A Young Me

My folks sent me a few pictures of me when I was a kid.  This is me at about a year old with my giant green bear.  Eryn has a similar bear my mom made her, named Bob.  Bob's currently missing his ear because he doubles as a trampoline for small children.  My own bear could not be handed down as an heirloom as I liked to share what I found in my pants with him by stuffing it in the hole under his red tongue.

Tonka!  They made them much better in those days.  You could carry most anything, including yourself.  My birthmark, over my left eye, is visible in all these photos.  I had it removed after we moved to Minnesota.  There were concerns about cancer or other issues.  Mostly it was like a particularly large eyebrow.  Gave me character.  Of course, so does the scar left behind after its removal.

Mmm...candy cane.  I was surprised to get photos of me without some sort of food in hand.  I think most of the pictures I've seen before either involve me messily eating something, or dressed up in an embarrassing outfit.  I've got one of those around here somewhere, so I'll make sure to share it.

From my birth announcement.  I look pretty happy in this photo.  And I think I look like me now, which is amusing.

Then and Now - Daddy Daughter Dance

I went to the Eagan Daddy Daughter Dance on Friday night.  This year, Eryn and I volunteered and took charge of the coloring station, setting out various drawings to color, welcoming girls and their fathers to the station, and making sure crayons were available.  We also did some dancing, coloring of our own, and had our picture taken.  Being volunteers meant we ran later than in past years and helped to clean up the tables and mess, but Eryn is older, so she managed just fine.  After the dance, we replaced the Daddy Daughter Dance photo on the fridge.  I thought it was the picture from last year at first, but turns out it's the picture from 2010.

Here's the 2010 version.  Eryn much younger.  Me much heavier.  Last year I had to ditch that suit and find a new one that was significantly smaller.  Eryn loved that cloth flower - she still points them out when she sees them in stores, as recently as last week when we saw them in the fruit and vegetable area at Cub Foods.

And here we are this year.  I'm getting shorter.  And thinner.  And wrinklier.  And balder.  It's a year for superlatives.  Apparently I'm getting shorter as well, or else Eryn is a bit older.

Photographic Proof I'm at Least Somewhat Healthy

A little bit of photographic proof I'm not doing too bad.  From a couple weeks ago, and then from last Sunday.  I look healthy, although perhaps a bit tired.  You can see a little bit of the scarring on my face in the first one.  Very minimal.  Gives me character and keeps my other scar company.

If you know me fairly well, you'll recognize that I do look a bit thinner.  A couple of days of coma knocked about fourteen (14) pounds off my frame.  Given I track my weight and food, it's an amusing downward drop on my weight chart.  Nothing serious.  It was my goal to head to this weight, and even a little lighter, by end of year.  I suspect, despite the lack of activity, I may still be losing a bit of mass as it's obvious some of my bicycling muscle is atrophying.