Camping

Morgan has been talking about our camping trip for weeks.

We were planning on meeting our new friends at a campsite in the hills of the East Bay. They have a pull behind trailer, which I'll get into detail about later, and we would be in the tent. When I say "we" I mean Morgan and Justin because dealing with Eliza at room temperature and controlled conditions is bad enough.

We loaded up the car on Saturday and drove, just Morgan and I, to the campsite. On the way I heard her having little conversations with the Daddy in her head.
"Can I watch movies?"
"No sweetie there is no TV at camping."
"Please?"
"I said no"
"OK"
I hear that all from the back seat.
I also hear her telling me all about her new friend Faith who will be there and Faith's mommy and daddy, the friends I mentioned earlier.

The girls had an absolute blast together. Running around the campsite, going for little hikes and running about looking adorable were on their schedules and they did everything.
They even invented their own game called "beers."
"Let's play beers!" one of them would shout. As the fathers proudly looked on the girls collected bottle caps and slid them across the star covered table cloth on the picnic table.
"I win!" One of them would shout and Jason, Faith's daddy, and I would make game pieces.

After dinner both girls got to make and eat their first Smores treat. Morgan was more interested in the chocolate as opposed to her father who thought the whole thing was just awesome. I don't recall camping this young, but if I did, I hope my dad felt like I did.

They trailer was nice. It had all the amenities one would expect and a couple of slide out sleeping areas giving Morgan and I room if we chose to climb in away from the wind and the cold.

Morgan climbed hesitantly into the tent and got her PJs on, her eyelids heavy as I told her her 2 favorite stories "Morgan and the Dragon" and "The day Daddy met his Baby Morgan." Sleepy and slurred, she mutters, "Where will you sleep?" "Right next to you in the tent." She smiled herself asleep.
Back out in the wind I see Jason's Guinness sweatshirt right up near the fire, his cold body bundled inside.

We've known each other only a few short months, having met online and later in person thanks to Dylan Reinhold, who came the next day for lunch with his daughter.
Jason and I exchanged brief tales of husbandhood and fatherhood before deciding to get in and away from the wind. The little heater in his trailer kicked on as he entered and stayed on until well after I had climbed into the tent and next to the sleeping Morgan.

She coughed all night.

She never awoke, I would every so often whisper her name to see if she was awake or not, but only got a response early on when she wanted a drink of water, which was outside.
It was a night on an air mattress in a tent in the hills of Northern California.

As soon as you could reliably say it was more light than dark Morgan was awake and bolt upright in the tent, half out of the sleeping bag.
"Daddy it's morning, the sun is up."
"Only technically I said." And she did her signature crumpled nose face with her new favorite phrase.

"Whhhhat?" which sounds almost like "hot" but not in any funny way at, check the phone, 5:12 AM.

We talked for at least 30 minutes and listened to all the birds now sitting in the trees overhead. Morgan did her best turkey call and imitated a crow quite well before I decided it was time to get up and get the coffee going. It was cold. Not the coldest camping trip morning in memory, but huddle by the camping stove cold. Morgan in 2 jackets cold. But it didn't phase her one bit.
"Is Faith awake yet?" she asked every few minutes until Faith and her daddy did eventually emerge as did the sunshine to warm the camp.

The girls and their daddies went for a decent hike after breakfast looking for animal sign which Morgan reads about in a book Jerry gave her, Who Pooped in the North Woods? all about sign and scat.

When we returned the sweaters came off and the sun was shining.

Dylan Nikki and Chloe arrived and were soon followed by Kim and Eliza who all gathered for lunch at the campsite. We enjoyed burgers, dogs, chicken and steak, all from the neat grill that attaches right to the side of the trailer. The tent has no such feature.

It was quite the enjoyable event for all, especially the Park Rangers who insisted that, even though sites 8,9,10,11 and 12 were empty, we had to move cars around. That whole story just gets my riled up so I'm skipping it.

In the end Kim drove the prius home and I had the girls in the CRV. As we were driving down the windy road out of the park I asked Morgan what her favorite park of camping was.

"Sleeping in the tent next to Daddy!" and not more than 2 minutes later, the car ride had her fast asleep and I smiled most of the hour long drive home.

Clearly, they have other priorities

Welcome Emma Marie

Disneyland

Of course our friend Murphy had to come along and bring his stupid law. Kim Morgan and Linda braved the spring break crowds for Morgan's first trip to Disneyland. Even this day after they're discussing the Princess making factories now in place that take your innocent little girl and transform them into little Disney princesses, at quite the cost.

Morgan's favorite part of Disneyland was "the rides," not including the rocket ships, but liked the Dumbo ride the best, riding it twice.

She covered her eyes on parts of the train ride and sang It's a small world after getting off the ride.

Storybook land seems to have been a hit, even with the scary whale the boat goes into.

The highlight of the visit was to her favorite character, Tinker Bell. Morgan likes the Tink movie, enjoys Peter Pan and was excited to meet Tink and her friends. After the 45 minute wait she was visibly startled and taken aback when her fantasy friend arrived in the flesh. Morgan told Kim "That's not the real Tinker Bell, Mommy, that's the normal one," clearly understanding that Tinker Bell is a tiny fairy and not a the size of a person.

With the dead camera Kim found out about the PhotoPass, where photographers snap pics, then you can see them online later and purchase for $15 a piece.
Thanks to Dylan (not his real name) we were able to high tech a solution to the problem and grab some pics. Like every kid, she hid.



When they returned home Morgan came through the door first, Minnie Mouse hat on, "My 1st Visit" pin proudly displayed and the biggest smile I have ever seen on her face. Had I tried for a picture, I would have missed it myself.

Mommy, I can't talk, fix me.

Speaking Toddler, as any parent knows, can be tricky.

On our 7 hour drive down to meet Angela's newest daughter, yet to arrive, we had a small variety of things to keep Morgan occupied. Some books, some headphones and a DVD player borrowed from friends in case we just needed her to be quiet for awhile.

After our lunch stop the decision was made to set up the DVD and put in a movie for Morgan, Tinkerbell. She loved it and was quiet for almost the entire movie, headphones on so we didn't have to listen to it or her cry about not being able to hear it. About 40 minutes in she asked it to be turned off and Kim contorted around to get it undone, paused and stowed. No sooner than Kim got it figured out, Morgan wanted it back.

As she watched she would make comments like, "Oh no!" or giggle, clearly enjoying the movie.

Then she started asking Kim to "fix me, I can't talk."

OK, some strange game where she can't talk because Eliza was sleeping next to her?

"Maybe Papa can fix you when we get there, OK?" We exchanged confused looks as she held the DVD in her lap and the headphones around her neck.

That should have been the giveaway.

As the movie ended and Morgan handed it back to Kim, she unplugged the headphones and we could finally hear the movie...


...in French.

Somehow in the transfer the language settings were changed. The only way Morgan could think to tell us the people in the movie weren't talking right was to tell us to fix her talking.
Certainly a memory I'll have for a long time.

Tea Parties?

The internet and TV are buzzing about these "Tea Parties" where disgruntled people can gather and voice their disagreement with the way things are shaping up.

It's right there in the Constitution that persons may "Peacibly assemble to petition their government for a redress of grievances." Seems simple enough, but so many folks are misinterpreting these gatherings to be akin to the Boston Tea Party Terrorist Attack. Quick - Name a founding father who was part of the Boston Tea Party raid. Can't think of one?

"No taxation without representation" was the battle cry of the Tea Party folks, they were being taxed without the ability to have a say in the taxes, ie representation in Parliament. In actuality they were likely American tea traders looking to corner the market. It may have been industrial sabotage.

Current day Tea Party folks are protesting for nothing. They have representation, just not the folks they wanted, Boo hoo. For 8 long years the rest of us were told we were traitors if we even thought about questioning the office of the President of the United States, but since it's our guy, all of a sudden it is OK to openly wish for the President to fail.

You support the Office, but not the policies, right? You're protesting the move to "socialize" the government? Well then I support you 100%.

If you attend a tea party against the socialization of America you will need to alter your lifestyle just a smidge in order to be taken seriously.
1. I'll need your cellphones. The "3G" network you're using to plan your tea party is subsidized by the government. In other words, your tax dollars were used to help companies build those networks, so no phones.
2. You'll need to walk. Your car may have been assembled in America but if it is a Ford, it was made in Mexico. Your Toyota was made here, but you'll likely drive on a road maintained by the socialist, state run highway department, so no driving, especially on the interstates.
3. You will need to remain in the cordoned areas. Remember when all those folks would peacibly gather to petition President Bush? They were marshaled to "Free Speech Zones" surrounded by barbed wire and watched by armed guard. I expect no less for Tea Party revelers.
4. You will be required to show proof that your gardener is an American. You mow your own lawn, wonderful. Good for you. Next you will need to prove the girl who cleans your house is an American. The guy at the car wash, too. What about those guys you hired to do all the home improvements a few years back. Sure the guy taking the check looked like you, but what about all the guys that did the work cheap?
5. You can not call 911 during your event. The socialized fire and police departments will not be available to your "new world."
6. You can not eat anything that has American corn in it, on it, or was fed it. the government subsidizes farmers by buying corn and destroying it to keep the prices in check. Your tax dollars pay farmers to grow corn so it can be destroyed. Socialist spreading of our wealth to the farmers.

In summary no one has really thought this idea through to the end. On April 16th, when your taxes are late and the socialized school system has to lay off your kid's teacher, and the paramedics at your nearby fire station, then can't fix the potholes, don't cry about it, that's what you wanted.

"Socialized" is not a bad thing. It may be the only solution to the 8 years of destructive policies that got us in this mess.

So I welcome persons standing up for their beliefs, it is our right as Americans and, in fact, our duty to speak up. But where were you in March of 2003 when we needed you?

Catching up

Morgan just loves her "park" in the back yard. What I never planned for was the constant "Daddy push me!" No matter how many times I try to show her how to do it on her own, I always have to strike a deal. "You work, then push. work-push, work-push, Daddy."
The work she refers to is Kim's growing garden in the back yard. Strategically located away from the swingset we now have tomatoes, berries and the squash are awaiting the perfect spot over in the corner. She's always wanted to do a garden and finally got me motivated enough here in the new Carriage House to make the space and get the raised beds made so she can plant. The tomatoes looked for a few days as though they were considering throwing in the towel, but after this past few days of rain already have new growth at the top.

Our trees are doing well, the pear survived the frost, and there are at least 15 peaches on the way. Needless to say we're excited to see how they do. Last year Morgan pulled them all off just as they surfaced.

I finally got the time off I needed to travel south next week to see Meadow #2 when she arrives. I had it all arranged until they changed my schedule at work. It was the equivalent of telling someone on a 9-5 schedule, "You work 12P-8AM tuesdays and 3P-11P the other days. Oh and your new weekends are Wed and Thur." Annoying to say the least. Luckily I found a fellow who was in the same spot and was willing to cover a few days. Thank you Eric.

Eliza is a crawling fool as you can see from the video and she is getting faster and faster everyday. This morning she went from visible to gone in the time it took to pour a cup of coffee. I still sometimes forget she can sit up alone, let alone crawl at 20 MPH towards the wine rack.

I think I've mentioned in these pages that we only use "No" when Morgan is asking for something. If she is doing something dangerous we shout "DANGER!." She freaks and stops dead in her tracks. It has worked to this point and beyond. The other night on the computer with the girls playing behind me I hear Morgan say, "Daddy! Eliza danger!" And I turned to see Eliza has moved to the other side of the room and is examining where the lamp plugs in. It is a switched plug, but still. Morgan didn't try to stop her, just shouted and pointed. That's my girl.

We are all looking forward to a change of pace heading south for a few days, mainly to have a couple extra sets of eyes on the midgets.

We also finally broke down and joined the cult social site Facebook. It is a neat way to stay in touch with friends in real time, mostly silly, but fun and a great way to get distracted when watching the children.

We'll put up news of Meadow #2 as it happens.

That is the word from Carriage House.

Less words, more pictures

Eliza on the move

What a Busy month April is

OK, OK. Before Angela and Amy start rolling their eyes at me (Angela is due next week and Amy May 1st at the latest) understand our month will be busy for us.

After Easter we're scheduled to pack up the old family truckster and head south to meet the newest Kraber. It will be nice to clean out the garage of all the crap baby gear. And Morgan's room. And Eliza's room. And our room. Darn it if that stuff isn't all over the house.

Ang, the swing, clothes, and a lot of bottle stuff is on the way.

AJ and Amy, along with wee Dylan, are expecting baby sister Maya any time now. After some speed bumps along the way, she's got an eviction notice for May 1st. Amy opened her practice not long ago and AJ is still with AFD. They can tell you more on their blog.

In home front news, Eliza is a crawling fool. She was very close for a week and one afternoon just went or it and now is a pro. We haven't set up the gates yet so she is currently crawling away from me down the hall. Now she sees a toy near the TV cabinet and is over playing with it instead of exploring the hallway.
Her top teeth are just beneath the surface and every night she lets us know how it feels. Morgan used to just need a frozen pacifier, but Eliza pushes them away.

On a different note, has anyone noticed the increase in mass killings by firearm lately? I just finished typing a long rant about that and the skewing of the Bill of Rights, but it was far too long for this platform. So away it goes.

See you Southern folks in a few days!

Oh, the things they say

Eliza is still making sounds, speaking in her own language, but Morgan has mastered the fine art of mimicry.

Morgan likes to play on her play phone. She has conversations. Conversations like:
"Hello? Oh hi!" Which Kim says all the time.
"Hello Meadow, I'm coming to Disneyland in a couple of weeks." To Morgan "A couple of weeks" is anything past tomorrow.

This morning was great.
"Hello? Oh hi! Hang on. Daddy and Eliza you have to be quiet when I'm on the phone, go and play." Eliza and I were just sitting on the floor at the time, not making any noise. Morgan's inflection sounded very authoritative and exactly like Kim. I had to laugh out loud.

But the best sign of a child growing is the changing of a statement so that when it is repeated it makes sense. Let me explain.
The other night, while out to dinner, Kim did something that made me laugh and tell Morgan, jokingly, "Tell your Mother she has no imagination."

Without a pause Morgan turned to Kim and said, "You have no imagination" and went right back to her dinner.
We laughed and laughed.

Morgan is now back on the phone asking Grand to come and get Eliza when Christmas comes.

"OK, bye bye."