MTB boy

On Sunday, the boys and I rode the bucketbike in the Southeast Sunday Parkways. At Col. Summers Park, there was a MTB skills course set up which drew Liam like a magnet.

He watched as people rode, and I could see how much he wanted to ride it. Moments later I got a text from Shetha saying that she was on her way over, so I asked her to bring an extra kids bike.

And she did!

Liam then proceeded to spend the next 30-45 minutes riding the skills course; through the mud, over the bridges and his favorite, the see-saw.

Thanks Shetha!

Scooby Doo: The Mystery Begins

"Big FIGHT on the bus"

Last night we rented the regrettable* Scooby Doo: The Mystery Begins, which of course, the boys loved. It's the story of how the gang met each other. In live action.

Yes. It's like ten times worst than it sounds.

But Liam can't stop talking about it - so this afternoon he decided to put his thoughts on paper and draw his version, which I think is WAYYY better than the movie. Like at least ten times.

Of course, being the digital dad that I am, I scanned his story and posted it to Google Docs.

Here it is, for your enjoyment

*especially so if you grew up in the 70's and watched Scooby Doo every Saturday morning


Scooby Doo: The Mystery Begins


Page 1

Big FIGHT on the bus


Page 2

The school bell rang. The school bus will soon arrive. (Sorry this word is spelled backwards)


Page 3

Shaggy thought he saw a ghost


Page 4

Scooby snuck on board the school bus

Page 5

The gang ran from the ghosts

'you're STUPID!'

Hearing test
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

The boys had their 3 and 5-year-old check-ups last Thursday and are doing brilliantly (as we are all well aware!).

For the record, Liam weighed in at exactly 38 pounds and 42 inches tall. Camper was 30.25 pounds and 36.5 inches. Should we start making bets now? Will Camper be the bigger of the two? At what point will he catch up? When will he suddenly be 10 pounds heavier?

The clinic only had nasal flu vaccines, so I had to make a choice; seasonal or H1N1. I went with H1N1. We need to go back in a month for the seasonal vaccine.

Additionally, Liam got part two of his Hep-A vaccine. I've written about it before, and many of you have witnessed his reaction to large splinters - so imagine his reaction to the splinter - now multiply by like a gazillion.

I had to plead and cajole with him, and finally, we were engaged in wrestling match right there in the doctor's office. I was amazed at his strength. I ended up putting him in a big bear hug while the MA gave him the shot in his shoulder. He yelled, "you're stupid!" the moment the needle went in - to no one in particular, but he later told me that he did, in fact, direct that word at me.

Other than that one outburst, both boys behaved beyond expectations. The doctor even commented on how well-behaved they were for 3 and 5-year-old-boys. Holy shit. I'm the father of a 3-year-old and a 5-year-old.

When did that happen?

my big FIVE-year-old

my big FIVE-year-old
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

Liam turned five today.

So Mommy and Daddy celebrated by bringing the family to the 2009 Fresh Hops Tastival.

Seriously.

We sampled about a half dozen delicious fresh hop beers, from really pale ales to hoppy IPAs. Yummy!

Then we went home, made pumpkin pie (Liam's choice) and had some people over for a little schin-dig.

first stitches

Liam is all smiles after getting stitches at the Scripps Memorial Hospital ER.
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

Liam got his first stitches yesterday.

Scary.

Nikki was at work and the boys and I were out exploring. We had already hit up two playgrounds, and were on our way to a third. We stopped at the top of Mount Soledad to check out the memorial. By this time, Camper was asleep, so Liam and I checked out the area around the car.

Liam went ahead of me to scale the brick steps to the top of the memorial. I turned to look into the car when I heard a scream. I looked in the direction of the scream and saw a guy standing about five feet from Liam with a horrified look on his face. Liam was face-first on the bricks, screaming.

I ran up and scooped him up, as the guy stood there staring (he was saying something like, "he went straight onto his face..."). Blood was pouring down Liam's face. His eyes were covered.

I ran to the car, where we had some towels. I pushed one onto Liam's forehead and then put him in his seat. I told him that he had to hold the towel on his cut, "and push as hard as you can!" By this time he had stopped crying and was, I think, in shock. He told me that he's try, but wasn't sure he'd be able to. I explained that I need to drive, so he HAD to do it. He was fine with that.

I hopped in the drivers seat and called Nikki in a panic. She didn't answer, so I left a message; "I'm on my way!"

On the way, I gave Liam my iced coffee to push against the wound. It wasn't bleeding as much anymore, but it hurt. He was incredibly calm.

Nikki called me back when I was about a minute out from her office, which happens to be above an urgent care clinic. We arrived and rushed Liam in, but were told that we'd need authorization from our insurance company first. The woman at the registration desk said she'd call our insurance company but wanted to know "what timezone is Oregon in?" I stared at her for a moment and nearly yelled, it's the next fucking state up, you fucking dipshit!" Luckily, my wife's cooler head prevailed and she simply said, "Pacific."

Before she called, the registration lady said it may take a while to get authorization, and we may be better off going to the ER a mile away.

Before she could finish her sentence, we were in the car and headed for the ER.

We were in and out of the ER in under 45 minutes. The staff was amazing and put Liam at complete ease. When the time for the stitches came, he was a rock star!

It was a scary experience, but it all worked out OK, and now Liam has evidence of his toughness!

one of those days

Camper woke up crying today at 7 am and pretty much cried all day; look at him wrong, don't share a toy, share a toy, it didn't matter, he was a screamer. Liam wanted nothing but to either watch TV, "do his work" (Liam refers to playing on the computer as "doing my work") or eat chocolate chips and/or some gross-ass popsicles (that Nikki bought last weekend. "Slow Melt" popsicles?! What the fuck is that!? It can't be good for you!).

It's eleven pm and Camper finally stopped running around about 45 minutes ago. I've barely had a minute to myself all day. They wouldn't play outside unless I was with them. They wouldn't play (nicely) inside unless I was with them. I couldn't even go to the bathroom without Camper following me and pounding on the door (if I dared shut it!).

I tried taking them to the library for the reading time this morning, but Camper was such a little asshole, we had to leave. He was screaming, yelling, throwing books, grabbing things from other kids, and crawling up on the table. It was really great. I was the father of that kid.

It's only Tuesday, but I'm already starting to go batty. I get tweets from a twitter-bot that lists all the beers on tap in PDX I get tweets from BikePortland describing all the fun Pedalpalooza events ... and I get to hang out in Hillsboro with a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old (we're still carless, so the only way into PDX is on the MAX, which is fine, but not realistic with the boys and any bikes).

Today was one of those days where I had to keep reminding (and trying to convince) myself that I'm one of the lucky ones. Most dads don't get to see this much of thier children....

Tomorrow will be better.

Up

We took the kids to see Up in 3D last night. As usual, Pixar knocked it out of the park.

I had heard that the first half-hour-or-so is a bit sad, and may be too much for little kids. We needn't have worried; the whole death thing was lost on them. Pixar does such a masterful job of telling a story on two levels; one for the adults and one for the children. I was choked up by tears of sadness over death, and dreams never fulfilled, while Liam was choked up laughing at poor little Carl fall through the creaky board in the old house.

Watching it in 3D offers a strange and somewhat disconcerting experience. It wasn't like "traditional" 3D movies where things appear to be popping OUT of the screen. It was more like looking INTO a moving diorama. The edge of the screen appeared to be about twenty feet from the wall. I'm not really sure if I liked it or not. The 3D glasses were a bit heavy and felt odd piled on top of my glasses (Liam said to me, as I was sitting down, "Daddy, you should have worn your contacts!"). Liam wore his for about 75% of the movie, while Camper barely wore his.

It was a great movie with wonderful characters, amazing animation and a fun-filled adventure to tie it all together.

"Won't you please be my prisoner, please please please!"

These days are long

Today, the boys and I had a good day. No one had any major meltdowns - we went to the playground, we went for a bike ride, we went to the pool. We even went to Baker's Burgers.

Not every day is like today. Yesterday was one of those days.

It was one of those days that ended with a meltdown from daddy. I had had enough. Campbell actually tripped the fuse to the upstairs four times. Four fucking times! How many times do I have to yell and scream, "stop playing with the light switch!" The third time he did it, I smacked his ass. The fourth time I put him across my lap and actually spanked him.

I then proceeded to freak out on the two boys, having a breakdown over the mess they've been making, how they're not listening to me... the whole thing. It was lovely. It made me feel great.

Everything I feel when I'm having a "moment" is nothing new to parenting. I'm not the first person to experience it. I know this... but it doesn't make it any better.

I'm constantly questioning what I'm doing, and if I'm doing all the right things. Am I pushing my kids too hard? Not hard enough?

Liam is a smart kid and has an insatiable intellectual curiosity. He's constantly spelling out words and adding up numbers. He likes to write words down, and can even Google the stuff he's interested in. Star Wars. Spiderman. I want to encourage his development without pushing him.

He's also an incredible biker and has been unstoppable since we re-removed the training wheels from his bike and he figured out how to start himself a few weeks ago. He's really good, and he's really capable, and again, I want to encourage his development without pushing him.

Our biggest problem is Liam's addiction to "screen" (TV, computer, iPhone... it makes no difference to the digital generation). He's constantly asking if he can watch a show or do his "work" (computer time). When I say no he whines, cries, kicks and even screams. Sometimes it's really bad.

The answer is to get rid of the TV and computer. The TV would not (will not) be a problem. Not at all. The computer? The problem here is, daddy is also addicted.

We're about to head out on the road and it's looking like no one wants to buy my desktop so I can afford a laptop - so Liam and I may be going cold turkey together!

Things I've heard from a four-year-old... [Part 1]

• My brain tells me I need to watch more television - and not a edunacational show!
• My stomach tells me it needs ice cream.
• You're not the boss of me. My brain is.
• I'm the boss of my bike, which means I control where it goes, so you can't tell me which way to go!
• What's inside a bug?
• Why doesn't it hurt when it rains? It falls from WAY up.
  
• Girls don't have penises. They pee out of their butts.
• You're not my daddy!
• I do not like your attitude!
• Daddy, if you let me watch a fighting show you will get a box of all the camera gear you want.... and sushi...
• Camper! Do no damage!

[Stay-tuned] There will be more...

get used to it

get used to it
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

I need to get used to this view of Liam on his bike.

He is such a great little rider. He's got incredible balance, is nimble-as-can-be, and has strong little legs. It blows me away when he asks how to do something - say, start the bike on your own - watches me demonstrate, listens to me explain, then hops on his bike and does it flawlessly on the first attempt! And if he doesn't get it on the first try, he simply tries again until he gets it right.

The poor kid is riding around on 12-inch wheels, so he has to pedal like hell just to keep the wheels rolling, and the slightest turn of the handlebars can send the bike careening out of control (thus the usefulness for his nimbleness...).

Once he gets a hold of a bike with normal-sized wheels, he'll be hard to contain.

bike train '09

bike train '09
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

Now that Liam has discovered that he can actually ride a bike, he provides the pedal-power and I steer. Camper is kind of like our horn; he's yelling most of the time.

Seriously, when Liam starts pedaling, it really pushes me along. We'll be coming up to an intersection and I'll yell, "green light! Pedal, pedal, pedal!" and I can feel the bike accelerate as he really starts pushing.

On the flats, I stop pedaling completely and let him provide the power. He loves it. He'll yell, "check it out Daddy, I can push you and pull Camper at the same time!

We were driving around east Portland yesterday. I can't wait for us to move into PDX and have access to the Springwater Corridor and Eastbank Esplanade.

'let go of me Uncle Dave'

'let go of me Uncle Dave'
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

After refusing to allow me let go of the bike, only an hour before, Liam turned to Dave, who was now pushing him and said, "let go of me Uncle Dave."

And off he rode. My boy is a two-wheeler now, and he's not looking back.

It's the best day-before-my-birthday present ever!!!

Thanks Uncle Dave!

Sunday family ride

family ride
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

Another Sunday, another family ride. This time we rode along the bike trails on the east and west banks of the Willamette from downtown Portland into the Sellwood neighborhood (my new favorite Portland neighborhood. The more I see of PDX, the more I really like the east neighborhoods.) and back again. It was roughly 14 miles, and was highlighted with stops in the Sellwood Park and Grand Central bakery.


View Larger Map

The Eastbank Esplanade and Springwater trail are havens for biker families (and bikers without kids - there just happened to be A LOT of families out riding - and walkers, and rollerbladers... ) out for a Sunday ride. It was so much fun to get out and see everyone enjoying the amazing weather and each others' company.

We were joined by our friends Erica and Phillip. Nikki and Erica went to UNH together and she and Phillip have been in PDX for several years now.

future wearer of the yellow jersey

future wearer of the yellow jersey
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

We've been using the trail-a-bike so much that we almost forgot about Liam's bike.

Tonight, we were hanging out in the driveway so the boys could play with their sidewalk chalk when Camper came out of the garage with Liam's bike, saying, "bike? Bike?" Of course, Camper's a bit too small to ride (much to his disappointment) so he ran behind as Liam took off.

By the end, Liam had ridden around the block a half dozen times and was barely relying on the training wheels.

I nearly cried.