Holy Rabbit Eggs! I Forgot Easter!

Just in case you missed it Easter was a couple weeks ago. We celebrated several times, but due to certain circumstances Life of a New Dad has not celebrated the holiday yet. I don't have a grand story to share about something that happened over two weeks ago so I will share in video and pictures with a few comments. I hope you enjoy.

Video #1 is footage of Braden's first ever Easter Egg Hunt. It is actually his second because they had one at school earlier in the week.  Since neither Arica nor I witnessed this supposed hunt for plastic eggs we cannot prove it actually happened. Therefore this video will go down in the records as the first Easter Egg Hunt.

This footage was sorted out of many more minutes to give you the actual gathering of eggs footage. Before this Braden played basketball, tried to go back inside, and stopped to eat all his candy before finding his egg hunting groove. He really does have a mind of his own.

Video #2 is from the second Easter Egg Hunt that occurred on Easter day. There was more footage of Braden gathering eggs, but it was much like the previous video so I offer you this instead. The first note is about Braden's plastic sack. All the other kids used sacks rather than a basket so Braden insisted that he get a sack too. That is why he is lugging a basket full of eggs and an empty plastic bag. 

Second is a note about his egg toss skills. He was actually the second kid to reject the blue egg. After I quit filming he removed it from his basket every time we put it in there and threw it on the ground. He did not want that egg for some reason. I guess he doesn't like baby blue.

Now we have to close with the traditional shots of Braden in his Easter outfit. For the second straight year he wore a suit and tie. He is super handsome. My thinking is that funerals, weddings, and the resurrection of my Lord and Savior are perfect occasions to wear a tie. I think Braden agrees.

I hope you enjoyed our Easter recap. All this talk has made Braden thirsty so we have to go and fill up our canteens. See you next time.

Random Tuesday Thoughts: American Idol and Easter

I have seen these Random Tuesday Thoughts posts around the mom and dad blog community. I finally stumbled upon the origin at The Un-Mom. Since pretty much everything that emanates from my mind is random I thought I would join the fun this Tuesday.

• American Idol is about one step away from becoming their own television network. They already preempt and move around almost every show on Fox. I don't think they interrupt the Sunday schedule, but Simon has been a character on the Simpsons. Nothing is out of their reach. Before long Fox will air Idol every day and Paula Abdul will replace Bill O'Reilly. In case it isn't clear I hate American Idol.


• One more Idol thought. That show has spawned many competition type shows. Dancing seems to be one of the favorites. Why not have instrument playing competitions. The obvious ones are trumpet or maybe the saxophone judged by Kenny G. I personally would like to see "So You Think You Can Play the Oboe." Who wouldn't want to see band geeks lined around the block to show their talents to some angry oboe loving Brit. Someone get Simon on the phone. I want a producer credit.


• The Easter egg hunt we were invited to got cancelled due to heavy rains. I don't think it is too big a deal since Braden can't walk or crawl. The lack of a way to move around would limit his egg gathering abilities. Next year when he can walk we will have to enforce a strict no cancellation policy. We can get scuba gear and swim from puddle to puddle if we must. Eggs float anyway don't they?


• I already miss Mark and Olly: Living with the Machigenga. I think we should trump up some bogus charges and get them kicked out of their countries of residence. Maybe if they lost their home they would be more inclined to live in the jungle forever. After all my entertainment is more important than their normal civilized lives.


• I found another one of the great things about being a Dad. On a child's first Easter some people still give them candy. After all stuffing candy in plastic eggs is one of the biggest Easter traditions. When your child has no teeth you get the candy.

I Am Not a Pretty Boy

Once upon a time a long time ago Arica and I were dating. Of course this was before our marriage and long before we added Braden to our numbers. During courtship there are many conversations and questions posed that help you understand your prospective mate better. It may seem like a job interview in the early going. Each person is trying to determine if the other has the skills and characteristics necessary to meet their needs.

This post, however, is about something that Arica helped me learn about myself. I am not talking about any deep self revelations. Those of you who know me or follow this blog regularly know that I am not one to talk about those things. I am not here to do a Daily Affirmation although someone might need to step in for Stewart Smalley since he has embarked on a political career.

I am reminiscing about the first time Arica called me a pretty boy. I was offended. I thought that since my normal attire was T-shirt, shorts, flip flops, and a dirty hat that I couldn't be a pretty boy. After that discussion I started to notice my grooming habits a little more. There were quite a few starched and pressed button up dress shirts hanging in my closet. Those shirts were my go to items for nice attire. My hair had to be just right before I would leave the house. I spent a little more time choosing what I might wear on a particular night than a man probably should. The kicker was the fact that I actually liked wearing a suit and tie every once in a while. Finally I came to the realization that I had to be perfect when I went out. I was a pretty boy.

This topic crossed my mind as I was looking at our pictures from Easter Sunday. Braden will have plenty of time to determine his own personal style. He can determine how important little things like ironing, shaving, and hair style are on his own, but for now, as you can see, he is definitely a pretty boy in training.