Ty dressed up in these cool train duds at a recent birthday party for one of his friends. It was a clever concept and the kids were really into it. Ty has loved trains since as long as I can remember. (Click here for an old post showing him at the local park).
Wellness Update: Ty can also be smiling today because we are feeling much better. Fever is gone and we were able to go to swimming lessons tonight. Thanks to all the well wishers who left comments or sent us notes.
Poor Ty has been home the past 2 days from school with a fever. Just one of those things going around. No major coughing or sneezing, but enough to keep the fever coming back 2 or 3 times in the day. He's holding up well but I am hoping he sleeps through the night and can return to school tomorrow. We'll keep you posted...
Scene: Ty's bathroom shortly after arriving home from school. Dad asks him to wash his hands. The water is tuned on and Ty's hands sit fixed at the base of the sink while water pours over them.
Dad: "Ty, please wash your hands"
Ty: "My hands are too tired"
Ty has already learned well the little boy tendencies of making goofy faces now for the camera. He was however very happy (like his Dad) when the Giants beat the Packers to advance to the Superbowl. He fell asleep before the 4th quarter and did not live through the agony and ecstasy that I did with the missed FG in regulation and the made one in OT.
As a side note: I just returned from a 2 day trip to Scottsdale, AZ. I arrived at the Phoenix airport Monday afternoon and they already had the gift stores loaded up with both the AFC and NFC championship shirts as seen in the locker rooms after the games the night before. Amazingly fast I must say. The whole airport was decorated for the Superbowl headed there in 2 weeks. It was very cool. I picked up a little bear with a hooded sweatshirt and the Superbowl logo on it for Ty.
Buildings are going up so fast these days in downtown Austin. The sky is filled with cranes. Once a sleepy college town with a skyline only noted for the UT Tower and the State Capitol dome, we have condo projects by the dozens. Our budding architect Ty submits for your consideration his design for the long overdue Austin Museum of Art. No need to pay those large NY architect firms millions of dollars, Ty will work for some rainbow goldfish crackers.
A funny little story from today I'd like to share:I went to the post office this morning to mail a letter. Amazingly it was very quiet in there and I went right up to the counter. The friendly postal clerk asked me about 6 questions while we were getting my postage (would you like to buy any stamps? do you need delivery confirmation? etc...) To all of which I politely replied "no thank you". Then he stated he had to ask all of those everytime just in case I was a "mystery shopper" because he said I looked like one.Looked like a mystery shopper? I had on a sweater with a light jacket over that. Maybe because I look so serious all the time? (people tell me that). Or because I was alone at an off hour at the post office? (got up late because I went to a horrible midnight movie showing of Cloverfield)He said they would get in trouble if a mystery shopper reported to his boss they didn't get the full executive treatment with all the questions. I smiled and simply said I was not one of those and just said thanks for the excellent service.It reminded me of another time a few years ago when I was dining at a very nice restaurant in Vegas. I happened to be alone that night and was dressed in a blazer because I was supposed to have gone to see Cirque du Soliel's show "O", but as luck would have it the performance was cancelled due to a technical issue in the pool. Severly bummed out I decided to splurge at one of the restaurants in the Bellagio. So there I was dining alone, dressed well, and was having an excellent meal. A couple of people sitting across from me invited me to their table after for a drink and dessert (nice and social). They asked if I was a restaurant critic because I was well dressed and alone. I just laughed.Is there a pattern here? I guess if I am with Ty then I look just like a regular Dad. But alone I seem to come across as some authority person or VIP. We will see how that plays out in future postings.
I got this little piece of "swag" from some technology event. It is a small brush that collapses inside a tube for cleaning your keyboard. Ty likes to use it to polish his toys and clean other various things around the house (thanks Montessori!).
While I was working on my computer, Ty came over and showed me how he had stuck his finger up inside the brush and created a large green finger. It provided lots of giggles and also gave me a flashback moment. My Dad used to tell very creative bedtime stories when I was little. One of them was called "Bubble Finger". I can't remember any of his adventures, but the name sticks with me. Perhaps my Dad (G-Pop) can write in a comment here and share one of those old adventures? Who knows, maybe there is a Hollywood screenplay waiting to happen!
Shirt by The Gap.
Bear by Old Navy.
Cuteness by Ty.
Here is a beautiful quote from Ty the other night:
"My heart makes me love you."
There's not much else to say with that. He's an awesome kid.
What is with the weather here in central Texas? One day we are wearing short sleeves and running around the playground. The next day the wind is blowing and it's barely above freezing. Can we have a bit more transition please? Ty is yelling at me to hurry and take the picture so he can put his hands back inside his sweatshirt pockets.
You wonder sometimes when it's a big holiday if anything is open. Usually you can count on the movie theaters, but depending on the holiday not much else. So Ty and I were feeling a little cabin fever and decided to venture out.
"Grilled Cheese!" is what he shouted from the back seat. And I thought what would be open today where I could satisfy his craving. Of course I could have easily made this for him at home (and a very yummy one I might add), but I decided to drive by the local Sonic and see if it was open. And thankfully it was. It was surprisingly cold today otherwise we would have had the sandwiches alfresco. So we had some grilled cheese and tater tots and both sat in the back seat and had a mini picnic. It was a perfect father-son bonding moment to start the new year.
