The New Family

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Amusing Observation

WITH so many projects completed or nearing completion, Dad has observed an interesting phenomena. When he paints, replaces, or cleans one thing, like cabinet doors or caulking seems, it is so clean and bright that it makes the old un-redone surfaces look really bad.

Filthy wall.


Adding this cove and caulking this counter top  makes the adjacent wall look really dirty. Dad was going to leave it untouched, but now it is begging to be done.

There is something about an evenness of  filth. If all surfaces are evenly dirty, it looks okay, or at least it is not an eyesore. But clean or repaint one surface and the filth on the other surfaces becomes easy to see.

Furniture

AUNT Laurie and family gave this dresser as a gift to the Twins.

You might recall the post.

It is from Ikea, a retailer that does well in selling inexpensive, assemble it yourself, furniture made of pine and paperboard. That is fine for what it is, but he thinks that with a little effort, these normally disposable furniture pieces can have their lives extended far beyond what most people experience with them.

Hey, Grandma Hanasik always said, take care of your stuff. The difference between high class people and low class people isn't how much stuff they have, it is how well they take care what they do have.

Dad has had a number of products from them over the years and has had the same observation about them. They tend to fall apart because they lack a good backbone. If you place your hand on the top of the top shelf and push, it will readily move a 1/8th of an inch. Pulling it back doubles that sway movement to an 1/4". That amount of play tends to increase over time leading to a point where the whole thing becomes so far out of square that the drawers will not open or if they will, they will not close. Then it becomes less and less useful. Perhaps one day one of the Twins decides to use one of the non-closing drawers to climb up. But the drawer bottom cannot support his weight, he breaks through, there is a big hole, Mom is angry that her little boy is injured, and decides that that piece of excrement has to go.

Before that hypothetical comes to pass, Dad decides to modify the dresser a bit to make it sturdier.

The basic problem is that the dresser is not boxed, it lacks structure to prevent it from moving left and right. Dad can't do anything to add structure to the front of the it, the side in the back ground above, because that is the drawer front side. But the rear is completely open, and when placed against a wall, it doesn't have to be finished and pretty. So he will cut and install something on the rear that will box it in, or add a spine, or add a keel, or provide rigidity - choose your idiom. This will cover the rectangular space in the foreground in the picture above.




Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Gangsta Buggy

BUGGY found Dad's ball cap and decided to try it on. Despite her serious demeanor, the binky makes her look a little less than threatening.  

Friday, May 23, 2014

Dad is Trendy

THE latest trend in office furniture is the stand up desk.
stand up desk
https://standingupdesk.wordpress.com/tag/stand-up-desk/

Some are even treadmill desks.





LifeSpan Fitness Treadmill Computer Desktop
http://www.wayfair.com/LifeSpan-Fitness-Treadmill-Computer-Desktop-TR1200-DT-LPS1032.html


There likely are benefits to standing versus sitting for long periods while working. But Dad doesn't have funds to buy one. So the redneck in him improvised.

Where Dad blogs.

Dad and Twins at the Park

DAD loves to take the Twins to the park without Mom. Let's face it, a guy in the park alone with toddlers is an unusual sight. Other parents there sometimes give him a cool reception, which is fine. He lets them keep their distance. He is not there to get into their faces and advocate for social change or some other nonsense. He is there to let the kids have fun and interact with other children. Still he finds it amusing.

Long post, lots of pictures. Click below to continue.

Home Improvement Projects

DAD has been charged with completing a long list of projects ranging from the simple, like cleaning tile grout, to the challenging, like completing the installation of the door he installed 10 years ago.

The goal is to either ready the place for sale, or make it less of an eyesore for the Family if they continue to reside there. More likely it is the former since the Twins are growing up and need space, their own rooms, and a secure yard to play in with a huge tree house.

To see pictures of some of the projects, click below to continue.

What is This?

THE Twins are not allowed on Mom and Dad's bed or bedroom unsupervised though if they have the opportunity, they will sneak in there every opportunity they get.

For example, recently the Boy was supposed to be napping in his room. But shortly after Dad put him down, all too quickly in fact, he stopped fussing. So Dad went to investigate. This is what he found.




He has a pattern and history of this.

So one evening, while preparing for bed, Dad spotted this.



Now, he knows the Twins had no opportunity to be in there with either Mom or Dad that day. So he used his superior powers of deduction to conclude that someone was somewhere they should not have been.

Saturday, May 17, 2014

"Hon, make me a cup of coffee!"

DAD needs to work on his communication skills. What he thinks sounds like efficient communication can be interpreted as as a command that Mom does not care for. She doesn't lack for humor though. "Here is is your cup of coffee!"
Dad got the message.

(H/T Lisa W. for the funny idea)

She is so Serious

BUGGY woke from her nap recently and crawled into EJ's crib. Dad went into their room to check on her. She was emphatic.
"Look Dad! Its right there!" Dad doesn't understand her words, but picks up on her demeanor. Whatever it is, it is important. He notes that she is pointing to the area of EJ's crib covered by the collapsible tent.
Apparently it is a book. She might want to read it to him (or him to her, you never know, she might think Dad needs to practice his reading skills.)
She is concerned about his noncompliance to her wishes. Note the non-verbals. Her right hand waves forward and back to make her point.

Friday, May 16, 2014

Update: Selfies

BUGGY has learned how to use Dad's phone to take selfies and pictures. This is a mixed blessing. You get to see the photos worth sharing. The ones you don't see are Dad in compromising situations like
  •  Dad flossing
  •  Dad grooming nose hair
  •  Dad undressing
  •  Dad snoring on the couch
  •  Dad doing almost anything you don't really care to imagine Dad doing




Thanks Mom for showing them how to do it! There will be retribution.  

Update: More selfies

Lynette says, "she loves looking at herself." Yes she does.

Everybody Act Crazy

OKAY, no one needs to give that command in this house, it happens spontaneously everyday, several times a day.


The side table is, well, on its side, and the Twins are playing in it yelling and screaming. 

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Firehouse Subs

MOM and Dad were recently famished, too tired to go home and prepare dinner, but bored with their usual take out. So they agreed to try Firehouse Subs. Dad and Twins waited in the car. Mom went in to order. While waiting she came back with the hats.





Pretty Eyes

THE Twin's eyes are beautiful, one of the better blessings.

EJ has brown eyes with a few specks of hazel flake. Buggy has strikingly light blue eyes.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Playtime Before Bedtime

DEPENDING on how the kids are doing and what else is going on, Mom and Dad will play with the kids. Here they walk around with them on their shoulders.



Hiding in Cabinets

THE baby proofing products on the market today are generally worthless. The Twins learn to defeat them.So the only alternative is to make the areas the want to explore safe. Below Mom (thanks Mom!) removed all of the stuff on the lower shelves so the kids can play inside.





Yes, it is not completely safe. There are pinch points and EJ has already suffered from one blister on his finger :-( .

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Take Your Twins to Work Day

MOM caught "Spring Fever" one Friday and so took they day off of work. The Family ended up all going into work with her to visit, cause mayhem, and generally cause productivity to suffer.






Thanks to Donna N. for letting the Twins destroy her cube. She is so nice and accommodating.

Tired Boy

THE New Family has resolved to get out more frequently, even if it means inconveniencing the Twins (cutting into nap time for example). Now good sleep is still a priority, and the family maintains good sleep habits, but an occasional excursion out that overlaps nap time is not a problem.

EJ didn't mind all. He just nodded off. Buggy, on the other hand, needs the structure of routine and the familiarity of her bedroom to settle down and sleep. For now at least.

Monday, May 12, 2014

Stuff they do together

THE Twins do a number of activities together. They are really adept at puzzles. Dad has spent some time with them and they seem to have picked up on the skill.



They also like to doodle on their Magna-Doodle. Dad has been trying to get Buggy to draw a circle. While she has made valiant attempts, concentrating hard at controlling the stylus, she has yet to produce something that would pass for a circle. She has made an oval, but the ends did not meet. EJ has not shown an interest but still likes to scribble on it.
They like to eat together too. Dad cannot give one food without the other asking for the same thing. And it has to be the same thing, even if they don't like it. If Dad gives Buggy cheese popcorn, EJ wants cheese popcorn even though Dad knows he prefers caramel corn.

Thanks, but Leave Us Alone Dad



"We're kinda busy at the moment looking out the sliding glass door. Okay? So why don't you go find something to do? We'll let you know if we need something."

Pico de Gallo

WITH the arrival of Spring comes fresh vegetables. Dad keeps an eye out for when the ingredients for Pico all look appetizing simultaneously at the market.

The ingredients are simple, Roma tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, green onions, fresh garlic, cilantro, lemon juice, sugar, and salt. Everything except the lemon juice, salt, and sugar is diced and combined in a bowl. Then Dad makes lemonade combining lemon juice and sugar and pours it over the combined produce. He adds some table salt and lets it sit in the fridge for a few hours so the the salt and sugar can do its work. Then he pulls it out and tastes it adding more salt and or sugar as necessary. 

You will never get this out of a jar.

Depantsed

DAD recently counted down the minutes until Mom arrived home so she could take over parenting the Twins while he ran out to the store and took a break. When he arrived home, he noted that everyone had taken off their pants.


Welcome to the Hanasik house, pants optional.

Weeble Wobbles

WHEN did Weeble Wobbles get so big? Dad had these as a kid, but they were about the size of the 9-volt pictured.


McDonalds Drive-Thru Play

MOM came home from the resales and brought with her the cute little cash register and headset.



EJ's Spot

EJ love to crawl up onto Mom and Dad's bed, grab the remote, and make himself comfortable while watching TV. Dad didn't even know the boy did this until the other day. Dad had put him down for a nap and left the room to go do some work. He became curious though when he heard what sounded like a television playing, so he went to investigation. This is what he found.


PITA, as in Pain In The A**. But Dad had to smile because he picked between Mom and Dad's pillows, as if he knows Mom lays there, Dad lays there, so I can be here!