for Katie

Katie asked me to get some video of Jonah laughing. Problem is, he doesn't laugh so much as cough. It took us a while to realize it was his laughing, not tuberculosis.



...and again (just ignore the poor lighting).

Dropped

So here they are: seven books I just deleted from my Amazon shopping cart. These are either perfect books but not for anyone on my list or near misses for people on the list. You can bet I'll be checking some of these out at my library, though.

1. Trespassers will be Baptized
2. The Thirteenth Tale
3. The Christmas Sweater
4. The Nine
5. The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt
6. Uncle John's Unsinkable Bathroom Reader

strong dad, strong me

In my quest to give books for Christmas this year, I'm spending a lot of time on Amazon.com. Coming soon, the books that made my shopping cart but I won't be purchasing (I won't tell you what I am buying so I don't ruin your surprise...so don't ask!) This post, though, is not about that. It's about my dad.

One of the books that Amazon recommended based on my selections is Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters: 10 Secrets Every Father Should Know. I don't know what the 10 secrets are, but I have some guesses based on my relationship with my own father.

1. Treat her like a princess. Who doesn't like to be adored by her daddy?
   
2. ...but not all the time. But I am really grateful I'm not one of "those girls" (you know, the spoiled rotten ones?)
3. Learn her interests. When I started taking Spanish in high school, my dad noticed that one of the papers they had at work printed Peanuts in Spanish, so he cut them all out for me. I didn't understand more than one a week, but that speaks volumes. When I changed my major to Comparative Literature, he found a newspaper columnist that also majored in Comp. Lit.
   
4. Call. My dad called me the other day because I ran out the door without saying goodbye. He just wanted me to know he missed me. I can't help but be strong with a dad like that, right? After Jonah was born, he called every so often to check up on me. This is a big deal since my dad's not much of a chatterbox.
5. Find things to talk about. I know families who sometimes struggle to find common ground. My dad always saves a few stories he thinks I'll find interesting for our next meeting. I love hearing about the jokes he told that no one got (that he knows I will), even if it is a week later.
   

Many of the strong women I look up to also have great dads. So girls, what other 5 points should be on my list?

what Jonah could have been

I think we did better.

translations

According to the site (and verified by yours truly at a translation site online), this reads: "I am not in the office at the moment. Please send any work to be translated."

word of the day

I was playing the stalk-friends-of-friends-that-I-don't-know-personally blog game (one I played a lot at work) and came across this interesting article on the blog of a friend of Anna-Lisa's. It talks about how smart people are trying to save money and end up making some ridiculous choices. I learned a few interesting things in the process:

1. loss aversion is the term for cutting back drastically in one area and leaving the rest of your budget untouched. For example, driving to 3 different stores to capitalize on food sales while keeping all the premium cable channels. Makes sense.
2. Something that doesn't make sense (and elicited a chuckle): Loss aversion is a naturally selected trait, said Rom, a psychologist, “left over from when cavemen were trying to keep the deer they had just killed away from the bear.”
3. feckless: weak, ineffective, worthless, irresponsible
4. If you highlight a word on the NY Times website a little question mark pops up. Click on that question mark and it will open a new browser with the definition of the word or the search result on answers.com.

Maybe there is some intellectual stimulation going on here every now and then. Maybe the half and hour I just spent reading blogs of complete strangers wasn't so feckless after all.

too much food network? [updated]

P.S. Am I the only one who is disappointed that Alton Brown sold out and is now doing commercials? ...not to mention his terrible haircut.

[update: picture and video to illustrate]

AB before:

Click here to see his Welch's ad. I wasted too much time not finding a picture of the new do to continue.

not so white Christmas

I know much of the country is enjoying snow right now, and I'm jealous. You see, I don't like going to school or work in the snow (I hate that soggy pant bottom feeling), but there is something magical about snowy holidays that we just don't get here.

Still, I've recently fallen in love (again) with Arizona. Want to see my beautiful desert? We were at the park the other day and there was the most beautiful sunset. Seriously, though, better than anything I've ever seen. We had no camera on hand, however, so no luck. You'll just have to trust me on that one.

It's going to be 86 degrees today. I guess instead of wishing I could sip hot chocolate (I tried; too hot!) I'll spend some time outside in my sandals and enjoy the warmth.

if you were an animal

Josh and I watched The Golden Compass last night. I'd heard a variety of things about the book and movie, none of which I will address here. I just have one question. For those of you who have not seen the movie, it takes place in a world in which each person's soul exists outside of his or her body in the form of an animal (called a daemon). The type of animal can change according to the situation or mood of children, but by adulthood, one's daemon remains constant. Here is the question: what would your daemon be?

So far, we think Josh would be a predatory cat (hunter, playful, smart, etc.) and I am a cattle/sheep dog (loyal, unsure around strangers, intelligent, hard working, etc.). What do you think you'd be? A dolphin? giraffe? tiger? mouse? We've pinpointed what we think each of our family members would be. It's kind of fun.

Or maybe one of us would be this guy:

We were at the park today and this giant bird (probably a pelican?) came swooping down and landed right next to us. It did not fly away, either, when we came closer to take pictures.

Books for the Holidays

Reading Jen Robinson's Book Page I came across a blogging cause I'd like to join (there have been many in the months this blog has been active and I have yet to choose one): Books for the Holidays. The idea that we readers should put our money where our mouths are by giving books instead of clothes, toys, etc. this holiday season. There is nothing greater than giving (and receiving) the perfect book as a gift. Sure, not every book will be just the right one, but give it a try.

Need ideas of what books to buy? You could check out the New York Times Bestseller lists, the local library (many have reading suggestions), a book lover's blog, or contact your favorite English teacher. Brodsky always has good ideas when I ask. Or, you can use my preferred method: call Anna-Lisa. I've been reading a lot of YA books recently, so if you need suggestions for the kids in your life, just ask. I'm going to see if I can give nothing but books. I guess that ruins the suspense for most of you, though. Now you'll just have to guess what book it is.

back to the future

I was reading my sister's blog tonight and was thinking about how much her kids love her. Here's my favorite example: Josh and I were hanging out at her house one afternoon when the kids came home. Us: "Hey, Nate, how was school?" Nathan: *grunt* Then, when Ros got home, he was all chatty. That boy sure does love his mom. Looking at the picture of Ros at Eric's class Halloween party was like a time warp where I could remember being 10 and having my mom come to school at the same time as imagining Jonah being 10 and going to his classroom myself. It was a Marty McBride moment if I've ever had one.

Tonight, while I gave Jonah his bath I tried to get his attention. "Jonah, Jonah. Jonah." Nothing. He was too busy splashing and playing with his feet. "I'm going to try to be a good mom, kid." Splish, splash.

Proving my point...

SEE!?

How old is she?

What? He's a he and he's almost six months old. I guess I should take it as a compliment that strangers think Jonah is a girl. That means he's really cute, right? We were asked how old she is today while we were fishing. Other than that, Jonah had a great time on his first fishing trip. True, he got tired and was ready to leave before the men, but then again, so was I! Here are some of the happier moments, starting with Josh driving the boat to our spot at Saguaro Lake.

And then looking either really fierce or really cute depending on who you ask.

And then Jonah helping Grandpa reel in the fish!

Jonah says,

"I like to suck on my bottom lip."

We don't know why he does this. Maybe it's because he likes to feel his new tooth!