It's Your World, Hale True

Guilty Pleasure

2012-02-12T18:38:00.000-08:00

I'm not super proud about this or anything, but Hale watches a little bit of TV from time to time.

When he does, I confess I sure do love hearing Hale, in his little, credulous voice, talking back to an 'interactive' video:

TV: ("What is Alicia dressed up as?")

Hale: "As a butterfly"

TV: ("That's right, a BUT. TER. FLY!")

or

TV: ("Does THIS look like the right kind of camel?")

Hale: "Yeah."

TV: ("That's right, it IS the right kind of camel--ONE HUMP!")

Sharing

2012-01-06T08:36:00.000-08:00

Hale: Hmm. Should I share my Storm Trooper Darth Vader underwear with Charlotte?

Mommy: Mmm, I think Charlotte probably has her own underwear.

Hale's Got Chops

2011-12-26T20:54:00.000-08:00

(On embarking upon dessert after a stir-fry meal)

Hale: Do I have sauce on my chops?

I'd better lick them, so that I can taste my cookie.

Knock knock...

2011-12-26T20:52:00.000-08:00

Hale: Knock knock...

Daddy: Who's there?

Hale: Eleanor's birthday cake

Daddy: Eleanor's birthday cake who?

Hale: Eleanor's birthday cake that's talking and singing to me.

Hale and Daddy: Ha, ha ha ha ha!

Mud Pie Dirt Cake (an absurdist found poem)

2011-12-21T23:28:00.001-08:00

After dinner, Hale said, "Do you like mud pie dirt cake would be good to eat all up for mommy to share the rest of us with."

I said, "Hang on a second Hale, I need to write something down."

Christmas Time at Hale's House

2011-12-18T20:54:00.000-08:00

(hint: you can click on these to see them bigger)

Contemplating this year's Santa Claus picture

"These two are Daddy and Hale, and this one over here is Mommy. She's away, working at the studio." --Hale telling a story on his stuffed snowman ornaments

Objects in mirror are goofier than they appear.

"I will hang those clinking baby boots now."

Hale commandeered the camera to take a picture of Mommy. Daddy focused.

I know the feeling, Hale.

Hale's First Magazine Subscription

2011-12-18T13:42:00.000-08:00

About a three weeks ago, Hale got a postcard from Grandma Patsy saying that a magazine gift was arriving in the mail. It is a subscription to National Geographic—a periodical his parents love. And, now Nat. Geo. is a family affair! YAY!

Charlotte Made This For Me. Mommy, Daddy, Look.

2011-12-07T22:02:00.001-08:00

(Hale, coming in from the hallway, holding a valuable thing carefully, whispering): It's a secret. It's a secret.

(Mommy or Daddy): What's a secret, Hale?

(H): Charlotte made this for me.

(Mommy or Daddy): What a nice gift. What is it? Is it a spider?

(H): Charlotte made it for me!

(M or D): That was so sweet of Charlotte to make that for you.

(H): Yup. It's because I'm Spiderman. I have a spider on my back.

Goldilocks and the Skateboard and the Dino-foods and the Mountain

2011-11-20T20:38:00.001-08:00

Right this minute, as I type, Amy is in there with Hale, telling him a story about Goldilocks and skateboards and dinosaur foods (thanks for the awesome ginormous DK dinosaur book, Ethan!), and a mountain with smooth mud you can slide down without any sticks on your feet.

It's a work in progress.

We'll Call Him: Pumpkin the Pumpkin (or: Carving Day)

2011-10-23T21:55:00.000-07:00

In drawing a face, I wanted to make Pumpkin

the Pumpkin resemble Hale in this picture.

Good night, Pumpkin the Pumpkin. Blow.

Good night, Hale the Hale.

Bedtime Tonight

2011-10-19T22:11:00.000-07:00

Hale bonked his head trying to get Penguin to stand up for the picture.

Hale: Tell me a fooky story.

Me: You want to hear a spooky story?

Hale: Mmm hmm. Tell one about Thomas.

Me: Umm, I think I can do that.

H: Do Thomas gets hurt in it?

Me: Well, in this story, Thomas gets hurt just a little bit. Like when you fall over on your scooter. Here goes:

One time, Charlotte, Elery, Asher, Lukas and Hale were playing up in the greenbelt, when they heard a chuffing on the train tracks.

The kids know they need to stay away from the train tracks, but it's hard not to go and look when you hear something coming by.

Just at that same time, Thomas the Tank Engine was scooting his way into the greenbelt. It was a rainy day and Lukas, Asher, Hale True, Elery and Charlotte were all wearing their mud boots and rain coats, and splashing in the mud. They were looking at pretty leaves on the ground, and touching the mud with their hands.

Then Hale said, you guys, let's go and see what's coming up the train tracks! And Elery said, Umm, Hale, you know we're not supposed to go too close to the train tracks. Hale said, Don't worry, guys, we will stand back, but let's just go look.

Because who can resist watching a train go by?

So they went and stood by the curve. And they could hear Thomas coming. Only they didn't know it wast Thomas, and they couldn't see him yet. Chuff, chuf-chuf-chuf; Chuff, chuf-chuf-chuf... They sure could hear him coming though.

And he was coming fast. Chuff, chuf-chuf-chuf; Chuff, chuf-chuf-chuf... And the kids edged a little bit closer to the tracks, hoping to get a better view, just as Thomas came round the curve...

And when Thomas saw Hale and Asher and Lukas and Charlotte and Elery standing there in the corner HE SLAMMED ON HIS BRAKES SO HARD! They squeaked and squealed, and he tooted his horn like no tomorrow! TOOT TOOT TOOOOOOOT!

And those kids froze in their tracks. It's THOMAS! Hale and Charlotte shouted at exactly the same time. And they jumped up and down, so excited to see the real train they knew from the books and videos. HI THOMAS!

But Thomas was still terrified he was going to crash into the kids, still slamming on his brakes. And he stopped so hard two of his wheels bumped off the tracks, and he kind of teetered, and tottered and then he fell right over on his side, right there in the greenbelt.

"Oh," Thomas said, "you kids terrified me. I didn't want to smash you flat. Now I'm on my side, and it kind of hurts. Ohhh. Can you go and get help?"

So the kids apologized to Thomas, and ran home and they got all the people from the building they live in, who grabbed shovels and sticks and ropes and cloths and sponges and snacks and followed the kids back up to the greenbelt.

Lukas and Charlotte and Elery and Asher and Hale True told them where to find Thomas, who was still lying on his side. They all put their backs into it, and together they heaved Thomas back onto his wheels, and back onto the tracks. A couple of people wiped off the mud and someone painted a bandaid onto Thomas's tank where he'd gotten a little bit smashed on the ground at the greenbelt.

Everyone cheered.

Then they all waved goodbye to Thomas and went and had pizza.

The end.

Pretty spooky story, huh, Hale?

Hale: Mmm.

(quater of a minute)

Hale: Daddy, Tell me the story about Mommy and the clown.

Me: I don't know that one Hale. You'll have to tell it to me.

H: Can you help me?

Me: Sure. One time, Mommy was hanging around with her friend the clown (and what were they doing?)

H: They were playing drums.

Me: Mommy and her friend the clown were playing drums. (How were they playing the drums?)

H: They were playing with sticks and with their hands. Loudly.

Me: Once upon a time, Mommy and her buddy the clown were playing drums. They were playing with sticks and their hands, loudly. (And what happened when they played?)

H: The BAT came, but he got on an airplane and they were sad.

Me: (What did Mommy and the clown do when they got sad after the bat flew away?)

H: They went to the Kawarium. [Me: Did they bring their drums to the aquarium?]

H: And they brought their drums and they played even louder. They sang!

Me: Mommy and the clown got their drums and went to the aquarium to play and sing super loudly.

H: Yeah. And the bat could hear them!

Me: And what did the bat do?

H: He came BACK and they were not sad any more. And they all went to look at the sharks and the octopus.

Me: And they lived happily ever after.

H: Mmm hmm.

(quarter of a minute)

H: Now tell me the story about Penguin.

Me: I'll have to tell that one tomorrow.

H: NO. Tell it now.

Me. Okay, but I will tell it to you silently. In my head. I'll put my head against yours and you can remember the story in your head as I tell it in mine.

(A rough outline of that story is: Hale's buddy Penguin smells fish one day, and decides to go find the source. He gets on the bus and goes to the kawarium, but then is mistaken for an inmate. He borrows the aquariumkeeper's cellphone for one final phone call, calls up Hale, who comes to rescue him, after which they all go and have fish and chips, along with the aquariumkeeper, and throw french fries for the seagulls.)

He fell asleep as I told the long version of the story in my head. I love the smell of that kid's hair.

Hale's Letter

2011-10-18T22:21:00.000-07:00

Hale has been looking around a lot and noticing letters. Go figure, he's latched onto the letter H.

Yesterday he came running in through our door and said, "Mommy, Daddy, I found my letter in the hallway!"

We said, will you show us?

He's seeing them everywhere.

Hey Hale, here's a pair of aitches for you:

Punk'd

2011-10-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

Hale and I went to Craven Farms out in Snohomish to get some righteous pumpkin action.

There were lots of people there. Sweet place though. We shot a wedding there last summer.

Who knew there would be rocketships?

Practicing his mutton-busting poise for the Puyallup fair next year.

Hale found an orange pumpkin, after much searching...

But what he really wanted was a green one.

Grandma+Hale+Grandma=LUV!

2011-10-10T09:10:00.000-07:00

If you didn't already know it, you might as well learn it here:

Hale really lucked out in the Grandma Sweepstakes.

Grandma Char is a seamstress par excellence, and concocted a brilliant dinosaur costume for Hale's Halloween adventures. He loves it. We love it. Here's Hale, modeling it for you:

And Hale reflects upon what it feels like to be a real dinosaur (he says it, 'din'taur'):

And then yesterday Grandma Patsy took us to the Very Most Excellent Seattle Children's Theatre original production of the great kids' book "Harold and the Purple Crayon". Which was 90 minutes long and during which Hale was transfixed, riveted, delighted, and an utter joy to watch watching.

He got his program autographed by Harold (the remarkable Don Darryl Rivera, who also adapted the book for the stage), after a great Q&A session with the audience.

Ladies and Gentlemen, 2011's Junior Patron of the Arts, Hale True!

First Real Day of Preschool

2011-10-01T10:48:00.001-07:00

Hale's neighbor and close friend, Asher, goes to Hale's same preschool. He is a year older and in a different class, but we get to carpool! Hale was really excited about this.

"We get to go with Asher! In Asher's van!"

We got them in their car seats and they immediately reached out for one another's hands. They held hands on the way home too.

The next morning on the way to school Susanna, Asher's mom, and I heard from the back of the van, "I love you, Asher."

"I love you, Hale."

Yes. We almost died from our hearts bursting.

We are so blessed to have sweet, fun and funny toddlers that we get to take to a school.

We are so blessed to have neighbors that we know so well and love.

So It's Come To This?

2011-09-27T17:04:00.000-07:00

Well, it hasn't yet, but
it's about to...

Birthday Boy

2011-09-25T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hale's birthday isn't for a few months. He keeps asking, "Is my birthday coming up? When's your birthday? Will there be cake?"

Hale's natural curiosity about birthdays was recently pitched sharply as he was invited to his cousin Erika's 11th birthday party. Quite an honor, as he was to be the only boy. He and Er have a super sweet relationship, and by the time we arrived at the party (a bit late, thanks to my sloppy calendaring skills), his reputation had preceded him.

The second we exited our car, a swarm of excitable girls enveloped Hale with their tweeny energy (a completely charming combination of alarming sophistication and disarming naivete), and BOOM: a mascot was born.

Hale ate it up.

Thanksgiving. For fishing.

2011-09-25T14:26:00.001-07:00

The other night Hale asked me to tell him the story of Goldilocks and the trout fishing.

So I told him. I'd never heard it before myself, but it turns out that in this story, Goldilocks is ambling along the banks of a trout stream, wishing she had a fishing pole to catch some fish with. She finds one that's too big and stout and she can barely lift it, and one that's too small to even cast into the middle of the stream, and then she finds one that's juuuuust right--she flicks the little fluffy mosquito pattern fly and the bobber right out to where the fish are rising.

And she catches a fish.

Then the bears come back, who own the fishing rods, and they get super excited that they have someone to eat lunch with, so it's a good thing Goldilocks has some fish to share, cause they're hungry.

So they all eat trout for lunch and make a date to go fishing together again sometime.

When I was finished, Hale said, "Thank you, Daddy. Thank you to take me fishing and catch a trout with me. I like it."

A few weeks ago Hale and I went camping with his (and my) cousins, Dan and Ethan and Erika, over east of the mountains, north of Roslyn, WA. It was the second of two trips there, with them, this summer. Great time both times. Hale enjoyed the whole thing, but her really liked the fishing part.

Here's some pictures of the first trip.

And here's a batch from the second trip.

Thanks for taking us fishing, Cousin Dan! Whenever I tell the story of Goldilocks and the Trout Fishing, I suspect that Hale and I both will picture the banks of the stream that drains Tucquala Lake as the setting.

Big Day!

2011-09-20T23:20:00.000-07:00

First we went to the first day of Preschool! It rocked. Basically, it is going to be a party all year long with free flowing stickers, puppets, play dough, water play and paint. Hale made a new friend named, Ansley.

I felt super blessed today to have a wacky job that allows both me and Scott to do things like go to the first day of preschool together.

Oh, and we got Hale a scooter to ride at the new Skate Park across the street. It is a big hit. I think we are going to be at the Sake Park A LOT!!!

Hale and the Dinosaurs

2011-08-11T22:59:00.000-07:00

After a bit of high-flown electrical theory, Hale debriefs his recent, and somewhat traumatic trip to the Woodland Park Zoo's animatronic dinosaur exhibit.

The dinosaurs sprayed him, it turns out. Got his attention.

Hale and the Dinosaurs from NonFiction Media on Vimeo.

Happy 4th!

2011-07-05T00:05:00.001-07:00

Proud.

Lucky.

Happy.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8689992@N05/sets/72157627120254180/show/

Cousin Camping

2011-07-04T22:27:00.001-07:00

Hale had his first dad-and-son camping adventure this weekend. Let's see a Flickr slideshow of the events:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8689992@N05/sets/72157627117811668/

We went with cousins Dan and Erica to Tucquala Lake over north of Cle Elum, and had an unplanned but delightful visit back to town during Cle Elum Days. Super fun all around.

Thanks Dan and Erica!

I love my cousins!

2011-05-01T00:04:00.000-07:00

Moment of Zen (with Play Dough and new table courtesy of Santa Grandmas)

2011-01-06T15:57:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T00:21:00.000-08:00

While H is away visiting with grandparents (!!...thanks, and hurry home, boyo!), we got the kind of invitation that becomes a challenge.

Thirsty, Son?

2010-12-10T23:01:00.001-08:00

We have a rule of thumb: If whatever goofy and ill advised thing Hale is doing won't actually kill him, we are allowed to snap a picture of it before putting the kibosh on it.

This is why people have kids!

2010-11-28T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hale had so much fun on Thanksgiving with his cousins. I mean, unbelievable amounts of fun. Here he is hanging on Zach, learning about video games.

Watching Hale brought back that feeling of being a kid — that particular, super kind of fun—the kind you have with your cousins during holidays, when adults aren't really paying all that much attention to you. They are busy with gravy and wine and family gossip and you are running between their legs and over couches and experiencing a secret world under the dining room table.

There is this feeling of craziness and anticipation in the air—the build up to the meal. And then before you know it, you are being carried from the car to bed.

I love carrying Hale from car to bed. On Thanksgiving night, Scott and I felt his tired, happy weight in our arms and were thankful for all the family we have to share him with. What joy!

Hale's First Sentence (or: Gettin' the Wordz, Yo)

2010-11-28T11:48:00.000-08:00

A boy and his boat.

Hale was eating apple slices the other morning, dipping them in his milk, when he realized he had a toy on his hands.

He started piloting the slice around in the lake of milk and on his high chair tray, going "Bbbbbbuuuuuhhhhh... Boat, boat, boat.

I was like Wow, Hale, did you make a boat? And gave a quick nod and said, "Yeah. Make boat."

Totally a sentence, featuring a subject and a verb. Nice work, Bunny. Gettin' the wordz, yo.

Hale's first snow

2010-11-22T21:06:00.000-08:00

Little Gym or Winter In Seattle with a Toddler or Hale Wants a Really Good Rain Suit for Xmas

2010-11-21T22:26:00.000-08:00

There is this thing called Little Gym. I didn't know it existed till Hale started walking.

It happens all over the city. Community centers open up their gyms during certain hours of the day– they rotate – to toddlers and their moms (It is pretty much moms, but Scott has been more than I have.) seeking refuge from boredom.

They put all these toys in there. Like, anything with wheels or that is puffy. Then they let the toddlers run wild.

Thursday, when the rain was cold and sideways, Hale and I ventured to Hiawatha Community Center. We were not the only ones.

The kids in orange... daycare kids. I told Hale if he didn't watch it, he'd be wearing one of those orange shirts soon. ( kidding!)

Puddle Jumping in the Great North Wet

2010-11-12T21:21:00.000-08:00

Hale-O-Ween

2010-10-31T23:00:00.001-07:00

Hale went tricker treatin' tonight.

Dragon, meet pumpkin.

(Special thanks to auntcousing Kimberly for Hale's awesomely cute winged dragoncape costume!)

The first door. You can't tell, but he's about to knock.

And, now for the first time in video:

And a slideshow.

And finally, the piece de resistance (actually there's quite a piece of resistance going on in the kitchen, as I type: Hale wants to sit in the big chair at the kitchen table, but won't stop squirming, making a fall risky. He's pissed.)...

Hale's Very First Trick-or-Treat experience:

Damn, I Forgot

2010-10-23T11:18:00.001-07:00

It's a big day in our son's life and development, a Hale True milestone:

Yesterday, for the first time, Hale said, "Damn."--properly, in context. (Umm, oopsie, kinda my bad on that one.)

Also, Amy forgot we had a kid. Just for a little while, though.

Preschool, Yo!

2010-09-16T23:44:00.000-07:00

Hale had his first day of preschool at the local community college co-op thingamajig. What a lovely program.

I took this because it gives the illusion that Hale is sharing.

That's my boy, right there: drinking from the 'water table'. That's the way to build up that immunity, son!

Teacher Wendy masterfully showing H how to scoop melon balls of playdough.

Wow? The whole thing, wow.

Hale the Puyallup (Free Your Glee!)

2010-09-16T23:22:00.000-07:00

You can do it at a trot; you can do it in a stroller...

**

The Puyallup Fair is pretty epic. How important is it around here? It's so important (because this is one of the ways in which we measure things, now) that the URL for the website is www.TheFair.com.

No Messing Around, is what that says. I mean, right? An absolute Institution.

And this year, Hale went, with his paternal grandparents and his dad.

Here are a few snaps...

getting his peeps on

Did you know they serve ice cream at The Fair?

Monkey on his back. Actually a genius device the 'tail' of which is a leash. Handy.

Fair=Food. Simple math.

Free crap: A grandmother's prerogative. A grandson's birthright. (Thanks Mom!)

Have a look at a slideshow of a bigger set of pictures.

**the photo at the top is of two victims of The Slingshot, silhouetted in front of a half-moon.

Beach Vacation #2 (or, Why Yes, We DO Have it Rather Rough!)

2010-09-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful trip to the Washington coast at the end of August. Here are a few pictures.

Hale got to try his hand at the traditional Benson family table-painting.

We read some funny books.

H. became an absolute fiend for blackberries. See. Are. Aye. Zee. Why. For them.

The boy loves the beach.

Have a look at a slideshow of the rest of the pictures.

A New Family Gesture

2010-09-08T21:35:00.000-07:00

"Touch My Nose" ®

Couple weeks ago in the middle of the night Hale woke up freaked out and pissed off, screaming his head off. By no means an everyday occurrence, but not a real surprise, either.

I went into his room to try to comfort him, figure out if something was out of whack (diaper, foot caught in crib, whatever), and he was pretty inconsolable. He does this thing of reaching around me, thrusting toward the door behind me--beyond which are (in usual order of Hale's preference) 1) Mom 2) out of here 3) books, toys, strawberries 4) the door out to the hallway.

It is a very insistent gesture, and is often accompanied by a forceful squirm, so that I need to scramble to keep hold of him. Wily, this kid. And he's howly, too. Wily, howly, mad, and sad.

Well that night, I said to Hale, "Touch my nose, son." Just like that, simple as you please. "Touch my nose and it will make you feel better. If you touch my nose, it will make it easier to go to sleep."

And he did. He stopped crying--well, slowed from wailing to sniffling--and touched my nose. And it worked. "It" being something I don't know or understand very well at all, but that I think must be the value of placebo and distraction and most of all touch.

He cried a bit more, but wound it down in record time, touched my nose a few more times, and I touched his, and it just worked. He asked to be put back in his crib (which he does by leaning over and grunting, the clever boy), heaved a big post-cry sigh and went right off to sleep.

Jump to today, a couple weeks later. The magic of the nose touching had appeared short lived--not dead or anything like that, just not the miracle it first seemed when I'd tried it a few more times. But today, Amy and I were scruffling around, having a pretty heated conversation* about some dumb point of logistics and hurt feelings, really about as fiery as it ever gets around here.

And we were standing close together, I holding Hale, Hale looking in turn at each of us. And he stuck out his finger and touched my nose, right in the middle of a pissy growly sentence. And then he touched Amy's nose, right in the middle of her witty and stubborn rejoinder.

We were gobsmacked. Amy and I just looked at one another in awe of our son and what he had done. Somehow he had observed and internalized this whole big meaning in what I had thought was just a cute distraction trick, and then applied it to a whole nother situation. Wow, right?

Then he craned up and gave me a kiss, and then grabbed Amy's shirt to tug her in for hers. Hale had learned the value of placebo and distraction and touch. Saved the day, and taught us a new gesture that will be just ours.

Love that kid.

(*aka "a fight")

Not Quite Yet, But Soon

2010-08-08T16:11:00.000-07:00

Grandmothers Look Away

Your browser does not support iframes.

(Okay, grandmothers may click, but do so with an open mind and good humor)

Remissing You, Too. (A Few From the Beach)

2010-07-26T10:37:00.001-07:00

We had a few very welcome days of chilling out at Manzanita, on the Oregon coast.

The felt-pen dance

Classic, right?

Hale just went and climbed up on the bike. Then Amy zoomed him around the yard.

...Just like he does with our neighbor's Razor scooter in the hallway.

Thank you, Amy, for making so many lovely pictures of your boy and husband!

Heaven.

This one was actually taken first, right after H. just squirmed out of my hands, out of the carrier, and onto the sand, then tore headlong into the sPacific Ocean.

He loved it. We loved that.

We Have Been Remissing You.

2010-07-26T10:20:00.000-07:00

Thus, a bit of a catch-up.

A few of the many perfectly lovely moods of Hale.

I Wish It Were Fathers' Day Once A Week

2010-06-20T20:34:00.001-07:00

Just a brilliant day.

I said to Amy (realizing as I spoke, the meaning of what I was saying), "You know, it really seems like Fathers' Day is, like, getting more important these days."

Hale had his first bike ride today. I think he liked it.

Hale and his family went camping. Hood Canal. Mmm. Camping.

2010-05-29T22:38:00.000-07:00

O Ferry!

This is not my beautiful house!

Still life with space heater.

Magic tools

Look, son--yer ma

Look, Dad--a bird

Dear Neighborfriends Susanna, Anna and Asher, rocking that rainbow luv (now featuring a real rainbow!)

Yes, please

Trout on cedar. Spuds in one foil, sparagus and bacon in the other

Always with the beauty

Rhubarb and strawberry jumble in the dutch

Got a bit crispety but no less delicious for it. Pine nuts kind of made it sing

Bacon, morning noon and night.

Good heavens

Forest walking

Forest tipping over

Forest running

Forest salami-and-cheese-and-apple picnicking

Forest musing

Beans on the fire, cornbread in the foil

"It is very difficult to remove." As a one-time (mostly bad) copywriter, I have always loved this terse wording. It would be so tempting to write a more evocative sentence there, featuring some imagery and/or moralizing. But no. It is perfect.

Newest and a Few a Bit Older

2010-05-29T22:18:00.000-07:00

UFO Sighted In West Seattle Neighborhood

2010-05-18T22:07:00.001-07:00

In Delridge Neighborhood, around 10 this morning.

It's On

2010-04-19T08:08:00.000-07:00

I'm not doing myself any favors as a professional photographer by showing crummy pictures of this big event:

Not exactly Hale's first steps, but close enough for blogwork.

And we're like, wow?

Happy Easter

2010-04-04T20:23:00.001-07:00

Hale's first Easter. Well, his first one outside the Big House--Group Health Capitol Hill--anyway.

We spent it with Hale's cousins, had an easter egg hunt. Nice.

More of Baby Zayden

2010-04-04T20:10:00.001-07:00

Zach soaking up the reality of the new addition.

Sweet Mama Sara

Uncle Chris with Baby Zayden

Great Grandma gets really excited!

Great Grandma and Baby Zayden

Great Uncle Scott and Baby Zayden

It was less than a year ago that Hale was this small. Crazy.

Hale True isn't the baby no more!

2010-04-04T11:26:00.000-07:00

He now has a baby cousin! Zayden Asher Tice 9lbs 1 oz
Born on Wednesday, March 31. Major sweet cutie!

Sara & Josh, the proud parents.

Zach and Zaine holding their brother for the first time. They have been waiting for this moment for a long time.

Grandma Sue.

Hale already knows that this little guy means FUN!

The Longing

2010-03-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

If you have a bookshelf, and Hale comes over, watch out.

...He will leave a mess in his wake.

Hale would really like to go outside and play with his cousins...

Really.

(sigh.)

True That

2010-03-25T21:53:00.001-07:00

Knowing it is a blessing.

My Favorite Picture Ever

2010-03-25T21:39:00.001-07:00

Amy took Hale and me to the park. Hale loves him some slides.

New Family Photo ( at 13 months of being 3 of us)

2010-03-20T22:25:00.000-07:00

Taken by our dear friend and neighbor, Kristin.

Hale goes to the park with his cousins

2010-03-15T21:04:00.000-07:00

How cool is it to have a cousin who is really good at swing pushing? Thank you, Zach.

Oh, and also good at ice-cream taunting!

I wonder how Hale knows ice-cream tastes so good? Thanks, mom.

Hale's New Car Seat

2010-03-15T20:53:00.000-07:00

He likes it!

And so do we.

Finally, A Few Party Snaps!

2010-02-24T22:04:00.000-08:00

Sweet neighbor Barbara made Hale a party hat (one of two custom-made hats at the party!).

Derek gave a toast that sweeted the place up something fierce.

Robbie did his poem thing.

Don, Amy's dad knocked us all out with a fine ode.

Not only birthday boys get to wear birthday hats.

Dear friends Jennie and Peter came all the way from NEW YORK CITY for the party. They get the farthest traveled award.

So many people, such a beautiful evening.

Cousin in Law Terri flings Hale into the rafters.

Hale conducting high level grandma diplomacy.

Small people getting their groove on.

Henry and Amy have a special connection.

...bit later in the night: apparently everyone and Amy have a special connection.

(artists)

(artiste)

{and a final note of deep thanks to Wendy for snapping pictures all night, including a good chunk of these}

testing: Vimeo embedded vs. Blogger inline

2010-02-22T22:40:00.000-08:00

So the question is, how does this video look (embedded from Vimeo) as compared to the Blogger inline version a few posts down. Let us know what you think.

Stand Up Guy from Hale True on Vimeo.

Hale's Got Well Wishers We Haven't Even Met!

2010-02-22T22:13:00.000-08:00

Our good friend Chris Boulto n couldn't make it to Hale's birthday party. So like any self respecting hyperachieving Media Studies PhD Candidate/filmmaker would do, Chris wrote Hale a Poem.

Then he made it into a movie. It features funny cameos from a whole bunch of people we've never met. And a few from folks we have. Notably among them, Chris himself, Joel and Melissa, and Mohit Mukherjee (all of us lived in the same little bohemian neighborhood, Guapulo, in Quito, Ecuador, back in the last century).

Untitled from Chris Boulton on Vimeo.

A little Dr. Seuss, a little Shel Silverstein, and a lot of the good old unselfconscious love. Chris got all Secret Squirrel with Amy and our amazing friend/neighbor Kristin to surprise me and Hale with this. It worked.

How did we get so lucky? I ask myself this a lot.

Poet Roberto Ascalon Poems Hale True

2010-02-22T21:54:00.000-08:00

Roberto Ascalon Poems Hale True's Birthday from Hale True on Vimeo.

Our neighbor Robbie is a crazy good poet. We asked him to say a few words at Hale's party.

He rocked a whole new poem for the occasion, and it, um, kinda kicks ass.

Here he is reading it a couple nights after the party at a hallway party in our building. Love that guy.

THANK YOU, ROB!

(if you click on the four little outward-pointing arrows next to the word "Vimeo", you'll get a much bigger view of this video)

Two Fisted Ducky Suit Potato Eating Stander Upper

2010-02-22T21:35:00.000-08:00

Run what ya brung.

Day after Hale's birthday party (got a post or three in the works from that as well), he decided to go ahead and go bipedal on us.

(It's tough to photograph him doing cool stuff from the front because he gets too excited about the camera. Hmm. Wonder who he gets that from.)

Cake. His Grandmother Feeds Him Cake.

2010-02-22T21:23:00.000-08:00

Let Hale Eat Cake from Hale True on Vimeo.

And it was good.

Seems like maybe Hale and chocolate are going to be getting along just fine.

Turn a Year Old, Conquer the Stairs

2010-02-19T14:41:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, in celebration of his birthday, Hale started two new things. Standing by himself, and climbing the stairs.

Um, yikes?

Thanks Eleanor for snapping this photo of an early summit bid.

Three Hundred Sixty Five Days. Ago. Today.

2010-02-18T13:08:00.000-08:00

Hale is one year old today. 365 days ago, Amy and I drove him to the hospital, without knowing his name or his face or even his him or her-ness. Things, they got all fast and loud, and he popped out.

This is about the time Amy and I were in the hospital room, her high as a kite, me reeling like a crackly crepe paper doll (with a carbonated caffeine center), taking turns calling people who had no idea:

"We have a son."

Hale is one year old today.

This morning he jumped on my belly in bed, and said "Dad. Dad. Dad," very crisply and deliberately. His front teeth are coming in. He's starting to climb the stairs.

It's been kind of a big year.

Hale and Amy, enjoying a co-birthday dinner out.

Figuring it out.

2010-02-09T19:57:00.000-08:00

Hale works really hard every day. And he assigns himself the tasks. If only I were as motivated to better myself on a daily basis.

I love how much Hale loves to swing

2010-02-09T19:44:00.001-08:00

Hale at Luther Burbank with grandma and grampa.

Our friend, Susanna, took these at the park across the street from our house.

Videos: A How To Cheat the Bugz

2010-02-09T08:29:00.000-08:00

We've been watching as lots of people are having troubles with videos on blogger-hosted sites. Some of Hale's readers have as well.

Here are a couple things that sort of work on our computer to get the videos to work:

If you click and it gives you a message like "this video is not available", try reloading the page, and see if it doesn't load and play then. (If it doesn't, please drop us a comment.)

If you see the video and don't get an error message, but it just does nothing when you click the "play" arrow, try grabbing the playhead--that little cursor looking thing that slides across as you play it--and drag it across a little bit.

That (for us anyway) seems to kind of jumpstart the player's brain. Probably you'll get a little note onscreen that says, "buffering..." That's good news. Slide the playhead back to the left and click the Play button.

And finally, videos are always going to run better if you let them load in before starting to play.

Cross your fingers.

Couple More Hale Videos, Just to Keep the Video Gremlins at Bay

2010-02-08T23:24:00.000-08:00

Hale forgot something inside his house...

The drumming has commenced:

Embrace.

2010-02-08T23:13:00.000-08:00

We stop our whispering

And are surprised to find ourselves swaying

In our kitchen in a tight embrace.

Our son is asleep in his "room".

"This is the rhythm of our lives. It must be;

How else would this dance have found us?"

Done. Done, Dad.

2010-02-07T21:38:00.000-08:00

Hale's first word--as best we can discern--is "done". As in, stop shoveling food into my mouth, get this freaking bib offa my neck, stick a dull-tined baby fork in me, I'm

DONE.

Or perhaps this one? Just to be sure?

I think I'll take it as a good sign that Hale's first word is "done." In fact, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that knowing when you're done is going to be at least as important a skill as anything he'll learn in a math class.

I wish I knew when I was done.

Ooh, speaking of, sounds like he's done sleeping, right now. Dun.

Hot Tacoma date to see Ira Glass

2010-02-01T22:45:00.000-08:00

A perfect night.

We went to our favorite Tacoma bar

listened to the god of storytelling (I know, he looks different than on the radio.)

while our baby rocked out with his grandma.

We are so blessed!

Moment of Zen

2010-02-01T22:20:00.000-08:00

Hale meets the park across the street

2010-02-01T22:09:00.000-08:00

It just occurred to us today that we will probably be spending a lot of time here in the years to come. It looks different to me now when I look at it from our kitchen window.

My great nephew Zach: Applying for a job at NonFiction Media

2010-02-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

Me and Mom in front of SCT

My mom, great nephew, Zach, and I have season tickets to the Seattle Children's Theatre. It is pretty fantastic. We see a play then have hot cocoa and a snack at the Center House— a place that remains magical in my childhood memory (ice-cream and a trip in the bubble elevator).

Yesterday Zach asked if he could borrow my camera. I put it on Program-mode and this is what he came up with. Not bad, I'd say.

Garbage Guy

Self-Portrait

Video of Zach at work.

Food

The Ceiling

He can borrow my camera any time.

Monkey See, Monkey Do

2010-01-29T21:28:00.000-08:00

Blogger is Having Problems. Sorry About the Videos

2010-01-29T09:44:00.000-08:00

For whatever reason, the good folks who host this blog can't seem to make videos work. Kind of lame, but it seems they're working on it.

In the meantime, trust us that the headbutt and Christmas morning videos are Golden Globe stuff.

I love the Head Butt!

2010-01-22T22:42:00.000-08:00

I got a Flip camera for Xmas to document things like The First Christmas as Three

2010-01-15T23:26:00.000-08:00

I am not sure why I am speaking in a semi-baby voice here. Maybe because it was such a sweet morning.

Hale's first rite of passage: The return to Group Health

2010-01-15T22:41:00.000-08:00

In December, Hale has his final check-in with the occupational therapist at Group Health. Babies born early are automatically signed up with a therapist to make sure their fine and gross motor skills are progressing as they should be.

Hale was given a test where he had to do things like pick up a Cheerio, follow a red ball with his eyes, turn a page in a book, etc... He passed with flying colors and is pretty much right on track as a full-on 11 month old. In other words, his preemie-ness isn't much of a factor anymore.

Alhamdulillah! Scott and I feel so blessed. We were never given much reason to worry. Hale came early. He had to live at the hospital for awhile and it was hard, and wonderful and when we returned to visit the nurses, Scott and I were struck with such sweet feelings of nostalgia.

"Remember?" we said to one another as we got in the elevator to the Special Care Nursery.

"Remember?" we said as we smelled the familiar smell of the halls--as we peered through the window and saw the tiniest of tiny babies with bored, anxious moms beside them.

I think Hale was Remembering too. He remembered Nurse Nancy. His eyes lit up so big when he heard her voice and ours did too.

Hale taking a tour of this first home.

On a side note, we think Hale might be a good test taker. During his time with the occupational therapist, he got full points in the area of fine motor skills for turning the pages of a book.

We had really only seen him do this once or twice at home, and not very skillfully. We think he might have just been performing this trick because he knew it counted. Maybe this means he will do better on the SATs than I did.

Christmas as three: This year we got a tree

2010-01-15T22:31:00.000-08:00

Scott and I have not gotten a Christmas tree for quite a few years. They have seemed impractical. Expensive. We only have 3 ornaments and one is a petrified blowfish.

But this year, we went to a farm and cut one down without thinking twice about it.

As my dad says often and emphatically, I think quoting from The Fiddler on the Roof, "TRADITION(S)!"

Apparently I care about them.

New Year's Resolution: To Post

2010-01-15T21:34:00.000-08:00

I heard for the first time tonight the term "the iGeneration" --to describe the generation of teens out now. That is right, as in iPod, iTouch, iPhone etc.

I am from Generation X, I am pretty sure. The Winona Ryder generation--known for being lost--drowning in our vast sea of choices--frozen by our options, dying for someone to tell us what to do.

I think we are doing okay. (Well, Winona has seen the inside of a few lock ups for her stealing problem, but I hear she has a new TV show this season.)

I wonder what the title of Hale's generation will be called. I can just see him and his friends seeing an iSomething from 2010 and saying, "Oh. Ma. Gaaa, is that seriously a personal computer? It is so huge and it doesn't even teleport? Lame."

( Teleport, is that ever gonna really happen? That would be worth signing on with AT&T.)

Maybe Hale's generation will be a the first generation to have a tech backlash, and they will be called Generation A. And they will be known for doing everything Analog style. They will use those big chunky day timers and bookmarks and stationery.

This blog is Hale's baby book, pretty much, but it could be more than that. I have got to keep organizing all this documentation. It is important. Who knows what the future holds? If we have to send Hale off into space in his own crystal crusted pod like Superman, he'd better have a complete blog to download.

Just think if Jor-El, Superman's father from Krypton (played by Marlon Brando in the movie), hadn't kept all the info for Superman to discover? Clark Kent would have never known why he could run faster than a speeding train. How confusing, right? He would of ended up just another freak like David Copperfield, not a superhero.

History. Where we came from--The Power of the Myth-- Joseph Campbell and all that. It is so important.

This is why I am going to keep my...

New Year's Resolution #14: To Post to Hale's blog at least once a week

(Yikes, it is out there now. Better do it. )

Sleeping. Finally. Now a Few New(ish) Snaps And Whatnot

2009-11-27T22:07:00.000-08:00

While you have been napping, Hale has been doing things too.

Hanging out with Grampa:

Reading and going for a walk with his Pop:

Contemplating* the huge treacherous steps of our 'living room' platform:

(*and by "Contemplating" I mean "Planning His Assault on")

Checking out an old picture of his Pop:

And pursuing new interests (Click 'play' button to see Hale getting in touch with his inner kitty):

(We're not laughing at you, Hale; we're laughing because of you.)

Going Backwards in Time (For Hardcore Hale Fans Only)

2009-11-08T12:58:00.001-08:00

So, coming out from under a huge, months-long pile of NonFiction Responsibilities (more on that elsewhere in these pages), we are now intent on catching up a bit on Hale's blog.

It's been a while. we are aware some of his fans have been disappointed, and we applaud their patience. Without further ado, then some videos...

Hale, laughing, for pretty much the first time. This was back in early August (Amy's reciting her shopping list to him):

And then, a bit later, just being cute in a dapper outfit:

And here's Hale making Cute over a game of behind-the-camera Peekaboo:

Hale's Egyptian-living Auntie Dana just sent him a little plush camera. Cutest thing in the world. Dana's a heck of a photographer, and we think it's part of her agenda to get our son to like cameras. It's working. To wit:

Hale's first Halloween

2009-11-08T12:32:00.000-08:00

Halloween. I love this holiday. I love trick or treating. I love dressing up. I think Hale digs it too.

Here he is with all his PEPS buddies. So dang cute. He his the monkey on the end. Costume came from Gramma Char, of course.

My brother-in-law knows about Halloween. He knows it deserves reverence and creativity. And he knows to do whatever it takes to scare the hell out of people. He and my sister created the scariest house on the east side. Heck, maybe even on the west side too.

Here he is with his hell raiser creation behind him.

Here is my great nephew, Zaine, in costume. He felt the need to explain to me that Darth Vader was a bad guy. I was like , "Yeah, I know. I was there."

Swim Lessons

2009-11-07T16:47:00.000-08:00

This past week we started swim lessons with Hale. It made all the hard work of owning our own business worth it. There we were, in the middle of a Monday afternoon, the three of us in our swim suits at the public pool.

Hale seemed to enjoy himself. Me and Scott? Pretty much couldn't wipe the smiles off our faces all day. It was so fun. Can't wait till our next lesson.

My family tells me I could swim across the pool on my own before I was one. And my sister, Sue, had swim trophies and ribbons covering her bedroom walls. Maybe Hale will be the next Aqua Man.

Peepshow: What Hale does when he is NOT sleeping

2009-11-07T13:10:00.000-08:00

One of my dearest friends, Amy, came to visit me this summer. She was the one I was supposed to go and visit in South Carolina this last February, but gave birth instead (24 hours before I was supposed to be on the plane. I still get a little queazy thinking about that "what if" scenario).

Amy brought me this little lion for Hale from her boyfriend, Leon. Leon the Lion. Hale loves this stuffed creature. If fact, we are thinking we better get some multiples of Leon to be on standby.

In case, Hale accidently fully eats this one.

Thank you, Leon.

Below is a close up.

The Bumbo Series

2009-09-27T15:32:00.001-07:00

A Bumbo is a little baby holder upper chair-pod thingy. Hale inherited his from his neighbor Asher. He's taken to it quite nicely.

Family.

2009-09-27T15:14:00.000-07:00

This is fun, this thing of collecting (and occasionally making) people to keep around you to call your family.

We are rich in family.

Marty and Emily hosted a Hale brunch today. Nice.

Marty is a man to be admired. Hale's just doing what comes natural.

Marty snapped a couple pictures of la familia nonficción

Oh, and Thanks to Grandma Charlene for the natty matching pinkwear! Yup--Hale's family is cool enough to pull it off.

Sometimes motherhood means being away from the center of the action

2009-09-20T22:47:00.000-07:00

This is the last night at the beach cabin with my family. It is one of my favorite nights of the summer, and this year I put Hale to sleep instead of making s'mores.

Hale and friends

2009-09-20T22:27:00.000-07:00

Auntie Jeniffer and Uncle Steve with Hale

Miss Aubrey Bean and Hale with husbands cooking delicious food in the background.

Miss Kristin and Hale.

Hale with Grandma Charlene, Grandpa Randy and Cousin Abby

Pop and Son en route to Vashon.

Cousin Sara who is busy making Hale's newest cousin in her belly right now!

Hale with cousin Amy Beth (a.k.a. Pie)

Hale with his cousin, Chris.

Hale cold-chillin' with his cousins, Zach and Zaine, at the beach.

Hale with Grandma Charlene.

Hale with Grandma Patsy.

Hale and his buddy, Asher Finn.

Hale and Carol, his Grandma Patsy's best friend.

Ferber. Dr. Ferber. We Ferberized. We are Ferberizing.

2009-09-20T20:38:00.000-07:00

It wasn't exactly planned. We knew we wanted to try it, but it never seemed like the right time. But then, nothing else worked. All the tricks, pretty much overnight, became futile. The swaddle, the binky, the singing, The Cure lullaby CD, NOT EVEN NURSING was working. Hale's eyebrows were just permanently red tired.

Scott and I passed him back and forth, walked him around the room in circles for hours, giving one another helpless, tired looks. No sleep. No sleep for any of us.

I didn't put him down in the crib thinking I was ready to Ferberize, but Ferberize we did. Dr. Ferber is this guy who invented sleeping for infants. Seriously. His philosophy, in a nutshell, is kids have to learn to sleep and the only way they learn... is the hard way.

It isn't like we just abandoned him in his crib. There is a whole 'checking in' system--first after 5 minutes, then 10, then 15, etc. Basically, you check and see if your child is still alive to look at you while he screams as if he is being exorcised right before your eyes (a tiny Linda Blair that resembles you)....

...Then, according to the book, you say to him, "Good job, honey, you are doing great. You are teaching yourself to go to sleep. I love you. Good night." And then you walk out the door till the next 'check-in interval'.

It was hell. I kept thinking about how my sister tried this with my nephew, Josh, and the neighbors called CPS. True Story.

I am really glad we know our neighbors so well. I spent the time, that first night of Hale wailing, reading Amazon reviews of the book we are using as our guide for this whole thing, "The Sleepeasy Solution." (Five stars all the way, except for the few who feel leaving your child to be exorcised in their crib alone in the name of sleep is the work of 'lazy parents' who know nothing about tribal cultures who never even set their children down let alone let them scream in a crib. This book is not by the actual Ferber, but presents a fairly accessible version of the whole Ferberizing, you know, thang.)

I really thought about not setting my baby down. Quechua babies in Ecuador are so sweet and quiet, wrapped in blankets against their moms' backs, but I have no field to till nor corn to shuck. I need my hands for the gear shift as well as for my travel mug.

So, following the Ferber prescription, we let him shriek, wail, and flail about his crib for a whole hour--to the minute--and then...

...quiet.

Hale slept so sweetly, so sweetly till 2:30 in the morning, only barely waking to be nursed right back to sleep. Then, he didn't make a peep again until after 9 am. The next night, when he slept eleven straight hours after only minor cries, we were pretty much in awe of Dr. Ferber.

Tonight (night six) he went down after 20 minutes of fussing, but let me also say that his nap schedule seems to be becoming more predictable and easy as well. Instead of nursing, rocking and singing with fingers crossed, just in the past few days, we just kiss him, tell him we love him and set him down in that crib. He sleeps, sweetly. Then he wakes up and doesn't seem mad at us in the least. In fact, he spazzes with excitement to see us. It is pretty great.

Dr. Ferber, thank you, where ever you are.
Love,
One of those lazy modern-ferberizing parents

Ferber or Sears

2009-08-25T20:20:00.000-07:00

A New Blast of Young Hale True

2009-07-12T17:32:00.001-07:00

Reading. The Natural Snack.

Hale took a train to visit Eleanor

Hale got a fever, which we kinda figured wasn't a big deal, but on account of he's a preemie, they asked us to bring him into the ER so they could have a look-see.

He was fine. It was a long night, and he got a lot of pretty unpleasant stuff done to him that he hated, loudly, but he was fine. Didn't even have to give him antibiotics. Just a little spot of Tylenol drops is all.

They do a good job over there at Group Health, even in the middle of the night.

Amy's namesake niece, Amy, holding Hale for the first time. This was actually taken before the hospital picture above...

...as was this one of Hale with Chris--right before Hale infected the whole family with the Crud he had.

Congrats are in order for Chris, by the way, as he just graduated with his GED. Congratulations Chris!

You might not be able to see Amy in the rearview, but she's there, and this is another family portrait. Three. It's a magic number.

Put up yer dukes.

Seattle Center visit. Feeding Hale under a tree.

Hale's wearing an outfit here that I wore when I was christened, sometime in 1967. Pretty dang cute.

As our life gets more and more like our life, and less and less like some crazy amusement park ride, for whatever reason it's become harder to keep on top of Hale's blog.

We are enjoying him so much, as we learn more and more every day who this kid is. Hale is a sweet, sweet boy. Since he started smiling a couple weeks ago, he pretty much hasn't stopped, and every little grin and giggle is thrilling.

He's making it pretty easy on us in the eating and sleeping departments as well. He is still as content to eat from the bottle as he is from the boob, which is of course hugely convenient--it means Amy can do things from time to time, that Hale gets to bond with his dad over a shared joy (eating) and that his grandmothers can feed him too. Great stuff. Huge blessing.

Sleeping is coming easier as we get better at reading Hale's cues. It's not unusual for him to sleep four hours at a whack, and the getting up to feed and putting back down are pretty chill exercises as well. I guess we're all getting used to each other a bit, finding rhythms and stuff. Feels good.

(Of course, as soon as we start bragging about how not-all-that-bad it's going, he'll bust out a night of three hours' crying before bed, followed by a series of 45 minute naps through the night, just to teach us about parental hubris.)

Grandma Smackdown (or, for Hale's older readers: Dueling Gandmas).

Hale seems to like both of these ladies real good. Can't imagine why! I mean, apart from all the singing and cooing and rocking and humming and cuddling and endless patience with the crying and the steady practiced hands and the timeless perspective and all... what's there to like about a grandma?

Hale went for his first visit to his paternal grandparents' place, up in Skagit county. The neighbors, good family friends, turned out in force.

Callie made us and Hale a super cute scrapbook of the pictures we've taken to date. It was a surprise, and was about the sweetest thing in the whole freaking world. Thanks Callie! What an amazing gift.

There are six kids in this family and they're all kind and open and interested. And curious about Hale.

¡Viva la Independencia!

2009-07-04T23:16:00.000-07:00

Hale Regrets that He Has But One Nap to Take for His Country.

Second Cup of Coffee... (another video)

2009-06-28T12:45:00.000-07:00

Tummy Time Work Ethic...

Grab a Cup of Coffee, This'll Take a Few Minutes

2009-06-28T09:46:00.000-07:00

Thought we'd share a little video.

Hale's Been Missing You, Too!

2009-06-06T15:22:00.001-07:00

It has been a good while since we've posted any Hale News. Things have been very busy here in the pixel mines--Amy and I have both been running full-speed on documentary projects.

We've finally got a few minutes scraped together, and so I thought I'd splatter a few of the latest images from the nearly full-time HaleVision cameras we've installed in the NonFiction compound.

Sometimes ya gotta read your kid some poems. Expecially when you're going away to Africa for a couple weeks.

Like a bat, this one: Always sleeping upside-downish.

Tres generaciones. (never not sweet, right?)

The blurry close-up. Classic.

Amy thinks Hale looks like Casper the Friendly Ghost.

At a barbecue--Hale's first--hosted by our neighbor's parents, the Damms. Nice, nice time.

Staring you down, Hale is.

Friends Phil and Catherine and Gabby stopped by to meet Hale.

Shhh. Sleeping.

Don't forget to support listener powered Radio!

2009-05-20T22:29:00.000-07:00

Hale True, I am pretty sure, is the youngest member of KEXP. He really digs the station. I can tell. Especially late nights with DJ Rizz. Don't forget the summer pledge drive is coming up. You too can get a cool KEXP t-shirt and look as cute as Hale.

In This Corner, Weighing In at NINE POUNDS: ChoCho Peligroso!

2009-05-06T21:25:00.001-07:00

ChoCho Peligroso is Hale's Mexican Wrestler name. Roughly translated, it means "dangerous corn nut".

ChoCho has recently underwent a growth spurt of fearsome proportions, and tached in at a tick over nine today.

Watch out:

No, seriously. Watch out:

Wish Hale a Happy Zeroth Birthday!

2009-04-23T10:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Zero Day!

Yesterday, April 22nd, was Hale's due date. He's now no longer negative years old, having advanced into the zeros.

The blog has been quiet since we brought him home, two and half weeks ago. But the camera hasn't.

Meet Larry Lobster.

Long story about Larry. Couple stories Actually. Hale's wearing a onesie from our friends Michael and Michele who run El El Frijoles, a taqueria in Maine. Michele was a teacher at JMSG with Amy, and Michael a photographer buddy of mine. Then they moved to Maine. We miss them.

Hale's got a buddy over there he'll meet over lobster tacos some summer, name of Jasper Wedgwood.

Ask Hale about Larry Lobster sometime.

Yes, Grandma Patsy, babies sometimes do that. Even in your house!

Thanks Grandpa Don for our latest Family Portrait!

Not falling, not flying; sleeping.

This one goes out to my brother Stevo, whom I think Hale resembles in this picture. And not just because his face is all squishy, either.

In order to take a baby home, you don't have to take classes, or get a licence, or become certified, or pass a test... but you do get a DVD!

I'll take the NEW ones, please.

2009-04-11T14:47:00.000-07:00

My mom was looking on Amazon, where she'd bought us a pack of diapers before (so they flash a bunch of diaper ads each time you log in forever thereafter). Thanks, Mom!

She noted that you have the option to buy either new or used Pampers Swaddlers Newborns, for the same price.

Now, I don't want to be a snob or anything, but I'm thinking I'd prefer the new ones.

For now though, it's a moot point, as we've been gifted several weeks of diaper service from Seattle Diaper Service. Pretty exciting, this no-strings entree into the world of classic-style (and environmentally friendlier) diapering. Thanks, lovely neighbor G.

We'll let you know how it goes. I expect it will feel good not throwing out all those little wads of chemicals and paper all the time.

Homecoming (We Are In Our Numbers!)

2009-04-06T18:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Hale passed his car seat test. Which is a way to back into a bit longer story. But the carseat test? That's where they stick him on the monitor and stuff him in his carseat for 90 minutes. If he doesn't throw any alarms, he wins the ticket to ride.

It's all come a bit more quickly than we expected--him pretty much all of a sudden eating all eight of his eight daily meals by mouth ("He nippled eight out of eight!" they told us. Still not used to that verb).

Which, I just did a bit of quick math, is a heck of a lot of milk. Okay, real quick: Hale weighs just about seven pounds--6lbs, 15oz.--and he eats 60 grams (2 oz.) of milk per sitting, eight times a day. I weigh about 30 times what he weighs. If I ate like he did, I'd drink a half gallon of milk every three hours, round the clock. Four gallons a day.

So huge news, what had been looking like

SPRUNG!

I fitted the car seat...

(and then made sure the optional Mom-Along® was properly deployed in the rear passenger seat.)

Hale was all eyes, all the way home. No crying, just a lot of wide eyes. We told him about the city as we drove down Denny way.

Looking at the lights.

We got home and Kristin brought a bottle of champagne to celebrate his homecoming. Love this place we live!

And another family portrait. Hale at home.

It was a great night. He was up for a fair amount of it, and we're tired. But it wasn't nutso. It was perfectly wonderful.

We did a lot of very late-night making of mental notes:

'Note to self: Get a system for keeping cloths and wipes here where we change him.'
'Note to self: Figure out how to nap.'
'Note to self: I know this is pretty hard right now, but I know this is nothing, and that it could get a whole lot harder. Wonder what that's like.'
'Note to self: Holy crap... we got a kid. right here in our house. ours.'

It was sweet.

Today, the weather in Seattle continued in its glorious vein, and we couldn't stay inside. We went on safari around our building and borrowed several different baby carrier devices, and settled on one we felt comfortable sticking Hale in. Then we took a walk.

As a family.

I fed Hale a bottle in the greenbelt park on the ridge behind our house. He chowed the whole thing and never spit a drop on the jostly ride home. Amazing things, these babies. Like a tiny person.

Now, Amy's having a nap, and I'm about to go join her. Rich.