Look What I Found

This is an accidental post. I was looking through old digital photos, trying to find one in particular. I didn't find it, but I did find this one.


Isn't it funny how some things change so much while others don't change at all.

It's Rare When Everyone Cooperates

Today, for the first time in a month, I slept in. Many of you would not consider 7:30 a.m. "sleeping in", but when 5:00 is the norm, anything post-dawn seems like bliss. The downside to the extra z's, this morning, was that by the time I got downstairs all of the coffee was gone. My plan was to head down to the nature trail and take a nice long walk with the camera and just see what I could see.

Not willing to eschew my daily caffeine, I decided a splurge at our local Starbucks was in order. As I made my way down the road to the grocery store where the Starbucks resides, I noticed this pair of Red-tailed Hawks hanging out in what is either a sweet gum or a persimmon tree. Way to narrow it down, eh? Anyway, their perch was down at the Southeast end of the trail, and their presence, I hoped, would be an omen for a very birdie morning.


Because I don't want to make what already promises to be a longish post all that much longer, I'll spare you the circumstances that prevented me from starting my walk on time. Suffice it to say that 2+ hours later and with Mason in tow, I embarked on my journey. I encourage you to click on and enlarge any of the photos. Well, except the ones of the stroller, that would just be gratuitous.


Since I took the pictures of it and everything, now seems like a fine time to introduce you to the latest and greatest addition to our growing family of strollers. Stroller number 5 in our collection (please, please don't ask) is a BOB Revolution. It's chocolate brown and blue, and it's very nice. It had better be, for the price tag. Anyway, this was its maiden voyage. Mason was very comfortable riding in the BOB, so much so that he spent almost the entire walk fast asleep. The BOB's front wheel can be set to swivel, making for a really effortless walk on the road and/or sidewalk, or it can be locked in place for more rough terrain like the nature trail. The car seat adapter works seamlessly and keeps Mason in a perfect posture. Thankfully my unannounced decision to "break 'er in" did not anger Mandi . . at least not outwardly. She's wanted a "good" jogging stroller for some time, but given her current non-jogging state of being I felt it acceptable to put this latest acquisition to work. To quote Cousin Eddie from Christmas Vacation, "It's a good lookin' vehicle, ain't it?"

Anyway, enough about that nonsense, let's talk about birds. Today I did not take the binoculars with me on my walk. My purpose was singular, to get some good photos of the birds that spend regular time on the nature trail this time of year. Whatever else I happened to capture would just be a bonus. My first subject of the day, as is customary, was a Northern Mockingbird. He was quietly mimicking one of the countless Song Sparrows that were flitting about in the brush below his tree.

A few hundred yards or so further down the trail and I got a glimpse of a soaring Red-tailed Hawk. There was another one close by, and because I was in the vicinity of the tree where the pair of red-tails was perched hours before, I assumed they were the same birds.


A good percentage of the plants and trees have finished shedding their leaves and summer colors, making the few remaining spots of color even more brilliant.


These berries won't be long for this world with the throngs of Mockingbirds that are still hanging around.

Hey, Mr. Cooper's Hawk, if you're really hungry I can take you to a big flock of pigeons that hang out on the top of my house.

I think these are sweet gum trees, although I could be completely wrong. Whatever they are, isn't the color pattern on them amazing? The leaves at the top are such a deep burgundy, which fades into a bright red and then a brilliant yellow at the bottom. There were literally dozens of them along the entire length of the trail.


Aren't teenagers great?

With Mason asleep in the BOB I took the opportunity to walk over to one of the few clearings in the trees and take a look down toward the bank of the river. At first I didn't see anything and I almost walked away, but then I heard something I didn't recognize. It wasn't a bird calling or singing, but rather the sound of beating wings. Certain birds, like pigeons, Mourning Doves, and hummingbirds have "signature" sounds associated with their beating wings. This, however was none of those. It almost sounded like a distant helicopter, but faster. I looked and looked and still saw nothing. Then, as if out of nowhere, he was there staring up at me. In all it was a group of about twelve Cedar Waxwings, drinking from the river and turning over leaves to eat what waited beneath. These are one of my favorite birds.



You can't see his face in this photo, but this Eastern Bluebird was happy to pose for a picture today. This tree is a favorite spot for them and the mockingbirds. For those not versed, behind him is what's known as a "Carolina Blue" sky.


I really like these cattails. There are 5 or 6 different really large stands of them throughout the trail in the wetland areas. A nice stiff breeze blew the seeds out of some of them and it almost looked like a snow storm.

A little pishing and the throngs of Song Sparrows taking cover at the bottom of the cattails would hop around and eventually perch atop one of them, usually posing long enough for a photo.

There were quite a few other families out walking the trail today. I can't say that I blame them, as the conditions were perfect. 62 degrees, no humidity, and only a few wispy scattered clouds. An impeccable Fall day in the Carolinas.

If you look closely in the middle of this next shot you'll see what I am assuming is a Red-tailed Hawk keeping watch over one of the ponds. He flew out a number of times to readjust his perch, but I never saw him go after prey. If anyone wants to challenge my ID I'm open to suggestions . . this isn't where I'd expect to see a Red-tail, more likely the habitat of a Cooper's.

Like this one, which was flying overhead very close to where the one above was perched.


Further down, these 2 dogs announced their discontent with my presence. That, or maybe they were just saying "hi" in their loudest, most voracious voice.


The Great Blue Heron that frequents the trail made an appearance. He posed nicely for close-ups.

Another bush covered with surprisingly not-yet-eaten berries. I'm sure it won't be long.

Another Song Sparrow decided to pose for me . . it's so unusual for so many birds to cooperate like they were today. Maybe they liked the BOB!

I thought it odd that I didn't see a single Ruby-crowned Kinglet at any point on the trail, as the last time I went down there they were ubiquitous. Mason, BOB, and I ascended the hill at the end of the trail started up the sidewalk toward home. Then, at the end of the fence, in the farthest corner of the area I'd consider part of the trail, I saw a tiny bird flitting about in a tree. We paused, he posed, and I shot.

I couldn't pass up this shot of this gorgeous Golden Retriever, relaxing lazily in the afternoon sun. He took notice of us, rose up to this posture so I could get the shot, and then promptly lay back down for his nap. He picked a great day for it.

Back To What's Important

Sometimes, like right after he eats, Mason likes to pose for picures. As he's drifting off to sleep a wry little smile will creep over his face. Capturing the exact moment is difficult, but this is pretty close.

Ten tiny toes, all lined up in a row. Try to do this with your feet . . hurts my groin muscles just thinking about it!

Delerium, especially that caused by lack of sleep due to caring for a new baby, can make almost any nickname sound cute and appropriate. While most of Mason's nicknames are just generic baby stuff, I called him by one the other day that Mandi really didn't care for. I explained where it came from and why I thought of it and she was still underwhelmed. I figured I'd just let it go. Then, this afternoon, I was caught off guard when as she finished feeding him she looked down at his little half-open mouth with the milk moustache and said, "Did you get enough to eat Milquetoast?"

"Ah ha!!! You do like that nickname after all!"

"I just kinda couldn't help it when I saw his milky little mouth," she replied.

"I think it's perfect," I said, "except for that whole based-on-a-cartoon-cockroach thing."

For those not familiar, Milquetoast is the loveable cockroach in the Opus and Bloom County comic strips. I know, it's random and vague, but that's part of it's appeal to me. It's not really mainstream, which means nobody else will have it, and not everyone will get it. Perfect! This is kinda what his milk face looks like.


The next picture was just funny. I call this the "Fitch", after my grandfather. My sisters used to give him crap all the time because he'd use his middle finger to point, instead of his index finger. I have no idea why he did that, but it's a lasting memory.


And finally, I call this one the "Daddy, I'm trying to take a nap, can you please knock it off with the bright flashes!" look. I imagine this won't be the last time I get that look.

Why Him?

This will be the only political post I ever do on this blog . . I promise. Can I just tell you how effing glad I am that this election season is nearly over? Oy . . .

I've had countless discussions with people from various different political viewpoints over the last 8 months, and while none of the opposing viewpoints I've heard was good enough to change my mind, at the end of the day I really couldn't begrudge most folks their opinions. A really good friend once told me "Bread (my nickname, short for Cornbread . . don't ask), just because you're right, which you usually are, that doesn't give you the right to go around telling everybody else they're wrong." Whether or not he was right, it just kinda stuck with me. I find that most people have made up their minds about this election long before they started talking to me, and I don't have the energy to try to sway them. The following two opinions are no different, although I have to say they're two of the worst reasons I've heard so far, and it just so happened that I heard them both today (within ten minutes of one another).

Democratic voter #1, who shall remain nameless, is a 20-something white female, single, working and going to school. I have no idea who supports her, whether it's her parents or herself. She's known to be one of only 2 Obama supporters in the office, and as one of the youngest people there we conservatives tend to playfully gang up on her from time to time. Today, for instance, we forwarded all of the robo-calls that came in to the office lines to her extension. It really wasn't nice. Anyway, for whatever reason I decided to press her on her affiliation. The following is a close approximation of the conversation.

Me: Why is it that you think the government should decide where to send the money I earn?

Her: Well, some people just can't afford everything, you know? Why should some people get paid millions of dollars to play a sport, like basketball, when somebody like you or me can't afford day care for our kids?

Me: /head scratch\ So the Bobcats should pay for your day care? Why? What did you do for them?

Her: No, I'm just saying, when somebody gets paid that much money, they should spread it around a little bit so everybody else has it a little easier?

Me: But where does it stop? There are people who make less than you, you know? Should the government take some of your ten dollars an hour and dole it out to those who make less? After all, you get paid all that money just to watch kids.

Her: No, I need all of my money, but somebody who gets millions of dollars a year to play basketball could afford to have less.

Me: But why should they accept that? They wouldn't make that much if the public didn't support that pay structure in their profession. We buy the tickets and watch the ads, they earn what they negotiate. Couldn't somebody just as easily say that you shouldn't even get paid to watch kids, as it's something other people would happily just do for free?

Her: No, that's different.

Me: No, I'm sorry, it's really not. I appreciate you making my argument for me, that was really a lot easier than me having to do it for myself.

The next encounter was with a black woman, probably in her early 30's. She's a hard-working professional mother and wife and a very nice woman, but overall not the sharpest blade on the mower. When we (the group of conservatives that was chatting over lunch) asked her who she would be voting for, the conversation was quite a bit shorter than the first.

Us: Hey, name left out to protect the innocent, who are you voting for?

Her: Honey I done already voted!

Us: Who'd you vote for?

Her: Umm, hello, I'm black, who do you think I voted for?

Ugh.

One of two things was being implied here. First there's the possibility she really feels that as a black woman (I hate the term African American) she has some sort of over-riding obligation to vote for a black candidate regardless of his or her views. If that's the case here (or anywhere), then that is the strongest case anyone can possibly make against programs like Affirmative Action (or at least our modern-day version of it). Essentially this shows the that the relationship many of us are afraid will develop between the public and a far-left leaning President is already existent today. Namely, if people feel like they owe their success (and well-being, and opportunity, etc.) to a certain group or type of politicians, then they'll blindly line up to vote for them and perpetuate their own self-devaluing. They put more importance on this show of loyalty than they do on their own ability to think through the issues and make a decision on their own, leading to an almost cult-like following and belief in a candidate or party. If this is what this woman was implying, then we are indeed fighting to save the identity of our national government.

Or, there's the other possibility, which is that we white folks should just assume that all black people are voting for Obama . This disturbed me, and I actually told her that it insulted me that she was implying that I could make some sort of assumption about her choice of candidate based solely on the color of her skin. If that was her implication, then there's only one racist among the two of us, and it wasn't the one in the Vandy hat. "How dare she?", I thought. Well, she dares because only one of us is allowed to pull the race card in a situation such as this, and again, it wasn't the one in the Vandy hat.

So that's where this political discussion will leave off . . with me frustrated with the dynamic in our country more so than with the actual issues themselves. I honestly feel like what goes on in Washington has almost no bearing on my life. Down the road when we're investing and trying to build wealth I might feel differently, but for now there's very little chance of some new President making my life all that difficult. Don't get me wrong, there's a big difference between the two ideologically, but how much of that rubber actually meets the road here in North Carolina is likely to be insignificant at best. Either way, I feel obliged to leave you with this last image. If you haven't already, get your ass out there and vote tomorrow. It's the only chance you have to validate your complaints when things don't go your way!

Just An Update

This post will contain no funny stories.

Why, you ask?

Simple, really. Retention is directly proportional to sleep.

You'll recall my first post after bringing Mason home, where I claimed that he was showing promise as a much better sleeper than Lily ever was. Put simply, that was more than just a mild case of counting my chickens before they hatch. Rather, it was full-blown premature elation.

I know, I know, the bad puns are getting old. Refer back, if you will, to two paragraphs ago. As it turns out, a mature sense of humor is also directly proportional to sleep. Sorry . . you'll either deal with it or you'll navigate away to the next stop on your blog roll. This is the best I've got under the circumstances.

In place of any funny stories I've decided to offer you photos of the family. Everybody loves a good picture, eh?

Mason's getting really big. At his 2-week appointment he'd gained 13 ounces and a half inch in length. I think his cheeks look chubbier too. He's actually laying on the floor in this picture, playing with his big sisters. They look forward to their few minutes a day of play-with-the-baby time.

Aside from their propensity to put their hands all over his face, they're both really good with him. Lily, for some reason, really likes to shove the pacifier into his mouth at the first sign of any unhappiness. We're working on that with her, but she's as sweet as can be otherwise.



Mason's not so excited about sleeping in his bassinet most times. He seems to prefer the more upright position afforded to him by the swing and the carseat.

We did a dry run on the Halloween costumes last weekend. Mandi and Sarah were planning to take the girls to a Halloween party at North Mecklenburg Park, just down the road in Huntersville. They got all costumed up, drove down there, and then when they got out of the van Mandi heard a hissing sound that could only be one thing (OK, I guess it could have been a King Cobra, but it wasn't). The left rear tire of her van was leaking air, and this was no slow leak. She loaded the girls back in the car (Lily was not happy about missing the party) and brought them home. I spent the better part of Sunday morning at WalMart getting the rear tires replaced (they're the ONLY ones open for tires on Sundays). But I digress . . the costumes looked great, and the girls are excited for their second go-round tomorrow night.

You Can't Teach This

Sorry, I couldn't resist the opportunity to pun MC Hammer.

Seriously though . . while there are certain things you can definitely teach your children, I don't believe passive-agressiveness is one of them. I myself have been known to be a bit passive-agressive at times, but not because I was taught the approach by anyone in particular. I just kind of fell in to it on my own. From the looks of this note, Avery's picking it up nicely on her own as well. Gotta make you proud, eh?



What you see before you is our grocery list, which we keep on the refrigerator. Below the small list of things we need to pick up is a note from Avery . . "Corey, what about my checklist?"

The checklist she's referring to is for her daily chores. Her weekly allowance is tied to the checklist, and I'll admit it's been quite some time since we last printed the checklist or paid the allowance. She's asked me once or twice just recently, but with all that's going on I imagine she just didn't want to push the issue. So, instead, she's resorted to dropping hints.

I actually quite like the approach . . this way instead of me having the opportunity to snap at her for being impatient about the list, she's placed the onus squarely on me. "Just get around to it eventually" this note says to me. Great, now don't I feel like the big jerk. Needless to say, I printed out her new-and-improved checklist yesterday and have recommitted to paying her the allowance. She even asked to have more chores added to her list for this go-round. I put her in charge of dumping the compost and taking the recycling out to the garage. That was worth an extra dollar a week to her, so I'm all for it. Say what you want about passive-agressive not being the best approach to solving problems, it seems to have worked perfectly for Avery this time.

So Far, So Good

After 2 nights at home with Mason, we're starting to settle in.

Tuesday night was a bit on the rough side. Mason spent the majority of the daylight hours sleeping, which of course led to a wakeful night. As tired as Mandi and I were after getting only about 3 hours of sleep each, there was no time to pout. Mason's first appointment at the doctor's office was Wednesday morning at 8:30.

We didn't see a doctor this time, as it was really more of a weight check appointment than anything. The lactation specialist we saw gave him a quick once-over and was very helpful in addressing some of our concerns.

After dropping down from his birth weight of 7lb. 6oz. to 6lb. 11oz. on Saturday, Mason's bounced back like a champ and was up to 6lb. 14oz. yesterday morning. The expectation is that he reaches his birthweight by 14 days of life, meaning he's got to gain about 3/4 of an ounce each day. They weighed him again after a feeding and determined that he'd eaten almost an ounce and a third, which we're told was great for a 14 minute feeding. Go Mommy! With his zeal for eating, I forsee him easily regaining his birthweight by his 14 day appointment.

When we told the specialist about our rough night she immediately gave us a few suggestions regarding how to avoid those in the future. Without getting too specific, she basically just told us to aggrivate the hell out of him during the day so he'd be worn out at night time and ready to sleep. She told us to cluster feed him, keep him awake after feedings, and basically just wear his little butt out. I guess I didn't expect him to be treated so much like the other kids so soon! So that's what we did. We let him try out his vibrating bouncy seat and the swing, both of which he seemed to enjoy. He stayed alert quite a bit and ate well every time he was given the opportunity.

And wouldn't you know it, just as predicted he went to bed at 8:30 when the girls did and only woke up twice in the night to eat. Mandi and I each got about 7 hours of sleep, which is more than double what we got on the previous night. In fact, we slept so late that we had to really hustle to get Avery out the door to the bus! No worries, she made it on time and had a good breakfast too. Hopefully this pattern will continue and Mason won't be the insufferable sleeper that Lily was for so long. After his morning feedings today he sat for about an hour in the bouncy seat facing the windows, the curtains drawn back and the sun warming the room. He watched Mike & Mike in The Morning with me and listened to Lily tell him how much she loves him. She absolutely can not get enough of her baby brother. I love watching the way he responds to the sound of her voice when she talks to him. It's apparent to me that all that time she spent talking to him while he was in Mandi's belly paid off for both of them, as he quite obviously recognizes her loving tone.


It doesn't really fit here in the story, but when looking through pictures to add to this post I decided I had to add one of Mason's first bath at home. Mandi had him all set up in the sink in our bathroom . . he again loved having his hair washed but really didn't care for the body scrubbing. Oh well, he can't be perfect!

I'll do my best to keep the updates coming, but computer time has been lacking the last few days. I've been trying to make the most of the time I have when Mandi's feeding Mason in the middle of the night, but so far that's amounted to getting the girls' lunches packed and keeping the medicine and nursing journal. As for my birding reports, it's safe to say they might be few and far between for a week or so. I've heard reports of some of the wintering sparrows arriving in the area, but I've yet to see any for myself. No worries though, those things can wait.