Crawling out of the cave...

Have we gotten busy OR WHAT? I mean the first six months we were GOLDEN in terms of updating this blog, but as little Charlie has grown, we have abandoned this site, but not any more!

Little charlie is truly the sunshine in our lives. Each day, it seems he amazes us with something new that he has learned, or finds comical. He has two big teeth on the top of his mouth, three and a half on the bottom, and a few on the way we think.

He can say, dog, da dad, ma ma, dumb (yes, we don't think he knows what it means, but it does get a few dirty looks at Publix!).

His favorite foods are yogurt, cheese, bread, (he's french!), and my homemade throw everything in it under the sun, SPAGHETTI! he also had his first cheese quesadilla and loved it!

(Chris is typing now)
It seems that winter around here (especially this winter) confines us to our homes as if we were grizzly bears hibernating in a cave. This being the case, you would have thought we'd dedicate a little more time to the blog. But as it does with all of us - life gets in the way. A good life though - and we are continually remind ourselves on just how blessed we are during these tough economic times.

It's hard to wrap up three months in a "Cliff Notes" version of Charlie's life, but we will do our best to recount the highlights. I'm thinking photos with witty captions will do the trick...

Christmas 2008. I prefer to open my presents with my teeth! I only have four, so it takes awhile.

Me and Mommy on Christmas morning - how do you like my robe?

On Christmas morning (8 mos old), I figured something out - CRAWLING!

My first of many wrestling matches with my cousin Tommy.

Me and Grandma on the carousel.

Lolli and me in my brand new fire engine red wagon! It even has a back rest.

I eat butterflies for breakfast! It tickles my tummy when they are still flying around!

I eat puffs when I get the munchies (I was born on 4/20 you know)

I got this clapping thing down!

Hungry like the wolf.

Are we out of butterflies? Can't you buy something besides domestic beer dad? Honey, what do you want to eat?

I'm not walking on my own yet, but I hear Dad's gonna have me mowing the lawn by June.

We threw mommy a surprise party for her 30th birthday! And what the heck is up with this cold weather? It's April people!

Daddy made mommy a doughnut cake (it was a brunch).

My first haircut! Now I don't look like a baby Beatle. I went to Karrie - that's Daddy's stylist. Daddy told Mommy that she is a "good conversationalist", but Mommy just glared at him.

On the beach for Easter! It took me awhile, but I got used to the sand.


Having fun with my cousin Lauren at the beach house.

Me and Daddy on the beach at dusk.

They don't know the real reason I'm laughing...

I just ate a turtle!

Greetings from the shore! I'll have 5 ozs of formula on the rocks, no salt, cabana boy.

Me and Dad on the best beach day ever!

It's My Party and I'll Cry if I Want To!

CRYYYYY if I want to! CRRRRRY if I want to! You would cry too, if it happened to you....

As the last few remaining seconds of Saturday's game began to tick away, you would have thought I was hosting a wake rather than a Titans playoff game party. The room was silent - all except for the slow dumb drawl of Dan Dierdorf's voice on the TV that was now uncomfortably loud. Guests began to aimlessly shuffle about like John McCain at a debate and cleared out of the house quicker than an expiring play clock. If my friends were dogs, they would have all left with their tails between their legs in search of a nice quiet corner to go whimper in. As I came back in, Katie handed me a tuckered out Charlie, in hopes that the innocent smile of my son might cheer me up until I noticed the vomit stains on his Titans onesie and thought, "How fitting..."

Unfortunately, the day after isn't any better. When a fan suffers defeat of this magnitude, football, and sports in general are about as appetizing as a hot pickle. I would liken it to a breakup in some ways. Your invested emotions over the course of the past five months have been pummeled to the point of numbness. Pictures, songs, official sportswear, do nothing but dredge up the raw and awful past that hits you like a cold drop of rain on the back of your neck. So what do you do? Me? I rake leaves.

Yeah, that's right - nothing like some good ol' unnecessary manual labor to cast out the demons. But still you ponder...what might have been? Would we have gone on to win the AFC title? Would we have won in Tampa? Would Vince have been installed in some sort of Wild-Raccoon package? The questions pile up like the wet rotten mess in the leaf bag riddled with worms that continue to eat away at your conscience until the replay of Crump's fumble is etched permanently into your brain.

And what is it about Baltimore? Honestly? How on God's green football field does that awful city and team of thugs deserve to win a football game? What the hell is karma waiting on with Ray Lewis?!?!?! Is there a grace period when you are (mistakenly) exonerated for murder? And does it really matter that Brian Billick is not pacing the Baltimore sidelines anymore? NO! Cause his stupid fat face keeps showing up on those retarded Coors Light soundbite ads!

Being a native Houstonian, I have lived with the scourge of disappointing sports teams, save for the Rockets' back to back championships in the mid '90s. The Titans, who were once the Oilers own the lion's share of my let downs. And let's not forget the Astros, who brought me to the ultimate point of jilting when they made it to the World Series before wetting the bed in an 0-4 sweep to an annoying White Sox team back in 2005. You want to know pain - that is pain. Baseball is a long game - and you have to sit through a best of seven series before the fat lady brings her ass out to sing. That's the equivalent of having your heart cut out with a baby spoon.

Regardless of my tragic past - the heart of this sportsfan is never desensitized to the pain. And like a fat man at Shoney's, I keep coming back for more. Sure, I'll watch the Superbowl (only for the commercials) with the stinging irony that I could be watching my own team on that stage of stages. I'll listen to the radio this week and relive the game through the anger and remorse of callers five and six on the Wake Up Zone. I'll study the draft boards and make a wish on a WR from the Big 12. I'll mark my calendar when the schedules are released hoping that NBC finally decides to televise a game involving the Titans. And yes, when the scorching heat of July finally arrives, I will bring Charlie to Titans training camp and anoint him in the most unholy ritual of becoming a sportsfan. Why you ask?

Because I love this game.

What Are You Feeding that Boy?!?!

Well, like most of us around this time of year, even Charlie is sporting a little holiday gut - albeit not as a result of consuming three different desserts at once over Thanksgiving. (But they're little slices of each, so it's like one big piece).

As our little butter bean approaches his eighth month of life, it's truly hard to imagine those first few weeks at home with that wrinkly brand new life that gave us a brand new life. Charlie's personality is really beginning to surface as he starts to shed his early months as a newborn and develops into a happy little boy. Milestones that our little cha-cha has achieved lately:

1) Knows how to play peek-a-boo with him pulling the blanket over his own face (we have a video of this we need to post)

2) Has four teeth, two chompers on the bottom that are completely in and two front teeth that are a little more than a white sliver at the moment.

3) Is uttering the following letter sounds:

"Dah" (we're working on da-da)
"Kuh" (katie? nah, we prefer mommy)
"Ta" (TOUCHDOWN TITANS! Mike Keith got nothing on my boy)

4) As for crawling, he is a champ in reverse, he's still popping the clutch in first gear.

5) Juggling knives (butter knives for now) - we're grooming him for America's Got Talent

Being the mild Star Wars nerd that I am, when we took these photos of Charlie, I couldn't help but instantly compare him to an obscure character from Return of the Jedi...

You be the judge...


The character's name is Malikili (I had to look that up - see I'm not that big of a nerd). He was the keeper of the Rancor monster that Luke killed in Jabba's Palace. OK, I'm losing you I know.

Here are a few more recent photos of Charlie (sans Star Wars comparisons)

The tryptophan kicked our butt at Thanksgiving, so Charlie volunteered to drive us back home from Birmingham.

"Oooo! Stray cat with no tail - 20 points!"

Lolly and Pop deliver Charlie's first Christmas tree! (It's no Charlie Brown tree)

Charlie enjoys an intimate moment with Mommy by the trimmed Christmas tree.

December is Right Around the Corner!

OK folks! December is going to be here before we know it!! I know a lot of you haven't quite gotten into the Christmas spirit yet, but all you have to do is walk into Target or Walmart for about five minutes and you will be baptized in the thick sweet consumerism of christmas.

We are going to be somewhat lenient on our deadline date, but not THAT lenient! ;o)
So please get your photos and orders into us when you have them ready. Meeting deadlines will be tough if we are inundated with a hundred orders on the last day. So, again below are the designs and if you need to see the pricing sheet, you can click on the image in the right hand column!! Thanks!


For those of you that are interested in ordering Christmas cards with us, here is where you get to view the different styles we have available. Remember, if you already have an idea in mind or you’ve seen something that you would like us to emulate, we can do that too! Print costs for fully customized cards are the same but will incur an additional $25.00 design fee. Just drop us an email about what you’re looking for and we’d be happy to design whatever you want.

Once you've decided on your style, send us an email (chrisveit@comcast.net) with your photo (we will retouch and fix red-eye if necessary at no extra cost), your card message, and the amount of cards you want printed. Once your card is designed, we will email you a proof to approve and then it will be off to the printer. If you have any questions on anything, please drop us a line.

Here are the design styles, click for a larger view. Remember that each design can be applied to any of the three sizes. For example, if you like one of the panoramic designs but would prefer to have it on a folded card, we can do that for you. Just let us know what you want!

PANORAMIC (P1, P2, P3, P4):






SQUARE (S1, S2, S3, S4):







FOLDED (F1, F2, F3, F4):

dear charlie, love mommy

my dear little charlie,
it just occurred to me how big you've gotten and how much you look like a little boy now! it seems like just yesterday, i was up in the middle of the night, wishing that you would fall asleep, and now, i don't want you to get any bigger!! are we ever truly happy with where we are in life?!?! I AM!! BUT, on the other hand, i realize how quickly life is passing us by. you continue to amaze me with your smile, your laugh, and how great you eat your green beans!! we have had you on green beans now for 2 whole weeks, and next week, we'll move onto carrots, YUMMO!! i never knew i could love someone THIS much. i love your dad and all, but you'll know what i mean one day! as you sleep so soundly, your sweet face is still full of that baby-like innocence. always know that your mommy loves you so much!!!

Oh Baby! Obama!

Whether you voted for McCain or Obama - you cannot deny the significance of this historic election as America chose to put the first African-American president in the White House next January. The crux of the civil rights movement had all but passed by the time my generation came into this world - so while the moment may not be as bittersweet to folks my age - I still recognize Obama's election as momentous and historic.

It is my hope that the ignorance of racism that has receded with each generation will finally be eradicated once and for all by the time Charlie's kids are walking the earth. I celebrate this new and exciting chapter for our country with great hope and with a renewed sense of pride.

Amidst all the problems our country is facing right now - there are lingering wounds that need healing. My greatest hope for our next president, is that he will find a way to bring the people of this nation together again. To tear down the petty rifts that divide us into red and blue states. Deep down, I believe we all want the same things, and it is possible to work together for a common cause despite our minor differences.

Out of all the speeches, debates, analysis, and pundints - there was one statement during this long campaign that rang true more than any other and it was said by Michelle Obama during her speech at the Democratic National Convention...

"And Barack stood up that day, and he spoke words that have stayed with me ever since. He talked about the world as it is and the world as it should be. And he said that all too often we accept the distance between the two, and we settle for the world as it is, even when it doesn't reflect our values and aspirations.

But he reminded us that we also know what the world should look like. He said we know what fairness and justice and opportunity look like, and he urged us to believe in ourselves, to find the strength within ourselves to strive for the world as it SHOULD be. And isn't that the great American story?"

"I've got a Halloweenhead..."

The song has absolutely nothing to do with Halloween, but I still love it anyway. If you've never heard it before - check it out, it's by Ryan Adams.

Well little Tink's first Halloween was definitely a busy one. In fact, it could have been Hanukkah with the amount of days we devoted to the holiday. Charlie was patient enough to wear his devil costume on three different occasions and that's including the tights. Hopefully that will be the first and last time my boy wears tights.

Below are some of the highlights from our Halloween weekend!

Little Devil and Mommy at Charlie's first kid party.

Charlie helps solve a mystery with Scooby and the gang (The Briggs Family at the Cumberland Halloween party)

Even little devils can receive love!


There wasn't a wardrobe change - these were taken on two different days.