Quality time

Dreaming

Last night I dreamed all the kids at school went on a field trip to Abiyoyo.
Isn't Abiyoyo a person? Or a monster?
Abiyoyo is a person with really stinky, old, messed-up clothes.
So how did they go on a field trip to Abiyoyo?
All the kids did.
I know. But Abiyoyo's a person. You take a field trip to a place.
Abiyoyo's a monster.
OK, but how do you take a field trip to a monster? Don't you take a field trip to a place?
I dreamed it.

Thinking

inside the box

How we roll, II

How we roll

Pick a lap

So where's Daisy been all this time?

Oh.

Photos by Buster

The artist:

Photo by Dad. And cropped, unlike Buster's.

4

New coat, party hat. And yes, we do still have a daughter. Why do you ask?

Please, Lord

... make Grandma take off the pimp hat. Actually, I think Buster's just blinking while watching "The Wizard of Oz" with Grandma in the middle of his own birthday party.

Birthday party

Regular candles. Buster decided he wanted it to be a costume party, so he's Buzz Lightyear. Matthew and A.J. are in costume too, I think as various sports figures.

Some grandfatherly costume action. Masks and hats were big this year.

Pre-birthday party

The old trick candles never fail to amuse. Rob and Amy agree.

Big ol' stuffed Curious George. That's a home run.

See? This was not posed at all. He's asleep.

At the dinner table

Dad: Who's funnier, Daisy or you?
Buster: Daisy's funny, and I'm funny, and you're funny, and Mommy's funny.
Dad: Mommy's not funny.
Mom/Buster: Yes I am!/Yes she is!
Dad: No. Mommy's not funny.
Buster: She is.
Dad: One time Mommy told a joke like this. What did the bear say to the horse?
Mom: I never told a joke about a bear.
Buster: Mommy is funny.
Dad: And the answer was "Hi, horse."
Mom: I did not tell that joke.
Dad: She's all, "Get it? Hi horse?"
Mom: I was not.
Buster: No, she didn't. She's funny. And Daisy's funny.
Dad: Daisy's not funny.
Mom: How is Daisy funny?
Buster: She's just ... funny!
Dad: Daisy, are you funny?
Daisy: [Looks up and farts]

OK, yeah. Daisy's funny.

Leopard theme

continues.

That leopard

gets around.

In the car

Buster hasn't really liked the Mexican restaurant. Didn't want anything to eat there, and was angry that we hadn't brought anything to eat from home. We would have, but at the time when we would have asked him if he wanted to bring anything, he'd been having a tantrum.

So Buster, did you like that restaurant?
Yeah.
You did?
Yeah.
I gotta say, it didn't seem like it. You didn't eat anything and you acted all grumpy. What did you like about it?
I don't know. I don't really know that much about restaurants.

Leopard

meets leopard.

Col. Daisy Sanders

Size 4

At the mall

Buster and Dad, waiting for Mom and Daisy to catch up, have stopped in front of a Mrs. Fields display featuring an enORMous cookie-cake.

Dad?
Yes, Buster.
I love you.
Oh. I love you too.
[Points to Brobdingnagian cookie] Did you think I was going to say can we have this?
Yes, I did.

[Pause]

Can we?

Uncle Matt

Raisins

Dogs

T_____'s having a birthday party on Saturday. Do you want to go to that?
Well, do they have a dog there? Because if there's a dog there I want to go because that's my favorite thing to do is playing with dogs.
Buster. When there's a dog you always just hide behind me. Like the other night at Bruce and Barbara's when Kobe was there.
Well, I don't like being around Kobe that much because he's kind of distractive.
He's kind of destructive?
No, distractive.
What does distractive mean?
Well, it means when someone doesn't like you very much because they've never met you.
Oh. That's kind of a good word. But I think Kobe liked you a lot. Anyway there's not going to be a dog there because it's at Chuck E. Cheese. Do you remember going to Chuck E. Cheese?
Yeah. Well, I think I'm not gonna go there.
Why not?
Because they don't have dogs there. You know what my favorite thing to do is?
What?
Play with dogs.
Buster, you're killing me. You're a very funny guy.
Yeah, I'm kind of the silliest guy. I'm not distractive because when I first came out of Mommy's belly I met her, and I liked her.

The assistant

Breakfast club

One candle?

More loot

Inventory

Daisy's got a new coat and some new kicks. Looks like Buster could do with some pants.

Christmas

A present-giving home run by Dr. Sheri at the Derschmukes.

Buster imponderables

Why is water wet?

Why are they called airplanes?

Why do firetrucks fight fires?

Why when it's cold outside do they call it cold?

Why does red light mean stop?

Cuddle

Tea time

I don't mean this in a bad way, but Daisy can drink you under the table.

Buzz Lightyear

To pancakes -- and beyond!

Fannye and Daisy

can moo! Can you?

Happy New Year

From all the critters around here.

Finally

somebody starts pulling his weight around here.

Ain't it cute

how Daisy plays with extremely fragile glass objects? Happy holidays!

The addiction

is

real

Whatever it is

it's behind the chair.

Where's your teeth?

No, your teeth.

Drum majorette

The T

is for traveler.

Uncle Jeb

reads "Old Black Witch."

Headed to a party

Another flashback to Halloween, because I just forgot to post these two pictures the day I'd planned to.

The committee

A group of kids grills Mr. Costume Shop about the knife through his skull. Most of them wanted to know how the knife got there, but Buster's girlfriend Madeline, dressed as Supergirl and partially hidden next to Dorothy, wasn't buying any of it. For the rest of the night, she walked up to Mr. Costume Shop every few minutes and said, "You're faking." Madeline's a pistol, boy.

Airborne bliss

The very definition: The baby has fallen asleep. Left arm has too? Doesn't matter. We'll be landing in a few hours, probably.

I was able to leverage my rigorous professional training in this matter. I leaned down and, in a low monotone, I recited into her ear the name of every modern World Series winner. "In 1903 it was the Boston Pilgrims. In 1904 there was no World Series. In 1905 it was the New York Giants." And so on. I felt her start to become dead weight around 1930 (Philadelphia A's), and I was pretty sure she was out by 1948 (Cleveland Indians), but I kept going anyway.