January 23rd, 2010 by EJ · General
This morning we were at Lowes and ran into the bi-monthly kids’ workshop in progress. They were putting together a smal tic-tac-toe toy and David was instantly hooked. Since they were wrapping up, we bought the smallest hammer we could find for him and took one of the kits home with us.
Later in the day after his nap, we got to work in the basement.


Here’s to David’s first building project! More photos in the gallery.
Tags: David·projects·wood·woodworking
January 9th, 2010 by EJ · General
The Johnson household is back to two cats. Today we went to Sangamon County Animal Control in hopes of finding a suitable kitten for our home, and brought home a fun little energetic boy.

David immediately started calling him Bottles for reasons unknown to us, so we figured we’d try that out as a name. Several hours later we decided Bottles just wasn’t working out, so we instead have ended up with Faraday. Dozer and Faraday. Works well.
More photos available in the gallery.
Tags: cats·dozer·faraday·Neo·pets
January 6th, 2010 by EJ · General
One of my Christmas gifts from Ana was delivered today, my new Noreve Kindle DX Tradition leather case. And it looks and feels great.

Unlike many of the Kindle 2 and Kindle DX cases out on the market, Noreve has avoided the terrible hinge system for this case. Thank goodness, because the Amazon case with the hinge caused our DX to crack (eventually replaced by Amazon). Instead, it uses sturdy, leather-covered tabs to keep the kindle firmly in place in the case without worry of scratching or otherwise damaging the device. You just slide the Kindle in from the left and into place beneath the “tabs”. Unlike in the Amazon case, the Kindle is going nowhere in this thing.

The case is padded quite nicely, has a stylish texture, and a good magnetic closure.

One concern I had before receiving it today was that it may be too bulky, but surprisingly even with it’s padded feel it isn’t noticeably bulkier than the stock Amazon one. The front cover can comfortably be folded back and out of the way while reading, and unlike Amazon’s case you don’t have to worry about opening it from the wrong side (which can lead to those cracks!).

I spent a lot of time looking for a good case for the DX, and ended up with a great one. While it’s a bit more expensive than competitors’, every indication thus far is that it’s going to be worth every penny.
For more photos of the case, check the gallery.
Tags:
January 3rd, 2010 by EJ · General
This weekend I built the second step stool for David, this one for an upstairs bathroom.
I also got both sanded, primed, and covered in a coat or two of paint. One red, one white. The white was so we could turn David loose on it to make it his own. With Mom’s help, 30 minutes, and a few tubes of paint, he deemed it complete. There is no mistaking it, it’s his!

As always, Mr. Serious:

Here’s our work, side-by-side. I’m happy with how they turned out and they should last beyond their need.

So that’s what we did this afternoon; it was fun and provided a nice little diversion on this cold, cold January Sunday. If you’d like to see a few more photos of David’s artistic process, they’re in the photo gallery.
Tags: David·projects·woodworking
December 31st, 2009 by EJ · General
Here it is New Year’s Eve and David has come down with something. He’s just spending the day taking in medicine and an Imagination Movers marathon from the couch.

A far cry from the active little guy that was two days ago.

Tags: David·sick
December 24th, 2009 by EJ · General
David spent this Christmas Eve morning helping Mom make Santa’s cookies, and after a quick nap he’ll get to decorate them too.

He is pretty excited, even if he isn’t quite sure why. On more than one occasion he has run up to me saying “It’s Christmas!”
This is going to be fun
Update: decorating has begun!

Tags: christmas·David
December 12th, 2009 by EJ · General
2 years ago today, Ana and I were sitting in a hospital room with our brand new son, David.

That photo is the result of asking him to smile big for me tonight. Just wonderful, the little ham.
Happy Birthday, David. You sure make it fun!
Tags: Birthday·David
November 27th, 2009 by EJ · General
Today I made a step stool for David, it give him just enough height so he can reach the faucet and wash his hands. All that’s left is to sand and paint it.


Ana has already put in another order for one for upstairs.
Tags: David·projects·wood