I recently shared video of my son shouting out Doh!'s as he watched The Simpsons opening a few years back. In my family, a viral video that really took off when James was one involved Sweet Baby James dancing with Grandma while Bart and Leon Kompowski sung a song
Steve and I have been exchanging the same gift for years, but this Christmas we reached a new level of indolence. I bought him The Simpsons Season Nine on DVD and he bought me the same thing, only I bought the DVD with the plastic Maggie cover and he bought
It all goes down tonight. Santa will come with gifts for good little boys and girls who will wake up tomorrow morning full of excitement. This has been a particularly fun build up with James a total believer in the magic of Christmas and Michelle gaining a slight understanding of
I was just digging through the vault when I came across a picture that was taken thirty years ago today. This is my little brother Ryan. Happy 30th Ry!
My first born child is performing in his first school Christmas concert tonight. He's been practising his performance of Jingle Bells and I'm proud to say they're going with the beloved alternative lyrics regarding Batman's odour and Robin's egg production. Some things never change. This novelty will no doubt wear
This will be James' fifth Christmas. Between the ages of one and four, James wouldn't sit on Santa's lap. When he was one he was too little to fear anything so he just sat there like Daddy and Mommy told him. Then, he got too smart to sit on some
I've never done this before, but what the hell. My brother Ryan and I just had a seven minute chat via IM and I thought I'd share it. During an uneventful seven minute exchange I counted five references nobody else would get. Well, maybe Steve would get a few of
Before James arrived almost five years ago, I didn't really get into the Christmas spirit until the 23rd or 24th of December. With a couple of kids talking about Santa every day, it seems there's now a solid six week ramp up to the big day. Other than taking them
It's game console season. Everywhere you turn someone is talking about the Wii, PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360. I just read someone was actually shot waiting in line for the new PlayStation 3. This is serious stuff. I haven't had access to to a game console in over a decade.
I just took down the crib. The baby of the house, two year old Michelle, slept last night in her new bed. She triumphantly made the jump from crib to bed and there's no turning back now. Except for a brief period before Michelle's arrival, someone has been sleeping in
How many 32 year old Torontonians have never been to Chuck E. Cheese? Until today, I was counted amongst those who had never had the privilege. Before you shake your head and wonder how it is I went over three decades without such an experience I should point out that
So we rolled back the clocks last night. With a bonus hour appearing out of thin air, we decided to watch a movie after the Leafs game. When you roll back the clocks, you don't mind going to sleep a little later than usual. The problem, of course, is that
The annual tradition continues as we spent the day at Chudleigh's Farm in Milton. Chudleigh's Farm is known for its apples so we made sure we picked a whole bunch of McIntosh, Red Delicious and Golden Delicious. They've also got these killer apple pies which cost $9 each. At that
Mother Nature is a doll. Yesterday, with threats of rain in the forecast, she gave us a smashing day to spend at the Toronto Zoo. Here's a collection of photos I snapped at every opportunity. The zoo keepers must work these animals hard throughout the night, because they sure are
Today, I officially became a father. It was "meet the teacher" night at James' school and I got to meet Mrs. X. Here are the highlights... I almost missed the entire night. I had a ball game immediately after work and it was a close call getting home to grab
Taryn and I have been married for ten and a half years, but our oldest kid is just four and a half, so that means we had a good six years to kill. At some point in the late 90s, we "adopted" a virtual child. We called him Rufus. Rufus
I once wrote about the demise of the dull moment. With a four year old and a two year old running around, it's never quiet and you're almost never alone. Throw in a wife and a dog and it's a mad house. Except this week... The whole lot of 'em
Periodically I'll play kid-friendly songs on the PC for my four and one year olds. They have their favourites, but I'm always trying to expand their horizons. They seem to like The White Stripes "We're Going To Be Friends" and Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" and they've always liked Hot Hot Heat's
How can it be that my little girl turns two years old today. I remember watching her birth so recently. I remember those exciting days when she started to walk, began to talk and actually grew hair. She started off so small, a little lump you could literally hold in
With the day off work and the rain coming down, we decided to postpone our trip to Ontario Place and try and trick the kids into learning something at the Ontario Science Centre. I suppose when you decide to have kids you also agree to give up a small piece
We're back. Did we miss anything? I heard there was a big soccer game yesterday. I'm sure I'll find something about it online. Last year, James and I went to my favourite camping spot. This time, we went somewhere more suitable for four year olds. We headed 45 minutes west
Father's Day is completely redundant and unnecessary in my house. As corny as this is going to sound, every day is Father's Day. James and Michelle make me feel like a billion dollars each and every day with a big hug and kiss and the sincerest "I love you Daddy"
This game had nothing to do with the final score. It honestly didn't matter. This was James' first football game and the first time Ricky Williams touched the ball in a game as a Toronto Argonaut. Williams only played one quarter and didn't have a single solid rush, but being
Well, they did it. Steve and Vanessa are married. It was a beautiful day with great food, great tunes and loads of fun. I didn't think we'd be making speeches, because it was advertised as an informal affair without the usual wedding rules, but on Thursday my mom told me
After brushing her teeth, Michelle was ready for daddy to give her a hug and kiss and lift her into her crib. I gently lowered her onto her stomach, patted her back, told her I loved her and said goodnight. She replied with a "goodnight daddy", but followed that up
