So we decided to rearrange some furniture . . .

Before

After

What inspired this sudden burst of interior design genius?

Elton John or Charles Nelson Riley?

Alexander borrowed some shades this past weekend. We think they suit him.

Emergency room, parks, climbing

I just finished two books on Wednesday, marking the end of a months-long work marathon, so as usual, here's a catchup blog on all the Mallon craziness.

The weekend our stove caught on fire, Darrick had to go to the emergency room. He stabbed himself in the hand with a steak knife, trying to pry granola from the pan. We spent the entire day at the emergency room, but Alexander was awesome. He hung out in my lap for a while, cruised the waiting room, played with the water fountain, showed us his amazing powers by opening and closing the automatic door, and then spent some time trying to unlock a door with a pretzel stick.

Darrick's stitches are out, and his hand is fine, but now we have to be very watchful to avoid another trip to the emergency room, as you can see from the photos and video below:





Last Sunday, we met for lunch at Reid Park with the Fawcetts and the Beaudry Brockschmidts. Alexander particularly enjoyed the rose garden. We couldn't find his hat, so he's wearing one of Darrick's (sometimes).






We've also had other park adventures, but I'll save that for another blog.

Fire

Went to turn off the oven last night, and the knob starting sparking like crazy, then caught on fire. Darrick put the fire out, but it kept restarting until he managed to pull the stove out and unplug it. The fumes were horrible, but the house is aired out now, and we were able to keep the air in Alexander's room clear.

Fortunately, we didn't have to use the fire extinguisher. That would have been an annoying mess.

Darrick is perversely excited because now he can get a gas stove, which apparently is much, much better for cooking. We have hookups for gas and electric. Until we can fit this in the budget, however, we will be getting very creative with our microwave.

Sorry, no Alexander stories or photos because I have to get back to work (what with a fire interrupting my worktime yesterday). See the latest photos on www.flickr/photos/mallons. I'll blog about our park adventures and all the crazy people we meet as well as the other kids as soon as I can.

Parks!

A quick blog mid-work marathon. Darrick has been taking Alexander on outdoor adventures on the weekends while I get caught up on work. Last Saturday and this Saturday, he went to Sabino Canyon with Case and Case's daughter Gia.





Last Sunday, Alexander and Darrick went to Lakeside Park.





And in the mornings during the week, Alex and I have been going to play at a local park, although getting photos of anything but his moving back has been difficult!





Here's a quick video of him kicking the ball, falling over, then realizing it's kind of cool down there, looking up at that big sky.



Then, of course, he calculated the number of park visits on his abacus:



More photos, as always, on our flickr site.

Grandpas and Grandmas

Grandpa Ed and Grandma Betty visited in February, making Alexander the King of Elmoland.






Grandpa Scott and Grandma Mary also visited in February, and there was much dancing and rejoicing.




Alexander calculated the number of 2008 grandparent visits on his abacus.

Christmas birthday Nana visit tooth brushing spaghetti eating extravaganza super blog

OK, so we've had a string of illnesses, sprained back, work, blah, blah, blah, so here's your photo blog for December/January.

Lots of goodies for Christmas, opened over the course of several days. On Christmas day itself, he got the gift that keeps on giving: viral diarrhea (picture not shown).





In January, after our viral houseguests left, he had his first spaghetti dinner:





Then his nana visited for his first birthday, spoiling him rotten yet again.





He enjoyed cake for the first time along with his very first glass of milk, which he chugged. He chose the frosting color (red food coloring = pink frosting), gender stereotypes be damned.




And he's been brushing his teeth and generally growing into more of a boy than a baby, right before our very eyes, although his growth is slowing. At his 12-month checkup, he'd gained only 7 ounces since his 9-month visit, and two inches. So his superhuman growth has slowed, to be replaced with speed (running everywhere), the power of invisibility, and mesmerism. His stare makes people uncomfortable, perhaps because they fear he can see right through them. Don't worry, he's merely brainwashing you into sending him more cake and toys. He doesn't know where you hid the body, although we are starting to suspect he has mob connections.

Walking and Talking

For a few weeks, he's been walking a few steps in between things. Then last week, after we rearranged to set up a larger play area for him, he started doing this. Just needed the space, I guess!



And he's been enjoying a new phone from Nana and Papa. Sorry the video is dark. We had him open the present at night. We have photos too, but still have to take the red out before uploading them. (Mom and Tom, we have several videos of him actually "opening" the gift, which took forever and would bore everyone, but I'll send them if you want to see them. He still plays with the wrapping paper.)

Needless to say, our toy long-distance bill has skyrocketed.



And finally, a bit of fun with the curtain in his new play area:



OK, back to work with me.

Time Travel

Come back in time with us to the weekend after Thanksgiving, when Darrick's mom visited on her way back from Mexico. She brought kisses and a super cool cowboy vest for Alexander. It's still a little long but not, ahem, too wide.





Before Grammy arrived, Alexander watched for her car for a while.



Then he got bored, so he killed time with a little dancing, staging a fight between his giraffe and the alien star clown, then chewing on the camera case, after getting bored with his own toys.







Finally, he decided to drive out to find her, in case she got lost.



After she left, he just hung out, single-handedly reviving the one-strap overall fad of the 80s.

A-a-choo!