2 Months Old Bear Pic - Posted by Chris

Ian's two month bear pic.

We did take a one month bear pic but I didn't post it until just now. You can check out all of Ian's bear pics with this link.

Happy Father's Day - Posted by Lisa

I'd like to dedicate this to my Dad Dave; my father-in-law Denny; and to Chris, the father of my two boys.

Dad, I couldn't have asked for a better Dad growing up. Even though you grew up in a different era, that didn't stop you from showing me in your own way that you loved me. Whether it was as a "doctor that just puts on bandaids" (as I believed you were until a mean teacher told me otherwise), when you played catch with me so I could practice for softball, your help with all things car-related, the time you said you were proud after my senior awards banquet in high school, or the way you held my hand on my wedding day...I always knew how you felt even if you couldn't say the words. And even though you spoil my boys completely (or maybe because of that reason), you are the best "Papa" in the world too!

Denny, I'm so glad to have you as a second "Dad" in my life. Your strong yet gentle ways are part of the reason that Chris is the wonderful husband and Dad he is today. Your generosity with your time and talents has meant so much to us, even if we sometimes forget to say so. You've made me feel like a daughter, instead of just a daughter-in-law. And I hope you know just how much our boys love their "Pa!" Just like my Dad, you are the best.

Chris, how do I put into words the gratitude I feel to have a man such as you in my life? The day I turned 30, I no longer believed I would meet you, and yet here you are. You're my rock, my love, my best friend, my soul mate...and the best Dad I could have imagined for our two boys. As a mother, it's my job to worry about them, and I do. But I don't worry about the men they will become. With you and their two grandfathers as role models, I already have a good idea of what they will be like.

I love you all! Happy Father's Day!

Long time, no blog... - Posted by Chris

Ok, I admit I've been bad. I've been try to placate you with pictures and video, while using my two children as an excuse for my lack of real posts. So here you go a real live post!

Some random happenings around our house.

• Ian slept (mostly) through the night, the last two nights; five and six hours straight to be precise. Needless to say this has been a welcome development and we are praying for at least a few more nights.
• Lisa, Christopher and I went to see the movie Cars last Saturday. It was a great movie, if you've enjoyed any of Pixar's past movies you'll probably like this one as well. Christopher did great, this being his first time at the movie theater.
• Ian recently had his two month checkup; he weighed 13lbs 9 oz and was 23 1/2 inches long. He is a very healthy little boy.

Ok, I hope that was a good enough post to make up for my recent absence, but just in case it was a bit lacking here's a smiling baby picture:

Detroit Basketball - Posted by Chris

Go Pistons


Detroit Basketball

And then there were two... - Posted by Chris

Christopher and Ian
Originally uploaded by Chris1970.

Sorry we haven't posted much lately. Here are two reasons...

Tivo Generation - Posted by Chris

A couple of things stand out about television when I was young. The first is that my family had two televisions; one was a large color console TV (the kind that sits on the floor) and the second was a small black and white. We could watch three channels with decent quality and a couple more that we’d still watch but whose quality would be unacceptable today. The second thing that I remember is that for a kid there wasn’t much on TV. Apart from Saturday morning cartoons, only a few scattered half hours of programming existed that appealed to children. The idea of recording television to watch later, wouldn’t come to our household for many years.

Fast forward thirty years, my family today has three TVs (all color), we record television shows on computer hard drives and we can pause and rewind live TV. We have Disney, Nick and Cartoon Network just to name a few. My sons will never know a time when it was not possible to replay a funny commercial, rewind a show to hear a missed line of dialog or play your favorite episode with the press of a button. I often wonder how this “convenience” will affect my children. Will it be harder to get them to watch less TV? Will it be easier to get them to do chores (i.e. pause the show and say ‘you can finish watching after you’ve taken out the garbage’)? But most of all, I wonder what my sons will write about thirty years from now? How will life have changed for them?

First Official Bear Pic - Ian - 8 Days Old - Posted by Chris

Ian's First Bear Pic - 8 Days Old

For those who don't know the story behind Bear Pics, hear's the scoop. When both Christopher and Ian were born, my sister bought a big stuff bear for each (something I had done for her children). Lisa and I decided to take a picture of Christopher with his bear each of his first twelve months and then at eighteen months and two years. The picture above is the first of Ian's Bear Pics.

You can see the complete set of Christopher's Bear Pics here.

Ian William - Posted by Chris

Lisa and I would like to announce the birth of our second son, Ian William.

Ian came into our world weighing 8 lbs 6 oz and was 19 inches long. Both Mom and Baby are healthy and now happily at home.

Christopher is already showing that he is a wonderful big brother.

Tired - Posted by Chris

Listen closely for the snoring!

The Negotiator - Posted by Chris

The following conversation happened today shortly after I arrived home from work.

Christopher: "Yang Yang?" (translates to "Little Einsteins")
Me: "You want to watch Little Einsteins? That's up to Mama." (She knew how much TV he had already watched).
Lisa: "Maybe just one."
Christopher: "Kite one?" ("Dragon Kite" - one of his favorite episodes)
Me: "Ok, but you can only watch one show."
Christopher (all business): "No, two."

This Old Box - Toddler Edition - Posted by Chris

Ever Wonder... - Posted by Chris

...what two rolls of toilet paper would look like in your toilet?











-Brought to you by Toddler Research, Inc.

Sticky Hands - Posted by Chris

Stickum™ is a trademark adhesive promoted for used in athletic applications. In 1981 the NFL banned it's use because it gave receivers an unfair advantage.

For my son, sticky hands is not an advantage. Any time he has the slightest bit of crumbs or stickiness on his hands he'll say, "Hands" or "Sticky Hands" which translates to "I need something to wipe my hands" or "Help my hands are sticky!"

My wife and I often comment on how we've never seen a kid his age who is so particular about the cleanliness of his hands. Its a rare meal that he makes it though with wiping his hands at sometime during the meal. I'm not complaining it just kind of funny to see a two year old fret about some spaghetti sauce on his hands.

124 days late... - Posted by Chris

See "The Unwilling Trick-or-Treater" for the other half of this story.
http://pricekids.blogspot.com/2005_10_01_pricekids_archive.html

Cat - Posted by Chris

Luckily Christopher does not (yet) suffer from the extreme allergy to cats that I do.

If I were to do what he's doing in the picture, I would probably win a quick trip to the emergency room! In fact the last time I barely touched a cat (let along hugged a cat) I broke out with hives, had a severe asthma attack and spent the rest of the night in a Benadryl induced coma.

If you haven't already guessed our household will probably never have pets (at least not ones with fur!)

Ava Claire D. - Posted by Lisa

Chris and I would like to send out the warmest and most heartfelt congratulations to our friends Ruthie & Tom on the birth of their long-awaited little girl Ava Claire!

Little Ava came into our world wailing this morning at 7:50am. She weighed 7 lbs 14 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long (I hope I got this right!). Both Mom & Baby are healthy and doing fine.

Welcome to the world, Ava. You hit the jackpot when it came to parents. And welcome to the world of parenting, Tom & Ruthie. Your lives have been profoundly changed now & forever...and in the best way imaginable!

Odds & Ends - Posted by Chris

I haven't posted for about a week so I thought I'd better.

Cold
Christopher has had a cold for a few days. In the past any illness would mean, "if Christopher doesn't feel good everyone else in the house suffers." However this time round its been a bit different. Instead of waking Lisa and I up every few hours Christopher has been sleeping pretty well (with the exception of the first night.) What's different is that he's really been showing his "terrible twos" side. When Christopher gets tired he starts getting into trouble. Its as if his need for sleep causes his brain to forget how to behave. Now that he's sick and he gets tired faster, he seems to be causing more havoc earlier in the day.

Cold, part two
Christopher said the word, 'cold' today. This event is big because as long as he's been talking his word for 'cold' has been 'poe'. Lisa and I always know what he's saying but no one else. We went out, to eat and to stop at the store, and when we first got in the car he said, 'Cold!'. Of course by the time we returned home he was back to 'poe'.

Bedtime Battles
A few weeks ago I wrote about how well Christopher had transitioned to his toddler bed. I guess all "good things" come to those who wait. Since that post we've make a 180 and have begun nightly battles regarding bedtime. Mostly Christopher just enploys delaying tactics and we have to constantly put him back in bed until he finally falls a sleep. I just keep telling myself, "This too shall past" and probably be replaced by something equally as frustrating.

Stay-at-home Dad? - Posted by Chris

I've recently been reading some posts of bloggers who are SAHDs (Stay-at-home Dads); blogs like A Family Runs Through It. These bloggers have me thinking about whether or not I have to mettle to be a SAHD or not.

Occasionally I play this role when my wife has to work on Saturday or Sunday. I think I do a pretty good job. My son makes it though the day mostly unscathed (he's a boy, bumps and bruises are his life). He gets breakfast, lunch, a nap and we even make trips to the Tool Store (Home Depot) sometimes.

What makes me question if I could be a Stay-at-home Dad full time is that sometimes after a day or two of "practice", I find it hard to imagine doing it every day. I love my son and I love spending time with him but I'm not sure that I'm cut out to be the primary caregiver. I tend to be a no-nonsense parent (I probably get this from my Dad) and while I believe there is a place for my style of parenting, I also think that young children more often need the patience and understanding that my wife shows my son.

Pick-Pick and the Grilled Cheese Challenge - Posted by Chris

Christopher spent the last few days with “Pa” and “Ma” (Grandpa and Grandma) and during his stay; Grandma stumbled upon something Christopher thought was just short of genius.  While fixing Christopher’s lunch she decided to cut up his hot dog and put toothpicks in each piece.  Since then he has asked for toothpicks (or pick-picks as he calls them) at just about every meal.

Now Christopher has always been a pretty good eater.  He eats lots of food that other kids wouldn’t even try; olives, salad, pickles, mushrooms and even Raisin Nut Bran cereal.  Despite this he is still a toddler and getting him to even try some foods can be challenging; hence the Grilled Cheese Challenge.

For some time now Christopher has refused to even try a grilled cheese sandwich, even though he has had them in the past.  Yesterday Lisa decided to try once again however this time she cut the sandwich in to little squares and put “pick-picks” in each piece.  Christopher gobbled them up; his aversion to cheese sandwiches is no more.

Hello. My name is Lisa, and I'm a geeky parent. - Posted by Lisa

Remember when you were growing up and came to the realization that your parents were a bit weird...a little embarassing...geeky even? Come on, you know you do. And remember how you swore that when you were older and had kids of your own, that you'd NEVER subject your own children to the embarassment of having a dork for a parent? You were going to be the "cool" parent.

Well in the past two years since our son was born, I (and to be fair, Chris as well) have officially become geeks.

I say this, not as a bad thing. I'm actually pretty proud of my dorkiness as a mom. After all, I think (at least while Christopher is little) that this is one of the things that makes Chris and I good parents to our son. It's the willingness to take ourselves lightly, and to make Christopher laugh, without fear of appearing too weird to others. It's kind of freeing really, not to worry all that much what others think when you're making a fool of yourself.

So, in the interest of full disclosure, I decided to list the reasons that Christopher thinks (right now) Chris & I are the coolest parents alive, and yet in the future will think we are the biggest nerds on the planet. This is by far not an exhaustive list. I'm sure Chris could easily chime in with some more (and I welcome him to do so). But it's what I can come up with right now, so here goes:

1. While helping him into his pajamas before bedtime, we occasionally like to break into "song." Our favorite? A rather (ahem) brilliant rendition of "U Can't Touch This (Hammer Time)" by M.C. Hammer...except in our version, it's "Jammie Time."
2. Since I'm on the subject of annihilating rap lyrics...while changing his diaper, in order for him to help me gain better access to his backside ;) I'll start chanting "put your butt in the air, and wave it around like ya just don't care!" Imagine me dragging out the "air" and "care" as "ay-ah" and "cay-ah." I can't imagine I would ever do this in public!
3. Singing or dancing to any song on the radio. Sure, Christopher loves this now. But just wait a few years...my habit of singing in the car will have to be broken.

At the moment, these are the only things I can come up with, though I'm sure there's more. Anyone else care to comment on their own dorky parenting techniques (past or present)? Not only would you make me feel just a little less weird, but it would also be a great way for someone to de-lurk in our comments section (which I know there are some of you out there). :)