The Bridenstines -- Random Rants, Daily Dish and Seriously Silly Stuff

Monday, June 15, 2009 --- On the Stairs

Just a simple picture of me and my son, hanging out on the stairs in our apartment building. He's so cute it's both hilarious and unbelievable at the same time. Drink in the cuteness.

Labels: cute, Dad, NJ, stairs

Monday, June 8, 2009 --- 100th Post

Blogger.com tells me that this is our 100th posting! So, in tribute, I have attached first-hand pictures of Nicholas' battle yesterday with a soft-serve ice cream cone. It was a tough fight, but I believe the little man came out victorious. Next stop - FROZEN CUSTARD!

Labels: ice cream, July, Nicholas, summer

Friday, May 22, 2009 ---

Nothing is as cute as a little boy eating his ice cream cone. Now this little boy is a bit scratched up, with a forehead marked up from flipping off his changing table, and the remnants of a bloody nose from the previous day's fall. And his mother says he had no desire to share his cone. So all that said, maybe NJ was a bit on the blue side that day. But I'm sure the cone helped, nonetheless...

Labels: ice cream, Nicholas, sad, son

Friday, May 8, 2009 --- Early Summer Pics

Just a few fun pics of NJ to post.

Here's NJ smiling widely at our friends Matt and Kathy's baby shower. Just a happy kid.

Now the picture below is a classic. Dad, doing what he does best, opening his big mouth. And NJ calmly assessing how he can take the photographer's wallet while she's shooting the pic.

This one is on a playground in Central Park. He just loves drinking fountains!

And the pic below strikes me as particularly funny. Nicholas James just has a blended look of half-sadness, half-fatigue. Or maybe it's just 100% pout. It's anyone's guess.

Labels: NJ, party, summer

Sunday, May 3, 2009 --- Kickin Daddy

Even though you can't see Nicholas laughing his head off, believe me, he was. I guess kicking Daddy in the head/chest is just hilarious to a 17 month old!

Labels: Dad, kick, Nicholas, swing

Tuesday, April 28, 2009 --- Dancing!

It's a hot day in NYC, but that doesn't stop NJ from shaking his booty! Check him out.

Labels: dance, funk, NJ

Tuesday, April 14, 2009 --- Easter Trip 2009

The whole Bridenstine clan set out to the Midwest for Easter 2009, starting with a trip to Grandpa and Grandma B. We were lucky enough to stay at Uncle Tom's, as he was out of town, and we got a chance to see how Grandpa B is doing. The report? A+ and straight on till mornin, if we can mix our metaphors. Then we hit the train to Chicago and got a chance to spend one fun night with cousins David and Lisa. Right in the heart of the Big Second City. Nice! We also got a visit from good friends Aaron and Diana, and their lovely daughter Sienna. A full day at Navy Pier and the Children's Museum made for a ton of fun. From there, we hit the suburbs and stayed at Aunt Stacey and Uncle Larry's, and got to hook up with the whole family; Grandpa and Grandma M, Uncle Jeff, Aunt Julie, the three girls, and cousins Seth and Ava. Six kids reeking havoc all around the house - and we wouldn't have it any other way. Take a look at some our our pics.

Below we see Dad and Nicholas playing Wii. Dad has that clueless look on his face of someone who doesn't understand advanced gaming, or maybe even multi-syllabic words, while Nicholas is doing the best thing you can with a microphone; eat it.

Below Nicholas is practicing his licks for "Rock Band 2." Jam man!

Here's Grandpa B, smiling for the camera.

Below you see Uncle Steve and his very large paddle for rowing with his French Nature club, whose name escapes me. [Actually, I don't speak French, so I'm off the hook.] Nicholas looks up in amazement, hoping his stern looking Uncle has no plans for the paddle and NJ's behind. Below that is a pic from Uncle Tom's porch of deer, looking for a handout. Tell Ted Nugent that only thing we shot them with is a digital camera.

Here's a really cute picture of Nicholas and Siena, sitting on the Chicago grass in a park.

Below you'll see Nicholas was NOT happy about riding Thomas the train at Navy Pier.

The two kids play in the background at the Chicago Children's Museum while Aaron talks to a really hot Mom. Or not. I forget. But it sounds funnier when I write "hot Mom."

On Easter Sunday, all six of the kids looked for eggs in Uncle Larry's backyard. Here Seth frantically looks to add up on his total haul, while NJ works the yard with Mom as Isabella uses her bunny ears to sense exactly where the hidden eggs may be.

Later at Grandpa and Grandma's, NJ works the kazoo.

Isn't NJ styling in his cute new hat? You go girl!

Another egg hunt? Yes, that's right people. Grandpa's backyard had almost 200 eggs hidden in it's many nooks and crannies, and the kids had a very fun time searching and gathering.

With a little help from Mom, NJ finds one under a branch.

When you need help finding hidden eggs, call for Dudley, the super sniffing dog! [Master Uncle Corey, out of frame, is gladly keeping Dudley from eating all the egg's contents.]

What a cute couple! Mom and son, happy on Easter day!

Labels: Chicago, Detroit, Easter, family, Nicholas, vacation

Monday, March 30, 2009 --- Nicholas in the park from 3/16/09

This is a little old but thought it was cute. We rotate parks that we go to and this is a new one for the wee ones. He was practicing his walk/run! You will see his friend Nicolas chasing after him.

Labels: Nicholas, park

Monday, March 23, 2009 --- First Bike Ride

Nicholas and I hit the streets of Manhattan yesterday for the first time ever - ON A BIKE! NJ's seat came in from amazon.com, along with his cute blue Bell helmet, covered in fishes and turtles and other sea life. Mom went out with a friend so the boys were on their own. It all started out well, but when I saw that it was too cold to go along the real bike path along the Hudson, we had to hit Broadway. So it was sidewalk city, from one street to another, which was kind of annoying, but nowhere near as annoying as the seat to Mom's bike (which I was riding), which kept falling down after being reset. I mean, I know I need to lose some weight, but this was ridiculous! And given how far down I was, it was like riding a clown car. We did, however, manage to hit the Harlem bike shop, the Burger King and tried desperately to find the red velvet cupcake place to bring a treat home to Mom. You can see how much NJ loved his carseat in the shot below - so much so that he feel asleep. Nothing says "A day out in the city" like sleeping in your bike seat. Afterwards we hit Gideon's, our local Jewish bakery, to get our shared cinnamon roll. Ah...the weekends.

Labels: bicycle, Dad, Manhattan, Nicholas, sleephttp://www.towheadproductions.com/familyblog/uploaded_images/Photo_032209_007-791678.jpg

Sunday, March 15, 2009 --- Saturday in the Park, I think it was the Fourth of July

Well, it wasn't quite the 4th of July, but it was a fairly warm Saturday in March. Lori, Michael and Nicholas all headed downtown to go shopping, and fit a lot of fun in between the purchases.

Here we are at the subway station at 181st St, where Nicholas decides to throw some strange looks at the resident accordion player. The guy got a dollar, despite.

Here's Nicholas going down a big slide with the help of Daddy.

Here's Nicholas going down the twisty slide with the help of Mommy.

Now Nicholas going down the big cone slide alone!

Labels: Dad, Mom, Nicholas, park, summer

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The Bridenstines consist of five sentient beings of various intellect, value and potential, specifically:

Lori -- Wife and mother, taking a government-sanctioned maternity break from her personal training gig to birth, rear and guide her son as he begins his life and ends hers, a.k.a. “eating the metaphorical bon bon.”

Nicholas -- Newest addition to the family, born happy, healthy and eager to start blaming his parents for ruining his life. Predicted first word – Why?

Brummie -- Elder female feline, happy with warm belly rubs and cold bowls of milk. Tabby in coat, Tiger in heart.

Maya -- Deadly-but-delicious younger putty tat, with a soft face to melt the hardest heart and a proclivity toward urinating on Mom and Dad while they sleep.

Michael -- Husband and father, busy writing, producing and directing the next great American sitcom, if at least in his head. Loves to multi-task while on the phone, often by dusting while yapping.