#47 and 3D...

I know what you are thinking -- wait, isn't that Hall of Famer and 4 time super bowl winner defensive back Mel Blount's retired number? Yes it is and a "Go Steelers" is appropriate, but I actually thought I'd share the news about Dreamworks Animation being listed this year at #47 on Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For.



If you are interested they put up a video. We're still hiring in my department.

Also don't forget to pick up your glasses before watching the Steelers win their 6th Superbowl on Sunday. If you can't find them in the grocery store you can call Pepsi Consumer Relations at 1-800-646-2904 and they will send you glasses in the mail. You may have to call today in order to get them in time.

Prison Break...

After returning home from the holidays last year, we decided that the break in a routine was a good time to initiate a sleep policy so that we could sleep through the night. That was very successful and RJ has slept through the night pretty much ever since then. We wanted to make another adjustment this year -- removing the pacifier as a sleep-time essential. He no longer asks for it during the day and will even drop it in his crib voluntarily before leaving his room in the morning, but he still requires it for falling asleep at night and at naptime. As his teeth continue to come in we wanted to break the paci-habit to prevent needing a second mortgage for orthodontics.

On the first Saturday of the new year we hid the pacifier for his afternoon nap. It was a little heart-breaking because he was used to the routine and calmly reminded me "paci?". Then he saw me put his book away and repeated "paci?" As I started heading for the door -- "paci? paci! paci, paci, paci!" I tried to reassure him that he's a big boy now and didn't need it but he wasn't buying it. We committed to helping him through this transition so no backing down now or he'll own us for the rest of his life.

He was angry. Crying, screaming, and very much not sleeping. After about 10 minutes he quieted down. It surprised us it would be that easy. Then he surprised us as he ran into the living room where we were having lunch.

The first question rolling around in our head was "He can do that?" after which we tried to solve the mystery of how he did it without getting hurt given the obstacles.

Obstacle #1: The Crib



At 26" from mattress to top, somehow our 34" long boy managed to get out of the crib. There was no evidence that he dug out with a spoon. The clothes hamper was close to his crib, so maybe he dragged it over and used it for leverage.

Obstacle #2: The Door



We didn't think he quite had the dexterity for turning the doorknob yet, so we thought he may have had an accomplice. Perhaps the door wasn't fully latched and our cat Boca Chica sprung him from the outside.

Obstacle #3: The Stairs



Ok, that's just scary. We don't have a gate at the top of the stairs yet because the one we bought didn't fit with the banister so we just don't let him run around upstairs as an interim solution. He goes up and down the stairs all the time, with us holding his hand and walking with him. He has crawled down backwards or scooted on his butt before so that's probably what he did.

We tried putting him down for bed that night again. We took a few precautions this time, moving the hamper to the other side of the room and keeping a close eye on the cat. Listening intently to the monitor we heard him drop out of the crib. Running in he was covered in blood as he had cut his lip pretty badly.

Now What?

Uncertain whether Alcatraz could contain this kid, Cheryl remembered a parenting tip from Gilmore Girls (Season 5, Episode 6 -- "Norman Mailer, I'm Pregnant") so we decided to turn the crib around and put it in the corner of the room. This worked well because the back of his crib is higher than the other 3 sides. We also gave him back the comforting support of his beloved "paci" and within a few days we were back to our normal sleep routine. We'll wait until he's ready to give up the pacifier on his own terms (or his 18th birthday, whichever comes first) but at least he hasn't tried climbing out of the crib since.

We just turned his crib back around so here is a more recent picture of him in his crib, lip long ago healed and he's even a little bit taller:

RJ Skills: Drawing

Here is part two in a series of short videos of RJ's skills. As of late, he has enjoyed drawing a lot. Like the last video, it would seem as though RJ does not have the proper drawing supplies like big crayons and construction paper, but he does...he even has an easel now too (Thank You Grammie!!)... we just seem to video tape him when he's NOT playing with his normal stuff. I really love watching him draw since he pays such close attention to what he's doing! It's about the only time he's still too!

It's also looking like RJ will be right handed. Most of the time when drawing or coloring with paper or the magna doodle he does use his right hand. It's not universal though - I sometimes see him using his left hand. This shouldn't be a suprise since Lance and I are both right handed. We'll just have to wait and see what shakes out - I've just tried to put the crayons in front of him rather than putting one in his hand unless he's reaching for one.

Enjoy watching RJ hard at work!

RJ Skills: Stacking

We know we're behind again in our blogosphere, but here are some things from the archives to keep you entertained...one of these days, life will calm down and we'll get this blog in order again!

I took this short clip of RJ on our still camera because it was within an arm's reach when he spontaneously decided to take cans out of the pantry and stack them. I particularly like how he kept saying, "Stack 'em" as he was stacking. It seems that about 5 high is the upper limit, but I think that's pretty good for unevenly sized heavy cans!

As a note, RJ does have toys, including blocks with which to stack; he is playing with canned goods by choice, not due to a need for playthings! I think he was interested in a new medium for his skill! Plus, I was in the kitchen busy getting dinner on the table, so he didn't want to be in the adjoined family room (all the way on the other side of the couch!) by himself with his toys.

Enjoy!

Real Men DO Eat Quiche!!

This video requires a bit of an explanation, even though Lance hates it when I feel the need to write longer blog posts to explain something. But in this case, most blog readers would have no idea what on earth this video is about otherwise.

First, RJ is still relatively picky about eating meat of any kind - so getting protein that isn't in the form of milk or yogurt into the boy is a challenge. He is the oddball kid that isn't crazy about eating chicken nuggets or peanut butter and jelly!! He does eat beans on occasion (lately he's been picky about them and will spit them out), but one protein source that he LOVES is quiche. It's a bonus for me, since I can also get a bunch of green vegetables into him that way too (although veggies are much less of a challenge than meat...go figure).

So when RJ and I left for Pittsburgh this holiday season, one of the things that I packed for our first day there was a container of quiche. Technically, it was a frittata because there was no crust. However, Lance's Uncle Jim seemed hellbent on getting RJ to give up the ONE protein that's a sure thing for him by informing RJ that, "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche". This is actually a title from a book published in the early 80's about stereotypes (thank you wikipedia!). He also teached RJ to say, "bleh!" to quiche. Luckily it did not seem to affect RJ's eating that evening, but I was a bit worried for what he would do the next time I made a quiche. This video is for Great Uncle Jim, from RJ, who lucky for Uncle Jim, still LOVES his quiche, and believes that this love has no bearing on his masculinity.