So my little man Patrick is learning to swim! ACTUALLY swim! Not that phony balony swimming lessons we've signed him up for the last couple years where he blows bubbles in the water and hops around on the tot dock. It started with us getting him a face mask and a set of goggles. Once he found out he could go under water without water getting in his eyes, he was hooked! Now the problem is he doesn't like staying above water! We've had to sit him down a few times just to slow his breathing down! He'll go under the water and start kicking frantically with his back feet while jutting his arms out front. He's actually getting pretty good at it! Deb and I are seriously impressed.

In other news, this family has become hooked on Sponge Bob Squarepants! I've been downloading and burning them for the last few days. I must have a couple hundred episodes by now! I've started watching them at night after everyone has gone to bed. Gotta Love the Bob

It’s not irrational hatred when something is just so horrible

So here I am. I’ve just sent my two eldest to nap along with their mother who needs the rest. William is working on his opus using his flesh tuba (butt), cooing and grunting away while watching Spongebob Squarepants. And I’ve just sat down for a meal of slow leprechauns and potatoes (Irish stew) for lunch.

But I couldn’t eat peacefully while there is something that should… Neigh… MUST be said. Treehouses’ show “4 Square” is undoubtedly the worst show on television! This horrible little piece of distended rectum is based around 4 groups of no talent nobodies each doing some sort of skit. In no particular order of crappiness is the stupid teenage rappers with no rhythm, the French Canadian dancers in blue tights that can’t dance OR sing, a quartet of freaky looking acapella singers in dresses (one of which was a black guy who I suspect shaved his head and got a sex change operation mid way through the series) AND sing with even freakier looking hand puppets, and lastly is the chick who reads poems with a new 6 year old every week. The 6 year old usually having more talent.

UGH!!!... this show is just sooooooooooooooooooo bad!!!!! Everyone associated even remotely with the show should be fired!!... out of a canon… into the sun!

There… I’ve said my piece. Back to lunch.

Well we tried to get out and get away from all the negative energy in the house. Just hop in the van and GO!!

We were driving around for all of 20 minutes before Kat emptied her stomach effectively ending our hope of finding a little bit of sanity.

I guess when I think about it, sanity is highly over rated anyways.

When does lack of sleep translate the phrase "I'm stepping outside into the fresh air for a second" into "I'm stepping out onto the road for a second and wishing a large truck would finish me off". Well I think Deb and I are finding out. Well in honesty, we already knew because we've been at this point before. I remember vaguely of "joking" about veering into oncoming traffic on our trips to/from Orangeville.

We're never at each others throats more then when we are both tired. Eventually we build some sembelance of a truce on the foundation that it is all the kids fault. I know it's like building a skyscraper in the middle of a swamp but hey... it's a couple breaths of fresh air in the middle of a rotting forest. But like all great undertakings of the McLarens', it's doomed to failure. Eventually one of the kids will do something cute or selfless which defuses our anger at them. Then one of two things will happen. We get angry at each other again or we just collapse from exhaustion.

Where was I? I'm staring at the screen with absolutely no train of thought.

Oh wait... my state of blissful confusion was just shattered by the cries of a little monster.

This is the first time I've really gotten a chance to sit down and write anything since William Alan Ryker McLaren arrived on June 11th, 2010 at 8:27am weighing in at 8lbs 14oz and a length of 20.5"

The house has been pretty busy as we all try to slide into a new groove. My inlaws were up during the first 3 weeks to help out while I continued to work. Those were some pretty long nights. William seems to be a gassy lil man with a lot of stomach pain.

Patrick and Kathryn have been GREAT with him. Very curious, gentle and proud of their baby brother. When William is awake, it would appear he loves following their movements and when they talk to him!

As I write this, William is about 3 1/2 weeks old. I've started a 7 week parental leave to help out. Deb's recovery is going a lot slower this time and she still can barely do most tasks without the pain flaring up. It's driving her MAD not being able to do a lot of these things and to top it off, William is not being the greatest sleeper at night so she (and I think everyone else here) are getting a might be sleep deprived. To top things off, we have a suspicion that William may be lactose intolerant right now due to a nasty rash and the gas he's been having. With this in mind, Deb's cut out dairy from her diet and I just went and picked up Soy based formula for him. I really hope this works for the rash and gas issues!

Anywho... I'm tired.

Peace out ya'all!

FUTURAMA FOREVER!