Tweet Boy

Guess who's on Twitter now?


You no longer have to wade through Mama's (inkgypsy's) tweet stream to find the cool Jackzilla updates! Go check out what he's been up to. His handle is Jackzilla_M. :)

Chugga Ex and Other Easter Tweets

Here's the Easter report for 2009 in photos and realtime tweets from Mudsock Manor (in case you missed them):

InkGypsy:
Just cut 8.5 inches off my hair. Less chance of self-strangulation during the night now. Stuck tails on fridge for @mudsock to find... ;)
5:01 AM Apr 12th from web

InkGypsy:
Doing some seekrit planning with the Easter Bunny to surprise Jackzilla when he wakes up. Tomorrow will be fun. :D Happy Easter all!
5:36 AM Apr 12th from web

InkGypsy:
Going to grab shut-eye before introducing Jackzilla to wonders left behind by an egg-laying bunny. :s Glad no explanation is needed yet!
7:04 AM Apr 12th from web

Jack discovers there are eggs that need a-hunting...
No egg is safe!
Chugga Ex!

InkGypsy:
Eggs hunted, wildflowers dug & buried, dirt drowned, eggs dyed, chocolate chomped, lamb roasted: a successful (& fun) day of Easter carnage.
4:43 PM Apr 12th from web

InkGypsy:
Potatoes busy getting crispy. Popping in to see what I'm missing. Has the communal-sugar-crash happened yet?
6:55 PM Apr 12th from web

InkGypsy in response to Twitter friend:
@fearofwriting Found excellent lamb roast at Trader Joe's -do you have TJs where you are? (AND I found hollow eggs for Easter! Oz nostalgia)
1:18 AM Apr 13th from web in reply to fearofwriting

Jackzilla:
dwwssaasASZDS V FDFDXZXZSZAZAZXZAZZẠXZAZZaZ
1:54 AM Apr 13th from web

InkGypsy:
Yep - Jackzilla is awake and tweeting - as you can see by the last one! :s (Still on a chocolate high methinks)
1:55 AM Apr 13th from web

Mudsock:
Had a wonderful Easter. Jack hunted for "chugga ex". Delicious lamb roast. Nicely trimmed Inkgypsy tresses. Watched Pinocchio & Slumdog.
12:33 PM Apr 13th from TwitterFox
(NOTE: Movies were watched by Mudsock with Jack's half-brothers Will & Dave. No Slumdog Millionaire spoilers for InkGypsy yet please!)

InkGypsy to Mudsock:
@mudsock "Chugga ex" - funny. I hear "chukkit ayggs" (followed by "Peese" or "Whoa!" depending on where he is in the acquisition process.)
4:33 PM Apr 13th from web in reply to mudsock

Believe it or not, there are STILL a few chocolate eggs about the house. My guess is they won't last till the end of tomorrow though... (I think I just heard Jack's tummy rumble "Chugga Ex" in his sleep!)

Hope you all had a great Easter.
Jack, Mama & Mudsock certainly did!

Captain Jack Launches Season 3 of 'The Jack Years'

Here it is: the launching of 'The Jack Years' Season 3!

Captain Jack is presiding - of course - and, as usual, has something to say:

Of course you do! However in this economic climate we may have to improvise with what's at hand for now,
or learn to swim really fast...

Ahem. So what's new?

Check out the new Jack & Mama pic on the right (taken just this week), a new blurb (because how could there not be) and a new posting!
(I can hear you cheering from here)

With everything that's happening and Jack being rather, er, active, these days, regular blogging is a challenge

BUT

there's news EVERY DAY about Jack
(and Mama & Mudosck too)
on
Twitter!

Go to http://twitter.com/inkgypsy or better still, sign up for a free Twitter account, follow us and join in our conversations! Jack has been known to 'tweet' every once in a while too!
(It's easier and takes FAR less time than Facebook, really!)

And, of course, Spit the Dummy will continue to be the place for Jack-photos, Jack-comics and and other Jack-creations, so keep visiting. There will be plenty here to keep you current on what's happening in the Jack-verse!

Welcome to Season 3.

Retro Jack 2008 - The Bumper Edition!

Now that the 2nd-birthday milestone has passed another year of Jack's life is well under way. What better time to look back on the last one?

Here's a few Jack-pics you haven't seen to make up for the lack of blog posts (kinda anyway) in the last half of the year. One warning: there are a LOT of pictures!! so you may have to visit this post a few times to see them all. Of course if you have a free evening/morning/afternoon/day dive right in.

Please note: not all the photos are National-Geographic-worthy (or 'pretty' or even good quality) but I think you'll enjoy them anyway.

Let the viewing begin!

JANUARY '08
FEBRUARY '08 MARCH '08 APRIL '08 MAY '08 JUNE '08 JULY '08 AUGUST '08 SEPTEMBER '08 OCTOBER '08 NOVEMBER '08 DECEMBER '08JANUARY '09

Jack Gets A Black President For His 2nd Birthday (Among Other Things)

The only problem is: what do we get Jack next year to top that?!

Today is January 20th, 2009: Barack Obama's Inauguration Day - an historic day indeed. In true Mama form, though, I can't help being most excited by something most of the nation is overlooking:

Jack turned TWO YEARS OLD today!

Here's our 2 year old just waking up, preparing to go to the LA Zoo for the first time ever.

The Zoo is a very special place for us and we've been looking forward to sharing it with Jack as soon as he can really enjoy it. (Something else was celebrated here by the inhabitants of Mudsock Manor a few years ago... remember that? Here we are, standing in the same spot where it all happened, with our best-little-wedding-present-ever: Jack himself.)
But back to Zoo-President-Too-Two-Day.

Jack had a great time and wore both Mama and Daddy out while taking his first look at a live hippo, tiger, gorilla, elephant, tortoise, black bear, tawny frog mouth (one of our favorite oddball birds), sea lion and much, MUCH more!

TIP: CLICK ON THE PIC TO ENLARGE AND READ THE DETAILS
Mister J was already familiar with most of the creatures, being an avid reader of his animal books and an avid plastic animal collector (like his Mama was when she was little*) so when asked what he thought, what was Jack's response?

"They're much bigger in real life, aren't they?"
Of course the ones that moved were the most interesting...
Then there were the giraffes...
("Can we take one home? Pleeeeease? We wouldn't need a BIG house, just a really tall one, right?" - Mudsock's not sure if that was Mama's voice or Jack's on that one!)
After a hefty 8 minute accidental nap (!!) just as the car got into the driveway, Jack was ready for more, (are you imagining Mama and Daddy's expressions round about now? Throw in a little forced grin and bleary eyes and you'll be getting close!), so dinner and presents were next followed, of course, by cake - the kind you get to have, eat and play with too**!

TIP: CLICK ON PIC TO GET A CLOSER LOOK
After all that, you think Jack would be ready to drop into a mini-coma, wouldn't you?

NOPE!Let the 'terrific two's' begin.

*Today's acquisition: one very fine and solid gorilla!
**The cake was a chocolate-overloaded construction site with a number of Jack's favorite vehicles from the Thomas the Tank Engine (ie. all the non-rail, construction machines). To say he was happy is a complete understatement. I think he may wake up tomorrow, not with 'pillow-face' but with 'construction-machine-face'!

Jack's Ship - er, Train - Comes In On Xmas Eve

Seems Mudsock & Mama needn't have worried that Jack wouldn't get a proper Christmas.

For starters, Jack got a wonderful surprise on Christmas Eve from his very generous Uncle Chris (now known in our house as Chris 'Kringle' Jenkins).

The plan was for the surprise to be unveiled on Christmas Eve during our special dinner with the Jenkins family but unfortunately Chris was sick and unable to make it. Not knowing quite when he'd be able to make it over, Uncle Chris insisted Jack still get his gift, so we made sure we got Mister J's reaction on video for him to see...

Jack LOVES his train table and has tried every vehicle he owns on the tracks to see if they fit. And that was only the beginning of Jack's amazing haul this (last) year as you will see...

There's more video and more pics to come so stay tuned!

Thank you so much to all our family and friends who made Jack's Christmas so fun-and-gift-filled for him. Not only was it a 'real' Christmas, it felt like one too.

PS Yes, Kermit frequents most happenings in our house these days and seems to have an opinion on everything. Sometimes it sounds like something Mudsock would say while other times there's a definite 'Mama-quality' to the comments but most of the time he and Jack just banter happily in their own language. Apparently they have very similar senses of humor!

The New Happy

So this is a 'New Year'...

It doesn't look any different - except that our patio got decorated.



Hmm... I wonder what 2009 will be like?
Mama & Daddy say it's GOTTA be better than last year.



If we can have another few Christmases during the year that would be better! Presents, chocolate, presents... who wouldn't be happy about that?!

We might need a bigger house though.

*think think*


Maybe I'll just tell everyone my new jokes* - THAT will make us all happy! (I'm working on a new one about a chicken and an elephant. It's really funny so far...)

Mama & Daddy Please Note:
Just because I can be happy without presents
that does NOT mean I'm against them!!

* Jack made his first original 'joke' soon after he turned 1. It's classic slapstick - complete with set-up and punchline. He still 'tells' it and it still makes us laugh! As he approaches 2 the repertoire is increasing steadily and he's added an array of fake laughs and funny voices for variety. Mudsock and I regularly have sore tummies from laughing while trying to eat dinner - all his highchair needs is a spotlight and he'd be set! (oh, and some props - props are very good for slapstick!)

PLEASE NOTE: Jack's outfit is not meant to be one of the jokes - it is the result of trying to dress a rambunctious-sugared-up-over-tired toddler for bed at 2am on New Year's Day, while he systematically dirties every layer as it's put on. Plus the fact that he wouldn't wait to get dressed before going outside in the morning so was made to wear the first socks and shoes Mama could find. Turns out Jack really liked his outfit! It's very jester-like (there was even a hat at one point). Quite appropriate for our budding comedian!

Morning Face

There are no real words to describe it (just ask Jack) - take a look...

TIP: Click on the comic to get a closer look and check out our Jack-speak (or should that be squeak?) translations.

What better present could a Mama & Mudsock have?!

There's nothing like bringing joy to the faces of those you love - especially when the joy is so apparent in the many faces of Jack (along with whoops, excited sniggers, nonsensical syllabic sound-strings and happy throat gurgles).

He did take a breather from gasping with excitement (see evidence below) though you'll notice his foot couldn't quite stop playing altogether. It lasted less than a minute and then he was off again.

JACK WITH 'PRESENT OVERLOAD' TAKES A BREAK.
HE'LL BE UP AGAIN IN 3, 2...
YEP.
THAT BLUR WAS, INDEED, JACK.
SIGH.

PS We have some video footage to post of even MORE present-openings - I haven't figured out how to video and take photos simultaneously yet! - so stay tuned...

A Star On Top & An Angel Underneath

A tiny tot with his eyes all a-glow...

Did you know Christmas trees offer perfect peek-a-boo opportunities (or Jackzilla ambush sites) as well as convenient toddler hiding places?

It wasn't on the label and I think the company missed a huge marketing opportunity. Turns out Christmas trees are perfect for these activities (especially fake ones as they're a little more robust + no pesky pine needles dropping off to stab your toddler's limbs like an amateur acupuncturist)!

Jack was able to actually help decorate the tree this year (not just 'un-decorate' it like last year, though occasionally he did that too. He calls it 're-decorating' of course) and played 'I spy' with the ornaments as well as some creative forms of hide-and-seek (missing a favorite car? Don't forget to check the tree!).

Jack discovered a favorite resting spot just underneath too. As a bonus it can transform our little boy from a Jackzilla-stomping-wonder-monster into a sweet-little-golden-curled-angel in the blink of an eye. We have never seen Jack lie down voluntarily so often! Now if we could just get him to close his eyes for more than a wink...

Christmas is winding down here and it's well into the wee hours, but after catching sight of Santa putting a present under the tree last night I think Mister J's determined to stay up in case it happens again. Is it possible for toddlers to sleep sitting up? I think he might have managed just that.

Now excuse me while I get my little angel to bed and get a little shut-eye myself. We both have some catching up to do on our z's.

More Christmas '08 magic and mayhem pictures coming soon - but for now:

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Christmas Wishes

To see what Jack inadvertently wished for click on the pics for a closer view...

Be careful when you wish, you just might get what you asked for...
... plus the return postage on an item like this* would be rather hefty!

*Hippos seem to be a popular request. I wonder if Santa has an HBL (hippopotamus breeder license)?