Dear Family & Friends,

Go Go Gadget Christmas Letter! What, you mean that didn’t work? OK, well I suppose I’ll sit down and write one. Here we go. 2010, in 500 words or less…

Life as a family with two young children can be a blur. In fact I remember my own mother telling me that she doesn’t have many memories between the time that my brother Sean was born and when we all were finally in school. Our days are quite FULL. Sometimes you can’t remember if you’re playing “Hiding Kitty” or “Wrestling Doggy” or whatever other game has just been invented on the spot. My hat goes off to my amazing wife who continues to stay home with a couple of endlessly energetic, imaginative and demanding boys.

Speaking of my wife, sometime around December of last year she decided she was a runner. One thing I’ve learned about my wife in the last eight years is once she decides something then you’d better WATCH OUT! She went from casually jogging around Greenlake to an organized 5k on Valentines Day to a half marathon in Tacoma in May. And as if running wasn’t quite interesting enough she figured biking and open water swimming might be fun too, so she participated in the Danskin Triathlon in August. Finally in October, in The City of Roses (aka Portland), Sarah ran her first marathon. Twenty six point two miles ladies and gentlemen! And let me also point out that it was pouring down rain for at least twenty five of those miles.

I’m still working my day job as DER SERVER MEISTER of The Omni Group. Seriously, it’s a pretty great gig. I get to help some really smart people create awesome products that I honestly believe are exceptional. Also, the fact that it takes less time to bike to work than it does to drive thru traffic doesn’t hurt. When I’m not wrangling servers I can be found cycling, playing pinball, or riling my boys into a cacophonous frenzy exactly five minutes before bedtime.

Joel and Isaac are amazing. Joel talks and plays and talks and runs and talks some more. The kid has no sense of shame or personal space and is quite determined that it’s his duty to inform every single person at Trader Joe’s that he is “Buzz Lightyear and look at my cool LASER!” Isaac is expressive and emotional in every non-verbal way possible. His frantic laugh is pure delight, but his disappointed scowl will break your heart. He has a tender spirit and loves his doll like it’s his own little baby.

We continue to enjoy living in Ballard (or Crown Hill, depending on who you ask) which is the perfect mix of neighborhood-y familiarity and grown-up city attitude. The only thing that could make it better would be having our family closer. Hope you all are surrounded by those you love this Christmas!

Peace on Earth,

The Bendicksons

Posted from Benaar’s posterous

“Mom, what’s a dream job?” he asked the other day.

“Well, a dream job is the kind of job that if you could do anything you wanted, that’s what you would do. What is your dream job, Joel?”

“I want to take pictures.”

Honest to God, that’s exactly what he said. We hadn’t been discussing photography or cameras at all and I don’t think any of the shows he’s watched recently feature picture taking prominently. So, I dunno, I think this was an honest, gut response answer to the question. Sarah dug out our old G1 iPhone and showed him how to use the camera. Below are some of the results.

He’s 4.

Posted from Benaar’s posterous

Four years ago we first met Joel, and nothing’s been the same since.

He is talkative, imaginative, playful, sensitive, tenacious, intense, cuddly and finicky all at the same time. His favorite thing these days is playing make believe. He’s a superhero or a transformer or a cartoon character or Lord knows what else. His least favorite thing is probably dinner. He loves cupcakes & cheeseburgers, broccoli & cucumbers, but hates chicken or mac & cheese. He still sleeps with his best friend Pooh.

Happy Birthday Joel.

Posted from Benaar’s posterous

Today was Joel’s first day of preschool, well actually his second first day of preschool. We started him last year, but because his birthday is in late September he ended up in the Pre-3 class and only went once a week. This year he’ll be going twice a week and be in the 3s and 4s class.

We nearly didn’t get him there in time today because we all slept in. Poor Isaac has been teething pretty seriously the last few days and was sporting a fever of 101 which resulted in poor Sarah getting up every hour with him. All of us were drifting in and out of sleep when the little guy finally perked up his head in a “OK, now I’m ready to start the day” fashion at 8:15, and school starts at 9! Of course Joel was sleeping like a champ (as usual) so I went in to wake him. I pulled the sheets back, opened the blinds and told him to get up and get ready for school. Wouldn’t you know it, I checked on him 2 minutes later and he had pulled the sheet back over his head like he’s a 16 year old or something!

In the end everyone got dressed, fed and out the door on time. I’m only hoping that his teachers weren’t too confused/annoyed by his constant identity changes. I’m Luke Skywalker! I’m Buzz Lightyear! I’m Andy (also from Toy Story)! Dude, I think at school you’re just gonna have to settle for being Joel. At least for a few hours.

Posted from Benaar’s posterous

Me: “Are you ready for lunch, Joel?”

Joel: “You mean Wolverine.”

Me: “Are you ready for lunch, Wolverine?”

Joel: “Yes. Oh and Dad, did you know I have CLAWS!?”

Some days he’s Wolverine, some days he’s Superman or Iron Man. Most of the time he’s Buzz Lightyear. The rest of our identities change too, when he’s Dash that means that I’m Mr. Incredible, Sarah is Elastigirl and Isaac is Jack Jack. When he’s Buzz Lightyear then I’m Woody and Sarah is Jessie. The changes can come mid day, sometimes even mid sentence and the only clue you get is the fact that he’s now addressing you as a new character. His make-believe world is all encompassing. The bike trailer in the garage is his Space Ship which has crash landed on the bed and needs to be repaired. His trike is his Bat Cycle. His boots have rockets and his gloves have lasers.

Remember when you still believed we could be heroes, just for one day? I do.

Thanks Wolverine.

Posted from benaar’s posterous

“What house honey?”

“It was a big house by a sidewalk and with a boy and there was a pinball inside of the house. We need to go there!”

“What kind of pinball was it?”

“It was a Lightning McQueen pinball!” (it should be noted here that there is no such thing as a Lightning McQueen or Cars pinball game, although that would be COOL!)

At this point I kind of smiled at him and got squatted down on my knees so I was on his level. I looked him in the eye and with what I hoped was a kind fatherly smile tried to explain that he was just having a dream. That sometimes when we sleep we see things but we just are imagining them, they aren’t real.

He looked back at me with wide eyes and said, “but it IS real!”

There was a mix of conviction & confusion in his voice that I don’t often hear, something very earnest. Different than the way he’ll tell us with all the authority he can muster that “it IS time to watch a movie” or “we ALWAYS have ice cream”. He was so sure of his visions, his memories that he couldn’t believe that I was telling him they weren’t real.

“It was only a dream honey.”

He put is head down, curled up in my lap and cried.

Parenting is hard.

Posted from benaar’s posterous

By the end of the weekend, I’d become aware of a couple things.

Firstly I’ve got an awesome extended family. I’m so grateful that my boys are connected to their aunts & uncles as well as their grandparents (and great grandparents). These people are a part of their lives, not simply far flung acquaintances.

Secondly, my kids are pretty darn fun. Oh sure, they’re stubborn, illogical, mind numbingly persistent and insufferable when they don’t get their way, but aren’t we all from time to time? As they get older I’m sure the our adventures together will get more grand but for now I’m content with tricycles, sandboxes & sidewalk chalk.

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I suppose that’s pretty normal for an oldest child who’s had his or her world split open by the introduction of a sibling, however I have to admit I’ve been finding it a bit unnerving. The little voice in the back of my head starts chattering away, “What if they never get along?” “What if they never develop a positive relationship, and our family is marred by their rivalry forever?” “WHAT HAVE WE DONE?!?”

Happily there have been, in recent weeks, a few fleeting moments where the boys actually have been playing together and, as far as we can tell, enjoying it. I sure get a kick out of listening to them laugh (while remaining poised to intervene when the inevitable CRASH – BANG – WAAAAA starts).

I mean honestly… would you trust these two alone in a room for very long?

Me neither.

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The thing I’ve noticed most over the last couple days is exactly how “busy” these boys are. While I will fully admit to liberal use of Curious George as a diversion, in those moments when I’m cleaning up from a meal or doing dishes or something I’ll hear Joel in the other room playing make believe with his trains. He’ll be acting out a scene from one of the books or movies, or just making up his own dialog. It’s really cute, and a good reminder to me that while I do enjoy rough-housing with him it’s important for him to have his OWN playtime too.

Isaac is all about the business of developing his 9 month old skill set. And he is SERIOUS too. If he’s pulled himself up to stand next to Joel’s train table and discovered a new toy (which we have an abundance of these post-Christmas days) you’d be well advised not to try and take it away from him because he’ll let you know how unhappy that makes him. It’s as if every single new trinket he finds is the most amazing thing he’s ever seen… and in some ways that may be true. He’s so determined about it too. It’s like the second he’s done eating he’s scanning the room, ready to start exploring. Look out Dad, I gotta PLAY!

We’re heading to Tacoma today to spend a little time with Grandma & Grandpa and then Sarah should be home by dinnertime. I’ll be nice to have her home with us, but I’ve also really enjoyed this special time with my boys.

The dynamic duo at yesterday’s Mobile Chowdown.

Posted from benaar’s posterous

Posted from benaar’s posterous