First Real Meal

Olive gets her first home cooked meal. Sara and Dick gave us a baby food recipe book a few months ago and I have been looking forward to the opportunity to make her some of the recipes. We purchased an awesome food processor from Craigslist and it works great! Her first meal was sweet potatoes puree. I also made her sweet peas puree, zucchini puree and apple sauce. I used ice trays to freeze her daily portions into little cubes. Our little baby is growing up too fast.

Bye Bye Kiki

Today is a sad day for the Hall family as we say goodbye to Kiki. We had her for five years and we love her dearly, but she was not able to adapt to our new family dynamics. We can’t trust her with Olive and she and Sophie fight like, well, dogs. I was able to detach emotionally from Kiki a lot easier than Elyse. Elyse’s brother John and girlfriend Iris are going to adopt Kiki. This morning they brought over their dog Bob to see how the two would react. So far so good. They are going to take her for the weekend for a trial run. Here Elyse watches as the two dogs get acquainted.

Gappy

If you haven’t seen me smile much in the last few months it’s not because I'm unhappy or grumpy; it’s because I lost a tooth and when I smile the gap is exposed. That all changes today, at 11:11 I was under the dentist’s knife getting two implants (I lost another tooth a few years back.) I look like a total tool in this photo but I felt compelled to add it. I chose to be put under so I wasn’t able to take a photo during the surgery so I snapped this shot just before going in.

Shooting Rob

Rob Bird is one of my greatest friends. I always refer to him as my Phish buddy. We have been to many Phish and String Cheese Incident shows among many others. Rob is a doctor, and specializes in weight loss. Today we shot a video for his web site on how to administer one of his diets. We turned my front room into a mini studio.

Camera Happy

Olive is used to being photographed. She might be the most photographed child in the history of the world. Whenever we pull out a camera she looks right at it. As you can see in this progression, she was upset until the camera was placed in front of her face. With each click she gets happier.

Mentoring in the Kitchen

Daniel moved back in with us in December. Since he last moved out his eyes have been open to reality. During his first and second stint living with us, we had to beg him to help out with the daily chores. Now he chips in not only by helping clean up but he also buys some of the groceries. He also figured out that eating out every meal is expensive and that a good home cooked meal isn’t as easy as it looks. He asked me to teach him to cook so I am throwing him head first into the kitchen. Last night he made steel cut oats that cooked until morning. It was a tasty breakfast. We had some old bananas so this morning he cooked up his first batch of banana bread. Its still cooking so I can’t report if its tasty or not; however, it smells wonderful!

Refrigerator Madness

Elyse is the real photographer in the family. She loves taking pictures and loves printing them even more. We have hundreds of pictures hanging, lying and hiding in random places through out the house. Surrounded by printed memories is our message board. Here Elyse has left me detailed directions on when, how and what to do for all of Olive’s medications.

Sick Day 3 & Merman

Olive is on her third day of being sick. She has an ear infection, bronchiolitis, early signs of RSV and a scratched cornea. All of this combined with a running fever and we have one upset and fussy baby. We have spent a lot of time this weekend watching tv and movies. Elyse insisted that we watch a movie before the NFL playoff games. We asked Daniel to put on a comedy of his choice and he selected Zoolander. At 11:11 one of my favorite parts was playing. Zoolander is depressed and has gone back to his home town to see his dad. They go to a bar where the mine workers hang out. Zoolander’s dad is clearly embarrassed by his “ridiculously good looking son.” While they are there a commercial starring Zoolander comes on the tv; he is portrayed as a merman.

Longing

Poor Jake. We are watching him while my parents are in St. Johns for the funeral of Uncle Larry. He’s not used to hanging outside with other dogs all day. He’s been sitting outside the door whining. I’d let him in but he pooped in the house when he first got here last night. Also, he is wet and dirty due to the rain. Oh well, he’ll be spoiled in a few hours when he reunites with my mom.

Sick Day

Olive woke us up early this morning with a fever. For the past few days we thought she was fake coughing but this morning the cough was very real. The doctor told us not to take her to urgent care. I was not looking forward to waiting for three hours for them to do nothing. We stripped her down to her diaper, put a wet cloth on her head and gave her some Tylenol. We finally all went back to bed. Elyse called in sick so we all get to spend the day together. Luckily Olive is like me when she’s sick on not like Elyse. When I’m sick I want to be left alone. I might ask for a few favors but for the most part I am quite easy to take care of. When Elyse is sick...she becomes the “demander in chief.”

Back to School

On Tuesday I started my Masters in Education program. Instead of buying a parking pass for $170.00, I bought this fold up bike for $125.00. It folds up nicely to fit in the trunk of my car. I park my car at the light rail station which is less than a mile away from my classroom. The bike is nearly 50 years old and has all of the original parts except for the tires.

Raising Olive

One of my favorite movies is “Raising Arizona.” In this shot I pay homage to the Coen Brothers. I usually text Elyse the photos I take and to this photo she responded, “Don’t like that our baby is in the middle of the street.” I reminded her that we have a family picture with all of us in the street. She rebutted that Olive wasn’t in the street alone. I responded that there was a photographer present.

Palms

I’m not supposed to text message or take pictures on my phone while I drive but I have no choice when it’s 11:11. This trailer park is one of many around my house. During the summer it’s as barren as its desert surroundings, but in the fall, winter and spring you will find countless geriatrics roaming around. Snowbirds is too kind of a word to describe these migrants. I hate to generalize, but these “old farts” are a major inconvenience. They slow up our roads, they crowd our stores and they cut in front of you in lines. I guess it gives us at least one upside to 100 plus temperatures.

Sleepover with Lydia

Lydia spent last night with us. She was adamant that she would sleep in bed with Elyse and I but when she fell asleep on the couch we did not wake her. She claimed to wake up several times in the night to the stares of Olive’s stuffed horse and elephant. “It kind of scared me,” she told me in the morning. For breakfast she wanted french toast so we went to the store to get the ingredients. We walked by the flowers and I decided to get Elyse a bouquet. Lydia picked the flowers out and then informed me that she too loved flowers. In the end she left with the flowers and her “very own vase!”

Horsing Around

Timmy and I joined Drew as he fed the horse and cows. Like any boy would do, Timmy climbed his way up the haystack to see the world from a different point of view, hence the telescope. I have yet to figure out why the broom is atop the stack; perhaps its Timmy’s flag to show off to the world his mighty climb.

On the Way to Costco

Luckily we were at a stop light when 11:11 chimed in. It used to annoy me when mothers sat in the back seat with their babies, but as you can see, my opinion has changed. I much rather annoy some dude than have a crying baby annoy me. It has other perks as well; when Elyse is in the back she cannot reach the volume dial or the ipod so I get total control of the musical output.

Who’s the Prisoner?

Sometimes I feel sorry for my dogs. Their personal space in our house has been reduced to just a few square feet. They seem like prisoners behind bars. I might not be behind bars, but sometimes I feel like I’m a prisoner. A prisoner to my computer. A prisoner to my phone. A prisoner to the day to day chores. I guess we are all prisoners of sorts. At least dogs only have to worry about eating, messing and pleasing their owners. Not a bad gig.

Not So Content at the Dentist’s Office

I wish I was like the Bill Murray’s character from “Little Shop of Horror’s” who delighted in his visits to the dentist’s office but I am not. It’s not the pain, in fact, I don’t mind teeth pain, it’s the embarrassment. For some reason I have a complex with how my teeth look. It doesn’t help that I recently lost a tooth. Every time I smile at someone I can feel their eyes focus on the toothless gap. I know that dentists and dental hygienists see nastier teeth all day but still I feel self-conscious about the way mine look. I can imagine all of the doctors and staff members huddled around my x-rays pointing and jeering.

p.s. i brush twice daily and floss frequently

Grandma, Jake, Olive and Oprah

Its been really nice having my mom available to babysit Olive. I don’t know who enjoys Olive more; my mom or Jake. Olive loves to lie on Grandma’s lap. Every time I come to pick her up she is in this same position. My only complaint is her exposure to Oprah...luckily she’ll be off air by the time Olive controls the remote.

Shopping Girl

Now that I’m a stay-at-home dad I feel justified in going shopping. As you can see, Olive can only handle so much perusing. Why is she complaining? She got a new furry friend.

Air Condition Colonoscopy

I wasn’t able to completely clean out the dryer vent so I called in the professionals to finish the job. While they were here they convinced me that my air condition ducts needed cleaning. When I asked if the ducts were bad, the technician responded, “I looked in there and thought I saw the sierra desert.” This might explain my chronic cough.

Stained

Olive and I on the couch watching PBA (Professional Bowling Association.) Notice the stain on my shirt? For lunch I had a pizza Hot pocket. The oil seeped through the cardboard container that’s supposed to protect your hands from the heat. I think they should change the design to include protection from the oil.

50% Off

This morning we woke up and went garage, yard and thrift shopping. I was the only one who didn’t find a second hand gem but I did enjoy hearing the same joke over and over from my senior citizen friends: “Is that cute baby for sale?” My response was the same each time as well: “Your lucky day, all baby’s are fifty percent off.”

Ned is Crazy

I love Ned’s Krazy Subs but I’m not a fan of Ned. A few years ago I ordered a sandwich with mustard on it. Ned told me a sandwich should have mayo only and I told him that a sandwich without mustard wasn’t worth eating. I wish I could say that he responded with something like: “Then get the hell out of my parlor and never come back.” But he did not, he added the mustard and cowered into the back. I couldn’t believe someone could get offended by mustard. It turns out that Ned and I aren’t too different...I get upset with Elyse when she puts ketchup or bbq sauce on steak.

The Culprit

I have been trying to figure out why my dryer stinks at drying. I figured it out. There was lint from the dryer, through the vent and all the way up to the opening on the roof. Can’t wait to do another load of laundry.

Grateful Dead

I love when I get to drive my Mom’s minivan. Not only is it a sweet ride, it also has Sirius Radio. There is a channel that is dedicated to only Grateful Dead music. Channel 57 for those of you whom are interested. Olive and I were lucky enough to get to listen to some great music on our way to visit Mom for lunch.

Xavier’s Casa

Jake and I love to eat a good Mexican lunch. I have been trying to get him to go to Xavier’s Casa de Reynoso but we always end up at Carolina’s. We finally made it to Xavier’s. Not only did Jake like it, he ate his first enchilada in about ten years and he loved it!

Hangin’ it Old School

Sick of our junky dryer I turn to the cheapest and fastest way to dry clothes. Hopefully Kiki (lower left corner) and her cronies don’t rip the sheets down.

Sunday Morning

Elyse in the best seat of the house.

Where's Olive

Olive hanging out on mom’s robe with her best friends Ruby and Giraffe. Never mind the messy house.

BCF's

Olive and Amelia spent twenty minutes on the couch while their mothers went to Dairy Queen. Once Olive found Amelia’s hand there was no letting go.