Why we love and hate car seats

So we totally understand that car seats are designed to keep our little Hamslice safe if there were ever an accident. We are thankful for this protection and for the new LATCH system that provides even more safety by strapping the seat into the car in such a way that it doesn't wobble, and the hooks holding the seat in place are underneath and between the seats of the car.

But, there is a bit of a yin-yang present here. While Hamslice is safe, he is also seated backward, which leads to car sickness.

And, when he does throw up in the car (think the Barf-o-Rama from the movie Stand by Me) it projects onto the back seats of my car. That way, the stench will live in the car forever...heated by the sun.

AND, in order to remove the car seat to clean it, I get to shove my hand INTO the barf in order to undo the latches underneath and between the seats of the car.

And this, my friends, is why we love and hate car seats.

Hamslice at Artscape

This weekend was Artscape in Baltimore, and lots of people came out in the 96+ degree heat to celebrate the arts in the city. Hambone and I walked up there from our house with Hamslice in the stroller. Along the way, we ran across this rat board that of COURSE we had to play with



We did start to overheat after the long walk to the festival and the sight seeing at the thing itself, so we stopped by the fountain in front of MICA (Maryland institute for the creative arts) to splash around and cool off a little. It was a fun day

What's in a Name

So our son is so adorable with his sticky-up hair and bright smiles that many of the ladies taking care of him during the day have made nicknames for him. They range from variations on his given name (adding "Man" to the end) and so on.

His favorite caretaker calls him "boo butt" and takes great pride in the fact that he answers to that name.

Now that Hamslice is crawling, it's getting more important to get his attention. When we call his name now, he doesn't respond. It's like he doesn't recognize it. Sometimes we try the other variations, but the only one that consistently gets his attention is
"boo butt."

We're so proud.

Gratuitous Hamslice-age

I know I'm seeing many of you in a couple of days, but for those who aren't in the greater Michigan area, here are some pictures to help tide you over for a while.

This one here is documentation of the ongoing food circus at the house of Ham. See how Hamslice is reaching out to Maggie for a quick pet? Well, there's probably food all over his little hand as part of the bargain.



AND here's Hamslice looking pretty smug about the little deal he has going. See Maggie? She's also pretty pleased.



Here's Hamslice striking a pose with dinner all over his face, hair, bib, chair, and me.