Dave's Daddy Day '09

For my first ever Father's Day, I wasn't sure that I was even going to get the day off, until about 2 nights before. But morning of, Taryn woke up early and went downstairs to start coffee and breakfast with the Biddles. When I finally rolled out of bed, there were already presents and cards waiting for me on the coffee table. I got a card from Eli, which was very cute and very funny. And Taryn of course got me a music card (she loves those) that was also very cute and very funny. It was a really great surprise. I downed the coffee and the breakfast (which was delicious), then dove into the presents like I was 2 years old. Eli (*Taryn) got me a picture of himself with a frame that reads "Daddy's Little Dude." I even got a number of different pictures to swap in & out. Taryn got me an ipod nano. Wicked sick! I ran upstairs almost immediately and put everything from our itunes library onto it - then spent the next 15 minutes trying to trim it down so that things would fit. It was very cool. I take the ipod to work with me every Monday to listen to music as I do my admin.

It's rare that I get to see Eli 1st thing in the morning after he's had a full night's sleep (I'm usually already at work). That's when he's the most talkative and smiley. So for my Daddy's Day I spent the rest of the morning basking in the glory of my Biddles. Notice the shirt he's wearing that says "Daddy's Little Monkey" (his Grambot got that for him). Also notice the frame in the background. Thanks Lil' Man (*Taryn).

I've been lucky enough lately to have developed the ability to really get the Biddles talking. He's a pretty quiet baby for the most part, but when I get in his face and he gets going, he's all "Ah-Goo" and "Whoo-waa." And he makes this gurgling sound in the back of his throat that's kinda funny. I start making basic noises and movements with my tongue, and he does his best to mimmick me, each of us in turn - no joke (or exaggeration Niser!). What I love is how he stares me straight in the face, looking deep into my eyes, so that it seems as if he's really trying to talk to me - that he's trying really hard to communicate something important.

Here's a quick rundown of him trying to say something ...

After finishing breakfast and presents, we got cleaned up and hit the road to check out the park up the street from our house. And the park is freakin' incredible! It has 3 separate play areas, all of which have this special foam instead of bark or sand. It's bouncy and soft. Pretty nifty. They have Bocci Ball courts, a BBQ area, a pond and waterfall, and plenty of grass and trees. But the best parts were the great play areas. They had these crazy twisty/twirly things that make you sick, slides and swings and what not. I'll post the video to show you, but suffice it to say that it was pretty fun.

We sat under a tree and had a picnic with sandwiches, macaroni salad and orange soda. Biddles was asleep when we got there, but woke up halfway through lunch. He was pretty taken with all of the trees and leaves, and really seemed to enjoy the feel of the wind. Here he is lounging in the shade and having fun watching the shadows as the sun played through the leaves above us.

After we finished lunch we hit the playground. Taryn and I did, that is. We have some great videos. 'Nuff said. But when we had our fill we brought the Biddles out to see how he would like it. He was pretty tired, and didn't have much of a reaction. But Taryn and I both took the opportunity to ride the slide with him.

Notice the hat. No Cory, not mine (or yours, I guess, technically). The Biddles still has a pretty small head, and his hat just wouldn't stay on right. But we tried. Adding insult to injury it was pretty sunny out, and we were worried about the exposure. Nevertheless, he didn't really dig on it.

Truly, it was a great 1st Father's Day. Thanks Babe & Biddles!