Pinterest Discrimination!

I was browsing through Pinterest the other day to pass some time. I was looking for anything interesting to repin, like or post. My attention was drawn to men's fashion to see what was new in the man's world. Most of you know how stylish I am with my hunting T-shirts, worn out cargo pants that are too short and my tennis shoes that never match my outfit.

As I was browsing I saw a lot of Ferragamo shoes, expensive pea coats, Louis Vuitton watches and Gucci sunglasses. For a minute I thought that I was in women's fashion. I double checked to confirm that I was in fact browsing through "Men's Fashion". I thought to myself "What the heck?" Men these days are trying to dress up nicer than women. Where are the Mossy Oak hats, Real Tree shirts, Carhartt coats and Caterpillar boots? Shouldn't these items be in "Men's Fashion". I think so.

As I searched through more posts with the same results I began feeling like I was being discriminated against. Am I the only man in the world that is looking for a new shirt with a majestic White Tail buck on it? I think not. The clothing and accessories that I did see were nice, but you can't make it very long in the woods with a pair of Ferragamos. You might make it for a while with a really sharp Louis Vuitton knife, but your buddies are going to laugh at you.

Sometimes when you don't get what you want in life you have to take matters into your own hands, so that is what I am going to do. I want to make sure that any man that browses through "Men's Fashion" feels comfortable knowing that he will find exactly what he is looking for. Camo clothing and accessories. Stay tuned.

For The Love Of Charlie!

Every morning I wake up to a thump on my back or chest. Someone thinks that because he is up it is time for Daddy to be up. I open one eye to see six little teeth staring in my face. I can't help but smile when I see the glowing face of my child.

Charlie wakes up everyday innocent and happy. I can not think of any better way to begin my morning. Seeing the excitement on his face when I pick him up to give him a hug and kiss is the the best feeling in the world. It is a joy that completely fills your heart to the brim.

I find it hard to sleep at night because I just want to stare at Charlie curled up in his crib, warm and cozy. I want to protect him from the evils in this world and give him everything that I can to make his life as enjoyable as possible. I hope that he wakes up everyday through out his life as happy as he does now.

A child does not have to say "I love you" for you to know that they do. The way that they look at you or cling to your shirt when you hold them or in Charlie's case, when he head butts you (that is his way of giving kisses) is enough to understand the bond.

Children are a product of their environment and I do my best to create happy and loving surroundings. I hope that Charlie grows up knowing the love and happiness that I grew up with. There is definitely not a shortage of love for this child since he is currently the only grandchild for all of our parents.

I pray everyday that The Lord protects him and keeps him healthy. That he be blessed with great talent and a kind heart. At the rate he is growing I hope that he has enough talent for professional sports! That might be a little greedy, but I want the best for my child.

I will support him in anything that he chooses to do, especially football, wrestling, hunting and fishing. Don't worry, I am not going to force him into sports. I am just going to highly suggest the above activities.

I never knew that you could love someone so much that it almost makes you cry tears of joy, until the day that I met my son. Hold your children close, tell them everyday that you love them and give them every opportunity to do something great.

Macaroni Spa!

We have been introducing new foods to Charlie lately. The kid, like his father, will eat anything. He really enjoys very messy food. He has learned how to feed himself mashed potatoes pretty well. Most of it ends up on his face, arms and hands, but he occasionally gets a bite or two.

Yesterday Charlie was introduced to macaroni and cheese. The joy of the flavor must have overtaken him because he decided that he would try to absorb the cheese through, well...see for yourself.

I am glad that this was not my mess to clean up. Mommy was the culprit of this debacle. Charlie seems to be enjoying himself, but I know in his head that he is thinking "Hahaha...I am going to destroy this place before I am one year old!"This innocent looking child is the spawn of a California earthquake and hurricane Sandy. I can't help, but love him.

I may try to sell the "Macaroni Exfoliation" to a few spas. Who knows, it may be the next big thing. Good thinking Charlie! You are a genius!

Mr. Destructo!

Many changes have happened with Charlie over the past few weeks, He has begun to walk on his own. He will take a few steps here and there, but does not quite have the confidence to run around completely on his own. He can climb a couch or your leg like a Chimpanzee. He grabs your hand and looks up at you as if to say, "Come on. Let's walk."

Tonight he took about 12 steps on his own. Some went forward, some went backward and a few went sideways. His balance is incredible. He can sit from a standing position and catch himself when he falls. If his feet were not twice the normal size for his age, walking might be a bit easier. The boy is almost 11 months old and wears a size 6! Is that normal?

Mr. Destructo is in to everything that he can reach. If he can not reach it he will do everything that he can to get to it. He climbs, tip-toes or just pushes the blockade over to get into mischief. The poor child has bumps and bruises from falling, flipping and just being outright reckless. He has pulled the palm rest off of my desk and turned it in to a jousting sword.

I have baby proofed the kitchen cabinets, but Smarty Pants has almost figured out how to bypass the security measures that are in place. He might even end up being a record breaking mountain climber with the speed and grace that he has applied to scaling the steps. One good thing is that climbing the stairs wears him out. I just ordered baby mountain climbing equipment so that we can just rig him to the steps and let him go. Okay, I'm just kidding, he is tough and does not need climbing equipment to protect him. Alright, just kidding again. He is not allowed to scale the steps without supervision.

A lot of changes are happening and at an incredible rate. Babies grow way too fast. It does not seem like he should be turning one in a month. We have begun our Christmas and Birthday shopping for Charlie. Both days are one in the same so budgeting is a nightmare for December. Charlie is the only child, only grandchild and only nephew. The kid is spoiled and we already buy him everything that he reaches for. I hope that we can keep our spending under control this year. I may have to add on to the house to make room for the toys. We already bought him a ball pit that is going to take up half of the living room, but I know that he will love it.

Gladys Is Gone!

Ever since bearing our child, Charlie, Jamie has had frequent heartburn. So we thought. A few weeks ago Jamie was complaining of incredible pain in her chest. She tried to tough it out, following remedies that had worked in the past, but she was getting no relief. Jamie swore that she was having a heart attack. My medical training gave me confidence that she was not having a heart attack, but there was no convincing her. It was her last day on Earth.

I called 911 and requested an ambulance. I then called the mother-in-law to come stay with Charlie. We made our way to the hospital and Jamie was still having constant pain with no relief. She is very reluctant to take pain medication fearing that she would become addicted and have a reaction like she did when taking percocet after her c-section.

The doctor poked and prodded Jamie's abdomen. She cringed and yelled at every touch. The nurse brought in a concoction that sounded like it was chalk mixed with sour cream and orajel. "Yum! Drink up Babe." She drank this disgusting looking ectoplasm mixture like a champ. It numbed her mouth and esophagus, but it did not alleviate the pain.

The nurse administered a mild pain medicine through Jamie's IV and everything changed. It was like Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde. We got to see the softer side of Jamie. Her nurse was a pretty lady that looked a little like Sarah Palin on a good day. Jamie must have been dreaming of princesses because the nurse was the most beautiful woman in the world according to the gospel of Jamie from the book of "Narcotic Pain Killers". The nurse was very flattered and I was trying to not laugh. Jamie's tone was that of a three year old girl at the Magic Kingdom.

The medical team ruled that the pain was from a gigantic stone in Jamie's gallbladder. 1.8cm to be exact. No not millimeters, Centimeters! The situation just got serious. If this stone was a gold nugget we would be rich. We finalized our ER visit and headed home. Jamie contacted her primary physician and made all of the necessary arrangements to see the specialist.

We made the appointment for the specialist, but we made the appointment with the wrong doctor. Apparently two doctors can have very similar names and work within just a mile of each other. What the heck! Now Jamie was going to have to wait another week or longer to have the problem taken care of. Jamie was very upset that she would have to keep walking on eggshells with her diet in order to prevent a flare up and avoid the horrific pain.

We walked to the lobby and immediately called the correct doctor to schedule an appointment. God was looking out for us this day. We were able to see the doctor in 35 minutes that day! This is unheard of! We get to the doctor's office, go right back and spend about 15 minutes with the nurse giving her all of the information. There was concern about the size of the stone and we decided to move forward with surgery to remove the gallbladder. Jamie was again dreading how long she would have to walk on eggshells awaiting the surgery. The nurse said "How about tomorrow?" Everyone in the room, including the doctor looked at her like "Are you serious. We can get in that soon?"

Signed up and ready to go we made arrangements for the baby and the days that would follow the surgery. We went to the hospital for the surgery and promptly named the gallbladder "Gladys". Gladys was about to be removed and could no longer cause pain and discomfort. Jamie and I went back to pre-op to prepare for the procedure. All of a sudden Jamie decided that she did not want to have surgery.

It was not so much the procedure that she feared, but the anesthesia. A few people, including myself may or may not have told her that it is the closest thing to death that you will ever experience. The statement may have caused a bit of anxiety. Oops, who knew? After several breakdowns in the pre-op room the nurse ordered a little "relaxer" for Jamie.

The anesthesiologist sat on the bed next to Jamie as she was saying "I want to go home, I don't want to do this." Unbeknownst to Jamie, she was about to have a change of heart. The nurse was behind Jamie pumping her IV with a little "relaxer". In mid sentence Jamie said "I want to go ho...Let's do this! I'm ready!"

I was unable to witness the fun that followed because she was wheeled to the operating room. I am sure that there were a few funny lines spouted out on the ride down the hall. There were probably princesses and unicorns prancing about.

I was very disappointed by the lack of fun that was to be had after the surgery while Jamie was still under the influence. One funny thing did happen though. I was assisting Jamie with getting dressed and ready to leave when she grabbed my arm and said "Ooh, your arms are so soft. I just want to rub it." Did they give her ecstasy in the OR?

Gladys is now gone and all is well. Hopefully we do not have to make any more trips to the OR for a while. Sorry, Jamie would not let me post the pictures her stupor after the surgery.