Wow! 2009 is here. I always enjoy the end of the year. Nearly everyone slows down and makes family a priority. So we've had a few days off to relax and collect our thoughts. It's a great time to plan for the next year. Brenda and I make a list of goals. When we look back, it's amazing how many big things we've accomplished.

Brenda and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary with a trip to Hawaii in January travelling with our friends Scott and Suzanne Chinnock. It was a much needed vacation with lots of adventure. Evidently, the snow followed us from Minnesota when it snowed on the top of the Haleakala volcano. Icy road conditions prevented us from visiting this National Park...yes...in Hawaii! We spent several days in Kauai. Interesting fact: the island is full of wild chickens. We woke up our first day at the Marriott resort to a rooster at 3:30 am. What?

After Kauai, we travelled on a cruise ship visiting other islands. The Pacific Ocean was quite rough and made for some interesting experiences. We got a free wave pool on deck...”Everybody out…now!” A snorkeling adventure almost turned tragic as our boat nearly capsized and we got caught in a riptide that required rescuing. We lived! We were able to visit some of the most beautiful places on earth and see flowers we only know as house plants in Minnesota. We visited secluded waterfalls and went for a relaxing dip in Queen's bath while Brenda nervously watched for tidal waves that could wipe us out. (She actually read the warning signs.) Seriously, Brenda should get a job in risk assessment. I fasted from e-mail and answering my cell phone for 12 days...and I survived!

An important part of our lives is trying new things. This year included: riding an elephant, getting into a fire truck, building a 20 foot snow fort tunnel at Brenda's parents' farm, and seeing our first live opera together. In Hawaii we took our first cruise and first helicopter ride together...and I ate poi at my first luau…all awesome experiences. Brenda and I chose "our song" while cruising in a convertible in Hawaii. It's "Everything" from the "Call Me Irresponsible" CD by Michael Bublé. It's so cool how hearing this song can immediately bring us back to that great time in a moment. Find your own special song easily at the iTunes music store.

I've posted the Cimbura family 2008 photo album on Facebook. If you're not a member already, I highly encourage you to join. It is a great way to stay connected to friends and family…and reconnect with some people you may have lost touch with over the years.

I've started writing a blog entitled "Child at Heart" after a great year of sharing my speaking and entertainment presentations with many organizations. Check out the "Child at Heart" blog for some fun and informative reading on life and work. My book is still on the horizon but, unfortunately, it's one goal I didn't complete this year. I'm also very busy with technology consulting ... building databases, web sites, etc. Brenda decided not to go back to school for her doctorate and is instead continuing her path of speaking and consulting through our company Cimbura.com, LLC. Brenda's "Leadership Lens" blog is just getting started. Many people have appreciated our yearly movie recommendations which we've posted on our blog.

Kid Quotes and Milestones 2008

Other highlights of the year are the girls (Arianna 4-1/2 and Brielle 2-1/2) and the joy and laughter that they bring to our lives. They are little bundles of boundless energy...always busy...and often running in circles just for the fun of being alive. People often remark, "I wish I had the energy those kids do." If you took a three hour nap in the afternoon, maybe you might.

I remember just a few months ago wondering what it would be like if Brielle could actually say what she is thinking...and now she is! I've compiled a list below of funny things the girls have said and done during the last year.

LEARNING NEW THINGS: Arianna learned to swim, (she's nearly a fish), knows her ABCs, danced in her first recital, and finished speech classes. She's starting to really learn some French through listening to the French singer Remi Comptines et Jeux de Doigts and attending a French camp in the summer. Arianna took her first bike ride with training wheels. At the end of 20 feet on the driveway she exclaimed "Holy cow! That was scary."

TIME: Kids have little concept of time. This fall when the outdoor swimming pool at the club closed, we informed Arianna that we couldn't swim there anymore because the weather was too cold. She replied "We'll have to wait 5 minutes for summer time." I wish. Arianna showed her ingenuity and lack of time understanding when she said “That's the cutest song I've ever made up myself, Tomorrow.”

MAGIC: Arianna performed her first magic trick: “I will now do a very tricky trick. The flower will mistappear and float.” This was followed by a great interpretive dance. Later she told me "when I get bigger, I can be a magic tricker like you daddy." That is not her only dream though. Another time she told me "When I get older I'm going to be a fire engine. I'm not a fire engine yet." I'd like to see that one.

JOKES: I was astounded at how amazingly complex the format of a knock knock joke is when I attempted to “teach” one to the girls.
“Knock knock.” They'd answer “Come in.”
“No...Knock knock.”
“I'm at the door.”
“No...Knock knock. Who's there? Lionel.”
“Come in.”
“No...Lionel.”
“Hi Lionel.”
“No...Lionel who? Lionel eat me up if I take too long telling this joke.”
I don't think they ever got it.

LOVE: Brielle said "I love you" for the first time this year. It's a wonderful time for a parent. It was cancelled out later when Arianna said “I love you because I have a booger.” I asked her one time what it meant to love someone. The definitive answer was “You have to kiss and hug.”

SILLINESS: One of my favorite activities with the girls is acting like I'm incompetent and letting them figure out the right thing. For example, I'll ask "Do you want a fork to eat your cereal?" After a moment of thought, Arianna said "You're kiddin' me dad."

LANGUAGE: Brielle is repeating the last two words of everything you say as a question. We're going to the store. The store? Yes. Come eat dinner. Eat dinner? Let's change your poopy diaper. Poopy diaper? This is a great conversational method for those of us who hate small talk.

CUTENESS: Cuteness is always an important factor for kids. When they are acting up it is sometimes the only thing that saves them. One day at the breakfast table I was staring at Arianna in a moment of amazement and wonder. I found it difficult to believe that this little person was created by the love of my wife and me. She broke the silence "Why are you looking at me dad? Cause I'm cute?" "Yes" I replied, "but you're not supposed to know that."

SCARY: One day I heard Arianna in the other room say "Up your butt!". “Oh my” I thought “where did she learn that?!” When I went to see what was going on Arianna was trying to change Brielle's diaper. Evidently “Up your butt!” is a good command when you can't get the Huggies situated correctly.

This year we've downsized a bit for simplicity. We traded in our van for a smaller and more fuel efficient Mazda 5 "Zoom! Zoom! Zoom!". The great thing is that our garage has seemingly grown in size! We also sold our living room entertainment center and got a smaller corner unit. We've found Craigslist.com to be one of the most effective and inexpensive ways to find people with cash that want your stuff. We're trying to declutter our lives so that we are not owned by our stuff. Now if Brenda could just part with the girls' baby clothes.

We understand that the times are challenging financially for many people. Looking at the lawn signs in our neighborhood, it seemed that "Foreclosure" was going to win the election. We are hopeful that things will turn around soon. Already, gas has gone down from $4/gallon to about $1.49! It's on sale! Stock up while you can. I think it's time to get a Hummer.

One of my Child at Heart mantras is “Play More”. This is such an important life lesson. Making play out of your work can really help lower stress and make life more enjoyable. The girls have had a lot of fun with new LEGO toys and dad plays along building some of the things we'd love to have but that are a lot less expensive (and safer) in LEGO form like: a Jet Airplane, horse trailer, Beach House, Jet Ski and Off Road Vehicle, motorcycle, and finally a Secret Agent Mobile Command Center. Fun facts: LEGO is a combination of two Danish words "LEg GOdt" which means "Play Well". There are 52 LEGO bricks for each of the world's 6 billion inhabitants. Do you have yours? Children (and adults) spend more than 5 billion hours a year playing with LEGO bricks. (By the way, the price of many of these items is really inflated online as they are more difficult to get unless you can find them in stock at a store.) I guess I'm a mild AFOL (Adult Fan of Legos).

This has also been the year of the iPhone for Brenda and me. This amazing technology has simplified our lives and made it more fun. After years of using a paper-based Day-Timer calendar and note pads, I have no need for them anymore. Besides the many useful iPhone applications, fun with games, toys, and tricks that can keep the kids (and me) occupied in unexpected situations...get this...the iPhone can actually work as a phone! You can call people!

We were inspired at the Willow Leadership Summit. I attended the the FileMaker Developer Conference in Phoenix, AZ in the middle of the summer. Nice and hot! I bought a frozen pizza and it was cooked in the car by the time I was back to the hotel. We started a small group with some friends from our church and we've had a lot of fun meeting about every other week and planning fun activities together.

My (late) technology Christmas gift to you this year is OpenDNS. Check it out. It's really a great FREE service that will help you stay safe on the internet. It helps eliminate scams and can filter content so that you only see what you want on the web.

The other night, Brielle woke up crying and not feeling well at around 3 am. I went to check on her. It's been a while since she was sleeping like a baby in the true definition of the term...up every 2 hours or so. I entered the room and found Brielle had three simple requests for me that she could clearly communicate with the few words she knows. First she said "Carry me" so I lifted her into my arms and gave her a big hug. After a few seconds she said "Go back" so I placed her back into the bed. Then her final request "Pray". So I asked God to bless her and give her peace. The results were amazing. She was totally fine and just went to sleep again. It's almost as if she wanted to teach me a simple lesson...two steps to peace. (1) Establish good relationships with the people around you...your friends or family. They are the ones that will care and can help comfort you when you need it. (2) Reach out to God at a spiritual level through prayer for comfort and peace. Sometimes, all you need is a hug and a prayer to be better. Try Brielle's plan. It works. She's only two and has a lot of wisdom.

We're leaving our Christmas tree up until February. It just makes the winter feel more festive. We wish you comfort, joy, and many blessings of this special Christmas season...and a renewal of all things good in the new year. [An audio greeting from the girls.]

Tim, Brenda, Arianna, and Brielle Cimbura

If you're up to it...here are a few MORE CUTE KID STORIES from the year:

TOO QUIET: Whenever it's too quiet in the house. We get a little worried that something is wrong. What are those girls up to?

FOOD INDEPENDENCE: Brielle graduated from the high chair to the table. Quite the milestone for our home allowing her more freedom in eating and getting her own food. Brielle is asserting her independence. One day she got the stool and was reaching into the cupboard. "What are you doing?" She answered "lips!" as she attempted to get mommies lipstick. Good catch. Another time she said she wanted an "obstacle". What?! After a couple of minutes trying to figure out what she meant, she finally opened the freezer door to show us that what she really wanted was not a road block but a "popsicle".

SHOPPING: Target gives out free cookies to kid shoppers. If Arianna stays close by mommy or daddy, she can often have such a treat. One time she commented on the cookie "Daddy. This cookie tastes…happy!" So happy is now a new taste. I can't wait to see it on a menu. The girls also love shopping at Trader Joe's. They give out free balloons.

SLEEPING: Both of the girls are masters of excuses for NOT sleeping or taking a nap. They simply don't want to miss out on any of life that might go on during their rest. For Brielle, simple one word commands asking for her favorite things are all it takes. "Book. Little People. Ice Creams"...or the dreaded "Me hungry." For Arianna, it's a little more complex. She'll come downstairs and say that she has a question for us…which is often simply a statement. Another ploy she utilizes is the “I wanted to give you a hug” phrase (even if there have already been many hugs). The subterfuge “I need to go potty” always works.

WAKING UP: Arianna wanted to wake up mommy one day “Mom, you need to wake up! The sun is waked up.”…and so it was. One day, I asked Brielle "How are you this fine morning?" "Awake!" That's more than I can say for some people at 7 am.

COMPETITION: Everything is a competition with the girls…getting their seat belts on, putting on pajamas, finishing dinner. You'll often hear “I won!” even if they simply completed a task. Hey, I'm almost done with writing this…”I won!”

ATTACHMENT: Kids get attached to certain items. For Arianna it's her purple blanket. It's ripped and torn with multiple repairs and must still be located every night before bed. One night after a successful search and rescue mission, Arianna held it close to her face and said "mmmm...purple blanket...mmmmm." One night as she struggled to carry it upstairs I heard "Hold on tight purple blanket! Hold on tight!" For Brielle, she likes her Fisher Price Little People Noah's Ark and "Ice Creams".

IN PUBLIC: It's always interesting to find out what kids will say in public. When Arianna saw a bald man for the first time, she said "Daddy, that man doesn't have any hair on." Another time she saw a little person (dwarf) and said "That's a short mommy."

BIRTHDAYS: Arianna said, “If for my next birthday when I am 5, you will give me Mulan and 'Pocushantas', I will be so happy and I will give you a hug.” This shows the simplicity, honesty, and sincerity of a child. What does she have to offer in exchange for something she wants? A hug..and it's worth a lot.

PRINCESSES: The favorite activity of both of our girls is being princesses and dancing. One day Arianna was singing and said "Daddy, I cleaned up my room and so I'm singing." I guess you can learn good things from Cinderella, Snow White, and Giselle. Sometimes being a princess is confusing. Arianna came downstairs dressed in full rain gear and galoshes and said "Dad, I'll be the rainy guy and you be the prince." So I lived happily ever after with "the rainy guy". Never to be outdone, Brielle greeted me at the door once dressed only in her snow boots "surprise!". If only her mother would do that. They love to put on princess clothes and do a fashion show. Arianna announced as Brielle came down the stairs "Princess Brielle is like twinkle little star Cinderella!"

POTTY TRAINING: Arianna is fully potty trained now after putting her favorite toys on top of the fridge, popsicle rewards, some spanking, and lots of patience! Bringing her into public restrooms is always a challenge. One time in the stall of the men's bathroom while she was doing her business, she looked up at me and said "Daddy, I love you." That's fine...but not here please. In bathroom at Potbelly's, I asked Arianna “Are you done yet?” Her reply “No, I've got some poopies coming out. It goes splash. It's pretty special.”
Then one day Arianna exclaimed with excitement, "Now I'll be AMAZING and go potty in the toilet!" I guess it is something pretty amazing for a child. I don't think, however, that I'll add it to my show. "For my first trick..."
Other natural body functions are interesting to discuss with kids. One time Arianna tooted (passed gas). I said, "Hmm...I smell something stinky." Her reply, "It must be a skunk." I couldn't find any skunks nearby.

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