Why Buy Toys?

I mean seriously.  Ace has a whole room full of toys.  Hell, you risk life and limb just to venture into the booby trapped maze of Fisher Price land mines!

With all the toys that Ace has, it never seems to amaze me the things that he plays with…

Favorite toy #1 is the toilet plunger!  How much more sanitary of a toy could he find?  If we leave the bathroom door open, it is a given that I will eventually trip over a tool designed to push a chunk of poo the size of a drain pipe!

Favorite toy #2 is the toilet brush…  If you find the poop pusher in the kitchen, you are likely to find the Porcelain God’s  loofah somewhere nearby.  Let’s just see how many places we can spread the fecal matter, shall we?

Favorite Toy #3 is the attachment for the vacuum.  But you know what’s funny..?  If I actually attach it to the vacuum and turn it on so that he will actually be doing some cleaning…he wants nothing to do with it.  :D

Favorite Toy #4 is the trash can lid.  If you take it off of the trash can, put it in the middle of the tile kitchen floor, stand on it until it is flat, and then jump off… it snaps back into shape with a loud POP.  Damned Rubbermaid…

And finally, Favorite Toys #5, 6, 7, 8, and 9…anything that is stacked in a neat pile, put away in a cabinet, on the counters, hanging from the Christmas tree, or otherwise purposely hidden from a two year olds view and/or reach…

What are your kids’ favorite “toys”?

Daddy Is A Dum Dum

daddy is a dum dum

That’s right Ace…sometimes your Daddy is a Dum Dum.  Let me tell you why…

I try…I try to be a good guy.  I try to help others.  I’m not big on charity.  I’m not big on donations…mostly because you have no idea what that money is going towards.

I usually give the homeless guy at the gas station a quarter.  I usually give that guy who claims to have run out of gas my pocket change.  I do it even though I am pretty sure that they are full of shit up to their ears and are going to go smoke my money in a few minutes.   I give them the benefit of the doubt.

Today we pulled into a CVS parking lot and some normal looking guy comes walking up to us asking for help.  This guy looked like he was in trouble.  He was drenched in sweat and out of breath.  He looked like he was seriously worried about something.

He said that his car broke down a few blocks away and was asking for help to get home.  He said his wife and kids were in the car waiting and that he would gladly take me over to see them to prove it.  He said that he had called for a taxi but it was too much money.  He needed $38 dollars for the cab ride.

I asked him where he was going…and I knew that the cab ride there was just about $40 bucks (I did it a few years back when I was stranded).

He told me to write down my phone number and once he got home to his other car he would call me and meet me at the CVS to pay me back.

My instinct told me to say “No” and move on with my life, but the good guy in me said “Just give him the money…it is only $40 bucks.”

What if this was me, Momma, an Ace.  If I was seriously stranded somewhere without my wallet and no way to get home I would hope that someone would help us out.

I mean seriously…even if the guy takes my money and runs, I have wasted $40 plenty of times.  This would be just another one of those times.

So, I pulled out my wallet and gave him $40 bucks.

The guy shook my hand, looked me in the eyes, thanked me, and said that he would call me as soon as he got home to set up a time to pay me back.

Well, that was about 5 hours ago and my phone still has not rang…and my wallet is still short $40.

(Short pause while I kick myself)

So where did I screw up?  Did I screw up for helping the guy?  Did I screw up for giving him money?

This is a public announcement to all homeless, beggars, people with broke down cars, people who have ran out of gas, people who ask for money of any kind from me…you are SOL.  I will never give out a single penny again to anyone who asks for it.  You want a sandwich?  You want a gallon of gas?  You need the tire changed on your car?  I’ll do those things for you.   But I will never give anyone another penny.

I don’t mind helping people when they need it, but it really pisses me off to be taken advantage of.

So how many licks does it take to get to the center of this Tootsie Pop?  About $40 worth… :)

What Goes Crunch, Crunch, Crunch In The Dark?

Wednesday night we had a really bad storm come through town.  I was driving home from work and had to literally stop on the freeway due to zero visibility with my wipers on hyper speed.  The wind gusts were downright mindshattering.  I was driving my truck (which doubles as a wind sail during storms due to it’s large side profile) and could actally feel the truck lift up when the wind was hitting me head on.  The news said we had near 70 MPH wind gusts!

Anyways, I made it home without blowing away.  I was waiting for one of two things to happen…  the tree in front of our house to fall on our roof, …or the power to go out.  One of the two was inevitable…

So, in the mean time I cooked dinner (Momma was not feeling well).  I made Taco Salad, but I forgot to buy the Taco Seasoning on the way home from work.  So I made the taco salad without the seasoning.  So really it was hamburger and chili bean salad…tasted about as good as it sounds. :lol:

I set up Ace’s chair in the living room and gave Ace a plate with some hamburger and beans, but he would have nothing to do with it.  I don’t blame him…it was gross, but I could not let a whole pound of hamburger go to waste, so I ate it anyways. :smile:

I gave Ace a handful of potato chips to keep him busy until I could get back with ole’ faithful…a hot dog.  This kid is going to turn into a hot dog if we are not careful. :grin:

Of course all the hot dogs were frozen, so I put one on the microwave for two minutes to thaw and cook it real quick.  The microwave beeped when it was done, and I pressed the button to open the microwave door….

DARKNESS!

All the power in our house went out.  My first thought was “Where the hell is Ace?”  I could just see him getting scared, running to find me, and falling and hurting himself on the corner of some piece of furniture.   “He is probably freaking out right about now!”,  I think to myself.  Then I remembered he was strapped into his chair. 

 So I start making my way into the living room, tripping over toys and cussing under my breath the whole way. :lol:

I get to the living room and can not remember where I set up his chair.  Was it on the left or right side of the couch?  Remember it was pitch black.   I could not see anything. 

I called Ace’s name, but he did not make a peep.  So I start slowly making my way through the living room with my arms outstretched feeling for his chair, head, arms, whatever.  And then I hear it…

“Crunch, crunch, crunch.”

“What the hell is that?” I say to myself.

“Crunch, crunch, crunch.”

I make my way towards the noise and find Ace sitting there in the pitch black room, strapped to his chair, still enjoying his potato chips…just crunching away like nothing ever happened.

Paranoid Dad much?  :oops:

How Kids Change Your Life…10 Things No One Tells You About

I remember back when we were expecting Ace.  Everyone kept telling us how much it would change our life, but all they told us was, “Diapers and formula are expensive!”…or, “You’ll be getting up every couple of hours every night to a crying kid!”.

So I’m going to let out the secrets…what are some of the things that change…that no one tells you about. :D

1. You venture into areas of your TV volume meter that have never been explored…(No I do not watch the fashion show shown on the TV…that was all Momma’s doing.)  :D

TV Volume Before Kids
TV Volume Before Kids

TV Volume After Kids
TV Volume After Kids

2.  You must now share cabinet space with brightly colored sippy cups.  Be glad you did not install those fancy clear cabinet doors…because I guarantee the neon rainbow does not go with most kitchen decors.  :D

Sippy Cups Share A Cabinet
Sippy Cups Share A Cabinet

3.  Other cabinets are completely taken over…  What used to be there?  Hell, I forget (loss of memory is another thing they don’t tell you about) :D

Hikacked Cabinet - Baby Stuff
Hijacked Cabinet – Baby Stuff

Hikacked Cabinet - Baby Food
Hijacked Cabinet – Baby Food

4.  You find it financially necessary to buy a digital camera.  I have taken over 2000 pictures in the past 19 months.  You know how much it would have cost to develop 2000 pictures? Most of them blurry, off center, or otherwise not visually pleasing…

Digital Camera Needed
Digital Camera Needed

5.  Your computer wallpaper can no longer be some cool scenery or your favorite sports team.  It is, of course, a picture (or even slide show) of your kid…

Ace Wallpaper
Ace Wallpaper

6.  Hearing a kid crying is no longer like nails on a chalkboard.  It still bothers you, but you are extremely desensitized compared to it’s pre-kid effects…

Ace Crying
Ace Crying

7.  Other people’s kids crying doesn’t bother you like it did before you had kids either.  It has other effects on you, like…chuckling quietly because you know exactly what the crying kid’s parent is going through and you are just glad it is not you this time…but you know your turn is coming. :D

8.  No longer does your back yard look like a golf course green.  Now it looks like the playground at the park…

Golf Course Green Backyard
Golf Course Green Backyard

9.  Your refrigerator will now be a major source of entertainment for your little one.  A little side effect? Coming down in the middle of the night to get a drink and busting your ass on refrigerator magnets that have been left lying on the floor. ;D

Refrigerator Magnets
Refrigerator Magnets

10.  It is not only recommended, but often necessary to change your disgusting habits.  Those little people are like copy-catting sponges… :D

Kids Picking Their Noses
Kids Picking Their Noses

But even though you have to deal with the noise, the cabinet rearrangements, the wallpaper hijacking, the buying of a digital camera, the crying, the loss of your beautiful backyard, the refrigerator decorations, and the nose picking…it is all worth it…because of moments like this…

Why It Is All Worth It
Why It Is All Worth It

Uncle JoJo, What Is That?

I am jealous of most of the other Mom and Dad bloggers. Why? Their kids talk. Their kids say the funniest things…which makes for some great blogging material.

Since Ace does not talk yet, I rely on pictures, videos, and the cuteness factor!

However, I was hangin’ out with my three year old niece, Olivia, the other day when she said something to me that rang the “I gotta write a post about this” bell. Let’s call it good practice for when Ace starts talking…

Olivia On Sit and SpinOlivia: Uncle JoJo, what is this on your arm? (Petting my arm)

Me: What? Where?

Olivia: Right here… (gently tugging on my arm hair)

Me: That’s hair!

Olivia: Where did it come from?

Me: (Trying to think of an answer a 3 year old would understand, I resorted to…) I don’t know.

Olivia: I know where it came from!

Me: Really? Where?

Olivia: The top of your head!

Nothing makes you feel like a crippled old man like having a three year old let you know that you are going bald!

At least she patted me on the top of my old bald head to make me feel better afterwards. :D

Christmas Pictures (Momma Monday)

Okay, so it’s that time of year already, Christmas pictures! I thought maybe Jared, Ace and I should get a cute picture in from of the fake tree and fireplace and send out like 100 greeting cards, but Jared thought no!!! So instead I took Ace and our niece Olivia to have their pictures taken as a gift for my parents and my brother. Easy right? Not so much!

Olivia just turned three on Thanksgiving day, so I thought she could be my little helper and get Ace to smile for me, again, not so much. Instead Olivia looked mad enough to just walk out of the portrait studio, and while the poor photographer was trying to get her to smile, Ace decided to fill his clean diaper! Oh the smell…..I thought we could play it off, hey we were almost finished, but oh no, then the screaming started! First Ace, then Olivia, what a nightmare!

So out to the car to get the diaper bag, meanwhile it’s about 30 degrees outside and Olivia keeps reminding me that she would like to take that ugly dress off! We get Ace’s dirty diaper changed, and head back to the portrait studio, and now there is quite a line, and the poor photographer working is getting screamed at by like 3 people!!! Olivia did ask one woman to use her indoor voice (nothing like a three year old pointing out the obvious) and then it got a little quieter. So now let’s finish those stinking pictures. We get done, and now it’s time to pick out the ones that I would like to order, okay so obviously the only one where both kids are looking forward will be the one to get, and then a few of each of them by themselves. So I’m sitting there ordering my pictures and Olivia keeps telling me that her butt is hanging out. I have no idea what she is talking about, so I tell her that it’s not because she is wearing a dress, but she just insisted that it was….okay so I agreed and hoped that the conversation would end there.

“Come on Olivia we are leaving.” I say to her, as she is dragging her feet and I’m impatiently waiting for her.

“Mimi (that’s me) I’m trying!” She replies.

Meanwhile, a woman waiting her turn for the photographer points out to me that Olivia is having a small problem walking, apparently her pull-up and tights are down around her feet! Oh my, so I drag her down the aisle to where I’m sure only security could see us and pull up her pants. “Why didn’t you tell Mimi?” I asked her.

And her response, “I told you my butt was hanging out!”

Oh….I can hardly wait until next year!

What Not To Do!

It doesn’t take a lot of skill, or even smarts, to procreate.  Take a guy, a girl, a few pelvic thrusts, and whop-bam-boom…you have procreated.  Simple, right?

Actually taking care of Momma before birth, and the little procreation after birth is a different story.  Many mistakes, bloopers, and near misses tend to happen along the pathway to getting your child into this world and then on to adulthood.

I’ve only been tripping down this path for about 18 months now (I’m including the 9 months of pregnancy), and figured I would share what I’ve learned not to do…

Never Be Too Tired To Interact With The Belly

No matter how tired you are, if your lady is pregnant and she asks you to feel her belly, or rub her belly, or listen to her belly, or talk to her belly, or lick her belly (OK I made that one up)…do it.  Superglue your eyelids open, drink some Red Bull, jog in place, do whatever it takes to stay awake and do it.  You are not feeling, rubbing, listening, talking to, or licking just her belly…you are interacting with your unborn child and showing your lady that you are excited about metamorphosing into a Dad.  It means a lot to her. Trust me on this one!

Never Assume Pregnant Sex Is Even Remotely Similar To Not Pregnant Sex

So you and your lady have probably gone at it multiple times in the past.  You both know what works and what doesn’t.  You know what buttons to push and what sequence to push them in.  Once her belly starts getting bigger it’s like the program changes.  No longer is that angle possible, no longer is that comfortable, no longer does that work, and no longer are those allowed to be touched!  It’s like bumping uglys for the first time again.  Not knowing what to expect…and just plain awkward!

Never Tell Your Wife You Will Call Her Right Back When She Calls To Tell You She Is Having Contractions

I was at work on the phone with a customer and my cell phone rings.  Momma says she is having contractions.  I asked her how far apart they were.  She said 15 to 20 minutes.  I asked if I could call her right back after I get off the phone with the customer.  She said, “OK.”  I hurried up the phone call with the customer and called Momma back within 60 seconds.  Never ever do this…you will never hear the end of it. :)

When Your Lady Is In The Delivery Room Pushing Out Your Baby Never Answer Your Cell Phone Even If It Is Your Dad Calling To Get Directions To The Hospital

My Dad was coming in from out of town to be there for the birth of his first grandchild.  I gave him good directions, but for some reason he missed his exit and drove half way around the outer-belt and then ended up downtown.  He called my cell to figure out where he needed to go and it just so happened that it was at the exact time that Momma was deep into the pushing stage.  In between pushes she asked me where he was at, and was yelling out directions for him to get to the hospital.  It was not pretty!  Never EVER EVER answer your cell phone when your lady is pushing!  I’m sure this story will be told to my great great grandchildren. :)

Just Because Your Baby Boy Had Not Turned Into A Pee Fountain At The Hospital While Changing His Diaper, Do Not Expect It To Continue At Home

We walked in the door of my mother-in-laws house after leaving from the hospital.  Of course Ace’s diaper needed changed right away.  I walked him over to the changing table and ripped of his diaper just like I had done for the past three days in the hospital.  Much to my surprise…Pee Fountain!  It went everywhere, including, but not limited to…my mouth, his mouth, my face, his face, the wall, in his ears, up his nose, in his eyes, and of course all over the fresh new diaper.  He screamed, I screamed, and Grandma came to our rescue.  Consider baby boys cocked and loaded at all times. :)

Never Use The Finger Sweep Method

Most of the time it is not hard to tell if your baby has dropped a load in their diaper.  You can usually smell it from across the room.  However there are those times that you just are not sure.  So what do you do next?  You pick them up and place your nose against their diaper.  This will usually give you a definite answer.  However there are times it is still questionable.  Maybe they just farted and the air mixed poop particulates are slowly seeping through the urine soaked absorbent material in the diaper.  What do you do next?  You stick you finger inside their diaper and then pull it out.  NO NO NO!  It is inevitable that every time you do this it was not a fart!  It was not a little stinker!  It was a full on CRAP!  Never, under any circumstance use the Finger Sweep Method.  Instead resort to the Lift And Peek Method.  You can thank me later!

Never Assume That Because Bananas Make Your Baby Constipated and Prunes Gives Them The Squirts That Mixing The Two Will  Be Alright

The potency of prunes outweighs the potency of bananas 10:1.  Nuff said… :D

Never Assume That Because Your Kid Is Sleeping Next To You On The Couch That You Can Watch Kat Williams’ “Pimp Chronicles” And Get Away With It

Just sitting there laughing myself silly at the borderline inappropriate comedy when I look over to see Ace…eyes wide open and laughing at the TV.  What the hell?  He can’t even talk!  How can he possibly comprehend that what the guy on TV is saying is funny?  I just hope his first words are not from that show! :D

***

Wow…the things I should have done different.  And only in 18 months.  What will the next 18 years bring? :)

Getting Ready For Winter

FirewoodAfter recovering from Halloween I have decided that it is time to get ready for winter!  Many people do not like Winter, but I do!  I would much rather be cold than be hot.  When you are hot there is no escaping it.  In the Winter you can always put on more clothes to keep warm. :)

Any other year I would stock up on firewood, sweep the chimney, clean out the shed, service the lawn mower, rake the yard, put up all of the patio furniture, clean up the flower beds, clean out the gutters, get out the snow shovel, buy some rock salt for the driveway and sidewalks, and sit back and wait for the snow!

Is there anything else I need to do because I am a Dad now?  I mean, almost every other thing in my life has changed ever so slightly since Ace was born.

This summer was tough on me because I am an outdoors person, and I had to sit inside with Ace on the weekends when Momma was working.  Instead of mowing in the morning I had to wait until the evening.  Instead of sitting outside on the deck with the dog I sat in the couch with the dog and Ace.  There were tons of weeds in the flower beds because I just didn’t have time to pull them.  Things just didn’t get done around he house like they used to. 

How will things be this Winter?  There is not a lot to do outside in the Winter other than shoveling snow, spreading salt, carrying firewood.  However last winter I spent a lot of time working in the house.  Our basement was considered a “finished” basement, but was far from what we considered finished.  So I spent a lot of time tearing down the paneling, the ceiling, patching the cement walls, peeling up the tile on the floors.  I pretty much demolished the basement last year.  This Winter my goal is to rebuild it…but will I have time?  I also demolished the upstairs bathroom a few weeks ago…will it get finished?

Either way, the basement and bathroom are not going anywhere.  They will still be there next Winter.  I’m just going to enjoy Ace’s first Winter and do my best to make sure that he does too!  If I have some spare time…maybe, just maybe, some progress will be made on the basement and bathroom. ;)

Oops…..my bad!

Tonight was Momma’s first evening at work.  I was in charge of dinner and all of the bedtime activities.  Simple enough eh?  I thought so…

Our neighbor watched Ace for about an hour between the time that Momma left for work and I got home from work.   When I got home from work the babysitter went home and I put Ace in the truck.  We drove around town and ran a few errands.  We got back home and Ace did the normal night time stuff…play on the floor, drink a bottle,  get grumpy, and go to bed.

Momma was scheduled to be home a little after 10 o’clock, so I was trying to keep Ace awake so that Momma could see him before he went to bed.   However, that did not happen.  When Ace wants to sleep there is no stopping it… :D

So, Momma got home and of course asked me how everything went.  I told her everything I did, but there were some thing I guess I didn’t do quite right…  Now remember that I did not see or talk to Momma after I got home.  I had no idea what she expected me to do other than the usual…

  1. Ace was supposed to have some baby food for dinner and a bottle.  I didn’t give him the baby food.  I don’t remember Momma giving him baby food after I get home from work on a normal basis.  I guess my memory is not that good… :D
  2. Ace was  supposed to have a bath before bed tonight.  Oops…no bath.  Again a bath at night is not a regular thing.  It does happen every now and then, so I thought that Momma usually gives him baths during the day while I am work.  Wrong again…
  3. Ace was supposed to be in his pajamas when he went to bed.  He was wearing a long-john type onesie.  I figured the whole reason for wearing pajamas was to keep him warm.  Long-johns are warm, right? So I just let him sleep in his onesie.  Why wake him up and make him mad to change his clothes?  I’ve slept in my clothes on more than one occasion and I am still hear to talk about it…

Well, about 30 minutes after Momma gets home Ace wakes up.  This is not normal.  Ace usually goes to bed around 10 o’clock and sleeps till the morning.  I go to the kitchen and make a bottle, and Momma goes upstairs to get Ace.

When she comes back down with Ace he has one arm and shoulder protruding through the neck hole of his onesie and he is PO’d!  He looked right at me, and I could read his mind…”Pajamas! Pajamas would have prevented this…dumbass!”

After changing his diaper, putting on some “real” PJs, and a bottle  it is lights out once again…hopefully until morning. :D