've had to keep them out of reach for the most part.

We have a new digital piano, which everyone seems to enjoy. I want to start taking lessons and I think Samantha will want to as well. Most piano teachers don't start taking students until they're 5. The new pianos have an LCD display that helps teach you how to play. It's really neat.

We got to visit Kevin in San Francisco last weekend. We had a terrific time, although it was way too short. Samantha didn't let go of his hand the whole time. It was a clear and beautiful day. We can't wait to go back and play some more.

I thought I'd leave you with a video of the girls having a giggle fit. They're dancing to their favorite Ray Charles song Busted.