Happy Halloween

We finally decided on Cameron's Halloween costume, and it was none of the ones mentioned in the previous post. Instead, we decided Cam would be a greaser a la James Dean or Danny Zuko. This was the winning costume because: 1) the t-shirt was much less than a regular costume, 2) there's no shame associated with wearing a cool t-shirt, 3) he can wear the t-shirt again, and 4) this costume prominently showcases Cam's signature feature: his hair.


Here's our little greaser:

Here's Cameron enjoying his candy loot:

I did break down and buy an actual costume that was going to be the back-up costume, in case we couldn't find anything else. In the event that the greaser thing didn't work out, Cameron was going to be an adorable giraffe. We still put the giraffe suit on him tonight for pictures, but I am still fully intending to return it to Target this week. This is called the poor man's Halloween.

Also, if you people don't start commenting on Mike's posts, then you are going to be stuck with me as the sole author of this blog. His comedic relief doesn't come without a price tag: his insecurity as a blogger demands that you give him frequent validation, so please, for everyone's sake, comment on the next post he writes, if he ever writes another, which he's threatening not to...

Scrooge in October

So... yeah, Halloween is upon us. I know it's a really exciting night for many, like pedophiles and/or crafters, but I'm really not a big fan. As far as I can tell, Halloween is really just an opportunity for four things:

A) children to extort their neighbors through threats of violence
B) adult women to dress like tramps and call it a costume
C) parents to parade tiny children around in ridiculous outfits and a look of embarrassment on their faces (it's the same facial expression as when you put a hat on a dog - eyes filled with resignation and shame)
D) eating candy corn until you feel sick

And now that I'm re-reading my list that was meant to disparage the holiday, I'm starting to reconsider my stance. A, B, and D sound like a pretty awesome time. But, that still leaves us with C. And there is no silver lining or positive spin for C. It's just pure degradation and permanent psychological damage.

As new parents, there is a grave responsibility (definite pun intended there) to find a Halloween costume for Cam that is shame-free. However, there is also a strong desire to find a costume that is cute, entertaining to others, and preferably low cost. Clearly, there is a lot of pressure. So I thought we would turn to you, our readers, to help us make yet another monumental decision. Below I'll outline the Halloween costume ideas that we've discussed (with a brief analysis). Please read and then help us decide.

1) Pauly D from Jersey Shore
Pros: Pop culture relevant; allows for Mindy and I to sit around before we go trick-or-treating making "the shirt before the shirt" jokes and shout "oh yeah" all night; and Cam is already a natural fist pumper
Cons: Last week's haircut! I was all for this costume when I thought we could go to the barber on the morning of the 30th and actually get his hair cut and styled like Pauly D. Now that has been ruined. The idea of buying a tiny Pauly D wig, to then cover Cam's most recognizable feature, just seems sad.

2) Calvin from Calvin and Hobbs
Pros: Great comic and seems baby appropriate
Cons: Big Con with this one is that Mindy wants me to dress up as Calvin. Which in her mind means I wear a red t-shirt that says Calvin. First, I hate dressing up in costumes. Second, this costume sounds really lame. Also, I think dressing Cam up as a baby Tiger might be walking a little too close to the "shame" line for comfort.

3) Gilbert Arenas - complete with 2 guns and an ace bandage around his knee
Pros: Unique, humorous, and we already have a Gilbert Arenas onesie (conveniency bonus points awarded).
Cons: Probably 95% of the people that see Cameron will have no idea who he is supposed to be and/or why this is funny. But I think the 5% who do get it will appreciate it even more; kind of like an inside-joke effect. Another large Con is, in order to really complete the ensemble, I probably need to dress in a Jarvis Crittenton onesie. I'm not sure if this is a sacrifice I'm willing to make. Plus, I'm pretty sure that the Jarvis Crittenton adult onesie may be somewhat difficult to locate.

4) Mondo from Project Runway
Pros: I think Cameron would look fabulous in a tight print-shirt, tiny shorts, knee socks, and elf hat; Cameron and Mondo seem close to the same size and have close to the same hair (so that would help with the believability); and it would afford Mindy and me the opportunity to say "Nina Garcia" with a German accent over and over
Cons: Again - nobody would know who he was. And this might actually require some sewing at our house.

5) Chris Harrison / Satan
Pros: Strong statement
Cons: We would have to explain to everyone why Satan was carrying a rose.

6) Tiger Woods
Pros: Provides all kinds of opportunity for inappropriate jokes
Cons: We'd have to push him around in miniature SUV with a fire hydrant glued to the front.

7) Orville Redenbacher
Pros: This is the most memorable Halloween costume that I have from my childhood.
Cons: He'll also grow up to hate Halloween.

Well, those are the options we've got so far. Please cast your vote in the comment section. Or feel free to write-in additional suggestions. Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

Haircut #2

Considering how tramautic Haircut #1 was, I was a little nervous going into Haircut #2. But it needed to be done. Poor Cameron's hair was so long he had to lift up his head to be able to see past his bangs!

This time, the experience was much, much better. I told the stylist that the last person cut it WAY too short, and that I wanted to keep it long on top and around the sides. She also blended the back by putting an end to the baby mullet that was growing in. The verdict - I'm happy with it! It actually pretty much looks the same as it did earlier today...just shorter and out of his eyes.

By the way, the stylist also sold me on some product for Cameron's hair to make it more texturized and to faux hawk it. I can't believe Cameron has his own hair product, and Mike is counting down the days until they can share one big tub o' yellow, maximum-hold gel together.

Anyways, here's the Before pic. For some reason, this picture looks Photoshopped to me. But it's not been doctored in any way, I promise.

And the After pic:

And here a few pictures of me experimenting with his new hair cut.

Trying the Justin Bieber look.


This reminds me of something from the 1950s.

Not a good look for Cam. And is it just me, or does his hair look like Billie Joe Armstrong's from Green Day?!?

Pumpkin Patch

Today was Cameron's first trip to a pumpkin patch!



We went with the Schaber family, and Cameron and Jack cooperated and sat still long enough for us to take a few pictures.

Today Cameron decided he wanted to crawl up stairs for the first time, so off he went.

In other highlights of the morning, some kids were dressed up in their Halloween costumes, and Mike mistook Minnie Mouse for "the Princess" from Super Mario Brothers. Apparently in Mike's version of Mario, Peach wears a red and white polka dot dress. In his defense, Minnie was running around with Luigi, so I can kind of see how he might have been confused. We also talked to a cute two-year-old named Ava who babbled nonstop about Buzz Lightyear and her socks, I think, but I'm not entirely sure because she was talking at a volume a little louder than a whisper and it didn't sound anything like English words.

By the way, Mike thought Cameron's outfit today was girly because he thinks overalls are for girls, and I disagreed. However, two different people today called him a girl. Does his outfit make him look like a girl? Cast your vote in the poll to the left.

2030 Slam Dunk Champ

Besides crawling and pulling himself up to standing, Cameron can now check off another development milestone: dunking. Consider the photo evidence below:

Looks like we have the 2030 Sprite Slam Dunk Champion on our hands! FYI - 2030 is the first year that Cameron would play in the NBA, unless the NCAA decides to change its ridiculous rule that athletes must play at least one year of college basketball before declaring themselves eligible for the NBA.

Just Say No to Matchy Matchy

Today I discovered I have a deep-rooted annoyance for something...something that probably a few of you readers are guilty of. I'm sorry, I don't mean to offend you, but I must speak out against this fashion faux pas.

While at the park with Cameron this evening, we watched a cute family with four boys getting their pictures professionally taken. The boys were all as cute as can be except for the fact that THEY ALL WORE MATCHING SHIRTS. (Gasp.)

Why do parents do this? Don't parents always look forward to the second child to see how his/her personality differs from their first-born? Then why do they insist on making them wear identical outfits and styling their hair exactly the same way, as if the two kids have no unique qualities of their own? To me, it's a denial of sorts that you have two separate kids or it's almost like you dressed one kid in an outfit you'd planned out, but then you forgot you'd already dressed the first one so you dressed the second kid in the same thing because that's what you had in your head - deja vu! This reminds of what Jerry Seinfeld says about the groom and best man looking virtually identical at weddings - if something happens to the groom, then the best man just slides over and takes his spot and nothing is lost.

My annoyance for matchy matchy also extends to families wearing the same shirt in pictures. I am all for color coordination, but I totally disagree with everyone wearing the same shirt. It's like we're trying to ignore that everyone has separate personalities, and we're just pretending that we all think the same and like the same things for the camera's sake. And let's not forget that not everyone can look good in the same color!

As you can see, I feel strongly about matching outfits...almost as strongly as I do about same-side sitting (don't even get me started on same-side sitting!). Besides, you wouldn't want to end up looking like this family, would you?

Catching Up

I know, I know, it's been forever since we've blogged. Mike and I have basically dropped off the blogosphere. I told Mike that there aren't enough hours in the day for me to accomplish everything I want/need to do (like keeping the house, making Cameron's food, paying the bills, posting on this blog, working out, watching all my reality TV shows), so the only solution I can see is for me to work less. This did not go over well, as you can imagine.


So that's my excuse - work got in the way of my personal life and kept me from blogging. At the very least, I thought I should update you with all the latest happenings since our last post.

• Nammy and Poppa Graves visited from the OC for a week. This meant that Cameron experienced his first Christmas in September. I'm serious, it was a major windfall, as evidenced in the picture below. I can only imagine what the TSA people thought when they X-rayed the suitcase with all the toys!



• Cameron started crawling two days before Nammy and Poppa arrived. The contrarian side of him took over and he decided he just couldn't wait to crawl until they got here. Now he not only crawls all over the house, but he also pulls himself up on everything (the couch, the bed skirt, the dishwasher while open, me, Reilly) so he can stand. Here's the latest pic of him standing.



• As a result of the newfound mobility, we had to make our first pass at babyproofing the house. So far, we've covered the electrical outlets and glued the rubber pads onto the doorstoppers. Thank you for that suggestion, Pam!


• Cameron experienced his first loss to OU as a Longhorns fan. Here he is looking despondent in the fourth quarter.



The two cysts on Cameron's lower gums suddenly vanished. I was convinced they were budding teeth and I wasn't sure how our pediatrician could have confused them for cysts. Well, I guess our pediatrician knows what he's talking about after all. Note to self: Remove egg from face and don't question Dr. Spencer again.

Cameron got his first cold. This resulted in five VERY rough nights of limited sleep in the Graves household. It was the perfect storm of baby-induced insomnia: congestion, teething, and nighttime separation anxiety. Christie, as Cameron screamed and screamed for hours into the night, I completely empathized with how you must have felt during Sadie's earlier screamy period. Not fun.


I made a Taggies blanket for Cameron. I'd always balked at the idea of paying $25 plus shipping and handling for a 12" x 12" blanket, but then I suddenly realized I could make it on my own. I Googled the instructions and then embarked on a ribbon hunt. It was super easy to make, and I think it looks pretty cute, if I do say so myself.




I managed to badger Mike into submission/compliance to hire a photographer to take family portraits later this month. I had to resort to my most cunning and devious ways and employ a little reverse psychology, but I was finally able to get him to agree to appear in the pictures. I have consequently spent the last few days trying to decide what the three of us will wear. As Heidi Klum says, fashion is NOT matchy matchy!


It is finally starting to feel like fall in Austin. The morning lows are in the 50s, so I easily justified the purchase of a new winter hat for Cameron. Who cares if he can only wear this Sherpa-lined trapper hat for maybe a month or two out of the year...

That's the latest. We'll be better about blogging more often, I promise!