MLK Jr.

Where would we be without great men like him?

Happy MLK Jr. day.

Davenism's

Last week I wrote one of my yearly review pieces. It was a shorter review piece but highlighted the important parts of the year. However many of you have commented to one glaring shortcoming in that piece:

"What about Daven?"

To which I reply:

"Have you met this kid?! And if so, do you really think one could forget him?!"

Daven is going to be 4 come next March. So we will soon be leaving the 3 year behind.

Thank god.

This year has been a challenge. Dav has discovered more and more independence and as such has started ramping up the whole challenging authority bit. I have described him as "frustratingly adorable", in that one second he is a sweet little boy saying "please" and "thank you":

Oh, you want me to sit here for a picture? Ok. I sure do love you guys!

But the next second he can be one or all of the 6 demons that supposedly possessed Emily Rose and he must be destroyed:

Want PEANUT BUTTER SANDWICH!!!!

Parenting is hard, and he hasn't made it easy at times.

However, most of the time we coexist just fine, and he is at that stage where he is really picking up language and correct use of grammar. As such, for today's post I'd like to give you a sampling of some of our favorite quotes from Dav during his 3rd year. Enjoy!!

"I get dressed when I done running around naked."

"Daddy, do you want dessert? Let's be done with chicken and have dessert."

"Daddy you fit in my bed...you sleep there and I'll sleep in here." ("here" being Elli and my bed)

"These are my face cheeks. And these are my butt cheeks."

While recovering the next morning from the HHH and having waffles down in the common room with a bunch of older citizens around us, Dav utters this gem completely out of the blue:

"My penis is really long."

"S'mores are made of marshmallows, chocolate, and fire."

"I wanna get my buuuuuttt wet."

I can't remember why, but we asked him to stop talking. His reply to that one: "Don't say that to me. I like talking!"

And quite possibly our favorite conversation Dav had didn't even take place with us. It took place with our friend Jeanette:

Jeanette: "Look, it's the Hungry Caterpillar."

Daven: "I know. It lives in a raccoon."

Jeanette: "I think you mean cocoon."

Daven: "No, it's a raccoon."

Jeanette: "Well, technically it's a chrysalis."

Daven: "I can't say that word. It's a raccoon."

Then there's the whole "why?" and "because" exchange. Any parent knows how that goes, so I don't need to get into that. Let's just say whenever one of those begins, it turns into a contest as to who walks away first. Elli and I normally win but not because Dav gets frustrated with us. He just gets bored or assumes we're too stupid to answer all of this questions and walks away to go play with something else.

2011 Year in Review

Panic not loyal followers! I have returned. After a all too common overly busy holiday season that started with Thanksgiving and ended with the New Years, and then having to replace a computer that all but blew up, I decided it was time to come back to you all and provide the occasional update into what goes on over here. As such, what better way to do it than one of my favorite posts to write: the yearly review.

2011 was another year of change. Almost right of the bat, we welcomed offspring #2. Hannah May was born January 17th, and right from the beginning having a daughter ruined me. I found myself cooing too much, saying "cute" and "adorable" in shocking amounts, and even shooting down clothing options because they revealed "too much neckline for my daughter". I vowed she will start dating when she turns 30, but I'm thinking that is even too soon. Watching the 2 of my children play together and laughing is possibly the greatest thing I have witnessed. I talked about life having peaks before, and I definitely am on one of those right now. And it's thanks to my family.

Elli got a job this year! No, I mean a real one. No, it has nothing to do with Scandinavian Studies. No, for the 1,237,983rd time do I have ANY idea what you do with that. Ask her. Anyhow, a mere 8 weeks after she fired out Hannah, she started work as an RN down at Fairview University Medical Center here in MN, and despite some of her stories, she really does seem to enjoy it and has apparently found her calling in the professional world. Although I think Dav is gonna miss her textbooks and what not. He has a fairly solid understanding of human anatomy thanks to Elli's studies.

And finally, what would a year be like in the Taylor household without a visit to St. John's ER. In July I was brought in via ambulance with a dislocated knee. It was a softball injury, and yes I realize how ridiculous that sounds but it's the way of things. It has been somewhat discouraging to realize that I no longer bounce back from injury as quick as I used to, but have recently started ramping things up again and seem no worse for wear. Perhaps this is my body telling me something, although as history has taught us, I'll just ignore it.

Happy New Year to all! I hope this finds you all well and I look forward to what 2012 brings!!