eta1207

Back on the blog

2010-07-05T21:43:00.006-05:00

Greetings! Haven't posted here in a while, but we've kept all sorts of photos of the kids adventures here.

A lot has happened since posting last October. We've settled into our new house, the kids celebrated their 2nd birthdays in December, went on a beach vacation, bought a minivan...

Here's one of my favorite recent pictures. Nothing particularly fancy or funny, but it reflects how Dylan and Grace enjoy each other's company (usually!).

More space...for Dylan and Grace

2009-10-15T23:15:00.006-05:00

Yes, it has been awhile since we've written, but for good reason. We decided to move down the road (2 miles) to a place with a little more space for the kids, so the past few months have been filled with realtors and house cleaning and closing oh my..

It was a somewhat sentimental event for us...the house we left is the one we brought the kids home to when they were born, the first house we bought together after getting married, and Truman's stomping grounds for 8 years. But it was time for a change, and we're really enjoying the new place.

The kids were very well-adjusted to the whole moving process. In fact, here's a video of Dylan "helping" us move out of our former residence.

By the way, if any of you are interested in buying a BEAUTIFUL 4 bedroom in Pearland, TX (gorgeous master bedroom with sitting area, huge backyard with no backside neighbors), I've heard of a great deal. Plus, if you act in the next 15 minutes, you'll get this set of genuine ginsu knives...not sold in stores!

Fun at Discovery Green

2009-08-08T20:26:00.002-05:00

A group of us headed to Discovery Green -- a fairly new park complex in downtown Houston -- this morning to take our kids to the water park. Dylan and Grace had a great time in the water fountains and the jungle gym area. Enjoy the video of them frolicking in the water!

Word World

2009-07-27T22:58:00.014-05:00

The kids are now 19 months old and their vocabulary is increasing daily. Here is a list of the most commonly heard words from the kids.

Grace- Mama, Dada, Mimi, hi, milk, water, shoes, socks, crackers, cookies, elephant, monkey, horse, apples, applesauce, doggie, ball, bubbles, book, bath, hot, not nice!, backpack, sticker, eat, no, wow, weee!, eyes, nose, hat, paci (pacifier), all clean!, Elmo, Roar!(like a lion), kisses. Grace's favorites are: milk, cookies, not nice and nose.

Dylan- Mama, Dada, hi, milk, ball, dog, socks, shoes, bubbles, nose, bath, duck, quack, cookie, cracker, no, wow, backpack, car, bird, Elmo, soft, more, good. Dylan's favorites include: more, cracker and bubbles.

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-20T12:58:00.014-05:00

This post is a bit late! We had a great 4th of July! Bama and Ajja (Ryan's parents) came to visit us for the holiday weekend. Dylan and Grace showed them around Houston and took them to all of the cool toddler hot spots! First, Hermann Park for a nice train ride.

Then we went to Houston's children museum, and spent some quality time in the Tot Spot. They have play cars, gas station, slides, books, puzzles, tunnels, plinko...you name it.

For the 4th of July, we attended a big neighborhood party, complete with music, hot dogs, snow cones, mini choo-choos, bounce houses, cake walks. Even though it was ~100 degrees outside a good time was had by all. That afternoon, we opened up The D&G Sand and Splash Park in our backyard! Grace and Dylan (still very full from lunch-see their tummies) had fun splashing in the water. Grace shared her excitement by hopping out of her pool and giving her Ajja a big, soaking WET hug!

Sunday morning before Bama and Ajja had to return home, we went to the park near our home to play. It was already so hot at 9AM! Mom and Dad felt the heat more than the kids did.

We hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday!

Photo shoot

2009-07-07T23:05:00.002-05:00

We just had a family photo shoot recently. Click here to check out the pictures!

The kids are growing quite nicely, and we are experiencing the "ear infections, and peanut allergies, and stuffy noses oh my!" stage. Fortunately the kids are generally happy and seem to be handling it fairly well.

Rumor has it that spreadsheet man may return to plot up the kids growth, but only if there is sufficient demand from his fan base...so it is now up to you (yes, I can see you on your laptop wearing those ridiculous flip-flops) to decide.

A few gems from Seattle

2009-07-01T20:49:00.000-05:00

We recently went to Seattle to see Denise's brother Michael and his family. Also joining the fray were Denise's brother David and his family. And Denise's parents. Oh, and my sister in law's parents. Did I mention that there were 10 kids? In any case, it was a great time to be had by all.

The festivities included a trip to Pike's place market (famous home of fish throwing), the Pacific Science Museum, the Seattle Zoo, some playtime in one of Seattle's parks, and a day-long barbecue. Attached are a few videos capturing Dylan manning controls of a spaceship at the Pacific science museum and Grace cranking out a drum solo at the barbecue. Enjoy!

Straw-ber-ry Fie-lds For min-utes

2009-05-30T21:49:00.012-05:00

This morning our journeys took us to Froberg's Farms, a quaint family farm and store just up the road from us in Alvin, TX. On Saturdays they allow customers to pick fresh strawberries in the fields behind the general store. It's a brilliant business model (come to our place to do manual labor in 90 degree heat and then pay us.)

After running a few errands this morning, we were in the neighborhood and Denise suggested we drop by the farm. Although we were only out there for about 15 minutes (it was rather toasty out), the kids made the most of their inaugural fruit picking adventure. Each of us was given a plastic bucket in which to put the strawberries we picked, after which we would pay by weight. Grace was a very industrious helper with putting strawberries in the basket. Dylan was diligent in his fruit gathering as well, but not exactly placing them where he was supposed to.

Swingers

2009-05-25T22:45:00.005-05:00

We had a fun-filled memorial day. We went to the grandparents house and enjoyed a great bbq roast lunch, after which the grandparents graciously babysat while Denise and I went on a date to see Angels and Demons. After getting back from the movie, we all took the kids to the park. They very much enjoyed the swings, going down the slides, and seeing the geese by the lake. Here is a video of fun on the swings.

Look out Picasso....

2009-05-25T21:01:00.003-05:00

...here comes Dylan. Attached is his first masterpiece, skillfully crafted at the international festival at their school a few weeks ago. Note the subtle influences of impressionism and sharp -(yet painstakingly cautious) edges, indicative of a dynamic yet controlled artist.

Elmo loses his head...details at 10

2009-05-11T21:19:00.005-05:00

In a surprising display of bravado, Elmo decided to go on a rampage of brash and unruly behavior. Being a man of action, Dylan decided to nip this in the bud and set the record straight with the fuzzy little red guy. Elmooooooooooooooooooooooh...no!

Not to worry, sesame street fans. As shown below, no Elmos were harmed in our quaint little home. So fortunately, we'll get to listen to the elmo song for many days to come.

High chairs? We don't need no stinkin' high chairs!

2009-05-09T15:09:00.007-05:00

Denise found a nice 2 ft by 2 ft kids table and chairs online, so we went ahead and got it. Daddy's Saturday morning project was to handle the "some assembly required" portion of our new family furniture. Early this afternoon, we decided to give it a whirl for mealtime with a mixed vegetable medley of peas, carrots, corn, and green beans.

Here's a glimpse of their first meal as "grown ups". As a completely impartial 3rd party observer, I'd say they did quite well...vote in our blog poll at let us know your conclusions!

The Chase, Part Deux

2009-04-12T13:10:00.004-05:00

Truman has become accustomed to spotting cats on occasion in our front yard. As a vigilant watch dog, he has made an art form of the "chase the cat back and forth between the windows" maneuver. Yesterday was one of those episodes, which is fairly typical. However, now there is an added twist...the outdoor cat is not the only one being chased. Truman is such a good sport.

You will notice that Grace takes a tumble toward the end of the video (and Dylan at the very end). Not to worry...no children were harmed in the filming of this video.

A very good Friday

2009-04-11T13:29:00.004-05:00

Denise took the kids to see their grandparents in Spring on Friday. Grace and Dylan enjoyed playing in the backyard, and then took a trek out to the park. Here are a few photos (of course, it wouldn't be complete without showing the human garbage disposal showing off one of his many skills!). Here are a few pictures they took at mimi and grandfather's place.

Stroll through the park

2009-04-04T17:41:00.003-05:00

Late this morning we took the kids to our neighborhood park. They watched a few folks play frisbee for a while and enjoyed the swings, but spend most of the time exploring and running around in the grass. Here's a short clip of this morning's trek.

The chase is on

2009-04-03T21:53:00.005-05:00

The kids find endless amusement in chasing Truman when he has "their" ball. Below is an exciting chase scene from earlier this evening. This is pretty impressive considering this episode was only 30 minutes after Dylan stuffed himself with peas, lima beans, canteloupe, peaches, and bread at Golden Corral.

Bluebonnets in bloom

2009-03-22T12:43:00.016-05:00

The recent rains have been helpful for allowing Texas bluebonnets to come into full bloom. We took advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday to trek a patch about 20 minutes from home.

You can probably notice the difference over the past few months photos --they're 15 months old now. Grace loves saying "thhhocks" when we point to her socks and "dog" when we point to Truman. Dylan loves making noises, but so far his "adult" vocabulary focuses on saying "dada!".

Dylan cam

2009-03-21T14:22:00.000-05:00

If you're wondering what it's like to live a minute in the life of a little dynamo, here's a brief snapshot on the Dylan-cam.

Playing house

2009-03-14T13:50:00.004-05:00

Dylan and Grace seemed to enjoy their first foray into playing "house". As you can see below, Dylan was particularly enthused about opening and closing the window shutters (fortunately made out of plastic). This video was taken in the main hallway of the Montessorri school that they will be attending starting in April. In order to get them acclimated to the environment, we have been taking them there on Saturday mornings. From 10am to noon each Saturday, the school has "open playtime" in the main hallway between the classrooms , as well as the outdoor playground.

Needless to say, will be a significant adjustment for all of us when the kids start going to school. Hopefully they will enjoy the classroom activities and interaction with other kids as much as they enjoy the hallway toys. Stay tuned!

Sliding time

2009-02-28T12:22:00.022-06:00

While we've taken and sent several pictures lately, we've been a bit remiss on the blog front...so here's an overdue installment.

Grace and Dylan have gotten some new skills -- and sharpened some existing ones -- over the past month or so. Some notable items:
(1) Their proficiency in eating finger foods has increased. Dylan will eat practically anything, while Grace is a bit more discriminating in her tastes and sometimes gets rather vocal in her discontent!
(2) Both of them have gotten fairly good at drinking from sippy cups. They love running around with them, and often deposit them in random places.
(3) We've reduced them from 2 naps per day to 1 nap (early afternoon).
(4) They've recently learned how to climb stairs and go down their slide! They picked up the stairclimbing fairly readily, but needed a bit of assistance for some time with getting into sliding position and pushing off. Now it looks like they've reached independence in this regard. Look out below!

Captain Chaos

2009-01-18T22:29:00.002-06:00

Gasp!
Today Dylan learned how to open and close doors.

Happy birthdays!

2009-01-04T11:24:00.006-06:00

Grace and Dylan celebrated their first birthday recently! December 20th landed on a Saturday, so we were able to have the party on their actual birthdays. We invited a dozen or so folks over for the party, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Both sets of grandparents were able to come and spoil the kids shamelessly! One of the items that was a hit was the combination ball pit / slide that Denise bought them (naturally, assembled the night before the party.) It turned out that a few of the bigger kids (2 years old) enjoyed flopping around in the pit, and Dylan really enjoyed playing with the bigger kids.

Here are a few photos of the event.

Snow in Houston?

2008-12-12T22:05:00.007-06:00

Earlier this week, the kids got to see snow for the first time. We didn't think they'd get to enjoy a snowfall for quite some time. Denise bundled up the kids and took them out to frolic -- see attached!

Turkeys, giraffes, and fish...

2008-12-06T23:01:00.009-06:00

We enjoyed a dynamic family Thanksgiving at Denise's parents place. Denise's brother David and his family came down from Dallas with their 5 kids in tow, and it was the first time they had met their little cousins. Thanksgiving meal was fantastic, particularly a certain butterscotch pecan pie which seemed to vanish rather quickly! After the meal, we played our annual "Turkey Bowl" game in the street...generally a dizzying pace of touchdowns driven by lot solid offense and porous defense. We concluded the event by each team claiming victory (another tradition).

On Friday, we trekked to the zoo -- giraffes, lions, birds, meerkats, monkeys -- and managed to avoid the rain showers that came through (a merry go-round is good cover!). After that, we proceeded to the Aquarium restaurant downtown. Dylan was fussy, but when we took him to the fishtank, he was mesmerized by the wiggling floating creatures. Maybe dad can take him fishing once he gets a bit older (no, not next month).

Attached are a few photos from the holiday weekend -- enjoy!

The zoo within the zoo

Grace's encounter with the kimodo dragon

Tooth Count

2008-11-10T22:30:00.003-06:00

Dylan= 4 teeth.

Grace= 3 teeth.

Bananas= Scared.

Happy halloween!

2008-11-01T19:51:00.000-05:00

Tulip (Grace) and Pony (Dylan) enjoyed their first halloween! We took them out with our neighbors the Orsis and the Powells, who also have young ones. Of course, we didn't let them have any candy (although we did enjoy some ourselves). Below are a few pumpkin patch pictures from the front yard as well as a few halloween photos.

Got game face?

2008-10-12T22:24:00.001-05:00

Dylan and Grace watched their first UT football game yesterday. They marked the occasion by sporting their team colors, and brought their game faces since we were playing OU. Needless to say, their outfits were clearly a factor the Longhorn victory. Don't mess with Texas!

Spreadsheet Man is back in business...

2008-10-05T21:57:00.003-05:00

Hold on to your pocket protectors -- spreadsheet man strikes again! Grace and Dylan have each grown almost a foot since birth, and our pediatrician tells us they are quite tall for their age. We're happy that they're growing, healthy, and happy!

Morning at the Zoo

2008-10-04T20:37:00.000-05:00

We recently got an annual membership to the Houston Zoo and took Grace and Dylan for their first voyage last weekend. We stayed for about an hour -- just long enough for them to get accustomed to some of the sights and sounds, but not so long that it protruded into naptime. During our short stay, we toured the bird exhibit, saw the antelope, zebras, and more. At the beginning of the visit, the kids seemed a bit bewildered by the whole experience, but after some time seemed to warm up to some of the sights and sounds.

Grace was particularly enamored of one of the zoo staff feeding a raccoon and watching him (the raccoon) do tricks like shaking hands, putting his hands on his head, etc. Grace was leaning forward in her stroller during the entire raccoon playtime episode and smiling. Dylan really enjoyed the children's petting zoo and petting the goats. We're looking forward to many more trips to see our animal friends.

Happy Dylan and his goat

Grace is wary of her new friend

The eagle has landed...right above the stroller

The kids' first hurricane!

2008-09-21T22:40:00.000-05:00

Dylan and Grace got to spend a week at the grandparents place as Ike rumbled through the Texas gulf coast. Denise's parents live about an hour further away from the coast than we do (in Spring, just north of Houston). Even though we weren't in an evacuation zone, we wanted to be particularly cautious with the kids, so we made the brief journey northward the day before the storm arrived. Ike whistled through late Friday night and power went out about 12:30 am. The kids slept soundly through the whole storm.

While we were without power for a week (and without water for 2 days), having a generator and a gas stove at the grandparents place made everything quite manageable. In fact, Denise's mom cooked a great meal every evening, causing us to remark that the "hurricane diet" was not exactly slimming us down! Grace and Dylan did great through the whole week, and really enjoyed their time with the grandparents. After we got power back at our place in Pearland, we returned home.

It was pretty amazing how much energy the hurricane still had even north of Houston. We feel very fortunate that the whole family is ok. We sustained minor damage to our house, but nothing irreplaceable, just inconveniences that can be fixed in due time.

Wedding (and adventures in the friendly skies)

2008-09-10T15:50:00.002-05:00

We went to my cousin Maya's wedding the weekend of September 6th. It was a fabulous event, with a wonderful ceremony, touching speeches, excellent food. Maya and Neal were all smiles the entire weekend -- certainly a foreshadowing of the many joyous days ahead of them. It was a great opportunity to catch up with relatives and friends (some seen as recently as the previous month, others whom I had not seen in several years and Denise had not yet met).

Dylan and Grace did fairly well on the trip, although Grace temporarily had some trouble keeping her food down. There was a reception on Friday night, with the typical high density of my loquacious Indian relatives. The noise got Grace a bit out of her element, but we were able to move out onto the patio area where it was less populated and noisy. Our hotel room had a living room area which provided them plenty of space to play and tinker around. We're glad they are able to entertain themselves just by having some space to roam. Having learned our lesson to get them to bed on time when we travel, they slept soundly.

Now for the fun part. On the return flight from Columbia to Houston (2 1/2 hours), I had the privelege of trying to contain the prodigy kung fu master. I'm seated next to a gentleman built like a linebacker quietly trying to read his book, and I surmise it's not in my best interest to have Dylan kick him or throw any toys in his general direction. Being unable to contain the whirling dervish sitting on my lap, I turn him around so he can look up at me, his feet situated squarely above my rib cage, and his head centimeters from the tray table in front of me.

Kick giggle thrash flop toss twist laugh thunk wiggle scratch. Looking across the aisle, the contrast between Dylan and Grace is night and day. Grace is comfortably nestled in her baby bjorn smiling at the passengers behind us. So I'm finally getting accustomed to being jostled around when the all too familiar smell that I did NOT want wafting toward me (at least until we were wheels down in Houston) arrives. Nice -- well, this part wasn't explained in any of the parenting books.

I attempt to share the interesting news with Denise across the aisle as discreetly as possible, but Denise starts cracking up. And despite the awkwardness of the task before me, I can't stop laughing either. So armed with a changing pad, a diaper, and a box of wipes under one arm, and Bruce Lee under the other, I make the journey down the aisle to the bathroom. Surveying the crowd amongst the rows, most people are asleep, while others glance sympathetically.

It should come as no suprise that never in the english language has the phrase "Look how spacious that airplane bathroom is!" been uttered. Airplane bathrooms are small. And if you're 6 foot 4 like me, you can't even stand up. So I'm already envisioning the task before me -- in this gently bouncing box at 34000 feet -- will be a stunt of Houdini-esque proportions.

Fortunately, Dylan is rather still through the diaper changing exercise, in which I've got him sprawled on top of the changing pad that I've placed over the (closed!) toilet lid. I'm hunched like Quasimoto and holding my breath in this petite, self-contained box with minimal ventilation and a poopy diaper. Ok, mission accomplished with the diaper change, but I still have to escape the confines. Because the bathroom door only opens inward, and my back is to the door, the most effective way I can get both of us out without risking Dylan dropping on the floor (and also have one hand available to pick up the changing pad and wipes) is to sit on the toilet with Dylan in my lap and open the door toward both of us. So I open the door toward us, with Dylan (who is just giddy about his recent adventure) and I fully clothed sitting on the toilet. I look straight ahead and there are two passengers seated directly ahead of us in the last row, not more than 4 feet away. Awkward. If you've seen "A Fish Called Wanda", it was vaguely reminiscent of the fake flush scene when Otto breaks into Ken's place.

Relieved that the episode is over, I triumphantly tell Denise the battle has been won. And for the next 30 minutes, Dylan plays with his toys and continues to place me in mortal danger by nearly kicking my neighbor the linebacker. And then, I observe this strained look on his face, followed by an open-eyed look of relief that can only mean one thing. I tell Denise what I think has just transpired. This time, she blurts "Again?!" in absolute hysterics.

So I pack up the equipment for another journey to the nanobathroom. The looks of sympathy are more sincere now as I trudge past the aisles. Now I know the drill -- enter, change, sit, pull door, look awkwardly at the two passengers right in front of us. I return to my seat hopeful that Dylan won't pull off the triple crown, and fortunately he doesn't. 10 minutes before landing, he falls asleep.

Quite an adventurous return journey, and not the events I was hoping for at the time. But it does make for a fascinating anecdote. And I will never forget those moments I spent with my son on September 7, 2008 -- the day of 2 diaper changes at 34000 feet.

Dylan's First Haircut!

2008-08-31T20:36:00.009-05:00

Today, Dylan visited the barber for the first time. He did so well. No crying! Of course the barber earned his money by skillfully cutting the hair of a moving object!

Taking a stand

2008-08-25T21:17:00.004-05:00

It was only a matter of time. You can't stop Dylan, you can only hope to contain him.

In other news, both Grace and Dylan are quite enamored of their new toy piano. I'm glad that mom knows what toys to get.

8 months old

2008-08-19T22:05:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow Dylan and Grace celebrate their two-thirds birthday -- cake for everyone! Every week or two there seems to be a new milestone. Grace now stands up regularly using anything she can get her hands on for support -- crib rails, gate in our living room, etc. Dylan has a mysterious gravitational pull toward Truman's tail and for some reason finds the dog hilarious (apparently some inside joke that mom and dad don't yet comprehend.)

A few photos to commemorate the big 2/3....

Fun at mealtime

2008-08-10T15:53:00.006-05:00

Waiter, I'll have the 2 oz. Gerber applesauce and some milk, please. But before that, I'd like some playtime to smash my blocks together...

Grace is now sitting up on her own. Here she is playing with her picture book, which contains photos of her and her brother with both sets of grandparents.

Before and after

2008-08-06T19:08:00.007-05:00

Let's start with milestone #1. We took Dylan and Grace on their first plane trip this past weekend. They both handled the travel well, although Grace got fussy on the return trip. In general, they were both quite interested in looking out the window, and Dylan also took the opportunity to snooze a bit.

We went to my cousin Vasant's wedding, and it was a beautiful wedding and reception. Lots of smiles everywhere, and a great opportunity to reconnect with the relatives. I am particularly happy that the kids got to meet their great grandparents. The kiddos were on occasion a bit out of sorts from the crowds and noise (and for their parents keeping them up waaaaaaaay past their bedtime on Friday -- lesson learned). However, when we left them to their own devices and gave them some breathing room, they just loved crawling and rolling around in the hotel lobby, in the hotel room bed, etc.

Attached is a priceless before and after scene from our room at the Augusta Marriott. It appears that after politely tolerating her brother kicking her in utero for several months, daddy's little princess has learned to assert herself.

Milestone #2: This past weekend, Dylan started clearly enunciating what I've been wanting to hear for some time now...."Dada!" Now, he just spontaneously launches into enthusiastic spurts of multiple "dada"s.

Recycled prunes and more

2008-07-21T20:28:00.007-05:00

On Sunday, in the spirit of giving, Dylan decided to share his meal with his daddy. Of course this meant that he recycled his prunes ON his daddy. Results are below with prune stained outfit on the floor nearby.

Love is not caring if your little angel barfs prunes on you!

Happily, Dylan has since recovered and is cheering the Horns on to victory with a handsome outfit that Aunt Marlyn sent! Just a few more weeks to wait until the fall football season!

Okay, this last shot is just for grins. Baby bums are cute.

Let the games begin

2008-07-15T22:02:00.003-05:00

July 15, 2008 (AP): Grace "officially" started crawling today. This marks the first time we saw her go beyond the famed "rocking horse maneuver" and put one knee in front of the other. She then starting trekking forward and then even a bit sideways. Before we knew it, she was crusing right toward the plant at the edge of the living room, and proceeded to start tugging on the vine that reached the floor. Let the games begin!

Be wary....

2008-07-13T21:20:00.004-05:00

Apparently you are a shady character, as Grace and Dylan are looking at you with great suspicion. This has the makings of the cover of a rap album (I reserve the copyrights).

Happy 4th of July!

2008-07-06T21:29:00.011-05:00

This 4th of July, we celebrated the event in our neighborhood with an old fashioned bike and stroller parade. This was followed by a community-wide celebration, complete with a color guard, a medal of honor recipient, an adorable 11 year-old singing the national anthem and refreshments for all. It was a lot of fun and the kids were great!

Below is a photo of Grace enjoying the big band music being played over the PA. She was dancing to the beat and grinning the entire time.

Afterwards, we introduced Grace and Dylan to water sports. Specifically, maxing and relaxing at poolside. Clearly, Dylan has this mastered already.

On Saturday, we joined our friends the Machs and Orsis at their place on Crystal Beach, where Dylan and Grace got their first introduction to the ocean (Gulf of Mexico).

It was a terrific weekend for the entire family!

Close to crawling

2008-06-29T22:17:00.007-05:00

Grace is making significant progress toward crawling. She will get up on her hands and knees and rock back and forth, like she's about to shoot out of the blocks at a track meet. She really enjoys trying to crawl, and often smiles when Denise and I encourage her. Gooooooooo Grace!

Here's a rarity of Dylan sporting socks. Of course, we reduced his ability to remove them by further confining him in shoes. Time for a new car seat, as Dylan has sprouted up very quickly!

We're one year old (collectively)!

2008-06-20T11:20:00.003-05:00

Grace and Dylan are 6 months old today! My parents are in town and have had a great time doting on their grandkids. This morning we took them in for their 6 month pediatrician visit, and they're both doing great. (Granted, neither of them particularly enjoyed getting their vaccination shots). It's hard to believe how much they've sprouted up....they've become so interactive, and have already outgrown so many of their cute outfits.

The six-month milestone warrants the return of Spreadsheet Man -- enjoy!

Splish...Splash!

2008-06-11T22:16:00.005-05:00

The kids are now starting to enjoy their baths more. They now realize that they can kick and splash around for fun! Below is a photo of Dylan all fired up for bathtime (with all of the private bits edited!).

Notice the remnants of a Beckham/mohawk hairdo, compliments of mom.

The paparazzi found me again!

2008-06-08T11:26:00.003-05:00

Here I am relaxing in my papasan swing and then the cameras start flashing! What is a girl to do?

Dylan has no idea why you are looking at his blog!

2008-06-04T19:50:00.008-05:00

Thus, he is looking at you with suspicion.

But...

He also knows that no one can resist a cutie like him!

Having twins is AWESOME!

2008-05-29T22:07:00.003-05:00

Just an observation based on the past 5 months.

No, really, that's it...the storytelling skills are a bit lackluster today...you can go back to checking your email now. Please disperse, nothing to see here.

Just peachy

2008-05-26T09:21:00.011-05:00

We're now in the experimental stage with foods, and have migrated from rice cereal to peaches. While they both seem to like their first foray into fruits, they have unique philosophies on the etiquette for getting from cup to mouth. It is delightful to watch their mealtime antics!

The enthusiastic attitude of certain young man (who will remain nameless) generally plays out like this: "This stuff is GREAT! What's taking you so long? Give me the spoon! Ok, I'll let you put this spoonful in my mouth....hey, aren't more peaches here yet? Here, I'm grabbing the spoon now. This stuff is delicious! Hey, why are you taking the spoon away from me? Whaaa! Mmm...crafty move there dad, putting food in my mouth while I'm crying...that's pretty yummy. Hey, give me the spoon! Look how strong I am! Oops, sorry about that dad, didn't mean to fling peaches on your tshirt...why are you smiling? Put some dreft on it and wash it in...hey, can I still eat that? Mmmm...wow these are good...this restaurant is 4 stars. Hey waiter, how about some more peaches? I'm a growing boy!"

A certain little girl has a decidedly different approach: "Look at how I can puff up my cheeks! Here, I'll put the peaches on my hands and then eat them off there, that's tastier than the peaches on the spoon. Plenty of time before naptime...I'll just keep nibbling for a while."

In unrelated news, check out some scenes of the week...

Nothing like some couch time at the end of a tough day

I'll be crawling soon!

Outdoor fun

2008-05-18T12:38:00.013-05:00

I came home from playing tennis this morning to see Denise, Grace, and Truman playing in the front yard (Dylan was taking a siesta). Grace had a lot of fun observing the neighborhood happenings with Truman. Dylan arose from his blissful slumber shortly after I got home, and appeared in the mood for some entertainment. So I brought him into the front yard and we all spent some time enjoying the weather underneath the pine trees. Here are a few pictures from the festivities.

Rice Rice Babies

2008-05-11T11:47:00.007-05:00

Yesterday marked our first foray into the exciting world of solid foods. We are pleased to announce it was a success. In this case, success is defined by two factors: (1) The kids were generally receptive to the concept of solid foods (i.e. no crying, turning the head away, or otherwise fussy behavior), (2) Some non-zero fraction of the food actually entered their mouths. Dylan actually consumed more of the rice cereal than Grace and got more nutrition. Grace's expedition provided more family entertainment value (didn't expect cereal to get on her leg.). It is great to observe their unique strengths!

Below is a picture from the first "official" mother's day!

Breaking up is hard to do...

2008-05-06T21:08:00.002-05:00

New milestone on May 5th -- the kids now get their own cribs. While we expected this to be a more slow-paced decision, there were some drivers to make a more immediate judgement call. (English translation: Dylan started kicking Grace very close to her head.) So Dylan gets his own crib now, complete with a lamb that makes ocean sounds (where do they come up with this stuff?).

We dropped the 930pm feeding last weekend, and fortunately they're snoozing like champs through the night without it. We were a bit hesitant at first, because we had a pattern since early March in which they didn't wake up in the middle of the night, and thus were a little gun-shy about making changes. Everything seems to have worked out.

Going Mobile

2008-05-04T12:41:00.005-05:00

Since the kids learned how to roll over, they seem to be taking advantage of their new skill. Grace now rolls over in her sleep every night and wakes up face down. Dylan still sleeps on his back although occasionally he will flop on his side and then revert to looking upward. Their newfound mobility has lent itself to a medley of different "wake up combinations", one of which is shown below.

And for my next trick, I will pick up my sister while asleep...

Another exciting development is that we're now able to use many of the toys and accessories we've had since a few months before the kids were born! Below is Dylan's first adventure in the exersaucer...

So many options, so little time...

Denise is working today so I get to hog the kids all to myself today. So far our adventures have included a really long walk around the neighborhood, as well as my indulgence in "crazy dad photo rampage". Glad cameras are digital now....paying for film would make me go broke. Here's a photo from this morning before we went on our stroll.

We're smiling now, but dad, would you PLEASE STOP TAKING PICTURES!!!

Spreadsheet man is apparently lurking somewhere in the vicinity. Rumor has it he will emerge by Memorial Day with a new graph to inspire the masses. Dylan was nearly 15 lbs at the last checkup, Grace was slightly above 13 lbs. They're growing nicely.

Extreme Tummy Time

2008-04-28T20:32:00.003-05:00

Dylan rocks the tummy time mat daily.

Hi!

2008-04-27T17:42:00.003-05:00

Guess who learned to roll over today? Grace! And Dylan did the same on Friday! Mom and Dad had better watch out because we will be crawling soon!

Buds

2008-04-17T21:05:00.003-05:00

"Is that rug washable?"

2008-04-12T21:55:00.003-05:00

...was the question I asked Denise at 5:50 am, observing the freshly soaked sleeve of my t-shirt. It's funny how conversations become very different once kids enter the picture.

After giving Grace her early morning feeding, I was trying to burp her before putting her (and myself) back to bed. And while Grace is generally predictable in this category, today she decided to kick off our weekend with a bit of excitement. So instead of the standard burp...hello....time to liquidate the assets! And within a second of reverse drinking, Grace looks up at me with this beaming grin, clearly basking in the glory of this momentous achievment. The strange thing is I reflexively smiled right back at her, happy she was enjoying herself. It's amazing how kids can charm you to the extent you don't really even care you just got barfed on.

I was standing on top of the rug in our nursery during said incident, hence, the title of this post. And yes, the "Clover Fields" rug is washable...the ducks, rabbits, and sheep survived spin cycle just fine.

In other news, the kids made their maiden voyage to Golden Corral today. It was an enjoyable lunch outing, despite some modest fussiness. I explained to Grace the nuances of the salad bar, which she attentively absorbed. Dylan was too busy watching eyelid movies and missed most of the action.

We're coming up on four months. Here's a medley of moments...

Shady characters

2008-04-05T15:39:00.007-05:00

Today is a beautiful spring day, and we took the kids out to enjoy the weather for a while. Grace felt compelled to display the sassy side of her persona, as she was decked out in her "little Diva" outfit.

Although Dylan hasn't seen "The Terminator" yet (and won't be for a while), it did not prevent him from attempting an Ahhhhnold impression.

Our sitetracker (which operates through the hidden camera we've put in your home) indicates we've got several folks looking at our humble little blog. Here's a viewer map over the past few days. Looks like we've got some viewership near the coasts (including the 3rd coast of H-town), but we need to strengthen our marketing plan for the heartland.

Wonder twin powers....ACTIVATE!

2008-03-30T13:39:00.004-05:00

Fortunately, neither of them turned into an ice bridge or tiger after pulling off this trick this morning. That would have resulted in a level of chaos I could not possibly imagine...

Spreadsheet man II: The long-awaited sequel

2008-03-29T12:32:00.005-05:00

Need data sorted? Frustrated with a macro? Never fear --dashing, debonair Spreadsheet Man is here! Witness the latest artwork below.

Grace and Dylan are growing nicely, and have made the ramp-up to bigger bottles! Dylan weighs more than twice his birth weight, and Grace is getting awfully close. Needless to say, we are pleased to see them growing and becoming more dynamic.

Princess and friends

2008-03-24T21:09:00.003-05:00

Grace took Truman and I out to play in the backyard yesterday afternoon. Here's a snapshot of us enjoying the small sliver of springtime in suburban Houston (which precedes the other 3 seasons of July, August, and summer.)

We are now 3 months old!

2008-03-22T17:17:00.011-05:00

Grace and Dylan turned 3 months old on Thursday the 20th. It is such an exciting time. That day, Dylan laughed out loud for the first time. In addition, they are starting to hold objects now.

To celebrate, we packed them in the Pilot and took them out to lunch today!

Spin a long time, spin a long time...

2008-03-20T21:06:00.007-05:00

Ok, so that was a bad play on words. However, the management and administration of eta1207 found it mildly amusing. The winners write the history books...

Looks like Grace has a new nighttime activity -- spinning like a roulette wheel. Earlier this week I woke up to feed them and Grace was nearly upside down from where we had placed her the night before. She was nearly kicking Dylan in the head! The next morning she apparently had launched into her spin antics again, this time landing perpendicular to Dylan and kicking him in the side. He seemed to be a fairly good sport about it, tolerating the jostling from his sister. (In all fairness, Grace is just "getting even" for having her brother kicking her in utero for the better part of 2007.)

Here is a picture taken about 5:00am Wednesday.

Give me a "T"!

Hand in hand

2008-03-15T21:10:00.004-05:00

Earlier this week, Grace and Dylan spontaneously held hands for the first time. This is the first time they've become aware of each other to any significant extent. Hopefully this is the first of many moments like this.

This morning was loads of fun. Dylan was kicking and smiling for a healthy portion of the morning, and apparently believes he has an invisible bicycle. Whenever I ask him "Who has an invisible bicycle?" he shows off a mischievous grin.

Grace continues to be our little princess. This morning Denise read her "That's not my truck", which is one of her favorite books. It is a good read....I highly recommend it.

Truman tummy time

2008-03-09T19:43:00.003-05:00

Apparently, dogs need tummy time also. I walked into our bedroom yesterday afternoon to see Truman sacked out on the tummy time mat. While I was thinking "Truman, get off the mat...I don't want your hair all over the kids", somehow the words I blurted out to him were "Ohhh...you're such a handsome little puppy." Yes, dad's going to need some work on becoming the disciplinarian...

Bye bye channel 59

2008-03-07T18:01:00.004-06:00

Another diversion...I imagine the idea emerged from a conversation that went something like this:

Jack: "Doesn't it strike you as unusual that never in human history has there been a radio station that continuously plays good music?"

Jill: "Why yes, Jack, that is quite odd."

Jack: "I wonder if something could be done about that."

Jill: "Well, it doesn't seem that complicated...aren't there any bands that play good music?"

Jack: "Well, yeah, a few..."

Jill: "Couldn't you just play a station with just that artist, and avoid all the talent-free rubbish?"

Jack: "I guess we could...whoa....are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Jack and Jill: "Led Zeppelin 24/7 !!! Brilliant!" (imagine Guinness commercial voiceover)

And thus was born XM Led...Satellite Radio Channel 59. A stalwart at speed dial #1 in the Honda Pilot, it has been the savior of my commute and the source of occasional air drums while stuck on Highway 288. Sadly, it is taking a hiatus for a while, but apparently it will be back later in 2008. Hurry back --- I can only maintain sustainance with the hair band channel for so long...

Karate kid and the happy princess

2008-03-07T17:53:00.001-06:00

We'll let you guess which one is which!

Work and naps

2008-03-02T20:56:00.002-06:00

We've increased our efforts to give the kids tummy time and gym mat time recently. They seem to be doing fairly well, although they do get overstimulated rather quickly, and then get somewhat fussy. As you can see below, Truman has been doing a great job supervising their activities. I always knew he had management potential...

Truman keeping things under control

After their tummy time, they can get pretty tired. Here is Grace relaxing under a new blanket that our friend Robin from North Carolina made for us.

Snoozing under the new blankie

Fight, lil man, Fight!

2008-03-02T20:27:00.003-06:00

Dylan leads the fight in the struggle against the imperialist oppressors. However, since he can't talk yet, we're not sure who or what he's being oppressed by. Maybe he just wants his bottle.

I cannot be contained!

2008-03-02T20:23:00.005-06:00

Dylan is gifted at escaping swaddles, socks and shoes. You can turn your back and poof, the kid has broken free from his restraining attire!

Tummy Time!

2008-02-29T17:48:00.001-06:00

Dylan practices tummy time on his tummy time surfboard!

Daddy's Girl!

2008-02-25T16:44:00.003-06:00

Okay, just had to share a photo of wide-eyed Grace as she cuddles with her Daddy.

Spreadsheet man strikes again...

2008-02-24T20:45:00.007-06:00

Fasten your pocket protectors, ladies and gents. It's the return of suave, debonair spreadsheet man! Surely you are thinking -- with wonder and delight -- "What's he plotting today?" Well, it's a growth chart of the kiddos.

Each of the weights is from a baby scale at a doctors office, except the big dots, which are measured at home. For purposes of full disclosure (and to ratchet up the dork factor by about 300%), the home measurements are +/- 0.5 lbs since that's the sensitivity of our scale. The weights don't surprise us too much, as Dylan looks a bit bigger and Grace is a little more petite.

Happy little man

2008-02-23T19:59:00.004-06:00

Dylan is starting to smile a lot more now. He is also getting SO much bigger and stronger. He weighs somewhere between 11.5-12 lbs now. One activity that always seems to elicit his amusement is slowly tugging on his hands and making a "chugga-chugga-chugga-chugga-CHOO CHOO!" noise like a train. Here's one of daddy's favorite pictures from this week.

Hey -- this is fun!

Least favorite word? "Outofcookies"

2008-02-17T12:10:00.003-06:00

A temporary diversion from the normal posts -- I used to love this guy as a kid, and am sure Grace and Dylan will get their fair share as well. Check out this interview with the monster.

To-ga ! To-ga!

2008-02-16T10:29:00.007-06:00

Upon strolling into the nursery to feed Grace this morning, I was quite surprised to see how sophisticated the fashion statements have become. Sometime between 2 and 8am she rearranged her swaddle into a toga configuration. Given that a swaddle is designed more for comfort than for style, she definitely gets an A+ for resourcefulness. The majesty of the pose and the outfit sent dad scurrying downstairs to grab the camera before the moment was lost.

Adding a Roman element to the "kiddopotamus" swaddle

Hat trick

2008-02-10T20:01:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago, our bundles of joy were completely engulfed by all the hats in their collection. However, they are now starting to grow into them, and the hats are now emerging out of the drawer. Here are a few pictures from the weekend with some noggin' accessories.

Shot more times than a rapper!

2008-02-07T11:53:00.000-06:00

Lots of shots today. Vaccines hurt.

Grace: "Whaaa!" followed by teary eyes.

Dylan: "WHAAA!!" followed by an angry scowl.

Ouch.

Time for naps.

Lazy Saturday afternoon

2008-02-02T13:25:00.001-06:00

Hey, guess what?

2008-01-30T22:24:00.000-06:00

This is one of my favorite pictures so far...purely blind luck that I captured their hands being together. Dylan has this mischevious "I know something" grin and appears eager to inform Grace of the news. Grace seems to be more preoccupied with getting her beauty sleep.

Splish.. Splash..I was takin' a bath!

2008-01-27T12:47:00.001-06:00

We took pictures after their bath yesterday. Dylan seems very pleased with himself even though he didn't fully cooperate with bath time. Despite his best efforts he is now squeaky clean. Grace also implores her mother as to why this bath thing was necessary in the first place!

What really knocked me out was those cheap sunglasses...

2008-01-27T12:18:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was a pleasant, sunny day -- perfect weather for taking Grace and Dylan for a stroll. Not wanting overwhelm them with the sunlight, we decked them out in their shades. They both seem receptive to getting out and about, and the motion seems to soothe them. Below are a few fashion statements from yesterday.

Little Diva thinks about her social calendar

Dylan goes incognito to avoid the paparazzi

Truman wonders why we are moving so slowly

Ladies day out

One month old!

2008-01-20T19:33:00.000-06:00

Dylan and Grace are one month old today. The past month has gone by so quickly and we are glad we have taken a lot of photos. Here are a few pictures taken this weekend. Grace is taking some quiet time for introspection and reflection on the happenings of the past month. Dylan is simply choosing to ignore the mobile above the crib.

Dancing to celebrate one month!

Houdini in a crib...

2008-01-12T11:45:00.000-06:00

...might be a fitting moniker for Dylan. Despite dad's increased proficiency in swaddling the handsome guy, he always finds a way to get out. I asked him around 3:30am how he does it, only to be met with a contented silence. Magician's rule #1: Never reveal your secrets.

It is rather amusing how the neat and tightly arranged blanket after one diaper change can transform into a twisted chaos within a few hours. I suppose Dylan has a gift for origami.

"What can you make out of this, Dylan?"
"Well, I can make a hat, or a brooch, or a pterodactyl...."

Family photos

2008-01-08T17:16:00.000-06:00

Here are some products from our picture session last Friday. Kudos to Laura at Laura Odom photography, who had several creative ideas. Since Grace found a comfy spot on the bench, looks like Dylan had to sleep on the ground!

Still the best...

2008-01-06T15:07:00.000-06:00

Truman has had to go through a substantial adjustment the past 2 weeks. Fortunately his grandfather was in town for a while, and took him on a lot of W's (walks). He is getting a bit more used to the new little people in his house, sniffing close to them and often checking on "what the heck is that noise coming from the bassinet?". He is showing signs of protectiveness as well...Grace was crying yesterday, and Truman came trotting up to us with a "Hey guys...you need to help!" look in his eye.

Truman, you're still the best dog ever. Infinite milk bones for you.

Los pantalones vaqueros son muy grande...

2008-01-04T20:27:00.000-06:00

A milestone today -- the first major fashion statement. As part of their winter collection, Dylan and Grace unveiled to the public for the first time their mega-big pants. Mom and Dad also went with the Springsteen look today, as we had our first professional family photos taken. We are pleased to announce that the photo shoot went well -- i.e. no major meltdowns! It was a good call to feed them right before leaving for getting the pictures taken. We are awaiting the pictures with great anticipation, as the photographer had some pretty nice props and setups.

There could be entire villages hiding in these pants!

We had our 2-week pediatrician checkup on Wednesday and were pleased to hear that everything is going well and they are healthy. Both Grace and Dylan have gained weight since birth (a good sign) and are now both 7.0 lbs and 20". Both of them are able to lift their heads up pretty regularly now.

ps. Saw the rest of "Pirates". To quote Otto from "A Fish Called Wanda"....DISAPPOINTED! I enjoyed the first 2 installments, but this one wasn't quite up to snuff.

The version of "Pirates" you've never seen...

2007-12-30T11:27:00.000-06:00

We received the latest "Pirates of the Carribean" movie on Netflix a few weeks ago, and intended to get around to seeing it before the kids were born. However, our busy schedules earlier this month actually lent itself to a great opportunity. Many DVDs now have commentary by the producer, director, or actors. However, a few days ago, we got to watch the "Dylan Voiceover version". This rare gem is not sold on DVD, and the general public didn't get to see this version in theatres. In short, the movie is 4 minutes long and the storyline -- while complex -- can generally be summarized as

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

As the plot unfolded in this instant classic, we learned that the plight of Captain Jack Sparrow is superceded only by "the grand quest for food". Fortunately, we got to see an hour of the movie the subsequent evening, and we'll watch the rest later.

Holidays with the kiddos

2007-12-30T10:06:00.000-06:00

Pondering the "to do" list....

Ok...I'll wake up for the camera...

It is amazing how Grace and Dylan have changed in just a few short days. Denise got the advice "Don't blink" from a friend of hers, and it seems to ring true. The most obvious development is how both of their appetites have grown.

Christmas day with the grandparents was quite nice. As expected, everyone was jockeying for position to hold Grace and Dylan. We had a great meal with a centerpiece of a big beef roast, and lots of great desserts, including a pecan pie and cookies that Denise' s mom made, and a apple caramel pie that Denise made. It was a gourmet meal in our formal dining room, eaten on...nothing but the finest paper plates (we had to go low-maintenance on something!). The kiddos dutifully slept through the entire meal, adorned in their Christmas hats.

Dylan is a man of action and efficiency, and lets us know when something is amiss. After all, what's the point in dawdling around? Grace continues to be as observant as ever. Sometimes she will just wake up and look around for a long while, and is generally content in entertaining herself.

Chronicles of week one...

2007-12-24T20:05:00.001-06:00

Many of you may recall the Peace Corps slogan "the toughest job you'll ever love". That would be a somewhat fitting characterization of the first night with Dylan and Grace. I think the kids were a bit anxious about the change in environment, and perhaps they sensed our nervousness as well. By the writing of this note, all readers have proof that we did survive! At 2:30am Sunday, with us both holding our kids...OUR KIDS!....we were just smiling at them and each other in the nursery. Nothing had to be said -- it was a look of "there's no other place I'd rather be."

On Sunday, things started to fall into place as we had the full day at home and started to get into a routine. Grace and Dylan exhibit new things about their personalities and traits every day (granted, it's only been five so far). Grace can make two distinct types of eye contact. Most of the time the glance is the "I'm a little princess make-you-melt" look. However, she can also display the steely gaze reminiscent of the look Clint Eastwood had in his eye during the movie Unforgiven, when after rightfully being accused of shooting an unarmed man, stated "Well, he should have armed himself."

Dylan can eat like a champ and after chow time sleeps like...er...a baby!? I affectionately call him the D-train, as in "don't get in the path of the D-train at feeding time, or you'll get run over."

Today's most magical moment...we put the kids in the crib this afternoon, parallel as always, and when coming to check up on them, they had both scooted their heads closer to each other. Selfish dad was more preoccupied with capturing the Kodak moment than the fact that sudden bright flashes (for instance, the flash of a camera in a dark room) are somewhat disconcerting to infants. Here's the picture below.

Best buds...

Tomorrow is our kids' first Christmas!!! All the grandparents will be there and it will be a very special day. Extra hugs and kisses for the kids. Not to forget our "fluffy child", there are also some very juicy bones wrapped up under the tree.

Introducing Grace and Dylan

2007-12-24T18:00:00.001-06:00

2:01pm Thursday December 20th marked the arrival of both Dylan Ramesh and Grace Shalini, and an exciting new chapter in our lives. Grace was 6 lbs 9 oz, Dylan was 6 lbs 8 oz, and both were 19.5 inches. Both of them and mom are healthy and doing well.

It was absolutely magical to see them brought into the world, and Denise was a trooper through it all. We came home on the night of Saturday December 22nd. We had the option of staying longer, but given that the kids' vital signs were all good, supplemented by the fact we were all a bit stir crazy from being in the hospital, we decided to bring them home.

A few highlights a few hours after their arrival --
Grace was very observant of everything on the evening of the 20th, scanning our faces and the room she was in, just soaking up information as if to say "hmm...this is a pretty interesting place"
Dylan won the "wiggle worm" award among all the kids in the nursery. On the nursery table, he managed to make a 90 degree turn on his back so he was perpendicular to all the other newborns. Looks like he's not one to follow the herd...

Here's the initial installment of the purpose of this blog...kiddo pictures!

Grace checking things out
Dylan flexing his day-old muscles
Time to get out of here and go home! Dylan, Grace, and happy dad in the operating room

6:00 am conversation

2007-12-20T07:44:00.000-06:00

R: "So...is there anything you want to do today?"
D: "Have some babies!"

Heading to the hospital in a few hours, wish us luck!

4 more 'til 2 more...

2007-12-16T10:21:00.000-06:00

FOUR more days until the big day. The bags are packed and the child seats are all set to bring them home. We are really looking forward to holding our babies. Truman seems to have gotten into the spirit, annoucing to folks he's going to be a big bubba (left).

Yesterday, we decided to do something that will be very rare in the near future -- go out to a movie! We saw the matinee of "I am Legend". The movie was good (not spectacular), but what we enjoyed the most was just spending the afternoon together on a date. Hopefully, with the grandparents help, we can carve out time to have the occasional "date afternoon" or "date night" next year, even if that means just getting out of the house for an hour and enjoying a pizza! (Parents of infants and toddlers, insert laugh track here.) Granted, that might be the wildly optimistic thinking of a "rookie" -- we'll have see how that plays out.

Denise's last day of work was Friday, and she'll take a few well-deserved days off prior to the delivery date. My folks are flying in on Tuesday and they'll be around for a few weeks to help out and shamelessly spoil their first grandkids.

This is possibly the last pre-dad transmission....see you on the other side!

Home stretch....

2007-12-08T17:06:00.000-06:00

We had our 35 week appointment on Thursday and things are looking good. The current prognosis is that we've got a reasonable chance of reaching the December 20th delivery date. Of course, every day could be THE DAY, and whether we can hold on that long remains to be seen. The good news is that the bambinos are far enough along that they should be fairly healthy even if we're a little earlier.

Our son has been rather assertive in communicating his desire to see the world, expressing himself through a medley of knocks, kicks, and other calisthenics. Our daughter is somewhat more selective in her motions -- perhaps driven by her smaller portion of real estate -- prodding in areas she seems to have carefully chosen. A combination of diligent execution and strategic instinct...even before learning to crawl, they're (over)qualified to be management consultants.

We went to a Mothers of Multiples white elephant dinner in Clear Lake last night. Lots of good food, fun, and helpful advice from several folks. It was nice to connect with others that had "been there, done that", and it was encouraging to observe that everyone was happy!

Truman woke me up this morning, as is typical for Saturday mornings, with his classic "What part of 'I have to pee' don't you understand?" whimper. While trotting down the stairs with him, I mentally registered the fact that this could be the last weekend in a long time that it's the DOG that wakes us up! I'm pretty confident I can keep intact the morning ritual of letting Truman out, getting the newspaper with him, and giving him 2 milk bones each morning. A lot of things will change, but the daily stint of quality time with the dog will remain on the priority list.

Here are a few photos taken this afternoon.

Denise at slightly over 35 weeks

Truman watching Denise at slightly over 35 weeks

How things have changed!

2007-12-02T22:52:00.000-06:00

We just put holiday gifts and cards for our kids under the tree today. This is definitely a sign that it's starting to become much more real for us! This will be quite the exciting holiday season. Our outlook on things has certainly changed in the past few months -- as it should.

Here's a picture from May of this year when we were vacationing in Playa del Carmen. We knew we were expecting at that time (it was pretty early and we hadn't told anyone), however, we were spending most of the days just relaxing in the sun, checking out the sights, etc. I don't think the reality had fully sunk in with us at that time. Now we're in the home stretch and the bambinos will be arriving later this month. I imagine the next "big vacation" will be something quite different than our trek to Mexico!

Chillin' South of the Border...

Shameless Plug

2007-11-26T19:59:00.000-06:00

A temporary diversion from the normal posts here -- I just had to use this opportunity as a shameless plug for Frank Caliendo. His impression of Bill Walton is hysterical. In case you don't want to watch the full video, just forward to the 3:15 mark. Ok, need to get back on track and focus...

A holiday first

2007-11-24T18:39:00.000-06:00

Although we've been in our house 7 years now, we have always been out of town visiting my folks during the Christmas holidays. So even though we had put up outside holiday lights and decorated the house with stockings, wreaths, etc., we never took the initiative to put up a Christmas tree inside the house. But now that we'll have our maiden voyage into Christmas in Pearland, we figured this was the year to initiate a new tradition.

Yesterday we put up all our "normal" holiday decorations, and for the first time we put up a Christmas tree in our home. (Ok, so it's a "synthetic" tree, but for us it's quite a big step!) We enjoyed ourselves putting the ornaments on. I'm pretty excited that the house will be extra-bright and festive for the bambinos, as we hope to bring them home around Christmas-time.

Our first tree!

Come on, you pansy!

2007-11-24T18:09:00.000-06:00

It has been quite a pleasant Thanskgiving holiday weekend so far. On Thursday morning Denise had a lot of momentum to plant some pansies we had bought a few days ago, so we took care of that prior to our big Thanksgiving meal. It's pretty impressive that even at 33 weeks with twins, Denise still has the energy to pursue one of her favorite hobbies -- there's always time for trees, plants, and flowers! Truman supervised our gardening event, but seemed rather indifferent to the results.

We had Thanksgiving at Denise's folks place in Spring (just north of Houston). It was a cozy audience with Denise's folks, her uncle Kenny, Denise and I, and of course the bambinos. It was great to relax and have some time to just sit back and chat. We had a fantastic meal and plenty of leftovers to bring home. Denise's dad made his famous river bottom gravy which I applied liberally to pretty much everything on my plate. Attached are a few pictures.

Denise and mom (checking for kicks!)

Denise and Dad

They keep growing, and growing...

2007-11-17T21:56:00.000-06:00

We had our 32 week ultrasound a few hours ago. Both the kiddos are doing great. We were given the good news that for both of them, their lungs have developed nicely and are pretty mature. We were even able to watch them breathe, observing their chests systematically expand and contract. Go bambinos!

Our son is getting BIG and has repeated his "grow 50% in 3 weeks" trick, passing the 5 lb. mark. Our daughter is a little more petite but also managing to grow at a quite healthy pace. Being an engineer, I was compelled to make a chart. At this growth rate, the kiddos may be ready to see the world prior to our currently scheduled December 20th date. Looks like there may be some real estate issues with being able to hold them in for that long. We'll have more visibility on that after our next doctor's visit this upcoming week. Stay tuned!

By the way, no ultrasound pictures this time. The bambinos are both positioned with their heads parallel and fairly far downward, so it looks like they're being shy for the cameras...

Going mobile...

2007-11-13T21:42:00.000-06:00

I think we're reaching maximum density on the nursery. We got a mobile two weeks ago that has a remote control you can hang on the doorknob. It plays 5 different songs and projects all sorts of mesmerising images of stars, fish, etc. on the ceiling and walls. While intended for babies, it's remarkably Pink Floyd-esque (If you ever watched "Dazed and Confused", it's the type of thing Slater could watch for hours...). I wonder if Fisher-Price recognizes this potential source of revenue.

Warning: Contents may explode under pressure

The 31 week appointment went well last week, and current indications suggest there is a good chance we'll go to full term (December 20th). We have another ultrasound scheduled for Saturday Nov. 17th, and we're looking forward to seeing our bambinos and observing how they're growing and trekking about. Other than that, we're doing a bunch of preparatory odds and ends. I installed the car seats and we had them inspected, Denise prepared a bunch of "dream dinners" for the freezer (I highly recommend the lemon chicken with capers), and we got a camcorder (which may be of some utility if we actually take it out of the box.)

That's it for now...ultrasound pictures forthcoming within a week.

If you can quote "Folsom Prison Blues"...

2007-10-31T20:15:00.000-05:00

...you're probably too old to trick-or-treat. I guess that requires some explanation of the backstory, huh?

We've had a good number of trick-or-treaters come by this evening (a surprisingly high number of Harry Potters, all of which were impressively realistic.) Most of them were toddler to elementary school age, which is what one would expect. A few others were...er...tall. Two of the latter category arrived in prison outfits. Denise asked what they did that earned them hard time. Without hesitation, one of our doorway guests quipped "I shot a man in Reno." This was followed by my nearly dropping the candy basket, and Denise encouraging further song-quoting banter by querying "Just to watch him die??"

So, some food for thought for all you parents out there...if your kiddos can quote Johnny Cash, perhaps it's getting time for them to focus on their algebra homework instead of trick-or-treating. Just something to ponder...I imagine the Man in Black is grinning in his grave...

A post-game quiz for you readers (yes, both of you!): Why is the song's protagonist serving time in California for a crime committed in Nevada? I never quite followed that. If you can explain that to me, I'll give you a nickel.

29 weeks and growing

2007-10-29T20:59:00.000-05:00

We went in for the 29 week ultrasound on Saturday, and the bambinos are growing quite rapidly. They're each 50% bigger by weight than they were 3 weeks ago! Our daughter is 2.9 lbs and our son is 3.4 lbs (estimated). Hopefully they'll continue to grow at a healthy pace, but without causing their mom too much discomfort. Denise can definitely feel more impact from their jostling around.

Our daughter at 29 weeks

Our son at 29 weeks

We've pretty much got the nursery under control now. We got a glider earlier this month (pictured below) and also La-z-Boy recliner for one of the guest bedrooms. Why we waited 7 years to get a La-z-Boy is life's 2nd greatest mystery (shortly behind "How is it medically possible that Keith Richards hasn't died at least 3 or 4 times by now?"). It is soooooooooooooooo comfy. A few pics of the "95% solution" nursery are below.

Rock around the clock

"If I can change....and you can change....everyone can change!"

Given that these ramblings will be highly bambino-centric in 2008, this episode probably warrants at least some discussion dedicated to the Truminator. So here's a short anecdote...

Through some awkward cosmic force, we were both in the mood for hot dogs on Sunday evening. So I fired up the grill, and Truman (who generally follows me to the grill enthusiastically to volunteer as a taste-tester) took an uncharacteristic stance of curling up on one of our deck chairs and looking sad. It is likely that the sobering reality that there would be no hot dogs for him sunk in early. I did not feel too sorry for him, as he was the beneficiary of cooking too many pancakes Sunday morning.

I'd smile and look at the camera too if I could have a hot dog