Open Letter to Dora

I've mentioned my feelings on kids' TV programming before, and while I am generally positive about it, there are a few shows I'm not that into. However, this post really sums my feelings up pretty well:

Dear Dora, We Need To Talk

Heidi sent me this a few days ago, and I've been meaning to post it here, and I just kept getting sidetracked from it.

The Geekiest Thing I Have Ever Seen

...and I've known lots of geeks, been a geek myself for quite a while, and have seen some truly geeky things. But THIS...

Mythbusters' Adam Savage...

Singing "I Will Survive"...

In the voice of Gollum from Lord of the Rings...

Accompanied by a guitar-playing Wookiee.



If THAT isn't geeky, I don't know what is. (Thanks to Chong, who of course attended the w00tstock 2.4 where this was done, which incidentally was during Comic-con...I said it was geeky.)

18 Months Today!

GO JULIANNA!!! YAAAAYYY!!!

That pic above is from early April, but it is really representative of her. She's growing incredibly quickly...super-mobile, fearless, loves the water, talks like crazy, ultra-willful. She's a firecracker...I can see she's going to be quite a handful as she gets older.



With pigtails...isn't she awesome?



She's a true Oklahoma girl...loves the water and loves to swim.



Most importantly, she loves spending time with her daddy.

Here It Is, The Real Deal

You've been to the concerts...you've heard the music. Now, here's the REAL THING, and you can own it yourself...an original REO Speed Wagon! Didn't think you'd ever see one, did you?



No, it's not mine...but this was a humorous addition to my day. Who knew that the group whose name has become synonymous with "power ballad", who became known for hauling heavy emotion, originated from something that had some power itself and hauled other things regularly? Hope you like it!

When You Need A Sentry Gun

You know, a sentry gun you can use in case you're concerned about aliens or something. Aliens that are killed by paintballs.

Try one of these out. And enjoy a full demo video below.



Good times.

Youtube Of The Day

First, there was Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Now, there's this:



and this is MUCH better.

Blog Post Of The Day

Courtesy of my wonderful wife Heidi, here's a wonderful post that any parents out there will immediately identify with. It's titled, "Why Having A Toddler Is Like Being At A Frat Party." Enjoy!

Youtube Of The Day

Via Instapundit:



It's all about you and your Johnson, especially with your girl. Your kids, though...maybe not so much.

Big Step Forward for Katie

I have had the benefit of witnessing many Big Steps Forward for my children in the past year. Owen starting preschool (THAT was a big day) and memorizing the names of the planets (and even individual moons of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn)...Julianna walking everywhere and saying actual words that communicate with us...Donovan's first full season of tackle football...Connor's emergence toward adolescence and all of the things that brings, such as a rabid interest in comic books and sci-fi that we can share.

This week, we had Katie here all week, so she had her own Big Step Forward. She's 15 now, and so we started driving lessons in earnest this week. We had a brief one during her time here last summer, but it was mostly focused on just learning steering, brakes, and gas. This time, we started working on a little more...and expanding her horizons and pushing the envelope a little bit. Here's her test from her lesson this past Tuesday night:



Then, for yesterday, I got two longer videos, as she did her little tests for me. Here's the first, with her completely on her own.



This last one is in-car, for the full experience.



Good job, Katie! We're proud of you! Keep working hard on it and you'll get to drive on your own some time soon.