September 21st, we knew Ian’s school’s addiction to sugar was not good… but frosting on a rice krispie treat? See this image larger.
On a personal side note, it was this day, September 21st, when I got the following text from my new/old friend Steve, who was working on an adventure video game called Lilly Looking Through:
What would it cost to hire a guy like yourself with skills similar to yours, to work 9 months to help work on an adventure game?
The answer was, of course, a lot more money than they had… but it didn’t matter. With Melissa’s approval, I told Steve I’d help him. At 41, this old dog was not only going to learn a new trick, but had found a whole new back yard in which to play, the one he’d always longed to be a part of. 🙂 Should it have a future, or be just a one-off deal — it’s still a big deal in and of itself. I got to try to do the thing I always wanted to do… stuff I had written off as impossible considering how “settled” life is now. How many people get that chance?
September 22nd, Ian and Nina make their own fortress/tent in the sunroom! See this image larger.
Well done, kids. You look really packed in there. Now who has to go potty, anybody? See this image larger.
You get a real sense of scale here. I know who would win in a fight, but if there was some kind of stinky foot battle? I think it’d be a toss up, honestly. See this image larger.
Some weird interactive art installation thingy that was both fun and functional! See this image larger.
A day later, Mommy got a nice card for coming in to Muffins With Moms! See this image larger.
Mrs. Lanham kindly passed along the original shot from the card, as well! See this image larger.
September 26th, one of Ian and I’s afternoons together after school. See this image larger.
This wasn’t too much of a staged shoot. I ran in, grabbed my camera when I noticed the lighting, and asked for some smiles. See this image larger.
What I feel like I got was the definitive images of Ian for that summer and even this age. See this image larger.
This is potentially my favorite shot of Ian for all time. He glows. I definitely recommend looking at this one larger. (I did do some minor photoshop work here, a scrape near his elbow, a stain on his shirt, a little food or something on his face…) See this image larger.
September 28th, the school had a “walk” for a charity. I know they raised $15,000 but I can’t remember what for. Probably to buy more candy. Melissa and I both came down to join in, but we missed Ian as he walked right by us here. (It turns out he drew the short straw to carry the “Lanham” sign indicating what class they were in, so he was walking right next to her! We caught up eventually!) See this image larger.
What a great day. When I look at these pics I can almost feel the warmth of the sun, and I remember being very happy. See this image larger.
Pre-walk, the kids gathered for a group shot. Ian is in the front on the left. See this image larger.
Post-walk, the participants of Mrs. Lanham’s class gathered for another shot. We’re on the right toward the back. 🙂 See this image larger.
https://outoftheirminds.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/ootmd-logo-dark-wings-3Asset-15.svg00vrbfwhttps://outoftheirminds.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/ootmd-logo-dark-wings-3Asset-15.svgvrbfw2013-03-02 15:49:022013-03-02 15:49:02Muffins With Mommy (and other adventures)
September 12th, checking in Ian’s folder after school — orange highlight means he knows the letters, he did pretty darn awesome! See this image larger.
September 14th, Awww! Look at the pigtails on that little beauty! (And somebody bought Mommy flowers, see kids? Daddy wasn’t always mindless.) See this image larger.
This was one of my first Friday lunches with Melissa. We don’t always do these, but when we do, it is really nice to get a little “us” time to chat. See this image larger.
Nina lines up her blocks in a big “train.” There might be more to this story, Mommy took this one, so I’m not sure. See this image larger.
September 21st, Ian put some blue chalk on this fallen leaf, and I thought it was a great color contrast. Nice! See this image larger.
Ian hopped outside and wanted a dry slide. But it was wet from the rain. See this image larger.
Now, if I had tried this, I’d have ended up with a wet butt and two paper towels up the back of my shirt. Ian, on the other hand, sat on two paper towels, slid to the end, and wound up with wet paper towels and a dry slide. Good job, buddy! See this image larger.
https://outoftheirminds.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/ootmd-logo-dark-wings-3Asset-15.svg00vrbfwhttps://outoftheirminds.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/ootmd-logo-dark-wings-3Asset-15.svgvrbfw2013-03-01 12:17:322013-03-01 12:17:32Still Somehow Holding Off Fall
I was always sure to get at least one update per month on the blog, even if a very late one… but I finally let an entire calendar month go by without an update, January of 2013. Disappointing, but understandable; I’ve never had less time. Excuse me while I get back into the swing of doing this. Undoubtedly I’ll find some things that slipped through the cracks, and make a mad attempt to bring them back to the surface. As we have a lot to catch up on, expect there to be multiple updates per day in the future, without warning. Sorry about the delays! Let’s do this!
Still Ian’s first day of school, but these pictures were provided by Ian’s teacher! That’s him on the right there looking a little crazy. See this image larger.
The kids in front of the sign for the school, that’s him in the back on the left. (Photo by Mrs. Lanham.) See this image larger.
September 5th, I checked to make sure Ian found his way on his second day of class. The first thing they did the day after orienting the kids was park the buses on the other side of the round-about so that the kids were disoriented. Nice! See this image larger.
Ian had to learn lunchbox etiquette. For example, there’s some things that don’t have to be brought home. Like partially empty juice boxes. Half of an egg. Straw wrappers. The other part of the juice, not in the box. That kind of going’s on. See this image larger.
September 6th, Nina hangs out on the porch and reads a cloth book. See this image larger.
September 7th, Ian and I spent the afternoon after school outside doing chalk drawings; here Ian draws the whole family. I believe Ian was on the left, I’m wearing the hat… See this image larger.
Nina is wearing the purple and green. Mommy is playing some kind of game with a ball… See this image larger.
… and Seth the kitty is apparently so long that he stretched right into the garage!!! See this image larger.
Nina came home from daycare and showed me her baseball bat. I told her that the one with which I will be keeping her high school boyfriends at bay will weigh about that much, but be made of aluminum for maximum bruises. See this image larger.
That night, our kids gather with the two little ones next door, Brendan and Jake. As I probably mentioned, we watch Brendan a bit every school day… in return we get an occasional night out. See this image larger.
September 10th, Ian drew what he imagined the batcave would look like. See this image larger.
My little cutie came with me to the grocery store, and rode “Sandy” the horse — a long-standing tradition in our family, apparently! See this image larger.
Funny that as I write this, its only a few months later, and Nina looks quite a bit different. What a little peanut! See this image larger.
https://outoftheirminds.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/ootmd-logo-dark-wings-3Asset-15.svg00vrbfwhttps://outoftheirminds.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/ootmd-logo-dark-wings-3Asset-15.svgvrbfw2013-02-28 23:53:262013-02-28 23:53:26Grasping the Last Bits of Summer
Muffins With Mommy (and other adventures)
On a personal side note, it was this day, September 21st, when I got the following text from my new/old friend Steve, who was working on an adventure video game called Lilly Looking Through:
The answer was, of course, a lot more money than they had… but it didn’t matter. With Melissa’s approval, I told Steve I’d help him. At 41, this old dog was not only going to learn a new trick, but had found a whole new back yard in which to play, the one he’d always longed to be a part of. 🙂 Should it have a future, or be just a one-off deal — it’s still a big deal in and of itself. I got to try to do the thing I always wanted to do… stuff I had written off as impossible considering how “settled” life is now. How many people get that chance?
Still Somehow Holding Off Fall
Grasping the Last Bits of Summer
I was always sure to get at least one update per month on the blog, even if a very late one… but I finally let an entire calendar month go by without an update, January of 2013. Disappointing, but understandable; I’ve never had less time. Excuse me while I get back into the swing of doing this. Undoubtedly I’ll find some things that slipped through the cracks, and make a mad attempt to bring them back to the surface. As we have a lot to catch up on, expect there to be multiple updates per day in the future, without warning. Sorry about the delays! Let’s do this!