Halloween 2010 (Part I)

Some really cool spirited appetizers made by Amanda (one of them is included in the second post). Here we have "mummy dogs".....Get it?

and spider web cupcakes too.....didnt Amanda do an awesome job decorating these with white chocolate?
Here's Callum and BaBaBooey. Callum likes to take his little chair and put it on the couch and sit. Callum and BaBa were watching the Packers BEAT the JETS!!!! Yesssss!!! (and the Pats beat Favre....literally!)
This morning was the "Ghostly Gallop Haunted Trail Run" that Lori (my co advisor), me, and the kids put on for a fundraiser this morning. Lori and I are class advisors...and this year they are sophomores. It actually was SNOWING this morning as we were setting up and decorating the trail....it was a cold, miserable, coffee inducing morning. Does that make sense? Callum was number 390. He finished last, with a time of 50:28. It will be in the paper.
One of my students, Griffin, has a dad who owns the store "Are you ready to party," a party supply store in Waterville. The dad is also an expert make up artist for theater and stage makeup. He put some sweet wounds and road rash scars on me. Callum feared me a bit.
An absolutely EXHAUSTING day. I taught Sunday School this morning at church, went straight to the school/woods, came home, and then our "party" started with everyone coming over to eat, cook, and have fun. I didnt keep track of how many trick or treaters this year....it was less than usual because it was a Sunday. But I did it up nice with a sweet bonfire (it was FREEZING today). This, obviously, got me tons of chicks.

Halloween 2010 (Part II)

Amanda made some awesome Halloween snacks for today....first up were "deviled" eggs with eyeballs and creepy mouths made of pimentos....
Amanda made Callum a homemade chicken costume.....Callum has literally been petrified of it for the past two weeks. I had felt really bad, since Amanda and her mom worked on this thing for like four hours, collectively. He finally put it on tonight, and the only thing we had to do to make him wear it was let him wear it over his jacket. That's it. His friend Polly, from church, came by with her mom and dad Betsey and Ben. Polly and Callum and great friends, and they always enjoy being together....

Dave and Muriel came by to share the evening with us. It was awesome that they came, and they too dressed for the occasion. They finally got to meet Lynne and George; Lynne and George had, up until now, heard so many great things about the Houston-Fishes. Now they got to see for themselves. Fantastic people.
And hanging out with Uncle Jon and Aunt Kelsey....Callum and Uncle Jon have a new "chair" game they play, where Jon basically throws Callum into his chair from 20 yards away. Callum seems to love this.

Why I Hate the Playground

Waterville, even though they have the worst mayor in Maine, is home to one of the best playgrounds around--the North Street Playground. It is resplendent in its cleanliness, its visibility, and its equipment. It sits on the campus of the Alfond Youth Center on one side, and the beautiful Messalonskee Stream on the other. It is one of Callum's favorite places as of late.

And I detest going there.

I hate the playground, and it isnt because I hate spending time with my son and doing things that make him happy; rather, I hate the playground because it represents all the morals, values, and vocabulary that I DONT want him to embrace. Plus, it is a bastion for really, really bad parenting--particularly that of the "fatherly" variety.

All over facebook and all these other social media types of places there are countless "cut and paste" statuses, etc. that pay homage to mothers: "A mother is the most important job in in the world...what mothers go through is harder than what Navy SEALS go through, and yada yada yada." Yet, there is still this double standard "stigma" against fathers as the football watching, inept, clueless, cookless, cleanless individuals who are always looking for reasons to get out of doing stuff with their kids and wives....and leaving to go to a bar with friends, etc. If you dont believe me, watch any TV commercial or sitcom. For a man to show sensitivity/compassion/love to his son (or any other little boy, for that matter), clearly that man must be "gay" or a pedophile.

Being a father is the most amazing thing I've ever done, and I hate going to the playground at North Street because it just reinforces all the cultural stereotypes of parents (mostly fathers) who could really give two craps about their kids or what their kids are doing. It is a white trash paradise, and I see more wife-beater shirt wearing guys at North Street Playground than I do in most mafia films. I do "social experiments" each time I am there--I count how many kids have names like "Destiny" or "Tyeisha" or something else that is white trash sounding. I count how many parents are sitting on benches or not even remotely looking at their kids. And I count how many dads are texting or on cell phones while their kids are trying to get their attention from the top of the slides. Two days ago when I brought Callum there, there were seven other fathers beside myself, and EACH ONE was on his cell phones while their bratty kids ran around and terrorized other kids....or were just total tools striving to get the attention of their dads.

The other day at school, this idiot in a truck pulls up beside me at 714 in the morning and says "hey bro, my kid needs to go to the 'second grader' school....which school is dat and how does I get dere?" Seriously? Your kid has gone to Kindergarten, first grade, and one term of second grade at the same place...and you dont even know where that IS?? Why do some men fail to be fathers? It really pisses me off, and when I think of the kids being affected, it makes me want to cry (sorry Tim).

I'm proud to be a dad and just cannot possibly understand why some guys continually suck at life when it comes to being a man. Get off your damn cell phone that you're using welfare checks to pay bills on and go ask your kid about their day. Since you never made it past second grade yourself, you might actually learn something. It is time for guys to "take back" fatherhood and stop letting culture dictate how we are perceived to be. Sick of it. I love it when I talk about cleaning something around the house, and a woman says "uh oh...you must be trying to make up for something bad!" And If I get another "totally shocked" look when someone finds out that I cook dinner each night, that someone is going to get a punch in the shin. White trash style.

Oh no he di-ent!!!

Retiroween Part Deux

So many great pictures were taken this past weekend. I wanted to share some more. Here is Callum, Upbob (the retiree) and "Nana B." I dont get to see Nana B that much anymore....so it always great when she is around. As a kid, I remember she always made THE best chicken soup. I dont know what it was about it. She says "nothing." But it was that good.

On Sunday, before hitting the road to go back to Maine, we, Lynne, George, Mom, Bob, and Dad (Barbara was with her son and other grandkids...we missed her!) met at the Crackerbarrel Restaurant. This is my mom and Bob's new favorite place on earth. Pretty good "country" food (I had catfish and grits) and then a ridiculously overpriced "store" that sells nothing but crap from China. Well, it isnt THAT bad I guess. But not my thing. But the food was great, and the fireplace was REAL, and the company couldnt be beat! Below, Callum is making his selection for breakfast....
A very nice picture of Lynne and George. George, for a change, is wearing a shirt he got at LL Bean.
And a very nice picture of my mom and Bob too. Bob recently started wearing all Eddie Bauer clothing....
And I love this picture of Ortiz and I. I think I will make it my Crapbook profile picture.

Obviously, this weekend really got Callum tired out. My mom gave all the kids these little "pumpkin buckets" filled with candies and little toys. On the ride home, Callum enjoyed dumping out the contents of said bucket onto his lap, playing a bit, and then putting the bucket on top of his head. This time, however, the excitement was just too much for him.....he slept like this for like ten minutes before we noticed....

Retiroween

We made our way down to Mass this past weekend for the CSA (Clubhouse Style Affair) my mom was throwing for a) Bob's retirement and b) a Halloween get-together. My mom loves to throw CSAs, as much as she says she hates them and is getting too old. She even has special CSA suitcases in which she packs her CSA stuff for these sexy parties. Dressing up was encouraged for this party, as the invitation said there would be a prize for the best costume. Sadly, my dad didnt realize that the claim was a bunch of BS and that the prizes were only for little kids like Callum, Jackson, JJ, and Ava. But we all had fun watching him stroll in as a pillaging viking....

Sort of a Shrek meets Beowulf meets Animal House....

Jason, Jen, JJ, and Ava came by too, and it is always great to see all those guys. On Friday night, after Callum was asleep, I got to meet Jay, Tim, and Eleni at "The Chateau," this bar in Norton that apparently closes at 715. But we had a great time catching up and making Eleni feel uncomfortable with all our Jerky Boys and STATE references that she probably didnt understand....JJ was Buzz Lightyear, but he had taken off his costume at the time this was shot. Jason was a thirtysomething in-debt-over-his-head grad student for Halloween.
The CSA was like the "woodstock" of grandparents. Only less mud. And nudity. Hardly ever do all the forces (grandparents) combine in even the same STATE never mind the same room. So it was very special to get one of these pictures taken of MeeMee, Nannie, and Grammy Goldsmith (by the way...look at Callum's new "thing." He sucks his thumb and caresses his ear when he is tired....my cousin Richie used to do this thing too)
I call this photograph "Why I Drink." I dont know where Upbob was for this photo....he must have been being pulled around like a pull toy (inside joke) when we took this. Lynne and George made the trip down for the party, and it was great for my mom and bob....and my dad and barbara to get to see Amanda's parents. They always have a great time when they are together. I am pretty sure George and Bob are dating now too......
The boys were really tired out after a day of running, playing, candying, and travelling. Amanda made Callum a HOMEMADE chicken costume...absolutely beautiful. And Callum was terrified to wear it. Jackson was a vampire, but we dont have any pics because when he was dressed up, we were picking up the pizza
Lots more pictures...I'll have to do another post on the weekend!

For my next magic trick.......

First some pictures of Callum and Lupine. Above, is our friend Siena, holding a sleeping Lupine. I mentioned on the last blog how the Fitzpatrick's absolutely LOVED Lupine (and all cats). Well Lupine returned the favor and then some. I know this sounds mean, but I've never been a "black cat" guy; Lupine has changed that though. A very sweet, loving (and TOTALLY kitten-playful) little kitty. We love her.

Callum's new favorite show is "The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!" on PBS. Martin Short plays the voice of the Dr Seuss cat, and each episode features a new adventure the cat leads the kids on. On one episode Callum has on DVD, Sally and Nick were having a sleepover, and they designed a "tent" in the bedroom out of sheets, pillows, etc. Callum, using his incredible imagination, decided he'd like to make a "fort" as well. Tonight as Amanda and I were cooking dinner, we heard Callum moving stuff around in the living room. "Look!" he told us, "I made a fort and tunnel too!" I love when kids do something totally with their imagination....and then are so proud of their accomplishment afterwards....

(a little "mat" to lie down underneath the tunnel....




(crawling through the tunnel....)



LOOK WHAT I MADE!!!So about the title.....I called it "my next magic trick" because it seems as though I keep getting myself involved in stupid, yet healthy and vigorous undertakings designed to challenge myself in new and different ways. First was the Trek Across Maine, then came my triathlons. Now comes the training for my first half-marathon. I have to say I am SUPER excited about this. Since July, I have lost about 35 pounds, and running is so much more enjoyable--I just feel so much faster, and I feel a lot less "pain" when I do run longer distances. Now that biking season is "sort of" winding down (I still ride each day to and from school....and it is only going to get colder!), I have turned to doing longer runs. Our "long day" (I say "our" because I am training with friend, colleague, and co-class advisor Lori Loftus) now consists of six miles. And it feels good! The half marathon isnt until the spring, but I am planning on running through the winter. And I'll brag: I've been working out with the cross country team, and yesterday I (for some reason that my knees are still asking me) did 800 (half mile) repeats with them. Their workout consisted of 6 of these repeats, and I did 4, since I had to ride 6 miles home afterwards. Yes, I finished last (with the exception of my second interval, where I beat two people) for most of them....but I was only ten seconds behind the pack....I was really proud of myself; this time last year, being well over 35 pounds heavier, I couldnt even think about keeping up with runners. Okay. Gonna go drink seltzer....

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

Some catching up to do, I guess. Two weekends ago, we had our good friends the Fitzpatricks over for supper (and, games....but we never got to that, since we were mesmerized by both the wood stove AND Lupine). Good stuff. I made some of my famous pulled pork over rice. Siena, Caden, and Mia definitely got their fix of Lupine-love, since they all LONG for a kitty of their own. Brad and Sasha both went to Winslow High School and know (and had) so many of the teachers with whom I work. Callum always has a great time with his little girlfriend Mia, and now Callum is really starting to look up to Caden, taking care to "imitate" a lot of the stuff he does. Very funny. Great friends......
I see there are no pictures of Lupine on this post....Amanda posted the pictures she wanted tonight, and I guess my job is to comment on them, since she is too lazy. Oh well. But a HUGE event in our lives over the past few days--and the rest of this blog will pay homage to it--is the fact that Callum is now in his BIG BOY BED! We "sold" this to him by telling him how he is going to be a good big brother and give his crib to his baby sister. So, this past weekend, when we had our friends the Parks-Stamms over, Ben helped me do some rearranging in Callum's room. Callum and the little girl will share a room for a bit....hopefully, very soon, we will be moving anyway. We have the third bedroom downstairs, but have decided for now to keep it as a "playroom" and a guest room for the guests who never come. So we put Callum's new bed right where his crib used to be. He transitioned as seamlessly as anything; we were so proud of him! Here he is, just rolling around, having a good time, while Amanda tries to get him to pose on his bed.....
He cannot fit as many of his "friends," but those need to start being phased out anyway....haha
What is funny is how he can obviously jump both in and out of bed at his will. Yet, when he wakes up in the morning, he still doesnt seem to "get" that he can just get out of bed. He calls for one of us to come in. So we do, and THEN he gets up himself. Today, Lupine slept with him during his nap, and then woke him up when she wanted to play.....
His sheets and comforter set are what I would like to have on my "camp" bed someday: They are laden with canoes, bears, moose, campfires, and more. Very outdoorsy. He loves it. And so do we.
Next, some pictures of Callum and Lupine and Amanda (who looks like she is about to pop!)