Parker won at Chuck E Cheese

Parker won 8 stickers at Chuck E Cheese this morning. He then proceeded to put them all on his shirt as we drove across the street to Walmart. He was being very silly as you can see in this picture.



- Posted from my iPhone

Christmas pictures

Here are the pictures from the trip to see Santa at the Galleria last night. It only took about an hour of standing in line trying to keep Parker occupied before he got to sit in his lap. Good thing it wasn't any longer. Who knows what the first picture would have looked like. Check out the worst and the best of the evening.

Parker's first visit to the dentist

Last week, Parker went to the dentist for the first time. He was as good as can be expected. He didn't like all the tools in his mouth as you can see from this image.



- Posted from my iPhone

Parker loves chicken nuggets

Check out Parker eating chicken nuggets from Chick-fil-A like they are going out of style.



- Posted from my iPhone

Dora bandaid

Parker tends to get a lot of boo boos. Mainly on his head and mainly because he trips over his own feet, falls into some inanimate object, or simply runs into something hard. Whatever the reason, he seems to get a lot of bumps and bruises. I guess that is part of being a 2-year old boy. One thing he likes about those bumps is that he sometimes gets to wear Dora the Explorer bandaids. He is so proud of his bandaids that he usually doesn't want take them off. Check out this image I captured before bedtime one night of Parker after sustaining a minor head injury at school earlier in the day. Dora made him feel all better!

Looking stylish

Here is one of the many great shots I took of Parker out in the backyard earlier this afternoon. Doesn't he look adorable in his stylish cap and matching shorts? I will upload more, but I am headed back out to Seattle tomorrow for the week, so it will have to wait. Enjoy!

Parker's Fun-filled Halloween

Parker had a fun-filled Halloween today. It started at 9:30 am at his school where all the kids trick-or-treated around the classrooms. Mama and Dada where there to help. Parker is definitely ready to get some treats as you can see. This year, Parker was a Sheriff.

Then a special friend, Elmo, came by to visit. Parker still doesn't like people dressed up as things such as the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, or Elmo, but as you can see, he was brave enough to touch Elmo's arm when he wasn't looking.

Then Parker was such a good boy when he got home from school. He helped Mama and Dada pass out candy to all the boys and girls that stopped by. We had so much fun!

Waiting for pizza

Here's a quick post of a picture of Parker and Dada while waiting for pizza last night. Check out Parker's new haircut. Cute huh?




- Posted from my iPhone

Policeman Parker

Parker thought driving the police car was great. I'm not sure how he was able to see over the dashboard though.




- Posted from my iPhone

Parker playing with gears

Here's another picture of Parker last week at the Children's Museum playing with some gears that were magnetically attached to the table. He thought it was cool to make them spin around really fast as you can see in this photo.




- Posted from my iPhone

My new iPhone photo app

Check out my new app. It has some really cool effects. This is from our trip to the Houston Children's Museum yesterday.



- Posted from my iPhone

A couple quick videos

I've been super busy at work, so I haven't posted as much as I have wanted to. But here a couple of quick videos that I thought you might like. The first one is of Parker saying his alphabet.

The second video is of Parker reading to himself one night before bed. The book he is reading is Pet Shop Lullaby.

I know A-Rod. You sir are no A-Rod

Parker tries to hit the ball, but he can't quite get the timing down. I think out of 30 balls I threw him tonight, he hit one. Here is a pic of him trying. See the ball at the top of the image.



- Posted from my iPhone

Race car driver

Parker loves the race car carts at HEB. It makes grocery shopping with him so much more enjoyable.



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Random shots of Parker

Here are some random images from this past weekend of Parker. The first is of him playing with the grill set he got as a birthday gift. I don't think he knows how to use the tongs. :)

These next two images are of Parker enjoying his sand/water activity center that his Aunt Megan gave him. He loves it. Thanks, Megan... more sand in the house! :(

This final image is of Parker wearing his mom's underwear. And not just one pair, but two pair at the same time. I hope this is just a phase. ;)

Parker's new Harley!

Parker is now just like his daddy. That's right, Parker has a Harley too! A Harley-Davidson Rocker to be exact. Although he was a little scared of the motor at first, he started to get the hang of it after a few minutes. I am sure in another week, he won't want to get off of it.

Now he just needs a leather jacket and some chaps! :)

Two Years

I wrote this poem a few months ago on a flight from Houston to Seattle. I have not shared it with anyone, until today. I was saving it for this occasion.

Two years have gone, just like that.

From zero to now in nothing flat.

I should have known, for I was told,

In a blink of an eye, you'd be two years old.

As I now reflect on those early days,

I now know why they used to say,

"Enjoy every moment, for it won't last.

Kids these days grow up so fast."

Two years have gone, and I still recall,

My sister pacing in the hospital hall.

I remember your hair and cute button nose.

And counting, twice, your fingers and toes.

But that first week, you wouldn't take your food.

So, instead your were fed through a tube.

We went to the hospital religiously,

Just to hold and feed you, albeit briefly.

Connected to machines, it was tough to see.

To know you now though, it's hard to believe.

You devour most anything in your sight.

Rarely a crumb remains, let alone a bite.

As you've grown older, my love has too.

There is nothing more important to me than you.

The time we spend together doing fun things,

Fills me with joy and makes my heart sing.

Two years have gone and all I can do,

Is look forward to many more years with you!

I love you, Parker!

- Daddy

Parker is 2!

Today is Parker's official 2nd Birthday. He technically won't be 2 for another hour and a half, but it's close enough. Parker celebrated his birthday with his friends and extended family a few weeks ago at Chuck E Cheese. You can see a few of the pictures his Aunt Megan took here.

Today, his mom and I celebrated his real birthday with him by opening the rest of his presents. We actually gave him a little cookie cake last night as you can see below.

So far today we have played with our new toys, been to Gymboree, and ate lunch. Currently, Parker is taking a nap. Once he gets up, we will probably play with more of his toys and then go to the pool for a little while. We love the pool!

Thanks to everyone who made the trip to be with us for Parker's very special day. I will update the blog with more photos and adventures throughout the summer.

Fathers' Day lunch 2011

Parker and I enjoyed BBQ at his school on Friday. It was fun and delicious!



- Posted from my iPhone

The most important meal of the day

People say that breakfast is the most importation meal of the day. Obviously, Parker thinks so. Here you can see him chowing down on a kolache.





- Posted from my iPhone

Parker was a fireman today!

Today at Gymboree was pretend to be a fireman day. Parker loved playing with all the pretend fireman things like a ladder to rescue a kitten stuck in a tree, a pole to slide down to get to the fire truck, and a fire truck that took the pretend fireman to the fire.

Here is a quick pic of Parker and I trying on hats.

Here is a video of Parker steering the fire truck. Sorry for the unstable image, I was trying to keep up with him. :)

Parker at the beach

On Saturday, we went to Galveston Beach to play in the sand and water. Parker didn't like the water too much, but he loved all the sand. It was the biggest sandbox he had ever seen. :)



- Posted from my iPhone

Parker's new words

Well, Parker is saying a lot of new things. Everyday he seems to impress me with his vocabulary. Check out this demonstration of vocal talent!

My shoes

Parker was trying to fill some big shoes today.. mine! Check it out!

Here is a video of one of his best efforts.

The cutest video

This is what I consider the cutest video of Parker that I have. It is of him playing with the (disconnected) hotel room phone at the Great Wolf Lodge over the Easter holiday. I crack up every time I watch this. He is so doggone cute!

Parker's real train ride

Here is the video I shot of Parker's first real train ride. It was on the Grapevine Vintage Rail Road over the Easter holiday.

Parker loves the arcade

This morning after breakfast and before we went to the water park, we stopped by the arcade. Parker was disappointed to find that it wasn't open yet. We stared at it for a while before he was ready to leave. I promised we would go back... and we did.



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Table manners

Parker is still working on his table manners. This is how he uses the napkin.




After much coaching, he finally got the hang of it.



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Parker on the choo choo

Today, we decided to take the Grapevine Vintage Rail Road. We sat in the open air section of the train. We are just about to depart. We will let you know what Parker thinks after the ride.



- Posted from my iPhone

My new jewelry

One thing that I thought was really cool at Great Wolf Lodge is the wrist bracelets they provide at check-in. They are not just for getting into the water park area, they also have a computer chip in them and they unlock your room door. That right, they are a replacement for the card key that most hotels provide. No more keeping track of that card. This key is always with me. :)



- Posted from my iPhone

Parker phone home

Good thing we are at an expensive water park lodge, because Parker hates the water, but loves the phone.



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A magical time

I didn't realize this before arriving, but the Great Wolf Lodge hosts a game called MagicQuest, in which you have to navigate the lodge with your wand and uncover clues. Kind of like a scavenger hunt. The gift shop downstairs has a bunch of magic wands and accoutrements. I'm sure this can get pretty expensive.






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All wet!

Well, Parker wasn't too sure about all the splashing and spraying. He cried most of the time. We are going to try again this afternoon. Here is a picture of Parker and his dada taking a break for lunch.



- Posted from my iPhone

Our first day at Great Wolf Lodge

Parker is ready to go to the water park this morning. He is dressed in his Toy Story swimsuit and carbo loading on juice. :) We will post more pictures throughout the weekend.



- Posted from my iPhone

Here are some still pictures from our adventures at Kemah yesterday. We visited the petting zoo, the pony rides, and many of the rides that are always featured at Kemah. Parker had a lot of fun, but by the end of the day, he was very tired and let us know about it. He went to bed fairly easily, falling asleep in my arms after only 10 minutes of rocking him while listening to his lullaby CD. Check out all the fun stuff he got to do!

Not too sure about the fountain

Yesterday Parker got to go to the Kemah Boardwalk for a kids festival. They had a petting zoo, pony rides, and a bunch of other fun stuff geared towards kids. Here's a quick video of Parker checking out the fountain that a lot of kids were playing. You can see he is intrigued by the water, but in this case, the fountain doesn't come on while he is near. In a previous attempt, Parker was hit by some water splashing off of other kids and he immediately ran back out of range to watch them play from relative safety.

iPhone... fail! :(

It looks like I will be getting a new iPhone earlier than I had planned. I was waiting for the iPhone 5 to come out this summer, but I don't think I am going to make it. Oh well, I had $300 burning a hole in my pocket anyway. Thank goodness I now have something to spend it on. ;)

Be the ball, Parker... be the ball!

Parker got to see his first professional sporting event yesterday. He went to the Shell Houston Open and watched Phil Mickleson win by three strokes. Although I couldn't take a camera into the event (PGA Tour policy), I was able to capture some images of Parker having fun in the backyard before heading to Redstone Golf Course. I bought him this adorable outfit on Saturday specifically for the event. Cheers!

I'm no crocodile hunter

We found this on the back patio yesterday morning when Tyson went outside to eat. That's right, a snake! It was only about 12 inches long and barely as round as my pinky, but it was a snake none-the-less. At first I thought it was a stick because it was so straight. Then I thought it was dead because I tried to pick it up with a yard stick and it didn't move. But then... all of a sudden... it slithered a bit. I decided to use a broom and a dust pan to sweep it up into a tupperware container for safe transport to an open field some distance from the house. Later that morning, I set it free underneath a pine tree on some undeveloped land on the outskirts of town. Steve Irwin I am not!

Sears Portraits

We recently made a visit to the Sears Portrait Studio at the Memorial City Mall. We had a coupon and figured a few more images of the cutest kid in America wouldn't hurt. Although Parker didn't cooperate very much, the photographer was able to get a few good shots.

Parker's hat

The other day at school, the kids got to pick out a hat from a large selection the teachers had brought in. Parker picked one that looked like a construction worker's hardhat. Knowing how he likes to take things apart, I would guess he was thinking wrecking crew foreman! :)