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Disgusting Denim

We are a denim-free family. Well, we are almost a denim-free family. For years and years (circa 1995-2003), Matt and I never wore jeans. Never. And to this day I still do not like denim. The thought of putting on a pair of jeans makes me gag. I find jeans rough, stiff, and uncomfortable. Our denim-free lifestyle has been passed down to the boys. Joe & Jack have a couple pair of jeans, but overall their trousers of choice are cargo pants. I love our denim-free family. I challenge anyone to find pictures of the Jacobson Family in denim.

Jack's drawer full of cargo's & khaki's.

There is no denim allowed in golf.

There is no denim allowed in the kitchen.

Who-Man Boundries

One major aspect of parenting is setting boundries. You can't go outside without a hat. You can't pull the dog's tail. You can't eat only cheese for dinner.

Yesterday Joe and I had a memorable, boundry-defining conversation. It was one of those dreaded talks when uncomfortable topics are discussed, and when honest, fair questions are asked. It all started Saturday morning. We were running errands as a family. Matt ran into a store & I drove around with the boys bundled in the back seat. Joe started discussing the difference between humans & animals. I would name a favorite character and Joe would identify if the favorite character was a human or an animal.



Nemo = animal
Aladdin = human (who-man)
Big Bird = animal
Daddy = who-man
Rex from Toy Story = animal
Cinderella = who-man

I thought the conversation was innocent. I was putting Joe to bed on Sunday when what had been a fun game of animal versus who-man, had now taken a serious turn.

"Mommy, why do Chance & Wrigley get to poop outside?"
"Why can't I poop outside?"
"Can Daddy poop outside?"

My mind started racing. Luckily, the who-man versus animal conversation came racing back to my mind. "Remember that things with claws, tails or swim in the water are animals?" I asked. "Well those animals are allowed to poop outside."



"Okay, so Daddy and I can't poop outside?"
"No, Daddy and Joe cannot poop outside."

The boundry has been set: Jack & Daddy & Joe cannot poop outside.

Quick Meal

It is amazing to me how much of our day revolves around food. The first morning activity, aside from getting the boys dressed, is breakfast. The first activity when we arrive home from work and school/daycare is coordinating dinner. And the last activity at bedtime, besides kissing and reading, is "a quick drink." Joe makes me laugh with his references to "quick." Can he watch a "quick DVD?" Can he have a "quick drink?" Can he eat a "quick snack?" And speaking of "quick"...what is with kids' obsession with McDonald's? Or "Old McDonald's," as Joe calls it. Joe loves the happy meal. And he doesn't care whether he gets the cheeseburger happy meal or the chicken mcnugget happy meal. He is more concerned about receiving the "boy" toy. As I'm ordering our food via the drive-thru, Joe is usually yelling from the back seat "tell them boy! tell them boy!" Heaven forbid a Barbie is found on the bottom of our happy meal box.

Recently, Jack's appetite is incredible. As soon as he is safely strapped into his booster seat, he shoves fists full of food into his mouth. At 16-months, Jack can easily out-eat Joe. Jack loves oranges, pears, peaches, apples, bananas, corn, peas, hotdogs, ham chunks, noodles, just to name a few.

Baby Jack learning to eat June 2007

Joe & a "quick snack" July 2007

Welcome To Our Jungle, We've Got Fun & Games

The three of us boys have been having quite the time together with Amy out of town. Not that we don't miss her, we all miss her tremendously. But it's our time to cut loose and be boys!

The other night Joe was watching the movie Aladdin in his room. Jack was exploring the basement. Moving from his big brother's room to the living room, picking up and dropping toys along the way. I on the other hand decided that it was time to continue my tour on Guitar Hero III on our Nintendo Wii!

So while I am getting my guitar tuned, I hear Joe in the other room singing a song from Aladdin. A few minutes later, Jack comes strutting out of Joe's room with a kazoo in his mouth and he is humming along to his own song. All of this is happening while I am playing my encore of Guns 'n' Roses', Welcome To The Jungle on Guitar Hero.

If Joe keeps working on his vocals, Jack transitions from the kazoo to the harmonica and I can incorporate the 5th fret on my plastic Les Paul guitar, we might be able to get a couple of gigs. Work on some new material and possibly land a record deal.

Joe Laying Down Vocals with Aladdin

Jack Playin' The Blues On His Kazoo

Guitar Hero Telling Us What We Already Know....We Rock!

The 3 Stooges

With Amy out of town, that leaves Joe, Jack and myself pretty much unsupervised. Just kidding, the boys are doing a great job of watching after Daddy....wait, we are all doing a great job of watching after each other to make sure nobody gets hurt.

Obviously, it does seem different around the house without Amy being here. Joe asked about when Mommy is coming home. Having the person who we all love so very much not at home seems strange for us men (boys).

However, even though Joe is 4 and Jack is just a few months over 1, we are still boys. And what do boys do best? Goof off. The three of us are getting along great. How are we getting by? With a lot of laughter and joking around. Here are a few examples of what's been going on around here in Amy's absense. (Some videos/photos may have been altered to protect the innocent!)

Marching Through a Hallway

Jack Making Funny Noises

Joe Making Funny Noises

Our Grand Exit from Sunshine Grocery Store

I suppose you could call us the 3 Stooges. Joe can be "Moe". Because when he gets a haircut his bangs look similar to Moe's. Jack will be "Larry". Larry's hair was always kind of messy and before Jack got his haircut his hair was rather wispy. I, of course, will be "Curly". Sticking with the same theme, the hair, or lack there of.

So even though none of us have gotten our eyes poked, knocked our heads together or gotten our head stuck in a vice-grip, we have been having a grand time together. One thing is for sure, us Jacobson boys like to have a good time and laugh at each other and with each other. But hurry home Mommy, we miss you!

The Big Chance Man

About a year ago we welcomed a new dog to our house. His name is Chance & he is one big, rambunctious, young dog. He is full of energy and has added much motion to our house. Wrigley, our other golden retriever, loves Chance and so do the boys. He lets Joe and Jack crawl on him and wrestle with him. Even with his large size, he is gentle with the boys.

Chance & Jack

Chance the chair.

Chance is very smart. He knows when someone walks by our house, when a squirrel is on our roof, and when the Westminster dog show is on. The dog show was on last night and he watched dogs trot around Madison Square Garden to earn their blue and red ribbons. It was fun to see Chance so interested in the dogs on television. He is definatley our show dog.

Chance liked the 2007 Westminster Winner, James an English Springer Spaniel.

Barber Mom

The first time I cut hair was 1995. We were in college and Matt lived on 'U' Street in Lincoln. He wore a basic, buzzed hair style that only required an electric hair trimmer with clip 2 and clip 4. The front porch at 2311 'U' Street became my college of hair design classroom. I vividly remember my nervousness as I buzzed his hair. This inagural hair cut started a trend, which grew into an expectation, that I'm still trying to shake. I continued to cut Matt's hair until May 2001. When I recieved my masters degree, Matt asked me what I wanted as a graduation gift. I said, "I never want to cut your hair again." I figured since we were out of school, starting our careers, we could spend the money on Matt's hair cut. This same month we moved to Chicago. Our building was called Park Place Tower. Park Place had a video store, a convienince mart, a drycleaner, and a hair salon on the first floor. Within a few weeks of us living in Chicago, Matt needed a hair cut. He scheduled a hair cut at the hair salon in our building. And if I remember correctly, his basic, clip 2 & clip 4 hair buzz cost $45. I was back to Barber Amy. Since then, Matt has started to completely shave his head. Here is a picutre of him when he first shaved his head:

I've parlayed my hair cutting on 'U' Street into cutting Joe & Jack's hair. Joe's hair is exteremly thick, just like Matt's. Jack's hair is extremely thin, just like mine. As supervising stlyist of our house, I've had to decide Joe's hair style and last night I had to decide Jack's hair style. For Joe, his hair is too thick, too curly, and too blonde to keep short.

Joe's hair getting long. Summer 2005.

Joe's crazy, long hair. Picture taken this morning at breakfast.

For Jack, he is too tough on his hair to keep it long. Since he was born, Jack has had a constent birds-nest in the back of his hair. At night, he rubs his head into his mattress and blankets. My mom does the exact same thing. When my mom wakes up in the morning, her hair literally stands straight out. When Jack wakes up in the morning, his hair literally stands straight out. Jack had his first hair cut last night.

Jack & his whispy hair. December 2007.

Jack's First Hair Cut. Picture taken this morning at breakfast.

And In This Corner......

The Nintendo Wii that Amy gave me for Christmas this past year has been great entertainment for Amy, myself, as well as other family and friends (please refer to past blogs and see for yourself!). We spend many a night battling it out on the baseball diamond, tee box, the bowling alley and Centre Court playing tennis. Amy and I usually swap victories with each other on the tennis court but we ALWAYS battle for 2nd place in bowling because there is no stopping Traci and her dreaded T-Rex/Statue of Liberty form.

It doesn't look like much, but it carries a 225 average!

Lately, it seems as if someone else has enjoyed playing the Wii along with us, Joe. Yes, at the tender age of 4, Joe has begun taking a strong liking to video games. Not only does he enjoy playing, his favorite is the most brutal of the 5 Wii Sports games, boxing! Yes boxing, or as Joe calls it, "foxing", is the game he enjoys playing and enjoys watching more than any other game. It's not uncommon for Joe to ask me while Amy and I are in the middle of a tennis match to say, "Daddy, after tennis will you play foxing?".

Joe gets a kick out of how the Wii works. I think he likes the boxing because it is constant movement to play. Not only does it keep him moving, when he knocks an opponant down on the canvas, it allows him to count to 10! The excitement on his face after he KO's another prize fighter is amazing to see. I think he will hold on to the title for a few more years until his younger, more aggressive brother Jack tries to take that title away from him!

And in blue corner.....Weighing in at 36 pounds.....hailing from Sioux Falls, SD.....the Pre-School Champion of the World.....Joe Joe Jacobson!

Joe Workin' the Left

Notice Mommy in the background KO'd

Joe In Action

Real tomato ketchup, Eddie?

As all parents are, Matt is a huge influence on the boys. Both boys love baseballs, bats, basketballs, golf balls, golf clubs and sporting equipment in general. This is a daddy-influence. Both boys have a great sense of humor. They laugh and laugh and laugh. This is a daddy-influence. Both boys get hot & don't require layers of clothing. This is a daddy-influence. Both boys hate waking up in the morning. This, too, is a daddy-influence. But perhaps the biggest influence Matt has had on the boys is: his love for Heinz Ketchup. Matt loves ketchup. We buy ketchup by the gallon yet seem to always need more. Resturants that serve Hunt's ketchup are "bush league." Joe and Jack love ketchup. This is definatley a daddy-influence.

Jack enjoying ketchup.

Joe enjoying ketchup.

"WOW" no time to blog

We've had a crazy couple of weeks at the Jacobson house. With Matt gone, we all have to adjust. Many things happened. My dad had eye surgery. Jack was sick. April turned 31. It snowed. We went to the Lovrien's superbowl party. The Babcocks had a baby. Chad & Jenny & Colter welcomed Bridger James on January 30. Bridger weighed 9 lbs 6oz.

Jenny, Bridger & Colter Babcock

At our house, Joe's imagination is running wild. He constantly has dialog with his friends. He talks to Scooby Doo, Curious George, and most commonly he talks to Aladdin, the Magic Carpet, Genie, Princess Jasmin and Jafar. Ever since Joe watched the Disney movie Aladdin, last summer, he is obsessed with the characters. Daddy is the Genie. Joe is Aladdin. I am Princess Jasmin. We go on magic carpet rides. We journey to the Cave of Wonders. We holiday at the Sultan's castle. Joe's imagination is incredible.

Joe with his Aladdin & Jasmin friends.

Joe and I are tight. I still baby Joe more than I probably should. You might say that Joe is a Mama's Boy. And I love it. This past week Joe asked me to marry him. He did. It melted my heart. He said, "mom, you and I are gonna get married like Aladdin & Jasmin." I said, "okay." Then, as if he couldn't be more cute, Joe melted my heart again. He was at the kitchen table practicing his writing. He can write his name very easily. He had been practicing writing Jack's name, when he announced, "Mom, I'm gonna write your name. M-O-M, mom." I said "Okay." Here is my name:

M-O-M or W-O-W. Either way is fine with me.