My little mess

Here is what I found Carson doing when I got out of the shower this morning.



When I asked him what he was doing he responded brush teeth, brush teeth. I don't even know how he managed to get in the sink or how I didn't hear him climb up to get in. This sums up my child perfectly, he is into everything!

18 Months

Carson is now 18 months old and a lot has happened since last month:

Carson saw his first musical Dora Live. He really enjoyed it.
Carson also went to his first concert to see the Wiggles, which he loved.
He got his first haircut and he was so good, he didn't move around at all.
Learned to swim with water wings. He took to it the minute I put him in the water.


Carson had his 18 month check up on Friday he weighed 23lb 4oz (16th percentile) and is 33.5 inches tall (83rd percentile). His vocabulary has really expanded this past month. He is using over 20 words and is starting to put 2 words together. It is so great that he is able to communicate with Dave and I, it makes things so much easier. Physically Carson is also doing well. He can run, jump, climb, throw and walk backwards. I can't believe in 6 months he will be two. Time goes by so fast when you have children.

Ok, Brittany posted, now it's my turn. I just wanted to try a post via text message. The All-Star game was a blast, I'll post pics and vids later.

Here I go

Dave has told me he will not do another post until I do one, so here I go. I honestly don't like writing and I am a horrible at spelling and grammar so doing something like this is really hard for me but I will give it my best.

Carson is 17 months old today. I do not know where the time has gone. With each day that passes he is becoming more like a little boy. He has finally really started talking. I was a little worried because he wasn't really saying much of anything and then one day he said door. His favorite word right now is no. He uses it for everything. He will repeat almost any word that you ask and it is so cute to hear him pronounce the words. He also loves to do spins and forward rolls and tries to jump. Here is a video for you to enjoy.

I got my flippy floppys

Good day blogosphere! I've got a few weeks worth of updates here, so let's get started...

As usual, I will start things off with King Carson. He's growing up incredibly fast. He's really starting to walk now. It's as if he just decided one day to start walking, and he was off. I will upload a clip of him walking soon.

I think the biggest progress Carson has made is in the realm of food. He loves "real" food. He always wants what we are eating and likes to let us know when he wants what we have. He also likes some surprising food such as hummus, sautéed mushrooms, thai dumplings, and Italian style beef. Surprisingly, he also seems to like spicy food, just like mom and dad :). Now don't get the wrong idea, we're not feeding him habañero peppers or anything, but he does seem to like "Supremely Spicy Hummus". So it looks like we'll have a 3rd person to start cooking for around the house.

Carson recently had another "first", his first time passing out on the floor where he was playing. I was sitting on the floor with him while he was playing, and he decided to lay down. This was not abnormal, sometimes he lays down and plays. However, as he was laying there, he started to move less and less. Now I am really paying attention. Then I realized he was out. He was laying on the hardwood floor asleep. Brittany was off in the other room and noticed it was awfully quiet, so she poked her head out to see what was going on. I pointed to Carson and she saw he was asleep. Time to get the camera. As she came into the room, she snapped a picture. She wasn't close enough, so she tried to come closer. This woke him up, and he poked his head up, looked at us, and I thought it was over. On the contrary, after looking up at us, he proceeded to lay back down and go back to sleep. Now the hardwood floor is not the most comfortable surface, so he kept adjusting his hand and arm under his head to make it soft. After about a minute of this, he was out again. Time for more pictures. We found this quite amusing, and the pictures below are in sequential order.









Here are some other highlights from March...



That's about all I have for Carson, on to M-I-Z...Z-O-U!

I know the NCAA tournament has come and gone, but I feel the need to talk about it.

Awesome, terrific, kick ass...those words all describe this season of Mizzou basketball, but I think the one that sums everything up is elite, as in Elite 8. Mizzou pulled of some impressive wins and made it all the way to the Elite 8. They were very close to knocking off UConn, and in my opinion they should have, but a great run nonetheless. Thanks Tigers!

On a sad note, Rev. Dale Sterling Chapman, the man who married me and Brittany and dedicated Carson, passed away on April 4th. He was a veteran of WWII and a good man who touched many people's lives. R.I.P.





Brittany's birthday was on April 5th, and she decided she wanted to go bowling with our friends. We had a great time, my parents came over and watched Carson so Brittany could get crazy. And did she ever...she was out of control! Just kidding, she did have a good time though ;).

From the wide world of sports, baseball has started and the Blues made the playoffs! I guess that's not the wide world of sports, just St. Louis professional sports, but I digress...Opening day was a blast. The day started with heavy snowfall, that's right, snowfall. It was colder than a witch's titty, but it didn't stop us. People came over to our house, I stood by the BBQ grill and grilled our lunch. I didn't realize how cold it was until I stepped away from the fire. We proceeded to head downtown and meet up with the final member of our group before heading in. Did I mention it was cold? We had on sweatshirts, stocking caps, gloves, boots, the whole 9 yards...and we were drinking ice cold beer. Anyway, the game was great, and I managed to sneak into the Redbird club and out of the elements in the 7th inning, which was FANTASTIC. However, the Cards blew the game in the 9th and we lost. Oh well, we've been pretty good since then, including today's win against the Chicago baby bears.

I just thought of something, I have season tickets for the Cardinals, and I will not be going to every game I have tickets for. So if you have any interest in going to a game, let me know. I will also make a post on here when I am selling tickets. In fact, I have 2 tickets for 4/22 against the Mets, 2 tickets for 5/4 against the Phillies, and 2 tickets for 5/5 against the Phillies. The face value is $22/ticket, and that is what I am asking. They are in Section 511, Row 25, Seats 24 & 25. That is in the right field bleachers and the seats are on the aisle.

As I mentioned, the Blues made the playoffs for the first time in 5 years. It was improbable, as they were the worst team in the West in February, but they got hot and managed a 6 seed in the playoffs. We lost to Vancouver last night, but we can get them back tomorrow.

I experienced the joy of registering for my last semester of classes on Monday. I will be finished on the 19th of August, and commencement is on the 12th of September. The end is in sight and I am PUMPED! Now the only question is, after I am finished, then what? That could literally be the million dollar question.

Well that was a lot of updating, and I'm sure I forgot something, but that's OK, I can just post again. On that, I leave you with The Lonely Island's "I'm On A Boat". (WARNING: NSFW language).

The Ides of March

Happy March to everyone! Spring is just around the corner and it can't get here fast enough. I'm tired of wind chills, frosty mornings, scarves, and gloves. This Sunday morning is the first, and in my opinion, the best part...daylight savings! That's right, I will not have to drive home from work in the dark again!

Some Carson updates...

He is really getting in to walking now. He loves to stand up and he started to take a few steps on his own. They are very wobbly steps, but progress nonetheless. He also learned how to go down one step from a landing. He fell a couple of times, but he's fine. He claps for himself when he does that as well.

Just two short weeks after his first birthday party, we went to a friend of our's son's first birthday party. Carson had a good time and got to enjoy a bit more cake and ice cream.

Here are some pictures from February...



And a bully for ol' Mizzou...

I will not mention much about the whooping Mizzou got against kU, but I will mention how they defeated #5 Oklahoma to finish the season 18-0 at home! Also, kudos to the Zou Crew for finding the following picture of Oklahoma's Blake Griffin:



Original:



[Via: Mizzourah, via: The Lost Ogle]

A quick plug for my YouTube channel. You can view my videos, right now all of them are of Carson, at My YouTube Channel. Feel free to leave comments there (and here!).

This actually reminds me of something else, does anyone out there use Twitter or FriendFeed? I use both, and not a single other person from my e-mail address book does, unless I have an incorrect or missing address. So if you do, I am at Twitter and FriendFeed.

I am channeled my most hardcore inner nerd by adding Battlestar Galactica (TV series) to my Netflix queue. I have heard nothing but good things, so I am going to start with season 1 and see how it goes. If anyone watches it, let me know in the comments.



I leave you with a clip of Jimmy Fallon from his new late night show...

Carson is officially 1!!!

My apologies to those of you out in cyberspace that read this blog. More apologies for not posting for a while...on with the show!

First things first, Carson just celebrated his first birthday! February 14, 2009 was the big day. He enjoyed cake, presents, and the company of many friends and family. Below are some highlights from the big day...



We would again like to thank everyone for the gifts and for all the help we received to put this party on!

Breaking news...Carson stood up on his own for the first time, we have the exclusive footage...



Along with all of this excitement, Carson also had his 1 year check up. He is 20 lbs. 12 oz, and is 30 1/2" long. He got a few more shots, which is not fun, but he pulled through.

That's about all I can think of for Carson, on to moi...

I have officially jumped back on the wagon. I am working out 4 times a week in an effort to get back to where I should be. I'm running a couple of miles and doing the 100 push-up challenge and the 200 sit-up challenge. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Are you stimulated, because I sure am! Thanks to our fearless leaders in the government, I'll be getting a $13/week raise and there's enough pork in for a world-wide BBQ. Oh well, I can't complain too much, I still have a job.

On a final note, I am now really looking forward to taking Carson to the dentist when he's older [sinister laugh]...

Snow, Toys, Music, and Magical Mini Deer

Well, Carson had his first run in with snow last week. He didn't mind it, until he fell and got some on his face. Then, fuggitaboutit. He did not want to be let down out of our arms into that cold, white, powdery substance. And that's ok, we'll try again next year.

Below is video proof of the torture...

A trip down nostalgia lane occurred yesterday when I read this blog over at Wired. While I cannot say that I played with all of those, most of them make the list. I almost wept when I saw the Merlin. That was one of my favorite toys.



I also thoroughly enjoyed He-man and Voltron, having been given the action figures as gifts. I only wish I would have saved those.



Flight of the Conchords is coming to St. Louis at the end of April. I want to go, but I'm not convinced that $40 is a reasonable price to see the show. It is at the Fabulous Fox Theater, but I'm not sure. If you are not familiar with them, they are two fellas from New Zealand that have a show on HBO.

While I am generally happy with my current job, I want to apply for another job. It is only a 6 month assignment, but it pays well and has some nice fringe benefits. Here is the website dedicated to said employment opportunity. I have to submit a 60 second application video by the 21st of February. Here's a snippet from the website about the responsibilities...

Explore and report back

There’s so much to see and do, so you’ll have plenty to write about in your weekly blog. And with so much life above and below the water, you’re sure to capture some entertaining moments for your video diary and photo gallery. To keep you busy, Tourism Queensland will organise a schedule of travel and events on the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef. Your schedule could include sampling a new luxury spa treatment at qualia on Hamilton Island, trying out new snorkelling gear on Heron Island, or bushwalking on Hinchinbrook Island.

Feed the fish

There are over 1,500 species of fish living in the Great Barrier Reef. Don’t worry – you won’t need to feed them all.

Clean the pool

The pool has an automatic filter, but if you happen to see a stray leaf floating on the surface it’s a great excuse to dive in and enjoy a few laps.

Collect the mail

You’ll have some time on your hands, so why not join the aerial postal service for a day? It’s a great opportunity to get a bird’s eye view of the reef and islands.

It sounds pretty rough. BTW, the job pays AU$150,000 (about US$100,000). Is it too good to be true? There's only one way to find out.

The Wiggles...Australia's "They Live" or "Poltergeist"?

We have a 2 year old nephew who LOVES The Wiggles. For those who are not familiar, go here. Anyway, it looks like Carson has picked up the Wiggles bug as well. He loves them. He will stop whatever he's doing if they come on. He's not even 1 yet. Something is fishy here...



Here is a picture of Carson watching The Wiggles in our upstairs TV room...



Does that remind you of another certain movie...



I am a tad concerned at this point. I may experiment by turning the show off while he's watching and see if he becomes hostile or starts speaking in tongues.

On a positive note, his first birthday is in three weeks! I can't believe how fast the first year has gone. I'd love to throw a party Billy Madison style...petting zoo, rock band, cotton candy machine, Norm Macdonald, etc. but I think that might be a bit much.



Carson has not started completely walking on his own yet, but he does walk behind his "walker" and he can take 2 or 3 steps on his own. Soon enough, he'll be zipping around the house, hooray! This is especially exciting because almost every surface in our house is wood, which is hard. My prediction...pain.

Carson recently had his first experience at the Magic House. He went with his cousins Nathan and Blake, as well as mom and aunt Brooke. They had a good time, but I think he'll enjoy it more when he's no longer a quadruped.

Carson recently recovered from his first bout of a stomach virus. It was coming out of both ends and he was waking up from vomiting in his bed. Lots of laundry and extra love was needed for a few days, but he's doing better now.

A positive note regarding Sir Carson of Matlock...we finally taught him how to fall asleep on his own. No nursing, no rocking, no patting, just laying down awake and falling asleep without crying. It's wonderful.

Enough about Carson, I want to share a story about upgrading RAM on my laptop. I finally decided to max out the RAM in my laptop, and when it arrived, I was more than anxious to install it. Now I know from the specs that there are two modules and there is an access plate on the bottom of the machine. So, I turn off the machine, flip it over, open the plate and...one module. WTF? Ok, so I boot it back up after installing the one module and look at the repair manual. I can't believe what I am seeing, I have to take out 12 screws and remove the keyboard to get to the other module. Now I have no problems with doing this, but seriously, all that for a RAM upgrade? For shame, HP.

This makes sense...



This does not...



So Kurt Warner is back in the Super Bowl. I'm happy for him and the Arizona Cardinals. Larry Fitzgerald is literally leaps and bounds better than every opponent he has faced thus far. With Pittsburgh's defense, it should be a good game. I like both teams, so I'm just hoping for an exciting game.

Also, it looks like we inagurated a new president last week. I wish him the best of luck.

Toodles for now...

Dave

President Carson

I'm about to go to bed, but before I do, I want to post this picture that was taken the other day. I CAN HAS PREZIDENCY?