S3DK

Let the HoliDAZE begin...

2011-12-12T16:27:00.005-06:00

Field Trip!

2011-11-06T21:14:00.001-06:00

the dads took the s & s to the field museum today...

times like these... soak it in.

X-treme Snowmobiling

2011-11-06T07:32:00.004-06:00

Red bull sponosred the "fuel and fury snowmobile competition" at wrigley field...

so we decided to check it out. took a bus over to wrigley and enjoyed the following:

Where's Waldo?

2011-11-05T07:22:00.001-05:00

Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T07:24:00.001-05:00

this year, halloween fell on a monday. our weekend activities went like this:

-saturday to wicker park kid festival where we met alexandra and the kids played. stella dressed as an angel. dylan refused to dress up as either the duck, the skunk or dash.

-sunday we went to the roscoe village trick or treating thing. then to frasca for pumpkin painting and dinner. stella, again, an angel. dylan, again, refused.

-monday night, we joined sahana and jay trick or treating their hood. then to the connor's for beers and to be the trick or treat-ee's. stella, once again, an angel. dylan, finally, dash.

of course, upon coming home, dylan threw an absolute tantrum when he had to take the dash costume off. so that was fun.

Mommy with the mostest

2011-10-30T21:17:00.004-05:00

if not for susan, this year's halloween's festive look and festivities, doesn't happen.

here is our festive home (great job hunnie):

and i am so proud to unveil the greatest jack o lantern ever created:

Isabella Mae Mae Kemper

2011-10-16T21:10:00.000-05:00

Stella has been asking for a dog.

we got her a fish.

hey... this pet thing has got to start somewhere... we were kinda under the impression that her first pet is dig dug.

stella doesn't agree.

maybe a dog next year? (as long as she doesn't kill isabella : )

ps: the name was all stella.

10.10.11

2011-10-15T08:05:00.009-05:00

there is something about early october in chicago: we go through one of the most beautiful periods of weather.

this year, we had 10 straight days of "not a cloud in the sky, 75 degree temps". it must be what living in san diego feels like. becuase there is no to very little humidity. and it gets down to low 60s at night. absolutely delightful. very comfortable.

not too hot. not chilly. perfect.

this is now 2 years and counting. last year, we went to montrose avenue beach:

this year we we went to the indiana dunes and spent the day:

Fall in Chicago

2011-10-12T21:11:00.004-05:00

October 2010:

October 2011:

Bike Rider

2011-10-08T16:40:00.004-05:00

today, stella rides a bike sans training wheels!

on her first try, at horner park, we used the hill to get her going (with the added bonus of it being grass versus concrete, in case of a fall).

she did great. very fearless. she did it a few times, getting better with each subsequent ride.

afterward, we went for a saturday night dinner at 'the portage' (west on irving park at central), sat on the back patio (unseasonably warm the last 10 days... around 70 degrees at 6pm).

we ate well. very happy.

Wrigley Field

2011-05-07T22:30:00.006-05:00

during a ladies weekend in nashville (nana, susan, kristy, jo, jenna), bampi and i took stella and dylan to their first cub game.

stella had been to a baseball game (yankees... she was 2 years 4 months). so this is her second ball game, but dylan's first.

unfortunately the weather wasn't great, but it was fun regardless.

Dylan's Birthday

2011-04-07T09:30:00.000-05:00

It's all kinda a blur. I look at pictures of both kids 2 years ago and cannot process how much they've grown. From a 9lb 3oz turkey, Dig Dug blossomed into this fun, happy, truck-loving little dude. All day, he pretty much got what he wanted; an oreo before breakfast, gum, videos, etc. (you get the idea).

We had a family celebration by going to our neighborhood haunt, Frasca, for breakfast, then home to cupcakes and a gynormous digger. We'll pick it up where we left off on Saturday with Nana, Bampi and bowling. Needless to say, he's enjoying the ride. We are too. And so grateful for our little boy.

Transformation of Scott & Stella

2011-03-21T13:08:00.002-05:00

***2010 update***

picture #4. taken october 2, 2010 at duck key

***2009 Update***

Pic #3 taken 2/22/2009

Pic #1 taken 3/24/2007************************************** Pic #2 taken 2/03/2008

textbook parenting

2011-03-05T22:16:00.004-06:00

come on kids... be the best around... BY KICKING other vitrtual human being's asses with a SWORD.

booyeah. textbook parenting.

We all float on

2011-02-22T21:49:00.000-06:00

winters are always tough, particularly in the dead middle of february.

so, people do whatever they can to stay sane during the cabin fever months.

we usually dance.

the following is one of many "dance parties" at the kemper home.

"Why are you busting me?"

2011-02-06T20:53:00.003-06:00

-stella's response to mommy's "we're going to bed in 3 minutes" on super bowl sunday.

where does she get this stuff?

hilarious.

Snow Day

2011-02-02T21:13:00.004-06:00

"in the blizzard of 2011, the cars were just lumps under snow... "

Christmas Chaos

2010-12-28T22:41:00.008-06:00

this christmas, we spent 8 days on the east coast:

-in nanuet, with the hur's
-in fort lee, with the lee's
-in randolph, with the pasquales
-in ridgefield, with the kaniuga's
-in mapelwood, with the hussey's
-in brooklyn, with the davis's
-in palisades park, with the kim's
-in jersey city, with the lee-marx's

then came back to chicago, and spent new year's with nana and bampi (where we opened a second set of presents)... and come to find out, santa visited our home in chicago while we were gone. we double-dipped on the "santa generosity". we love him. but we always remember the real reason for christmas, as stella would say, is to "wish baby jesus a happy birthday".

Halloween!

2010-10-31T22:25:00.003-05:00

just your local neighborhood superheroes...

Family Vacation

2010-10-05T22:06:00.000-05:00

a few photos from our vacation in the florida keys in early october. we had a great time. great, family friendly resort that we definitely plan to get back to one day..

a few photos from our vacation in the florida keys in early october. we had a great time. great, family friendly resort that we definitely plan to get back to one day...

First Day of School!

2010-09-08T22:22:00.000-05:00

Stella was very excited about her second year of school at Cardinal Bernadin. Dylan, as always, was a little confused : )

Summer 2010 Magic

2010-08-20T21:50:00.000-05:00

a brief montage of our summer 2010: )

SPARKLERS!

2010-07-11T11:56:00.002-05:00

Stellar's first encounter with illegal pyro-technics... and seeing the light show LIVE!

Bampi, Daddy and Stella went to montrose beach to watch the 15 minute show essentially from ground zero. Bampi and I don't think we scarred her for life...

Movers and Shakers

2010-06-15T20:43:00.001-05:00

Summer of 2010 was nuts. it started off with a BANG!

moving... again.

after returning from Sydney (see previous video), we closed on our new place in chicago (our new address for those that don't have it below), moved 5 days later, celebrated stella's 4th birthday at fantasy kingdom, then i went to nyc for a week for work.

needless to say, susan is supermom/wife/real-estate tycoon/packer/unpacker/chef/nanny/maid... etc. etc. you get the idea. she did it all while i was away in sydney (there for work from may 3 to may 13). she met with contractor, made final decisions on all interior items (paint, flooring, kitchen cabinets, backsplash, etc), provided final bank documentation, dealt with each and every phone call and decision, all while i was 13 hours ahead and the kids needed to be fed and bed.

upon my return on may 13, we closed the following day on may 14. we packed our old home on may 15 and 16. the movers arrived on may 19. we celebrated stella's birthday on saturday the 22nd and i left for new york on sunday the 23rd. i returned on monday, may 31.

NUTS. but worth it :) so this video (edited entirely on flights) is in honor of our new home:

s3dk
3340 N. Damen Avenue #1S
Chicago, IL 60618

Kemper... Australian for Insane

2010-05-20T11:52:00.004-05:00

this post sadly has no mention of any kemper other than scotty du. i put this edit together on the 22 hour flight back to the states...

australia was fun and very busy, but did have a day or two to see a thing or two. really wish i could have taken my family with me. but the fact that we were concurrently buying a new home and moving prevented us from both being on the other side of the planet while final preparations happened.

susan, thank you for kicking ass while i was screwing off in sydney : )

end of an era... again.

2010-04-30T22:36:00.005-05:00

we enjoyed our 18 months on ashland... but we are moving again. below is a synopsis of our life there... we moved in december 2008, Dylan arrived 4 months later. it has been his one and only home... 2 going on 3 for Stella. there are definitely things we will miss about this home: courtyard, 2 car attached garage being the 2 biggest. the video starts in hoboken... and ends on ashland (just prior to move).

Dylan's Dohl

2010-04-07T01:27:00.002-05:00

First birthdays are huge everywhere but especially in the Korean tradition. However big or small the party, there are three basic traditional elements, which are: 1) wearing the traditional garb of the motherland, 2) having a special cake made that is made of sweet rice cake, and 3) a game is played where several things are placed in front of the baby and the item he chooses determines what he will be in the future. We laid out a bowl or rice (means wealth), string (long life) and a pencil (academia). Stay tuned for what he picks.

Happy Birthday Dylan. We can't believe a whole year has gone by. There are so many things I want to say about this amazing little boy and how much he's grown over the past 365 days but I'll have to leave that for another time. Every day, he gives me a reason...to laugh, to love, to hope, to live.

We celebrated his birthday in two parts. We spent the weekend (also Easter) with Nana, Bampi, Jo and John in Lafayette. We also had a core family party for him on the day of at home where we did the Korean traditions. He was confused but I think overall, he had fun. He always has fun.

Finally Park Weather!!!

2010-03-11T21:22:00.008-06:00

It's been between 45-55 degrees for the last couple of days. We've been to the park 4 times. Would've been more had it not been for the rain. Cabin fevered much?

Oh and Dylan continues to become more and more brave with the walking business. He let's go and stands by himself for seconds at a time. His max is probably about 5-7 secs. And as mentioned in previous blogs, he likes pushing things. One of his favs, his red buggy.

Dinnertime Laughs

2010-03-11T21:09:00.002-06:00

Rearranging

2010-03-08T12:18:00.003-06:00

Enter the furniture rearranging phase. Dylan uses everything as a walking aid; chairs, tables, stools. If it moves, it's his for the taking. Stella gets annoyed every morning as she tries to eat her breakfast. As soon as we put a bowl of cereal in front of her, Dylan makes his way to her and pushes her table away. It's pretty funny watching him walk off with her table as she's left sitting in her chair, spoon mid-air. We don't have footage on that but here's an example of what he does.

LOL

2010-03-05T22:06:00.002-06:00

No matter the abuse, as with all younger sibs, Dylan looks up to his big sister with love, admiration, and humor. She tickles his funny bone like no other. Stella plus air purifier provides a source of entertainment like no other. Don't ask my why an air purifier is so entertaining. For some reason, the air settings just cracks them up. It was almost 2 years ago in Hoboken when Oscar and Stella thought the same for this wonderous contraption. Ignoring all the toys in the apartment, they bee-lined straight for the air purifier laughing hysterically as they changed the settings. Weird dudes.

The Red Buggy

2010-03-01T11:18:00.001-06:00

It was a temperate 30 degrees in Chicago bringing in the first day of March. With it being so nice, we decided to break out of our hibernation and treat ourselves to some outside activity. Our objective, to check the mail. Our means of transportation...scooter for Stella, infamous Step2 buggy for Dylan. He LOVED it. She loved pushing him (especially hard into the snow). Thank god for straps.

Fell in Love with the Drummer

2010-02-26T12:20:00.003-06:00

Heavy Metal Drummer

I sincerely miss those heavy metal bands
I used to go see on the landing in the summer
She fell in love with the drummer
She fell in love with the drummer
She fell in love

Shiny, shiny pants and bleach-blond hair
A double kick drum by the river in the summer
She fell in love with the drummer
Another and another
She fell in love

I miss the innocence I've known
Playing KISS covers, beautiful and stoned

Unlock my body and move myself to dance
Moving warm liquid, flowing blowing glass
Classical music blasting masks the ringing in my ears

I sincerely miss those heavy metal bands
I used to go see on the landing in the summer
She fell in love with the drummer
She fell in love with another
She fell in love

I miss the innocence I've known
Playing KISS covers, beautiful and stoned
Playing KISS covers, beautiful and stoned
Playing KISS covers, beautiful and stoned
Playing Kiss covers beautiful and stoned

- Wilco, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Dylan Update: Bumper Walker

2010-02-26T11:43:00.001-06:00

At close to 11 months, Dylan's been mobile for awhile. He excels in crawling on all fours and army crawling. He's also become quite proficient at using furniture (chairs, side tables, Stella's stuff) to walk. He'll literally pushes it across the room until he bumps into something, and then moves on to the next item to push across the floor.

He's been using the walker in the video downstairs in our playroom where it's carpeted. Today, I looked up, saw the mess of our great room, and decided he was ready to graduate to hardwood floors. He did great.

He's able to stand by himself for a few seconds at a time. He's one handed when cruising from one thing to the next. I'm in trouble. Once this kamikaze, fearless boy starts walking, I fear I will be constantly diving to put my own body between my son and the ground.

Stella Sings in Korean

2010-02-26T11:28:00.000-06:00

well sort of...although I can get by with my Korean skillz, I am by no means perfectly versed. I think in English, therefore I speak English with my kids. I may pepper in a few words here and there but unfortunately, that and their limited dialog with my parents (on the phone or visits) are the full extent of their Korean language exposure.

Anyway, Stella's halmoney (grandma) and halahbugee (grandpa) have been trying to teach her some Korean songs. Stella, true to 3 going on 4, have been blatantly ignoring them. Seemingly though, she's been picking up on the sly as proven in the video. One day, the stars aligned, Stella was in a good mood, and knowing the camera was on her, began to sing.

It's not really correct but it's close. Considering that she's been pretending to ignore my parents, I think this is major progress.

She sings the beginning of two songs. First is called "nabeeya" (aka butterfly), and second is "san tokey" (aka rabbit).

And yes, that is a pen she's using to draw on her face. It did come off.

February Fun

2010-02-15T08:16:00.002-06:00

clearly, we've not been very good at updating this site... and dylan gets little to no love... so here's another small update on stella.

at the pool on valentines day weekend with daddy:

Stellarina

2010-01-05T21:21:00.001-06:00

The month of January is difficult everywhere. The month of January in Chicago is downright impossible. Add Dig Dug to the mix, and we don't go out much. Concerned that Stella kept choosing and viewed WholeFoods and/or Trader Joe's as her outing of the day, we promptly enrolled our very active little girl in her very first ballet class. When asked, she didn't hesitate. I mean a class where you dress in pink and act like a princess? No brainer. Watching Barbie's Swan Lake a gazillion times certainly didn't hurt.

Since day one, she never looked back. She looks forward to her class. She naps in her ballet gear. To us, we're still shocked at how much pink of everything she has. She has come such a long way from the days of matchbox cars and jeans. sigh* She is happy and that's all that matters.

Trip Hop

2009-12-07T09:40:00.004-06:00

Stella picked up a few decorations while we were out Christmas shopping. We decided to put on some holiday music whilst adorning the tree with the new purchases to get in the spirit. Who knew that she would be so 'moved' by the music.

So many thoughts ran through my head while I watched my girl get down. For example:

a) why do I see Scotty-du in weddings past?

b) Pre-ballet, here she comes!

c) how does a 3 1/2 year old get that hip hop arm thing going on?

d) is she drunk?

Very America's home video.

Watch out dance floor, here she comes!

Yo Gabba Gabba!

2009-12-07T07:22:00.002-06:00

we purchased tickets to the traveling gabba show on December 7, but then daddy was in LA shooting. he was there for an entire month. it was tough on all 3 of them, but thankfully cecil played surrogate daddy for the gabba show making it possible for them to go.

i was really bummed to have to miss stella's first live performance. but i'm thankful suzie q shot and edited this video.

i get frustrated that i travel so much but we kinda knew this was the drill with this career path. I think that susan does an amazing job keeping it all together while i'm gone (and while i'm not for that matter). if not for her, our life would literally fall apart. seriously. i'm not joking.

Santa

2009-12-06T21:26:00.002-06:00

Heard about Roscoe Village's annual winterfest. We were looking for anything to break the monotony of home and I was desperate to tire the kids out in some way, shape or form to get them sleeping at a reasonable hour! Wasn't quite the winterfest we were expecting but Stella got a chance to meet Santa and tell him about all that she wanted this Christmas. She was not shy and I think she started her verbal list before he was even in earshot. Afterwards, she convinced me to take them to a local favorite restaurant and they could not have been better. Overall a good afternoon/evening spent with the kids sans daddy (although very missed).

Stellapalooza!!

2009-08-11T20:17:00.005-05:00

at 3 years old, Stella has made it to her first music festival. the annual music festival here in chicago, lollapalooza. it is a 3-day festival, dad went with friends on saturday and saw santigold, tv on the radio, part of animal collective and tool.

on sunday, like father, like daugther. it was about 98 degrees and about 90% humidity (the only truly HOT day this summer) and we rode our bike down lakeshore, stopped off for a dip in lake michigan, then to lynch's boat to de-sand, shower up and change clothes and then saw vampire weekend (one of stella's favorite bands) and passion pit.

we capped it all off with 3 giant slices of pizza, 2 juice boxes and 5 waters.

the journey went something like this:

More Perspective

2009-08-11T14:39:00.008-05:00

Hard to believe it's been 3 + years with Stella in our life... just as we seemed to get the hang of this 'parent' thing... we hit the "reset" button.

wow, the rate of which time passes seemingly increases exponentially with the passage of time itself. or said differently, as we get older, time moves quicker. and sometimes, it's difficult to find time to breathe it all in.

but this 'historical' puts things in perspective... again.

welcome to the chaos, dylan : )

this is called 'more perspective' as it is a sequel to 'Putting Things in Perspective'.

Two Peas in a Pod

2009-07-30T21:30:00.002-05:00

No need for commentary here...

Dylan's First True Laugh

2009-07-29T20:37:00.001-05:00

Who knows why a kid laughs for the first time ever? Or what exactly s/he finds funny. Or maybe he's just mimicking to be part of it. We were having dinner and I think I choked on some water and that apparently began a family spaz attack. Although Dylan has giggled before, we count this as his official first true laugh.

Some notes: Scott has nicknamed Dylan "Dig Dug", a game from the 80s. Stella's background "Nutter Butter" came from my recent addiction to the throwback cookie of choice. Anyways, I almost didn't post due to how horrible I look but this is too cute not to.

Dylan Plays

2009-07-29T19:12:00.001-05:00

Those people over at Tiny Love sure knew what they were doing when they invented the activity mats.

In the recent weeks, Dylan has developed some stamina to withstand the crazy colors and sounds of his toys. He has begun to give me 5 minute breaks where he is not in my arms by playing on his mat. If Stella cooperates, I may get 10 minutes...

True to parenthood, here's our son doing the simplest things that are just so fun to watch and awesome.

Guitar Duo

2009-07-10T21:07:00.002-05:00

Scott found out a couple of weeks ago that the sound of the guitar soothes a fussy Dylan. There have been truly endearing moments where Scott will start playing for a seemingly inconsolable Dylan, and once he'd start strumming the guitar, find a riveted fan.

Stella being Scott's sidekick joins in from time to time. Here's a snapshot of a 6am concert. My little rockstar family :)

Ode to Dylan

2009-06-28T21:32:00.001-05:00

Although with us for the whole outing, Dylan spent the better part of the day strapped to my chest and sleeping - thereby explaining the lack of shots of him in the previous entry. So, I decided to pay homage to my dear son by posting a couple of 'beach' shots of Dylan. Sure it's from the pack-n-play but look how cute he is!

Kite Flying 101

2009-06-28T20:04:00.000-05:00

Scott used to fly his kite for Stella down at Pier A in Hoboken, whenever he can find the time. Stella seemed to enjoy it - as much as she could for a 1-2 year old. This year, she not only understood it and looked forward to it, but also got to fly it too. Very exciting.

Pause in the activities for some Stella shots.

One of the major perks to living in Chicago is that you have a big ass lake that is strikingly similar to the ocean. The beauty, no waves and 15 minutes from home.

Stella Meets Elmo

2009-06-28T19:40:00.000-05:00

Lazy weekend jaunt to downtown lakeside beach/field museum/planetarium area led to an unexpected, awesome surprise for Stella as she got to meet THE man in red fur (although I believe it was a woman underneath). Had a great day just walking outside, flying a kite, playing in the sand.

Bandee & her Halabugee

2009-06-17T10:31:00.005-05:00

My dad came out to visit to see what this Chicago city was all about and to see how it was treating us so far. How fitting, he was here 6/17-6/21 and able to spend Father's Day with us. We were also lucky to spend it with Tina & Jeff. Out of the places we took him to, his favorite by far was Grant Park for its historical venue (of Obama's victory speech for those of you who've lived under a rock), and by the natural environment (including the big-assed lake) juxtaposed against the Chicago downtown backdrop.

Stella 'Bandee' had a great time hanging with her 'halabugee' (grandpa in Korean). Dylan continues to cry to be picked up completely spoiled by my dad's inability to hear him cry (thereby picking him up at a mere burp). Funny...following my dad's visit, Dylan seemingly gets calmer when I speak to him in Korean. Stella sits next to me (when not busy trying to abuse her brother) and tries to imitate my Korean.

It was great having him. Here are some representative pix and videos of his stay here.

Thank You (Perfect Timing)

2009-06-16T14:46:00.003-05:00

Holy cow, since Stella has gone pee pee in the potty, it has been a pretty challenging task to get her to do the illustrious #2. The last two days have been kinda rough with her holding in and telling me she has to go poo poo every 10 minutes or so. We would rush to the potty and sit there anywhere from 5-20 minutes. During which, she'd want a blanket, to be held, etc. I was at my wits end exhausted from having to console both the kids. Stella for her fears of letting go and Dylan who probably has started to develop separation anxiety as he'd be put down at a moments notice whether he was being fed, changed, burped.

FINALLY, after a bribe of jelly beans, Stella asked for privacy and went (after 2 hours of going on and off the potty, having lunch on the potty, and a couple of peeing accidents). We were so relieved and ecstatic. We celebrated with two helpings of jelly beans and a proud gushing call to her dad. A few minutes later, a package arrives. The timing couldn't have been more perfect. Stella's aunt and grandparents, proud of her recent accomplishments, sent her two dresses (Stella LOVES wearing dresses now). Stella believes that her aunt and grandparents somehow knew of her most recent accomplishment and called JCrew for a 5 minute delivery to her :). It's all good. She loves her dresses.

THANK YOU!!!

Kicking Ass and Taking Names

2009-06-13T22:08:00.006-05:00

This week, both Stella and Dylan has moved mountains with reaching milestones.

First, Dylan:
-he slept through the night (8pm to 5am) for the first time on Saturday, June 6. this is not to say he does it every night (far from it), but it's happening. average i would say he's down by 8pm, up at 230am and again at 6am, but it's much better than 3 or 4 times a night (not that i would know, he's not fond of hairy, milkless nipples) but this is great news for susan : ) she's a great mother. again.
-cooing, smiling, engaging. definitely does not like to be alone. if you look at him and talk to him, he smiles at you and starts 'talking'. he likes being amongst people. potential socialite :)
-rolls over more consistently (belly to back). he actually rolled over a few weeks back but that depended on how hard he cried (the harder he cried, the more successful he was). now, he rolls over without a whimper :)

as for Stella's laundry list of accomplishments:
-Thursday, June 4 she got on a 'big girl bike' and started pedaling. after spending a little over a year with her trike and finally succeeding in teaching her how to pedal, without hesitation, she got on a bike and has been riding like she's been doing this for a while.
-Monday, June 8 she was accepted to her first school, cardinal bernadine, into the montessori program. minimally, she will be going 2 days a week starting in late August. We are very excited.
-Tuesday, June 9, she urinated in the toilet for the first time. I have been bribing her with gumdrops if she went for about 2 months now... and it finally took. She pretty much decided to go pee pee in the potty and has been doing it every since. It wasn't really potty training as it was a potty decision. She has been wearing underwear since. She's had a couple of accidents, but for the most part has not looked back to the days of diapers. Next step: the elusive "number 2". that one is more of a challenge. we shall see.
-Wednesday, June 10, on her own accord, she took her paci's and threw them in the garbage truck. Susan and Melinda waited for trash day, took the kids out when the truck was there and let them make up their own mind. Stella was the first to toss both paci's in the back of the truck. and the garbage men were cheering her on. they even crushed the trash upon delivery for visual confrimation for the kids that the paci's are "no longer of this earth". it's funny too... because at nap and night night time, Stella gets a bit fussy and i know she wants to ask for her paci (she says, "i want, i want i want..... i want, i want.... water. i want i want... mommy"), but she knows that she was the one that decided to throw them away... so she knows it's fruitless to ask. and she doesn't. but i know she's struggling... I'm kind of sad for her... but VERY proud.

s3dk just hangin at home

2009-06-13T15:15:00.000-05:00

i think stella describes this video best when she says, "you're a silly goose".

Blondie

2009-06-12T15:09:00.000-05:00

The kid continues to stay blonde. Really think moms at park think I'm his nanny.

Parting Ways

2009-06-10T22:48:00.006-05:00

I never imagined this day to come but it has. Stella has willingly given up her pacifiers.

Stella was one of those kids who took to the pacifier immediately. She left the hospital that she was born in expertly sucking on one. All those who have seen her regularly know that she turns to them for solace in moments of distress or fatigue. Over the past year or so, I have tried to wean her being semi-successful in getting her paci-usage down to nap/sleep time.

When our move came around, we had unsuccessfully attempted to tell her that there were no pacis in Chicago. Yeah, I know, way to go...make her deal with a major life-altering event by adding another. She rewarded this with a figurative heisman by demanding two pacis; one in her mouth and the other in her hand strumming the rubber part with her forefinger.

Last week our neighbor's kids, Avery and Braydon (about 2 1/2 yrs), had talked about throwing their pacis in the garbage truck. Stella did not participate in this discussion for the first couple of days seemingly unwilling to part with her lifelines. I figure she dismissed them as being so young and naive. By day three, she jumped on the bandwagon.

Today, on our way into our garage, we saw a garbage truck. I calmly asked Stella if she wanted to throw her pacis in the garbage truck (expecting an adamant "No, are you crazy?!?!" as it was encroaching on nap time).

She said yes.

I ran like a bat out of hell up to get them from the kitchen. As we approached the truck, she asked to be picked up. I braced myself for her to change her mind. It never came...

And just like that, gone was the first as she flung it beautifully into the back of the garbage truck. At this point, I held my breath wondering if she would stop there upon seeing the finality of the situation. Nope, not my brave girl. She threw in the second.

She missed.

It took 2 more tries and eventually, with much baited breath on my part, paci #2 successfully met its demise. We watched as the garbage truck crushed them. I gushed as to how proud I was, high fives were exchanged with the group (Avery & Braydon were there too to do the deed).

We had difficulty during nap time. She was fussy but did not mention the pacis. She replaced this with wanting her daddy. She understands the finality of this and is courageously dealing. She makes me feel weak. I am so proud of her.

I spent all day to make sure she got everything she needed desperate to prevent her from having any uncomfortable moments trying not to tip the scale. I am exhausted. Dylan forgives me for neglecting him. I am brimming with pride for her.

I am expecting the next few days to be pretty challenging. Nothing compared to the great feat that my little girl has accomplished.

I wish I can slow down time. Too fast, too soon, too much but so freaking awesome!

Dylan's Second Awakening

2009-06-06T21:56:00.011-05:00

Ok. It's been ridiculously long since we've posted. And there are infinite pictures & videos that we still need to post but I couldn't resist posting this one tonight as tired as I am. More will come and we have been documenting. We're just really really REALLY behind.

Dylan recently had a second awakening. And by that I mean that he's come out of the daze of early infancy and a light has come on in him. He is now able to be awake for longer spells and interacts with us (e.g. cooing, smiling, etc.). Here is an example of his first real interaction with his dad. Yes it's about 3 1/2 minutes long but being his parents, we just couldn't cut any of it.

P.S. Don't ask me how Scott comes up with these games. He is a HUGE source of entertainment in our household as you can see.

Big Girl Milestone

2009-06-04T19:25:00.002-05:00

There are lots of milestones that occur when a child is born. First breath, first smile, first coo, first step, etc. etc. Among the many, I consider riding a 'big girl' bike a pretty significant one. I say this so often that I sound like a broken record (and ahem, like my mother) but time goes so dang fast. Especially with kids. How am I a mother of a 3 year old (and 9 week old) who has just begun to ride a bike. Sure there are training wheels but this is no trike!!! This makes me so proud yet so sad because Stella truly is leaving her little girl-dom behind.

Ok, this is way too sentimental of a post but hey, whatevs. It probably is fueled by her confirmed placement into pre-school today. These things are happening so fast that I can't seem to keep up and enjoy each moment. Coupled with Dylan milestones and it's all happening at lightening speed!

Without more sentimental mumbo jumbo...here is a clip of our little girl making leaps and bounds to big girl-dom. Stella rides her first bike. Without fear, without hesitation and with poetic ease. (I know I'll cry when we have to take training wheels off).

Background music provided by Dylan Lincoln and shushing sound effects by yours truly. For those who haven't seen our place, she is riding in our little courtyard alley that is gated off to all but our neighbors. Stella has a few friends her age that she runs around with.

Blast From the Past

2009-05-06T21:17:00.003-05:00

As we've been documenting, editing and posting the last few weeks and this current phase of our lives, we stumbled upon something....

Hard to believe, but at one point in time there was no S3DK or even an S3K, there was simply S2K and this was the dawn of it.... nearly 6 years ago.

Girl Meets Boy

2009-04-29T13:15:00.004-05:00

On April 9, 2009 Stella met her baby brother for the first time. Here is how that meeting transpired.

New City, New Baby

2009-04-17T22:08:00.001-05:00

Kid B aka Dylan Lincoln Kemper

2009-04-07T16:22:00.005-05:00

Greetings!

As many of you know, "Kid B" arrived Tuesday, April 7, 2009 at 3:47pm. He weighed 9lbs 3oz and measured 21 inches long.

Big boy, we know. And I'll pay for it: I took the under on Stella's weight of 8lbs 13oz... I owe the meat eaters of my family a steak dinner.

... and after much deliberation, we are proud to re-name and officially welcome Dylan Lincoln Kemper to our family and Planet Earth.

Susan's immeasurable strength and overall fearlessness never ceases to amaze me. She has truly taken this challenge and conquered it in every way: incubating and delivering a 9lb. turkey in a brand new city that experienced its worse winter on record. Wow.

Stella has gracefully stepped into her role as big sister. She is very gentle with baby brother, suddenly speaks in full sentences and is applying for part-time work at Target. We are very proud of her.

As for myself, I think Dylan just balanced the equation. It just all feels very right.
Congruency.

Dylan is sleeping. Stella is sleeping. Susan is sleeping.

I am about to be : )

s3dk

Lincoln Park Zoo

2009-01-25T14:51:00.005-06:00

Pretty cool zoo AND it's free. It's indoor and outdoor but because we're seemingly in the coldest/snowiest month in the entire city's history , we decided to keep it inside. We saw lions, tigers, monkeys and all sorts of other creatures. It was a good way to spend the time as a family and Stella was entertained. Can't wait for the warm weather. Seemingly there is much to do with kiddies when the snow melts...

Week 29

2009-01-18T15:04:00.003-06:00

Getting bigger. I am running out of room! I am definitely ready to have my body back and wear clothes that do not have elastic bands on the waist unless they are sweatpants. We are tentatively scheduled for a C-section on April 6 (due date is 4/12) at 2:15pm. Awaiting to hear back on confirmation though and of course date can change depending on how I start progressing and also if we opt to try for a VBAC.

All these decisions.

In the meantime, I go through the minute to minute struggle on whether I can endure having a creature fight me on space of my own body another minute or having him out and having to manage two offsprings at once.

I'd like to think that this second round will be much easier since I will not be as stressed/neurotic/'fill in blank here' as I was with numero uno but that is likely to be offset by a toddler who may pile-drive or bodyslam him the second I look away yeah?

Chicago IL

2008-12-29T13:41:00.001-06:00

Here we are unloading all of our wordly possessions that were in transit for a bit over a week. . Our place is the two-story row house on the right. You can see the progression of the "Great Room" as far as boxes are concerned. It starts pretty neat and empty and then we get to it.

I can't even tell you how many boxes (although I'm sure Scott can) we had altogether (sadly after a month, we still have some). I can say one thing though...never had I thought we had that much stuff in our Hoboken apt. When did we accumulate all this stuff?!?!?

To the Ol' Arnold Crew

2008-12-26T16:42:00.001-06:00

Day after Xmas brought us to Brooklyn to meet with Jason, Jessica & Sam as well as Brandon & Susan. We had some burgers (two for me thank you), wings, fries, some beers and lots of good fun. Sam and Stella have not seen each other in a while but picked up where they last were. Bittersweet. It is always comforting to know that there are, and always will be, friends from all walks of life.

Merry Xmas

2008-12-25T17:14:00.001-06:00

Christmas on the East Coast

2008-12-25T16:11:00.000-06:00

The Little Grocery

2008-12-24T16:53:00.002-06:00

The best egg and cheese this side of the Hudson. Neamet has always been our weekend neighborhood brunch staple. He and Aurora can make a mean cafe au lait. One of our haunts that we'll miss dearly.

Bye Bye SkyClub & the 'Boken

2008-12-24T14:18:00.001-06:00

Goodbyes are always easier with popsicles...

Stella & Her Monkey

2008-12-22T15:15:00.000-06:00

Xmas Tree

2008-12-21T16:35:00.003-06:00

Normal Kemper tradition calls for an Xmas tree hunt where we visit a tree farm to pick out, cut and bring home our tree for the season. However, with just a few minor things going on (e.g. Scott being in Chicago, our prep for the move, our not being in a home til after Xmas), we decided to buy a fake mini tree to commemorate the season.

We set the 2-footer at my parents and think that we did a pretty good job. To us it's comparable to the famous tree...don't ya think?

The Pack & the Load

2008-12-20T13:05:00.007-06:00

Stella & Her Halabuh-gee

2008-12-18T12:56:00.004-06:00

which means 'grandpa' in Korean. No fighting over rights to 'grandpa' or 'grandma' for her; she has her hal-money (my mom), nana (scott's mom), halabuh-gee (my dad) & bampi (scott's dad).

Here they are chilling at home in the 'Boken while I start trying to wrap my head and material possessions around the impending 'big move'.

Stella is a little banged up as she had taken a pretty nasty spill off the back of the couch, landing head first into a square potter. First big header but she came out of it okay.

Who's having more fun? This one's at Halabuh-gee's house.

Angel & Betty Jean of the SkyClub Fitness Club

2008-12-17T12:46:00.001-06:00

Ok...I'm totally behind and I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to catch up. I am in front of my computer now and for once I have no child in front of me whining, and no dire errand that needs to be taken care of now. So I am randomly going to post pix and videos for the sake of getting it up there.

Here is a final shot of the lovely ladies that watched Stella whilst her mother worked out to stay in some semblance of shape (although that's all gone to the wayside big time by now) at our gym in the 'Boken.

Angel (on the left) has watched Stella ever since I started going. Boy did Stella cry and cry. Angel saw the eight month long separation anxiety through and for that, I will eternally be grateful. They were so good to her. We will miss them.

Stylin Stella

2008-12-16T21:10:00.003-06:00

All ready for Chicago...

Are You Kidding Me?!?!

2008-12-16T17:36:00.008-06:00

I may have the best husband ever. Or at the least the most thoughtful. It's been about 6 weeks since he took off to Chi-town to start his new job at DDB. November 4th to be exact, which was exciting in and of itself since he had the opportunity to vote in Hoboken and fly to Chicago to be part of a celebrating city as we elected our next president.

Anyway, flash forward 6 weeks, 6 pretty difficult weeks, and I get a card from him. Inside is a truly heartfelt message that acknowledges my efforts during his absence and a bunch of sweet nothings that I care not to share on this site :). More importantly however, within the card is another smaller envelope that asks me not to open it until Dec. 15th after the "knock" on my door at 3PM. How cryptic is that? And how freakish is that? I mean I'm expecting something but I don't know what it is.

Monday the 15th rolls around, per my previous blog entry, I spend a good part of the day with Karen, Deville & Luca. I get home a bit after 2 and proceed to anxiously hang out and await this knock. 3pm comes and goes. 3:30 approaches and of course I'm in the middle of changing a very messy, poopy diaper when sure enough there is a knock on the door. Flustered, I leave Stella on the changing table (clean), and answer the door.

An older Asian woman is at the door with a giant plastic bin and immediately starts talking to me introducing herself, and recognizing me from the gym. Interesting...I probably came off a little standoffish as I told her that I had no idea what was going on. She directs me to open the envelope. Aha. I invite her in, finish getting Stella dressed and hear the woman busying herself...with what, no idea. I come back out and find the envelope, rip it open and begin reading...

Hokie sh*ts as Scott would say. He delivered me a gift via this person. Ping is a personal chef! As I watch her unload her plastic bin full of fresh food, pots, pans and spices, she explains that she is to make me dinner that night and two additional entrees for the rest of the week. I can't even begin to describe what this means to me from a 'my husband is so thoughtful' perspective, and just from an outright logistical help standpoint. Don't think he truly understands how much time and energy he has saved by doing this in the final week we are in our apartment.

I had a fantastic day. It was about 65 degrees. Stella and I went out to run a couple of errands and to just lackadaisically meander the streets of Hoboken. I was in no hurry to get back with groceries to prepare dinner. YES! I just needed to show up when I got hungry. Stella and I hung out for 2 1/2 hours. We got home by 6:30...I was eating a deliciously home cooked meal by 6:40. Seriously.

My dinner menu consisted of: Chicken Marsala (melted in my mouth), side of sugar snap peas and cous cous. It was delectably delicious. She also made two other entrees: 1) Coffee grind crusted skirt steak, broccoli rabe, yellow rice w/ black beans and sweet plaintains (see pix above), 2) Chicken curry stir fry with noodles and vegetables. I have tupperwares full of deliciousness that I can open and heat up and eat to my heart's content. In addition to this, she left me plenty of sliced up veggies in ziploc bags for me to toss a salad together in 5 minutes or less. She also made plenty of each dish as like me, she has a hard time cooking for 1.

The fact that Scott not only came up with this idea, but executed it and worked with Ping on the menu is just a wonderful thing. It is thoughtful, it is helpful and it is freaking DELICIOUS. Thanks baby!

Hangin with Deville & Luca Van

2008-12-15T14:31:00.001-06:00

Stella and I visited with the Palaitis' on Monday. It was a balmy 70 degrees - weird. We played at Karen's and then decided to take the kids out to run off some steam. We went to the playground and then went to a local diner for some good food.

How do we leave these cool cats that we've gotten to know and love?!?!?!

Happy Birthday Jin!

2008-12-13T13:27:00.002-06:00

Saturday marked Jin's birthday. There was a family get together that entailed good food and good company. We,or more specifically, I was grateful for the wonderful home cooked meal that Jin's mom had prepared and for the company for Stella. She was too I'm sure! Stella really enjoyed playing with her cousins. Below are shots of Stella with Annelise, Jonah & Emily.

Listening to Message from Daddy

2008-12-13T10:50:00.005-06:00

Stella listens to an old message from dad. This is the 2nd time she's hearing it. The first time she heard it, which I didn't get on camera, she was so happy to hear from him and ridiculously responsive. Think she thought he was talking 'live' as that what we do often on speaker.

CMOM

2008-12-12T21:17:00.001-06:00

Svan and I decided to take our kiddies to the Children's Museum of Manhattan after a drabby, rainy week that showed no end in sight. Pretty seamless morning...found parking on the same block, grabbed lunch across the street from the museum and the kids were great.

I personally had a great week. It kicked off with a baby shower for #2/going away gathering where most of the playgroup crew was present, skyping with Christine & Luis with Kathrin & Oscar, feasting on some decadent Giordana's pizza (all the way from Chicago) with Svan, Dave & Markus, and the CMOM. Overall a very full week...we will so miss everyone.

Conversation between Oscar & Stella

2008-12-11T10:30:00.000-06:00

We went over to visit with Kathrin & Oscar and also to skype with Christine & Luis. It was a fun morning. We had a bit of a German reunion :)

Here's Oscar and Stella sitting down to a meal and discussing important life events.

Stella Likes Mascara

2008-12-08T21:02:00.001-06:00

After her first bout with makeup (Halloween '08) and watching me, Stella has taken it upon herself to put some mascara on before a playdate. Pretty impressive that she knew to put the mascara on her lashes - or as close to it as she can get.

Needless to say, clean up delayed us for a bit but we made it! First paint, now mascara, what is next???

Conversation with Daddy

2008-12-05T19:25:00.003-06:00

Stella rocks out to Pearl Jam as dad calls from Chicago.

Siblings

2008-12-04T20:57:00.000-06:00

Stella at about 8 weeks. The bottom is written by our doctor who had just intensely discussed the Colts and Giants 2005-2006 season (funny how this conversation precluded the consecutive Superbowl wins from each team a year later). Scott as usual was not shy about his passion for the Colts. And obviously it showed. Sonogram #1 for baby #1 (aka Stella Hudson Kemper) reads "Future Colts Fan".
It had been two years and change since we last saw Dr. Shaw for obstetrics reasons. Although quite some time had passed, he had not forgotten about Scott nor his undying loyalty for the Colts. Below is a picture of Baby #2 also with a handwritten inscription from our doc; "Another Colts Fan". This is our latest creation at 11 weeks. Perhaps our second bundle of joy will will bring luck to the Colts for the 2009-2010 season???

It's a Boy!!!

2008-11-26T21:22:00.001-06:00

Can you see the boy part? It's taken at a funny angle but it's there if you look. He is healthy and we are happy.

Finding a New Home

2008-11-23T21:45:00.006-06:00

Stella and I went on our first trip to Chicago. The main intent was for Scott & I to look at about a dozen homes to live in for minimally the next year. It has been a stressful time as Scott has been busy, not only with his new job but looking at about 40 homes after work, and forget about the countless ones we looked at online.

It was good for Stella to see her daddy. She was so happy and excited. We think she started to understand that we are going to live 'here' wherever 'here' is. Stella's Nana and Bampi drove up to see us and to watch Stella while Scott and I went home-searching. Overall it was a great few days spending it with family in our soon-to-be home city. Stella and I also had fun hanging with Deb and Gus (the first of many I'm sure).

In this run, we found our new home. Weird. Like Stella, I think I'll need to be there for it to finally start sinking in...

Stella Baker

2008-11-18T21:30:00.003-06:00

As the weather turns colder, and mommy gets bigger, and with daddy in Chicago, we are desperately looking for things to entertain Miss Stella. One day, we decided to make cupcakes (her current favorite dessert). Stella was very committed to mixing. She did better than I thought she would. When all was said and done, our kitchen did have a light coating of cake mix but it smelled great. Stella was very proud of her work and was especially excited to eat her project. What is ironic is that after all that work, she still enjoyed just eating the icing off of the cupcake - not the 'bread'. Very much like her old man. Anyway, it kept her busy for 20 minutes...now what?!?!

Here she is enjoying her finished product while shaking her diaper-clad tushy to her most favoritest band of all time: Wilco.

More Wilco. More cupcakes. But a hi to bunch of special people.

Couldn't resist this last one. An ode to Cooper and Scotty-Doo!

Beach Buddies

2008-11-15T23:18:00.004-06:00

A snapshot taken from our joint family vacation to LBI (Long Beach Island) back in August. We thought this may be an annual tradition but with us being Chicago-bound by end of year, and the Merriams being Cali-bound next year, this one may be our one and only. Maybe we can consider meeting in Mexico next year?!?! Or alternating between Lake Michigan and the Pacific Ocean? :)
Anyway, here's a postcard of a picture of two very cute, very young friends walking the beach. Stella loved this trip so much so that in the past week, prompted by finding her bucket and shovel, she has been asking to go to the beach with Markus. Great memories.

Stella's Favorite Canvas...herself

2008-11-14T22:04:00.001-06:00

This is what Stella does when I'm not paying attention to her. One moment, she is an angel of an artist happily painting away at her easel. The next minute, I am folding laundry and realize that she's been a little too quiet for a little too long. I walk over slightly panicked but telling myself that I'm just being paranoid and that she just loves painting that much (which she does). Well, I guess she loved it so much so that she discarded her brushes to use her face and hands. Clean up was a bear but I had to take a picture...this one's for the ages.

Shoe Fettish

2008-10-05T17:23:00.003-05:00

My daughter seems to have taken an unhealthy interest in toes and shoes lately. She puts on everything and anything she can find. She's also taken to asking people to remove their socks so she can coo, talk to, and kiss their toes - matters not how jacked up they are. Weird.

The video clip makes her dad cringe a little. I mean the dancing in boots thing doesn't bode well for any dad I suppose. But it is still cute.

With Halmunee & Halabugee

2008-10-01T17:07:00.000-05:00

Lately it seems that with the pregnancy and the 'challenges' that come along with them, I'm at my parents more often than not. Thank goodness they are so close and since they own their own business, it allows me to pop in at anytime for some relief from 2 year young energy. I read somewhere that 'incubating' a baby takes as much energy marathon running up a mountain...figures.

Sienna's 2nd Birthday Party

2008-09-28T17:53:00.001-05:00

was a hit for Stella. Sienna lives in the our building and we have known her and her parents for about 2 years. The day couldn't have been better for a Little Gym birthday party with music, areas to jump, bubbles, pizza and cake. Here is Stella jumping with Sienna and then later hanging with another neighbor friend - Ava.

Who Loves Italian Ice?!?!

2008-09-27T20:56:00.002-05:00

Especially strawberry...WE DO!!! Stella went for an iceeeee run with Dad on the bike Friday evening after dinner. They came back with treats for all and we were loving it. Can you tell who loved it more???

Thanks Nana & Bampi!

2008-09-25T22:47:00.000-05:00

For Stella's lovely, purple fleece jacket from San Francisco!!! She loves it. She always says "Thank you Nana, Thank you Bampi" and begins to sing Happy Birthday to herself as she understands that her Nana and Bampi sent her a gift. It's in perfect time for the season too as mom was just thinking that she needs a light jacket for the recently cooler weather but had yet to act on it. Here she is debuting her jacket with the forceful cheese smile that she does everytime a camera is pointed at her. Thanks again!

Stella and Her Halmonee

2008-09-25T20:31:00.004-05:00

Mom had to go the doctor so Stella's halmonee (grandma) watched her for a few hours. She did great (finally!). Normally, she would cry, take pause while she chomped on a huge lollypop that is my mother's bribe-treat, cry some more, and then daze out to TV awaiting my/our return essentially ignoring my mother's numerous attempts to play, talk, take her outside, etc.. This time she did not cry when we left, waved bye to us from the terrace and finally allowed halmonee to take her to the park. Hopefully this is a sign of what's to come.

Stella's rationalization abilities have exponentially increased over the past few weeks. I'm shocked as to how quickly she will stop resisting me on various things once she hears my rationale. In fact she is more receptive to hearing me explain why something is so vs. me just distracting her and ultimately forcing her to do what I want. She understands so much more than she did a few months ago and her memory is kicking in big time. It floors me because I feel that we're having a mature conversation on things (really- she is only 2). I definitely feel we've reached another level in our relationship. There is also more compromise between us ---but with less tears I think and more maturity. Weird.
.

A couple of days before "d-day", Scott and I both talked to Stella about leaving for a few hours and how she would have to be a big girl and not cry and show halmonee where her park was and play. She spoke of it until the day of. When she saw halmonee that morning, she repeated how mommy would go bye-bye and she would be a big girl and not cry.

She still proudly speaks of the saying what a big girl she was...and she is. She still doesn't like that we leave but she knows that we will come back. After spending a few hours in the city and even having the chance to have a sit down lunch with my husband and even browse a store, I returned to find Stella napping. She awoke a few minutes later and gave me the widest smile and said "Mommy always comes back". That was awesome.

These Boots Are Made for Walken

2008-09-22T20:26:00.000-05:00

Shot of our cool chick-a-dee of a girl sporting her black sparkly t, diapers and her dad's boots. She loves wearing our shoes!

Cheese & Painting

2008-09-21T21:14:00.000-05:00

A couple of things to show you:

Stella is very 'passionate' about saying cheese when she sees a camera pointing her way. It's pretty hilarious and sometimes can be a bit scarey.
She continues to love to paint, draw, color, etc.. She has started to draw on other things (e.g. train tracks, blankets, tables). This definitely tempts us to put a hold on arts and crafts until she's about 10 but then how can we surpress this creativity? Anyways, here's on of her latest creations.

And BTW, as stated in bullet 1, Stella is pretty passionate about saying cheese so that constant noise you here from the onset of this video is Stella saying 'cheese'.

Multitasking

2008-09-16T21:01:00.000-05:00

Watching Baby Einstein, putting Mickey Mouse ears on, and trying to sing and dance. That's a lot for a two year old toddler. Still, I think she manages it pretty well. Here's Stella's first on-camera debut of the "Hot Dog" theme song from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. This is dedicated to her peeps: Markus, Luis, Deville and Oscar. If anything like Stella, I'm sure they will watch this one over and over and over and over again.

Yankees!

2008-09-14T12:28:00.000-05:00

September 14, 2008. stella's first Major League baseball game and stella's first, last and only trip to "the house that ruth built". after this season, the yankees will tear down the 85 year-old structure and move next door to their "new and improved" yankee stadium.

we arrived in the 2nd inning, and i was open to the fact that we may not stay more than an inning or two. but to my delight, stella was very good. we stayed for the whole game. she sat next to me sharing cracker jacks and a hot dog. i had 3 beers and she had some ice cream --- which she now equates to baseball. if you say "baseball", she'll say "ice cream!"

we had so much fun. i really look forward to continuing her sports education via trips to the ballpark.

as for the game itself, the yankees were on the brink of missing the playoffs for the first time in 12 years, playing division leader tampa bay. ironically, they won 8-4, but ultimately it was not enough for them to make the post season. bummer. however, in the fifth inning, we did get to see derek jeter tie lou gehrig's record for most career hits inside yankee stadium (1,269)... and he did it with a homerun. it was awesome. the energy inside the stadium was electric.

see it here:

I'm Kind of a "Big Deal" Around Here

2008-08-28T21:53:00.002-05:00

Need I say more? Thanks for the shirt Tad!