According to our man Caleb...

Jon and Kate Plus 8--> "Kids" ("Watch kids!" "Kids all done?")

I Am a Child of God--> "Habba God" (No idea why, but that's how he says it.)

Anything on Food Network--> "cookie show"

our friend Candace--> "Tannie"

Beckett--> "Budder Bucket"

I'm Hungry--> "I hunger"

milk--> "moke"

big truck--> "bee chuck"

blanket--> "bank"

Mother, how did you sleep?--> "mama sleep good?"

I don't want that--> "Pit away"

yeah, sure--> "yes sir!!"

I'm done eating--> "I done!"

Orchestra--> "Oshistra"

Blue's Clues--> "Boos Coos"

Labels: caleb, random

Amy is about to have a baby, like today, but I'm such a big fan she has to wait til after the BYU v UCLA game! (before I get mean comments, this is in jest)

Check out these BYU football shirts. They're pretty cool. Frockly

They even had a giveaway. But it ended this morning

Frockly: T-Shirt Giveaway

Labels: byu, random

As Apple released their new iPod Nanos, Touch's and Classics with their "Genius" features, I couldn't help but think of this similarity between him and Mr. Burns.

He's looking thinner and richer all the time. Albeit the new iPods, as usual, look pretty cool.



http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/09/live-from-apples-lets-rock-event-in-san-francisco/

I do like the idea of an accelermoter built in to the iPod. It'll make for some interesting hacking that will certainly occur.

Labels: computer, random

Now, I realize that probably a lot of people won't know what I'm talking about here, but boy, I need to say something anyways. About a year ago, I was introduced to and fell in love with the "Twilight" saga books, by Stephenie Meyer. Surely a ton of people have read them, and they are pretty amazing. The 4th and final book, Breaking Dawn, just came out this month and I've already read it twice. The books are great; they've been compared to "Harry Potter" in that both series have encouraged more reading in children, teens, and adults alike. And, if that wasn't enough, the books are just a lot of fun. Now, most basic fans of the novels might not be aware of this, but Stephenie Meyer had one more "Twilight" novel in the works, a book called Midnight Sun, which is basically the story of "Twilight," but told from Edward's perspective. She posted the 1st chapter on her website, and I've read it about 10 times already in my need for more Twilight-ness. She had said numerous times that once "The Host" and "Breaking Dawn" were both published and tours were done, she would most likely begin work on Midnight Sun so we could all get our fix.

And then some MORON stepped in and ruined it for everybody.

Ms. Meyer announced last night on her website that someone she had trusted with an UNFINISHED manuscript of Midnight Sun took it and distributed it illegally all over the internet. She wasn't happy with it, there were mistakes and things that needed changing, and now people all over the world have read something that she never intended for them to read. She is hurt, and upset, and I don't blame her in the least. I would be livid if someone I'd trusted did something like that with a work I had created and put so much time and effort and so much of myself into. Her decision? Work on Midnight Sun and publication of the same are on hold indefinitely.

I. Am. Ticked.

I have been patiently waiting for MS to be finished and published so I could continue my "Twilight" fix, and I knew it would be a while, and I was ok with that. But now this idiot has ruined it for the millions of fans who couldn't wait for this story to come out. There are a LOT of comments posted on the Twilight Lexicon about this, and the general consensus seems to be that everyone is furious, and no one's going to read the unfinished, illegal copy in hopes that Ms. Meyer will change her mind and continue work on MS. I whole-heartedly agree. I don't WANT to read something that isn't as good as the author can do, and isn't what she wants her readers to read.

It's amazing how hurt I am by this, so I can only imagine how hurt Stephenie Meyer is. I hope the jerk who did it can be sued for everything. If this were back in the day, I think we'd be having a witch-hunt, and I would definitely participate. Grrr.

Labels: random, rant

Labels: caleb, random

It's uhhh...it's finished, people. The cross-stitch. It is really and truly done. I finished it tonight at about 5:36pm, while Caleb asked repeatedly to go in the car, and Kenn played Mario Brothers 3. I literally almost cried when I realized I'd stitched the last stitch, and now I'm just in a bit of disbelief. I'm debating whether or not to wash it, because I'm sure I should but I'm so afraid of ruining 5 years of work, and I will definitely iron it, and maybe for Christmas it will get professionally matted and framed (hint hint, kenn). Once it's cleaned/ironed, I'll try and post a picture. I guess that should happen pretty soon, because now I've got all this free time on my hands.

Except for the guest room needing to be painted. Hmm.

Labels: projects, random

Labels: family, random

Well friends, an important milestone was met today by our very own Caleb. What could it be, you ask? Has he learned the secret art of holding it? Can he now multiply large sums in his head? Did he discover that tiny objects can fit into his nose? Oh no, it is a skill beyond all these other trivial accomplishments, something the wisest of us often cannot master until well into our later years. Ladies and gentlemen, Caleb can now...drink through a straw. ::wild applause::

Labels: caleb, random

Oh...my boy and his over-alls...I think they are the absolute cutest things that he wears, but they just seem to inspire silliness in everyone. Caleb has recently developed an interesting and slightly-questionable habit of sticking his hands into the sides of his over-alls whenever he wears them. He does enjoy the gentle reminder that his tummy is indeed still attached to the rest of his body, but other than that I'm not sure I see the point. It sure makes for a good picture, though. And then there's the cupboard. You all know from my previous post that he digs pulling the plastic bowls out of the cupboard, but this day he went one better. He pulled out the bowls, and then decided to sit in place of the bowls while he drank his soy-milk. How do you NOT take a picture of that? Even mid-dinner-prep, I let the ground turkey handle itself so I could capture this. Totally worth it, over-all.

Labels: family, pictures, random

I want so bad to be witty and hilarious in my blog posts, but that is a lot of pressure every time you want to just share a picture or something. So I think I give up. We'll post some video soon of Caleb and his Easter basket (the absolute only thing we did on Easter to celebrate) but for now here are some funny pictures of our kid.

I really don't know how in the world he got spaghetti on his face quite like that. All I can think is that his eye itched while he was eating, so he rubbed it. And I just really like that picture of Kenn and Caleb having a little relaxation moment together. It's something they do quite often. I love my boys.

Labels: family, random

My friend Talea, whom I've known since 8th grade in good ol' Linden, Michigan. She's a hand-talker because she is deaf, and she communicates in American Sign Language. All through high school, every time we spoke it was in letter-by-letter, spelled-out words, because back then I didn't know anything in ASL except the alphabet. Bless Talea for being patient. :) So in college I finally learned ASL well enough to carry on conversations, and then we moved here to Texas, and lo and behold, Talea lives in Texas now, too! She found me on Facebook, and sent me a message a few weeks ago saying she'd be in the Austin area and wanted to come and say hi.

People, let me tell you--I was SOOOOOO nervous! My last ASL class was in Fall 2002, and since then I've tried to use my skills, but it's hard to keep them up if you don't know any deaf people. So I was petrified that I wouldn't be able to remember things well enough to talk to her. But, as it turns out, ASL is a lot like riding a bike--you never really forget how to do it. I forgot a few words here and there, but that's what finger-spelling is for. :) Talea and I had a blast hanging out, and once Kenn got home he was able to use his rusty ASL skills as well, and we had a great time. Her friend Dong, who is also deaf, gave her a ride, so we got doubly-immersed in ASL, and Caleb LOVED it. When Talea and Dong would start signing rapidly to one another, he would just stand there and stare. He was amazed. It was so much fun to see her, and I LOVE that she only lives an hour away. Hopefully we can see each other again soon, and I can remember how much ASL I've forgotten.

Labels: friends, random

It never ceases to amaze me the things that Caleb can find to play with that are not conventional toys. Take these pictures for instance--what did he find to play with here?? Mom's hooded sweater! It became a great game of throwing it over his head, and saying "Where's Caleb? Where did he go?" and Caleb simultaneously giggling and struggling to free himself. It was at least a good 10 minutes or so of entertainment, which all you moms out there know is a hot commodity. It's not just sweaters, though. Another one of his recent discoveries is the cabinet full of plastic bowls, all neatly nested together. The game with those is to pull them out of the cupboard, separate them all, and then kick/carry/push them to all corners of the house. GREAT fun for Mom. :) But what can I do? It entertains him, it's really not that big of a mess, and he has at least learned to pick them up again. What the heck, kid, play with anything you want. I give up. :)

Labels: caleb, pictures, random

In my many previous jobs I have had the position of technician in numerous fields. I have been a Pager Technician (Motorola Certified), a PC technician, an Alarm Technician for ADT, and worked as a Computer Support Representative for an organization that serviced Mac computers.

I recently purchased a MacBook (Sept 07) and it has truly been a great machine, I have my issues with it, but all in all it is a pleasure to use. On Monday 2-11-08 my wife turned it on and the screen gave her an ambiguous message. We looked online and discovered some possible fixes, none of which worked and decided it was time to have Apple Repair it. I hadn't yet purchased AppleCare, and I realize I still had a year warranty, but I figured now is as good a time as any to purchase the 3Year extension. I know I will keep the computer for at least that long, so why not.

I arrived at the Apple Store here in Austin, TX in The Domain and spoke with JC (Sales), and John (Technician) about my machine. I was told I needed to make an appointment to receive any service. This was upsetting as nowhere in the process of purchasing the machine, or purchasing AppleCare was I told I needed an appointment anywhere to get service on a machine. Now, I understand the methodology here, and it's actually quite intelligent, no lines in the stores, and one on one time with a technician. Great Idea, truly. However, I was not in need of any of these things and would like to simply drop off the machine fill out a form with the issue and leave. I was told that if I wanted to do that it would cost me $85. This was very upsetting, and admittedly I kind of got in the face of JC for even suggesting I pay MORE money for this repair. I have $1700+ into this machine already, $250 of which is for repair service. I apologize to JC (he's a nice guy). He handled the situation well, and is at the mercy of Store Policy. He may even agree with Store Policy, but some customers don't.

I simply ask that if a customer walks into a store and wants to allow you to provide him or her LESS service then that should be allowed. The Technician (John) was quite helpful and actually came to talk to me without an appointment. This was outside of his job role and did it out of the kindness of his heart. John, thank you.

Apple, I am very disappointed in how you handle this situation of a customer wanting to come in an drop off a machine that needs repair. I don't care about data backup, I don't care about software installation, just FIX it. Thanks

Sincerly

Kenn North
Cedar Park, TX
kenn@kennandamy.com

Labels: computer, random, rant

So Amy and I were running some errands last Saturday and we saw something very interesting. It was a pickup truck with a temporary license from Arkansas.Upon closer look we noticed the license plate didn't make much sense. The picture is bit small, all we had was a cell phone, but it's still pretty funny. And we had to follow this guy for several blocks before we finally got stuck behind him at a light long enough to get a picture.
So apparently in Arkansas February is abbreviated as FEBR, and there are 30 days in this special month. Who are you kidding???

Labels: random

Ladies and gentlemen, today is February 4th. I am sitting in my house, and the air conditioning is on. What's more--it is currently 8:40 PM and the air conditioning is on. It was quite warm today; can you tell? It got up to 80 degrees in our house. Am I supposed to be in the middle of winter? Cause for crying out loud, it does NOT feel like it. My sincerest apologies to anyone who had to shovel snow this past weekend. Texas is so weird.
But so is Arkansas. We'll explain that one once we get the pictures downloaded off my cell phone.

Labels: home, random

Does anyone remember when Trix cereal was round little balls of goodness? I DO!!! They used to be the children's answer to KIX (Kid Tested, mother approved, MY EYE!).
Then a few years ago they went to these ridiculous shapes of the actual fruit and they lost that classic feel we all grew to love and on top of that, THEY TASTED LIKE JUNK. The shapes didn't fill enough volume on their own to be considered tasty. It tore my family apart. (not really, but we were upset, deer hunting will never be the same for my father)

Well no more, they have seen the error of their ways and returned the wayward cereal back to it's roots. I'm so excited that I just might buy stock in the company. Is that Post, General Mills?? Anyway, the wait is over the strike has worked.

Go check out another blog from a fellow Trix lover.

Labels: random