2-Liters of Pure, Sweet Indulgence

With his Tinkham heritage and a love of all things carbonated, Little Man is introduced into a whole new world by his Uncle Jon. Never one to shy away from a challenge, Little Man went straight to work. "If you start practicing right now then someday you'll be able to drink 2-3 of these bad boys per day, just like I do," his Uncle Jon wisely stated. It seems like everything is always a competition between the two. Here they are comparing who has more hair...???

Mommy's Christmas Scheme

Recently, with the cooperation of the FBI, CIA and CTU authorities shut down an alarming operation before it could do any damage. It wasn't concerning the economy, terrorist activity, or the lack of good apple fritters in the world. It was even worse... It was about Christmas!! Yes, I know you might be thinking, "But it's only September and Christmas is still a long ways away." While that is mostly true, X-Mas decorations have already appeared in stores, and contributed to the planning of this dastardly and nefarious scheme. You see, mommy decided that she wanted to get the early scoop on her Christmas presents. She realized that the off-season was the time to make her move. Good ol' Santa is probably off vacationing on some tropical beach somewhere and has left his elves in charge of all the work at the North Pole. So mommy decided to disguise me as an elf so that I can infiltrate the North Pole and find out what her presents are. Don't believe it??? Well take a look at this pic my friend...

I'm sorry to say that I let it progress to this point but mommy tricked me into it by telling me it was a Halloween costume. As soon as I realized her malicious plot I put a stop to things right away!!

Cuz... what if Santa found out and he took away all of my presents, too???

The Boy Who "Coughed" Wolfed

Trying to express yourself isn't so easy when you don't know words, phrases or even a language. But that hasn't stopped Little Man from trying to improvise his own way to communicate. We think he's trying to send us messages via morse code. Listen and decide for yourself.

Beloved Sweet Nectar

It's fun to watch our Little Guy keep growin and growin. It seems like before you even realize it he's almost an entirely new baby as he continues to progress through the stages of development. For instance, we've been noticing subtle clues that he might be ready to move on and start into his first foods. This is a big step in a baby's life and we wanted this to be a special experience for Connor. We feel that it's important for him to start recognizing and building his autonomy. We would hate to shackle him down with our own biased thoughts and beliefs. Not for our Little Man, for him the sky is the limit. As such, we decided to let him choose how he wanted to move forward. Most babies progress with some rice cereal (yuck!) on to bland oatmeal (eww!) only to end up with nasty strained veggies (why?). We encouraged Little Man to think outside the box and to take life by the horns and go for the gusto. As parents, we couldn't be more proud of his decision!!"You mean you're really gonna let me decide???" "I choose the sweet nectar of the heavens.... Mountain Dew!"
"Oh, I'm so excited, I can hardly wait. I see mommy drinking these every day and now after 6 long and grueling months my opportunity has finally arrived."
"Indeed, (gulp) how sweet it is (gulp)!"

Tennessee Fun

A week ago Friday we were hangin out in the morning with the Little Man when he turned to us and said, "Hey, wanna know what we should do today? I say we pack up some stuff and hit the road and take a week off somewhere. You know, just for fun, to get out of D-Town." We had to admit, it did sound pretty enticing.... so, we decided to go for it and away we went! We drove and we drove until we came to a quaint little town just outside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park called Pigeon Forge. It was a little tough to find accomodations at the last minute, but we finally found something right in our price range.

We quickly made friends with some of the locals. The 3 bears were there, but we couldn't find Goldilocks anywhere. But at least we got to see Bambi and his mom (just stay away from the meadow... we all remember what happened in the movie!!).As always, Little Man insisted that we go to his favorite restaurant for dinner one night.

Overall, it was fun trip and a great chance to get away. Oh yeah, here's some other pics in case you're interested.

A Sea Of Blue

After months and months waiting it has finally arrived..... COLLEGE FOOTBALL!! Little Man was pretty excited to have his first ever football game feature his beloved BYU Cougars. He made sure we were dressed and ready a half hour before gametime. And he somehow convinced mommy to make deep fried sandwhiches (seriously... how cool is that?). All that was left to do was watch the cougs roll to a convincing victory.

His eyes were practically glued to the TV the entire time!

But then we got to the 3rd quarter and things got ugly for BYU. "I can't bear to watch," said a disappointed Little Man.

"Not another fumble!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Fortunately the cougs prevailed 41-17. Next victim: Washington.

The Big Point Five

My, my... how quickly time goes by. It seems like it was just yesterday that Little Man was driving around in the truck, pretending to be a cow stalked by a tiger, completing Navy Seal training exercises in the Carolinas and taking secret spy missions to Alaska. With his 6 month B-Day coming up we knew we needed to make it a special day for him. So we decided to throw the Little Guy a surprise half B-Day party. Needless to say, it caught him completely off guard and was a huge success. Surprise!!!!!We even got him his favorite treat from Maggie Moos Icecream and Treatery - Udderly Cream mixed with brownies and peanut butter. Mmmmm....mmmmmm!
"Man... this eating thing is harder than I thought! How 'bout we stick this in a blender and put it in a bottle for me?"

Going Green is the "Drool" Thing to Do

The world is much different today than it was 20 years ago. Nowadays, everyone wants to be eco-friendly because it's the cool thing to do (oh yeah, apparently it's good for the environment too). Between recycling, fluorescent bulbs, bamboo floors, energy star appliances, solar power and the likes it's getting harder to keep up with the Jones'. But of course, we don't want to just keep up, we want blow the Jones' out of the water (metaphorically speaking of course, I'm pretty sure blowing things up isn't considered a "green" activity). After an exhausting search we realized we had one major untapped resource right in front of us. So we've decided to make full use of it and stop wasting precious water. So far we've been able to cut our water bill in half. And best of all, it allows us to get Little Man involved some household chores.

Due to the enzymes in his drool we don't even have to use soap anymore!!

Just another routine day out watering the flowers

*We decided against posting pictures of bath time. It works, but it takes a little time to get the water up high enough. But you know what they say, "Patience is a virtue".*

The Open Road

Watchin the Little Man grow and develop has become one of our new favorite pastimes. It seems like every day he's learning a new skill or reaching another milestone. For example, first it was a simple toe grab. Then it became a two-footed toe grab. Then it progressed to a two-footed toe grab into the mouth. The following day he took the next step and threw down a two-footed toe grab in the mouth with a Superman Can-Can over the handlebars Knack-knack heelie 360 flip with a twist.

Now that Connor has mastered the toe tricks he has a new confidence about him. He acts like he's willing to try anything now (except for synchronized diving... that's "sissy stuff" as he likes to say). What will Little Man master next? It might be a little early, but we think he's found an area where he can really excel. The first few trial runs have been pretty successful. He's already passed the cone course and is ready for the streets. Take a look...

"Oh, hi mom and dad. I was just takin her out for a little spin"

"Steering well ... check, seatbelt .... check, gas pedal....check. OK, I'm ready to go!"

"Shoot, where did I put those keys???"

Into the Wild

Once upon a time in a land far, far away lived a ferocious tiger. But he wasn't just any tiger, he was the strongest and burliest tiger that ever lived. They called him Rock the Tiger, which is short for Rock the Wild and Crazy Tiger Who Likes to Get Jiggy With it. Rock the Tiger got bored of eating grass one day and decided to go have a look around. While he was out on the prowl he spotted a delightful treat. Connor the Cow was minding his own business doing what he loves most in the world to do- eating. But suddenly Connor the Cow heard a rustling in the bushes.

"Oh, no! This can't be good." he said to himself. "I better get out of here, and fast!"

So the chase began. In all the history of the world there never was a faster or more intense chase than at that time.

"Uh-oh, he's gaining on me!" cried Connor the Cow.

(Dramatic music in the back ground)

"Ha ha, I've got you! You can't escape now" shouted Rock the Tiger.

(music gets louder and more intense)

"I'm doomed!" (music suddenly becomes shrieking sounds)

"Tag! You're it."

(How did you think it would end, you sicko?)

Fixodent and Forget It

Life in today's ever changing world can be tough for anyone, but especially for babies. There isn't much dignity or modesty in having your diapers changed in public on a regular basis. Not to mention the thought of meeting a new person and having drool all over your face and hands. How embarassing!! How are these poor little people supposed to build self-esteem?? There are just too many ways that things can get out of control and cause emotional damage to these gentle and delicate souls. As parents, we've had enough and are taking a stand. We will not let a few social faux pas ruin our son's future. We consulted with the Little Man to see how we can help him and here is what he said, "OK, picture this, I'm out cruisin and I see lady friend at 2 o'clock and of course I want to make a good first impression. So I flash her a smile to show off my pearly whites and what happens?? I ain't got no pearly whites and there goes my chances!"

Well, we won't let that happen. Take a look...

Extra, Extra Read All About it

" Check it out everybody, I have toes!!! I don't know where they've been all my life but they're my new best friends."

The Game and the Plague

Thursday night was Little Man's very first baseball game. It was the Quad City River Bandits vs. the West Michigan Whitecaps. We think he really enjoyed it. Apparently, being an Iowa native has really influenced his behavior. He brought his buddy Rock along to have more voices to heckle the other team. And every time the away team was up to bat Little Dude did his best to spit on them. We're still working on his distance, but it's the thought that counts, right? Then sometime around the 5th inning Connor decided to strip down and run onto the field like a crazed fan. But then he remembered he doesn't know how to run yet, and it wouldn't be as cool to have his mom out there holding his hands while he terrorized the stadium. In his defense, it was Thirsty Thursday (half-off beer night) so we think he was just doing his best to fit in with the locals.
And then it happened... in the 7th inning a plague of mayflies spread wildly throughout the stadium. It started with the lights and soon the dirty bugs enveloped everything and everyone. It was an event of Biblical proportions. Perhaps the heavens frown upon Thirsty Thursdays.

Connor Young DC MD PhD LMNOP BaBY

Last night was movie night at the Young household and the feature presentation was "Catch Me If You Can". We let Little Man stay up and watch it with us as a special treat. For most of the movie he was more interested in chewing on his hands and slobbering onto anything that dared cross his path. But there was a part that he showed particular interest in- where the main character pretends to be a doctor. His eyes were glued to the screen the entire time. We didn't think too much of it... until the next morning when we went to his crib and found him like this.

"Do you concur??"

Kids Say the Darndest Things

"Dad!!!! Don't eat my special glow in the dark watermelon!"

Who's #1 ???

For the past 4 months we've had a burning question in our minds that every set of parents must get an answer to- Who does Connor like more, his mom or his dad?

Is it his mom who provides him with daily nourishment, caters to his every want and need and still wakes up in the middle of the night with him??? Or is it his dad who provides timely comic relief, orchestrates his daily workout regimen and watches out for his back (ie- makes sure mommy doesn't put him in any girly clothes or situations)???
Now that little Con Man is more aware of his surroundings and starting to verbally make his wants and wishes known, we took it upon our selves to ask him this age-old important question. We also took notes on his behavior and watched every smile, every coo, and every glance and who it was directed to. We took our raw data and had it statistically analyzed at the 95% confidence level just to ensure the results were foolproof and accurate. We even had the Little Man under go a lie detector test. Finally, after all of that we obtained the answer to our question. In the end, the winner and Connor's most favorite is.......................
THE CEILING FAN!!!!

Weeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

You can take the kid out of Iowa, but you can't take the Iowa out of the kid!

Gangsta Con Man

Brotha man... why you gots to be all up in my grill???