Maddie did something funny yesterday.

While Lori and I were walking the girls home from school, we stopped off at this little Mayan store on Lincoln Avenue. Maddie grabbed a little stick drum off of the table – you know, the kind Mr. Miyagi used at the end of the Karate Kid Part II to awaken Ralph Macchio’s inner warrior. She spun it in between her hands and got a nice little beat going. Then, all of a sudden, she stopped and said, “Hey! Do you hear that sound? It’s the wind of change!”

That’s our girl.

But that was yesterday. I haven’t blogged in months. So let me bring you up to speed.



Shelby’s crawling, climbing, pulling herself up, preparing to take steps, calling us by name, chattering, snotting, pooping, blowing razzberries, sprouting teeth, and chewing on her crib.

Hard to believe, but she turns one year old in less than a week.

Maddie has been finding new ways to assert her independence. She’s got something to say about everything, and she loves to test our patience. But she also has an amazing sense of humor, can count like a pro and knows every letter of the alphabet. She has a way of making us smile even when she’s angry, and she gives the best hugs in the world. She’s 100% potty trained, too. In fact, four or five nights ago, she stopped wearing Pull-Ups even to bed.

This past Tuesday, she graduated from her Little Red Piano class at the Old Town School of Folk Music. Woohoo!

I’m still unemployed, but I’ve been doing some freelance editing for my parents. It’s great experience, and I’m enjoying it quite a bit.

Lori’s been working hard to bring home the bacon. Her company is moving to the Sears Tower in a couple of months.

On Saturday the 27th, Maddie is throwing Shelby a birthday party at Pete’s Pizza, and that night I’m competing in WNEP Theater’s 10th annual SKALD storytelling competition. If you happen to be in Chicago, come and check it out. Maybe I’ll let you get your picture taken with me after I win.

And that’s all I’ve got. Stupid writer’s block.

Have a happy Friday and a wonderful Father’s Day!

Stay tuned for photos. Lots and lots of photos.

We ARE alive.

And we ARE well.

And I HAVE been in a bit of a slump.

And lots of things HAVE happened.

And my dad IS o.k.

And I DID lose my job.

And I HAVE had writer's block.

And I WILL fill you in on all of that (and lots of other things) in the next day or two.

But for now, check out this picture of me and my Honey Bee that Lori took yesterday.



She IS squishy.

Have a HAPPY Sunday night.

I guess any daughter of Lori's and mine is bound to be a bit off her rocker.



Have a happy Tuesday! Stay tuned for footage of Maddie's Barnyard Birthday Bash.

A few nights ago, Shelby and I were sitting on the floor having a conversation – just minding our own business - when suddenly we were attacked by a wild munchkin. It came out of nowhere, and we could tell right away that it was out for blood. While Shelby watched in disbelief, it pinned me to the floor, grabbed my face and proceeded to eat my head. I screamed, “Help! Help! I’m being eaten alive!” But my efforts were in vain. It simply grinned its maniacal grin and whispered, “No, you’re just a snack.”

Munchkins. They seem relatively safe, but mark my words -- they will turn on you when you least expect it.

Have a happy Thursday.

What do you get when you combine a gymnasium full of 20 kids between the ages of six months and five years with magic markers, small wooden animals, felt pieces, yarn, glue, grape soda, vanilla ice cream, chips, dip, carrots, broccoli, cherry tomatoes, hummus, chocolate cake, candy, brown paper bags, whistles, pooping cow keychains, Bingo cards, Bingo markers, a cardboard barn, stuffed animals, stickers, haystacks, soccer balls, streamers, balloons, cameras, 30 adults and a guy with a banjo ukulele? You get absolute insanity. The good kind.

Maddie's birthday party was a smashing success. Everybody had a wonderful time, all of us included, and nobody lost any fingers. Little Hugo (I don’t know why I’m calling him little – he’s anything but) did get a bit of a shiner from a spill on the tile floor, but he didn’t seem to mind.

Anyway, check out these photos:













And these, too (the whole set).

In other news, Shelby made some physical strides over the weekend. She’s so skilled at sitting up on her own now that we don’t even have to spot her anymore.





Also, her legs are getting stronger and stronger. Check this girl out:





At times like these (click here to see a set of Shelby), we almost have to wonder whether she’ll skip crawling altogether and go straight to walking. Guess time will tell.

Happy Fat Tuesday!

Three years ago today at 6:38 a.m., my wife Lori and I welcomed this four pound, nine ounce, 17 1/2 inch symbol of beauty named Madeline Marie Goss into the world:



And our lives had changed forever.

And this morning, that same little girl, now three years old, looked up at us and smiled her infectious smile.



And we thought, "Wow. Amazing how something so small can do so much."

And we realized that that pretty much summed her up.

She's small.

But don't let her size fool ya.

Happy Birthday, Maddie May! We love you more than you could possibly know.

1) There’s a reason Chicago’s called the “Windy City,” and it ain’t the breeze from the lake. I’ve been saying all along that I didn’t trust Roland Burris. There’s just something about the way he answers questions. Had he rejected Blago’s appointment, Illinoisans would have regarded him as a man of principle. He could have run for Obama’s old seat in 2010, won, and spent the rest of his career as a respected senator. But by choosing to accept Blago’s appointment despite the fact that all sorts of people advised him against it - and then LYING under oath about his connections to Blago’s associates - he’s branded himself as a corrupt politician and will wear that brand for the rest of his life. If he doesn’t resign from the Senate or get forced out, there’s no way he’s ever going to be re-elected. I mean, what was he thinking? The guy’s an idiot. An absolute idiot.

2) As you may recall, I stopped allowing comments on this blog a couple of years ago. I didn’t want to; I just got fed up with spam and decided I wasn’t going to deal with it anymore. Well, yesterday I installed some new plug-ins that are supposed deter spam robots from posting spam comments. I turned the comment function back on, and so far the plug-ins seem to be working. We’ll see how long they last. In the meantime, happy commenting.

3) This morning in the hallway of our apartment, I told Maddie to move a little bit faster (because, like me, she’s not much of a morning person). In response, she walked all the way to the kitchen table in teeny, tiny steps – no more than a couple of inches a piece.

4) Also this morning, I began representing RPG’s writers at the company-wide “Cross-Functional Merchandising Planning Meeting,” which takes place every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. It will be a great opportunity to increase my visibility in other areas of the company, and I’m glad my boss trusts me to represent.

5) For Valentine’s Day, we went as a family to Matsuya’s, one of Lori’s and my favorite restaurants. Turns out that Maddie likes miso soup! Who knew?





6) You wouldn’t know it to look at her – she’s squishy, juicy, and one of the most mild mannered babies you’ve ever seen – but Shelby’s a fighter. When she doesn’t want us to mess with her – when we blow her nose, for example – she fights with all she’s got. And believe you me, she’s got a lot. But she never loses her cool. She keeps herself in check and fights calmly, quietly and determinedly. One day she’ll use that strength to change the world.

Have a happy Wednesday!

Maddie turns three the day after tomorrow. Three years old. Those are actual YEARS, you understand. That just blows my mind. We’re throwing a birthday party for her on Saturday, and so far almost 50 people have RSVPd. Our church was kind enough to let us use their gymnasium. If you didn’t get an invitation, don’t feel bad. It may have gotten lost in the mail. Besides, about half of the people we invited are kids, and with the exception of a few close friends that Maddie knows well, the rest of them are the kids’ parents. But however we look at it, it’s going to be nuts. In fact, I think the party’s theme will prove to be quite appropriate – “Maddie May’s Barnyard Birthday Bash.” Check out the invitation:





We’ve got all sorts of activities planned: arts and crafts (I won’t give them away, but I will say that Lori has put a lot of work into them and they're going to be awesome), games (“Barnyard Bingo,” a bean bag toss), prizes, cake, ice cream, Purple Cows (grape soda and vanilla ice cream), and some Maddie-inspired song stylin’s of me and my banjo ukulele.

Lori and I are giving her a little red piano much like the one pictured here:



We think it's time she graduated from the toy one that we keep in our living room - especially now that Shelby's starting to show interest in it.

Speaking of graduation, did I tell you that a few weeks ago our daycare providers told us not to bring Pull-Ups for Maddie anymore? They don't think she needs them. It's been a long time since she's even worn them at any time other than naptime, but now she doesn't need to wear them at all - at least not when she's there. She naps in her underwear and does just fine. What a big girl!

By the way, check out this picture of Maddie and Shelby being sisters:



Not sure what they're doing, but it looks like Maddie's teaching Shelby something. Something to do with the number 2, perhaps. Maybe she's explaining to her that she has two blocks in her hands. Whatever the case, it's heartwarming to walk into the living room and find them like this. It happens often.

Anyway, have a happy Tuesday.

Stay tuned for part 863 of our story: "The Day Maddie Quietly Woke Up from Soundly Napping on the Couch with Her Daddy and Decided to Unwrap All But One of the Birthday Presents Her Grandma and Granddad Sent Her and Leave Shreds of Paper All Over the Living Room Floor." It's a nail biter.

So. . . .

Writer’s block, eh? How ‘bout it?

(Pause)

(Pause)

(Pause)

Yep.

It’s been a while, eh?

And this on-again/ off-again blogging routine seems to have developed into a pattern. It’s a common pattern. I write a few things, post a few pictures, take a few weeks off, and then I try to make some witty remark about it that you’re supposed to find sweet and endearing. And then I do it all over again.

So, yeah. . . .

Hey, have you heard the one about the guy who used to write blogs all the time but now just. . . .

Oh, never mind. Who am I kidding? We’ll just skip the “humor” today. I mean, seriously, who’s got the time?

I know -- why don’t you go and talk amongst yourselves while I think of something to say. Something serious.

Writer’s block, eh? How ‘bout it?

(Pause)

(Cut to two hours later.)

Since last we spoke (and I mean three weeks ago (even longer, really, considering that I only wrote a couple of paragraphs in my last blog), not two hours ago), all sorts of things have happened. As I mentioned, all four of us came down with the stomach flu. And man, oh man, did that ever suck. But we did get to catch up on some much needed sleep. And cuddling time, too.









We met Gene and Nicolle at Chris, Becky and Clara’s for some Scrabble playin’, swingin’, racecar drivin’ and pepperoni roll eatin’.







Shelby graduated from her high chair.



MC Mad Dog got a new grill.



Shelby fell asleep in her bumbo chair.



Maddie played her ukulele.



And the girls grew even closer.



I mean, seriously, those girls are tight. Every time they see each other, they absolutely light up. Shelby will hardly take her eyes off of Maddie. She follows her every move. And Maddie is reaaaaally protective of her little sister.

Shelby's chattering up a storm these days. She’s discovered some new sounds and is using them as though they're going to disappear: “Ba,” "da," "pa" and "ta." And Maddie’s discovered that she and Shelby can have entire conversations without ever even saying a word. They converse entirely in Shelby's language, trading syllables, smiling and laughing. They're almost two and a half years apart, but they're on the same wavelength almost all of the time. It’s an incredible thing to watch, and it’s clear to anyone who sees them that they’re going to be very, very close.

And that's all I've got. At least for now.

I’ll try not to wait three weeks before my next blog.

Have a happy Thursday. I’ll talk to you soon.

P.S. New photos!!!

Current score: Stomach flu = 1/ Goss Family = 0.

We've been hit with a violent case of the stomach flu. Fun, fun, fun. It hit Shelby on Friday night, and she spent the entire night throwing up. I don't think we really slept at all. Then it hit Lori on Saturday night, and she spent almost all of yesterday in bed. I thought Maddie and I were in the clear, but then all of a sudden it hit both of us as well. I woke up with intense stomach pains, and as I was standing in the kitchen I lost all of last night's dinner. And then it just kept on coming. I only made it as far as the kitchen sink. Shelby seemed almost back to normal, so we figured we'd take her to school, and if they called, they called. Maddie seemed fine as well, but then all of a sudden she threw up all over the living room floor. So I took Shelby to school, came back home, and Maddie, Lori and I spent the entire day sleeping. No word from daycare, so apparently Shelby's fine. Keep your fingers crossed.

Hope this doesn't last long.

Have a happy, hurl-free Monday. Talk to you soon.