Ice Cream Face

So, Murray and I have recently discovered that our son is a fiend of ice cream. A trait which obviously comes from his daddy's side, as mom can only eat it in small quantities. How have we discovered this? Murray and I went down to the local Macey's (our local grocery store) where they sell ice cream cones for a ridiculously low price. I get my usual small cone while Murray gets his usual "Kong" size cone. I am holding Andrew and decide to see how he likes the taste by giving him a very small sample and the next thing I know he has wrapped his hands (yes, both of them) around my ice cream cone and shoves the whole thing into his little face.

Quite nice wouldn't you agree??? However, he managed to mangle my cone beyond use or edibility and it was promptly thrown away. Upon seeing this Andrew threw what seemed like his first public tantrum because he was denied that which he wanted. I'm sure that won't be the last time that will happen!!! (sigh!)

Four months old!!!

Andrew is officially four months old (well, a little older as we are a bit late getting this post up!) The official stats are as follows:

Weight-12 lbs 10 oz (10%)
Length-25 in (75%)
Head Circumference-17 in (85%)

Still long and skinny but it might be getting close to time to do something about his weight (getting him to gain more of it, that is). Andrew really is a good baby unless it's time to either eat or sleep! He has started eating rice cereal and seems to like it alright, we usually mix it with some baby apple juice to give it some flavor. He is growing so fast we can hardly believe it, but more importantly he is growing healthy!

Here he is watching Grandma Whitehead while Dad is snapping pictures before church. This kid doesn't miss a thing!!! (That could certainly spell trouble later on!)

Oh the joys of learning a language!

So.... just a forewarning for those non-math lovers out there. If you are reading this, you can consider this post ending here. The rest of this is about the wonders of math 1050 or College Algebra.

My math teacher is a really interesting cat. He has a wave for a hair do and it is always in the same spot each day. I don't think he ever washes it. He might, but he just puts on a special cap to keep it in place.

He is very good at math and really seems to have a passion about it, but I think he is truly in love with calculus. It is all he talks about. I wonder, once in a while, if he has a poster of all the calculus formula's up in his room, right next to some of the mathematicians who extended the realm of math into calculus. If he has pajamas with anything math on them. Ok... so I am a little overboard on my imagination. It really comes from the fact that I feel like I don't know what I am doing in math now. I have a hard time understanding what concepts he's trying to teach and all it seems I hear is about calculus and later on when you get into calculus...

We recently finished with quadratic formula's and the lovely and beautifully sensuous(?) quadratic formula...

ax^2+bx+c (for those of you who are wondering, ^2 is x squared or x to the power of 2)
I wanted to use Microsoft Word but it won't copy and paste like I want to...

There are other different flavors of this formula that are just too much fun for one person to handle.

a(x-h)^2+k

Quadratic

To make a long story short, I don't see an end to this use of the mathematics for quite sometime. I even had a dream about it last night. Sheesh! I guess it's a good time to eat, sleep, breathe mathematics. There are so many rules and letters and concepts in math that just learning it is a little overwhelming.

And on a side note... I found a really cool site with information on Astronomy.
Astronomy Cast. It has a podcast that I've been listening to for the past week or two at work. It is very informative and not in an overwhelming scientific jargan way.

Thank you servicemen! 9/11

I don't quite know how to say it, but I would like to thank all those servicemen that give of their time and self to the defense of this country. I dislike thinking about the events that happened on 9-11-01. I remember sitting in my living room playing Sojourn on the computer. It was early in the morning and someone asked me if I had heard what was going on in the news. I said no, and turned it on immediately. It was about a minute before I saw the second plane crash into the Twin Towers. I don't have words to describe what I felt at that moment. Part of me wanted to vomit and another part wanted to scream out in rage at the loss of so many lives. I sat and watched and realized that soon those towers were going to fall. To make a long story short, it was an unfortunate day and I hope that we will never see another like it.

That being said, there were many men and women sent over to Afghanistan and later to Iraq to defend the freedoms and lives and liberties of this nation. I understand we are not a perfect nation and we have our problems. I do believe though, that when in righteousness, this nation is a country guided and directed by the hand of God. I may not agree with everything that is implemented by this government. I may not like how politicians work or what they say, but the fact that I can say what I think about someone says a lot for the freedoms here.

With a new family and the opportunity to go to school and increase my knowledge and education, I am grateful to live here in this day, and in this country in a wonderful family. I can go down to the grocery store and pick and choose what I want to eat for dinner, for a snack, for lunch, for whatever I have a hankering for.

I remember when Andrew came home. I was driving the car and felt like I wanted a presidential escort to clear the roads from all the crazy drivers that drive here in Utah. I wanted to protect him from any physical harm, and eventually protect him from some of the other dangers that are here in this world. Not by sheltering him, but from teaching him truth.

I am grateful for the men and women who have given of themselves to defend what I have today. For the picture below. It's of a father with two little girls at a field north of the Southtown Mall in Sandy. It was really quite a special thing. There were a ton of flags placed in rows upon rows in commemoration of 9/11. A father had his two girls running and playing and being little girls without much of a care in the world except for what food they detest, going to bed at a certain time and whether or not their parents spend time with them. You can see the girl on the right with a smile on her face as she runs laughing and not having a care in the world. I barely remember having such innocence and long for a day when there will be no innocence shattered.

I am grateful for the opportunity I have to go camping with my wife and son, and future children at some point.
I would also like to say thank you to my elder brother. Without Him, none of this would be possible at all. I would not have this family, I would not be able to live with them in the eternities.

Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. (1 Nephi 21:16)
For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent (D&C 19:16)
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isa. 1:18)

I am grateful for His atoning sacrifice to make it possible for me to receive eternal happiness and joy forever. I am grateful for the peace that the companionship of the Holy Ghost brings. What a marvelous gift that is to me.

Adorable moments

Some more recent moments that I have really enjoyed with Andrew. He loves to smile more and more each day.

I love putting him on the bed and bouncing him with my hands. It makes him laugh mucho!
I love just babbling nothing but baby talk to him.
I love talking to him and getting smiles.
He likes it when I lay down on my back and hold him up so he's standing and pretending that he is Godzilla or some large creature and make the appropriate noises that go along with it.
The best though is when he laughs and it almost sounds like a hiccup.

I feel like such a smile prostitute sometimes. I almost want to do anything to get him to laugh and smile.

The one thing that is really endearing to me is when he's tired and fussy. I take him and wrap him up and hold him in a rocking chair we found until he falls asleep. I don't quite get what it is that I enjoy, but it's great to watch him go through his falling asleep rigmarole. Andrew will fight and wiggle and squirm for a little while. "No! I'm not sleepy! I must stay awake! There is so much going on! I can't miss out on one precious moment!" Then his eyelids will slowly droop down for about a minute, then the squirm and fuss followed by a little bit longer on the rolling of the eyes and droop of the eyelids. I find it fairly humorous in his determination to stay awake, only to end up falling asleep in about 5 to 10 minutes.

Here is Andrew with his computer he's using for hacking. He mumbled something about taking over the world. We thought it was adorable and so we took some pictures.

Here is where he's mumbling something about getting Austin Powers, whoever that is.... Then he asked us if we'd seen Mr. Bigglesworth around somewhere. This kid sure has some imagination!