it goes by so fast...

and how!

which would explain why it's been a full year to the day since my last entry. that's mainly my fault but in my defense, i'm tired all the time.

so we'll just have to go with the year in highlights, although when you're a doting father with an itchy camera-trigger finger, there are a lot of highlights.

they begin with christmas in mexico with the west coast thomases...

can you tell that parker had spaghetti for lunch?

with mommy and some friends at xcaret - totally unstaged!

and speaking of impromptu run-ins with viciously wild animals, it turns out that after 73 or so viewings of "how to train your dragon" our little man had no qualms about getting hands-on with... 

A TINY VERSION OF A DRAGON.

(http://bit.ly/196bXtO)

the spanish word for ice cream is "adorable"... i think.

after another fine, family destination christmas celebration, we headed back home for...

parker d's 3rd birthday. 

clearly one gift he didn't get was a haircut.

meanwhile, baby Z was making plenty of progress of her own including taking her (not quite)...

FIRST STEPS.

(http://bit.ly/IXdVTL)

and after barely a year of adjusting to her new upright position, Z was already showing off some serious...

SCOOTER SKILLS

and thus, the legend of "Z Mac" begins.

(http://bit.ly/IuOYOT)

february 10: first movie in a theater!

parker D and daddy went to a little theater at lincoln center to see the original muppet movie. parker agreed that it was the "most sensational, inspirational, celebrational, muppetational" movie he'd ever seen.

(his words, not mine)

"her curlyness"

baby Z at 1 year and 1 week... c'mon!

while Z was busy gettin' cuter, PD was busy gettin' "rockier" as evidenced by his inspired rendition of "i'll fly away" on... 

"DADDY'S DRUMS". 

(http://bit.ly/1eTClaw)

parker D with cousin hana at the tide pools in monterey bay during a daddyless trip to CA. (daddy was working)

march 31: easter in central park

right after parker dominated his age group in the easter egg hunt.

april 15: with the boston daleys in central park taking a short break from the otherwise endless fun.

"couch fort"

one of parker's favorite pastimes over the summer.
and yes, he put it together entirely by himself.

may 31: pure joy with charlotte doggie.

on june 6th parker graduated from his first year at the family school. there's a great video in which parker makes the whole audience laugh but it didn't seem to want to cooperate with me, so i guess you'll just have to take my word for it.

and now it's time for my favorite family photo to date...

june 20: botanical gardens in the bronx

one of our favorite family destinations.

we all had hats on!

at the end of june we took a trip to north georgia for a thomas family reunion that included sus, pam, the boston daleys and the DC helmses...

kid pile!

what blog entry would be complete without a picture of aunt pam bringin' the love?

(also in georgia)

and then it was back to new york and the amazing perk called fire island...

 i like to think this shot will be the cover of their first album.

baby Z takes a very important call.

stop me if you've heard this one: a pirate and a dinosaur are walking in a halloween costume parade at the pirate's school. the pirate says...

"LOOK AT MY SISTER, Z!"

(http://bit.ly/IxgvPF)

every friday, Z would join daddy and parker for the morning "scoot" to school...

Z always insisted on wearing her own tiny

backpack even though there was never anything in it.

over the past year, parker D's love of building with legos and magna-tiles and pretty much anything that can be piled on another thing has really taken off. he also developed a fascination with actual buildings and has a couple of nyc favorites...

a cardboard model of the chrysler building that was far more complicated than the "5 yrs +" label on the cover. liars!

november 16: the world trade center,

 or what parker innocently calls "the world's greatest building" 

november 25: "grandparents day" at the family school. 

3 people who i assure you did not need to be told to smile.

sharing a mayor bloomberg-approved sized beverage with aunt sussie.

our 3-straw morning ritual of racing to

the bottom of a homemade smoothie.

and now for...

mommy update

the biggest news is that ellen was officially hired full time as the director of food services (head chef) of spence school on the upper east side. it's a demanding and challenging job that she is performing brilliantly as you might expect. she's also learning to play guitar and practicing regularly with sussie and their band, "the lightning bugs".

daddy update

daddy continues to do what he does despite a constant desire to sleep which he doesn't do nearly as much as he'd like to/needs to. in his spare time he ponders what it will be like to turn 50 which happens in a scant 7 months.

time for a song.

it's a classic, and i'm pretty sure the kids would approve of the band's name. it's the turtles with "so happy together".

dig it...

I can't see me lovin' nobody but you

For all my life

When you're with me, baby the skies'll be blue

For all my life

Me and you, and you and me

No matter how they toss the dice, it has to be

The only one for me is you, and you for me

So happy together

i suppose it's a bit greedy of me to feel that way about three different people, but there ya have it.

oh, and one more video because i have a hard time putting a limit on... 

ADORABLE

(http://bit.ly/IIy0vZ)

it's a wonderful life

... and the best part is i didn't have to almost die to realize it.

a rare family shot in which none of us are noticeably crying.

this was in estes park, colorado. we were there for a friend's wedding and daddy took advantage of the setting to run a 5 mile trail race at some crazy altitude that made my lungs burn for a week.

more from colorado...

mommy in her natural setting.  someday, baby... i promise.

 frontrunner for cutest picture of the century.

proof that these two stand out in any setting.

"Baby Parade!"

ellen with her friend janel. the two were roommates when they were both river guides in colorado. and for the record, i checked back through all the entries in this blog and yes, that was by far the coolest sentence i've ever written.

back home there were a couple of pretty big "firsts" for the kids that are well worth mentioning...

parker's first day at montessori school...

this ain't your grandmother's pre-school! unless your grandmother was maria montessori... then i stand corrected.

EXTREMELY FUN FACT: i get to walk parker to school everyday, by which i mean "carry him on my shoulders as we walk along first avenue making up lyrics to songs that never existed in the first place."

it’s easily the best part of my day.

first field trip

mommy went with him to a pumpkin patch where he also took his first pony ride, though judging from the look on its face i'd say it wasn't a first for the actual pony.

 baby Z's first taste of ice cream

these honors, as has become our family's custom, went to steve spang (of the carlisle spangs). it's an extremely easy job without a stitch of resistance for which you receive a lifetime of appreciation... but somebody's gotta do it! (for the record: vanilla. not sure if she got any of the cake.)

first halloween

even though auntie sus calls her "peanut", she opted for being a pumpkin which happens to be auntie sus's nickname for parker but he was too busy during this particular holiday serving as one of new york's bravest...

though "bravery" in this instance consisted mainly of eating enough candy to save several other kids from having tummy aches of their own.  again, somebody's gotta do it.

and finally...

first time getting caught shredding the toilet paper

for weeks we thought it was the cat, but then we realized we don't have a cat.  mystery solved.

it should be noted that unlike her brother who was a purist when it came to “butt scooching”, baby Z is a first class crawler who is also already standing for a few seconds without holding onto anything. that means walking is right around the corner (see next blog entry) but until then, parker seems perfectly happy to see to it that she...

GET AROUND SAFELY

(http://bit.ly/TR6jQR)

in fact, it turns out baby Z might just be in much safer hands when she's with her brother on the streets of new york than when she's with her daddy in...

 AN OTHERWISE SAFE PLAYGROUND ENVIRONMENT

(http://bit.ly/TQYIla)

along with face-planting at the playground, baby Z also is not crazy about getting dressed or having her diaper changed.  she twists and turns and wiggles and wails, and when all else fails she stiffens up like a board that’s been sitting in a freezer for a week. think about trying to give a cat a bath. now think of having to do that 9 times a day. now go take a nap. oh, wait! you don't get to take naps.  now welcome to our world.

but the love is undeniable...

if you noticed something different about the above pictures, it's probably that they were taken with something other than an iPhone. this is thanks to the multi-talented mr. david schonbrun, or as i like to call him, mr. eliza spang. they're own baby is due around christmas.  best of luck schonbrun-spangs! if you guys need any fancy iPhone pictures taken just say the word!

and thank you to the mystery taker of my favorite picture in this particular blog entry...

reveal yourself, mystery photographer! (i think it was susan helms.)

EMBARRASSING PHOTO ALERT!!

(oops.  too late.)

post hurricane sandy

the water was over the center divider shutting down the FDR to anything but jet skis... until the next day.

among the many fantastic visits we got from friends and family over the past few months none quite resulted in this level of photographically-captured love and joy...

ellen, Z, margaret and eli

(idea for world peace: make this everyone in the world's screensaver.)

as for mommy and daddy, we're both still working our butts off on a week-daily basis but thankfully we're doing things that we love. can't ask for more than that.
ellen did get a couple of well-earned breaks. in early november she flew off to scott and shelley's wedding in south carolina while i stayed back and watched the little ones.  that was a first for me. and it was a learning experience that i used a couple weeks later when ellen drove off with auntie sus to go to a guitar/banjo/mandolin "jam camp" near boston for a weekend. baby Z did me the great favor of sleeping through most of the nights i was alone with them which means the biggest challenge i had was how to get two kids and a dog out the front door for a walk when it's 30 degrees out and the only one who really wants to go is the dog.
answer: as quickly as possible.
fortunately, the local barnes&noble has a play section you can go to when it's too cold to be outside. it was a common destination for me during my "single daddy" experience and it was...

FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

(http://bit.ly/YBl5mk)

i'm beginning to think you all deserve a nice song.
this time around it's a beautiful little gem i stumbled on by Keb' Mo' which is short for "kevin moore" which doesn't explain the "b" but that's neither here nor there. it's called "life is beautiful" and it always makes me think of my family.
dig it...

life is beautiful
life is wondrous
every star above
is shining just for us
life is beautiful
on a stormy night
somewhere in the world
the sun is shinin' bright

the end...

4 years ago today...

... ellen and i got married.

happy anniversary baby.

the wedding was a celebration not soon forgotten which is not to say that the celebrating hasn't continued, most recently with the 5 month birthday (is that even a thing?) of our latest, one miss zoila mckenzie havlan.

likes:
putting her fist in her mouth
"standing" on daddy
looking around
(in that order)

trying to narrow down the highlights of the last 4 months is like trying to pick a favorite beatles song – it’s not easy is what i’m saying.

but here’s a good start…

the whole family on the beach in pacifica, ca, during a visit to uncle glenn, aunt lizz and cousin reuben.  yes, baby Z slept through the excitement but trust me when I tell you she’s far more likely these days to be awake and smiling…

and maybe wearing some patriotic headgear depending mainly on whether or not it's july 4th.

as you can plainly see the evolution of our little lady's personality is well under way.  she is happy and delightful and strong and playful and most of all she is loved.  she also happens to have the neck muscles of an ox... a beautiful ox. (again, is that a thing?)
settling on a name continues to confound us mainly because we genuinely like all the options, but for now both ellen and i are pretty much going with “Z”.  whether that turns into “Zoila” “Zoe” or “mckenZie” might just be up to her, but the common thread is the “Z”.  oh, and parker calls her "baby sister", which... is... a… dorable!

of course, the previously mentioned west coast trip also meant a visit with the west coast thomases which included parker’s first sailing experience.

mental note: clear a place on the mantle for the inevitable appearance of the america’s cup.  watch your ass, golden gate yacht club!  these kid-sailors are serious!

ellen also gathered the troops for their first visit to daddy’s work at the daily show and that meant Z’s first brush with fame…

either that’s her with television’s jon stewart or the backdrops at olin mills have gotten amazing.

then it was time for a visit in daddy’s office.

fun fact: that weird, colorful piece of “art” behind us is actually a piece from the original set of the daily show.  i’ve been dragging it around with me for over 16 years now.  true story.

also, the name plate glued to the top of my computer screen says “Gloria Delgado, Librarian” - a memento of the grandma who would have loved these two kids with all her gigantic heart.  and the same, i'm sure, would have gone for bob and carol and speed.

VERY FORTUNATELY, we are blessed with what the southerners call "kin".
soon after Z was born we were once again privileged beyond all privilege to get a life-saving multi-week stay from the irreplaceable aunt pam.

pam's patience and love and attention to all four of us was like manna from wherever it is you get the best manna these days.

and while we’re on the topic of loving super-aunts…

here's our little gal on the beach at fire island with the immeasurably helpful and patient and generous and energetic and always stupendorifous auntie sus.

i am eternally grateful to have these lovely ladies in my life.

and that goes for uncle alan as well who is a constant example of how true success is measured in how much you share it - even if it means having 4 boisterous kids stomping around your "vacation" home for weeks at a time.

the fantastic four enjoying the ferry ride from fire island back to (un)civilization.  hopefully they will all one day look back on this moment with the fondness that i have for it today.

now then, let’s move on for a bit to the man in my life…

no.

the other one.

that’s the one!

though if it’s a future heartthrob you’re looking for, look no further…

with cousin emeline in boston

somebody warn the cops because these two are going to steal a record number of hearts!

thankfully, the movie star qualities don't keep the little man from helping out in the garden...

our oasis on 53rd street

and yes, the baby-like object “relaxing” on the couch in the background is actually our baby.
and yes, there's a good chance she's currently making some "fertilizer".

daddy also reconfigured the terrace, installed some padding, and created a self-contained play area especially for the…

FUTURE SPORTS STARS OF TOMORROW

(http://bit.ly/PKIYBk)

and now it’s time for… parker highlights!

- he can jump* now!

(* “jump” = both feet coming any distance off the ground at the same time.)

- he loves going to the playground and hanging from anything he can get his hands on.

- he says “look!” all the time and points sort of randomly making it hard to tell what he wants you to look at.  we’re also getting a lot of “why?” and “what’s that?”  standard answers: “because” and “ask your mother.”

- unlike last summer it’s nearly impossible these days to keep him out of the water.  his favorite game seems to be “try to drown daddy”.

oh, and there’s also... 

THIS GAME

(http://bit.ly/OeAN0B)

also...

- potty training is happening albeit with slightly mixed results, though it’s amazing what a two-and-a-half year old will do if he knows an M&M is his prize.

- he watched his first movie!  “how to train your dragon”.  it was out at fire island with hana and kobi.  this is confirmed documentation…

ever since that night, parker has made a habit of telling ellen and me to “be careful of toothless”.  it’s the kind of stuff the word “cute” was created for.

and speaking of mommy and daddy, it’s time for…

what’s going on with mommy and daddy!?

courtesy our lovely friend sara mayti
a true professional

despite our new even-busier family life schedule we are both making a fine habit of getting out of the house on a regular basis thanks to each other’s help along with an army of fantastic baby sitters. 

we have nice dinners together.  we go to plays with friends – the latest was "venus in fur” with mark and shannon.  front row center!  it was great.  and since we’re on the topic of mark and shannon, may as well include that they took us to a shooting range in new jersey…

with M&S - armed but not dangerous

it was my first time ever shooting a gun.

was it kind of fun?  yes.

did it make me want to run out and join an unnamed but nationally recognized rifle-based association?  no. 

also...

daddy's diving mouth first back in to stand-up comedy (by popular demand of course).  mommy was the head chef at the kushi institute's summer conference for the 4th year in a row and knocked it out of the park as usual.  daddy still plays poker with his "poker buddies" (almost) every monday night - thank you mommy!  mommy already lost all of her baby weight, looks amazing, and is training for a possible shot at this year's nyc marathon.  daddy's golf game is... not discussed in public.  mommy continues to show amazing patience and stamina and imagination in the extra time she spends with the little ones.  and finally, daddy found out last week that his boss has signed yet another contract through june 2015 which is good because i love my job and i'm forever grateful that it allows my family to have a comfortable, fulfilling life in this amazing city.

time for a song, wouldn't you agree?
there's only one choice for this entry especially since i skipped the song for Z's original entry:
"isn't she lovely" by the one and only stevie wonder.
dig it...

isn't she lovely
isn't she wonderful
isn't she precious
less than one minute old
i never thought through love we'd be
making one as lovely as she
but isn't she lovely made from love

signed,
lucky daddy