First year down, seventeen more to go!

Unless you live under a rock, you know that my daughter turned one this month. Crazy I know. Time does fly. We had a party at our home with a special lady bug theme in honor of our Lilly-bug. For the grown ups, my wife and I made a taco bar which included sweet pork that rivaled Cafe Rio and cilantro ranch dressing made from scratch. Wife can ccook y'all!

So now she is starting to walk and talk so I will be on more often to let you know all about her adventures! Thanks for sticking with us.

One year!

Here are some pictures from her daily adventures with me

I am a model

Everyone has told us how cute Lilly is. Well, we finally decided to see how right everyone actually was. So last Friday we took her to am open call at a talent agency. We figured what did we have to lose. So we dressed her up super cute and brought her down. I entered the agency alone while my wife got Lilly ready in the car. When I walked in the small agency, there was 3 women looking at dozens of photographs of a little boy and critiquing them, trying to decide which ones to keep and what not. I was handed a clipboard with all the appropriate form to fill out for Lilly. As i was writing down all the information, one of the ladies look at me and walked over and asked, "Are you here for acting?" I looked up and with the most confused look on my face ever I explained that I was there for my daughter, and that I only act the fool. She seemed really disappointed. Then a while later another  lady asked me if I was interested in acting. This lady was the CEO of the agency, although I didn't know i t then.

She approached my family and I and asked if acting was something I was interested in. I was pretty off guard since no one ever asked me anything like that and my main focus was Lilly to get work. As we spoke, she informed me that I was in high demand, by that she meant 30-50 year-old black men who were, "attractive". Her word not mine. She then proceeded to tell us about an acting class that started on June 18. Well to make a long story short, I start class on Saturday. So we did all this driving and professional pictures done for Lilly and they pic me. Daddy jacked his baby girl's spot light. Wish me luck

Tip for the Day: Don't outcute your kid at a talent agency!

Heads up!

SO now that Lilly is mobile, she is into everything and  going everywhere. At times, I think she is working on becoming a stunt woman. Why, you ask? Because she just seems to fall down and bump her sweet little head. So my darling wife suggested we purchase a helmet for our baby girl. I actually thought it to be a good idea. I am just not sure if it is a viable idea. Meaning, is it ok to let her explore and get hurt or should we be trying to protect her from some serious head trauma that is bound to take place on my watch? For those who know me all to well, you know I am a pretty clumsy person. What many of you don't know is my wife is as well. So Lilly was screwed from day one.

We also decided not to go full blown baby proofing the house. Instead we have opted for old-fashioned parenting. Meaning we actually watch our child and stop her from getting into things. Yes it is a radical concept but lets be honest, do you remember your mother covering up every corner? Or locking drawers and cabinets? Me either! I just magically knew not to drink Windex and Drano. I also knew the wrath of Dad would be upon me for getting into the knife drawer. So there were certain things that I just didn't do. I guess what I am trying to say is: I am going to be watching my daughter. Seemed to work for me, I am almost 33 so they must have done something right.

Now, I am not knocking the parents that baby proof their home, its your home. My home is over 100 years old, so a baby is about as safe here as a cat in a dog pound is. So, unless I lace my walls with bubble wrap, my kid is going to get hurt in some way. So I have to do what all parents did before the nineties, Watch my kid! Kids fall down and cry, it is part of growing up. Yes It kills me when Lilly falls and gets hurt. However a miracle always happens, she stops crying and gets back up.

So let your kids get scrapes and bumps and bruises. It will teach them either not to do that again or it will make them tough and keep trying and never give up until they have mastered the skill they want to attain. otherwise, we are going to have adults they never learn to walk and ride big wheels to work...actually that doesn't sound too bad! I just solve the global warming problem. Suck on that Al Gore.


Tip of the Day: When your child falls down, ask them where it hurts and then pinch them in an entirely different part of their body. They will totally forget about where they got hurt and they will stop running to you crying after every fall. Two bird- one pinch!

Let sleeping babies lie...

Babies need more sleep than adults. I don't think my daughter has caught that memo yet. She likes to be up all hours of the night and entertain her parents. During the day she will catch a nap every now and again. Here are some pictures to show you how Lilly likes to sleep.

Sleepover with Quincee

Took morning nap with Lady Bug Pillow Pal

she also liked to  with a friend

 or sleep with dad

but there were times I just caught her passed out. Here are some of those funny moments

 

In her bouncer. Doesn't that look comfy?

I wasn't sure if she was asleep at first. I thought she was praying to Allah since this was day after news of the death of Bin Laden. Just figured she was a Muslim since she is facing east as well lol

In her crip holding Easter gift from Grandma

The crib is the top choice but anywhere she can get some rest is alright with me. Good Night Lilly!

Tip of the day:

Let the baby sleep where ever they fell asleep. They bend better than a hot pretzel.

Just too cute

Here are two videos of Lilly. I just figured out how to upload videos so expect many more
Enjoy

This is me trying to get her to talk while the next one is of her after she ate some mashed potatoes and she did the cute head tilt I tell everyone about

Where do you think you are going?

Well, its official. My little girl is mobile. She has been crawling for a couple of months but has finally decided to change gears, from only reverse to drive. I can't lie, its pretty darn cute, but it also means I have to watch her all the time. She has also been pulling herself up into standing position and can climb stairs...sort of. So she has join the land of the moving. Although its always cute to watch her move, it generally tend to be in the same pattern: Crawl to object I can use to pull myself up then pull myself up then let go and faceplant into said object. Not a pretty site. However she seems to enjoy it since she does it a million times a day. However yesterday was a different story.

We own these little heaters that look like fireplaces. We love them so we bought two, we have one in our bed room and one in our sitting room(Note: we ain't that fancy and rich that we have a sitting room, its just what the room was called before we got married. Its where our television is and we can't decide what to name it yet. Don't judge me). So I was watching a movie I received from Netflix, it was Mean Girls 2, and my daughter was crawling around the small room. She found the fireplace and proceeded to pull herself up. Most times she does really well and can stand there for quite a while with no incident. This was not one of these times...she went forward right into heater, face first. She gave a blood curdling scream and the tears were flowing like an overfull river bank. I was scared out of my mind for two reasons: 1) Was she gonna be ok, like is there brain damage or blood. 2) How will my wife kill me when she sees how I disfigured her precious daughter's sweet face. Well, as luck would have it, she was just fine, No bumps or bruises to report. Just a scary experience.Mostly for me because she tried the exact same thing an hour later.

As I held her after the fall and tried to apply an ice pack for fear of swelling, and by swelling I mean trying to hide damage before my wife gets home, she was wiggling on my lap, and fell off my lap, and landed on the ground, face first. And the screams came back. I think my daughter is like a cat, except her face is in place of her feet. So a pretty good day-NOT!!!

No worries. Lilly is just fine. Tough little girl I gt on my hands. Now I only hope walking takes a long time but knowing my luck!

Tip of the day: When watching your infant crawl and start to pull themselves up, simplypush them down. This should slow down their adventurous side and hold walking for a few months. 

Check your pockets

Baby clothes are the cutest things on earth, after the little personages that wear them, of course. Onesies with infinite sayings, logos, and cute animal characters. Hats with little eyes and accenting pieces to accentuate the outfit. Who can forget footsie pjs. Side note: if anyone knows where I can get an adult pair I am an XXL, size 13. In all honesty, baby clothes are super cute! Whoever invented those snap buttons has to be a billionaire a billion times over. I only have one problem, pockets! I do not understand why a 3 month old has cute jeans with 4 pockets. What do they need, a place for their baby wallet or some change? 


Now don't misunderstand me. I am not talking about some sewn on material that looks like a pocket, I mean the kind you put your hands in as  you are walking in the winter, or pulling out a $5 bill to pay for a gallon of gas. Tops, bottoms, coats, even dresses. Lilly has pockets in a lot of her outfits. Yes they are cute but lets be honest, infants don't need working pockets. They don't have the dexterity to put their cute pudgy little hands in them and what do they need to carry on their person, a wallet or a photo id to get into an after hours club or buy lotto tickets?


My main concern is what about those parents that have their baby carry things for them. If a cop stops them for drug possession, are the y gonna frisk the baby? I doubt it. These are the things that keep me up at night!  Till next time


Tip of the day- Do not put anything in babies pockets you don't want them to put in their mouth, like candy you want to save for later. Babies don't share food well, trust me!

Dinner and a show

Last night we met my wife's family for dinner at their church. I didn't really know anybody but they knew us and everyone wanted to hold Lilly and were telling us how cute she was. This struck as odd. Not that they were complimenting our daughter, she is very adorable, I will admit that. Its just that they seemed surprised by the fact. After all, a lot of these people were either at our wedding reception or met me one time or another and they all said the exact same thing, "you guys are going to have such cute kids!" That was the natural first reaction we always got. Never good luck or congrats! Always a comment that our genetic make up is superior to non-mixed race couples.  This got me thinking, if I were the same race as my bride do people then say things like, "Your kids will be ugly little ogres, but congrats anyway!"? So why so shocked that our Lilly-Bug is so stinking cute?

Anyways, lol, we saw lots of people and everyone wanted to hold our Lilly,, two moms in particular. They had kids of their own, but they also adopted little black girls. So at first I was wondering if they were scouting for a new addition. Then I wondered why their kids looked so much like me, and I asked Kristyn if they saw any resemblance, but she just laughed. Honestly I saw these kids early in the evening and for me when I go anywhere I always look for the "other" black guy who I am sure is hiding everywhere I go. I have no idea why my brain works like that but I do it all the time. SO when I see two different black kids with two different white moms I was looking real hard for the other "dads" like me. I guess I like scavenger hunts.

It was a great dinner and Lilly had fun./ it was nice to rub shoulders with new people and to make new friends and see a familiar face(shout out to Marvette). I hope I didn't offend anyone with this posting. Its just me being me. When you lived the life I have you just have to make jokes. Its all gravy, baby!


Tip for the day:  When your kids ask why someone has different skin, like a random black stranger who happens to be walking by, don't freak out at your child's outburst of curiosity. Simply say, "Because they are just better than us." My advice to help stop racism, and hopefully get a laugh when it happens to me...again!

Whats in your mouth!?!?!?

Oral fixation or just morbid curiosity? I am not sure but for some reason kids love putting things into their little mouths.Anything within arms reach will do. My daughter is no different. For example at a photo shoot at a neighbor's home we brought out beads as props. Well those bad boys made her smile. Apparently they tasted like Similac because in her mouth they went and stayed...for about an hour.

She loves her blanket and her hand, and the hand of anyone holding her. Not sure what other babies like so here is a list of Lilly's top ten things she puts in her mouth. Notice pacifier or binky are not on this list

10. Bottle, because a girl has gotta eat

 9. Blanket, because without teeth your mouth gets cold

 8.Spit up rag, who doesn't like seconds

 7. Toys, how else do you play with them

 6. Someone else's fingers, you weren't sucking on it

 5. My wife's pillows, I ain't letting her touch mine

 4. Bath toys, different taste than regular toys due to soap and water flavoring yummy

 3. Her little feet, I admit I do it too, her feet not mine I can't stretch like that. Not since I was in show choir.

 2. Cell phones, smartphones make her giggle in 4G speeds

 and #1. Charger cords for phones and laptops! Because electricity and drool really go together

She is a pretty cute kid and I love her. Now how do I get my BlackBerry back? Well,at least I know that she likes fruit.

Also I am going to add a parenting tip at the end of every blog posting because honestly who knows more about parenting than some guy with an 8 month old that likes sucking on power cords

Tip of the day: If something happens to your child that doesn't leave a mark, do not tell your spouse! This only applies to the kids that still don't talk. =-)

Role reversal

So I live in a rural township in Northern Utah. Its a small farming community. I live on the corner of the two major roads, down one direction are homes with horses and sheep. Up the other road are two dairy farms with two different  types of milking cows.I work at one of them. I milk cows. For those of you that know me you are probably laughing so hard you may need to change underwear. Thanks for that. I love where I live and I like what I do believe it or not. I have the very best neighbors a man can ask for.

My job allows me to be home most of the day. This helps out my wife quite a bit since she has two major positions at a local hospital. So we don't need a sitter to watch our daughter, Lilly Mae. So while most of the moms out here are stay-at-home mothers, we have switched roles for the time being. Its not like I already stick out as the only "brotha" in a 10 mile radius or anything, but I am known as Mr. Mom, and you know what I like that title just fine.

So this blog is just me sharing with you,  the world, the ups and downs of fatherhood when being a dad is truly a full-time gig as you read and share some of my experiences as I witness my daughter grow and what impact being at home has on us both. Enjoy our adventures!