Plugging Away

Week 101 of Riley's life is in the books and we can call it a success (but not quite as successful as 101 spotted dogs may be)

and fyi, by successful, I mean no future ward of the state randomly kicked my kid in the face. We aim high.

But I'm going to stay away from the anger this week. There's a couple of products/sites I want to point out and don't want them associated with my violent wishes.

Not much to report from the weekdays, so I won't.


Saturday though, we, well... did what we normally do.

Since the weather was pretty nice, we dusted off the Jeep and headed to Johnson's, where we were joined by Shane, Tara and Eli.

They too have suffered a tragic, unexpected loss this year, so it was nice to get to see them and just hang out in a normal (read: non-hospital or funeral) setting. And, of course, we talked Disney, since I just booked our December trip this week.

Riley and Eli stayed occupied for a while because Eli's parents, unlike Riley's, have the foresight to bring toys.





But they eventually found their way to Riley's favorite area, the gravel.

If Johnson's would just fence in that area so that we don't have to pay attention to our kid, the place would be perfect. :)





Finally, in a "game" designed to get Riley closer to a state of nap-readiness, I tested how far he was willing to run to fetch a ball.
Considering his short inseam, I'd say, to scale, he did close to a half marathon.






To live up to our promise that he would get to feed ducks, we headed over to Girard Park where there was not a parking spot to be found.
We then, being the spontaneous, flexible, random people that we are famous for being, headed to Veterans Park where the ducks are pitiful and gross (ok, the live ducks are pitiful. the dead ducks are gross.)

But ONE was hungry, so we partially lived up to the representation that he would feed duckS







Post duck letdown, Mommy and Daddy tried to get the yard/flower bed at least half a chance at looking good this year.
We also broke out the Cozy Coupe that we bought before Christmas.

I'm pretty handy but that thing was such a huge pain to put together. They put 4 inch screws in spaces only 6 inches wide and just generally make things way harder than they need to be.

Then after at least an hour of fighting this chunk of plastic, Riley climbed in, and he's almost too tall for it. He's middle of the pack height-wise for a kid who is almost 2, and his legs are too long for it. He can barely move it without hitting wheels or pinning his feet.





But he really likes the siren sounds that came with the fire & rescue package.



and the fact that it is hard to use will hopefully push him toward his birthday present, a Strider Bike.


We finished off the evening with Wall-E on Blu-ray on our "new" Tv in our new entertainment center from Cajun Closets. Visually stunning.




Long time readers may remember that Cajun Closets put in the closet in Riley's room, which has been incredibly practical, and I think we're going to love the entertainment center just as much.

It turned out looking really nice. It's actually almost too nice for the rest of our house.





We've got nice lighting across the top shelf





But, best of all, we have tons of storage.





And, like everything you read here, this thing is deep. (24 inches to be exact)
That has allowed us to have decorations toward the front, with baskets full of DVD's, cd's, and accessories partially hidden toward the back.





Then, because we custom designed the system, we've got enough space to later accommodate a 70 inch TV. Werd up!


I really can't stress how happy we've been with their products. A few of our friends have also used them and have been really happy.

Look to your right for the link to the Cajun Closets website when you need a closet, entertainment center or any other organizational solution.
My cousin Erin does their sales, so tell her you heard about them here.
It probably wont get you anything, but maybe it will get me something (kickbacks rock, I would expect)



The second product to plug is this cool hard plastic popcorn tub they are selling at Target for $1 right now. Nothing special, but a neat idea for that cheap.




and finally, I would direct your attention to the links on the right and a new blog on the list, The Tanory Tantrum.

The blog is actually written by someone I went to school with 15+ years ago. I was directed to it recently, by a mutual friend, and liked it immediately.

If you like CajunBabyWallace, you should really like The Tanory Tantrum.
Same basic theme- cute kid with a smart-ass dad, but Bobby is consistently funny.
Check it out.

(when I reach my self imposed contractual obligation of keeping this up until Riley's second birthday, which is only a few weeks away, I don't want to leave you out in the cold.)