The GrahamCam: Makeout Session

Here is some great footage of Graham making out with himself. Quite the little Narcissus, I'm afraid.

GPoD:3.28.2006

I peeked at Graham during his nap today and I saw a foot peeking back!

GPoD: 3.28.2006

Graham tried mashed noodles for the first time on Sunday night. Not a fan, I guess. We had to go back to an old favorite : smooshed beans.

GPoD: 3.27.2006

I love my cup!

GPoD: 3.25.2006

GPoD: 3.24.2006

Here's Graham watching his first ever basketball game on television at Alex-and-Emily's. As you might imagine, the evening ended in tears. For all concerned.

GPoD: 3.23.2006

Whoa! Look how far I can stick out my tongue!

Grade Inflation

Grade point averages seem to be steadily inching up across the educational system, but nobody seems to think this is a good thing. Unless, that is, you're earning a 4.0 without breaking a sweat. Here's a recent take on this issue of grade inflation.
Warning: if you're in one of my precept sections, you might not want to read this.

GPoD: 3.21.2006

Mirror, mirror, on the wall...who is that?!

An Early Fragment

Discovered this week in my mother's attic: an early fragment from a literary career that never was.
At least not yet...
Click in picture for larger version

Are You Chalcedonian-Compliant?

Sweet! I'm not a heretic! Here's a quiz for my fellow theology nerds:

You scored as Chalcedon compliant. You are Chalcedon compliant. Congratulations, you're not a heretic. You believe that Jesus is truly Godand truly man and like us in every respect, apart from sin. Officially approved in 451. Chalcedon compliant 100% Nestorianism 67% Apollanarian 67% Pelagianism 33% Monophysitism 33% Adoptionist 17% Monarchianism 8% Arianism 0% Docetism 0% Donatism 0% Albigensianism 0% Modalism 0% Gnosticism 0% Socinianism 0% Are you a heretic? created with QuizFarm.com

The Big-Boy Carseat

Graham has outgrown his infant carseat, so today we got out the "Big-Boy Carseat" and installed it in the car. Graham seemed to be quite impressed with his achievment. When we told him that in only four more months we could turn it around to face forward, he was positively giddy.

GPoD: 3.18.2006

GPoD: 3.17.2006

The GrahamCam: Look Who's Feeding Himself!

Another day, another barrier broken by our over-achieving little prodigy. This evening, Graham figured out what his mouth is really for--besides slobbering on people and vomitting on the carpet. Oh yeah--food goes in there . . . and I can put it there myself! Note his mummy's tears: Veggie Poofs today, college tomorrow.

GPoD: 3.15.2006

. . . their tops are made out of rubber,
their bottoms are made out of springs . . .

The GrahamCam: Fine Motor Skills

Here's Graham playing one of his favorite games: take the rings off the post. Putting the rings back on the post is rather more difficult. We'll save that for next week.

Just hanging out

Graham has been exceptionally chatty today! If only these pictures had sound....

Here's a neologism I'm planning to incorporate into my regular vocabulary: anti-natalism. Madeline Bunting of the Guardian has very quickly become one of my favorite newsprint pundits. Here's why.

GPoD: 3.13.2006

"Enough with the papparazzi, already!" Well, sometimes we just have to take the shots we can get. There you see it: tooth number two.

GPoD: 3.11.2006

Alright. These aren't tulips, and he's not doing any tip-toeing. But Sarah wanted to take advantage of the beautiful weather we're having today to take some more pictures of our handsome little fellow. Just think what she'll do when we get a girl.

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood...

We enjoyed being outside today in our balmy 73 degree weather!

GPoD: 3.7.2006

Here's Graham helping daddy get some work done.

Cough Syrup and Its Discontents

Graham caught his first cold this weekend. Small wonder: his mommy has been in bed with a much more severe case since last Thursday. We started seeing some snuffles and coughs yesterday, and then Graham was up half the night hacking last night. Hoping to avoid a repeat performance tonight, I went to the pharmacy this afternoon to find the appropriate drug cocktail. There I found a curious phenomenon: a whole row of cold products labeled as "Infant" but with dosage instructions for children over 2 years of age. Now, I may not be a world-class philologist, but I'm reasonably certain that most folks wouldn't describe a two year old as an infant. But these products all gave instructions to call a doctor before giving the stuff to kids under two. Very well: they don't want to get sued. But then shouldn't they be calling them "Toddler Drops"? I querried the pharmacist and got a wry expression. "I can't officially tell you that this stuff is OK, but..." with a shrug of the shoulders. Then she got out the Illustrated Magic Golden Book of Pharmacological Secrets and showed me the suggested dose for a 7-month old. "Why isn't this printed on the product?" I asked. "Well, they want you call a doctor first." Wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Alright, I get the picture: the big pharm laywers don't want their companies getting sued, but the markerters don't want to lose market share on the parents-of-children-under-two demographic (a notoriously worriesome lot, ready to shell out big bucks at the first appearance of discomfort). So the solution is simple: advertise the product as made for infants, but tell them in fine print that they really shouldn't give it to infants if they don't call a doctor first. Everyone's happy, right? Sure--as long as you're happy making health care decisions by reading between the lines or calling to pester your physician about every over-the-counter medication on the market (and do you really think your physician is going to answer such potentially incriminating questions over the telephone? Dream on.). But that's the price of living in the Land of the Litigious: when it comes to product packaging, passing the buck is safer than giving a straightforward answer.
Sorry for the rant. I'll try not to let it become a habit.

GPoD: 3.6.2006

Hey, folks, check out my oatmeal mustache!

Graham's First Tooth!

Alright, it may not look like much on your end, but this little thing is sharp! Just ask Sarah.

GPoD: 3.5.2006

GPoD: 3.4.2006

Mmmm . . . feet taste good.

The Graham-a-Phone

Well, Graham has finally uttered his first intelligible word: Dada. Yes, I had a sneaking suspicion it might be dada before mama; after all, I'm the one who swings him around the room by his legs and plays the tickle monster game. But Graham has done me proud. He's not speaking in complete sentences yet, but let's just remember that he's only six months old. We'll give him another month or two.

Where Would Jesus Buy his Printer Toner?

At www.lasermonks.com, of course! The company is run by eight Cistercian monks in Sparta, WI, who sing Gregorian chants while filling toner. They sell new and reconditioned ink and toner cartridges for almost all widely available printers and copiers, and their prices are amazing. I paid over $90 for my last toner cartridge, and they're selling them for around $40. And the best part is, all the profits go to charity.

GPoD: 3.3.2006

GPoD: 3.2.2006

It's been four days since the last GPoD, and public outcry against my slackness has been mounting. Here's a triple helping to help get us back in the swing of things again...