Thing(s) I learned this week about raising my daughter...

I think this will probably be the theme of most of my blog posts ... and I have no idea how often I will do these ... if I get enough interest, maybe I'll post more (not a threat, by the way). So, here we go ... 1. My daughter was able to say the words "pizza" and "cheese" before she was able to say the names of any healthy foods ... hopefully, not a lapse in parenting on my part! 2. Elmo and Mickey mouse are apparently gods in Lydia's life right now. 3. It's going to take a little more effort on my part to convince my daughter that songs by the Rolling Stones are awesome ... although she is already able to do a pretty good Mick Jagger impersonation. 4. My daughter has already learned to imitate daddy's fart sounds ... again, a lapse in parenting? 5. Bobbleheads no longer scare Lydia ... and she has already broken two of them (my Nittany Lion bobblehead and Dwight Schrute bobblehead).

Where've I been?

Well - it's been 9 months since I last posted ... just haven't had time to post - I apologize! In the last year, we've gotten our house on the market, and purchased a new one ... then, of course, there's my daughter, Lydia - she is now 13 months old and is a terror (but in a good way!). I'll try to get back in the swing of things, but for the meantime, I'll share some pics of my beautiful daughter below - enjoy!


My daughter in the summertime - happy baby!



Liddy playing with her mommy's laptop.



Liddy enjoying her birthday cake (hmmph ... cake mittens!)



Liddy enjoying the Christmas tree.

Baby Thought of the Week ...

We just introduced cereal to Lydia's diet ... and I've realized that things won't get any easier from here ... poop is smelling a bit stronger now ... sigh.

Wacky News Stories

We've gotten so much rain around in the past month, that I've begun to grow webbed feet ...

1. On a man being in a critical condition after being shot in the head with a potato gun in a forest:
"According to sources, his brain is a littled 'mashed...' - a-thank-ya!"
http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/man-critical-after-potato-gun-discharges/story-e6frfku0-1226043645734

2. On a retired bus driver who loved comic books dying in a house fire that virtually gutted his modest home ... except for his comic book collection:
"My guess is that he probably didn't have a wife ..."
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1379697/Comic-book-collection-worth-millions-thing-survive-rips-enthusiasts-home.html?ITO=1490

3. On a substitute teacher who was arrested for drinking at school ... police found a bottle of Grey Goose in her drawer:
"Hic ... now, who in here wants to learn how to add using shot glasses ... hic!"
http://www.fox8.com/news/wjw-news-westlake-high-school-drunken-teacher-arrested,0,5326128.story


4. On a man who ran into a school because he had to evacuate his bowels causing an entire school evacuation:
"Wow ... that must've been one heckuva growler!"
http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-jefferson-co-elementary-school-evacuated-20110421,0,2604250.story

5. On beavers being blamed for Harrisburg water snafu:
"This sounds like a plot in a porno ..."
http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2011/04/report_beavers_blamed_for_harr.html

80's Corner

Oliver North's name was part of a big political scandal during the Reagan years of the 1980's. In a nutshell, this is an overview of the situation, according to Wikipedia:

"North was at the center of national attention during the Iran-Contra affair, a political scandal of the late 1980s. North was a National Security Council staff member involved in the clandestine sale of weapons to Iran, which served to encourage the release of U.S. hostages from Lebanon. North formulated the second part of the plan: diverting proceeds from the arms sales to support the Contra rebel groups in Nicaragua (funding to the Contras had been prohibited under the Boland Amendment amidst widespread public opposition in the U.S. and controversies surrounding human rights abuses by the Contras). North was charged with several felonies and convicted of three, but the convictions were later vacated, and the underlying charges dismissed due to the limited immunity agreement granted for his pre-trial public Congressional testimony about the affair."

But I'll always remember him with that goofy smile in the military outfit ... he seemed like he could've been friends with Gomer Pyle.

Dope or Nope ...

Pabst Brewing company is promoting a new "drink" called Colt 45's Blast. It's supposed to taste a little like soda, and it is marketed heavily that way. Plus, it is much stronger than regular Colt 45. So, is this a good idea - you know, for those people who don't really like the taste of alcohol but want to get drunk anyway? Or, is this something that is really being marketed to kids?

What are your thoughts? Colt 45 Blast - Dope or Nope?

Song of the Week ...

You've undoubtedly heard this song in a popular beer commercial recently (hint - from Amsterdam). The song, by a band named Brazilian Girls, is called Good Time ... the chorus is like an anthem - "All the Time ... All the time." The song itself is quite simple, with a "4-on-the-floor" disco-style drum beat, a rumbling base line, and simple guitar backing, with some creative keyboards weaving in and out of the song.

But what makes the song work is the chorus - it's simplicity is what makes it work - the lyrics are also quite simple, which can be refreshing in a complex world. The band states that all they want to do is have a good time ... all the time. Sometimes, that's what I want too.