Some January kidspeak:

“Whatever food you’re making I’ll be in time for.”
— the kid’s response to “Breakfast is ready!”

Dad: “Look! We’re going through the castle. That’s the portcullis.
Do you know what that is?”
Kid: “Yes.”
— a conversation as we enter Disneyland

“Why does your hair look like a little crown, Dad?”
“Why does your hair look like fireworks?”
“What did you say about your hair looking like the water show?”
— the kid riffs on her dad’s hair

January was pretty fun. In addition to the kid celebrating her fifth birthday, we also had a fun trip to a little place called Disneyland.

January Happenings:

• We celebrated the new year with a trip to the beach
• We wrote about a letter from Santa
• The kid and her mom saw the SF Nutcracker
• We posted a Disneyland video

January Book Readin’:

A Storm of Swords

The Killer of Little Shepherds

Movie Watchin’:

Midnight In Paris

50/50

Crazy, Stupid Love

Fish Story

TV Gazin’:

Downton Abbey, Season 1

Downton Abbey, Season 2

December Kidspeak:

“Well what do you know….I’ve been wanting one of these for years!”
— the kid, while opening items found in her Christmas stocking

“Think pink! Think pink! That proves the kitchen sink!”
“Everything is muffin, YES, when strawberries are here!”
— the kid, making up songs as she runs up and down the hall

Another month (and year!) is now history. The kid and her mom instructed me to wake them up right before midnight so they could ring in the new year. However, when I gave Jill a little nudge at 11:53 PM, she gave me a “What are you, crazy?” look and immediately went back to sleep. Oh well.

Happy new year.

December Happenings:

• We created a July – December, 2011 video and photo collage
• We posted a few Christmas videos here, here, and here
• We visited the 2011 Dickens Fair
• We visited a Waldorf school

December Book Readin’:

The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

My 2011 Reading List (from most to least enjoyed):

• A Clash of Kings – George R. R. Martin
• A Game of Thrones – George R. R. Martin
• Unbroken – Laura Hildebrand
• Moneyball – Michael Lewis
• The Call of the Wild – Jack London
• A Walk in the Woods – Bill Bryson
• Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
• Moonwalking with Einstein – Joshua Foer
• Life of Pi – Yann Martel
• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe – Douglas Adams
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
• Mockingjay – Suzanne Collins
• Freakonomics- Steven Levitt
• The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell
• The Psychopath Test – Jon Ronson
• The Partly Cloudy Patriot – Sarah Vowell
• The Professor and the Madman – Simon Winchester
• A Visit From the Goon Squad – Jennifer Egan
• Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs – Chuck Klosterman
• ESPN: Those Guys Have All the Fun – James Miller and Tom Shales
• Notes from a Small Island – Bill Bryson
• I’m a Stranger Here Myself – Bill Bryson

Movie Watchin’:

Hugo

Limitless

Warrior

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

TV Gazin’:

Community, Season 3

Amazing Race, Season 19

American Horror Story, Season 1

Dad: “You’re, uh…”
Kid: “…THE BEST KID IN THE WHOLE WORLD. THE END!”
— the kid finishes her dad’s sentence for him

Here’s the latest chapter of “Life with the Kid”. In this ongoing series I post a video collage of pics and videos from the past half year.

This latest installment contains approximately 180 photos and 20 video clips and clocks in at 9 minutes and 37 seconds.

Previous installments:

1. 2007: Part 1 (Jan – Jun) | Part 2 (Jul – Dec)
2. 2008: Part 1 | Part 2
3. 2009: Part 1 | Part 2
4. 2010: Part 1 | Part 2
5. 2011: Part 1 | Part 2

All pics and short videos used in this collage were taken from July through December, 2011.

Music used:

• “Feel Good Inc.” from Demon Days by Gorrilaz
• “Coffee & TV” from 13 by Blur
• “Porno Music” from the Freaks & Geeks Soundtrack by Michael Andrews

“Ooh look, a tiny cat chocolate. I’ve been wondering if there was a new kind of chocolate.”
— the kid, while digging through her Christmas stocking

Here’s “Oy, They Grow Up Fast #10″, the latest post in an ongoing series showing how the kid has changed over the past six months.

Below you can find previous “Oy, They Grow Up Fast” posts. Click on a pic to view the original post.

And here’s a super-sized version with all 60 pics:

November Kidspeak:

Me: “Have you seen my phone? I can’t find it.”
Jill: “You can try calling it.”
Kid: “PHONE, WHERE ARE YOU?!”
— The kid helps her dad find a missing gadget

Me: “I don’t recognize that frog.”
Kid: “He’s from Savers.”
Me: “He looks like he’s from Savers.”
Kid: “Yeah, he has really funny details, but I love him!”
— The kid and her dad discuss a funny looking frog resued from Savers

“He’s as clean as a star!”
— The kid describes the condition of a 1968 Santa Snoopy she and her mom snagged at Savers

Some stuff from November, 2011 Happenings:

• The kid and her mom went to a surfing tournament
• The kid made a To Do list
• I rediscovered a Christmas video from 1998
• I did a little volunteer work
• I went to UFC 139 in San Jose

November Book Readin’:

A Clash of Kings

Movie Watchin’:

Into the Wild

Super 8

Morning Glory

The King’s Speech

TV Gazin’:

Stephen Fry in America

Sons of Anarchy, Season 3

UFC on Fox 1

Some October kidspeak:

“Just in time for the kitty cat wedding!”
— the first thing I heard as soon as I came home from work one day

“Just in time for a hedgehog tea party!”
— the first thing I heard as soon as I came home from work the following day

“Snoring Daddy wake up, it’s morning!”
— the first thing I heard on a Sunday at 6:30 am

Another month has come and gone. October was pretty productive for me. I cranked out a few videos, read a few books, ate some slightly healthier foods. Yep, can’t really complain about ol’ Octubre.

October Happenings:

• The kid and her mom visited the Elizabeth Gamble Garden
• We checked out a Flea Market
• Steve Jobs passed away
• The kid and her mom visited Filoli a few times. Post 1 | Post 2
• I rediscovered an 8 year old video
• I posted a bunch of ‘family history’ videos. Video 1 | Video 2 | Video 3

October Book Readin’:

Ready Player One

Notes from a Small Island

I’m a Stranger Here Myself

Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs

Movie Watchin’:

Thor

Pulling John

Bridesmaids

TV Gazin’:

Breaking Bad, Season 4

UFC 136

UFC 137

Pride and Prejudice (Jill)

Some September kidspeak:

“It’s funny what boys like. I bet he would like rotten apples! Like rotten pears with smears of ketchup on them. I bet boys like that. I bet daddy thinks it’s funny what girls like. I bet they would like salami dollies! Salami cake with salami cherries on top! I bet boys like that stuff.”
— the kid

“I wonder why he likes that gorilla doll!”
— the kid wonders about the one hopelessly outnumbered doll (Godzilla) in the house that doesn’t belong to her or her mom

“That cone was knocked over by invisible Wubie. That shows that Wubie is still part of the family!”
— while driving past some roadwork, the kid comments on a displaced traffic pylon

October is nearly upon us, so we bid adieu to September. Below is a list of a few things we did over the last thirty days…

September Stuff:

• We took a drive along the coast
• The kid read us a story
• We visited Filoli. Post 1 | Post 2 | Post 3
• The kid went on a bug hunt
• The kid jotted down her first grocery list

September Book Readin’:

The Call of the Wild

A Walk in the Woods

Movie Watchin’:

Unknown

Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop

The Tourist (Jill)

TV Gazin’:

Breaking Bad, Season 3

Dexter, Season 5

UFC 135

The Seasons with Alan Titchmarsh (Jill)

Some August kidspeak:

“Come on Daddy, let’s go rock and roll!”
— the kid invites me to dance

“I do the hoogie-boogie!”
— the kid’s current favorite saying

“It just randomly happened.”
— the kid explains a spill

“It’s no fun being a bundle!”
— the kid’s not having a good day

The kid had a very busy August. In addition to a visit with grandparents in Grass Valley, she also got to play with various cousins, went to a museum, played games at an Obon festival, and got to do lots of miscellaneous kid stuff. We’re about to enter the last third of 2011, my favorite third of the year. I look forward to the rest of 2011.

August Happenings:

• We made a donation.
• We went to the museum.
• We checked out Movie Night in Los Altos
• The kid won a prize at the 2011 Palo Alto Obon Festival
• We went to Grass Valley
• We posted some Wubie memories
• The kid put on a show

August Book Readin’:

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference

Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN

Movie Watchin’:

Black Swan

The Odd Couple

TV Gazin’:

Breaking Bad, Season 1

Breaking Bad, Season 2

UFC 133

UFC 134

A list from the kid on all the things she can recall about Wubert (note her numbering system):

 

‘Bad’ things about Wubie:

#1. He misses the litterbox
#2. Poop spots on the pillow
#3. He jumps up on the table and eats your bacon.
#6. He walks right on the board when you’re playing candyland
#7. He jumps on the table when you’re busy.
#10. He jumps on the dining table and walks right on so you have to wash it.
#11. The first time we got him he locked himself in the closet
#11. He scratches you
#18. He bites you
#11. He tries to run out the door when you open it

 

‘Good’ things about Wubie:

#1. He doesn’t mind it when you comb him w/ his cat comb
#2. Sometimes he sits still and quiet when he’s waiting for his food (when he’s just been combed)
#2. He never ever jumps in the dollys and messes up their tea parties (that’s only in the stories)

July started out great, with a wonderful trip to Ohio for a family reunion on Jill’s side. Alas, the month ended on a tragic note, where suddenly and unexpectedly we ended up saying goodbye to Wubert, our thirteen-year old cat. You will be missed, Wubie.

July Happenings:

• A trip to Sugarcreek, Ohio.
• A visit to a farm in Ohio. (Here’s a video)
• A visit to the Mountain View Obon Festival
• A day at the beach
• The kid did a little traveling
• We said goodbye to Wubie
• A birthday celebration for Gma Vita

July Movie Watchin’:

Captain America

Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead

The Day the Earth Stood Still (AWFUL!)

TV Gazin’:

True Blood, Season 3

Dexter, Season 4

UFC 132

Book Readin’:

Moneyball

The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry

Some kid quotes from June:

“I am a dolly and I carry your stickers”
— The one lyric to the kid’s own song

“You can say ‘Great’ while I’m itching!”
— The kid instructs us to give accolades while she scratches her leg

“Pardon me, but I want to sit on your lap.”
— The Kid

June was a strange month weatherwise, with rain, heat, and hail, but I can’t complain. My good friend, John, is visiting from Arizona, so I’ve been having a great time catching up and goofing off with him. Actually, it’s been a good month in general for seeing friends new and old.

June Happenings:

• Hanging out with old friends (here and here)
• The kid, her mommy, and Auntie Laura had some fun
• The kid and her mommy picked strawberries
• We posted the latest installment of “Oy, They Grow Up Fast” and “Life with the Kid”
• The kid got to play Alice in Wonderland
• The kid’s mommy posted a neat pic comparison here

June Movie Watchin’:

True Grit

Inside Job

Marwencol

TV Gazin’:

Game of Thrones,
Season 1

Dexter, Season 3

UFC 131

Book Readin’:

The Partly Cloudy Patriot

Moonwalking with Einstein