For Grandparents' Eyes Only

If my daughter wasn't in it, I wouldn't watch this video of today's ballet dress rehearsal, either.

But she is in the video, and I can't stop smiling while I watch her dance. Watching also makes my heart hurt a little. I'm not sure why, though.

This is What Fun Looks Like? (part 2)

The Frog Hopper is one of Char's favorite rides, but on Sunday it was clear that Adventureland had taken its toll. Char was tired.

And crabby.

Yep, it's time to go.

Hallmark is Missing the Boat

When Charlotte talks about me she says, "My Dad".
When Charlotte talks about Daphne she says, "My Mom".
When Charlotte talks about her daycare provider she says, "My Kim".

May is Char's last month to go to daycare, and that has got me to consider what an impact Kim has had on my daughter.

I thought it would be cool to get Kim a Mother's Day card that addresses how much love daycare providers give. I couldn't find any. They sell cards that are "for the cat" or "for the dog", but not for daycare providers? That's a shame.

Char's been going to Kim's house since she was two months old. That equals thousands of diapers changed, hundreds of meals served, and countless tears wiped away. Kim has given Char gifts, kisses, and hugs. Kim has also put Char in time-out. They do craft projects together, and they argue about going shopping.

Doesn't that sound like parenting?

Since Hallmark doesn't sell the cards, and Charlotte's too young to say it herself, I'll write it for her.

Dear Kim,
Thanks for being My Kim when My Mom couldn't be there.
Love,
Charlotte

Never Had A Chance

(I wrote this entry three years ago, but I didn't post it. I don't know why. I guess I forgot about it. Daphne has a band concert tonight, and it will be a daddy-daughter night. Char won't be sitting on my lap like she is in the video, but we'll be lying on the couch watching whatever she wants to watch... she's still got my number.)

Charlotte loves the Starfall Camp's website.

The free version lets you explore the sounds of the alphabet and the construction of small words, while the expanded version also covers colors, numbers, and higher level tasks for older campers.

Playing on the "poot" (Charlotte's pronunciation of "computer") is mostly a daddy-daughter activity, and I suppose we spend about 20-30 minutes at Starfall Camp each day. Unlike rotating library books, the web site is the same day after day, and we've been working the letters page for over six months. It can get pretty boring at times.

Yesterday afternoon I made the mistake of letting Charlotte see me walking towards my room. She sped pass me to my computer chair, leaned into the soft cushion, and opened her little hands to the ceiling. While looking up at me she raised her shoulders, the corners of her mouth, and her eyebrows. She asked, "Poot?" Although it was the last thing I wanted to do at that moment, we spent the next 20 minutes examining the complexity of vowel sounds. 

In four days Charlotte will be 20 months old, and she's already got her Dad's number. I am in so much trouble.

Starfall link

Hey! We've Got One of Those, Too.

I'm sincerely happy for Prince William and Kate.

I know from experience how great it is to have a Princess Charlotte.

Pinball Update: A Small Modification

This is the credit button on my pinball machine. I bent a switch on the credit unit to be permanently closed, and now the machine is set to "free play".

In my hand (on the left) you can see the metal strap that holds the credit button's spring in place.  On the right you can see the clear plastic strap I bought from Pinball Resource.

I also bought a light socket from Pinball Resource. I installed the plastic strap, attached the socket behind it, soldered two wires to the socket, and connected those wires to the light that already illuminates a 25 cent coin slot.

Now when I turn on my machine, the red button lights up.

 I think it looks pretty neat in the dark.

The best part of the project was when I showed Daphne and Charlotte. Char exclaimed, "Cool light, Dad!" and Daphne added, "Yeah, that is pretty neat."

Not bad for a $2 investment.

It's May!

Make sure you get outside and enjoy the "flowers"!

This is What Fun Looks Like (?)

We made our first trip to Adventureland yesterday, and guess who's tall enough to ride her first "grown up roller coaster"?

Her height doesn't surprise me, Char's tall for her age, but Daphne and I were amazed that she actually wanted to ride the Tornado. We took her up the wooden ramp (she ran) so she could check out the ride, and the coaster full of screaming kids that went roaring by wasn't a deterrent. Charlotte still wanted to ride the Tornado. 

It was a bit more than she was ready for. 

That's what g-force and terror looks like when they're combined. But you know what? She went back for a second ride later in the day! (Whew. I'm glad we didn't scar her.)

Other rides had better faces on them.

Getting pretty brave with her hands in the air...

There's nothing like a snack to keep you going.

And sometimes that nap on the way home just makes the day complete.

Pass the Dramamine

We've been to the Adventureland Amusement Park before, but this year Santa gave us season passes. What a great guy!

Normally it would cost $125 for the three of us just to park our car and walk through the gates, and then we would have to spend the entire day there just to feel like we got our money's worth. At $105 per pass (you get a $5 gift certificate to spend and free parking all season), they're a great deal. 

Now we can go whenever we want, and more importantly, we can leave whenever we want. Some days we can go just to swim - they have the largest wave pool in Iowa - or if it's cool, then we can just ride the rides. 

Daphne and I had season passes before we had Charlotte (it's hard to believe those days ever existed), and some days we'd go to Adventureland just to ride the Sky Ride and play some bingo - we're easily amused. This year Daphne's excited to go at night. We'll have dinner in the park and then go ride in the dark. 

I have great memories of going to Adventureland as a kid, and I'm excited for Charlotte to start making memories with her family.

Charlotte's just plain excited.

I'm not cool, and I'm cool with that.

 I've run dry after creating over twenty different "Crazy Theo Fart Stories" (see previous post). To give myself a break, I try to distract Char with music during our car ride to daycare.

When she was an infant we listened to the Doors, Bob Marley, The Stone Roses, the Beatles... I didn't pick anything that was too jarring. Now Charlotte can voice an opinion, and she doesn't want anything to do with "grown up music". Here's a short list of what's in our cars.

If you've listened to 90's alternative music, then you'll recognize Chris Ballew's voice. He's the lead singer for the Presidents of the United States (hits include "Lump, "Peaches", and "Kitty"). His Caspar Babypants songs are about animals and insects, and they're catchy as all get-out. I haven't heard his newest release, Night Night!, but I'd recommend it anyway. Mr. Ballew's songs are great, and I dare you to not sing along with him.

I spotted this release at the library, and although I'd had not heard of 60's folk singer Tom Glazer, I thought his music looked like fun. I got lucky. Tom Glazer Sings Honk-Hiss-Tweet-GGGGGGGGGG and Other Children's Favorites is a compilation of Mr. Glazer's live performances. Firmly set in the 60's, his songs include standards at the time ("I Know and Old Lady"), original takes on old standards ("On Top of Spaghetti" and "Big Rock Candy Mountain"), Scottish ballads ("Three Crows"), and songs he made up on the spot ("Come Down the Aisle" may be my favorite track). There are a few songs recorded in the studio, but their polish lacks the shine of his interaction with the children in the audience. Char loves to giggle along with the other kids; I think it makes her feel like she part of their group. When she was three years old, Char once commented at the end of a song, "Good job, Tom." High praise indeed.

Another alternative band that was popular in the 80's and 90's is They Might Be Giants. I still have my cassette tape of Lincoln, and I still play it on my home stereo. Their three children's releases (Here Comes the ABCs, Here Comes the 123s, and Here Comes Science) are rarely out of the car. "High Five" is the first song we ever heard Char sing from memory. I suppose she was about two years old at the time. We were pushing her in a swing at the park, and she just started singing, "High Five! Up top! Low five! Don't stop! Slap me five! Whoooo! Keep it cool! Old School!" 

Surprised, I turned to Daphne and said, "I guess she's really listening in the car. " 

Daphne replied, "I guess she really likes it!'  

(If I was a major league baseball player I'd want the park to play a snippet of "High Five" while I was walking to bat.)

Strange connection:  In 1993 They Might Be Giants covered the song "Why Does The Sun Shine? (The Sun Is a Mass of Incandescent Gas)" which originally appeared on Tom Glazer's album Space Songs (1959).

Here's our newest selection from the library.

Not much to say about this that hasn't been said already. Like every other kid who has seen the movie, Char really enjoys singing "Let it Go". The rest of the songs are equally good, and they worm their way into your brain like a popcorn kernel between your teeth. This morning the first thought I had while standing by the bed was, "The window is open! So's that door! I didn't know they did that anymore..." Oh man, that's gotta stop.

I can do a pretty good impression of "Reindeer(s) Are Better Than People", though.

I used to switch to my CDs when Char got out of the car, but that's too big of a hassle. Now I just keep her music playing. Sometimes students in the parking lot will give me weird looks if they hear me playing "For the First Time in Forever" with the windows down. But I don't care. Being cool is last thing on my "to do" list. 

I'm just trying to survive parenthood in one piece.

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