Finn - Model UN - Key School 5th Grade - Sweden

Negotiating the details of Resolution D - amending Resolution B on climate change to 25% reduction goals rather than 50% so more countries can support it. Excellent work by the Swiss/Swedish collaborators! Resolution B failed but Resolution D passed overwhelmingly!

movies

Finn Movie

COOPER DUPIN SUMMER UPDATE Videos

Dear Friends and Family --

LOTS OF SHORT DUPIN FAMILY VIDEOS TO CLICK ON BELOW! : )

I took a break from posting when Dad got sick. Now I've been avoiding it because I felt I needed to say something about his passing here on this blog. But I'm still too sad to know what to write. Hopefully everyone already knows just how much he was loved and is now deeply missed .....

But it catches you by surprise. At random something will happen to make you think of that person. A movie comes out on DVD I know Dad would have loved ("Charlie Wilson's War"). A day happens that reminds you of special memories (4th of July). Or your kids ask you a question and you wish that person was there to explain it to them. ("How did Granddad do his job at the bowling alley?")

In honor of his deep love for his grandchildren, the show will go on -- here are some recent family videos for you to enjoy. (Can you tell I'm missing my four boys -- in California and Nevada all week visiting the Dupins. I couldn't go because of work.)

(Sorry for the lousy sound on some of them... they were taken with my digital camera, so nothing fancy -- but you still get the feel for recent family moments! The one Doug took of Max "bombing the hill" is much higher quality.)

love Rebecca
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First up -- Finn showing he prefers dancing to wearing diapers....

And now -- The Dupin Brothers Dance to OKLAHOMA! (apologies again for having to hear my voice -- bad enough in person when i sing... even worse on the camera mike!)...

And here are some highlights from the day Max became an adrenaline junkie....
Doug and Anthony were participating in a downhill skateboard race in DC and Max decided that week he wanted to compete by "bombing the hill" with his Big Wheel bike. (Thanks to Gran for getting him addicted to Big Wheels... but the downhill "bombing" -- well we all know where that idea came from!). Fortunately for me, Gus preferred to try various ways to bomb the grassy slope -- rolling, running and tricycling... much more my speed. Finn repeatedly tried to ride one of the skateboards, making for lots of work for me as I spotted him -- but very little real action for him.

BY FAR THE BEST VIDEO IS THE ONE DOUG TOOK OF MAX BOMBING THE HILL. IT CAN BE SEEN ON DOUG'S WEBSITE AT: http://exchange.acc-email.com/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.timeprism.net/videomaxonbigwheel.html

HERE ARE THE ONES I TOOK --

DOUG DISCUSSES MAX'S ADMIRABLE BOMBING:

MAX CROSSES THE FINISH LINE WITH HIS WINGMAN AND VIDEOGRAPHER DOUG:

"GUS BOMBS THE GRASS PART ONE: ROLLING"

"GUS BOMBS THE GRASS PART TWO: RUNNING"

(per his usual mode, Gus does provide sound effects as he runs)

"GUS BOMBS THE GRASS PART THREE: ON SKATEBOARD BUT AT MOMMY'S FAVORITE SPEED"

Watch out Gus! Daddy Bombs the Hill!

Some New Family Pictures

Hello friends and family!! Here are some recent photos, including: Max and Gus taking a picture of themselves on doug's computer (the gus double face photo); Doug and the boys hanging from the neighborhood "climbing tree" and Max up in the branches; Doug and Max on a school hike; Gus at the zoo playground; Finn showing how many teeth he now has! Love to all -- Rebecca

F

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEuzF-brLfA

MUST-SEE VIDEO OF MAX'S CHRISTMAS SHOW PERFORMANCE!!!!

Doug has posted the home movie I made of Max and his class singing "Mele kalikimaka" (Merry Christmas in Hawaiian. )

Here's the oh-so-cute performance at Key. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEuzF-brLfA

(My favorite part -- evidenced by my loud laugh you hear -- is 42 seconds in to the video when Max realizes he forgot to to do the choreography for palm trees swaying so he does a quick, improvised catchup. It's great!)

His TuTu (Penny) sent all three boys beautiful handprinted Hawaiian silk shirts last month and Max was SO excited to wear his shirt to sing his special Hawaiian Christmas song.

When I pan over from the daddy on trombone you'll see Max right in the middle of my shot (with his too long hair hanging out from his hat.... he begged me to let him keep it long for his birthday party... apparently the kids at school told him he looked "cool" with long hair... of course all of THEIR mommies have THEIR hair chopped appropriately short... as his is now).

(Picture from Finn's 1st Birthday Party -- just a family dinner on November 28th to mark our happy date. And our little Finn is now doing much, much better from his viral pneumonia. Back to his smiley self!)

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Recent Great Question from Max just as he is about to fall asleep at bedtime:

"Mommy, does God have a girlfriend?"

(answer -- "Well -- no.... He loves everyone equally." Max -- "What about his son Jesus?" "Well he loves his son so much that he shares him with everybody." Keep in mind this is a little hard for a mom who still struggles with her own beliefs! But I've decided to stick with the "traditional" church teachings with the kids rather than my belief that "God" is actually the "Earth Mother." He can figure out his own beliefs as he gets older!)

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Some of my other favorite "Max Bedtime Questions" over the last couple of years:

"Where's Emmett's daddy?" (Emmett has two mommies....)
"Mommy, why is Superman a man?"
"Why is a ball round?"

and other random moment queries:

-- As a three-year-old friend of Gus is telling us about apple picking, Max asks him, "Are you a FARMER?!?!"
-- "But Mommy HOW did daddy get his tadpole to your egg?"

And so many others I WISH I could remember. As Shannon will attest, Max could take the question "Why?" to further lengths than ANY kid on this planet! Especially when he was 3 and 4, he would literally follow-up your answer with ANOTHER question to the one hundredth degree, until you finally had to throw in the towel and say "Just because!"