Works in Progress . . .

Cue the Benny Hill music . . . . another weekend arrived with yet another Friday night trip to Home Depot. I would save all the frustration caused by the crappy service (employees who are no help whatsoever) if I weren't such a cheapskate and instead shopped at a non-chain, non-mega home improvement store. But then again, who else is going to be open until 10:00pm on Friday night? Thankfully, I do see a light at the end of the tunnel on the deck project. Again, I remind myself not to do these home projects myself, but I always forget how much they take out of me and start another project anyway (I hear that this is how the second pregnancy happens too).

The deck has really taken a toll on my bum right knee. It has been bothering me for years really and, being in managed care I never really had a proper diagnosis until recently when my HMO sent me over to a local hospital they contract with when they are booked up on appointments. The referral hospital happens to have an excellent Orthopedics team and they immediately diagnosed me with a Meniscus cartilage tear. They recommended surgery that would require three weeks of recovery (and no driving for a week). That was a few months ago. Since I drive Lukas to and from day care, and have been busy getting the house in order for his 1st birthday party, I have put it off.

I finally decided, with some helpful prodding from Mrs. LIAYF, that there would never be a good time to get this done. Plus trying to do all the fun things I want to do with Luke on a bad knee which will never heal itself, was not something I was willing to accept. Lukas is walking, and getting more and more mobile every day. So, I finally scheduled the surgery. I will deal with the inconvenience for a few weeks to not have it bother me as Luke gets faster and faster on his feet.

Lukas is becoming less like a baby and more like a little boy every day. For instance, he has added a couple of more words to his repertoire. He is now saying "nigh-nigh" at bedtime, "ma-ma" (finally, to the relief of Mrs. LIAYF), and just this afternoon he started saying "ah-ba" whenever our feline freeloading cat Albert walks by (which is rarely since the cat mostly lays around the house all day and does nothing). Luke seems to really be expressing himself quite well recently and I can anticipate he will be holding very detailed conversations with us in the near future.

Finally, instead of just pulling his books off the bookshelves and stacking them in a messy pile, Lukas has started to select one and for us to read. He grabs the book, walks or crawls over to one of his parental units, and says "da-do" (translation: "please read me this fine piece of literature so that I may someday grow up to be a Pulitzer prize winning author and be able to support my wonderful parents in the princely manner you both deserve"). He then hands one of us the said book and actually climbs up into a lap for some good reading time! Amazing!

With our little boy growing up so quickly, I'd better get my bum knee fixed soon! My surgery is on July 7th - wish me a speedy recovery.

Goodbye to an Old Friend

It is said that having children 'Changes Everything'! After 7 wonderful months with Lukas, I can't say that that is entirely true (I am esentially the same person), however, it does ring true in so many little ways and some not so little, as well.

I am esentially a frugal person. I don't like to spend money on things I don't really need. Therefore, I tend to hold on to things until they are 'well loved' you might say. However, now that I have a son I have had to change my philosophy with regards to some possesions that may not measure up in the realm of the 'safe for baby' dept. Therefore, Mrs. LIAYF and I decided that with Lukas about to enter day care and both of us needing to drive, we would upgrade our second vehicle to something suitably safe for the Budlet. We ended up buying a Honda CRV crossover (today's answer to those who would never be caught dead in a minivan, yours truely included) which was just slightly used.

With that purchase, it is now time to say goodbye to my 20 year old S10 Blazer. I have had this vehicle for 16 years, and it has seen me through a lot of change. It has been a great car and, although is getting pretty rough around the edges (when cleaning it for sale yesterday, I joked that I was 'polishing a turd') and is definitley not up to the safety standards I expect for Lukas, it still runs well, and best of all, it is paid for long ago!

I thought this would be a difficult decision, to get rid of something that has been with me for so long (my wife and I had our first date, and more than a few memorable moments in that car), but in the end it was actually a very easy choice. Lukas' safety trumps all nostalgia and it is past time to find Blaze someone else who will make thier own memories with it. Hasta La Vista old friend!

Make Mine a Guinness!

I remember when I was, oh maybe 9 or 10 years old, the Guinness Book of World Records was all the rage at my school. I think it had something to do with Evel Knievel and his daredevil heroics of jumping over barrels, buses, fountains, and even an unsuccessful attempt to jump the Snake River Canyon. I believe he set a few 'world records' for jumping things with a motorcycle and that was the coolest thing this rural farm boy, and surly boys all over the country (and world for that matter) could imagine.

I remember getting the latest edition of the Book of World Records and scouring through it to see what record I could attempt to break. I believe that after an episode of 'Happy Days' titled 'The Book of Records' I spent days trying see how many quarters I could stack on my elbow and catch in my hand. I do remember catching quite a few, but nowhere near the record. I also remember having a pogo stick (remember those?) and trying to jump endlessly on it thinking I could maybe someday break that record as well. It was loads of fun and something I had completely forgotten until yesterday.

For the record, no pun originally intended, the best toy we have for Lukas right now is not a toy at all. It is a Johnny Jump Up. This is a device that hangs from a doorway and has a seat and a spring and when you put your baby in they can hang out there and stand, or jump up and down, hence the name. Lukas loves, loves, loves getting in his jump up. He is such an active boy and wants nothing more at this time in his developmental cycle than to move, or in this case jump. I was watching him jump in this thing endlessly yesterday with the biggest grin of pure delight on his face that I thought he might never stop. It triggered in me that memory of the pogo stick which got me to reminiscing of long gone days of joyful play and possibility. Having a son has brought much of that joy back, just watching him so thrilled to be jumping up and down.

As for 'World Records', I will have to look up in the current edition and see if there is an entry for hours jumping in a Johnny Jump Up, or see if there is a record on file for most drool expelled in a 24 hour period. Lukas would be in the running for that one as well.