Friday 14 November 2014

The Things They Say #45927

Any parent knows that the things that sometimes come out of their kid's mouths cannot be explained. Or understood. Or even rationalized or apologized for, in some instances. They are pure. They are raw. They are unfiltered. So nothing should ever come as a surprise when it comes out of their mouths and yet miraculously, it still happens on a regular basis.

Case in point, changing Tommy into PJs last night. There doesn't need to be any more context, because it won't make a hill of beans difference anyway...

Me: "Tommy, stop playing with your penis, I'm trying to put your pajamas on."

Tommy: "I can't." (Is this irony, foreshadowing or both?)

Me: "Trust me son, it will still be there later. Just let me put your PJs on please."

Tommy: "Ok. But Daddy... my penis is so big now. Last night when I was asleep... it got so pumped up and huge... It was like a rhino-ro-cerous."

*crickets*

I mean I had nothing. Well, untrue... I just didn't think, "Well then grab your horn and CHARGE son!" was appropriate.

I settled on a meek, "Nice. Well it will still be there later son."

I pulled his pants up. I left the room. And completely fell out laughing.

Tommy yelled to me, "Everything okay Daddy?"

"Everything is fine son," I yelled back.

Everything is fine.

Thursday 13 November 2014

Lil T's Current Top 10 Music List

I take my son's music education very seriously. He loves music, and seems to be legitimately moved by it. He sings, he rocks, he smashes instrumenmts - he even does "interpretive dance". He's quite a good dancer actually, much better than his daddy.

But I love music. Always have. I have a fairly expansive music collection, and it truly contains genres of every type. While it is natural for me to gravitate towards things that I like musically, I try to put a steady diet of different things at Tommy's fingerprints... or eardrums I guess.

I don't think Tommy is quite capable of comprehending a Top 10 list yet, so I can't ask him, but here is a list of what it SEEMS like his top 10 current favorites are. You may be surprised...

1. Hot Dog - Led Zeppelin



2. Heartbeat - It's A Lovebeat - The Defranco Family



3. Drift Away - Dobie Gray



4. Over the Hills and Far Away - Led Zeppelin



5. Dead Skunk - Loudon Wainwright III



6. Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia - Vicki Lawrence



7. Let it Go - Frozen Soundtrack



8. Mirror in the Bathroom - English Beat



9. Stuck in the Middle - Stealers Wheel



10. Tonight You Belong To Me - Billy Rose  - but made infinitely famous recently by this awesome YT video of a dad and his 4y old little girl. Precious. Nice work fellow Thug Daddy.




So much music to put in front of him, so little time. Tommy is currently developing a penchant for 70s rock.

Shocking.

One thing that shines through regardless of the genre though, is happiness. Music makes Tommy happy. Daddy too.

After all, music feeds the soul.

Wednesday 12 November 2014

Come... As You Are?

I took a picture of Tommy the other day and was immediately struck by two things: one, he looked pretty cool, and two, I could see a much older Tommy in the captured moment.

For some reason, I immediately thought of Kurt Cobain on the infamous Unplugged set... blonde hair strewn across his face, strumming his guitar like only a rock god can.

I suppose for many, the daydream would end there, but when you have been working with Photoshop for a decade and a half and are a self-expressed Ninja... you step into that abyss. Here's what I came up with...


Try as I might, I cannot see a 3-year old boy in this composite. All I see is Tommy Cobain... rock legend in the making.

Here's the original:


I think Tommy rocks that nice guy sweater harder than Kurt does, but I'm a tad biased.

What rock and roll legend would you turn your kid into, if you were a Photoshop ninja? We are limited only by our own imaginations...

Friday 31 October 2014

Halloween Fun

I love Halloween. Even moreso now that my son is enjoying its frivolity and grandeur. Dressing up like a fool and casing the streets with your compadres, in search of gold? Well, chocolate gold anyway. What could possibly be more entertaining and fun than that?

The wee lad spent a great amount of time deciding what he wanted to be this year... like weeks... literally. He changed his mind more often than a woman at a bonbon counter. In the end, he settled on this:






And here he is in all his glory...




So.Much.Fun.

Happy Halloween everybody!

Thursday 30 October 2014

Smelling the Roses

Sometimes you catch a moment in a photograph that just speaks for itself. Context... Tommy at a Halloween festival... the dragon has removed his mask to enjoy a few minutes of music and an accompanying drink box...





I photoshop'ped the outside thirds to suit my Facebook cover page, but the lens flare, and the look of contentment were all natural.

This picture speaks to me. It says, "Take the time to enjoy the smaller, and the finer things in life. They are all around you every day. All you need is the eyes of a child to see them."