Beach Baby

The last week of May was great for the family. We traveled just about as far south as you can go in these United States and even went a tad bit into Mexico on a vacation to visit Liz's family in San Benito, TX. There was a lot going on in the week that we were there. Trips to Whataburger, homemade tamales, homemade enchiladas, breakfast tacos, etc etc etc.

Oh, and we did other things other than eat as well. We got to spend good times with Liz's mom and grandparents. We got to hear Buelito preach (en Espanol) which did nothing for me, but those who actually speak Spanish seemed to enjoy it. It was good to see the congregation there and their sincerity in worship. Definitely encouraging.

Liz and I got to spend my birthday seeing Shrek the Third and having a terrific hamburger at Capital City grill (it just keeps going back to the food!) There was a trip to South Padre Island without drudging through Spring Breakers and alcoholics, which was nice. And a trip to the zoo which I don't have pictures of just yet.

Thanks to God for the good trip and for the safety of it. Particularly since we did a total of four flights (Aiden's firsts) and he did wonderful. He never seemed scared in the least. Proving that he's getting his guts from his mother.

Aiden wasn't so sure he liked the water from the Gulf of Mexico.

Aiden with his great grandparents the night before we left for Kentucky.

Aiden with his maternal grandmother the night before we left. You can see how happy she was to return to the peace and quiet they enjoy when we're not there. (kidding)

Are these my socks?

Aiden got some chilly feet last night so he wanted to put some socks on this morning. So he grabbed some of Daddy's.

The really funny thing is these are ankle socks, yet they come up to almost his knees.

Pray for us this week as Aiden will take his very first plane ride. His first will be when he's less than two. My first was when I was 24. So he beat me pretty badly on that "first."

We're also teething right now. Hopefully that goes quickly and smoothly. He usually gets a bit of a cold when he teeths. We're really hoping that doesn't happen before we fly to Texas to see family for a week.

Happy 18th (month) Birthday!!!

Today our son is 18 months old. That's not an official birthday, but it should be. Congratulations to our son for surviving our largely absent parenting skills for 18 months. Just 198 months to go (roughly) before college.

I think I just made myself sick a little bit.

Have a Nice, Restful Weekend

Spummer time!

Well I've been doing alright,

Getting good grades,
My future's so bright,
I gotta wear shades!



There's a local weather personality in South Central Kentucky that is walking, talking, weather predicting goofball. His comedic sense is only slightly better than that of Rosie O'Donnell.

For example, he coined a phrase when the spring temperatures didn't reach their normal highs. That word, "Sprinter." I know what you're thinking. "Sprinter" is already a word and it has nothing to do with weather. I know that too. Apparently, he does not.

This week the "cold" spring has been replaced by a "hot" spring (not the ones in Arkansas.) Which in conjunction with the weatherman's word invention has inspired me to new levels of stupidity and the invention of the word, "Spummer."

I tell you all this for two reasons. My wife thinks it validates her claims that I'm a big dork. And it gives me an excuse to post the picture of Aiden in his sun glasses.

Hope you all had a great weekend and hope you enjoy this fabulous Spummer!

Doing the Dishes

I don't know how much of an individual's personality is inate. I'm not sure if they are born with a goodness or badness, although I suspect we're all born somewhat good and innocent as Freud presumed. I'm also quite sure that my bias when looking at my son retards my objectivity, but I'm just going to go ahead and say it.

My son is a sweet and good person.

I'll give you an example. He loves to help. Ok, he's 17 months old and he doesn't know the difference between chores and work. But I can still pretend that he's dilligently trying to help me and his mother do things because he wants to. He even helps do the dishes. No, we don't let him touch the knives, so put the telephone down and stop hitting your Child Protective Services speed dial.

He started doing this out of the blue the other day. And for probably the first time ever as parents, we managed to catch something like this on camera. This all got particularly funny because as he set about doing his task of taking the dishes from the dishwasher and handing them to Dada, he never smiled. He was just working on a task. I couldn't maintain that same composure, as you can see.

So there you have it. Proof, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that my son is 17 year old Ghandi with hair. And to think, you probably just assumed this was going to be yet another silly blog I wrote bragging about my son doing some medial task that amounted to nothing near what I claimed. Shame on you.

Coming Soon: My Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades

Vocabulary Lessons

Aiden's vocabulary is growing. Its fun hearing him try to say words. His penchant for imitation seems to be getting larger every day. Here are some words he's tried to say recently:
1. Bubble - sounds like= buhbuh
2. What's THAT?!? -sounds like=What's THAT?!?! (add some serious voice inflection there)
3. This-sounds like= this
4. Moderato-sounds like=mod-a-bahbah
5. More-sounds like= moh
6. Mama
7. Dada
8. Ducks-sounds like= duh
9. Banana-sounds like=anana

Those are the few I can remember off the top of my head. Hey since the last post on this blog was titled, "Happy Easter" I had to come up with something.

Coming soon: Aiden helps Daddy unload the dishwasher.

Happy Easter

Reports in the news today didn't say anything about the Easter Bunny suffering from hypothermia, but I wouldn't have been surprised. So there were no Easter egg hunts for our family this year due to the cold. We're not real certain our son would have been able to grasp the concept, but maybe he would have.

Liz had picked out an adorable little outfit for him that was blue and yellow. Unfortunately it was short sleeved with short pants. Mother Nature put the kabosh down on the idea of that outfit, so we opted for this one:The shirt is by Ralph Lauren. The pants by Dillard's. The shoes are Payless. The Easter Egg is Dollar General. The look is pure Renfrow.

After a long day of church service and doing a little dance on the catwalk, on the catwalk yeah, Aiden was all tuckered out and so was Liz:

We hope everyone had a great Easter.

And as an update, Aiden will turn 17 (months) this week. But we're still not letting him date. And he can't have the car out past 10.

He's Gotten Stealthy

Recently our son has become quite stealthy. Not that he's sneaking into things or hiding things. He's become a stealthy pooper.

Last night is a prime example. He'd napped from the time he got home from the babysitters (around 5) until he ate dinner at around 6. After he ate I changed his "wet" diaper and lo and behold, he had pooped. I don't know when. He never gave any indication. It just sort of happened.

The same thing had happened when I picked him up early on Tuesday. When I got him home I changed another "wet" diaper only to discover he had poohed some time ago. I don't blame the sitters either. They've always done a great job. I just don't think they knew anymore than I did.

This marks quite a change. It always seemed you knew when he was pooping becuase he would grunt and stop doing whatever he was doing. Now, he's so at ease with it he can do it without any physical indication. Well, he can't make it smell good. So there's ONE physical indication.

A Father's Confession

I have a flaw.

I was just as shocked as you are, believe me.

My flaw is simple. I'm a heavy sleeper. Let me explain the dynamic of a bedroom that houses a heavy sleeper and a borderline insomniac. It can become a little tense.

1) There's the genuine sense of envy and even jealousy on part of the sleep deprived. My wife fits this category. When I ask how she's slept in the morning, I usually get a "Not very well." Response. When she asks me, I say I slept well. She replies, "OF COURSE YOU DID." (She doesn't really yell...that's just there for effect.)

2) Heavy sleepers tend to stay asleep. Even when we wake up in the middle of the night, its more of a middlesleep state. We're awake, but we're not thinking with all of our usual well rested faculties.

Herein lies our problem and my subsequent confession. When our son wakes in the middle of the night I tend to take the lazy way out. It's not intentional. It's really not. I want to be SuperHusband/SuperDad all the time. But I end up laying in bed thinking, "He'll go back to sleep." "I'll just give him a few minutes to cry it out." "Its just a small fire." Thoughts like that.

So here's me last night:

And this is my wife last night, this morning, and probably today too:

And I take the blame for that one. It's something I really need to work on. Last night I was honestly listening to him cough (he's had a mild chest infection) and it didn't sound awful and he didn't sound awake. So I was hoping it would pass. However, I laid there too long. When Liz started to get up, I didn't move.

So today, this is me:

Sorry Sweetheart. You deserve better.

Mowing With Daddy

The picture of a small child helping his/her father mow the lawn should look like this:

Instead, I have a push mower. I'm one of only two guys on my block that does. The other guy is in much better shape than me, and thus, so is his yard. So the picture of me mowing the lawn with my son would look more like....

And that's just sad. And unsafe. Actually, I'm not sure the whole "mowing with daddy" thing is a good idea at all.

But I digress. Today I picked up our wonderful son from the babysitters because he was running a fever. He's had a minor ear infection and some sort of infection in his chest which is not nearly as frightening as it sounds. It just means he coughs quite a bit at night and he's feverish.

So today I waited unti he took a nap, then I hooked up the monitor outside (always, ALWAYS have the monitors with the red lights) and set to mowing the yard and breaking a land speed record. The yard is pristine, the land speed record remains elusive.

As I walked into the house, the toddler was just waking up in time to ruin Daddy's plans to take a nice long shower. Daddy instead took a combination shower/land speed record attempt. Long story short, the yard is mowed, the baby's fine, Daddy smells like Lever 2000, and the land speed record remains, still, elusive.

P.S. Oh, and if anyone wants to give me a very special present, I like Cub Cadets.

P.P.S. I'll bet the other blog fathers are wondering why they're pictures are on our blog.

P.P.P.S To follow P.S. [post script] P.P.S [post post script] is proper.

Saturday, In the Park

"Saturday in the park,

I think it was the fourth of July.

Saturday, in the park

I think it was the fourth of July."

-Saturday in the Park, Chicago

Ok, I'm not in the band Chicago. And we didn't go on a Saturday. And it was March, not at all near July. But it was warm, and we did go to the park.

And gee, I don't know, I guess the combination of spring weather, a lovely park, and spending time with my family put in the mood for song. So I composed a small illustrated poem.

We took our son to the park on Friday to feed the ducks and geese.

We took our son to the park to play on swings,

We took our son to play on a bus,

We took our son to play with us.

Too little time for pictures my dear,

has brought to the end I fear.

And while I know we'll meet again

I'll bid you adieu until then.

Our Son: Master of His Domain

A great prophet once said, "you have to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything."

Actually that wasn't a great prophet. It was country music artist Aaron Tippin. But that's neither here nor there.

We enjoyed the opportunity to babysit a couple of boys on Saturday night as part of our babysitter swapping program with members of our church. Our son enjoyed it too. He's not used to having other boys around the house. So he enjoyed the running, playing, throwing, and general anarchy that accompanies young boys.

But at some point a line was crossed. At some point, our son, went from friend to foe.

There are things in this life which are sacred: the bond of marriage, kinship, and the bond between a man and his favorite chair. Let this picture be a lesson to all those who might play with the fire of coming between any man and his favorite La-Z-Boy.

And while we are considering life lessons. Here's another one that has been learned over and over again through watching such programs as Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom and Animal Planet predator specials.

And that lesson is, to the victors go the spoils!!

Baby Swap Update...oh, and HE'S WALKING!!!!

Unfortunately, we've got no pictures for this update, but we do have good news.

Walking!!!!
First and foremost the young one is finally a walking toddler. True, we weren't in any great hurry to see him walking because we're clinging to his youth like the Real World casts cling to their fifteen minutes of fame. But it was starting to sting the pride a bit when everyone else's baby was walking and ours wouldn't. So we have been redeemed.

A special shoutout goes to friends Clint and Becky for apparently inspiring our son to walk. Clint lifted him up a time or two and before you know he's tottling across the floor to his daddy. As expected, he gets better day by day. We still have all kinds of falls and stumbles, but its becoming his primary mode of travel.

BabySwap 2007
Phase one of the first babyswap took place this Saturday night with Liz and I dropping the walking baby off with the preacher's family for a few hours. We got out and saw a really good movie, "The Pursuit of Happyness" (intentional misspelling) with Will Smith. Smith does a great job playing a father who's down on his luck and trying to do the best for his son. Great movie, I give it an A.

Then it was on to a casual dinner at Buckhead Cafe. I had the hickory burger, Liz, the chicken fingers. In true Clark W. Griswold fashion I goofed up a portion of dinner. (See, I tend to screw up something minor at least, at every opportunity we have for rare enjoyment.) Liz requested the German Chocolate Cake for dessert. So I naturally went and got her the German Chocolate Brownie.

But the positive news came when we picked up the lad and his sitters informed us that he had been great all night. No whining or crying at all. It's enough to make a fella proud.

New Parents...
I saw a good friend at the doctor's office yesterday. He is a new father of about two months now and one thing he said has become a point of minor contention is being polite to and considerate of his wife. When the baby arrives and the late night feedings begin, it's really easy to become too lazy and leave the wife to take care of it. With my friend and with myself, the situation was exacerbated by us being heavy sleepers. Even with the monitor being right next to my ear on the nightstand, I can sleep through our son crying if Liz is there.

That's not a blessing, it's a curse. Because it leaves you wide open to accusations of "playing possum." But if you do hear it, husbands, fathers, GET UP and do your part. Its the right thing to do and when the ladies get together, you'll have made strides toward protecting your reputation among the community.

Babyswap!

New from your friends at the Fox Network is Babyswap! The reality show where real life parents drop their kids off with other families so they can selfishly go out on a date by themselves.

Ok, it's not a reality show on Fox. Its actually a program some members of our church have decided to do. A kind of bartering system where one family watches your child(ren) so you and your loved one can remember what it was like to have a life. Then in return, you do the same at a later date.

It seems like a really teriffic idea at first. Then the first month pairings come out and my wife and I (with our ONE child) get matched up with one of our preachers and his family, of FOUR children. How is that equitable?

I don't really have a problem with it. They have great kids and I'm sure while challenging, it will be a lot of fun. It may also push me over the edge towards that vasectomy...kidding again.

It's a great idea and it will be nice for my wife and I to get out and enjoy dinner and a movie together. Even better that it will be in the month of February, near Valentine's Day. The Surgeon General recommends that married couples get at least one month of romance per year.

INTRODUCING.......

My name is Liz. I am Travis' other half and Aiden's mother as if you wouldn't know who I am. Most if not all who read this is family. I agreed to help Travis out with the blog much to my hesitation. I'm not a good writer or as funny as Travis but I can try. He's done a really good job of posting some great blogs. I'm proud of him. Remember comments are welcomed and encouraged. Until next time, have a good day.

The Firsts Diary: Chapter ?? First Haircut

"When you get a haircut

Be sure to go back home

When you get a haircut

Get a barber you have known

Since you were a little bitty boy

Sitting in a booster chair

Cause you might look like

Larry, Moe or Curly if a stranger cuts your hair."



-The Haircut Song,Ray Stevens


Due to the fact that our son was beginning to be mistaken for a girl with curly hair, we decided it was time for a haircut. Actually Liz decided that. I was in a bit of denial. Nevertheless, we took him for his first official haircut.

Before the haircut. Notice how freakishly pale I look. My goodness. You'd never know I have Native American ancestry.

I wanted to take our son to a barbershop. My wife wanted to take him to the hair salon at Dillard's. So we compromised and took him to the hair salon at Dillard's. (Thanks to "Rules of Engagement" and comedian Brad Garret for that joke.)



Much to our surprise, our son was very well behaved during the haircut.


Again, I have no idea where this pacificity came from.

The finished product. I must say he looks like quite the little gentleman now. And the lady at Dillard's was great. I think she was a bit apprehensive at first, but she handled it like a pro. She made it easy for all of us by keeping him occupied with some toys and things.

Calling in for Back-Up!

It takes a big man to admit when he needs help.

Well at 6 ft 235 lbs, I am that big of a man.

So I'm calling in for backup. Let's face facts. I'm pretty funny and I am abundantly proud of my son. But I can only post so much if I want to keep my job. So I'm calling in my partner in parenting to help out with the site.

Most of the readers are her family anyway, so it just makes sense.

So a big welcome to the woman who runs the show, Liz.

Growing and Growing

There's been something going on lately. Our son has been eating like a horse on a steroid binge and has been sleeping more and more. He took a nap Rip Van Winkle would envy on Saturday when he slept for over 3 hours.

When your child takes a three hour nap, you usually prepare for a short night of sleep. Nope. He even slept a little bit late on Sunday morning.

So what's going on? Obviously the first thing that came to my mind was that he was addicted to marijuana. After searching his nursery for contraban, paraphernalia and incense, I decided that was a dead end. (And remember kids, drugs always have a dead end.)

Then I considered that it may be a growth spurt. So this morning when getting him dressed I noticed that he was really taking up a lot of the changing pad. So my wife and I got out the measuring tape and did a quick measure on the dining room table. And voila, he's grown 2+ inches since his 1 year checkup in November.

So we're not as concerned about him brining home drugs from daycare now, but we'll continue to keep an eye on it. There are some older kids there. 2-3 year olds. And I don't have to tell you what kinds of problems they can get themselves caught up in.

In all seriousness, I was relieved to see that there was some growth that was vertical. The way he's been eating I was starting to think we were raising this generation's Fat Albert.

Until next time, "HEY! HEY! HEY, EVERYBODY!"

Play, Play, Play, play, pl...ZZZZZZ