New dimensions

In Scooby-Doo, thanks to the new portable DVD player, bought for the trip to San Francisco. This was the trial run. As it happened, it wasn't needed on the flight out. Buster was a model of comportment and a fine traveling companion. But it sure eased the stress level knowing the big gun was waiting under the seat if needed.

Baby

Buster, is Daisy the cutest baby in that baby room at school?
Daisy is the cutest baby in the whole baby world.

Uncles

Peter and Jeb get to know Daisy. We're backing up a little here to late April.

Customer service

Here's some money, and here.
Oh, a credit card. Can I take this to the store?
Well, this is the store.
Oh, then I'd like to buy something.
OK.
I'd like to buy some gramupples.
We don't have any gramupples.
You don't have any gramupples?!
Well, we do. These are gramupples.
OK.
These are gramupples.
OK, I'd like some.
Well, actually, this is ChapStick.
Oh, you don't have gramupples, then?
No.
Oh. Well, do you have any whizzenpuffs?
No, we don't have any whizzenpuffs.
No, gramupples and no whizzenpuffs? What kind of outfit are you running here?
[Slowly, as to an idiot] This. Is. A. Store!

She bends over backwards

To take a cute picture. (S.F. ~5/3)

Tourists

On the cable car. We stayed at a flat in Noe Valley. Buster was really into the street cars, especially our home line, the J Church. One morning, we got on the J Church, rode it to Powell and Market, got on the cable car, rode it up to Fisherman's Wharf, bought Buster his own toy cable car, walked over ...

to Pier 39 to say hello to the sea lions --

or play with the new toy cable car, as the case may be, for a few minutes, then got on the F car and rode it down the Embarcadero and up Market to Church, where we got the J Church and went home. It was about a three and a half-hour trip, about three hours of it on public transportation, and we had a fabulous time. Who'da thunk.

Wha?

Some kind of baffling science thing at the Exploratorium. (~5/1)

Who's who

You're Daddy [to Mom], you're Buster [to Dad] and I'm the daddy.
You're the daddy?
Yeah!
[Whining] Pick me uuuuuup.
No, I'm too big. I'm not your daddy, I'm the monkey's daddy.

She's a real dish!

S.F., around May 1.

Superman

In San Francisco. (4/29)

Conversations with my kids' monkeys

Hi. I'm a monkey.
Hello, monkey.
I'm Curious George.
Oh, hi. I hear you're a good little monkey and always very curious.
Yeah, and my jungle is downstairs.
Is that where you live?
Yeah. My jungle is in the living room.
Oh, sure. That makes sense. It has a leopard rug.
And it has a train. But I can't play with the train.
Why not?
'Cause I'm a monkey.
Oh.
Monkeys don't play with trains.
What do they play with?
They play with soda.
With soda?
Yeah. They dump it out.
Why do they do that?
'Cause they're kinda silly.
I guess so.
Yeah. I'm kinda silly. And I love you. [Kiss.] 'Cause I'm a nice monkey.

Steps

Daisy takes a few at the marathon. (4/9)

She never spoke Spanish to me

Does Corrye talk Spanish to you?
Yes.
Do you know what it means when she talks in Spanish?
Yes.
What does she say?
She says "uno, dos, tres."
What does that mean in English?
[Slowly, as to an idiot] That's Spanish.

First

Time on a swing. Believe it or not. Buster had always refused to go on swings. Every time we were ever around swings, I asked if he wanted to go on them and he always said no. Until this day in Forest Park, where we'd gone to watch the St. Louis Marathon, when he said yes. And he had a fabulous time. He was 3 years, 2 months, 11 days old, and I submit he is the oldest American child of the 21st century to go on a swing for the first time. Can you dispute? (4/9)

Hammer

Is this sharp?
No.
Can I touch it?
Yeah, you can touch it, but you can't hammer with it.
Why?
Because I don't want you to hammer anything right here and break something.
Yeah, we don't hammer on the floor or the table or a face.

Rookie

card. Now that the weather's warming up, we're learning to swing the old lumber. Er, foam. Note the winter gloves, used as batting gloves, have baseball players on them.

(mid-March)

Outfit

Pebbles

Arch

Madness. At the Missouri Valley Conference basketball tournament. (3/4)

Outfit

Oui oui, Fifi.

First

warm day. Home from school with pink eye, so it's off to the zoo. (3/1)

Cap

Superman

Outfit

Daisy (late Feb.)

Audience

(mid-Feb.)

Scissors

Really big on scissors these days. You use them to open the package of mackyroni and cheese. (mid-Feb.)

Going

In the basement:

Hey, we have a smoke alarm down here too!
That's right, we have one on every floor so we're safe wherever we go.
Yeah, and we need to get a fire pole.
I really don't think we need a fire pole.
Yeah, we need a fire pole so we can slide down if there's a fire.
No. Listen: If there's a fire, you go out the door. You go outside the house where it's safe. You understand?
Yeah. Then we pick another house.

Open up

(mid-Feb.)

Cute butt

Buster's too.

Dinner and a movie

Tot version

Bath time

Sitting up

Uncle Jeff

Holding Daisy.

And rehearsing a sofa drill-team nuumber. Come on, Buster. (Feb. 12)

Snow

(early Feb.)

That's hot

(early Feb.)

Pony tail

(early Feb.)

All fours

Struggling to crawl. Not yet, and not too happy about it. But here's the important thing: That outfit! (early Feb.)

First

Mallomar. Doesn't look like it, but he liked it. Dang. Shouldn't have given it to him. Now I have to share. (1/28)

Cheese

Why is it all in the bottom of the bag?
Because the bag's standing up, so everything goes to the bottom.
Why?
It's called gravity. The earth has gravity in it. It pulls everything toward it. That's why you're sitting in that chair instead of flying up in the air.
Where is it?
It's in the ground. You have a little bit of gravity in you too.
Where?
Inside your body.
It's like poop.

[End of science lesson.] (1/28)

The Pompadour

(~1/30)

Waiting

Happy birthday balloon outside? Check. Party hat? Check. Spatula for birthday cake? Check. So? Nu? Where are my guests? (1/29)

Note: It looks like Buster was Photoshopped into this photo, doesn't it? He wasn't.

Guitar

First lesson. (~1/20)

Blanket

(~1/15)

Ducklings

Hey, Daddy, the bird sits on his eggs and then they jump and they jump and then they break open and the baby ducks come out.
That's right. They're hatched.
Yeah.
There's Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack and Pack. And Quack.
And they're baby ducks.
Do you know what baby ducks are called?
Yeah.
What are they called?
I don't know.
They're called ... remember? Make way for ...
I don't know.
Ducklings.
Ducklings.
Right. Baby ducks are called ducklings. Do you know what baby dogs are called?
Puppies.
Hey, good. And what are baby cats called?
Kittens.
Right. And what are baby people called?
Sister.

Green bathwater

Sometimes it just takes a little extra persuasion, and yeah, Jan. 21 was a big day for pictures. (1/21)

First

Bites.

Hey Mikey! (1/21)

Vocabulary builder

Hey, look, they're starting to build the new building on the corner.
Why are they building?
There's going to be stores on the ground floor and then apartments upstairs. Do you know what an apartment is?
Yes.
What is it?
It's when there's a fire and you call on the phone and say hurry hurry drive the fire truck and they come and climb the ladder and squirt the water and put the fire out. That's the fire apartment.

Bed

(1/21)

Fire Dept.

Hi. How you doing? Can you go to the store and make sure there's no fire there? Can you come to our house and put the fire out? Can you climb the ladder and squirt the hose and then there won't be a fire? Can you do that? OK. Good. Thank you. Bye. (1/21)

Back in the saddle

This Web site is back up and fully functional. Now we'll be slowly dealing with a little backlog of photos, which is good because we no longer have a functioning digital camera. This is Daisy, new to sitting up with some support when this photo was taken, and now able to sit up on her own for a while before keeling over. (1/21)

Holding the back door open

I'm letting fresh air in.
You're letting cold air in.
Well, actually I'm letting fresh air in.
But the fresh air is cold, so you're making the house cold.
Well, it's good to let fresh air in.
Why is it good to let fresh air in?
I don't know. Hasenpfeffer.

Note: Hasenpfeffer is Dad's answer to the question "Why?" when it's asked too repetitively.