Two Carpenters

Crawling!

2008-07-18T22:27:00.007-05:00

It might look like a wild chase between a predator and his favorite prey, but really it's just Henry, doing what he now does best.

Click here or on the image to see a mobile baby.

The Cat Herder

2008-03-22T21:39:00.004-05:00

St. Francis of Assisi would be jealous of Henry's newfound animal-taming powers.

Click here or on the image to see Henry tame the mighty Remington.

Two of Us

2008-02-27T08:55:00.004-06:00

Henry and Rachel enjoy winter together outside for the first time.

Click here or on the image to see the two of them.

Multitasking

2008-01-26T21:24:00.000-06:00

This is the 21st Century condition in a nutshell: in the same instant, Rachel is eating lunch, writing a proposal, and snuggling with her son. Thanks a lot (?) computer technology...

Click here or on the picture for a vignette of childrearing of the future.

Hats

2008-01-25T22:51:00.000-06:00

The next post should read like a facetious children's story:

"Henry has many hats. Does Henry have too many hats? Henry's mom will help him count the hats he has."

The moral of the story? There are moments in which parenting can be sublime...

Click here or on the picture for a bit of mundane transcendence.

Breaking the Rules

2008-01-24T22:24:00.000-06:00

We're bad parents! We can't even live up to our own rules!

Click here or on the image to see why.

Bubbles

2008-01-23T19:27:00.000-06:00

After three months of nearly complete parasitism, our pink "sack of potatoes" is finally interacting with us!

Click here or on the image to see Henry in action.

Henry's First Bath

2007-11-01T20:05:00.001-05:00

No matter how sweet they seem to smell at first, there comes a time when every baby needs to be cleaned.

Click here or on the picture to see Henry's first dunking!

(If there's still an Internet in 16 years, he's going to hate this!!!)

Welcome Henry!

2007-10-13T20:50:00.000-05:00

Here's the #1 reason you haven't heard from us in a while:

Henry David Carpenter
Born on October 1, 2007, at 10:28PM
8 lbs, 1oz., 23 inches

Perhaps we'll have to change the name of this video blog to ThreeCarpenters!

Click here or on the picture to see highlights from Henry's first week of life.

Climbing the Mountain

2007-06-09T22:12:00.000-05:00

Here's a view from the highest point in our county--which just happens to be down the road from our house. Sure, it doesn't look so tall at first, but it was definitely a workout to get to the top. Three cheers for hiking boots!

Click here or on the image to see our ascent.

The First Flower

2007-06-07T10:42:00.000-05:00

When we get snow 7 months out of the year, finding the first flower of spring can be an emotional experience.

Click here or on the image to see our first flower.

We Live Apart

2006-11-11T14:48:00.000-06:00

Every marriage goes through rough times. We're no exception! See why we haven't been regularly posting movies.

Click here or on the image to see the movie.

Josh Makes a Fireball

2006-10-22T14:35:00.000-05:00

When Josh Leo comes to visit, we revisit the good old days of high school science experiments.

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Been Here Too Long

2006-08-15T16:23:00.000-05:00

The sign next to the "snowman" reads: I MISS DA SNOW EH.

Enough said.

Click here or on the image for Nate's thoughts.

Saturday Morning, 4 A.M.

2006-08-04T21:01:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, we woke up to what seemed like the apocalypse--our neighborhood was surrounded by clouds while heat lightning flashed between the houses. The clouds were so low that we could actually see lightning below us a few blocks down the hill.

Click here or on the picture to see some cool storm footage.

Wind Chimes

2006-07-25T15:39:00.000-05:00

While vloggers like Josh Leo are out there changing the world, our little vlog here can teach you how to make a wind chime - that's right - a genuine wind chime! (Forget slow news week, it's been a slow news summer in South Range . . .)

Click here or on the picture, watch this video, and then go through your junk drawers and find things that can clang together and make your own little corner of the world a little bit more musical.

We're Not Dead, Really!

2006-07-19T19:31:00.000-05:00

After the thousands, ahem, dozens of messages we received over the past two months, it seems like people were getting worried. Did the snow finally finish off Nate and Rachel? Did Joe and Remi start a neighborhood cat revolution? Did the Upper Peninsula lose its Internet privileges?

The truth is . . . we've been busy. It's a sad, pathetic truth, we know, but we've had a hard time making new posts.

But we're back now! Everything is OK!
So stop worrying, click here or on the picture, and enjoy where we last left off . . .

Music: Snow is Gone by Josh Ritter

One Month Ago . . .

2006-04-08T21:57:00.000-05:00

Now for something completely different . . .

Spring is finally around the corner, but here's a tribute to Old Man Winter that makes our previous post, It Snows Here, look like a walk in the park (on snowshoes). Official records were all over the place because of all the drifting, but we heard that we got 32 inches in 24 hours.

Click here or on the picture to watch us dig out.

videobloggingweek2006

Hate . . .

2006-04-07T23:23:00.000-05:00

When did people forget how to talk to each other?

For example, why can't adults deal with issues of homosexuality?

Last night there was an incident at Michigan Tech--some pretty hateful messages appeared on more than 30 different places around campus.

(WARNING: Contains strong language/themes.)

Link.

videobloggingweek2006

Wife-Carrying Race

2006-04-06T20:52:00.000-05:00

Somehow Nate managed to talk Rachel into letting him schlep her on his back in a race during the Heikinpaiva Midwinter Festival.

The good news: we didn't come in last place.

The bad news: people here like to watch these races for the crashes.

Click here or on the picture to see the race.
(It sure beats NASCAR . . . )

videobloggingweek2006

Houghton Is Ours

2006-04-05T19:49:00.000-05:00

Here's our first shot at promoting widespread media literacy through vlogging! See the town of Houghton through the eyes of several college students working through the Canterbury House/Episcopal Association for College Work (a campus ministry, hangout, and safe house for students of Michigan Tech & Finlandia University).

Rachel edited this movie with Katrina Neely Farren for the Canterbury House.

Click here or on the picture to see the movie.

videobloggingweek2006

Sleeping Bear Trek

2006-04-04T21:32:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Vlog Week, we're trying to post all of the footage we've taken since Christmas. Rachel played around with these shots from Sleeping Bear Dunes we took when we were there with her family back in December.

Click here or on the picture to see what we saw on the dune.

Music: Flight of the Cosmic Hippo by Bela Fleck, Sliding Down by Edgar Meyer

videobloggingweek2006.

Abstractions

2006-04-03T00:35:00.000-05:00

Making a ball of yarn + video camera + iMovie + late night getting ready for Vlog Week = psychadelic something.

Have fun with this kaleidoscope thingy Nate threw together.
Sorry it's not timed to the music as well as it should be . . .

Click here on on the picture to see the movie.

Music: 1B by Edgar Meyer

videobloggingweek2006.

A Cure For Cabin Fever

2006-03-17T18:22:00.000-06:00

Winter here is cold. Winter here is nasty. Winter here never seems to go away. People up here in the U.P. have interesting ways of dealing with winter, like, say, cutting a hole in the ice and jumping in. This is a real Finnish-style sauna--the participants sit in a hot tub until they're too warm, and then cool off with as much drama as possible.

Nate wants to try this some day . . . if he can first gain some weight!

Click here or on the picture to see the movie.

The Fantastic Fire-Fighting Feline

2006-02-19T16:11:00.000-06:00

We just found out this weekend that Joe, one of our cats, knows how to put out fire. We think he might be secretly training to become a forester, or a ninja, or something along those lines. No matter what he's thinking, he's coming from a prestigious tradition of cats putting out lights.

Click here or on the picture to see the movie.

Speaking of talented cats, click here to see Remi, our other cat, on a kayaking expedition. Or visit www.vlogcats.blogspot.com.

Music: Light My Fire by The Doors

It Snows Here

2006-02-06T16:06:00.000-06:00

Ever since October, certain family members have been calling us and asking "do you have snow yet?" Yes, we have snow. More than 140 inches so far this winter--and this has been a mild winter!

Click on the picture to see the movie.

Click here to see Michigan Tech's snowfall records.

Joe's Virtual Fish Experience

2006-01-19T12:44:00.000-06:00

Rachel made this trippy clip about our kitten, Joe, and his first experience with our virtual fish tank.

Technology + cats = pure entertainment.

Click here or on the picture to see the movie.

Music: Rupi's Dance by Ian Anderson

Christmas Cookies

2006-01-14T21:42:00.000-06:00

For the second half of our Christmas, we were back in Michigan. We spent a few days in Glen Arbor with Rachel's relatives, and things got a little...well...festive.

Click here to see what happens when adult cousins decorate cookies together.

Music: Skating by Vince Guaraldi

Our Chicago Christmas

2006-01-03T21:21:00.000-06:00

We spent the first part of our Christmas with Nate's family in Chicago. Part of the Carpenter Christmas tradition involves dinning, playing, and shopping downtown at the Christkindlmarket (German for "Christ-child market) in Daley Plaza.

Click here to share the fun.

Some fun parts to watch out for--Nate's dad asking "are we blogging yet?," Nate's brother's marzipan monologue, and Rachel's opinion on nutcrackers!

Rachel Cures Writer's Block

2005-12-14T23:35:00.000-06:00

Rachel has an incredible sense of empathy--she naturally knows what people need without having to be told. In this case, she cures Nate's writer's block by taking him for a drive around the county.

Click here to tag along.

Enjoy our first post in a couple of weeks. We've been a little busy with holiday travel and school work. Now that it's the end of the semester, we can play catch-up!

Music: Agaetis Byrjun by Sigur Ros

Blue (Remix)

2005-11-17T10:27:00.000-06:00

A few weeks back, Michael Verdi posted a fantastic movie about the blue sky. Nate was thrilled. He gets lost in blue things, so he had to remix a little bit of Michael's excitement with some other blue images and blue music.

Click here to experience blue.

Thanks Michael Verdi for the inspiration! See his original movie here.
Music: Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin
Images: The America Windows by Marc Chagall

The Perfect Sound

2005-11-14T11:05:00.000-06:00

We had our first snow that stuck yesterday and I took this video then.

The Art of Zoober

2005-10-30T16:53:00.000-06:00

Using this instructional video, you too can practice the ancient Art of Zoober. It works on family, friends, and pets!

Click here to learn more about Zoober and some of its many uses.

I Bike to School

2005-10-24T21:26:00.000-05:00

I Bike to School

I thought I'd help out the environment out a little bit by biking 8 miles to school each way.

Click here to take a ride.

Music:
Fanfare for the Common Man by Aaron Copland
One of These Things First by Nick Drake
Send Me on My Way by Rusted Root

Fall Leaves

2005-10-20T20:17:00.000-05:00

Fall Leaves

is about what it looks like up in the UP when the clorophyll starts to disintigrate. This happens to be my favorite season and I hope you all can see why. Some of the things that you can't experience through a video is how the air is so crisp and cold and yet when the sun hits you it feels so warm and almost feels like it is baking you. This mixture of hot and cold is exhilerating.

Please enjoy the feeling!

Music: Time of No Reply by Nick Drake

Remi's New Buddy

2005-10-13T07:26:00.000-05:00

Remi's New Buddy

When we moved to our new house, we promised Remington that we'd find him a friend. He may have gotten more than he bargained for.

Click here to see how the search went.

Music:
Which Will by Nick Drake
You've Made Me So Very Happy by Blood, Sweat & Tears
Smoothie Song by Nickel Creek

Casa de los Carpenters

2005-10-09T18:46:00.000-05:00

Casa de los Carpenters

Please come visit our new house, virtually.

Music:
Outbound by Bela Fleck and the Flecktones

The New Addition

2005-10-08T21:45:00.000-05:00

The New Addition

What do you think it is????
a. a puppy
b. a harp
c. you have no idea so watch the movie!

Music:
Kicking the Clouds Away by George Gershwin
Maple Leaf Rag by Scott Joplin

An Introduction to South Range

2005-10-08T20:07:00.000-05:00

An Introduction to
South Range

You may feel like this after watching our video about the middle of nowhere!!!

Click here to view!

Music:
Vistas by: Mark O'Conner, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer

A Tale of Two Closets

2005-10-08T07:25:00.000-05:00

A Tale of Two Closets

It's another episode of "This Old House." Sorry, no Bob Villa.

Click here to get messy.

Music: Fixing a Hole by the Beatles
The Big Cheese by Edgar Meyer/Bela Fleck/Mike Marshall

To Be a Crane

2005-10-04T19:03:00.000-05:00

To Be a Crane

Sometimes paper likes to fold itself when you're not looking.

Click here to see.

Music:Road House Blues by Bela Fleck

Give a Mouse a Brownie

2005-10-04T18:04:00.000-05:00

Give a Mouse a Brownie

Vlogger Extraordinaire Josh Leo was the cameraman and creative consultant behind our little experiment with stop-motion animation.

Did we say stop-motion animation? We were kidding! This is real!

Click here to see what happens when you give a mouse a brownie.

Music: Classical Gas by Mason Williams

The Incredible Kayaking Cat

2005-10-04T16:53:00.000-05:00

The Incredible Kayaking Cat

Way back in July, we took our cat, Remington, for a kayak ride.

Click here to see what happened.

Music by Antonio Vivaldi, Carl Orff