Lunch Break Notes

   This year has been one of the best years for Halloween, speaking for myself here. Sure the day was great when I was a kid. I couldn't wait till I got home from school and got into whatever it was that I was being for the night and meet up with friends to go around to the so called "rich neighborhoods" to gather a bag full of treats that I would never eat. It was all fun and games but never has it felt so great. I find that to be true to the fact that our 2 year old is obsessed. I wrote about this obsession before and am still amazed by it. I live in a town where Trick o' Treating happens a day early and so as I write this, I am able to share that my daughter was more entertained by the pumpkins, ghosts, zombies and bats that covered trees and houses than the actual treats that were being given. It was incredible to see her so happy.  One other thing that helped along the buildup for the big day, last night, is always the TV shows, movies and specials that are ...

   It has been quite a while since I last wrote anything. Life has been crazy and time has been.. well, there's just not enough of it. Since my last note a lot has happened. For starters, I now live in Toms River, a place I never fathomed living. I've been a Monmouth county resident my whole life and anything else seemed... not right. But oh how right it is! Living in Toms River is really something else. We have been greeted by almost every neighbor within 2 weeks of living here. Our next door neighbor gave us a pie on our anniversary, Mealz actually has a nickname for her, RoRo. People approach us to just talk. It is an incredible change of pace from where we were.  Now one thing I never imagined about Toms River is their love and devotion for my favorite holiday. Not Christmas, we lived in that town and it was a bit creepy, yeah I'm looking at you Ocean Grove. This town loves Halloween so much that they actually celebrate the Trick or Treat part of it a day early s...

Getting your kid to try new foods at a young age can be quite difficult. It must be scary for them judging by how our daughter reacts when we try to offer something as simple as mashed potatoes or even jello. My wife discovered an incredible tactic that has yet to fail. Now, all kids are different so chances are it will not work for everyone but for us, it was a, as the Doctor says, Bingo! When offering a new food that she is weary of we simply bring the whole pot out, or in some cases, like ours the other night, the whole bird. We found that she is more open to trying new things when she is able to see right where it is coming from. Most of the time it will be out of a pot or a box. If we were to just try and give her a piece of meat she would push it away. We discovered this when we brought vegetables out onto the table one night and rather than enjoy the same vegetable in front of her, she wanted the same ones that were in the pot. What can I say? Our kids weird. ...

I understand that there are two sides to the argument of curly hair being the better ... hair. People who have it hate it and those without it, want it. Its really a great embodiment of the phrase " be careful what you wish for". I wished for our daughter to have beautiful curly hair and she got it and I ha... ehh, for lack of a better  word, struggle  with it. Don't get me wrong,  Mealz and her golden locks are adorable. And I love everything about her, but man... that hair collects food and boogers like none other. Every other night during bath time I brush all the items out of those twisty little traps. It cracks me up to know that I actually have a routine to the whole thing. For any other fathers out there that are in the same boat pay some attention to this part. I pour water on her head and look for the frizzy parts. I brush, very lightly, the frizzy parts until they become smooth. That's how I know the knot and food is out. Once her whole head is smooth I k...