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September 22, 2005

Jonah And Caroline...

This past Wednesday, October 5th, 2005, Jonah celebrated his ninth month birthday. Okay, so he didn't really celebrate, but his Mom and I took a moment to look back on nine months and reflect. As we reflected, one common theme crept in: Where the !@#*! did the nine months go? As parents, we are learning that time is flying. We are also learning that Jonah is getting bigger and bigger every day. It's somewhat bittersweet, as we love to see him so small and cute, but we have so much fun watching him discover the world around him. Two teeth are in, and two more are coming in, and we are getting worn out chasing him around the house, but we wouldn't have it any other way.

Jonah loves pulling himself up on our coffee table.

He also loves to eat the coffee table. (Will this stunt his growth?)

Here he is coming back to earth...

...and back on his tushy.

Zoe and Jonah have an interesting relationship. She loves to lick his face over and over again, and he can't get enough of it. However, it grosses us out, so we try not to let it go on too much. Sometimes, Jonah will grab the poor dog, who whines, until we can get the boy to loosen his grip. This dog is nuts. But thankfully, these two have co-existed very well since they met.

Here's Jonah enjoying his time in the sun...

And as my father would say, "When Jonah eats, everything eats!" Seriously, this kind of thing grosses me out. I really don't know why. As a Firefighter, I see all kinds of gross things, but for some reason, food coming back out just makes me want to wretch. Go ahead, look at the pics. I won't. I'll join you after they are over...

Megan took those pics because she thought they would be cute. And, to a point, they are. But the food everywhere is just awful. (To me.) But they are required, I suppose, so there they are. This next picture is of Jonah rejecting some strained nastiness that Megan had me feed him. A few weeks ago, Megan was attending the baby shower for a friend of her's from high school. While she was there, I was instructed to feed the boy. (My wife Megan is amazing at being a Mom. She takes such good care of Jonah, that I am left in awe. That being said, there are things that she just does so much better than I could ever hope two, specifically, feeding Jonah and clothing him. I always get arms stuck, and legs bent into ways the weren't meant to bend, but she can dress that boy in no time, and with very little fuss. I have to call her in for assistance. The same is true of feeding our little guy. As I said earlier, I cannot stand to see food come back out, so I generally avoid it for that reason, and because again, Megan is so much better at it.) In this case, while Megan was gone, I was to feed him strained yuck. The first attempt went pretty normally. He gagged a bit, made a face, and then swallowed the stuff. The second spoonful, he gagged, and spit it back out. Because Megan thinks that I am impatient with Jonah, I was going to stick to my guns, and feed this kid come hell or high water. The third spoonful ended up just as you see it in this picture. I had to take this picture, because if I didn't have actual, real photographic evidence, she would never believe that I actually tried to feed him. Needless to say, he only had three spoonfuls, and we just went back to the bottle. (He to his, and me to mine.)

And after lunch, Jonah got in some lovin' on his cousin...

...Awww....

And what a beautiful little girl Caroline is.

She and Jonah are going to be very close. That is important to us, and we look forward to posting many, many more cute pictures of these two in the future!

THE END!!!!

Posted by Jon at 09:40 PM | Comments (0)

September 18, 2005

Pirate Redux...

History was made on September 17th, 2005, when we hosted our 2nd annual International Talk Like A Pirate Day Party. Why was history made? Because the party is over, the clean up is almost completed, and the party is pretty much history. Except for some cute pictures, and the wonderful Piratical memories that we have, that's all we've got, so, it's one for the books. To refresh your memory, I first heard about TLAPD on a morning radio show I used to listen to. (Used to, because I now have XM Satellite Radio, and it's like a gift from the gods!) The holiday is celebrated on September 19th, but who has a party on a Monday? Too many conflicts. So, we party, me hearties, on the weekend before the blessed event, so we can have a party on the weekend! Of course, I talked like a pirate on Monday Septmeber 19th, 2005, and hopefully others did as well! Arrr! Last year was our first attempt at this, and each year we find something we could have done better. For my part, I could have taken a lot more pictures, and I would have, were I not having such a good time. (I should be made to walk the plank for that.) For Megan's part, she could have done nothing better, because she was absolutely stellar, again, in the food department. She cooked, cleaned, took care of Jonah, and played the part of a fantastic hostess to our guests and their families. Besides a few spills here and there, all went perfectly. (With the exception of notable absences of Abby, who was feeling under the weather, Jon and Tami who were celebrating their wedding anniversary, Randy and Demetra who were working, Eric, Lori and Mark who were enjoying the State game, and Keir who was watching the UNC game in person. If I missed anyone, I apologize.) And now, pictures of Pirate Party Number Two! (By the way, ya'll join us next year on Saturday September 16, 2006. That's a tentative date, you landlubbers, so avast me hearties, and we'll see you there!)

What pirate party is complete without piratical stuff and booty?

Or food?

Here's our littlest pirate, the Dread Pirate Kidd!

Aaarrr....

Dirty Morgan Rackham and the Dread Pirate Kidd! Fear them, you scurvy bilgerats!

Where's me grog?

Pirate Noah...

Noah and Mommy Pirate Sharon.

Here's Caroline ready to board, and buckle her swash!

Here are the two Captains of their respective ships...

This was Emily's first chance to hold Samantha...

Caroline and Sharon enjoy a moment of piracy...

Mad Anne Bonney (Amanda) and the Dread Pirate Kidd (Jonah) plot their mutiny...

Bryce and Megan had a large time brandishing their cutlasses and making peons walk the plank!

Sam gives her dad Jason the hook...

Heath was just plain tuckered out from pillaging...

Captain Jenny Kidd (Emily) makes a great Pirate, doesn't she?

The sleepiest Pirate...

And Dirty Morgan Rackham spends some quality Pirate time with Caroline.

Posted by Jon at 06:41 PM | Comments (0)

September 16, 2005

Time, Current Events And New Pictures!

Hello Again Everyone!

First of all, let me start off by apologizing for not keeping up with my 'blog. My brother in law Keir set it up for me, and what do I do with it? I let it sit abandoned on the shoulder of the Information Superhighway, like some broken down barnacle barge. (That reference is for all the Brady Bunch people out there, and you know who you are.)

Time is a funny thing. It does a lot of things to you, for you, and against you. It can make you speed up, it can make you slow down, it can make you late, it can make you early, it can help you to enjoy the greatest things life can bring you, or it can terrorize you with its pace. It is time that causes you to NOT do things you want or need to do. But most of all, time doesn't care. Time isn't interested if you make your appointment or not. Time is uncaring as to wether you catch your plane or not. Time turns its back on you when you really, really, really want to update a weblog, but for some reason or another, just can't find the time. As we also know, time is relentless. You can't get it back, you can't catch up, and you can't make amends for time you have lost. For this reason, spend the next little while catching up with me and my family, as a lot has happened since the last time I posted anything here. Jonah is getting bigger and cuter, we've had visits with family, and we have a new one in the works. All of which I will get to in the next few entries. So, again, please accept my apologies, and enjoy what you have been missing!

Let's see...

I guess that I have to start with Jonah's very first trip to the beach, and his very first experience in a pool! But no mention of our coastal North Carolina trip can begin without mentioning Jodi. Jodi is Megan's cousin, and was visiting her mom and dad, (Megan's Aunt and Uncle) who live near Wilmington. So you all have a frame of reference, here is Jodi:

Of course, Jonah is being held by Jodi, and the adorable girl standing to your right (Jodi and Jonah's left) is Aarika, Jodi's daughter.

Before I continue, I have to say that I was threatend bodily by Jodi, if I didn't put her on my 'blog, so the rest of this entry is dedicated to my cousin-in-law, Jodi, and, by extension, her beautiful daughter, Aarika.

This was the first time that Jodi and Aarika had met Jonah, and the three of them got along famously, whatever that means. They enjoyed each other's company, and we all look forward to getting together very, very soon.

But the weekend (unlike this entry) was not dedicated solely to Jodi and Aarika. The weekend was actually a triumvirate of events. (Look it up. That's what my mom always told me to do.)

The weekend was a celebration of Abby's birthday. Being a gentleman, I refuse to yield her age to you. (You'll have to ask her yourself.) I was always taught that you never ask a woman's age, or her weight. I am still here on this planet, thanks to a politcally correct upbringing.

Doesn't the cake look yummy? It was. Trust me.

Are you keeping track with the troika of events that went on that weekend? Let's recap:

So far, Jodi and Aarika meet Jonah for the first time.

Next, Abby celebrates the day of her birth.

Third...

Jonah enjoys his first time going to a pool! On the first day we were there, Jonah didn't really know what to make of it. We floated with him, we splashed with him, and watched for the very first time, as his tiny (not so much anymore, believe me) hands and feet got pruney. But on the second day, he was loving it! In fact, baths are now a much more memorable experience, as he loves taking baths now! Whoo-hoo!

Of course, being proud, protective, paranoid, parents, we took precautions. (I love alliteration.)

Here, Jonah is having sunscreen slathered on by his Mom, Megan.

And then, his first entry into the watery depths!!!!

He is sitting in this kind of inflatable seat, which took me entirely too long to blow up, and from which I am still recovering. Honestly, he had more fun with one of us holding him.

See?

And then, depressingly, it was time to go. Time to towel the boy off, and head back to Aunt Ginny and Jerry's house for dinner.

But swimming, tanning, and being un-endingly cute takes a toll on a body...

I, unlike my wife, and now, apparently, my son, don't care for the beach that much. Sure, I'll go, but that's because I am the driver. Reluctantly I get into a swimsuit, but I rarely get into an ocean, lake or other body of water, because there are other things in there. Ecchh. Anyway, after almost a full weekend of frivolity, we again patronized one of the greatest restaurants in the Great State of North Carolina. Where did we go?

We went here:

The Provision Company is a dockside restaurant, where if you have the means, you can idle your watercraft right up to the dock, tie up, and enjoy your meal, waterside. I'm no shill for these people, but if they asked me to be one, I wouldn't turn them down. It is here that the weekend came to a close for us, but not before I was able to get some really great pics...

And a great time was had by all!!!!

And lastly, I leave you with this...

Megan, Jonah and I miss all of you very much. We hope that you are all in good health, and in better spirits. We hope to see you soon!

Until next time OutOfHans.com visitors, this is your Blog Guy, signing off, saying, "What is life, if not an adventure?"

Posted by Jon at 08:08 PM | Comments (1)