dylandean.com

2008-12-10T20:16:00.003-05:00

A lot of things have happened since my last post. This update is basically for family.

Some things that Dylan's been doing lately:

We've been teaching him to Pray. He puts his hands together, usually until we're done. Still won't shut his eyes but we may have had a break through tonight - I got him to shut his eyes while singing a song he likes. It's part of the actions.

He says random words all the time. "Yeah, nuh uh, Hot, Mama, Daaad, bye, hi and probably some more. The ONLY word he'll say on command is "Hot".

Tonight I asked him if he wanted me to sing and he put his hands together like he was praying and motioned yes. We usually start all our bedtime songs with "Jesus loves me" I'm wondering if he's associating Praying with Jesus and our songs about Him. I think so, but will probably take a little bit longer before I know for sure.

Throwing - EVERYTHING- Since we've gotten Chloe (our puppy/dog) he has learned how to throw balls. He throws everything for her and then he throws everything just for the heck of it too. Which is somewhat a problem, especially when he's mad and throwing a tantrum. The other night we watched him pick up his cars and not want to walk over to clean them up so he threw them over into the basket. He made them all . I was shocked.

We took him the other night to watch Bolt - his first movie in theaters. He sat through it all and LOVED it. We will def be doing this more often. Since then he's watched the trailer of Bolt on our Apple TV and he can't understand why we don't have it all.

We decided it was time to cut his hair. :( So many people were commenting about how cute the little girls hair was. Even when he was wearing blue and shoes with skulls!

He's also into lining up all of his little cars and toys. I snapped a couple pics of them the other night.

(Nothing special, but I thought they were kind of unexpected.)

I'll get to the Christmas tree pictures soon...

posted by Mommy.

The Piano Man.

2008-10-04T00:55:00.000-04:00

We're still here! I have just been busy. I'll make an effort to update soon.
Posted by Mommy.

Bananas!

2008-08-31T00:31:00.002-04:00

Mr. Independent. He's been wanting to try everything recently. He looks to us as if he's asking us to show him how to do whatever it is we're doing. We do then he spends the next hour trying to figure it out. I really need to take some pictures of him playing with his new favorite toy, his broom. With out hardwood floors I'm constantly sweeping, the other day when I was finished I gave into his request and I showed him how. He has been dragging my broom around ever since. So we went on a mission to find him one that's his size. Now he carries it around constantly. When he wakes up it's the first toy he runs to get. I'll try to get it on film this week.

However, I did manage to capture the first time I gave in and let him hold his banana. He's growing up so fast. It's KILLING me!

Posted by Mommy.

Cousins

2008-08-31T00:26:00.002-04:00

Dylan seems to grow leaps and bounds when he's around his cousins. He just instantly grows up. Here are some pictures of them eating breakfast while watching cartoons.

posted by Mommy.

My lil Cutie.

2008-08-28T22:57:00.000-04:00

posted by Mommy.

Park With Mommy

2008-07-17T23:11:00.003-04:00

Here's the slideshow! He really had a good time. I have more of him at the playground, I plan to add them a little later.

Posted by Mommy.

My sweet Boy

2008-07-16T00:31:00.002-04:00

I took Dylan to the park today. We had a great time and I plan to do this more often. He really enjoyed it. I'll post a slide show a little later. But I couldn't wait to post this. I need this for my wall!

posted by Mommy.

More pictures.

2008-06-15T14:06:00.002-04:00

We went to the park on Friday with Aunt Cindi and Connor. It was Dylan's nap time so he was pretty quiet until right before we left for lunch. Here's a few pictures of the boys hanging out.

Grandma Marsha sent Dylan some wooden blocks for his Birthday. We let him open them early He's been playing with them nonstop since. I think he likes the bucket the best though. :)

posted by Mommy.

Dylan Turns One!

2008-06-15T13:44:00.002-04:00

We had Dylan's birthday party on Saturday. Here's some pictures of the event. I didn't get a picture of when he was finished with the cake but I know people did and will get one posted soon. He wouldn't touch the cake at first. He wanted Daddy to hold the cupcake. We tried to let him use his hands but he insisted on using his fork. We plan on celebrating his b-day again on Tuesday, his actual birthday, so hopefully he'll be more open to using his hands.

posted by Mommy.

Daddy & Dylan hanging out

2008-06-07T15:05:00.005-04:00

The other day I took Heidi's car to Carmax to get an appraisal. What a surprise - they don't offer you what it's actually worth. :) While we were waiting Dylan LOVED to playing in all the Jeep's in the showroom. He has so much fun pretending to drive like Daddy.

posted by Daddy.

Park

2008-05-16T13:52:00.000-04:00

Another slideshow.

posted by Mommy.

This one too!

2008-05-12T12:34:00.000-04:00

posted by Mommy.

New Camera!

2008-05-12T12:23:00.000-04:00

I've been messing around with my new camera. I LOVE it. Although I haven't figured too much out yet. Here's a few pictures.

Posted by Mommy.

Per request of Grandma

2008-05-09T17:52:00.000-04:00

Posted by Mommy.

California

2008-05-09T11:32:00.005-04:00

Here's some pictures of our California trip. I've been meaning to post them but I keep doing other things. This wasn't intended for this purpose but they're CA pictures.

Posted by Mommy.

iLetdown

2008-05-09T10:31:00.003-04:00

So I did my part for the "failing economy" last night and bought an iphone. However, while I may have stimulated the economy, this "marvel of modern technology" is leaving me a little less than stimulated.

I have no where else to voice my opinions about my toy since I ditched my blog, so I'm hijacking Dylan's.

Things that piss me off about my new iphone:

ITunes - in order to login to itunes to download music, movies, tv shows, etc. your iphone must be connected to a wifi network. It won't even open if you are just using a regular cell internet connection. This is retarded. I assume the reasoning is that they want you to have a strong signal so that the download isnt interupted... but who cares! If you lose cell reception just have the download resume. This isn't a very big deal with the amount of wifi networks everywhere I go, but its still a PITA. On the drive into work today I wanted to download some songs and couldn't.

Instant Messaging - I thought they fixed this when they came out with WebApps for the iphone, but apparently any kind of Instant Messaging program is non existent on the iphone. No Google Talk, No AIM, Yahoo, etc. Apparently there are some 3rd party apps that you can install, but you have to hack the phone (which I'm not comfortable doing yet). Apple saying IM capabilities are coming soon, but how soon? And why the hell wasn't this available on the first edition? I maybe use my cell phone to actually make telephone calls about 300 minutes a month. I use SMS, IM, Email and the internet connection to communicate.

Drag and Drop File Storage - When my iphone is connected to my computer I expected to be able to just drag and drop files to it using Windows File Explorer. It has an 8GB harddrive, but it doesn't even show up in My Computer as a drive. Everything has to be done through the itunes program - very lame!

Camera - It has a still photo camera built in - but theres no zoom functionality. No flash either. My Blackberry Pearl had both. You can zoom in and crop pics after you take them, but not before taking the picture. You also can't do anything with the pics after you take them. You can't attach them to an email or SMS them (as far as I can tell). You can use them as wallpaper or look at them in a slideshow, thats it.

Emails - the interface for email is fricken awesome - except for the fact that you cannot attach files. You can recieve attachments I think, but I can't select a file (like a photo) from my iphone and send it to someone. You can view documents using web based products like Google Docs.

Flash - the browser doesn't support Flash. Lame.

I LOVE the interface for this phone, the Ipod, the web browser and the Maps functionality... but I really miss the overall customization and functionality that I had with my Blackberry.

Apple better fix these things soon, and frankly I was under the impression that they already did.

Oh, and Dylan is pretty much walking now. He'll take 5 steps at a time and then fall. Its the coolest thing ever. Just wish I could film it on my new iphone, but it doesn't record video either!!

posted by Daddy.

Park Fun

2008-04-22T22:47:00.000-04:00

We went to the park on Saturday. Here are some pictures. Notice my little watermark. :) I just learned how to do that. Like I need it. But it's fun and new. He surprised us and kept the sunglasses on the entire time. He insisted on taking them off as soon as we were in the car.

posted by Mommy.

2008-04-22T16:05:00.000-04:00

posted by Mommy.

2008-04-22T16:03:00.000-04:00

posted by Mommy.

Ice Cream!

2008-04-22T16:02:00.000-04:00

posted by Mommy.

Good Morning!

2008-04-17T10:15:00.002-04:00

This morning I woke up to the sounds of a blow torch next to my head. I only heard it twice so I was confused to what it was. When we came downstairs there was a red cast coming through our front door window. It looked like we had been tented in. We opened the door and there was a hot air balloon which had landed in front of our driveway. I took this picture a while later so it doesn't show the full affect. I would have had more but Dylan decided to take a pretty bad spill and was bleeding. This was the first accident that has resulted in blood. Sorry no picture of that. :) I'm still not sure what was bleeding, I'm thinking it was from his tooth going into his lip. Ouch!

posted by Mommy.

Mommy Mad Skillz

2008-04-14T17:39:00.000-04:00

So I have picked up a new hobby. Photography, or rather fixing my horrid photographs in Photoshop. I'm nowhere near good but here's a picture I like. The below pictures are also "enhanced".

Posted by Mommy.

Rockstar Mode

2008-04-08T16:40:00.001-04:00

posted by Mommy.

bright eyes

2008-04-07T22:05:00.000-04:00

Posted by Mommy.

Car Seats, Strollers and High Chairs

2008-03-20T10:56:00.005-04:00

Today we figured out we have about 800.00 worth of brand new baby stuff laying around waiting to be returned, waiting to be used or decided on if it's what we actually want.

First of all, Dylan's out grown his infant car seat so I sold it with the stroller in our garage sale last week. I didn't get as much for it as I would have if I would have held out longer but I liked the couple who bought it so I gave them a huge deal.

So I did all my research and found the most perfect convertible car seat. It's a Maxi-Cosi. A European brand that just started delivering to the states this year, it's Comparable to the Britax, which is the "gotta have" of all the car seats. To be honest I think they're overpriced and ugly and the only reason why mom's pay the money is for their safety standards. European have higher safety regulations that are met. Which puts this Maxi-Cosi in pretty good standing here in the US, and when you have a husband like I do, you need a really safe car seat. :) Just kidding hun.

So anyway, I bought this car seat. It looks Blue, right? Well my husband and I argued ove if it's blue or purple or if I should pick another color for about 3 days before he caved and said "just pick one!" So I did. I bought it in Night owl. It came and man was I excited, I pulled it out of the box and thought, "OMG, it's Purple!" Then I pretended not to notice and hoped that Justin wouldn't. Well he noticed. And boy is it purple, but in my defense I showed him the picture and he said it looked purple on his monitors at work but Blue on my laptop and on his! So it's sitting in the box in our garage. I put a post on Craigslist to see if someone wants a deal, since to return it I'll have to pay 30.00 in shipping.

So then we bought this car seat. It's really the one we wanted from the start but our BBRU didn't have it in yet. After the purple fiasco I found it at another store closer to Justin's work. We bought it and love it. I'm a tiny bit concerned about it being such a light color, worried about it showing dirt. Dylan doesn't seem to care. I really thought it would be a huge thing to him. Silly me. He's strapped in and can't move, so he hates it.

Since I sold my kick butt stroller, I had to replace it! So we replaced it with this. Which is still sitting in the box waiting for me to decide if it's the one I want or not. I'm not quite sure it is because since then I've found a few more that I'm considering. Too many to show you. If you can recommend any then please leave it in the comments. I want a child tray, cup holder for mom, and a decent size basket.

When we were stroller shopping I saw the new Baby Trend line. Baby Trend is a very affordable but stylish line. So we bought this high chair. I know, I already have one, it's why we decided to take it back and just wait and get a new booster seat down the road. We were given our high chair, it's pretty old but still works.

Today I am expecting our third car seat to be delivered. Ugh, I know. But we needed one for my car and debated on just using the purple one and we even looked at the cheaper car seats. But we didn't find one we even liked a little bit. Plus I had a coupon for 20 bucks off and I didn't have to pay shipping and sales tax so it's actually just about what one of the cheaper ones would have cost us at target. Hopefully this one comes in gray like the picture shows. I went with the darker color so it would hide dirt.

See this is the kind of crap my husband has to put up with. Me not being able to make up my mind. It's a sickness really. He handles it well. You should see us decide on where to eat.

I'll be posting some more, actually about Dylan later.

posted by Mommy.

Before & After

2008-03-13T16:53:00.007-04:00

Day at the Park

2008-03-08T09:20:00.014-05:00

Happy Birthday Mommy!

2008-03-08T09:12:00.000-05:00

This is what I woke up to the other Morning. I loved it and I got to sleep in. I was told I could do whatever I wanted that day. So we all packed up and went to the park. It was Dylan's first time so I was pretty excited. I'll follow up with a picture post.

posted by Mommy.

Our lil Trooper!!!

2008-03-03T20:07:00.008-05:00

Surgery went well! We arrived at 7:30 and had a little over two hours of pre-op to go through. I thought for sure it was going to be a nightmare since he last ate at midnight but he was smiling and happy the whole time. All the nurses commented on it. I was so proud. He's such a little trooper. The hardest thing in the world was handing him over to the nurse outside the "Authorized Personnel Only" doors. I didn't cry until I turned around and walked away. I barely made it back to the room before I had my little melt down. Then we went to the coffee shop, bought a coffee, looked through the gift shop then went back up to our room. At that point we overheard the nurse say "52's on their way" (our room number) We assumed he was going to the recovery room because we were told the surgery would take 30 to 40 minutes then the recovery would be another 30 to 60 minutes on top of that. Next thing I knew I was listening to a baby in the hallway crying. I got up then sat back down a couple of times thinking it was him but knowing it just couldn't be since he was going to recovery. Then I couldn't help it and went to look. I swear I was so confused, first I couldn't tell that it was him because they had him turned around and bundled up then he had yelled "Maaaaa" plain as day and the nurse said, "I know, here she is." I was thinking "Dylan doesn't talk, that can't be him?!?!?". lol They had walked past my husband in the hallway, not recognizing him. I swear I didn't put two and two together until I saw the look on his face and they were handing me my baby. I was in shock. They told me I wouldn't see him for an hour to two hours, here it's been 30 minutes tops. They told me he'd be groggy and not fully coherent, here he was screaming and throwing himself. When I got him in my arms he didn't settle down, his poor little lip was stitched up, he had his IV on his foot which he was kicking and flailing all around, so I asked the nurses if they had even sedated him. lol They reassured me he had been and that the crying was "normal" for most babies and she gave him more pain medication, just in case. Justin held him, I held him and still he wouldn't settle down at all. Finally, we got his IV off him and the nurse took him from me for a second and walked with him out into the hallway and he stopped crying and within three minutes he smiled. We spent the next hour walking the hallways. He wouldn't go back into the room. lol We were sent home after that and he fell asleep as soon as he got into the car. He's been asleep a lot today which is good but when he's awake you wouldn't even know, unless looking at his lip that he had surgery this morning.

All in all the whole experience went smoothly and it was fast, which was wonderful. I just hope I don't have to go through this kind of thing again. Here's some pictures of our day. The first two were taken before the surgery the others were afterwards. There's a shot of his lip but not a very good one. I snapped it while Daddy was holding him in his not so happy mode, I know bad Mommy!

Posted by Mommy.

Dylan After.

2008-02-28T16:00:00.003-05:00

Actually I just photo shopped this. Justin yelled at me and told me to leave his lip alone. I suppose it's the right thing to do.

posted by Mommy.

Dylan Before.

2008-02-28T15:58:00.002-05:00

This is our little guy. He's normally like this. Happy.

posted by Mommy.

Surgery Info

2008-02-27T12:31:00.004-05:00

I'm completely exhausted this week. It's been a tough one. Dylan's been sick. It seems like as soon as we go back to the church he gets another cold. Ugh. I took him back to the doctors Monday and they put him on some antibiotics this time. I think it's only because I begged and pleaded and because his surgery has been scheduled for this Monday, the 3rd of March.

We'll be having his hemangioma on his lip removed. I've noticed lately that it's getting larger, more and more people comment on it. The last time we were at church I had one of the nursery workers chase me down in the hallway to tell me Dylan had fallen and smashed his lip causing it to be red and blister. I can't explain it but when that kind of thing happens I get so protective and embarrassed all at the same time. Partly because when I look at him I don't even see it. What's worse is when you've told the person who's asking about it already and they ask you again the next week as if they've never seen it before. I think this is one reason I keep his passy in his mouth as much as possible when we go out. I just don't feel like listening to the stupid people's comments, "What's wrong with your son's lip?" I know no one means anything by it but it's jut a sensitive subject.

Anyway, all we know right now is that the surgery is sometime on Monday (we find more out on Thursday or Friday) and the actual removal doesn't hardly take anytime at all. It's small enough still to just snip it off and stitch it back up. This won't interfere with pacifier usage and bottle drinking. (Thank goodness!) Healing time is about a week. Now the scary part is that they have to put him to sleep for it. This is where your prayers come in. I need to find some kind of comfort with this. I'm very nervous about it. So please keep us and Dylan's doctors in your prayers this week.

Posted by Mommy.

More pictures

2008-02-15T16:23:00.005-05:00

Here's a few new random video's and pictures.

I'm just in love with this picture.

This is Dp all dressed up. (I love this outfit)

Dylan eating and playing.

Daddy and Dylan.

Posted by Mommy.

Michigan = cold

2008-02-15T15:38:00.006-05:00

Dylan and I flew home to Michigan last week. We were greeted bt the biggest snow storm that has hit that area in 30 years. Here's some pictures to prove it.

I really don't know how I would have made it home if my brother, Justin, hadn't met me and let me follow him home. You can't even see the road!

This is the next day. I loved these trees. They're so pretty. I think we got a total of 18 inches of snow in one storm.

This is him on the airplane. He fell asleep before we even landed. :)

Posted by Mommy.

Dear Dylan...

2008-02-09T20:41:00.000-05:00

Hi Dyl,

You and mommy are in Michigan right now visiting mommy's family. I can't begin to tell you how much I miss you guys. I was looking at some of your pictures tonight and just can't believe how much you've changed in not even eight months since you we're born. You're such a good looking boy and you are always so happy. I never knew how incomplete my life was until you were born, and now I'd hate to live without you.

I constantly worry about you; thinking that we got too lucky with such a perfect kid. Its so stressful being a parent. When mommy was pregnant with you I was always worried that something would go wrong, or that you'd be born with problems. When I was born I had to have pretty major surgery in order for me to be able to eat. I was worried you would be born with the same problems. But the worst we've dealt with is a cold. It's still scary knowing that there's only so much I can do to protect you.

You can compare it to someone who is really poor and suddenly wins millions of dollars. A lot of their problems are fixed because of the money, but now they live in fear of losing it.

It will only be about another month before you are walking. You're cousin Connor is already learning how to ride a bike, so you've got a lot of catching up to do. I can't wait until you are able to communicate with us better. Earlier today I called Mommy and she held her phone to your ear while I talked to you. Its hard to tell if you know its my voice or not, but I like to think that you know its me. I'm going to cry the first time you are able to say "Hi Daddy" back to me.

What else can I tell you? We still call you "Dyl" or "DP". Your Uncle Brandon calls you Dill Pickle. I think you'll always be "Baby Dylan" since you'll be the youngest kid in the family until Halle gets knocked up. It's ok though, my dad still calls me "Justababy."

Well, I love you and I hope you stay a sweet and innocent boy. It's going to be fun watching you grow up. Come home soon, I'm bored without you and Mommy.

posted by Daddy.

Cousins.

2008-02-02T00:16:00.001-05:00

I thought this was kind of neat. I was going through my pictures and organizing them tonight and I came across these pictures. First one is of Connor, Dylan's cousin. The bottom one is Dylan. Connor @ 6 months.

Dylan at 5 months

(I had to use a slightly younger one for him because Connor was born a month early and Dylan, well he's huge and advanced for his age. He's crawling in most of his 6 month old ones. So not comparable. )

Posted by Mommy.

Dirty Faces.

2008-02-01T16:29:00.001-05:00

Here's some pictures of Dylan. He has food on his face. But they're still cute.

I don't know if I mentioned this but he stands now. He pulls himself up to everything and anything that's in his way. He walks along the couch and he lets go with one hand and has somewhat mastered "sitting down" from this position too. Next week he'll be crawling. I swear.

Posted by Mommy.

Ribs and cookies.

2008-01-30T17:43:00.002-05:00

Today Dylan and I sat down together and ate lunch. I try to time his nape so that we eat together. Sometimes it doesn't work out. However today I had some left over ribs and he had some mixed vegetable, which he loves, but he also loves eating whatever I eat. So I know this seems weird but he was adamant about trying them so he got to try them, after most of the big chunks of meat were gone. Here's some pictures.

After he sucked on them for a minute or two I started to worry about him somehow gnawing a chunk of bone off so I took them away. He didn't like this so much. I have some teething cookies but he's only had them one other time a few weeks ago and he almost choked on them so I haven't had the courage to give them to him since. But I caved again today. So this one's for all the Grandma's.

posted by Mommy.

some randon pics.

2008-01-04T11:09:00.001-05:00

posted by Mommy.

Doctors - 6 Month

2008-01-03T14:33:00.001-05:00

Today we went to Dylan's 6 month well child appointment. I was thinking that he wouldn't have to have shots at this one, silly me. I wasn't prepared. I didn't give him Tylenol 30 mins prior tot he visit and I wasn't prepared for the look on his face when he got poked. Shots suck. I'd so rather be the one to get the shot then to have to watch him get one. This part of being a mom sucks.

Here's some pictures I took while we were waiting for the doctor to come in. The Doctor's is very pleased with his development, and she said his motor skills are very advanced for a 6 month old. He was lying on the table when the she came in, then he popped up to his knees and while she was saying "wow, that's great for a 6MO" he took it one further and went from his knees up to his feet. So he looked like the Man cub on The Jungle Book. She was shocked and said that most babies at 6 months are just finding their knees, if that. I think he likes showing off, he is his Father's son. :)

Posted by Mommy.

Christmas

2007-12-27T20:53:00.000-05:00

This the picture I intended to use on my Christmas card. Which is why I didn't post it sooner but for some reason I was never able to find the time to send out cards this year. I know, I should have made time.

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Since Dylan wasn't able to fully appreciate opening presents we only got him one, well three if you include the bath toys and music CD we opened early. However he did get plenty of gifts from Grandma's and Grandpa's. He's been playing with everything and he thanks all of you.

Christmas Eve was the first time Dylan took any interest into the tree. He's know it's been there but I think it was the first time he realized that he was able to crawl for it. So he "inch wormed" his way over there from across the room.

I just love this picture. It's a classic.

This one is fabulous.

He was in such a great mood this night. Too bad he didn't sleep better through out the night.

Posted by Mommy.

Crawling

2007-12-20T11:09:00.001-05:00

So I think this is what we'll consider Dylan's first crawl. He was over on his mat and saw the remote laying on the floor. He loves the remote it's the first thing we've taken away from him that makes him mad enough to cry. If he sees it he usually lunges for it. Well Today when he saw it across the room he instantly got this determined look on his face and was off. It took me a few seconds to realize what was happening before I was able to grab the camera. He was pretty much already there when I started filming. But still at least we caught a little bit for Daddy.

Ignore the messy background. :(

Posted by Mommy.

2007-12-14T11:20:00.000-05:00

I have a lot to share this morning. First I have some naked pictures to share. I know, I know, but he'll get over it. You can really see his lip in these pictures. I've also noticed a lot more people ask me about it, which makes me feel confirmed that it is in fact growing and not going away like we have hoped. It wasn't until I seen these pictures that I noticed how bad it sticks out. I look at him and see just a beautiful smile and now I often wonder what other people think. I think I know now that I'll get it removed for him. It's just going to be such a hard thing to have heal. Babies suck, chew and put everything they can in their mouth. I dread this time, especially since we're so dependent on his pacifier.

We also learned the other day how mobile he really is. I've found him in corners and messing with the Tivo and DVD player which happens to sit just at his level. He's all over the living room. It's hard to remember that we have a child now and we can't just leave something on the floor to pick up later. I constantly have to think about what's in his "area" when I leave the room to the kitchen or use the bathroom. Sometimes I have panicked and ran back in there to make sure I didn't forget about the scissors I used to cut the tag off his shirt. Which luckily hasn't happened yet, it's been a false alarm each time.

Speaking of just how mobile he is... He figured out that he can get on his knees and rock and fall forward to get closer to things. There's been a few times where I thought, "Here he goes, he's going to crawl" but then he falls. He figured this out one morning and hasn't stopped since. He has it mastered by now. He's so cute. I really think he'll be crawling before Christmas, if not then right after.

Here's some pictures of him in his Christmas PJ's. They're the kind that have the button flap on the bottom and to my surprise it really does unbutton to expose his bottom. :) No I haven't taken that picture just yet. But I'm so going to stick him in them diaperless after Christmas so I can take that picture. :) He's just way too cute.

Posted by Mommy.

The Latest Videos

2007-12-07T20:48:00.000-05:00

Justin doesn't get home from work until 7 or a little later. Dylan normally goes to be at 7 or a little later so we frequently have "quiet" time together where we sing and rock. This is one of the first time I've sang him this song and when i got to the end for some reason he just started giggling. This is about the 3rd time in a row so he didn't react as much as the first time, which I didn't catch on tape, but it's still precious.

.

Posted by Mommy

My sweet sweet boy.

2007-12-03T11:48:00.001-05:00

Dylan,

I guess lets start with the name... We picked Dylan simply because we liked it. Although, Daddy likes to tell people that were were huge 90210 fans. He thinks it's funny, I'm sure by time you read this you'll think it's funny too (after asking "What's 90210?"). Before we knew you were a boy I had kept trying to think of a way to name my child after my Great Grandma Parker. In the beginning you were Sophia, because Daddy liked it so much and girl names were so much easier to come up with than boy names. I wanted Isabelle, but caved and eventually we both started calling you Sophia. We were so sure you were a girl. Although I knew you were a boy, I wasn't surprised one bit when the doctor told me. Next I liked Parker,(after your great great grandma, She was a strong and wonderful woman to be around) you're Dad liked Caiden and Dylan, I let your father pick your first name and I'd pick your middle. Of course there were stipulations, I had to like it. :) In the end we came up with your name together and we joke about how it sounds like a rockstars name and how when you grow up you won't have to change it.

People refer to you as Dyl, Tater Tot or Pickle. I have a tendency to call you Dyl, lover boy, or Baby. (You're only 5 months old)

It's Monday, and you're napping right now. We've been playing all morning. I dumped your whole toy bin upside down in the middle of the floor for you to play in. You were satisfied for a few minutes but grew very frustrated because you couldn't suck on things as if they were your pacifier. Yes, you use a passy. Or rather Mom uses the passy. I'm not quite sure if you "need" it as much as I need it, you're starting to be very vocal, which is good, sometimes. I've also broken another thing that I vowed never to let my child do. You have a blanky. I'm not sure if you'll grow to be attached to it as much as other children are but you love the feel of it next to your face when you're drifting to sleep.

Last night you woke at two and then again at four, this time wanting to eat. I made a bottle and you chugged it down still half asleep. You started signing to me in a quiet sweet voice. "Ahhhh, ahhhh, ahhh" as you drifted back to sleep. I put you back to bed and then Daddy came to get you when you woke in the morning. You have been fighting some kind of cold for the past 3 weeks, we all have. Daddy laid you next to me, you rolled over on your side and watched me for a second then reached out and put your hand on my cheek. You drifted back to sleep. I laid there only because you were asleep. I kept fighting the urge to move afraid I'd wake you. Finally after an hour you rolled over onto your tummy and popped your head up looking around as if you were unsure of where you were. Your eyes finally fell upon me lying next to you and your little face lit up with a smile. This is how I wish every morning went. Normally you're up at six and you don't want to snuggle anymore, you're wide awake wanting to play.

Things you like: Frog Song, We're a Happy Family song, Sweet Potatoes, Green Beans, Pacifier, Camouflage blanket, Banana's, Pears, Applesauce, Twinkle Twinkle, The wind up musical star playing when you take naps, Bath time, sitting up, Chewing on anything

Things you hate: Falling asleep when you want to play, Car seat, strangers picking you up

posted by Mommy.

Dylan's plastic surgery appointment

2007-11-06T15:48:00.000-05:00

Today we took Dylan to a plastic surgeon to look at a red bump he's had on his lower lip since he was 2 months old. Turns out it is a hemangioma which is nothing that can harm him, so thats great news. Its possible however that it could grow into something that could make him less cute. We've decided that we'll monitor it for a couple months to see if it either goes away on its own or whether it grows bigger. Its easier to remove when its small so we'll most likely have them remove it before the end of the year. They'll either just slice it off and stitch it up, or shave it down with a laser. Either way we are pretty sure he'll have to go under some kind of anesthesia which is kinda scary. So continue to pray that whatever route we take he stays safe and healthy.

posted by Daddy.

He's rolling!

2007-11-05T14:37:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we woke up pretty early. I knew the time change would mess us up, I just wasn't sure how messed up. Anyway we've had a long morning. :)

Saturday Justin and I decided to go down to Virginia Highlands and check out a new somewhat kid friendly place for dinner. Dylan was laying on hid floor mat and Justin kept bugging me to go get ready. I was procrastinating because I just knew the second I went to shower Dylan' would roll over.

I came downstairs and sat down and put my shoes on. Looked over at Dylan and he was on his belly, I looked at Justin and asked if he rolled over. He so was going to let me think he hadn't. Needless to say Once again I missed him roll over and I was so disappointed. However this morning like he does it all the time, Dylan rolled over. I caught it on tape. I'm so that mom, I thought I was going to cry. lol

He's so cute. You know those parents who look at their ugly kid and you just know they're in denial, yeah that's so not us because Dylan's seriously the cutest baby ever. Right? lol

Here's some more pics to prove it.

Today every time he lays on his back he instantly tries to roll. I put him down to change, let go grab a diaper I come back to him on his belly. He has totally perfected this.

He's also discovered his voice. I read this morning this is their week that most babies discover cause and reaction. I noticed this today. He screams really loud, enough for me to turn my head and look. He smiles. This game is driving me nuts. I'm so trying not to react to it. Wish me luck. He's still so cute.

Posted by Mommy.

Trick or Treat

2007-11-01T17:40:00.000-04:00

Here's some pictures of Dylan's first Halloween. I especially look forward to this holiday. Yes, I am that person. The one who loves to dress up and decorate the house all scary. This year Dylan and I dressed up and passed out candy to the 5 trick or treaters we had. I was a vampire and he was my bat. :) I know, I'm a dork but anyway here's the pictures.

Posted by Mommy.

Big Boy seat at Walmart

2007-10-29T13:09:00.000-04:00

Speaking of growing up too fast...

We put Dylan in the big boy seat of the shopping cart yesterday at Walmart. He's probably just a little too early to really do it every time, but it sure beats lugging that 20lb (40lb with him in it) car seat everywhere.

He holds himself up on his own pretty good but it was around his nap time so about 20 minutes into shopping we had to prop him up with teddy bears to keep him from falling over. (FYI, the rule "If you slobber on it you buy it" isn't really law)

Mommy might not want him to grow up so fast, but I can't wait until he's a little more independent. It will be great when he can hold his own bottle, or sit there and play by himself.... or run to Walmart for us while we have "grown up time." :)

posted by Daddy.

A week of Change

2007-10-28T19:51:00.001-04:00

This morning I woke at 6 and fed Dylan - he went to his crib on his tummy and I went to bed. An hour later when Dylan was up for the morning Daddy went to get him. He comes back in and says he found Dylan on his back playing. He so rolled over for the first time and I missed it! The other night he was so close, I got so excited but was relieved when he didn't do it. I don't know I already feel like I'm losing the baby in him already. He wants to sit up, he wants to "help" hold his bottles, he makes it well know he hates his car seat, he reaches for toys and he has 2 teeth. All of this has happened pretty much with in this past week. Last Sunday he had pretty much no interest in reaching for toys, no teeth, and would accidentally bounce in his jumper... today he was LAUGHING at the light the bouncer made when he jumped. Oh and then I picked him up and made an oink sound and he fell apart in giggles. Oh and he sings to me sometimes. I love that part. It's what makes me want to keep rocking him to sleep :). It's only once in a while though.

Anyway I have mixed emotions about this past week, part of me is super excited to see him grow up, but the other part of me hates that it's happening so fast! He's such a little person already. He has likes and dislikes. How do mom's cope?

(I bought batteries today so I'll get back to clicking pictures and taking movies again soon!)

PS. The "red hair like the mail man" Was funny when I voted... But who's the other one who voted??? What are you trying to say? lol
Posted by Mommy.

All the cool babies are on MySpace

2007-10-25T17:08:00.000-04:00

Dylan is finally on MySpace. Check out his profile and add him as your friend, http://myspace.com/dylanpdean

posted by Daddy.

Make that two!

2007-10-23T17:57:00.001-04:00

Ok so I've tried to take a picture of his new TEETH, (yes, TWO!) but my camera sucks and it just comes out all blurry and plus Dylan hasn't learned how to show off his teethies yet. So it makes it very difficult to take a picture.

He also almost rolled over today but my batteries died on my camera so he decided he's going to wait for me to buy new ones. That's how that works, right?

He's getting so big!

Posted by Mommy.

First Tooth!

2007-10-22T10:20:00.000-04:00

Dylan had his first tooth poke through this morning. Which explains the crankiness and excess drooling. :) Anyone want to babysit today? lol. : ) just kidding.

Posted by Mommy.

OMG my BFF Connor

2007-10-19T22:39:00.000-04:00

We let Dylan's cousin Connor babysit the other day when Heidi and I were at Taste of Atlanta. Cindi posted some cool pictures of the two hanging out, you can see them here: http://picasaweb.google.com/Cindi.N.Tony/ConnorAndLittleBabyDylan

Dylan told me that Connor is his new BFF cause they both like trucks.

posted by Daddy.

Dad vs. The Boy

2007-10-18T09:54:00.000-04:00

Wilkinson razors (which is Schick here in the US) has a great campaign out right now that really speaks to me on a personal level. Check out this trailer: http://www.ffk-wilkinson.com

It's scary how accurate this is.

posted by Daddy.

Jumping.

2007-10-16T15:44:00.001-04:00

Thought I'd share the latest video.

Posted by Mommy.

Working the ladies at the Doctors.

2007-10-12T17:18:00.000-04:00

Posted by Mommy.

Mommy's Sweet Boy

2007-10-11T11:57:00.001-04:00

Posted by Mommy.

Take the Hair color poll

2007-10-10T15:45:00.001-04:00

Dylan is currently going bald. I think its from all the baby stress. He was born with a TON of beautiful black hair. Now it all resides on the back of his car seat, his bouncy chair, the crib and I think I saw some on the couch. He still has some on the left side of his head because he sleeps on his right. Its very weird.

So we created a new poll (to your left) to see what y'all think his hair will grow back as. I was born with black hair just like Dylan, but it turned blonde. Heidi was born with brown hair and its still brown. So it will be very interesting to see what color Dylan's turns out to be.

Let us know your guess and take the poll. The winner will get a free Ipod!*

*this is a lie.

Posted by: Your Daddy

New website

2007-10-09T12:07:00.000-04:00

Check out Dylan's new website at DylanDean.com. We'll keep it up to date with the latest photos and videos so check back often to see how fast he's growing up.

The site also links to this blog which will now be updated by both Heidi and I. We'll try to keep you posted on the latest things that Dylan is doing.

We'll add videos to the site often. Right now there is one up of Dylan playing Peak A Boo with Mommy.

Go check it out.

Happy Birthday!

2007-06-19T17:16:00.000-04:00

So I ended up getting the coolest Father's Day present ever! Dylan was born 10:25pm on Father's Day. He's a whopping 9 lbs, 14 ounces! 21 1/4" long and he's doing very well. We are all back at home now and trying to get settled in.

I'll have to post more about everything later, but check out the Picasa album to hold you out for a little bit:

http://picasaweb.google.com/justinjdean/DylanSBirth

Or better yet, here's a slideshow:

Peace Out!

2007-05-29T14:17:00.000-04:00

Here are some pictures from Heidi's latest ultrasound. Dylan is giving us the peace sign.

I just hope he doesn't come out with dreadlocks and smoking a joint.

You're going to push 6lbs through where?

2007-05-21T12:36:00.001-04:00

Heidi just called me after leaving her weekly Dr's visit. Dylan is estimated to be 6 lbs and 10 ounces! Thats a huge baby, and he's only getting bigger! I can't even think about how Heidi is going to get him out of there. Its amazing that anyone is able to do it.

On Thursday she'll meet with her other Doc who will hopefully be able to give us a little better understanding on when he will be coming, or if there is a possibility of inducing early or if a C-section is looking more like the way its going to happen. With Heidi's gestational diabetes its definitely a possibility.

I have a pretty important business trip to California June 2nd through 5th so we are kind of worried that he's going to want to come while I'm gone. I know what you are thinking, how the heck can I leave when its this close (our due date is June 25th)? That's kind of why we are hoping that he'll be induced early. Obviously the health of the baby and Heidi is more important than anything, so we'll find out what the Dr. has to say on Thursday.

Top 10 Fears of Expectant Fathers

2007-05-17T10:42:00.000-04:00

I found this top 10 list online somewhere. Some of them are pretty accurate, but it was helpful to find that a lot of them didn't worry me. I thought I'd just break it down for you here:

1. Will I be a good father?
Probably one of my biggest fears. When I think about how good of a father I'm going to be I immediately start thinking about how much I suck at sports. I think about whether I'm "man enough" myself to teach him how to be a good man. Am I going to be able to give him everything he needs... everything I didn't get growing up? Heck, I've still got a lot of growing up to do, so how good am I going to be at fathering him?

2. Can I financially support the family?
This was a concern. Things at work are actually going really great for me. We are able to manage our income so that Heidi can stay home and be there for Dylan, hopefully for the first 5 years. I still worry that he's going to be more money that we expect. Hopefully he won't have any really bad medical problems. But still, its going to be harder down the road if we decide to put him in private school. I'm convinced that this isn't going to be as big of a problem as it seems though. I really believe we've been blessed financially lately because we started tithing earlier this year. There's no way I'd stop now. I think God is going to take care of us financially.

3. Can I handle her emotional changes?
I already know the answer to this....no. Its been hard. Heidi gets crazy sometimes. Its hard not to take it personally like I'm doing something wrong or not doing enough. It doesn't make it easier that she doesn't communicate well when she needs help or when she's mad at me. Luckily this will all be over soon. I just feel so bad for her, shes going through so many changes in such a short period of time. Everything must be 100% more real to her.

4. Am I the real father?
If this baby comes out black Heidi's in big trouble!! Just kidding... I have to say this one is not even the slightest worry for me. If you are an expecting father and you are seriously worrying about this then you've got bigger problems dude.

5. What if I die too young?
This one makes sense. I've never been one to really worry about wearing my seatbelt, but since Heidi got pregnant its been more of a priority for me. And I can kiss my goal of jumping out of an airplane goodbye. I have more to live for now than ever. I have a baby who is depending on having a father around, and a wife that needs my support and help.

6. Will my wife and baby survive?
We have been so blessed to not really have any complications with the pregnancy so far, but its still a fear. My world would be over if anything happened to Heidi, but I'd be just as upset if I lost Dylan and I haven't even met him yet. I'm probably more afraid that he's going to come out with downs syndrome or something. Honestly, as horrible as this may sound I'd be devastated if something was wrong like that. There's no doubt I'd love him and deal with it, but it would be hard. I just want them both to be healthy.

7. Will she love the baby more than me?
She probably will, at times. She'll be the sole caregiver, being with him all day everyday. Before we knew we had a boy I really wanted a girl because I knew she'd be attached to me, you know daddy's little girl. But I'm pretty sure Dylan is going to be a Mama's boy. And thats great, it really is... but it makes me feel a little jealous.

8. How can I help during the pregnancy if I don't understand "women's" problems?
I try to help Heidi as much as I can, but I already get the feeling sometimes that she thinks theres no way I can understand what shes going through. I try not to get angry at her when she's in a bad mood, and I try to do things for her that I know she has a hard time doing now. Hopefully I'm being a good husband through all of this. I know its hard for her these last few weeks because I'm trying to focus on building my new career, while also trying to be there for her all the time. Its hard to juggle both... I'm not looking forward to throwing being a good father in there too. This pregnancy has been a lot easier then we thought it would be, but I probably never will fully understand what shes going through and what shes feeling.

9. Will I do a good job at the birth?
Will I be left out is more my fear. I don't want to be ignored. Its my baby and my day too. I don't think that will really happen, but I just don't know what to expect. Is she going to yell at me and hate me? Or is she going to be overly lovey and not want me to let go of her? Overall I think it will fine though...should be a wonderful day.

10. I don't even like children, so how can I cope with this?
I hate children. I really do. In fact when Heidi and I were dating I warned her that I wasn't sure if I ever wanted children. I just wanted her to know that I wasn't sure and that if its important to her that it just might not happen with me. But one day I just knew it was time. She never pressured me into it at all. We were only married like 8 months I think and I told her that I was ready to have a kid if she wanted to. She wasn't ready at that moment, but it was only a couple weeks later when she realized she was ready too. But to be honest, now that its only weeks away from becoming a major reality I'm a little scared that I'm not as ready as I thought I was.

I really am scared to be a dad. When I think of dad's I can't picture myself in that category. I really hope that changes quickly after he's born. Part of me knows its going to just fine though. I've been through quite a lot in my life and I've come out of all of it stronger and better.

Softcore porn and parenting videos

2007-05-15T21:35:00.000-04:00

So Heidi got a DVD today on the basics of how to take care of a new baby. Its a pretty good video. Teaches how to hold the baby, how to change a diaper, and my favorite part...how to breast feed! If you ever need an excuse to watch soft core porn with your wife but you just can't get the nerve to ask her then I suggest the Very Best Baby videos. :)

Its fun learning this stuff. I had no idea about most of it. Did you know that its a good idea to flick the baby's lips with the nipple if he won't latch onto the breast when breast feeding? I can't wait!

And that baby talk voice that people use when talking to babies, thats actually helpful to the baby! I thought people were just idiots. In fact I had it all planned out to yell at people if they didn't talk to my son like a normal human being. But apparently babies really like the high pitched baby talk. It soothes them and makes them happy.

Heidi already knows this stuff. I guess women just know. I'm a little overwhelmed with everything you have to know. I'm so afraid that after the birth they are just going to hand us the baby and send us home without any help. How the heck are we supposed to know what to do?

The baby's room

2007-05-06T21:29:00.000-04:00

For those of you who read my wife's blog you may have already seen these pictures, but here's Dylan's room. We've finally got it all setup. Well for the most part. It's all painted, the crib is built and the room is clean. We've still got some setting up to do and some things to buy, but I'm pretty sure the hard parts are over. Listen to me... I sound like I actually did a lot of work. Reality is that Heidi did most of it. I think she really did a great job with the painting. If you ever get the idea to paint stripes (especially two different colored stripes) then talk to my wife first. She's perfected a technique.

The room looks much better as a baby's room than it did as my office. Now that I've got the laptop my office has moved to the couch anyway, so Dylan can have it.

Notice I don't call it a nursery. I hate that word. Why can't we just call it the baby's room?

What happened to my wife?

2007-05-06T20:37:00.000-04:00

Heidi has been pregnant for about 8 months now. It's hard to remember a time when she wasn't pregnant, but man I cannot wait until this is over. I just want my wife back!

She's turned into a crazy person. The other night we ate at the new Mimi's Cafe that opened near us. We got there and were told that the wait would be about 25 minutes. At the time that sounded OK to Heidi. We sat at the bar and had a couple of Cokes while she looked over the menu. About 30 minutes in she had not only memorized the menu, but she knew exactly what everyone in the room had to eat in front of them. She does this thing where she sizes up every plate that passes by her. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't cute, but its also getting very scary. A few times I was scared that she was going to steal one of the plates. I could just see the plan forming in her head. Maybe she'd trip the waitress and the food would land in Heidi's lap. Trust me, I wouldn't put it past her. We finally were seated after waiting about 30-40 minutes.

By this time Heidi is pretty hungry. When hunger hits a pregnant woman there is barely a waiting period. Once she utters the words "I am so hungry" you've got about 45 seconds to put food in front of her before she turns crazy on you. Unfortunately it takes Heidi about 20 minutes to decide what she wants to eat (even though she just spent 40 minutes memorizing the menu). She did this before the pregnancy but since then its been 10 times as worse. We finally order and Heidi asks for a cheeseburger, well done. The waitress (who's obviously not qualified to talk to pregnant women) tells Heidi that a well done burger will take about 20 minutes. I'm not really sure what happened after that but the police tell me the waitress has a pretty good chance of coming out of the coma.

OK just kidding. She ended up ordering a different sandwich and for a moment things seemed fine. Unfortunately 20 minutes later we still have no food. Keep in mind that its been about an hour and a half since Heidi said she was hungry (see 45 second rule above). I was starting to fear for the safety of the other restaurant patrons at this point. Luckily Heidi was able to flag the waitress down and we were able to get a muffin while we waited for the food. In the end only a few people were injured and we weren't even charged for the muffin.

It's an interesting thing eating out now. I kid around but Heidi is cute as hell when she gets hungry. And I'm loving all the attention we get now that she looks really pregnant. Everyone stares at her with big smiles and strangers will come and say "congratulations mommy!" Its like being married to a celebrity.

They forgot about me again

2007-05-04T14:06:00.000-04:00

So the 2007 TIME 100 came out and once again they forgot to add me. Among the top "people who shape our world" are Brad Pitt, Kate Moss, Osama bin Laden, Tyra Banks... WTF? It's rediculous that Tyra Banks and Osama made the list, but President George W. Bush didn't!! Not that I read before, but I can assure you I will never become a TIME magazine subscriber.

Tonight the wifey and I are going to a Georgia Force game and if she's up to it a late night showing of Spidey3 (I can say Spidey because I'm going to be a dad). It will probably be the last late night we have before Dylan comes. I'm actually really looking forward to it. Lately I've had the "going out" bug. Which is weird because we didn't really stay out late before Heidi got pregnant. A wild night for us is going to a Habachi restaurant and getting a Heineken Light. But something about all this responsibility thats coming my way soon is making me want to get out and take advantage of the opportunities while we can.

Who wants to take bets that we'll be home before 11:00pm?

I hate Tyra banks... so what?

2007-04-30T09:49:00.000-04:00

At work we have big flat panel TV's all over the place. They are constantly running day time TV shows or movies if someone isn't using them for Wii bowling championships. Every once in awhile I get the unpleasant experience of catching clips from the Tyra Banks show.

Apparently Tyra has a new publicity gimmick going on called the "Belly Brigade." She gets hundreds of women together to march the streets of LA yelling "so what?" and basically promoting that its OK to be overweight. People magazine said that Tyra was getting fat, and her response was "So what?" On the surface this seems like it could be a good thing. Probably the most recognized and one of the most beautiful super models saying its OK not to starve yourself, that you don't have to be 90 pounds to be beautiful. But the more I looked into it the more I realized that Tyra is a moron. There doesn't seem to be any real message to her "So What?" campaign other than you can do what you want regardless of health, safety, moral or religious obligations.

On the show they interviewed several women who were marching in the "Belly Brigade." The two women I got the pleasure of hearing had this to say:

Woman 1: "I used to have chubby cheeks and a fat face. But then I got liposuction and plastic surgery and now I feel great and revived, like a new person. So to all the women out there who are against plastic surgery, I say so what?" And Tyra supported her by yelling "And you're so beautiful."

Woman 2: "I've been on a diet for 7 months and have been cutting out carbs. But today I'm saying "So what?" and eating all the hotdogs with buns that I want!"

So to hell with natural beauty or being happy with the way God made you. No, thats not the message we are trying to promote. If you are unhappy with the way you look, just get liposuction and you'll be fine.

And to woman number 2 I have this to say: Screw trying to stay healthy and better your body, eat all the carbs you want girl! Because not only is fat sexy, its better for you! Four years from now when you are having heart problems, diabetes, depression and exhaustion from being overweight, just say "so what?," have another hot dog and everything will be fine.

What surprises me the most is that Tyra's sponsor is Dove. Dove has an awesome campaign called the Campaign for Real Beauty where they are promoting the idea that its OK to be beautiful the way you are. They show ordinary girls on TV with no makeup on, and show how beautiful they are. They show naked women in their 80's and say "beauty has no age limit." Dove tries to promote exactly the opposite of what Tyra's show is promoting.

I hope that I can impart to Dylan as he grows up that its great to be happy with yourself, but that its not OK to be fat or unhealthy. I'm currently 75 lbs overweight according to what 'studies' say a 24 year old 5'11" man should weigh. I'm completely out of shape and unhealthy. Sure I can say "so what" and live a happy life but that's not healthy and its not smart. And to get religious on you its not being a good steward of your body, your relationships, or your finances ... all of which God says we should take care of. Isn't gluttony one of the Seven Deadly Sins? Didn't Tyra Banks see the movie Se7en?

Meet the Deans

2007-04-29T22:25:00.000-04:00

It occurred to me that you might want to know a little bit about me and the people that I'm writing about. Well let me break it down for you:

Heidi: thats my lovely wife. She has a blog too. Although she doesn't update much. Probably has to do with the fact that she's really really pregnant. We've been married a little over a year. You'll learn more about Heidi as this blog progresses. For now all you have to know is that marrying Heidi is probably the only good decision I've made in my life. Knocking her up might become the second.

Dylan Parker Dean: That's the name of my unborn son. He's negative 7 months now. Somewhere in the vicinity of June 25th he'll make his way out into the world. He's healthy, normal and as far as we can tell he's cute as hell. Weighing in at an estimated 4 lbs 6 oz's he's currently in the 79th percentile. Not that anyone really knows what that means.

Justin: That's me. I'm 24 and I work in advertising for AutoTrader.com. I also own and operate several e-commerce websites. I'm the man behind BlueFishTShirts.com, one of the fastest growing and highly trafficked t-shirt sites on the internet.

Me and my little family live just outside of Atlanta, Georgia. I'm from Southern California and my wife is from Michigan. I'll save how we ended up in Atlanta and how we met for another post.

I'm young, I'm about to become a father for the first time and I'm both excited and scared to death. There's no real purpose for this blog. I like to express myself with writing and lately I've got a lot to write about.

First Post

2007-04-29T21:08:00.000-04:00

In six to eight weeks I'll be a dad. Is it just me, or does that scare the crap out of you too?

Everything about being a dad scares me. Important things, like how I'm going to look with one of those Bjorn things on me. You know, the little sacks that hold the baby in front of you? They look so dumb, but they're probably a lifesaver when carrying the little guy around all day. Thats where the fear sets in. I know they are dorky, but I have a feeling that I'm going to like them too much. I'm pretty sure I'm going to prefer one to a stroller. Strollers piss me off. I'm worried about that too.

Heidi's normally the one who pushes the cart around when we go to Target or the grocery store. I hate pushing the cart, and I know I'm going to hate pushing the stroller. I can generally get away with not having to push the carts because Heidi's in charge of what we buy at stores that have carts. If Best Buy had carts I guarantee I'd be the one pushing it. The thing is, I can't expect her to always push the stroller. Honestly, having to push the stroller isn't what worries me. Its becoming one of those people that scares me. You know what I mean. The Stroller People. They drive their strollers around the malls and stores like they are little SUV's. Apparently there is some unwritten law that says if you have a stroller that you have the right of way. I guess this should be a positive thing but something about becoming a type of person that I hate bothers me.

Bjorn sacks and strollers aside, the thing that really worries me is how Dylan is going to interfere with the opening of Ocean's Thirteen on June 8th. With our due date only being two weeks later I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to catch the film on DVD. Which is a shame. A movie like that really needs to be enjoyed in a theater. I suppose this is the beginning of many small sacrifices that I'm going to have to make for Dylan's sake.