To Claire...

Well, it's here. You're finally five! I constantly have to remind myself that when you act like a five year old, you're acting your age.
Well do I remember the long nights when you were just a baby, walking laps in the family room, whistling the Notre Dame fight song, or Utah Man. You cried even harder if it was anything else.
And my how you've grown! And my how smart you are! I still think back with amazement on you saying your first word; phalanges.

Sweetheart, there is so much ahead of you. I hope you enjoy the next five years (and beyond) as much as you've enjoyed the first five! I love you. You make me very proud everyday. I love watching you learn and grow. You will always be my little Claire-bear!

Joyeux anniversaire, Claire-ours!

Adventures In Bedroom Swapping...

Now that Audrey is in 6th grade, and owing to the fact that side-drop cribs are parent-from-hell deathtraps, we have had a shuffle in the sleeping arrangements for the girls. See if you can follow along:

Audrey has moved from her and Claire's room to Bridget's room. Bridget has moved to Claire's room, but not on bunk beds as we don't want either to plummet to an untimely demise from the top bunk. Audrey got a new bed, but not the daybed that she and Jen were hoping for. It has under the frame drawers, but only one set of four, not the two sets of four that are on the showroom at the furniture store we bought it from. And now Audrey and I are sharing a bathroom. Bridget's half of the no-longer-bunk-beds only has one rail, but "Big Pillow" is on the floor in case she tumbles the two feet to the floor.

So everyone is now "happy", except for me as I realize that my girls are growing up.

The Latest Earworms (a.k.a. The Songs That Get Stuck In Your Head) At Our House...

Earlier this month we went on a family camping trip (which, by itself, is a whole other post!) and Jen made a CD for Claire and Bridget to listen to on the way to the mountains. Not realizing the extent of the explicit lyrics to I Love It (radio edit provided) we popped in the CD and down the road we went.
Then, last week, Jen's brother sent a text regarding the best app ever. Dumb Ways To Die is now a game. It is a pretty funny video, and the game itself appears to be quite entertaining.

I gotta tell ya, hearing I Love It immediately followed by Dumb Ways To Die is bad enough. It's worse when the get stuck in my head ALL. DAY. LONG. Its to the point now that I'm doing an internal mashup in my head.
However, its rather hysterical to watch Bridget dance to and scream along with I! DON'T! CARE! - I LOVE IT, then mimic some of the dead dancers (my personal favorite is the super glue eater!).

And now that you're doing your own internal mashup, here's the surefire cure for getting songs unstuck from your head!

For Want Of A Leotard...

For those of you who are new, or may not be aware, Audrey belongs to a dance studio located by our house. Wednesday she received her costume for her Jazz Dance class, and was told what time to be at the studio for pictures (whoa, wait...PICTURE time? Already???) on Saturday. As soon as we get home, she tells Jen the news/time and goes about her evening.

And Estrogen Hell has ensued ever since! All because we cannot find Audrey's nude colored leotard. Each night since, and all this morning has been a cry/fit/yell fest, for which the only remedy has been the promise of a new leotard.

Perhaps its because I'm a guy, or maybe because I'm inherently lazy, but for want of a leotard...

Deeper and Deeper...

So, over the Veterans Day weekend, some more estrogen was added to the pool. I met my sister Kim, her daughter Melina, my step-mom Debbie, and my soon to be sister-in-law Sara. These new arrivals will add even more new dimensions to my already vast array of testosterone laced goofs.

The good news is that I met Kim's boyfriend/Melina's dad Kirk, and Sara's fiance (my brother!!!) Brian as well. So, hooray for me. While the pool just got a little deeper, I also have a couple of new testosterone based life preservers!

Just A Little MORE Understanding, Please...

If you missed it, here is the first installment of my lack of understanding.
This is a continuation of the following Google+ post:

In high school, I was really good friends with my best friends sister. And not just because I was passionately in love with her (which I denied every five seconds!), but because we understood each other. I still have friends who are girls/women, and all of those friendships are purely platonic. But we're still great friends.

Of the myriad of jobs that I've had, more of my managers have been women. I have found all of them to be excellent leaders and great managers to work for!

I have always worked well alongside my female colleagues in the workplace. I have found all of them to be competent and just as dedicated as I like to think I am!

Why is it then that I just DO NOT get my wife and oldest daughter sometimes?! It's like we all speak some sort of alien gibberish at each other.

This is really troubling to me, now that Audrey is a full-fledged "tween". I don't want to be the dad who doesn't "get" my kid. At the same time, I don't want to be that husband who cannot communicate with his wife.

To Audrey...

Ten years have come and gone so fast! I remember bringing you home; you were so tiny. I can picture everything we've done together since then. Your first smile, tooth, step, fall, skinned knee, split lip, soccer goal, softball hit, report card, drawing, word, hug, and kiss are all lovingly etched in my brain. Today you are  more than a kid. Now you're a young lady, but you'll always be my little girl!!
As I think on what the next ten years will bring, I can't help but feel they will be exciting! I look forward to makeup, junior high school, driving (ok, not so much), high school, boyfriends (ok, not really at all!) and college.
I hope that you will always remember how much your mom and I love you, how proud we are of you, and how much you mean to all of us.

Ēadiġ ġebyrddæġ Sweetheart!