Mozilla, Firefox and webgeeks GIVE back...

The makers of the web browser Firefox have hit 500 million downloads and they're celebrating by giving to Free Rice (a partner of Poverty.com)

FreeRice has two goals:

1) Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.

2) Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

Click on the image below to see how you can help. It's majorly easy! HINT: have dictionary.com pulled up in a browser window beside the one you're using. Good luck!

LA and Raymond

Landon and his cousin Raymond hanging out on the couch together.



Nana is feeding Raymond and Landon is watching while sitting on his truck.

We are finally feeling better here at the Haffner home. No more snotty noses. We went through so many boxes of Kleenex, I switched over to toliet paper for myself. It was crazy! We are looking forward to our first completely normal, relaxing week. Thanks for all your prayers!

Selling our home

Many of you know that we having been working to sell our home by owner for a few months now. With some success (but no formal offers), we've opted to move into the Spring buying season by officially listing our home.

It's a very bittersweet thing for us. In our 4 years here, this house has become a home through the blood, sweat and tears of not just us, but so many other friends and family members. Man...how many late nights did we all spend here picking off wallpaper from an entire room in postage stamp sized increments? How many pizzas and beers were consumed pulling nails from our amazing hardwoods (the animals had carpet covering them for 50 years!)? Then, there's the rearing our first child in the place thing to consider...And, on and on.

So, why sell?

1) We feel an eternal responsibility to free up more of our resources to give more away. By taking the profit on the house, paying down other equities and moving into a less expensive home, we can do this.

2) Our local church body, and many of those in that community, all live north of us. Which, is where we're likely headed.

3) This house has always been an investment. It's just taken us 4 years to flip it. :)

So, spread the word. Or, just buy the place.

Wii Baby

Granted, this isn't Landon. And, we're pretty anti-video game in the Haffner Home, but this is majorly cute...

Free kid's T-shirt offer

We found this great kid's T site through The Elling House blog. Polly Todd. There's some hip baby clothes for very decent prices. The drum kit tee below is our favorite for Landon. Polly Todd's isn't just offering great kids duds, they're shelling out free items to those who help spread the word. Check out how easy it is to take advantage of the free offer by clicking here.

the crate.....

We were so excited to have Sophie and her Momma (Shannon) over to play this morning! I love this picture and had to share...Landon plays in Chloe's crate quite often, but has never had anyone besides Chloe try to enter. His face says it all! Thanks for coming to play with us! We love you guys!!

The un-paci-fication

We're opting to slowly work toward removing the paci from day-to-day life around BPM. Once baby#2 arrives in June, LA can't be stealing his little bro or sis's paci. From what we know, after only 6 months, the need for non-nutritional sucking is gone. We haven't gotten into a this-is-a-problem phase (at least yet anyway). LA only gets the paci at naptime and bedtime. (Actually, in the picture above, we were at a wedding and LA was in a really good mood and kept wanting to talk. So, we' plugged him up.) We're just trying to think ahead on this one. We all know those 3 year olds running around with pacifiers jammed in their mouths. Not a good look. What are your thoughts on ages to un-paci and what method works best?

King and Queen of the mountain (Kangaroo Climber)

You can sort of tell why people keep thinking Crystal is a Mother of two whenever they're all out together. To which Caroline always quickly points out, "She's not my Mom."

Dadda rub your shoulders?

Crystal and LA have a new friend!

I am watching a little girl, named Caroline 1.5 days a week. It is going great! She is 5 and loves Landon. For the most part, Landon deals with her playing "mom."She is a wonderful little girly girl.



As you can see Caroline has everything to play house and she does it very well. While she is preparing food she puts Landon in his "room" until she is ready. So cute!



This is Landon's favorite toy. It is a trampoline with handles. Sometimes he gets jumping so much he falls right off.....stay tuned for a video clip in the near future.

I am really enjoying watching Landon interact with Caroline. I can sometimes leave the room to go to the bathroom....which as many of you know is a big deal. Landon really likes Caroline and gets excited when we see her. It is great!

Baby 2!

By 20 weeks with Landon, we had seen the little man like 4 times. With this little bundle, we hadn't gotten any pictures until this morning. It's been a long wait. But, well worth it. We are SO joyous to report a healthy growing baby (insert gender guess here) Haffner!


A proud happy Mama looking at baby2. Technology seriously is amazing.


Click on the above image to look at the ultrasound image montage enlarged.

LA and Raymond at dinner

The other night we went out to Maggiano's to celebrate Crystal's Uncle Frank's 70th birthday. The video below is Landon playing with his little cousin Raymond after dinner. The video is pretty dark, but the end is pretty cute when Landon says his lil cous's name for the first time.

New Year's Eve in Chicago!

Every year we get to take a New Year's trip with our dear friends Ty and Rachel. This year, we did a short one (they're typically 3 to 5 day experiences, a la Miami, upper Michigan peninsula, etc) up to Chicago for the night.


We had dinner at this amazing Latin eatery called Carnivale that lived up to all the cuisine hype of the city.


We drudged through the snow and cold (actually we took a warm taxi, urban legend has it the driver piloted like a "Bad @$$" and was told so by someone in the car) and got back to the Hyatt on Wacker Dr where we chilled to the ends of 2007...


...and welcomed "8" in with style. Nevermind her very tired eyes, props to the pregnant Haffner who stayed up well past 12amCT to celebrate!


Caught some fireworks off Navy Pier from the comforts of our hotel hallway.


Little Landon got to stay overnight with Papa and Nana while his parents gallivanted north. He ended 2007 with a bang (or a "boom boom" as he calls it) right into the bedroom dresser when he stumbled over Chloe. Here's to the little man's first shiner!

Christmas with family!

We headed up for time with Amos's parents in the middle of the month so that we could all get time together before schedules got too hairy. It was a great time. And, Landon loves his new rocking horse from Grandpa and Grandma Haffner.


Don't fear for Adam's life (read title of book)... his Mom picked this up for her. Good times.


On Christmas Eve it was up to Muncie for a large family gathering at Landon's Great Grandparents house.


Amos & Crystal did some proactive thinking and showed up about 2 hours early for some extra time with the "Greats." It was also time for LA to get acclimated before the masses arrived and it worked. He was 100% himself for the 20+ plus crowd of family...did crazy talk, all his animal noises, turned in circles, played cars with Great Grandma Turner, scratched his belly and ran around like a nut until 1.5 hrs past his bedtime.




Great Uncle Wayne showing Landon the "Balls!"


On Christmas Day, after some time at home with just the three of us, we headed to Brownsburg for time at Papa and Nana's. Landon got to spend the afternoon with his cousin Raymond, Uncle Frankie and Aunt Ruby as well.




Landon opening up his new F150 audio truck with boat in tow! Papa was pretty proud of this find.


The Haffner Home along with Crystal's brother and sister created three framed and mounted pics of their three grandkids for the hallway that leads to the loft where the kids always play. They were very appreciative!


"If he could only reach the spicket." thinks the Westie.


Papa and Landon closing out the night with a new Colts football and Billy Bass.

cuddling with Mama

Amos is officially off work until 2008 and we're doing some relaxing today!

#7 -- Junky Car Club Calendar

...in the "Top Ten Gifts That Give"

What?

This 2008 calendar features beautiful shots of Junky Car Club members and their vehicles. The Junky Car Club is a group of members who are learning to live with less so they can give more.

"We're a bunch of happy drivers who are politely rebelling against consumerism by driving junky cars. We encourage our members to use their dough to support social justice causes instead of making fat car payments. We believe in environmental stewardship and hanging onto things a little longer. Junky Car Club members sponsor kids living in poverty through Compassion International."

Check out this sweet ride from their gallery...


Why?
Because not only is the Junky Car Club itself a great cause and message in a world of bigger, better, faster, more...but 100% of the proceeds from the sale of this calendar will benefit the Corps of Compassion in Las Vegas. The Corps of Compassion currently delivers food to over 700 homeless and at risk children in 14 schools every weekend through their backpack program. Currently, there are over 4,000 homeless and at risk children living in the city.

Cost?
$12. Or, pick up a bundle for $40 and divy them up to even more friends this Christmas season.

#8 -- Blood:Water Mission T...in the "Top Ten Gifts That Give"

What?
Doesn't every warm-blooded American love a quality t-shirt? Why not gift one that gives to a life-saving relationship-building cause?

Why?

One out of every five people in the world don't have access to clean drinking water. According to UNICEF, 80% of sickness and death among children is caused by water-related diseases That's almost four million deaths every year!

Blood:Water Mission was inspired by a few actively broken hearts when the guys from Jars of Clay visited Africa in 2002 and learned of the dyer (all too literal a term in this case) need for clean water amongst the majority of the population. Dehydration isn't the only issue. Unclean water is a primary cause of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa. And, why? It's just clean water for Goodness sake! Just drill some more holes! That's precisely what the 1000 Wells project is set out to do. To drill 1000 Wells into African communities through communal involvement, fiscal support and awareness.

BW:M is committed to clean blood and clean water to fight HIV/AIDS, to build clean wells in Africa, to support medical facilities caring for the sick, to make a lasting impact in the fight against poverty, injustice and oppression in Africa through the linking of needs, talents and continents, of people and resources.

Cost?
Twenty bones is all. That's about a cup of coffee a head-sized burrio and a couple energy drinks. Who needs all that faux energy when you could pick up a B:WM shirt for someone? Rest assured that over 80% of the profits BW:M makes from all purchases go directly to the cause...not salaries..not admin fees...straight to the cause.

Christmas in Chicago!

We went into the city last weekend while visiting Uncle Eric and Aunt Debbie. We had such a great time. Above is a very cool train in the Hancock building. Landon was entertained for...oh about 3 minutes and then wanted to run around.


A family photo...Crystal was freezing!


A great "Amos" shot of Landon opening gifts at Uncle Eric and Aunt Debbie's house.


Very funny! Aunt Debbie is opening a "Landon" calander that we made for her and Eric.


Landon is more entertained with ribbons, boxes and paper this year. He loves to get in the boxes!


Papa and Uncle Eric being boys, playing with fire. It is about 15 degrees and they could care less.

Landon and Nana enjoying the Christmas tree. Landon loves balls, so he was very excited to show us every ball on the tree.


An early morning picture with our snuggly son. He is such a cuddler!! I hope he stays like this for a long, long time!!!!

#9 -- 963 Coffee.....in the "Top Ten Gifts That Give"

#9 -- 963 Coffee Project

What?
You know...coffee. Java. Black Gold (or, is that oil?). In America, we consume 2.3 billion pounds of the stuff a year! That's the equivalent of 4 football stadiums, 620 African elephants, 12,500 gallons of 2% milk and 62 average-sized female baboons. (It's important to note that this measurement is not at all precise.)

However, for the 108 million coffee-drinkers in the U.S., fair trade options still aren't top of mind. When the big dogs like Starbucks, Seattle's Best, Dunkin Donuts, etc are still offering "slave trade coffees," it's a problem.

963 Coffee Project offers a half dozen blends of fair trade coffee (and hot cocoa) on their website. You can even purchase whole bean or ground. They also offer fundraising kits, mugs and apparel. 963’s purpose is twofold: to provide a fair wage for coffee farmers in poverty-stricken communities and to allow groups and individuals to use the coffee to raise funds for mission projects (like Blood:Water Mission) and relief initiatives.

Why Care?
Behind oil, coffee is the second largest traded commodity in the world. However, the trade system does not work in favor of developing countries; unlike the oil industry, coffee producers live in extreme poverty, bringing in an average of only $500 per year. For every American coffee drinker, there is one worker elsewhere in the world who depends on coffee for their day-to-day survival.

Because the rules that govern trade favor rich countries, the potential to reduce poverty and support economic growth for poorer countries is being lost. As a result, most of these developing countries are dependent on outside aid for their survival. If Africa alone could increase its share of world exports by just 1%, it would generate $70 billion – about 5 times what it already receives in aid.

Families do not have enough money to send their children to school, nor can they afford basic medical care and have access to clean water. They are trapped in a cycle of poverty, unable to escape on their own.

Cost?
A bag of beans is only setting you back $10 Washington's. A fair price for fair trade. So, get to gifting it!

craZy talk

For whatever reason, Landon started playing around with a new language the other day. We started calling it crazy talk and he gets a real kick out of doing it and making us laugh. We're hoping he doesn't opt to only communicate through this means. Should that occur (as you'll see in the videos below), that could make the next few years a bit jargled.


Crazy Talk #1 (yeah, that's milk on his chin)


Crazy Talk #2