I know what you're saying to yourself....."fun" and "exercise" are mutually exclusive. As you may have read in a previous post, Hubby has been working out to the Dance Dance Revolution game. AJ really likes to dance, too. I just HAD to post some video of AJ exercising. The video borders on long (about five minutes), but parts of it are just too cute for words!
Now get out there and get your groove on....
(Sorry the video is rather dark. It was 8pm....and pay no attention to the pile of toys AJ put in the corner before he could dance.)
Monday, July 30, 2007
Saturday, July 28, 2007
A message from AJ's Dad
Cindy has always said that she would give me the password and let me post on her blog if I wanted to. I've never felt like I have had anything important enough to say until now. However, it is midnight on Saturday morning and my family is currently sound asleep. I however, am wide awake and I have been forced to hack into Cindy's blog account because I have something important to say.
This weekend is my high school class' 20th anniversary reunion. This really doesn't interest me very much as I have not kept up with very many people from high school. Actually, I have kept up with only one person. My high school class had something like over 500 members in it. And only one of these was ever important enough to me to keep up with. At any rate, my friend asked me to come out to an unofficial reunion event tonight at the Firehouse Saloon. Since I do not get many opportunities to spend with my fried as he lives in the Dallas area now I obliged, despite the fact that I never cared for the "bar scene" even in my younger days.
Now as any of you that I have attended one of these events is aware everyone that you run into (whether they know or knew you or not) feels obliged to ask, "What have you been up to?" Yeah, like I am going to give you the history of my past 20 years. I don't even remember your name. Nevertheless, as some point during the evening and amongst the conversations I was forced to ponder what has happened to me over the past 20 years.
Has my life turned out as I expected it to? Am I where I wanted to be by this time in my life? Have I acheived my goals?
Again, if you have attended any of these events I would be willing to bet you can answer some of these questions in a very similar manner that I can. In case you are interested, my answer to all three of the above questions is a resounding no. However, the answer to the more important question is a resounding YES. What is that question? Am I happy with my life?
Over the past 20 years I have had many experiences. Some good and many not so good. In fact, my life has not turned out at all the way I expected. And I am nowhere near where I thought I would be. I don't know if I have acheived my goals. I must admit that I was never sure what my goals were.
But I am very happy with my life. I am not rich and successful (at least in the way that the world defines these phrases) by any stretch of the imagination. Like most of you I have had to scratch and claw my way to where I am today. But I am here and I have done it (to quote Frank Sinatra) my way. But most of all I have two things that nobody from my high school class, none of you, and in fact nobody else in the entire world will ever have.
This leads me to the reason I have hacked into Cindy's account.
Several years ago I lost a somebody that was the most important thing in my life -- my mother. My mother was my best friend and my greatest cheerleader. Whatever I chose to do or not do my mother was there to support me. No offense to any of your mothers or any of you mothers, but my mother was simply the greatest in the world. You would have to know the entire history to know why and I don't have time to tell you. This is already getting long. Now you are probably wondering about something that I lost. Because as is His way God took something valuable away from me only to replace it with something even better.
My wife has become my one and only cheerleader. She is there to support me in anything that I choose to do or not do. Best of all, no matter what happens my wife is always there to love me, comfort me and be with me. She truly has become my help mate and my confidant. She is my wife and my best friend. And nobody in the entire world will ever have my wife. She is mine and only mine - and I hers.
Cindy and I have been through some great time over the last several years. We have also been through some of the hardest times of our lifes together. Those of you that have been reading Cindy's post for a long time know what those hardest times are. If you don't you are going to dig back into the archives to find out because it is a long story and this is already getting long.
Nevertheless, I have one more thing that nobody in the world will ever have. I have one possesssion that is more valuable than all the gold ever found, lost, and to be found in the world. That one thing is my son, AJ. It has been nearly 3 years since AJ entered our lifes. In those three years I have experienced times that have put my faith in God to the test and I have received blessings beyond my imagination. This evening, before I left AJ brought me a few books to read to him. I read the books to him, albeit begrudingly at the time. In fact, I now feel guilty about this. These moments that I spent with the little guy are so priceless, when he looks at me and says, "I love you too, Daddy" I realize that every experience that I have ever had in my life, every path that I have been down as been to be this little boy's daddy. This is the job I was meant to have and this is the job that I embrace. I am proud to be AJ's Dad! And nobody else can ever say that.
However, I also look at AJ and I grow frightened. Frightened that I can not live up to the expecations that AJ has of me. Frightened by the very job that I embrace and love. But that leads me to the last thing that I have. But this thing is free to everyone. I have a Lord and Saviour that will always stand with me to guide and counsel me with the wisdom to do this job. A God that has promised me all the riches of Heaven and Earth. Afterall, it is the Father God, Jesus Christ and The Holy Spirit that has led me through all these experiences to bring me to here. To this place that I love and that I am happy with.
I am richer than any of you can be because I have Cindy and AJ. Nevertheless, I pray that every Daddy out there can be as rich as I am.
Cindy and AJ: This is meant for both of you to know how much I love both of you -- and I want everyone to know. Thanks for being my family!
Now, this has gotten pretty long already. If you will excuse me I need to email my wife the new password to her account so she can continue to bring you her Adventures in Toddlerhood. Thank you for allowing me to ramble on about my blessings and my family.
This weekend is my high school class' 20th anniversary reunion. This really doesn't interest me very much as I have not kept up with very many people from high school. Actually, I have kept up with only one person. My high school class had something like over 500 members in it. And only one of these was ever important enough to me to keep up with. At any rate, my friend asked me to come out to an unofficial reunion event tonight at the Firehouse Saloon. Since I do not get many opportunities to spend with my fried as he lives in the Dallas area now I obliged, despite the fact that I never cared for the "bar scene" even in my younger days.
Now as any of you that I have attended one of these events is aware everyone that you run into (whether they know or knew you or not) feels obliged to ask, "What have you been up to?" Yeah, like I am going to give you the history of my past 20 years. I don't even remember your name. Nevertheless, as some point during the evening and amongst the conversations I was forced to ponder what has happened to me over the past 20 years.
Has my life turned out as I expected it to? Am I where I wanted to be by this time in my life? Have I acheived my goals?
Again, if you have attended any of these events I would be willing to bet you can answer some of these questions in a very similar manner that I can. In case you are interested, my answer to all three of the above questions is a resounding no. However, the answer to the more important question is a resounding YES. What is that question? Am I happy with my life?
Over the past 20 years I have had many experiences. Some good and many not so good. In fact, my life has not turned out at all the way I expected. And I am nowhere near where I thought I would be. I don't know if I have acheived my goals. I must admit that I was never sure what my goals were.
But I am very happy with my life. I am not rich and successful (at least in the way that the world defines these phrases) by any stretch of the imagination. Like most of you I have had to scratch and claw my way to where I am today. But I am here and I have done it (to quote Frank Sinatra) my way. But most of all I have two things that nobody from my high school class, none of you, and in fact nobody else in the entire world will ever have.
This leads me to the reason I have hacked into Cindy's account.
Several years ago I lost a somebody that was the most important thing in my life -- my mother. My mother was my best friend and my greatest cheerleader. Whatever I chose to do or not do my mother was there to support me. No offense to any of your mothers or any of you mothers, but my mother was simply the greatest in the world. You would have to know the entire history to know why and I don't have time to tell you. This is already getting long. Now you are probably wondering about something that I lost. Because as is His way God took something valuable away from me only to replace it with something even better.
My wife has become my one and only cheerleader. She is there to support me in anything that I choose to do or not do. Best of all, no matter what happens my wife is always there to love me, comfort me and be with me. She truly has become my help mate and my confidant. She is my wife and my best friend. And nobody in the entire world will ever have my wife. She is mine and only mine - and I hers.
Cindy and I have been through some great time over the last several years. We have also been through some of the hardest times of our lifes together. Those of you that have been reading Cindy's post for a long time know what those hardest times are. If you don't you are going to dig back into the archives to find out because it is a long story and this is already getting long.
Nevertheless, I have one more thing that nobody in the world will ever have. I have one possesssion that is more valuable than all the gold ever found, lost, and to be found in the world. That one thing is my son, AJ. It has been nearly 3 years since AJ entered our lifes. In those three years I have experienced times that have put my faith in God to the test and I have received blessings beyond my imagination. This evening, before I left AJ brought me a few books to read to him. I read the books to him, albeit begrudingly at the time. In fact, I now feel guilty about this. These moments that I spent with the little guy are so priceless, when he looks at me and says, "I love you too, Daddy" I realize that every experience that I have ever had in my life, every path that I have been down as been to be this little boy's daddy. This is the job I was meant to have and this is the job that I embrace. I am proud to be AJ's Dad! And nobody else can ever say that.
However, I also look at AJ and I grow frightened. Frightened that I can not live up to the expecations that AJ has of me. Frightened by the very job that I embrace and love. But that leads me to the last thing that I have. But this thing is free to everyone. I have a Lord and Saviour that will always stand with me to guide and counsel me with the wisdom to do this job. A God that has promised me all the riches of Heaven and Earth. Afterall, it is the Father God, Jesus Christ and The Holy Spirit that has led me through all these experiences to bring me to here. To this place that I love and that I am happy with.
I am richer than any of you can be because I have Cindy and AJ. Nevertheless, I pray that every Daddy out there can be as rich as I am.
Cindy and AJ: This is meant for both of you to know how much I love both of you -- and I want everyone to know. Thanks for being my family!
Now, this has gotten pretty long already. If you will excuse me I need to email my wife the new password to her account so she can continue to bring you her Adventures in Toddlerhood. Thank you for allowing me to ramble on about my blessings and my family.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
So THAT"s what a navel is for!
After bath and before bedtime last night, AJ was cuddling with me in my chair. He decided he wanted me to read his "Jesus book" again. About halfway through the book, he tells me he wants to go to Jesus' house. "I 'na see Jesus house, mommy."
I pointed to his little chest and told him that Jesus lives in there. In his heart.
AJ lifted up his shirt, pointed to his navel, and asked me if Jesus went in through his belly button!
Now THAT'S classic!
I pointed to his little chest and told him that Jesus lives in there. In his heart.
AJ lifted up his shirt, pointed to his navel, and asked me if Jesus went in through his belly button!
Now THAT'S classic!
Monday, July 23, 2007
Elmo is Zeus
AJ seems to like his Spanish class every week at school. Yesterday as we were driving down the road, AJ kept repeating, "Hola, amigas" over and over again. We were on our way to church, so this was often interspersed with "I wanna see Jesus. I go to Jesus house."
So we started playing with him on other phrases. You know, to stop the monotony or obsessive repetition....So Daddy tried to get him to say, "Te amo". Things progressed, and eventually we hear "Elmo is Zeus!" from the back seat.
Elmo is Zeus = Te amo, Jesus
Makes perfect sense, doesn't it?
So we started playing with him on other phrases. You know, to stop the monotony or obsessive repetition....So Daddy tried to get him to say, "Te amo". Things progressed, and eventually we hear "Elmo is Zeus!" from the back seat.
Elmo is Zeus = Te amo, Jesus
Makes perfect sense, doesn't it?
Friday, July 20, 2007
Just Fooling Around
Had to take AJ to the doctor today. He has a bad sinus infection. I'm too lazy to write anything, so I'm unloading the camera....
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Milestones and Jay Coes
This is my 100th post! Start the fireworks!
AJ has been speaking so well lately that I tend to forget that I still have issues with his enunciation. He woke me up by whimpering in the middle of the night on Monday. When I went into his room, he was sitting on the edge of his bed. He looked up at me and said, "Jay Coes. I want Jay Coes." Huh? I patted him on the head, told him everything was okay, and tried to get him to lie back down. "Mommy, I want Jay Coes." Again, I'm getting nothing. Haven't the foggiest idea what the child is talking about. After repeating it a few more times, I got down on my knees to give him a hug, and realized he had pee'd on himself. AHA! Got it! "Dry clothes, baby? You want some dry clothes?" "Uh huh."
I peeled his wet pajama bottoms off and put on fresh underwear. He was perfectly happy, and went back to sleep....
Last night he saw a picture of a rocket in outer space in a book and has now decided he wants to ride a rocket. Not any rocket, mind you. A RED rocket. And he wants to go to the sun, the moon, and Saturn. He wants to take Chicken Little to a spaceship and meet some aliens...
Okay, sweetie, I'll work on that for you.
AJ has been speaking so well lately that I tend to forget that I still have issues with his enunciation. He woke me up by whimpering in the middle of the night on Monday. When I went into his room, he was sitting on the edge of his bed. He looked up at me and said, "Jay Coes. I want Jay Coes." Huh? I patted him on the head, told him everything was okay, and tried to get him to lie back down. "Mommy, I want Jay Coes." Again, I'm getting nothing. Haven't the foggiest idea what the child is talking about. After repeating it a few more times, I got down on my knees to give him a hug, and realized he had pee'd on himself. AHA! Got it! "Dry clothes, baby? You want some dry clothes?" "Uh huh."
I peeled his wet pajama bottoms off and put on fresh underwear. He was perfectly happy, and went back to sleep....
Last night he saw a picture of a rocket in outer space in a book and has now decided he wants to ride a rocket. Not any rocket, mind you. A RED rocket. And he wants to go to the sun, the moon, and Saturn. He wants to take Chicken Little to a spaceship and meet some aliens...
Okay, sweetie, I'll work on that for you.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Fun Friday
Today was AJ's quarterly visit to the endocrinologist for his thyroid testing. Poor baby now recognizes the lobby of the Memorial Hermann Professional Building, and starts pouting and whimpering when you take him in the door. His quarterly visits require a trip to the lab where a parent (Daddy) has to hold him while the nurse draws two vials of blood from the tiny arm of the screaming toddler. He did really well today; was quite the brave soldier.
AJ now weighs 25.2 pounds and is 35 inches tall. This sounds great until you realize he is going to be three years old in another 2 1/2 months. Poor scrawny kid...but considering the size he started out, he's actually pretty big.
Speaking of "scrawny"....Hubby has been on a diet for the past month. He measures portions carefully, counts calories and fiber intake, keeps a detailed online food journal, and has begun exercising. We have the "Dance Dance Revolution" game for PS2. It has a nice workout mode that we think is a lot more fun than "real" exercise. It tracks how many calories you are buring while dancing. Well, he has lost over 12 pounds since he started. This afternoon when we got back from the medical center and obligatory guilt trip to the zoo afterwards, Hubby carried a tired toddler back into the house. When he put AJ down, he stood up and his pants FELL COMPLETELY DOWN AROUND HIS ANKLES! Tee heee....I could barely get out of the car to come in the house because I was laughing so hard... He's doing really well at keeping with his program. He worked off 2,000 calories last night after we got home, and is going at it again right now while I blog.
I took some funny video of one of these nightly workouts that I need to figure out how to post. We have an older dance mat that is not connected to the PS2 that we lay down for AJ while we are working out. AJ loves to dance along next to Daddy...it's very cute.
AJ now weighs 25.2 pounds and is 35 inches tall. This sounds great until you realize he is going to be three years old in another 2 1/2 months. Poor scrawny kid...but considering the size he started out, he's actually pretty big.
Speaking of "scrawny"....Hubby has been on a diet for the past month. He measures portions carefully, counts calories and fiber intake, keeps a detailed online food journal, and has begun exercising. We have the "Dance Dance Revolution" game for PS2. It has a nice workout mode that we think is a lot more fun than "real" exercise. It tracks how many calories you are buring while dancing. Well, he has lost over 12 pounds since he started. This afternoon when we got back from the medical center and obligatory guilt trip to the zoo afterwards, Hubby carried a tired toddler back into the house. When he put AJ down, he stood up and his pants FELL COMPLETELY DOWN AROUND HIS ANKLES! Tee heee....I could barely get out of the car to come in the house because I was laughing so hard... He's doing really well at keeping with his program. He worked off 2,000 calories last night after we got home, and is going at it again right now while I blog.
I took some funny video of one of these nightly workouts that I need to figure out how to post. We have an older dance mat that is not connected to the PS2 that we lay down for AJ while we are working out. AJ loves to dance along next to Daddy...it's very cute.
Monday, July 09, 2007
All dressed up and no place to go
This is not the first time this has happened. It looks really cute, but could be a little disturbing if he keeps it up.
Today when we picked up AJ from school, we walked into his classroom, and he came running toward us wearing a frilly, organza, princess dress! His teachers told us that he picked it out himself, and put it on all by himself.
The child can't seem to get himself dressed in the mornings, but he can put on a pretty dress! Here I thought we were making progress because he has started being able to pull his pants up by himself after he goes to the potty....guess that's not as glamorous as cross-dressing....
Today when we picked up AJ from school, we walked into his classroom, and he came running toward us wearing a frilly, organza, princess dress! His teachers told us that he picked it out himself, and put it on all by himself.
The child can't seem to get himself dressed in the mornings, but he can put on a pretty dress! Here I thought we were making progress because he has started being able to pull his pants up by himself after he goes to the potty....guess that's not as glamorous as cross-dressing....
Monday, July 02, 2007
Deep Thoughts
A very well-rested 33-month old (after a FOUR HOUR nap) just wanted to cuddle with me yesterday evening. He had many deep and meaningful things to say...
AJ: "God tell me..."
Me: "What did God tell you, sweetie?"
AJ: "God tell me....ummm...Jesus...Jesus love me"
Me: "God told you that Jesus loves you?"
AJ: "Uh-huh."
Me: "That's very nice. What else did God tell you?"
AJ: "uuummmm......God tell me......read my book!"
Me: (astonished at the possibilities of where this conversation was heading) "Really?! What's in the book?"
AJ: "uuhhhh................THOMAS!"
(I'm pretty sure now that he wasn't talking about one of the disciples..)
Oh well....this morning when Daddy and I went to wake him up for school, Daddy asked him "who loves you?"
AJ's answer? "God"
Daddy: "Who else?"
AJ: "Jesus"
Daddy (clearly looking for a different answer) : "Who else loves AJ?"
AJ: ".....my friends"
Daddy (clearly AJ is not taking the hint) : "Anyone else?"
Mommy (helpfully, in a low whisper) : "mommy..."
AJ (whispering back to Daddy) : "Mommy!"
I WIN!
AJ: "God tell me..."
Me: "What did God tell you, sweetie?"
AJ: "God tell me....ummm...Jesus...Jesus love me"
Me: "God told you that Jesus loves you?"
AJ: "Uh-huh."
Me: "That's very nice. What else did God tell you?"
AJ: "uuummmm......God tell me......read my book!"
Me: (astonished at the possibilities of where this conversation was heading) "Really?! What's in the book?"
AJ: "uuhhhh................THOMAS!"
(I'm pretty sure now that he wasn't talking about one of the disciples..)
Oh well....this morning when Daddy and I went to wake him up for school, Daddy asked him "who loves you?"
AJ's answer? "God"
Daddy: "Who else?"
AJ: "Jesus"
Daddy (clearly looking for a different answer) : "Who else loves AJ?"
AJ: ".....my friends"
Daddy (clearly AJ is not taking the hint) : "Anyone else?"
Mommy (helpfully, in a low whisper) : "mommy..."
AJ (whispering back to Daddy) : "Mommy!"
I WIN!
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