The Hardy Boys

The promise came from Mrs. LIAYF. It was more of a bribe really.

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"Lukas, eat all of your dinner and I'll give you a surprise". "I want a tattoo!" was his reply. Fair enough. It was a deal.

And at that, the remainder of our 2-year-olds Friday night pizza was devoured without delay, followed by his mother bringing over a basket, filled with skin art booklets toddler dreams are made of. Sharks, Pirates, Trucks, and Firemen to name a few.

Sticking with his recent fascination, Lukas choose a large firetruck to adorn his forearm. A wet washcloth and 30 seconds later and he was grinning from ear to ear. Then, apparently wanting to share his new found happiness with his old man, he declared "Daddy needs one too!"

Not wanting to disappoint our little guy, I agreed to get my very own 'Tat' . I was very excited since, truth be told in my 42 years I have never made the commitment to get a tattoo. I have toyed with the idea of getting some cool symbol which fostered my individuality, but the time just never seemed right. I had resigned myself to the reality that my opportunity had passed.

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But now I had lost myself in the revelry of the moment, visualizing what tattoo I would get to complete the father/son bonding ritual we were about the share. Perhaps a Sun for my calf, or Da Vinci's Man in Balance on my shoulder, or even a string of barbed wire abound by bicep. I would definitely be increasing my cool factor immensely.

"Dat one" Lukas then called out, startling me out of my daydream and preempting my very own choice. Not exactly what I had in mind, but I had no say in the matter. And so it was.

I'm guessing I won't be taking the extra effort to roll up my sleeves and show off my 'Gun' adorned with this Tat...

But at least we compliment each other. And what chic doesn't dig a guy with a Dalmatian?

The Darndest Things

Humorous things often come from the mouth of a 2-year-old. Thought I'd share a few recent quips from ours:

"Man were Choo-Choo Train, Daddy!"

(After hearing a Pavarotti clip on the radio this morning. Opera/Train Whistle. I make that same mistake all the time.)

"That's Grandma Woo!"

(Looking at an old HS Basketball photo and pointing at a team mate of mine. Er...not quite son. Note the Adams Apple.)

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"You almost too cool, daddy!"

(I grinned at this one…that is until he repeated it and amended 'cool' to 'school')

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"Well…we did not go under it."

(Duh! After being asked if he went over the bridge that morning)

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"I saw a cwown yesterday!!"

(At the Sunday Farmer’s market. I kinda hoped he would forget about that. It was a seriously creepy looking clown.)

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"You siwii Daaaddy!" (laughing)

(While acting goofy together last night. Pure fun.)

"One square for pee-pee Daddy!"

(Behind me while finishing my #1 business. Note to self: Must teach that boy to shake!)

"Cover me up. Cover me up Mommy!"

(3:30 AM last night. Followed by several pointed pokes in my back from Mrs. LIAYF...Ugh! He should have just asked for me in the first place.)

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And Finally...

"Kiss it!"

(After bending over naked and telling us his bummy was hurting.)

A Real Treat

This year was the real deal. Lukas' first Halloween Trick-or-Treating. Yes, we did take him around the block when he was four months old but that was more to show him off in his cute penguin costume.

Then last year we discovered what real Halloween horror was as our son was admitted to Seattle Children's Hospital with a serious staff infection. We were quarantined in our room for 36 hours over the holiday while the hospital confirmed the infection was not MRSA. It was the scariest Halloween Mrs. LIAYF and I ever experienced.

Saturday night, however, was simply pure fun. Lukas was dressed to the nines as a Firechief and after an afternoon party we pulled onto our block to the flashing lights of local 'Engine 31' responding to an emergency call a few houses down. We walked up to take a closer look, then 4 firefighters came out to load back into the truck and one of them came over with a huge smile and handed Lukas an official Firefighter sticker, calling him "Chief". Then as Engine 31 pulled away, all 4 firefighters waved at him enthusiastically and honked the truck horn as they passed. He beamed.

Next it was off to the houses for his first taste of trick-or-treating . We explained the concept to him - "You knock on the door and say 'Trick-or-Treat' and the family will give you a surprise" - however, we were not sure what he would make of it since he has NEVER had any candy. In fact, after grabbing a tootsie roll from one house he enthusiastically pronounced "Look, a brown stick!"

It didn't matter though, as Lukas was having a blast just visiting strange houses, most often yelling "TRICK-OR-TREAT!" as we approached a door. Then when it opened making a quick dash inside past the surprised occupant, leaving Mrs. LIAYF or I to sheepishly chase after him into the person's home. It was ok however, as we were always let off with a smile and a laugh. Especially after we explained our 'Family' costume - Fireman, Kitty (Mrs. LIAYF), and Tree (Me covered in autumn leaves).

All in all it was pure fun for all of us, and a much needed break from the hectic hours we have been putting in evenings and weekends.

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We already can't wait for next year!
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P.S. The foil wrapped chocolate eyeballs were also met with disappointment as he tried to bounce them but they just thudded on the floor.

A Case of the Happy's

Happy! Happy!

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Yes, it's Halloween and we all have good reason to dress up, eat candy, and scare the crap out of people. However, here at Casa LIAYF we have even more reason to spread the cheer, smile, eat cake, sing, and most of all be happy.

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It's Mrs. LIAYF's Birthday!

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I would like to say I have some great surprise planned. That she will be getting more than a small birthday bag full of gifts and this lame heartfelt post. (Yes, that is the same image I used on last year's Halloween birthday post).

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But in reality both of us have been putting all of our resources into our basement remodel project recently (tired of hearing about it yet?). And it is a project that, when done, will be a true gift to her. She knows and understands this.

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So, here is a Happy Halloween to you all. Be safe when taking the little ones around the neighborhood. But most of all, Happy Birthday to my wonderful wife. Sweets, next year we will have a big party at our house.

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I promise.

Wordless Wednesday: Rejected Costume Edition

Chalk (H1N)One up for Team LIAYF

A co-worker mentioned it Monday morning during a meeting. The H1N1 Swine Flu vaccine had finally arrived at the HMO we share, and her husband was in at 8:00 AM sharp to get their kids vaccinated. However, word was that the limited supply wouldn't last long. Perhaps only through the day.

I had been anticipating the arrival, but was still unsure what I would do about it. My uncertainty had nothing to do with the risk of the vaccine. Mrs. LIAYF and I had done the research and decided that the risk of Lukas contracting the virus at his daycare was greater than the risks associated with the vaccine. No, my concern lie with the fact that he is only 28 months old, just over the cutoff age for the mist, which was the only form of the vaccine available. We had serious questions of whether he would be able to successfully inhale it through his nose. A nose that was also runny.

I called and consulted with the injection room and was told "Not to bother". He needed to be congestion free. End of subject.

However, I thought about this all day. There are 18 toddlers in close proximity in Lukas' daycare room. Once one of them got H1N1, then the rest would soon have it. If I had the chance to get my son the vaccine now, then I owed it to him to at least try. So I picked him up after work and drove the 10 blocks to our clinic, arriving just past 5:00. As I approached the clinic, 2 year old in my arms, I was told "We are closed!"

I needed more information about future availability, so still holding Lukas I attempted to flag someone down for information. All the nurses were finishing up with the last of the people and paid us no attention. I waited. Finally, a woman came over and I asked if the mist would still be available in the morning and would it work for Lukas. "Can he breath in through his nose?". "I believe so. Lukas, breath in through your nose" He just buried his head in my shoulder. I let them know that he had done this outside before entering. Dubious looks ensued. "He is too young. You will just have to wait for the shot in a couple weeks" was her verdict.

At that point I took him outside the glass doors and set him down. "Can you breath in for daddy like a bunny?" I said, sucking in through my nose. He did a huge inhale, followed by a laugh. "Very good, Buddy!" I glanced up to see the nurse looking at us. I motioned toward my nose that he was doing it. She reluctantly opened the door and said. "Let's give it a try". We used the bunny trick (suggested earlier by the same co-worker) and he successfully took all the vaccine, then flashed a big "I did it" smile. I was proud of him.

"Lucky you", said the nurse. "There were only 2 doses left in our supply."

I don't know yet about 'Lucky'. No one really ever knows how their child will react to a new vaccine. All we can do is weigh the various risk factors and make the best decision given the information available.

Then hope it is the the right one.

Full Stream Ahead

So, as I was mentioning in my Underwear Power post, we have been going full steam ahead with the potty training, having Lukas wear his tighty whiteys at all times not involving sleep. It had been going swimmingly for the first week and a half or so.

Until a couple of days ago.

Now rather, things are more like full stream ahead. We're not sure what changed with our little guy at that point, but since that time he seems to have lost interest in the whole Underwear Power concept. Instead, he seems to not really care much if he has an 'accident', letting things flow as they will while continuing to do whatever it was he was involved in, wet and or dirty. There appears to be no embarrassment factor. No uncomfortable moments for him. No desire to hold it in.

After 4, count em 1,2,3,4 accidents today, we have had to sit Lukas down and have a serious talk about the possibility that he will need to start wearing the dreaded diapers again. He didn't like the idea. He cried some real, as well as some crocodile tears at the idea, whining that he wants to "keep wearing" his underwear.

Perhaps that will make the difference here. We don't know. We really don't want to put him back into diapers at this point, so we are hoping that the threat of it has the desired effect.

Conversely, there is one other alternative that presented itself tonight. Shame.

Alright, alright, before you judge me on this hear me out. I am not talking about making Lukas feel ashamed about not being able to hold his bladder. No, that would be a bit uncalled for wouldn't it.

Rather, I think I am just going to show him this picture several times a day.


It's a picture of the pants he was sent home in from daycare today. The 'institutional' pants they keep on hand when a child soils all the clothes he has on hand at the center. Yep, those are pinkish corduroy 'pants'. Somehow I think these beauties may just work in our favor.

At the very least they will make Mrs. LIAYF and I motivated to keep him on schedule.