Ben's bunkmates

Ben needs all three Smurfettes on his pillow before he'll sleep. Should I be worried?

Office Space

Just two moments from my insane job - a scene from the break room and the items needed for a meeting today.

Proud Moments

Jackson does math, Ben hand feeds dogs.

Cage Match

Jackson and Ben love to play outside when I grill, and Jackson told me to turn around so I could see what he and Ben were doing. Jackson was leading caged Ben around by a leash on the cage. I told him to stop before someone got hurt, but then told them to let me take a picture for you.

Happy birthday, Grandmariachi!

Five years ago, a plus sign appeared on a stick on Grandma Stockman's birthday, meaning a) we were having a baby and b) nothing could ever top what we gave Grandma Stockman that birthday - the name Grandma. So now on her fourth birthday as a grandma, we can only provide cupcakes, Mexican food, and a serenade complete with sombreros. Happy birthday, Grandma!

Two Dates in Three Days

Three day weekend - two free concert tickets, three songs listened to before we abandoned, one trip to Westador institution El Imperial, two stomach aches, eight am wake-up at home (with boys at grandparents'), one wedding, four servings of steak between us, and what really mattered - her two eyes and nothing to distract me. Thanks to all the grandparents who made this possible.

Stuman

An old friend bought me a beer about six months ago. I finally drank it with him. Afterwards, he made the best steak I have ever eaten. So, yes, he is a good friend.

Daniel Tiger

We love Daniel Tiger, but his visit to my job was a lot of work. Luckily, I did have two test subjects to take pictures with him the morning he visited.

First and five

Thanks to my co-worker Keith, I had tickets to the Texans pre-season game against the Saints, five rows back from the field! It was a surprise for Jackson, who never put together the surprise's clues - new Texans jersey and ear plugs. His first game was mostly successful, but he didn't care for the cannons fired after we scored. (That ended up not being much of an issue being as we lost.) Note the covered ears.

Sleeping In

This morning, I awoke to realize I had not woken up. All week, Ben has been restless, waking up at random points in the night, meaning we were constantly waking up too. This morning, I woke up and started getting ready, but everyone else got to keep sleeping due to Meet the Teacher Day starting at 9 at the boys' school. When I left around 6:15, everyone was still sleeping. Shen I got to work around 7, I got this picture. Wish I was there.

The sign

Every afternoon, I inch along Westpark Tollway. If traffic starts backing up at this sign, I have about fifteen minutes to go. If it backs up before it, it's about five minutes added per half mile. Tonight, it took me ten minutes before I got here. This means commuting sucks.

Pictures of the kids in my office

So if you come to my work, you'll find some big pictures of my boys on the wall.

Mommy comes home.

First thing the kids requested after Mommy's night away.

Jenny visits!

When you refer to a friend as an aunt, it builds up expectations for when they visit. The boys were so excited to see Jenny again, and we played at her house, shopped at Goodwill, and ate tacos. They considered this the highlight of the day.

Watch me.

Ben has little obsessions, namely random toys he wants near him as much as possible. This has led to him requesting that the toys watch him eat or sleep... or poop. He will grow out of this.

Breakfast without Mommy

While Mommy was in San Antonio, we tried a new breakfast place. The boys were thrilled.

Artificially Attentive

I wanted to be an attentive husband and father but I had to work late, so I sent my stand-in.