Mommy Snack vs. Daddy Snack

As he does every morning, Zane asked for a "snack and a drink". So, I got him a sensible snack of milk and a breakfast bar. He asked me for goldfish and cheezits. He always asks for that. Or bar-ga-cue chips. I try to avoid those snacks in the morning. I told him he needed to eat his breakfast bar and then maybe later. He didn't like that answer. Here is Mommy's snack for Zane:

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Then, I went to the bathroom, leaving him with Kevin, who, in his defense, had been out smoking or something when this conversation with Zane happened. When I returned, THIS is what Zane had:


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Oh Sagges.

~t

Zane, with Dirt and Fence

We got our fence put up in the front yard! It's so exciting. It's the first perimeter to be secured. We can now let Zane and Lukie run wild, and is it fun ever. There are also little piles of dirt that Zane likes to play scoop. Check out these pics...

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Caspian also is enjoying, the new perimeter-secured front lawn.


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He's always good for an action shot. Here's one from Zane:


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Looks like a fun summer will be had here. We even had some wandering minstrels walk up with a dog, a guitar, and a harmonica. How 'bout that. (Nastacia, her name was Nastacia. And Jesse. And the other dude. There, now even if I forget it, I can find it. I hope.)

~t

Zane, with Dirt and Fence

We got our fence put up in the front yard! It's so exciting. It's the first perimeter to be secured. We can now let Zane and Lukie run wild, and is it fun ever. There are also little piles of dirt that Zane likes to play scoop. Check out these pics...

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Caspian also is enjoying, the new perimeter-secured front lawn.


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He's always good for an action shot. Here's one from Zane:


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Looks like a fun summer will be had here. We even had some wandering minstrels walk up with a dog, a guitar, and a harmonica. How 'bout that. (Nastacia, her name was Nastacia. And Jesse. And the other dude. There, now even if I forget it, I can find it. I hope.)

~t

Colors

Zane knows his colors now. HOW did it happen? For so long, he just didn't get it. Of course, he watched oodles of TV. And I worked on it with him a little. Maybe it happened while I was at work. And then, one day, he just knows them. Whew. He is so smart, but he just wasn't getting it. And now he does. I often wonder, "HOW will I teach him (fill in the blank)" only to find out later that it somehow just happens. They just learn it. Kids aren't that much work in that way, it seems. They are plenty of work in other ways, but it seems, thankfully, some things just happen. Whew, I say. Whew.

~t

Luke, Stud

We are not sure if Luke will be an actual stud or not. We have not gotten him fixed yet, so there is a chance. However, he is our little stud now that we got his hair cut. It was so overdue. Just check out this "before" pic:

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Here he is having it done. (You know I like haircut pics)


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And here he is after. Whew. He seems to like being able to see. Go figure.


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He seems a little like a "teenage" dog now. His whole demeanor has changed. He is clearly proud of himself, as well he should be. What a cutie. They grow up so fast. I can't say I'm sad that he's growing up. Some of that puppy stuff was tough. He's easier now. But still so freakin' cute!

~t

The Fortress is Going Up

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The posts are in and the fortress is about to be secured. Well, actually, those are just settling before the fence dudes can come back to cut them down to their proper 4-foot size for our cute little white picket fence. We are getting some funny looks from the neighbors and general passersby, though.

Soon, we will be able to enclose the toddler and the dog and let them run around like maniacs in the yard. Yaaaaayyy!

(All of this during Mercury Retrograde, too. Oh dear. Wish us luck.)

~t

PPP Direct

The good folks at PayPerPost have come up with yet another way for bloggers and advertisers to make the most of the blog marketplace. If you like to use your blog to make money, PPP Direct could be for you.

Basically, PayPerPost is taking the middleman (THEM!) out of the equation. This is an opportunity for advertisers to request specific bloggers and bloggers to request specific fees for their services.

Pretty cool. How does it work?

Basically, you pick your price and install a badge on your site stating it. When potential advertisers click it, they are taken to PayPerPost to work out the deal.

What's in it for the blogger?

Yes, you could hammer out some of these deals yourself, but you gain some valuable perks by going through PayPerPost. Mostly, it's easy to use, you gain marketing through the PPP directory, you automatically have tax reporting done, and there is more security than hashing out deals completely on your own.

This has been done before, you say? Why choose PPP?

The main reason here is simple. Cold, hard cash. While competitors charge 50-100% markup and keep money that could be yours, PayPerPost charges only 35% for their self-service model. This passes the money on to the blogger and allows the advertiser to get more for their money. Everybody wins.

~t

Campaign 2007: Vote for Not Martha

I'm not really into politics. You might even say I'm decidedly NOT into politics. But I am into my friends. You may remember back a few months ago when this blog was so boring and looked like many other blogs out there. Now it does not. And that is thanks to my buddy Retta. Now, I'm campaigning for her to win a free soda machine. She so deserves it. She's very generous with her time and talents even though she has four, count them FOUR sons. Yes, four. They need less sugar. Go vote for her: VOTE.

~t

TheNewsRoom

I just "mashed" my first news story! Not only was it totally free, it was also quite easy. I have been looking at expanding the content on Musings, and I really like the idea of mashing select news stories. I think it's a great way to use your blog to create a difference as well. In general, I think the news focuses a little too much on tragedy, so I liked this story about Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in London making a new "green" (aka environmentally friendly) version of Prince Charles. I visited Madame Tussaud's back in '96, and I loved it. (Of course, it might have been more environmentally friendly, just to leave the old one. But hey, I still give 'em credit.)

So, how did I accomplish my cool news mashing? I used The News Room. Not only do they provide relevant, timely news, but you also can make money via advertising with CPM starting at $1. Nice. There's tons of video and content choices and you can earn prizes like vacations, electronics, and cars just for participating. The choices are conveniently organized by category so you can find the type of news that will fit your blog best. Categories include: US, Local, World, Business, Politics, Health, Sci-Fi, Entertainment, Sports, Life, Press Releases, Reference, and Campaign 2008, for all you politicoes out there. (My story was from the Life section.) You can also mash it from my blog, too. Cool.

Check it out!

~t

Zane's New Bike

So, we got Zane this super cool new type of bike. I hear it's European. There are no training wheels. It is not a tryke. And there are no pedals! It's supposed to help him find and keep his balance. He's pretty good at balancing when he's climbing and jumping and dancing, so we'll see how he does with this. Here are some pics...

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Apparently, they are called push bikes, walking training bikes, or walking bikes. Here is one I found on Amazon that Zane seems to wish he had:



The reviews on this one were pretty good. And it's cute, too. We got one of the wooden ones that was more like this (although not quite this spendy)...



~t

Kevin is weird day (like this is anything new).

So, I'm in the process of watching The Queen. I like it a lot. It's very interesting from many perspectives. Then Zane woke up and I had to go get him. When we came back downstairs, this is what greeted us:

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So, the movie is giving me new respect for Queen Elizabeth II. Sorry for posting this picture, Your Majesty, but I could not resist. (I'm wondering if Kevin is related to the royals at all?)

t