More lil'daddy pics

John was so ready to check out the snow today!

White liiiiiiiiines, going through my heeaadd! (pics)

A few lil'daddy pics...









And a few of bigdaddy...





**edit**
CB said her and 95% of Americans will wonder what the cocaine reference in the title has to do with the post. While that may have been the original reference for the Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five hit from the 80's. My reference is to the tracks left by a skier!

'White Lines' plays through my head when it snows or I'm thinking about skiing. My line is my self-expression. An artist may use a brush and paint. I'll use my skis. I can vary the pressure on the ski edge and leave heavy or light lines in lazy curving S turns or I can leave a sharp edged fast track down the fall line. It certainly not coke but it's a white powder with a sweet seduction that whispers through the wind and calls out to me if it's been too long. It's been too long. :)

Big Daddy's Playlist (*we've been tagged*)

For some reason I haven't been listening to much music lately. I go through spurts of listening to all sorts of different genres of music and then occasionaly through spurts of no music at all. I generally have a few songs that are floating through my head though. so I guess this is the "songs you can't get out of your head" playlist. btw this list does not include the plethora of "kid songs" that are in the lil'daddy repertoire.

1. Nirvana's 'Lake of Fire' can pop up at any given time
2. Outkast's 'So Fresh, So Clean' usually shows up during
diaper changes and when I dream of skiing
3. Bon Jovi's 'Bed of Roses' ocassionally rolls around
4. 'Duke's Place' by L.Armstrong and D.Ellington 'cause
it's a catchy tune
5. 'The Beginning.A New Hope' by DJ Keoki has samples from
the Star Wars theme. While I'm not particularly a huge
Star Wars fan, it's my 'superhero theme'. I lost the
"DJ Mixed" CD years ago but the song stuck with me.

That's all I can think of now. I have to take out the garbage and rescue lil'daddy from whatever trouble he's getting himself into while I write this! I'll tag Pater when I get a chance.

... garbage out and John asleep ...
hmm, I think I was supposed to have seven songs...

6. '.White Lines' by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. see the next post entry on why.
7. Wu Tang Clan's Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing Ta F' Wit because a friend used an instumental loop from this song in a video production and that beat and sample stuck with me.

Boot Pics

It's been awhile since we've posted some pics. Mommy took these yesterday. Lil'daddy was in such a good mood and was very vocal on the phone with his nonno, nonna and Z Z Flora.

Happy Birthday Big Daddy!!

Tried to get John to sing Happy Birthday to his daddy, but John was more interested in singing Happy Birthday to the water cup.

Oh well, lots of good wishes and baby hugs all around !!!!

Had to share the Bird Story!

After our recent move about 50 minutes away from our previous place of residence, lil'daddy and I are getting used to our new routines. We have taken up an art class in addition to our normal gym class. While we have looked at classes closer to our new home, we have become attached to the teachers/leaders at our original class location. Our going to class now involves a 40-45 minute drive, which is OK because we get to visit Auntie Kristin and have a yummy lunch which includes a double-tall sugar-free non-fat latte for big daddy. :) Having added another class has got us trying to rearrange our class schedule to find a productive happy class time for lil'daddy while keeping a good nap schedule. ...so we've been bouncing around catching different classes and different times... (What does this have to do with a bird you ask?)

Last week, I arrived 15 minutes early for what I thought was an 11:15 class. Lil'daddy fell asleep on the way and woke up happily as I was carrying him in. Then it dawned on me the class was at 3:45 not 11:15. I botched the whole productive time - routine building effort for the day! We took it in stride. Despite it being on the chilly side (preventing us from going to one of the parks in the area) we made out alright. We took an early but long lunch, had dessert at Starbuck's, visited a learning store chock-full of games, toys and books. We rode escalators and elevators and identified trucks, buses, cars and airplanes. We sang songs and danced, walked and ran. lil'daddy was having a great day. With almost 5 hours to kill from 11 till 3:45, lil'daddy was having a ball. We had done all this, climbed back into the car to go to class and till managed to have at least 1 1/2 hr to go. (Should this post have been labeled a day in the life...? What about the birds?)

Out of our routine and running out of ideas for things to do that don't involve too far a drive, we decide to visit Bird Jungle. I had never been there but there's birds! How could we not have fun! There's a couple other shops to explore as well. Let's go... (here come the birds) As we start to climb out of the car, the phone rings. Ahhh, my cousin with whom I've been playing phone tag with all week... "How's it going... blah blah blah ...the girls? yadda yadda..." Lil'daddy in arms we march in through the double doors. As I survey the goods this purveyor has assembled from all parts of the globe into his 15' wide x 25' high x very long shop, I flash back to my childhood when I was attacked - divebombed - by a mommy bluebird. She was trying to keep me from closing the distance to her nest - a nest which at the time I didn't know the direction of but which must have been very close. Then there was the thought of retaliation for the time as a child I shot down a tiny finch mid-flight with my daisy pump-action bb-rifle. I look at lil'daddy, who's eyes are full of awe and I calmly say into my phone, "I'm in Bird Jungle... can I call you back". None of these birds were in cages.

Now, it sounds like this is going to be a horror story. While pressing END, re-holstering my cellphone and surveying the high ceilings for an exotic multicolored divebombing birds with tattoos saying "death from above", that is exactly what I was thinking. Granted lil'daddy is comfortably in the 10th percentile for height but some of these birds were as big as he was! lil'daddy had an ear-to-ear smile as he said "bird" and reached out his hand towards one of the birds. I'm not sure how many times I said "No Touch" in the store but he was relatively well behaved. While he was enjoying himself, he showed wise caution in heeding my warning. We identified some birds and practiced our colors - green red purple orange black yellow. I think this must have been as close as he has gotten to birds with no separating barrier. He was saying bye bye to the birds as we were leaving.

One the way out there were two birds right by the door. "Say bye bye" I said to lil'daddy. "Bye bye birrdy" replied lil'daddy. "Bye Byyee-I", said the bird! lil'dady did a double-triple take!!! His jaw dropped and he was the most visible stunned I have ever seen him. IT WAS AWESOME! I wish I could have video taped it, played it over and over and kept it for ever! The look was priceless and best of all it was free! After a good daddy chuckle, lil'daddy and the bird had another exchange of hellos and goodbyes. We went to our gym class and John had an great time. At the beginning of class, we sat next to each other in the circle with the other kids and their parents. lil'daddy usually likes to sit in my lap for our song time. He patted the playmat, clapped his hands, made the motions for the wheels on the bus and the horn. He clapped after every song. He participated in just about every aspect of gym class with enthusiasm.

I was in a good mood when we arrived early for our "11:15" gym class. After realizing how I goofed, at a few times during the day I thought the day might not go so well. The day did not go as I planned. The times when I thought the day was going to flop, really could have had the power to turn the day sour but it didn't. In hindsight the day was blessed. Thanks be to God.

"No Like It"

This is John's latest and unfortunately most favorite saying.

John, would you like some cereal?
"No like it"

How about an apple?
"No like it"

Would you like to read the puppy book?
"No like it"


And on we go. He'll come to something he likes, and he'll often say "No like It" when in fact he does like and want what is being offered. Just another one of the those toddler communication highlights I suppose!!!

Now, as far as toddler communication -- if he would just get the "c" and "f" positioned right when he says coffee -- right now, he flips them, so the word starts with f. He points to my everpresent coffee cup, "Mommy's f..ee". You get the point, I'm hoping he doesn't say that one in church!