Weekend News

Sunday 2/25/07

Six inches of snow today. Here are a couple of pics before I started shoveling. Benjamin wanted to come outside and play but he's still got a little congestion so it was best for him that he remain inside. I did smash a snowball over my head that got some laughs from him when he was looking outside the window though.



Big win for the Terps today over 5th ranked North Carolina 89-87. D.J. Strawberry scored a career-high 27 points as the Terps rallied from a 12-point deficit in the second half. The Terps, 22-7 and 8-6 in the ACC extend its winning streak to five games. This was Maryland's first win over North Carolina in six tries since January 2004. Props to Gary Williams for bringing this team back from a 2-5 ACC start.



Saturday 2/24/07

The Screaming Eagles Annual Meeting was held yesterday at the Rosslyn Spectrum. D.C. United Head Coach Tom Soehn was the guest speaker in front of an extimated two hundred members. He talked about the team's 4-1 victory over Olympia in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup.

The return leg of this quarterfinal match up is this Thursday at RFK Stadium. As CONCACAF Champions, D.C. United would play in the 2007 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan This is a huge opportunity for D.C. United.

Soehn mentioned that MLS Cup 2007 is going to be played at RFK Stadium and he said confidently "We'll be playing in it", which brought cheers from the crowd. He also said that Assistant Coaches Mark Simpson and Chad Ashton will both coach the reserves in the MLS Reserve League and that these reserves will be primarily used during the U.S. Open Cup competition in the Summer.

The event was very successful and I'm pleased to be the SE Treasurer for another year. Visit the Screaming Eagles web site here.

For more, please go to the Screaming Eagles podcast. Dave does a fantastic job here.

D.C. United's schedule can be accessed here

After Daycare

Best part of my day is when I arrive at Benjamin's daycare around 4:15 to pick him up. Before I pack up his things, we have a nice reunion hug and then we spend a little time saying goodbye to his playmates. Benjamin waves goodbye, smiles and says "Bye Bye!" and off we go. We get home and it's playtime for the two of us until Mommy comes home around 5:30. We like to read, play with blocks and listen to music before taking some time to watch Sesame Street and his favorite character Elmo. I had my camera around so I snapped these pictures of our goof off time this evening.





Life is good. Benjamin turns 16 months old on Sunday.

Weekend Happenings

The miserable month of February 2007 rolls on...Now Weena isn't feeling well. She's been sidelined with a nagging cough and headache and the medication she is suppsed to take is making her nauseous. The month started with me sick for three days with an intestinal bug, Benjamin having a couple ear infections, congestion and cough and now Weena's not feeling well. Toss in the miserable cold weather too. In the past this has been by far my least favorite month. However, a few things I am looking forward to include:

*Pitchers and catchers reported for Spring Training.
*I had my friend Erick, who is in Las Vegas this weekend for the NBA All Star game put a $20 bet on Dale Earnhart Jr to win the Daytona 500.
*On February 20th I celebrate 18 years of sobriety.
*D.C. United begins play on February 21st.
*March Madness is just around the corner.

Also I stuck a link to another blog I like to read called Life on Tour. It's written by a veteran caddy of the LPGA Tour, Larry Smich. He's caddied on the LPGA Tour since 1977. Definitely check it out if you're a golf fan.

Changes in the past couple months

Just a few things have changed since Benjamin's now passed 15 months. Used to be I would get home at 4:15 PM and play with Benjamin, then we would head upstairs and wait for Mommy. While doing so, I would catch a couple ESPN sports shows, Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption while Benjamin was cuddled up with Daddy on the bed. Not anymore. Benjamin now loves Sesame Street on PBS Kids Sprout Network and this is on from 5:00-6:00. His favorite part is Elmo's World, which usually comes on at 5:45. So instead of watching and listening to Kornheiser and Wilbon yap about the day's sports topics, I now get Elmo, Dorothy the Goldfish and Mr. Noodle. It's pretty cool to see Benjamin's face light up and hear him yelling "ELMO!" when he comes on.

Next is bed time, which usually starts at 7:30. After dinner I would take Benjamin upstairs and out of habit I would flip on the TV to catch the Seinfeld re-run while Benjamin had his bottle and he'd doze off. Now Benjamin likes to watch The Good Night Show (same channel) He likes the cartoons and the songs. When this show is on he knows his day is winding down.

Old habits eventually change and while I love sports and Seinfeld, interacting and horsing around with your child is the greatest fun a Dad could have. These programs he's now into are good entertainment and he's learning things and singing before he goes to bed. Great, positive way to end a day.

To Mommy, Happy Valentine's Day!

Rough Week For Our Little Guy

Monday and Tuesday were fine, Benjamin went to his day care and had his usual days. It's been very cold this week and we took extra steps to bundle him up in taking him to and from his day care. Wednesday he had a fever and some congestion and this carried over into Thursday so we decided to take him to see his pediatrician. Benjamin's incisors are coming in and this has triggered a left ear infection. His lungs are fine, he just has a cough and runny nose that go along with this. We decided to keep him out of his day care the rest of the week so he could recover so Weena and I alternated time off from work. He had a rough Saturday AM, waking up a couple times (2:00 AM and 5:00 AM) but in the afternoon he slept for a good four hours. Early this AM he woke up once around 5:00, was feverish but went back to sleep after we gave him some milk. Right now as I type this, he's running around up stairs with a normal temperature. Hopefully the worst is behind him.

Update: 2/12 at 2:00 PM from Weena
The doctor said that the Amoxicillin isn’t working for Ben’s ear infection this time. There are 3 strains of bacteria that causes ear infection. Amoxicillin can take care of 2 and unfortunately Ben has the 3rd strain. He prescribed a different antibiotic that Ben needs to start taking tonight.

If his fever doesn’t go away by Thursday, we’ll have to take him back for urine and blood tests. He also mentioned that they had 4 toddlers who have the same situation as Ben and doctor thinks it’s the strain that’s been going around the past weeks.

So far, Ben doesn’t show any other signs or symptoms of any other infection – no strep, no red rashes, and he’s still his playful self. It’s ok to continue using Tylenol/Motrin to get his fever down to at least 99. With the new medicine, the fever should not go any higher than 101 degrees and will gradually will go away in a couple of days.

He lost a pound already (24 lbs now) and doctor said it happens when they get ear infections and couldn’t eat much.

While waiting in the lobby, we were "reading" his baby book. He loves to say the word "owl" and kisses the picture! He’s fascinated by the big round eyes of the owl. He knows where to look for the owl picture too.

Benjamin's 15 Month Check Up

Benjamin had his 15 month check up the other day. He is 32 inches tall and weighs 25 pounds, all normal. He also got his last two shots for awhile. I think they were for measles and mumps but he's had so many I've lost track. He was a trooper during this last set. He cried for about ten seconds, but when Daddy made a few goofy sounds and gave him his little Elmo toy, he was all smiles. His pediatrician was impressed with his progress and we are grateful for the care they have administered to Benjamin both for his normal check ups and the times we've had to bring him in when he was sick.

His next trip to the pediatrician is in three months, then he starts going on an annual basis. It's hard to believe Benjamin is in year two right now. Seems like yesterday he was born and I thought about this as Weena, Benjamin and I attended a baby shower for one of Weena's cousin's yesterday afternoon.

Here are a few recent photos of Benjamin: