Dear Lord may we please have ...

....some cookies :)

Baseball Trade deadlines

With the trade deadline approaching at the end of the month my friend
Nate and I are watching intently as denoted by this picture. I am the
manly one --- wearing the number 9

When mom is away….

Colin decides to take a two hour nap. I am in trouble.  He has not taken two hours in a while and Leilani is running errands. Oh boy.

I slept for 1 1/2 he slept for 2- we are both busted.

Every dad knows what I am talking about :) The past couple of days he has been refusing to nap for her at all, and now when she goes out and does whatever she is doing, he says “hey ya know what, I’m gonna nap for 2 HOURS!”   ha-ha :)

Sad attempt

In a sad and obvious attempt
to impress the waitress my friend Nate just pushed crumbs in front of
my plate. These were not mine-though she was impressed at his clean
place setting and mannerisms.

Colin well check

Well our little baby boy had his delayed 15 month well check today and all looked great.  He is growing fine in the 5oth percentile height and weight. But his head is in the 75th but that's what makes him soooo cute :) Of course his Da has a big head too.

Size 8

My new hat

NKOTB-New Kids Concert Review (sort of)

I think this is another one of those humbling moments that you just have to laugh at in life. Donnie Wahlberg who I have known since my radio youth in Boston, when I was known as Kidd Valentine at 94.5 WZOU, invited me to introduce the band Friday night in concert.

It was a nightmare getting there with traffic and they went on at 8:30 PM , I arrived at 8:07. I immediately went to the will call to get my backstage pass and head on in. Oddly there was no ticket or pass waiting for me. Hmm....Jilted schoolgirl on prom night ?

I called the manager who said my backstage pass was waiting for me "backstage" and all I had to do was get there-I'm thinking what is this Amazing Race ? Where is my ticket to even get in ? Well some sweet young lady at will call realized I was not some 40 year old goofy looking Irish guy New Kids had always feared would become a crazed stalker who believed "Hangin Tough" was his personal anthem and inspiration to meet them BUT rather some 40 year old goofy looking Irish guy that was introducing them.

As I entered the venue I realized at 8:17 that there was no way I could get to the backstage by 8:30 with the crowds and the 1/2 mile walk through fairgrounds to get there. With a stroke of luck I spotted a gentleman giving attractive Mom's a ride on a golf cart to the venue. Upon approaching him I am sure he thought I was some 40 year old goofy looking Irish guy New Kids had always feared would become a crazed stalker who believed "Hangin Tough" was his personal anthem and inspiration to meet them BUT then realized I was just some 40 year old goofy looking Irish guy introducing the band. So with his rocket of a golf cart I made it. I found the manager got my pass went up on stage and waited for my cue. Jesse McCartney was still singing when I got there so I was good. (Sidenote: there is a story about drinking Yellowtail with Jesse's Mom and his record producer that has to be shared one day-pretty funny)

Then it was my turn to go on stage and bring out the band. Clearly this is not my first concert I have been asked to do this at :) I did my act-my shout outs-my jokes-and my plug for Twitter @Go4Valentine and walked off. The stage manager quickly grabbed me and said"Donnie wants to see you before they go on", so like a dutiful 12 year old girl from the late eighties I raced up the steps to see my friend Donnie ( it had been years) We chatted for a while had some laughs, got some stuff for me to give out on twitter and then it was time for him to go....did not realize my chat was holding up the show-oops!

I had not seen the guys perform in years so I watched from backstage on the tech monitors that control what you see on the jumbotron out front. Well about 2 minutes into the show a huge guy maybe 6'13" comes up to me and says "Who you with?" ......um...like a dutiful 12 year old schoolgirl I quickly replied "I am a friend of Donnie's and I introduced the band" and with a sharp tongue came "Well no one is allowed backstage you have to go NOW " and with increasing sternness I might add, BUT no fear I was not going to leave without watching the opening of my friends show. So I said "just give me a few minutes no worries". Three songs later as I am tapping my foot and enjoying the energy of the guys that are my age but bringing down the house he came back. The first thing I heard from the darkness behind me was "You lied to me!" As I spun to counter this accusation from the night my face fell flat into his chest, a behemoth of a man (6'13" lol). Oddly though, he had back up with him now, four venue security officers. "You lied to me, you said you were leaving!" I tried to explain again who I thought I was, to no avail, as this physical specimen of the Neolithic age was not planning on communicating but rather smashing pottery on my head. He then in tandem (a sign of communicative skill) with his security buddies began physically moving me off the loading dock of the stage and threw me out into the parking lot. Alone, lost, and perhaps somewhat frightened I realized something.

He DID THINK I WAS some 40 year old goofy looking Irish guy New Kids had always feared would become a crazed stalker who believed "Hangin Tough" was his personal anthem and inspiration to meet them.

So I began my walk of shame, longing over my shoulder as if maybe Donnie saw out of the corner of his eye and would yell "Wait he is OK, that's my friend I want to put him in my next Band of Brother's movie"

No moment of such grace was born. I walked to my car humming in my head "Step by Step" as I approached my vehicle knowing I did "Have the Right Stuff" and "If you go away" it is OK, because "I'll be loving you forever".

....but then reality roared to the surface again. I was a 40 year old man kicked out of a New Kids on the Block concert- it may be a small fraternity but I am a member :)

So with a nod to a favorite author who would no doubt desire anonymity upon reading the aforementioned tragedy "Let us draw the curtain of charity over the rest of the scene."

Squeekers

OK my friend Irma thought it would be sweet to get Colin some squeeky shoes-so I would always know where he was…..can’t lose him right ? I think they are cute but our dog is writing a goodbye note as we speak…..

My boss is asleep

I find this entertaining that he fell asleep while clearly suffering from some sort of rigor mortic type of condition. His poor pen left hanging, just waiting to sign off on my raise.....

Car wash

Here it is a nice day. I am waiting to get my car washed and three
people sit down next to me smoking like they are a California
wildfire. Now to each their own and some may argue
(especialy in CA) that smokers are the last legally allowed victims of
discrimination. From taxes to politics to where they can or can not
light up. Some may argue that...not me.

I am watching the skies not for the aurora borealis nor the aurora
astralis but rather the parks service and one of their water dumpers
to put out this inferno to my right.

Brave new world question: ya know how sometimes someone is speaking a
foreign language near you and you just know they are talking about you!

Do you think they KNOW I am blogging about them ?

Shaved Ice

Have you ever had real shaved ice? My wife Leilani grew up with it when she would spend time in Hawaii-So gooood! Ice cream in the bottom, smothered with flavored shaved ice! Yum

Are we cute or what…

Been sitting here tonight going through Hospital and medical bills from Colin's first 1 1/2 of life…………..oh man…..and then you still get the feeling even when you reconcile the bills and insurance that someone GOTCHA !

Co-pay this, out of network that,  unapproved stay  :(  Humph!

Anyway he is doing so good now except for some girl at music class scratching the heck out of his face. The mom told Leilani sorry “she has been doing that lately”. Hmm Ever think about keeping an eye on your child if they have a history of hitting other kids ?

Vacation is over

I was on vacation this past week and watched my son grow more
attatched to me by being with him all the time....

What a wonderful moment when your 15 month old just runs to you and
hugs your legs. :)

I am not the first and I won't be the last but "damn, kids sure can
change your life."

My first attempt....

At beach art outside of a sand castle

Artwork

Couple of funny notes first:
I sat behind a guy in a corvette who was cranking his Aerosmith cd-
"Janies got a gun" is a great song but he kept changing tracks AND
then his red face was apparrent when the cd started skipping! Haha he
was the guy that cranks it so loud we all have to listen and then it
skips haha

Beach Vacation

On our family vacation and the past two nights a world famous soccer
team has been staying in the room above us. I can not tell you the joy
of hearing the thundering hooves of these clearly talented individuals
as they roam the prairies of their living quarters which have now
turned into the stadiums of Europe where soccer reigns supreme. If you
think that sentence is a run on, then imagine the run on I have been
hearing for two days as I try and enjoy this peaceful interlude in
life with my family at the beach.

Tonight though payback will be mine. I happen to have a HDMI cord that
attatches to my video camera and flows to the TV. On this camera I
still have video from Colins birth where he let's out some blood
curdling screams entering this new world. If that does not work I also
have his circumcission-

Why?

Did you ever find yourself answering business emails in the middle of
the night because you were wide awake ?

Colin has these squeeker shoes that sound like a dogs toy- he wore
them into a restauraunt again tonight-we were a huge hit for three
minutes :)

Aaah

Ever sit and sit and sit at RR crossing ?