Birthday followup

I have left the audience hanging on the birthday present. So sorry.

For starters, I actually used the blog to help lead Jennifer down a confusing path.

Here's the history:

- On Sunday, I mentioned to her that I needed to go shopping for he birthday. I was so focused on Kate's tubes and Justin's party that I hadn't found time for her present. Then I asked for some ideas. She listed a few (which included her eventual present). One of the items she listed was bikes for us to go riding on the Tammany Trace. So, I took that opportunity to "explore" that route. We went to Target, tried a few, made no purchase.

- Fast forward to Tuesday. I picked up the gift at lunch after having ordered it on MARCH 9. But, I wasn't satisfied with just giving her the box. I wanted her to no know what it was until the last possible moment. So, while walking through Walgreens I saw a styrofoam ice chest and remembered a conversation I had with my neighbor last week.....he and his wife were expecting a delivery, by Fed Ex, with a new puppy. So, I got the idea to make her think she was getting a pet.....hence the "change the household dynamic" line.

- When we get to the restaurant on Tuesday, I mention to Jen I have a problem.....I cannnot leave the present in the car too long. To which, my mother says, "Is is alive?" I get the box, covered in a Fed Ex ticket and "live cargo" stickers, and hand it to her delicately. She later told me she thought it was alive, but small, maybe a freret. After digging though the box, she found a jewelry box with a pair of diamond earrings.

On a sidebar, Justin went to school the next day and told his teacher, "Momma thought she was getting a freret but got some earrings that shine." Good stuff.....if you can get it.

BIG DAY!

The big day has arrived! Today is Jennifer and Justin's birthdays. So far, much of the attention (over the weekend and last night) has been spent on the little guy. His party, see the attached pictures, was over the weekend and he got him present from us (Playmobil's entire Zoo series) last night.

You can see both kids with the animals. Seriously, for much of the party Kate was WAY more interactive with them than Justin....in her two pictures she is touching a sheep and an alligator Also, you can see Justin cruising the street on his new bike from Gunny and Pappy.

Tonight we are meeting all of the family for dinner at The Loop in Mandeville and then going back to our house for cake.

I was a little nervous, and I don't want to give away too much, but Jennifer's present from me, Justin and Kate didn't get in New Orleans until last night. I had to pick it up from the location I had it Fed Ex'd to earlier today. I have to admit, I have felt a pretty good bit of pressure on this gift....something significant, but not overboard. Something memorable that she can keep for a few years. Something that when she sees it, she will remember what she got it for. I am not sure what it will do to the household dynamic, but there's no turning back now.

Justin - 4th Birthday Review (Part 5)

Some more pictures of Justin ranging from the actual day of his first birthday (see receeding hirline, blue collared outfit) to his first, non-restricted to the stroller, French Quarter trip, to hanging at the house with Dad to the legendary MUPPY stage.

Justin has had a few stages....teletubies, muppets, Sesame Street, animals, Zach & Cody....but NONE rank with the Muppys. In case you were wondering, we made him that sweatshirt specifically for a picture like this to remember an era like that.

Milestone Birthday - Jennifer turns 30! (Part 4)

These pictures should fill the gap through high school. Included are some significant moments. The picture of her singing is in the Holy Cross Gym, as a female 8th grader for a school mass or concert, in front of over 1,000 boys. The next one (I have lost MY mind posting this) is from the Holy Cross Homecoming dance from 1990! The last two are from her senior year of high school....her portrait and picture from Christmas of 1993.

Milestone Birthday - Jennifer turns 30! (Part 3)

Here's the progression.....starting from the top left-hand corner, here's Jennifer from Kindergarten all the way to her freshman year at Mount Carmel. Along the way are stops in 4th and 8th grade.

Justin - 4th Birthday review (Part 3)

This next set of pictures take us from being a newborn in March until the end of 2002. These six pictures are some of the best from ages 5 months to about 9 months old.

Classic Photo

Here's a classic photo. I remember when Heath saw this picture for the first time and asked if Pappy was signing the contract with the Saints. The thought of the family sitting around him as he inked a deal with an NFL team is hilarious.

This actually was a promotional photo, from what I remember, used in the Clarion-Herald Catholic Newspaper. Apparently the Sciortinos are signing up for some parish-sponsored church program.

Here's the part of the story nobody knows. Before this ad ran in the C-H, the participation in the program was very low. After the ad, there was a spike. People were moving into the parish just to participate in the program. If you believe that, I have some beautiful land in New Orleans East I am looking to sell....never flooded, either.

Milestone Birthday - Jennifer turns 30! (Part 2)

Think back in time.....mid to late 1970s. The scene, the booming area of New Orleans East. The Plaza was new. Resurrection was the school to go to. Chef Menteur Highway was home of the Winn Dixie, K&B, McKenzies and Skate Country.

And just off of "the Chef" was Pereli Drive....the house 4919....an emerging trouble-maker in the neighborhood. She was standing on tables singing and dancing and developing a reputation as the "baby of the family." While her older brother and sisters were "upperclassmen" at the school across the street....Jennifer watched from her lawn waiting for her chance.

Here are some pictures from that "era".

These four pictures are probably ages one, two, three and four. A couple of notes: 1) How different can a child look from year-to-year. 2) Do the two older pictures look like Justin? Hold your fingers to the screen and cover her hair. It is like her twin! 3) The one year old pic really doesn't remind me too much of Kate. But, that's just could be because she was laughing and most of Kate's pics are of a different facial expression.

Justin - 4th Birthday Review (Part 2)

Some more photos from the early days with Justin......

Mom, Dad, Justin and Bach......boy was that a tenuous relationship between Justin and Bach. Now, they are buds.

A picture with Pappy. Justin is about a month old. Pappy, while we lived in the their house waiting for our's to be finished, Pappy would practically wait by the door for the middle of the night feedings.

And last....a picture of Nana and Papa looking over Jen's shoulder at their first grandchild. This was Easter day, he was about four days old.

Weekend update.....

Both Justin and Kate did things this weekend that made Jennifer and I shake our heads.

First, Justin....in another attempt to be more like his mom, he has acquired a liking for the legendary snack food "Slim Jim". I went to the grocery (Winn Dixie....which Justin chooses to call WenDenzie....but he also calls Wendy's the same thing. It's kinda a hybrid word....good thing there are no McKenzie's around to make this more complex.) and brought him back a five-pack of Slim Jims. So, as soon as I get home, he opens them and eats one. Then, he wants another. I said, "You are going to eat them all in one day." He responds with, "No, dad, I can eat two today, two tomorrow and have one left for the next day." With that statement he passed up both Jennifer Mouledous and Scott Walker in mathematic skill.

Then, there is Kate. She is now digging in cabinets. I mean opening the cabinet and rooting. (She also, with the dishwasher door down, climbed onto the dishwasher last night....but, that is another story.) Well, her mom and I keep moving her and she goes balistic. Well, on Saturday morning she was in a cabinet she shouldn't be in. I said, "Kate...get out of the way, shut the cabinet door and move." The little stinker slammed the door, looked at me and laughed and crawled off. Coincidence, right? We thought so, too, until the next day she did it again. Except, this time, the door didn't close all the way and I told her to shut it all the way. She went back to it and made sure it was closed completely.

Milestone birthday - Jennifer turns 30! (Part 1)

When I met my future wife, she was 14 yeas old. On March 28, she will turn 30. Intermediate birthdays seems to kinda come and go...especially when they are shared with Justin! But, this one is a big deal. Not so much because your age now has a "3" in front of it, but because it gives you a chance to look in the rear-view mirror and check the milestones.

Never, in my wildest imagination, could I have ever thought Jennifer could be as complete a person as she is....and everyone knows I have high expectations. She has been an excellent friend and wife to me. She is a talented and tireless preofessional. But, more than anything else, she is an amazing mother who was probably put here specifically for that purpose.

Hopefully, these are the first 30 of many, many years.

Some pictures from the past: with Mimi and Big Daddy (Gunny's mom and dad) as a newborn, with Jodi and Angie at dancing school in 1977 and her portrait as a six month old. Pay close attention to the little face on the ballerina. Who does that look like?

Justin - 4th Birthday Review (Part 1)

March 28th is a big day in our house. For 26 years it was exclusively Jennifer's birthday. But, in 2002 that changed. Even though she checking into the hospital around 3:00 on the afternoon of the 27th, Justin didn't come out until the next day. So, his life started off pretty unique. He shares his birthday with his Momma, his best buddy.

One note, when we evacuated for the storm, Jennifer was adamant about bringing every picture we ever took of Justin and Kate...so we packed a huge Rubbermaid container in the back of the car with us. Unfortunatley, we missed one book. It was from a large part of the last couple years. We have the pics and the negatives and are trying to salvage and recreate. But the moral of all of that is last night, when spreading the pictures throughout the garage to dry and try and find some good ones of Justin for this blog, you could see the little guy's whole life right there in front of you. It makes you realize it's not just about him following the rules or staying in his bed at night or accidentally marking the leather chair with permanent marker while he practices his letters (that happened this weekend). If you focus too much on the day-to-day, by the time you pay attention to the big picture, you are planning their 4th birthday.

Here are some early pictures. From March 27-28, 2002.

Lenten Friday

There's always time in your Lenten Friday for a quick prayer:

"Lord, please help mommy and daddy lose enough weight on weight watchers so we can get some good snack in the pantry....

...and please let the NCAA tournament end so I can watch more Disney channel in the den....

...and please have mommy buy me a new green shirt for next St. Patrick's day because I think I wore this last year and by next year I will be busting out...unless I start counting points....which leads me back to the first part of the prayer."

Went on down to the Audubon Zoo....

Justin and Kate, Audubon Family Plan members, made their triumphant return to the Zoo today. The fine folks have extended everyone's year membership by four months because that's how long they were closed.

Jennifer got there with them around 10:00 am and I was able to break away from work for lunch at the Zoo.

Kate's favorite animal was the rare and dangerous duck. We spent money on this pass and she likes ducks. We could have saved the money and brought her to Eden Isles.

Justin, being the future zookeeper that he is, was so excited he was almost in tears....tears of joy....that preceeded the tears of sorrow when he didn't get everything in the store.

Note about the zoo....the parts I got to see looked great. That zoo is one of the great places in the city that doesn't get the necessary credit. I remember what it was like when I went for the first time (around Justin's age). Night and day.

Swingset....back in action

After some damage during the storm and the need to relocate the pieces from Slidell, the swingset is back in action. Kate got a new swing for her birthday and Justin has been asking to swing on the ride home everyday.

What these pictures do not show is the actual repair of our wind ravaged set. What the pictures do show is Jennifer's new "I'm going to be 30 this month" haircut.

Name that baby!

This is not Kate....but the resemblance is uncanny.

Can you name this baby?

The Legend.......

"PAPPY" (Jennifer's Dad, Mr. Joe.)

picture is from around 1940