I'm Ready Mr. Demille

So I told Aidan, "Hey, you need a profile pic for social networking."

He's like, "Ok, Dad.  Gimme the camera."

The Boy Feeds

Now that Aidan is the big 0.5 years old (six months), he is ready to start making new kinds of messes.  Tonight, mushy rice stuff was on the menu.

So, Aidan, are you ready to start weaning from the bottle and to take the next step towards getting older and wiser?

"Uhh...sure.  But first, what is this contraption you've strapped me into?"

That's a handy-dandy portable highchair, son.  Here, try this.

"Say, that's not half bad, Pops!"

I'm glad you like it, and this is just the beginning!  There are so many different foods and food combinations that you have at least a million flavors yet to try!

"..."

I know, it's hard to fathom at six months.  Are you ready for more food?

"I was born ready."

Okay, here comes Grandma Trish!

"Must...keep...eating..."

I think it's time we cut you off boy'o.  Here's three ounces for the road.

"What about the *yawn* million other flavors?"

All in good time, Aidan.  All in good time.

Rock Him Like a Hurricane

...because a live rendition of the Scorpions is as good as any lullaby to Aidan. Regardless of the man-sized speakers and the cannon-like subwoofers, the sandman came anyway; creeping along in his parachute pants with his big hair bobbing to the beat.

HERE I AM!!! ROCK YOU LIKE A HURIC...zzzZZzZZZzzz

One woman at our table said, "If my kid was like that as a baby, I would have had three more." I guess Erin and I take Aidan's supernatural sleeping ability for granted. Now we know just how lucky we are.

Tonight I'll put on some AC DC to help relax him.

First Ocean Trip

From the dry, hot heat of California’s inland, we made our way to the coast for cooler weather and good times. A thick, ominous marine layer waited to embrace us!

And so, Aidan saw the ocean for the first time last weekend.  His reaction?

Even though he won’t remember the trip, Aidan still seemed to enjoy himself.  The majesty of the mighty Pacific ocean might not have impressed the little guy, but a waving flag brought him endless joy.  Ah, to live life so simply.

Despite the fact that Aidan has started cutting his teeth, he was very agreeable.  He did a LOT of sleeping, some whining, and plenty of smiling and laughing.

Baby Gear Review!

Item: The Peapod
Purpose: For the outdoorsman in your baby, the Peapod was designed to be a mobile crib. Complete with a blowup mattress, hand pump, mattress cover, and bug screen, baby is ready to brave the elements under adult supervision.  For your convenience, the Peapod was crafted to pop-up in the blink of an eye!
Outcome:  We love our Peapod!  It’s compact, easy to set up, and easy to pack up.  Aidan was fully protected from any bugs and comfy on his air mattress.  This is a must have for any camping enthusiast.

Soon after we arrived, my parents took us out to the bay where we piled in a boat and cruised along the coast of Point Reyes, a wildlife reserve.  We observed countless jellyfish, seals, river otters, ospreys, blue herrings, white elk, pelicans, sand pipers, and more.  There were photo-ops galore!!!

Just hand me my martini and I’m ready to rock n’ roll!

It was truly amazing.  If you get the chance to visit California’s coast, you should really hike the Point Reyes trails or boat into the less accessible areas.  You won’t be disappointed.

As is tradition, my folks whipped up some home made cioppino (cha-pee-no).  Ever hear of it?  This is what it looks like…

Open up and say, “AAAAHHHHH!!!”.  It looks like a dish from a horror film, right?  Well if you love seafood, you’ll love cioppino.  It has crab, scallops, clams, muscles, mushrooms, and olives simmering in a zesty cioppino sauce.  Mmmmmm!  It was a great meal to end the day on.

Afterwards, we left in style with the car that makes having a baby so much easier, the Pacifica.
(More about my Chrysler Pacifica blog post can be read here - Pacifica)

First Mountain Trip

We took the new car up the hill and into the mountains to a lake. His first mountain/lake trip. Also his first time feeling sand and lake water.

Aidan seemed very interested in his new surroundings and didn’t complain except when he was hungry. He took the cold lake water like a champ.

The dogs seemed to have just as much fun as the baby!

A Gay Time on a Boat

Aidan’s first boat trip was a huge success! His Great-Uncle Ray was celebrating his 60th birthday and invited us to come along. It’s a big deal, too, because he is a recent cancer survivor, thank goodness! We had the whole third tier to our party. We were able to see all of the bridges make way for the ferry as we passed them by. Aidan was a real sport the entire time as he barely complained and seemed to enjoy himself. Of course, he didn’t sleep a wink and conked out as soon as we docked.




We were also fortunate enough to have an excellent waiter by the name of Jim. He was very attentive and prompt. There was just one small issue. Jim seemed to be flirting with me. No one else noticed either! I simply passed it off as me misinterpreting the gentleman.

Later I needed to run a quick errand so I went down the stairs to the second story and found myself with Jim as he was opening a door. I smiled as I started to pass by.
“Would you like anything else?” Jim asked with a grin.
“Oh no, thanks though,” I replied.
“Okay,” he said as he rested his hand behind my shoulder, “you just let me know if you do.”
To my right, no one is down the corridor. To my left, no one is coming down the stairs. It’s just me, Jim…and his hand. I’m a deer caught in the headlights. He releases me and I go back upstairs without doing whatever it was I was supposed to do.

I’m no homophobe, but that sure was awkward. Apparently I showed up on his gaydar and I have no idea why. Stupid “Brokeback Mountain”, western clothes will never be the same again.

The Baptism

After six long weeks of planning and preparation, Aidan’s baptism is over and done with. With practically no time to rest during those weeks we can now look back on our hard work and see that it really paid off. The party was a huge success!



No falls, no bites or stings, no shortage of food or drink, no heat stroke, no ill-tempers, plenty of fun, merriment, conversation and smiles.

Well, there was one incident. I had accidentally disturbed a yellow jacket nest and one of them attacked me. It got caught in my hair, I flailed, but it wasn't able to bite me. There must have been a blessing upon my head!

The only tiny drawback was the fact that none of the children were able to ride our horse, Willie, around, or feed the goats treats. We’ll make sure that’s checked off the list next time.

I’d like to thank everyone for all they brought to the potluck barbecue and all that was done beforehand. It couldn’t have possibly gone so smoothly without all of the necessities Chris and my mom brought that weekend; dozens of chairs, a plethora of tables, the pool, the ice, the shade, and much more. My mother-in-law was also pivotal to the party’s success for she helped almost every day with the house and property work; planting, weeding, dishes, laundry and running who knows how many errands.

Thank you Berni for bringing more necessities, thank you John for helping set up and a big “THANKS!” to everyone who came to support Aidan.

Despite all that was done, none of it would have been possible without Gina and Shane. They thought of, and delivered, Father Thomas. And it was he who had the idea of doing the ceremony outside. Not many priests would have the gumption to perform a baptism outside of the church. So thank you Gina, Shane, and Father Thomas for getting the ball rolling in the right direction. It was truly a blessing and will stay in our hearts forever.

Mass was one of the best I’ve witnessed. The amazing thing was that the only powerful gusts of wind we had all day came up and blew during key parts of the baptism. It felt like a true blessing from God. I really should have put the dogs away though because Hunter was chasing bugs amid the chairs and begging the priest for some Eucharistic bread.

The Baby Wears the Pants

We have an upcoming baptismal party next week that we’ve been scrambling to get ready for over the past six weeks and all of our resources are being put into the effort. When I get home we work on the house, on my days off we do yard work and any extra income goes toward hosting necessities. Since this is our first party on the property, we’ve needed a lot of stuff: canopies, paint, fencing, yard tools, lumber and miscellaneous décor. Because of this, Erin and I have been sacrificing where we can and cutting the budget up accordingly. Unfortunately, the food bill took a hit and my lunches have gone from plentiful abundance to a P&J sandwich, a bagel and another P&J sandwich. As I was eating my dry, hard bagel and sipping my tap water it occurred to me that prisoners eat better than I do. Bread and water is what third world countries live off of! I touched my cheek…yup, gaunt.

Then I came home one evening and noticed fresh bags of stuff on the table. I asked Erin what was in the bags and she said “I bought some flowers for the front garden, some Miracle Gro and some potting soil.”

What I heard was, “I bought some greens you can’t eat, food (for the flowers) and a bag of dirt.”

DIRT!!!

Silently I wondered how long it would be before I ate Finnegan.
(This is Finnegan)

Clearly I am no longer the king of the castle. I’ve been overthrown by the new king, Aidan, and rightly so. Erin and I want his party to be a hit so that people will want to come back to his future parties. He is very well-loved and his family will do what it takes for him. From riding in the Safety 1st Air Protect car seat to shopping at Goores. From drinking the best formula to starving his father, Aidan wears the pants in the family.

Lil' Redneck

Ok, I know this is TERRIBLE, but it had to be done...for comedic purposes.

Pic #1
Which is funny enough.


Pic #2
Photoshop is great!

My Son, Aidan

Born on April the 16th, Aidan weighed in at 8lbs 3oz with a length of 21.5in. His astrological sign claims that he will be a stubborn one and he proved it in the delivery room. As the time drew near for Aidan to arrive, the doctor checked him and found that he was sunny-side up, which means he was facing Erin's stomach. This tends to make birth harder because the head doesn't fit through the hips as it should. So the doc reached in, grabbed Aidan's head and turned him to face downward. Success! Oh no, wait...he didn't like his new position and was stronger than the doctor's fingers so Aidan flipped himself back to facing up. The nurses were worried about him coming through the canal but he ended up turning himself at the last minute. So, 56 hours of labor later, Aidan was born!

Now he's happy, healthy and the size of a four month old at nine weeks. Height runs in both sides of his family so it's no surprise that he's in the 99th percentile in weight and 96th percentile in height.