The Dex Files

Long time?

2011-01-10T16:28:00.001-08:00

Sorry.

Gone fishing

2010-05-03T19:36:00.001-07:00

Dexter hs been big on fishing. He enjoys it. There is a practice pond for fly fishing not far from our house. It's call McCrea Memorial Park and it's unbelievably cool.

Someone had dumped 3 goldfish and Dexter tried to catch them.

There's also an old trout farm. At least the stream is still running.

Went to Lake Chabot today. It's about a ten minute drive from our house. Such a beautiful day to be out and about.

The district just stocked the lake with bass and trout. Alas, we didn't get one nibble.

Get those geese out of here! They're ruining the fishing experience.

See you later.

Table Tent

2010-04-14T09:53:00.001-07:00

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Horse riding at Amelia's BDay

2010-04-10T17:45:00.001-07:00

Happy birthday, Amelia! We went to Novato to celebrate her birthday at a ranch where the kids got to ride horses.

Check out the cowboy

Keep passing those pieces.

Just like Milton.

Almost baseball season.

2010-03-21T17:28:00.001-07:00

Uss hornet and zoo

2010-02-16T18:27:00.001-08:00

A few pictures from our visit to the USS Hornet museum in Alameda. It was a lot of fun to see this floating museum.

This aircraft carrier is HUGE! We could have spent days checking out all the compartments.

Smirking it up.

Gong hay fat choi! Ni hao ma!

School pictures

2010-01-28T02:03:00.001-08:00

Hey everybody, here are some pictures of Dexter at Daisy.

Riding the trike.

Always lurking in the background.

Check out Mr. Safety!

Yoga time.

Cello or accordion. I'll let Dexter decide.

Arcade, trains & stuff

2010-01-20T20:02:00.001-08:00

Can't a guy get some privacy??
Nope, not when you're that cute!

A perfectly timed photo.

Mommy-n-Dex getting some delicious BBQ pork udon.

That's my Buzzy.

Good times at the arcade. Dance dance dexterlution!

Someone got a big boy bed! Now we all get to snuggle in Dex's twin bed. Yay!

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Santa's lil helper

2009-12-20T12:17:00.001-08:00

Finally got Dexter to pose with Santa. Almost 4 years of effort.

A very rainy Saturday morning

2009-12-12T08:04:00.000-08:00

At Lola's house

Here's a rock.

2009-12-12T00:21:00.001-08:00

It's a good one. Just for you.

Dex and his girl friends gettin' ready to go trick-or-treating! And that's everyone's favorite ginger, Amelia in a kick-ass bat girl costume.

Our sad Christmas tree dressed only in red bulbs and red snowflakes with red lights. I think it's time for a change, don't you?

Ok. We're jumping around like crazy here... This is Astronaut Dexter reporting for duty. Assignment: look incredibly cute so that strangers will give me candy.

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Another reason the iPhone rocks

2009-12-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

There's an app for updating your blog!! Check it out!

Dude soup. Buzzy and Daddy take a bath.

Christmas lights go up!! Yay!!

Dexter and Julian chillin on Thanksgiving, as Dex digs for gold.

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Test

2009-12-08T18:25:00.001-08:00

2009-09-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

Heartwarming video of Dexter...

2009-08-20T21:34:00.000-07:00

Hold on to your hats, everyone. Lots of videos and pictures to share. I didn't mention that before we left for Ohio, my mom (Lola) came up to visit during Dexter's summer break. Right before Lola got here, Dexter had an unfortunate accident related to his teeth. I'll spare you the details, but the last picture is the end result of the accident.

Maybe this happy video will help open up this installment of the Dex Files.

Dexter took Lola to Fairyland in Oakland. Here's Lola and Dexter posing on a sail boat.

This is a pretty cool picture of Dexter on a merry go round.

Suzie hamming it up. It's such a cute picture!

Daddy with his straight face on.

Cutest monkey EVER.

And Lola joining in the fun.

Father and son enjoying the sights.

A few more pics from Ohio. Brooke giving Dexter a bear hug.

Sitting at the park in Ohio University.

Sitting and playing with dollies.

Dexter was being a suave guy by handing out flowers to all the ladies.

Kissing cousins?

Flower pickers

We ended up having to make the heart wrenching decision to have Dexter's front upper two teeth removed. Two different pediatric dentists (and our good friend Dr. Lars) looked at the x-rays and decided it was best to remove them, lest Dexter get a very bad infection.

And lastly, here's the day after Dexter's extraction. The tooth fairy was extra kind to him by getting him a new crane. But you know, Dexter really deserved getting a big present for such a difficult time.

2009-08-12T21:35:00.000-07:00

The Nasols of Oakland took a trip out to Ohio. Yup, we flew out there (with no problems!), had fun, and came back. That coupled with potty training, resulted in a great trip (with a few hiccups). Seeing as I had never been to Ohio, I found the state BEAUTIFUL. The Wards and the Loweys are great to have as in-laws, I mean that with all my heart. Congrats to Evan and Winter on a beautiful wedding. Here is the wedding party. Cousin Evan is the handsome groom, second guy on the left. Winter is obviously the beautiful bride in the gown. Cousin Ellen (Evan's sister) is the second beautiful woman from the right.

Before the wedding was the rehearsal dinner at Abrio's Brick Oven. I was quick to take a picture of cousin Brooke and Dexter walking to dinner.

We stayed at the Chi Omega house. Yes, a sorority. First time for me to stay at a sorority. Perhaps my last.

Dexter and Brooke were discussing the sleeping arrangements and who would sleep where. Don't worry, no one slept in the top bunk, but there was plenty of discussing by Dexter. Dexter talking with Brooke justing saying, "Ok" to everything he says.

The university is right down the street from the campus. Not even half a block away!

The last night of our Ohio visit, we stayed at cousin Ellen's house. There was a railroad track very close to her house so Dexter had to make sure that the tracks were straight and true.

We spent a lot of time at Aunt Beth and Uncle Jack's (Evan and Ellens parents, Suzie's Aunt). We loved visiting with them so much!

Before the wedding, there were quite a few festivities to enjoy. One of the festivities was Brooke and Dexter dancing for our enjoyment.

And their field. We had a great time in Ohio during this visit. We can't wait for the next occasion for a visit to Athens!

2009-07-20T21:01:00.000-07:00

So, I took Buckaroo to the puppy park. Dexter came along with me. Dexter started talking (which isn't that unusual), but it's neat who he wanted to talk to. Listen closely and you can hear him call out names starting off with "Lola". It made my heart melt when he said, "daddy's dad" (lolo) and "Uncle Mike".

You must be this tall to ride this ride. Ha. Actually, Dexter was on a crane kick for a while so we built him one out of tinkertoys. He's actually outgrown cranes and has moved into belltower territory. Seriously. If you have anything remotely looking like a belltower, he'll go bananas over it.

Check out this kid's mug.

Here's a Buckaroo picture. He's getting there in terms of cuteness.

For Fourth of July, we had Stevie Wonder, I mean, Julian come over. Here he is hamming it up in the front yard.

We took an impromptu trip to Los Angeles to visit Lola, Tita Nini and my brother Victor. It was a lot of fun. I took the opportunity to take a few pictures. Here is Dexter with Lola.

I'm going to add this to my ever expanding list of favorite pics. Such a lovely photo of Dexter and his Lola.

And a little cuddling with Tita Nini.

Can't forget Uncle Victor!

2009-06-17T22:41:00.000-07:00

It's quiet in the house. It's not too late, but I'm the only one awake. I put Dexter to bed earlier, Suzie's asleep in our bed and Buckaroo is cuddled up next to me. I'm crying quite a bit right now. Suzie bought a present for me for Father's Day. It's a book I wanted called, The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I finished it in two days. It's about a father and his son. It's about painful decisions a father has to make in order to find a better life for his son in a difficult world.

I love Dexter. There is no ambiguity to that, nor should there ever be any question to it. I love him more than I love myself. I will do anything for him. Just like my father did for me and that's what I think makes me so sad, hopeful and loving and much more all at the same time. I miss my pop, but I know that I can talk to him whenever I want and in my heart, I can hear him. I know he is watching me continue to grow and watching Dexter grow every day. Whenever I get sad about my dad not physically being with us, I am always brought back to the day that he met Dexter and asked me, "Can I hug him?". I will always carry that moment with me because of not only the love he showed for Dexter, but for the love he had for me. I miss you pop. I really do.

I'm not a perfect man/husband/father and I never claim to be. I try to do what's right and will continue to do so. I'm saying this, not to solicit anyone's input to the contrary. I'm saying this for myself, not for any validation.

I don't normally write this much, but if you're reading this, you know it's a little out of context for this blog. Don't get me wrong, it's always about Dexter, but thought I'd share how I feel right now. But I guess when it comes down to it, I did write this for my love of Dexter. So it is about Dexter...

2009-06-15T23:37:00.000-07:00

So we're trying to get Dexter to shun the diaper and use the potty/toilet. It's difficult. We're trying to incentivize (is that a word?) Dexter by having him reach goals; for example, every time he pees in the toilet, that's 5 stickers. After 5 stickers, he gets to go to the toy store and get a toy (we're not millionaires, so we kind of guide him as to what toy he can get). Anyway, it's not going as easy as we thought, but we're trying to get Dexter to move away from the diaper and move towards the toilet.

I thought I would share that he did hit 5 and we did get him a new toy flatbed tow truck (at least it wasn't a bell tower...please, if you must know, email me). He was so happy with it. When we got back to the car with it, I asked him, "Hey Dexter, can I play with that when we get home?". He was pensive about it but then it occurred to me that it was his reward for his efforts and I shouldn't take away (borrow?) his reward. So I bent down back to him and I said, "Dexter, I'm sorry, that's your toy so you play with it all you want". He looked at me and said, "That's ok, daddy, I love you". That made me cry. There I was, a 39 year old man, crying in the parking lot with his son. He's so thoughtful and understanding. I wish I could share with everyone in the world just how neat Dexter is.

That said...

Went to the Oakland Zoo within the last week. We love to take Dexter there cause 1) we live not more than 2 miles away from it, 2) we have a membership there so there's no cost to it and 3) it's a fun way to tire Dexter out and have fun looking at the animals. But Dexter isn't the only one who has fun. Suzie finds it funny to watch the baby giraffe try and eat. It really is funny to watch.

FINALLY. There is a sign that pretty much says, "You must be this tall to ride this ride" to get on this children's ride at the zoo. For a child to ride alone, they must be at least 36 inches tall. In the past, we've gotten away with sneaking him in, but, no more. No more sneaking him in, no more pleading with ride operators, no more getting mad when shorter kids come in to try and ride. Dexter is now well over 36 inches. And by well over, I mean a fraction of an inch.

If you haven't been to our house, this pretty much sums up the amount of traffic that happens when Dexter busts out all his vehicles (not including the ones he likes to sleep with).

Dexter's uncombed hair gives him the look of a disheveled genius and curious little guy.

We've been lucky to get sun during the weekends up here in Oakland. During the week, well, that's an entirely different matter of overcast skies. Buckaroo seems to enjoy soaking up the rays.

Buckaroo is fascinated with the squirrels in our neighborhood. You can't see the squirrel in the tree, but you can see his reaction to the squirrel (the squirrel's actually taunting him by going up and down the tree).

2009-05-31T21:02:00.000-07:00

Since we haven't been updating the blog with as much frequency as we'd like. And we haven't mentioned at all that Grandma Carolyn has been visiting the Dexter residence for a couple of months. We just said goodbye to her this past week. It was great to have her visit with us and have her spend time with her grandson.

So much love!

In the midst of Grandma Carolyn staying with us, Suzie and I sneaked away for a weekend retreat to Calistoga. We had a swell time that allowed us to spend some time together without a certain little someone. While on our little vacation, we went horseback riding!

This weekend we went to the Bay Area Discovery Museum in Marin county (north of San Francisco and right off the Golden Gate Bridge). It was an overcast day but a fun one to do exploring the museum. Here's a shot of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Dexter was talking all morning about cranes (the loading variety). And guess what? the museum had a working model of a loading dock crane.

The museum is located in an old US Army base (formerly Fort Baker). I understand Fort Baker was established back during the Civil War. You can actually stay overnight at these cool quarters in Fort Baker.

Anyway, back to Dexter's adventure at the museum He had the opportunity to put on a hardhat and get in a hard day's work down at the quarry, like his old man.

Dexter was loving racing around the dump trucks. But he wasn't the only one, the other kids were racing dump trucks around.

The museum had a cool model of the Golden Gate Bridge. The cool part is that the kids can add to it as a construction model.

I think this smile on Dexter tells you how much fun he had!

Goats! We live very close (a little over a block away) to King Estate Open Space. It's a great open space/park since it's so close to us and not a lot of people know about it other than the local yokels.

It's so cool to have these goats/sheep clearing out the hills of fire dangers. How very green of Oakland!

And lastly, Buckaroo went to the vet this weekend to get neutered. Oh no! He's gotta wear an e-collar so he looked a little awkward. Oh well, he's recovering quickly and he'll be ready to play around with Dexter very soon!

2009-05-25T21:16:00.000-07:00

I think it's kind of pointless for me to say that we've been busy here at our house. Everyone's been busy, I suppose. It's hard to imagine that life would be going by at a million miles an hour, which is so cliche, but so true in many aspects. I wish we could slow down time, but you know, we savor it. Suzie and I savor our lives together and we love every single second with our little (or not so little) Dexter.

Life with Dexter is always a lot of fun. The last month or so has seen a lot of changes in his life. He did turn 3 not long ago, and with him getting older, he's correcting us at every opportunity whenever we refer to him as "a little boy". He loves to point out that he's "a big boy". Also, Dexter's talking so much (good thing...most of the time!).

Lola bought Dexter his big boy bed! We tried taking the side off of the crib, but he rolled out in his sleep the first night. Then we decided (with Lola's assistance) to get Dexter a bed. He LOVES the fact that it's shaped like a car. We're glad that it's not as confining as a crib for him.

Dexter's buddies are Ellie the Elephant, Baboy (pig in Tagalog), Teddy the Bear (with baby bear) and Monkey. Apparently Ellie and Teddy are the mother and father of baby bear based on Dexter's explanation!

This weekend had great weather. We went to visit Stephanie, Matt, the twins and baby Elijah. Here is Suzie with baby Eli. The most gorgeous thing to see on this little guy (beyond his beautiful face) is the fact that he has two differnt colored eyes. One brown and one blue. I wish pictures could capture cause it really is a sight to see...get it?

The twins had built a secret fort in the backyard that Dexter had to check out. Here's Sophia inviting us in to check it out.

And here's Aidan and Dexter hamming it up for the camera.

And here's the boys, daddy Matt, big brother Aidan and little Eli.

That's it for now. I hope everyone is well and we'll see you later. Summer is ready when you are!

2009-04-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

Dexter's birthday has come and gone. But the images of his birthday will always remain. It's funny, his birthday is actually April 15 so it happened right in the middle of the week. So basically the whole week was a celebration of Dexter's birth.

Thank you very much to my family, Lola, Tita Nini and Uncle CJ for celebrating with us (Lola stopping in between coming from the Philippines and getting back home to Los Angeles). Lola brought some very good food to share with everyone. And generally, thank you everyone who either came by to say happy birthday, sent a gift, a card or even a phone call. It's nice to know that Dexter is loved by so many people.

That said, I thought I'd share some pictures of Saturday when we had people come over. I think that Dexter was overwhelmed with kids coming over, parents saying happy birthday to him, lots of noise that Dexter just fixated on one toy (from Tita Miriam and Uncle CJ), a firetruck, to help him deal with all the commotion.

In this picture, starting with Dexter going clockwise is Amelia, Liam and the back of Mason's head.

5 kids in this picture. Starting at the bottom left going clockwise is Eli, Mason, Dexter, Amelia and Liam.

And while Dexter wasn't looking, Amelia got a ride on Dexter's new scooter from Grandpa John.

Very attached to this firetruck. He's been sleeping with it every night since he got it.

And last pic of the birthday boy. I can't believe it's been 3 years since he was born. Time really does fly.

2009-04-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

Happy 3rd Birthday, Dexter! I had the privilege of being the first to see Dexter when he woke up this morning. It was just like old times that I opened the door and sang, "Happy birthday to you". Back when he was a wee little man, I would wake up with him and sing, "Good morning to you" (sung to the tune of Happy Birthday). When he was little he loved it. Suzie and I were looking at pictures from when he was born all the way to today and it made us a little sad that he's grown up so much in 3 years. But we're happy to be Dexter's parents and watch him grow everyday. He's such a beautiful little boy.

That said, business had to be taken care of this morning. And for Dexter, business meant birthday presents. So in no particular order, here's Dexter opening up a present from Grandpa John (Suzie's dad in Colorado). A brand new scooter!

He loves it and is really good at riding it (wearing his helmet...safety first, everyone!). I guess he loves it so much, he didn't even realize he was missing one boot. Oh well, he can pick it up on the way back. And let's not forget, these boots were made for scootin'. Am I right or am I right?

Another view of Dexter trying to understand the magnitude of owning his very own scooter.

Mommy bought Dexter a flashlight. Daddy carries a small one with him so it only makes sense that Dexter have one too.

Grandma Gail and Mommy also got him a couple of DVDs. The Sandlot which, surprisingly, Dexter loves. It combines his love of baseball with his love of watching other boys play and the movie Shrek.

Dexter also got his very first tee ball set. Here he is stepping up to the plate.

Dexter is eyeing the perfect pitch, right at the letters and knows it's the one he's going to hammer. He knows to keep his eyes on the ball.

He's got the sweet sweet swing that reminds me of Joe DiMaggio or Ted Williams.

And check out Dexter's follow through. His feet are PERFECT. That, and he knows to ham it up for the cameras because as every baseball player knows, chicks dig the long ball.

I figure this one'll be the one I'll use to create the very first collector's issue of Dexter's baseball card with his stats on the back. Well, hope everyone enjoyed the pics.

2009-04-12T21:07:00.000-07:00

Yup. It's been a while. Life's been going by at a million miles an hour.

Last month we went to visit Amelia and her parents Jennifer and Pat. Actually, we wanted them to meet Buckaroo. Buckaroo is popular with all the kids!

Amelia was not afraid to bust out a few dance moves for Dexter.

Amelia took us to a cool retro-candy store named Powell's. Here's the end result of a few minutes of candy eating.

Speaking of Amelia...it was her 3rd birthday party this weekend. It was such lovely weather to be out and about to celebrate a birthday. Dexter had his first sip of that sweet sweet juice bag (aka Capri Sun). He promptly got behind the wheel of a large automobile and proceeded to do laps in the backyard.

Cupcakes! Amelia the birthday girl shared cupcakes with everyone. Next up? DEXTER'S BIRTHDAY! Dexter is turning 3 on Tax Day!

But before Dexter's birthday, it was Easter. Here is our little man getting ready to color some eggs. And check out the sweet shirt Dexter is rocking (Atwater Village being the neighborhood that daddy grew up in in Los Angeles).

And here are the end result of all the egg coloring. And guess what? Not one cracked shell!

And the hunt is on! Dexter searched for eggs that the sneaky Easter bunny left in our front yard. Buckaroo gave him some assistance; by assistance, I mean eating his candy.

Dexter has discovered the tastiness (or nastiness depending on your viewpoint) of corndogs.

Zoning out after stuffing himself with Easter candy. And Dexter was stuffed too! Hope everyone had a great Easter weekend.

Ok, it's time to go to bed...Good night everyone! Enjoy the soothing sounds of Dexter.

2009-03-16T07:09:00.001-07:00

Nothing like having an almost 3 year old boy and a 10 week old puppy to keep things busy. That said, we here at the Dex files are doing well and hope you all are too. Can you believe that Dexter is almost 3 next month?!?!

Dexter has been quite good with Vlad now that Buckaroo is here. He definitely knows gentle touches, but seems as though Vlad is expecting something much worse seeing as his ears are pointing back.

And here's a video demonstrating Dexter being a little Dr. Doolittle.

We're crate training Dexter, er, I mean Buckaroo to be housebroken. Don't get us wrong, Dexter is dabbling in the use of a potty, but we're trying to housebreak Buckaroo to not go potty everywhere and it's a learning process. This isn't the crate we're using (we returned it for a nicer looking one), but Dexter had to check it out before he gave it the thumbs down.

And a video of Buckaroo having an "accident" as caught on film.

Dexter's been very good at singing to us. The ABCs are something he's very fond of singing. I love his voice and how he can alter it a little bit.

And lastly, here's a nice up and close video of Buckaroo...

2009-03-01T14:52:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone. It's a fun-filled weekend here with Dexter. First off...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, UNCLE VICTOR! It's Victor's birthday and we wanted to show him how much we love him and that we're thinking of him. Dexter is so happy to hold up these signs that he could barely contain his happiness! We hope you had a great day, Uncle Victor!

And now...we have a new addition to the family. Buckaroo came home! Here he is with Dexter, the first night at his new home. First night was brutal, what with Buckaroo getting used to being in a strange place. But ever since then, he's been an absolute delight. Sleeping in his crate/pen area, going potty outside (most of the time) and just overall being a great little dog.

Buckaroo's first visitors were Karen and baby Julian. Here they are sharing a moment.

The other visitors were Stephanie and Matt and they brought the twins. They had a grand old time. Here are the twins, Aidan and Sophia, Dexter and sleepy little Buckaroo. By the way, Stephanie and Matt will be having their own little addition to their family...their baby boy is due on April 6! What a great Spring everyone will be having!

Whew. That's it for now! See you all next time!

2009-02-16T20:42:00.000-08:00

Before the rain came down in buckets here in the Bay Area, we went to a park by my old apartment in Pacific Heights. Here we are enjoying the seesaw. By the way, if anyone is ever in San Francisco, I highly recommend visiting this park; it's got one of the best views of the San Francisco Bay that opens to the Pacific Ocean.

Trying to be quick on the shutter, it was difficult to catch Dexter on the seesaw.

It's kind of funny that Dexter has been avoiding slides for a while. But as soon as we got to this park, Dexter wanted to go down a pretty nice one!

An action video of our little Dexter coming down the slide...

And a race between Dexter and me down the slide to see who could get to Suzie first...I won!

2009-02-09T19:19:00.000-08:00

These pics were taken on Saturday, February 7. It's going to be a long 2 1/2 weeks...

I can hear Buckaroo just sighing. Don't worry, little Buckaroo, you'll be home very soon!

Very VERY soon.

Dexter can't wait to see him again.

2009-02-08T20:56:00.000-08:00

I've been saying for years (decades, maybe?), that I've always wanted a Boston Terrier dog. I have always loved the look of a Boston and I love their sunny disposition. A few years ago, Suzie and I almost adopted one of these little guys. But it just wasn't the right time. My rat terrier, Kirby, was a good little dog, but she was so nervous/neurotic, it was hard to tell how she would be with children. It was a very difficult decision for me to let her go and a part of me is regretful for letting her go. I think that I've had time to think about it now that we're a few years older. After watching Dexter grow with us, we've decided that the time is right for a little Boston Terrier to join our happy family. Let me introduce you to Buckaroo, who will be joining us February 28. Oh, and guess what? He was born on January 1, 2009.

What absolutely blows my mind is how well Dexter gets along with animals. I'm not just talking about Vlad (who he loves and respects), but the way he carries himself with friends' dogs or even the way he handles his way around zoos. He never screams or yells or is frightened (as long as we're with him) by animals. Dexter just is a natural guy who takes to animals.

Oh, and let me be perfectly honest: I WANTED THIS DOG.

And here are Buckaroo's parents. The red Boston Terrier is his father, Jethro. The brindle Boston Terrier is his mother, Cuddles.

2009-01-22T05:55:00.000-08:00

oh my god...Oh My God...OH MY GOD! The Nasols and Colemans are on TV! CBS5 (the local CBS affiliate in the San Francisco Bay Area) did a piece on places to eat with kids and they did a report on Tumble and Tea (soon to be Sadiedey's Cafe). And it's about time...this segment was taped back in September 2008!

Please watch this video and see who's prominently displayed. Dexter is now ready for his close up, Mr. Demille.

2009-01-21T21:47:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's been a while. A very long while. We here at the Dex Files certainly hope that you had a wonderful New Year and that 2009 is treating you well. No reason for no new post other than, surprise, surprise, Daddy is very lazy and loves to procrastinate.

During the week between Christmas and New Year's, Lola stayed with us for a nice visit since Dexter was out of school for the holidays.

Here's Dexter, Mommy and Lola at the Oakland Zoo. What a wonderful picture!

Get your motor runnin'. Head out on the highway. Lookin' for adventure. And whatever finds our way!

Go, Dexter, go! Drive that little firetruck! You're the fastest little firetruck driver EVER!

Amelia and her parents Jennifer and Pat, came out to Oakland on a sunny Saturday for brunch. Here's that formidable duo of Amelia and Dexter walking down the street. I think you might want to step aside when you come across these two.

And here is Dexter, mesmerized by the video game machine at our favorite taqueria. Just like daddy!

2008-12-25T18:04:00.000-08:00

Well, well, well. It's Christmas Day (or night, depending on where you are). It's been a fun Christmas and we (along with a certain little boy) are happy Christmas day is finally here.

This is what it's all about. Dexter might not get the whole concept of Christmas quite yet, but you better believe he knows how to open a present.

Here's Christmas morning with the astonishing revelation to Dexter that Santa actually came by and ate the crackers, cheese, watermelon (don't ask) and orange juice. What can we say, we didn't feel like the traditional route of giving Santa cookies and milk!

And this one is for Grandma Gail. Gail, please rest assured that the gene that programs a person for the affinity for "A Christmas Story" has been passed on to Dexter.

We here at the Dexfiles hope you and your family had a great Christmas. Happy holidays and we look forward to 2009!

2008-12-24T21:59:00.000-08:00

Santa's on his way! And daddy made the mistake of mentioning orange trash trucks and the end result? An early present.

We hope everyone is having a great Christmas eve! I know I'm having a heck of a time putting together one toy for Dexter...

2008-12-22T20:59:00.000-08:00

Greetings from Los Angeles! Dexter and his entourage of Suzie and Ramon took a road trip down Interstate 5 to visit, Lola, Tita Nini and Victor. Santa's almost here, so we thought we take a trip to LA to say hello to everyone.

To appease our little friend after a very long drive, we went to Travel Town to look at the trains. Here's Suzie and Dexter running down the tracks to get out of the way of a locomotive. Seems to me, Dexter isn't concerned that much about the train.

I LOVE the look on Dexter's face as he looks lovingly into Lola's eyes.

And let's not forget safety first. Dexter holds Lola's hand in order to be in safe company.

Goodbye for now! Hope everyone is having a great holiday season.

2008-12-19T20:34:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone, we hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season. We here at the Dex files are indeed enjoying it to the fullest (well, as much as the economy allows us).

That said, Uncle CJ came by last week to babysit Dexter. Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be an evening out for the 'rents, but at least Uncle CJ got to spend some quality with Dexter.

You know what we live by? An equestrian center. And we're talking real close, less than a mile away (a mile up the hill, that is). Here is Suzie and Dexter posing with Figaro (the horse on the left) and Rupert (the English mastiff on the right). Funny that the dog is bigger than the horse!

And finally, he fell asleep this way...

Even with his surprised look on his face, this picture is lovely to me.

2008-11-30T14:43:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Thanksgiving! We here at The Dex Files hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We are grateful that we got to spend the day with our family and friends at our new house.

My mom and brother, Victor, and Tita Nini drove up from Los Angeles to help us celebrate the holiday. Here we are posing with Dexter as the centerpiece as he's flanked by Uncle Victor, Lola and Uncle CJ.

The beginning of the holiday family portrait...

Lola and Dexter sharing a moment while reading a book. Dexter loves him some Lola!

Karen, Dennis and Baby Julian helped us celebrate Thanksgiving. Seeing as they're extended family, we thought it appropriate that Dexter and Julian have a little spate over who sits at the children's table.

And check out this lovely scene as Dexter sits on Lola's lap as they share a popscicle. It's Thanksgiving and that means sharing!

End result of Thanksgiving? Food comas all the way around...

Oh, and guess who had his second haircut?

The place we take him does such a great job of keeping him occupied as his beautiful hair is being trimmed.

And right before the holidays began, we had a wonderful brunch date with Uncle Todd and Aunt Sharon in San Francisco. Such a great time!

2008-11-10T22:35:00.000-08:00

All right. Election day has come and gone. We have a new president, hurray! But Prop 8, a discriminatory measure with the aim of limiting the right to marry to couples consisting of a man and a woman, passed. Not long ago, it was illegal for Suzie and I to be married; so, aside from the obvious, we have issues with this at the fundamental level. Let's hope that the California Supreme Court makes the right decision in stating that all civil rights apply to the WHOLE population of the state of California, not just to select members. I want Dexter to grow up knowing that all his civil rights are protected. So the picture below started off as just the three of us walking by to cheer on some folks who were for the No on 8 side. We decided to stay and help out as much as we could by waving signs and making a fuss on a very busy intersection in Oakland for an afternoon.

So now that we've squared away the politics, we had to get involved in our own little quagmire at home. Dexter, as much as we'd like him to be, is not the centerpiece in this picture. We're proud to say that we laid down our own lawn! We did the whole "sweat equity" thing by purchasing sod and laying it down ourselves. Although it was quite literally back-breaking labor, I'm glad we did it because it makes the house so much more of a home for us.

Here's the left side (Ramon did this side).

Here's the right side (Suzie did this side).

And on a dark and stormy Saturday night, we had Stephanie, Matt, Sophia and Aidan by the house for a little pizza get together. Here are the kids enjoying a little "Cars" action.

Oh, and Ramon's softball team (yes, he does play softball), the La Pinata Sluggers, came in Second overall in the co-ed division! We only lost by 1 run. There's always next season!

2008-11-02T20:29:00.001-08:00

Good evening to you all. Please, take a seat and enjoy this special post-Halloween installment of The Dex Files. Make yourself comfortable. You may be in for a bumpy ride. Leave the lights on if you like.

The fall weather is here and that tends to bring out tiny little ghouls and gobblins. Some are rather difficult to find and if you look closely, you might catch a glimpse of one in camouflage.

But let's not get hung up on the scary aspects of Halloween (and for some, Dia de los muertos). Can you guess what his outfit for Halloween is?

Here is the Dexican with his mommy dressed up and ready for his school's Halloween party.

These lips...kissable. Simply kissable.

It's the whole ensemble that's neat, but, you have to admit the yellow boots top it all off!

And here is our little friend Dexter sliding down the not-so-scary slide! Hope everyone had a fun Halloween!

All right everyone. We're gonna wrap up this installment with our friend playind drums or parading his cars around (not sure if it's one or the other or possibly both). See you all next time!

2008-10-05T21:37:00.000-07:00

It's been a year since my dad passed away and I was in Los Angeles to be with my family during the anniversary. We love you, pop! It was nice to spend it with my family, but it was difficult for me to be away from Suzie and Dexter.

Since it was just Suzie and Dexter, they went to the zoo to have some fun. Guess who's tall enough to ride the little car ride at the zoo all by himself?

While I was out of town, looks like Dexter was up to some counting. I'm going to start calling him, "Count Dexter".

Oh, and Dexter finally had a hamburger! Well, a hamburger pretty much being a hamburger bun and cheese, that is. I think he likes it.

We spent Saturday with Aunt Miriam and Uncle CJ. They took us out for daddy's birthday. We went to a pumpkin patch by their house down in Santa Clara after they took us out for a nice dinner and dessert.

Thanks again Aunt Miriam and Uncle CJ!

Autumn's in the air! Oh, and once Dexter puts on his sunglasses, it's kind of difficult to get him to not leave them on while pictures are being taken.

And a self portrait of Suzie and myself.

We took the ferry into San Francisco on Sunday. We came across a guy who was playing the accordion for some cash. Well now, most of you probably didn't know that Dexter's daddy plays the accordion. The only english I recognized from this guy was his incessant request for me to play "Oh sussannah". That's too easy for me. I had to bust out a little "Beautiful, beautiful brown eyes". Needless to say, daddy rang the bell cause school's in session, sucka! Dexter took care of the bass buttons for me (as you can plainly see). I also did a Tschaikowsky piece for the publlic, but my playing skills were so great, it blew the camera apart.

Oh, and when you play this video, make sure you turn up the volume on your computers. And hey, you might want to put on a helmet so you don't make a mess when I blow your mind with my mad accordion skillz!

2008-09-26T20:12:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it, but I've been trying to take some good pictures. I mean, I'm making an effort to take portraits of Dexter, but not hitting the mark. I have to say that this picture of Brooke is a pretty good one. I guess it helps that Brooke's a beautiful baby.

For some odd reason, Brooke and Dexter thought it would be hilarious to walk around with towels on their faces. You know what? It kind of WAS hilarious.

I'm not sure, but it does appear that these two are going to do some work. That, or they're playing musical chairs.

Brooke and Dexter took advantage of the fact that we have an annual membership to the Oakland Zoo. Here they are enjoying the warm California sunshine.

Back at home, Dexter got busy trying to hide his popsicle addiction. He got busted by Brooke!

In all the hubbub of the visit, it was nice to sit back, relax, kick the shoes off and just enjoy each other's company.

Yet another great picture. This picture was taking atop the open space (or "park") that is a couple of blocks away. Gorgeous view of the mommies and kiddies with an awesome background of San Francisco.

On the last night of Brooke and Katie's visit, it was time to get cleaned up. Dexter's only taken baths with mommy or daddy; but it seems he was unimpressed with taking a bath with Brooke. But he eventually got into it by helping shampoo Brooke's hair!

And here are the cleanest kids (at the moment) in the world! Both wrapped up nicely in their matching ducky towels.

Before Brooke and Katie left to go back to Grand Junction, we took them to Tumble and Tea. Alas, it was an opportunity for us to ring in the change of seasons and welcome in Autumn.

Oh, and guess what? There was a news crew from KCBS 5 (our local CBS affiliate), doing a bit piece on Tumble and Tea. And guess which mommy and baby were interviewed? Oh man, I forgot to ask for their autograph! As soon as the bit is aired, we'll be posting it here (which should be sometime in October).

As you can imagine, it's been an eventful week having a two year old and a one year old under one roof. Dexter's expression summarizes how we feel now. We loved having Brooke and Katie with us and we miss them already!

2008-09-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

Let's see here...an embrace. Who could possibly be oh so embraceable? Who in the world could possibly be staying as houseguests in the Nasol household?

Why, it's none other than Dexter's cousin, Brooke Taylor! Her profile is a glimpse of just how cute she is.

Now we have to put our foot down. This kissing cousin business is way out of line. Especially open mouth kisses. Come on now, we have to draw the line somewhere.

This is more like it! Brooke watching Dexter play with his beanbag chair. I've noticed that Dexter is looking away from the camera.

And here are the lovely sisters, Katie (Brooke's mommy) and Suzie. Utterly sheer beauty all the way around!

Suzie's cousin, Shannon, and Shannon's husband, Jeremy came by to visit and say hello to Katie and Brooke. Here's Shannon and Jeremy giving their niece a smile and a hug.

Laugh it up, Dexter, we have a lot more adventures to have with Brooke and Katie this week!

2008-09-21T20:50:00.000-07:00

We took a little trip to Sonoma to meet up with Amelia, Jennifer and Pat. Sonoma Train Town was our destination. And you know our little Dexter loves him some trains. It was a great place to visit since, right in the middle of the ride, the train stops at a petting zoo!

Here is the little engine that pulled us around Train Town.

Dexter has learned to hold hands in a crowded place. Not that it was that crowded on this Saturday morning, but it was a good excuse to hold hands with pretty little Amelia!

I'm trying my hand at doing some nifty artistic shots. Here's Amelia and Dexter checking out the ducks in the pond.

You don't want to come across these two in a darkened alley. Dexter and Amelia look like a formidable pair.

So this was the end of our visit to Train Town. We actually had a fun day for trains and picnicking with Amelia, Jennifer and Pat!

Sunday morning, Dexter and I took a trip out to the Oakland zoo to give Suzie some time to herself. We met up with Billie and her dad, Andy. Billie played a tough cop by leading Dexter around by his arm. That's right, Dexter needs a little discipline.

A little panhandling between friends never hurt anybody!

Billie and Dexter (I'm pretty sure) had a fun outing! This Dexter character has had a busy schedule the last few days with the ladies!

Lots of activity at the zoo. Here's Billie and Dexter sharing some fun while walking around the zoo.

2008-09-17T20:02:00.000-07:00

It was pretty warm last week. The last week of August, but now we're in September (which is kind of cold now). At least we got some pictures of Dexter showing off his physique at the Alameda beach.

Note Dexatrim's speedo. What a hunk!

Check out his swagger on the beach.

Dexter and Suzie came by to watch one of my Monday night softball games. Here he is giving me a goodluck kiss before I went out into the field...we ended up WINNING the game!

Here's Dexter on his horse. As you may recall, Uncle Victor got this for Dexter and Dexter LOVES it!

Everyday, Dexter has more and more to say. As you can see and hear, he's such an engaging young man. With that, he's off to ride his horse into the sunset. And remember, Safety First!

2008-09-02T20:27:00.000-07:00

Hello all. It's always a fun time in Dexter's world. Well, not always because the Dexican has his days when he is a little cranky. But not on this day. He was going on about conspiracy theories and how satellites are reading his brainwaves. So we just put a metal strainer on his head and that was the end of that.

Dexter at the park! We found out (the hard way) that the D-Unit needs to let loose his energy everyday. So it helps to take him to the park to let him run wild.

This past Labor weekend, we made a playdate to go to the Oakland Zoo. Before we went out, Dexter had to put on his hardhat.

And here we are at the Oakland zoo. Dexter played it safe and held on to Liam, his friend, to keep from getting lost in the crowd.

Suzie and I have noticed that our little Dexter has grown quite a bit in the last few months. it just so happens that his old pajamas were way too tight and his shoes are getting a tad bit smaller. Guess what? Dexter's taller AND his feet are getting bigger. But he's still not tall enough to ride some of the rides at the zoo...next few months, though and that'll change.

Dexter and daddy on the carousel. See you all next time!

2008-08-26T20:28:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to a birthday party that my Uncle Dave and Aunt Celia attended. Uncle Dave, it just so happens, officiated our wedding back in 2004. Oh! Our wedding anniversary is coming up, just in case anyone forgot!

Today we went to the park near our house. Here is Dexter having a hair-raising experience coming down the slide.

It's tough to get this Dexter character to smile. That is, I need to be even faster on the shutter button. Check out this mug.

Ok, it's not really that difficult to get him to smile. Dexter's smile is sooooo infectious!

2008-08-06T19:30:00.000-07:00

All right, it has been awhile...AGAIN. It's been busy here in Oakland, CA. But guess what? We haven't been in Oakland all this time. That's right, we took a slight detour south to Los Angeles to visit Lola! And what kind of visit would it be if we didn't take a little side trip to Bob's Big Boy.

On the drive down, we stopped to grab some lunch. Our new thing when we eat out (which nowadays is far and few between since we've become homeowners!), we sit at a booth in order to keep Dexter corralled. Here he is giving daddy a little sugar

Whew! All this driving sure can tucker out even the most hardy of road warriors.

This is Dexter posing in front of Lola's house when we arrived. Charming as ever.

Oh the joy on Dexalotapus' face! He was playing with his hopscotch kit at Lola's house. He was doing pretty good too!

Wow, two pictures of Dexter and me in the same post. What are the chances? Either way, this is a pretty neat pic of Dexter and I looking out at Lola's backyard.

Tita Nini took us out for lunch to meet her co-workers while we were in Los Angeles. Here we are walking to lunch.

We here at the Nasol household approve of Clifton's Cafeteria. Tita Nini's co-worker, Rod, took us to this old-school cafeteria. It was like walking into a time machine and ending up in the 1950's! Words don't do it justice. Do yourself a favor when you're in Los Angeles and check out this place!

Keep your hands and feet away from our mouths! When we eat, we mean business.

And it wouldn't be a trip to LA if we didn't check out trains at Travel Town.

The sign clearly states that Dexter is not allowed to bring in alcoholic beverages. Oh well, he can always have his milk on the rocks later on.

All right everybody...All Aboard!

Driving back is hard work as evidenced here by Dexter.

And on a joyous note, Dexter's godmother, Kirstyn, got married on July 25th! Congrats to Kirstyn and Lisa! Here is the lovely couple...may they have many years of love, joy and happiness!

2008-07-22T21:53:00.001-07:00

All right, everyone, hope you have a little bit of time this week. Lots of pictures in this post. Why? Well, just haven't been able to post all the pictures that I've taken lately. Anyway, lots of stories to tell in this post.

Dexter found one of his caps that was given to him at Alta Bates Hospital when he was born. What do you know? It still fits! Well, kinda fits.

The Dexican is ready to work at the rock quarry (which is just a pile of rocks down the street). He's ready to rock! Get it?

Dexter's friend, Amelia, came by with her parents, Jennifer and Pat. Here's the two of them sitting down at the dining table enjoying an early dinner. What red-blooded American boy starts dinner without his Hummer nearby? And note the star-shaped "totes" (toast) on Amelia's plate; Suzie has been going crazy with the cookie cutter trying to make Dex's food more tantalizing.

During the visit, Dexter pulled his chair up to watch the BBQ. There's something about watching the coals smolder that just puts a guy at ease.

Well, well, well. Guess what Dexter did this week?

After 2 years and 3 months, it was time for Dexalotapus to get his hairs cut. That's right, everyone, Dexter got his FIRST HAIRCUT! Here are a couple of befores so you can see the massive transformation.

Dexter's hair was getting in his face just a little too much, see?

They say the first cut is usually the hardest. Not in this case. Dexter sat on the floor and played while his hair was snipped.

Just a little bit off the top, please.

Oh man, how handsome is Dexter?

What a loving look from Suzie to Dexter. Such a wonderful first haircut! He didn't cry at all. If anything, he was indifferent to it. I guess he could take it or leave it.

And to top it all off, Dexter got a commemorative plaque (including a lock of his hair) to mark the special occasion. That's it for now, see you all soon!

2008-07-17T20:47:00.000-07:00

Wel, everyone, the day we've been dreading has come and gone. Grandma and Grandpa Gopal have moved to the other side of the planet, more specifically, India. Dexter, Ramon and Suzie drove the adventurers to the airport on Tuesday, July 15th. Here is a lovely shot of the two of them at SFO. Although Suzie was never a big fan of her mother's plan to move so far away, she is very proud. We will miss them terribly.

Before they left they had a big party so that everyone could say goodbye. Here's a shot of Pandora and Suzie giving Grandma a big, loving squeeze. We didn't want to let go.

And here is Grandma and Grandpa Gopal flanked by Pandora and Mike Huhman. Both Pandora and Mike were very, very close to our own Mikey and they love Grandma very much.

Here is the last shot of Grandma and Dexter and Suzie together. We love you and will miss all of the wonderful times. We can't wait for you to come back to us.

Here is a gratuitously lovely shot our little man taken by Mike Huhman. It's a good thing his bobo is in there or else we might all explode from the sheer magnitude of his angelic good looks. This one's for you Grandma!

2008-07-08T20:10:00.000-07:00

D'oh! I forgot to post pictures of a recent visit from my mother and my aunt. They came up to see Dexter, I mean, the new house. Here they are posing at the Kings Estate Open Space (not more than two blocks from our house!). My Mom, Tita Nini, Suzie, Dexter and Grandma Carolyn all lined up. We're told that the hills are a lush green right after the rains and not brown like it is right now.

(photo deleted)

Love this picture of Lola, Dexter and me. See you all next time!

2008-07-02T20:54:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, America! It's our first 4th of July in our new house and we're all revved up for it. Well, as much as we can be revved up with 2 year old Dexter running around and tiring us out.

Here's our little fireman getting ready to fight those inevitable fires that will break out from fireworks.

A couple of weeks ago, it was pretty warm up here. So warm, that we had to trek down to Uncle CJ's to cool off at his own private swimming pool. Here's The Dexican with his beloved Uncle CJ after getting a little ice cream to cap off the fun.

We're pretty much all over the place with pictures (what can I say, it's been about two weeks since my last post so I've got some catching up to do). Dexter spent the day of our move with Grandma Carolyn. Grandma had some friends staying with her and they had their son, Mihir, with them. Dexter had so much fun running and playing with Mihir that he got sick later that day. Poor little man had to spend his first night in his new room with a fever!

Speaking of Grandma Carolyn, here she is with her favorite Dexican spending some quality time before she moves.

Here is our little Dexter paying tribute to his Uncle Mike by wearing a pair of shoes he sent him from Paris not long after Dexter was born. Dexter can finally fit them after almost two years. We're sure Uncle Mike is looking down from heaven and happy to know that Dexter is keeping his spirit alive.

And a close-up of Uncle Mike's gift. What a surprise; skull and crossbones!

Dexter is quite the acrobat. Except when the camera is on him. Go figure. But we did manage to catch his crazy little dance of anticipation before the jump...

Ok everyone, time for bed. Dexter and Vlad will see you next time!

2008-06-15T17:12:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's day, everyone! From Dexter's daddy, I hope all dads (and about-to-be-dads) have a great day. This picture is now my favorite of all time. Absolutely love it. And also it's a GREAT father's day for the Nasols (more on that in a minute).

Dexter made me a homemade Father's Day card at pre-school.

Oh and to top it all off...WE BOUGHT A NEW HOUSE! New pictures tomorrow (We're very tired from moving this weekend).

2008-06-08T14:24:00.000-07:00

Suzie and Dexter were lounging around one early morning when they heard a ruckus outsied. Lo and behold, there was a backhoe doing some street work. If you look at Dexter's not so tiny left hand, you can see he's holding his own little backhoe to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

We went to the Oakland Zoo this morning. We bought a family membership not too long ago and figured the nice weather warranted a trip. Dexter and I donned our LA Dodgers caps for the experience.

Trains. We hear about trains every single dingle minute of the day. That's pretty much all Dexalotapus talks about. So lucky for us, there's a miniature train ride at the zoo that goes around the zoo and has a magnificent view of the bay.

That's it for now.Stay tuned cause this coming week is going to be a very busy week!

2008-06-05T18:11:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes, yes. It's been a while since the last update. The Nasol household has been very busy lately. We'll have more pictures very very soon. I promise.

2008-05-11T20:06:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a great weekend. It was Miriam and CJ's wedding! For those who don't know who CJ is, he's my oldest brother. A beautiful ceremony on a beautiful day for a beautiful couple.

And what kind of wedding would it be, if CJ's nephew Dexter weren't part of the festivities. Dexter's role was the ring bearer.

And here's Uncle CJ with the other little boys from the wedding party, Noah and Carlo and our little Dexican.

I LOVE this picture. The only time of the day that I could get Dexter to stand still. It's almost like he's a little toy soldier with Noah.

Unbelievable. This Dexter character is so undeniably cute.

My beautiful wife with my adorable son.

This picture pretty much sums up Miriam and CJ's wedding. Lots of laughter, a few tears and some drinking.

2008-05-04T15:35:00.000-07:00

I love these precious moments with Dexter. Don't be fooled, though, Dexter was lulled by his beautiful train DVD that he was watching.

2008-04-29T21:21:00.000-07:00

Hi, all. A quick video to whet your appetite.

This is Sir Dex-a-Lot and Uncle Victor performing a beat down of the birthday pinata. (A train (or tain, if you speak Dexican), of course. what else would it be?)

And our little Dexter running around in circles at Uncle CJ's house, playing around the community jungle gym. He's pretty fast.

2008-04-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

Let's open up with this:

All right, everyone. It's been a while. Biggest news? DEXTER'S SECOND BIRTHDAY! Hurray for our little man! It was such a great day. It also happened to be the day that Dexter got baptized.

So let's take a look at his baptism/birthday celebration with Dexter running out into the backyard.

This look is familiar to us. Dexter looks this way whenever he sees someone new; kind of like he's saying, "uh, hi".

This is why I don't like pictures of myself. I don't have a wonky eye, it's the angle of the camera. Leave it to Dexter's good looks to make me look bad.

"HEY! It's my birthday AND my baptism day!"

Ok, here's a cute picture of Dexter.

Dexter's moment of truth; the baptizing moment.

Grandma Carolyn and Dexter after the ceremony.

Godfather Anthony, Mom, Dexter and myself hamming it up for the camera.

Flanked by Grandma Carolyn and Lola Victoria.

Party Time! Dexter enjoying his birthday while almost in his birthday suit.

Shirtless. That's the way Dexter wanted to celebrate his birthday.

Dexter needed some help to blow out his candles.

Might as well close this entry with Dexter looking clean and not so disheveled.

See you next time!

2008-03-31T21:21:00.000-07:00

Dexter had a playdate today with Billie. They've got quite a bit in common. They're both about to turn 2 years old and they both enjoy playing with dirt.

Turns out Billie likes more than just dirt. Apparently she's got a hankering for a little Dexican. Being the ladies' man that he is, Dexter was playing hard to get by walking away.

Gotcha! Billie's got a handle on Dexter; he's not going anywhere now.

Concerned for his safety and well-being, Dexter ceases to resist the affections of a little girl named Billie.

So at the end of it all, Dexter just resigned himself to being the chick magnet that he is (just like his old man). Here he is going to his special place, just waiting for the embrace to end.

2008-03-23T20:39:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. Happy Easter! It's a great day out here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Not a cloud in the sky. Dexter's loving the weather we've been having. He loves to go out to the park either by walking, riding his tricycle or riding on our shoulders. Either way, he's loving spring. And, as you can see here, he's loving the Easter Bunny.

It JUST occurred to me that I forgot to add this picture to last week's installment. Ben (Suzie's cousin) moved back down here from Seattle to Livermore. As a special treat, he came by with his sister, Shannon and her husband, Jeremy. And, just as a coincidence, the weather was just as nice as it was this past weekend.

Took Dexter to a trip to the beach here in Alameda. He's getting that tan ready for the summer. And don't get me started on his hair color, such a lovely color.

Have we said how great the weather's been up here? The view of the SF bay was gorgeous.

We'll end this entry with Dexter sitting on the beach, enjoying his day with his folks. See you all next time!

2008-03-21T19:16:00.000-07:00

Dexter received an Easter present from his Tita Nini today. It was a very soft Easter bunny! Oh yea...HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE! Bunny rabbits, pastel eggs and marshmallow peeps for everyone.

Yes, yes, Dexter's wearing a green jumper. St. Patrick's Day was earlier this week, but I blame his being born one week before his actual due date for his timing

Check out these two cutie pies. Such a lovely sight that I get to see every single day.

Whew. Dexter's tuckered out. He's gotta save up his energy for the weekend!

2008-03-20T18:43:00.000-07:00

It's been a while, but it's been worth it. We got a used digital SLR camera and have been fiddling around with it. Here are the results. Dexter was quite surprised that this new camera can capture him in the blink of an eye.

Oh! That's Dexter's new catch phrase for when he's genuinely surprised.

His smile is infectuous.

That's it for now. More pics to follow.

2008-03-05T17:20:00.000-08:00

More pics from the Tahoe trip. Thanks, Stephanie!

Suzie and I had to make sure that the sled was operational. It's all about safety first. Turns out our little Dexter wasn't too pleased with the sled.

Ginny and Sophia had to take their turn on the sled. It was fun (and tiring) walking back up with the sled so that the kids could get a turn riding it.

Aidan and Sophia hitting the slopes. These kids are sooooo cute!

I had to include this picture of Aidan and a giant bear. Just thought it was cute and appropriate.

Aidan and Lars sharing a laugh.

Again, what a pair of cuties. These twins loved to play with Dexter.

And Baby Nexter will see you next time! Hope you all enjoyed the pics.

2008-03-02T21:22:00.000-08:00

Guess who went to Tahoe this weekend? The family packed up some bags and took a drive out the have some fun with some old friends in Tahoe. We stayed in a great cabin with our old friends from San Francisco where we all lived within a few blocks of each other in the City. It was just like old times with everyone, except nowadays, we've got kids in tow.

This pretty much summarizes Dexter's reaction to snow. Based on this past weekend, he could either take it or leave it. In the background, there's a glimpse of Poppa Matt (Sophia and Aidan's dad).

Maybe next year Dexter will like the snow better.

Dexter's like his old man, a daredevil. We made a little sleigh ride for Dexter out of a laundry basket. The end result is right here.

Dexter wasn't the only kid on this trip. The Dillworth-Mamane twins were there too. I got them to stand still for a few seconds to catpture this shot. Sophia and Aidan LOVE playing with Baby Nexter (as they like to refer to Dexter). It really was fun to watch them play and interact.

See you all later!

2008-02-26T20:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Lola! I have to say that it was great to have been able to celebrate Lola's birthday today. The celebration was in Alameda with Tita Nini, Tita Miriam, Lola, Dexter and Suzie.

Not only did Dexter help Lola blow out the candles, but he helped cut the cake.

Dexter had to make sure that the cake was still tasty. Happy Birthday again, Lola!

2008-02-24T19:53:00.000-08:00

Well, well, well. Look who came up (along with a rainstorm) to visit little ole Dexter. Lola!

Uncle CJ took us to lunch today. We met up at the Patio Filipino, which serves really good Filipino/Spanish dishes. It took a few minutes, but Dexter FINALLY let someone other than Suzie or myself hold him. Lola is very good at holding up our little friend.

Dexter met his up with his cousin Lucas. Pretty cute how Lucas is looking up at Dexter.

And here's a group shot of Tita Nini, Miriam, Lola (holding Lucas), CJ and Joy (Lucas' mom).

Uncle Victor sent up a whole CD full of pictures from my dad's funeral. Even though it was a solemn event, there were some real gems in there.

Dexter's first time to wear a tie. I clipped it on him myself. He cleans up pretty well, doesn't he?

Well, that's it for now. Hey, keep your hands off the ice cream!

2008-02-18T20:25:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody. Suzie took Dexter to Ruby's Tumbling here in Alameda.

Here's our little monkey climbing up the ladder. Dexter has progressed so much since he started going to these tumbling classes.

Dexter's just putting one step in front of the other on the balance beam. Such great balance!

And climbing the ladder. Dexter's great at scaling it.

Dexter's pretty good at swinging and falling on the mat, doncha think?

We took a trip out to Novato to visit Amelia, Jennifer and Pat this past President's Day weekend. Such great weather to be out and about.

I like this picture a lot. I like the fact that Amelia isn't looking directly into the camera.

This picture is all right. Dexter was quite surprised.

Heavy. Dexter is HEAVY on my shoulders. He's growing bigger every day.

You know what we're pretty thankful for? That Vlad is a pretty patient guy to let Dexter sit on his head speaks volumes. If you look between Dexter's legs, you can see the loving expression on Vlad's face.

2008-02-10T21:02:00.000-08:00

There's a new action hero coming to town. Dexter's strutting his stuff and his sweater is barely containing his rippling muscles.

Sunglasses are a new thing. We're quite surprised that Dexter is ok with wearing the sunglasses. But hey, he's always surprising us.

Here's his "come hither" look. 'Cept he should probably close his mouth next time he tries this look.

Thanks for checking in on us. See you all soon!

2008-02-02T20:01:00.000-08:00

All right, everybody, here we are again. A lot has been happening since our last post. Suzie and I took a trip out to Portland for Karen and Dennis' wedding. Let's keep it in perspective cause Dexter didn't come with us. That's right, it was a grown-up weekend. It's not to say we didn't miss our little Dexter, but it was a nice little trip for just the two of us.

We stayed at the Hotel Deluxe in Portland. Beautiful hotel, beautiful room, beautiful wife!

I tried my hand at taking a artsy photo of Suzie. I really like this picture cause she's soooooo cute and pretty in this shot.

While in Portland, it was Suzie's birthday. We actually spent most of the day at Portland Airport, but I'm so happy that the two of us spent the day together. Grandma Gail sent Suzie a beautiful birthday bouquet. Pictures just don't do it justice.

Can't have a post without pictures of Dexter. Suzie put all of Dexter's stuffed animals in his crib with him. An avalanche of stuffed animals!

I think Dexter's showing his pleasure of being neck-deep in softness.

That's it for now. See you all very soon!

2008-01-20T22:00:00.000-08:00

Happy belated New Year, everyone! Yes, 2008 has begun and we're in the thick of things. Keeping ourselves busy with our not-so-little Dexter.

It's really difficult to capture Dexter smiling, so here's a pic of him not smiling with me.

On a cool, crisp January day, we took Dexter to a windswept park that has a spectacular view of the Bay. In the background are the cranes of the Port of Oakland.

And here is a sweet picture of Dexter sharing a mango lassi with Granpa Gopal.

2007-12-31T16:25:00.000-08:00

It's the end of 2007. The year has had it's share of ups and downs, and I think the best thing to say is that we're glad that it's over. Watching Dexter grow in itself has been the greatest thing for us. That said, here is our jolly little Dexmas on Christmas morning.

Dexter got quite a few musical instruments as gifts. One particular instrument that he took to right out of the box was a harmonica.

When all is said and done, when all the gifts were opened, our little friend must have been wondering, "what next?"

Suzie, Dexter and Grandma Carolyn went up to Sonoma before Christmas to visit Tonia and Blake. I'm not sure, but I think Dexter drove part of the way to their house.

Blake had to remind Dexter that he was merely borrowing the car.

Here is Blake and Dexter re-creating the infamous Don Perata car-jacking that happened a few days ago. Please note, this is just a re-creation.

We went to a get together of old San Francisco friends. A few of us have known each other for a number of years and have watched our families grow. Here, in the top row, are Ava, her mom Tiffany, Stephanie and her daughter, Sophia (holding Dexter) and Sophia's brother, Aidan.

How cute! Sophia wanted to pick up Dexter. She got a taste of just how hefty our little guy is getting.

We hope you all have a great 2008. See you next year!

2007-12-24T20:32:00.000-08:00

You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I'm telling you why, Santa Dexter is coming to town! Hope everyone is having a great holiday. I can tell you this: Dexter has been good all year. From our little family to yours, we hope you're having a great Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus, etc.

2007-12-16T21:25:00.000-08:00

Every day, Dexter does something to melt our hearts. Most of the time, it's the way he looks since he is so darned cute.

Whenever he looks so cute, we want to scoop him up and hug him with all our might.

Brunch in San Francisco today. We met up with Uncles Rodney, Yancy and Rob and little Rocco.

If only this was in 3D. Dexter planted a big old kiss on me while I was filming him.

2007-12-15T18:34:00.000-08:00

Uncle Victor gave Dexter a nifty rocking horse for his 1st birthday in April. Dexter is fully enjoying it now that he can climb on it without any assistance.

Ride 'em, Cowboy Dexter! Santa's gotta be really proud (like we are!).

2007-12-08T14:58:00.000-08:00

I could bore you all by talking about work and how the end of the year is mind-numbingly busy. But I won't. When Lola was here last, she got to see Dexter and his brand new Christmas tree. The soft lighting is an extra added bonus of having light come from behind.

Yes, it's the holidays. One tradition here is the Lighted Yacht Parade in the Oakland Estuary. It started off slow, but then it got better. I tried my hardest to get some good pictures, but it was way to dark to capture the festively decorated yachts.

And what kind of blog entry would this be if we didn't have some kind of crazy picture of Dexter? Whatever he did (whether he broke something or lost something) he sure seems sorry, doesn't he?

2007-11-22T19:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! For our holiday, Lola (my mom) came up from Los Angeles to give thanks.

Dexter and Suzie picked up Lola from the airport and had lunch with Grandma Carolyn.

You're probably asking yourself what Dexter has in his hand. What he has in his hand is a rambutan which is similar to a lychee.

You've just got to see a rambutan see how odd it looks, almost like a blowfish.

Dexter took Lola to a playcenter in Alameda called Wee Play. Here is his first ride on a rollercoaster. It's actually quite cool looking and fun, but getting him back on it for the 25th time was kind of tiring.

We had Thanksgiving lunch/dinner at Uncle CJ's. We spent the day with Lola, Uncle CJ, Miriam, Uncle Victor, Grandma Carolyn and Grandpa Gopal.

Dexter is flanked by Grandma Carolyn and Lola Victoria. A Grandma/Lola sandwich!

That's it for today's episode. On the ride home from Uncle CJ's, Dexter passed out! He had so much fun. From our little family to yours, we hope you have a great Thanksgiving.

2007-11-18T20:31:00.000-08:00

Yes indeed, fall is here. The early sunset, leaves changing color, the crisp air. It's such a great time of the year. On our way to the park, I took this picture cause the colors were so neat. This picture doesn't begin to capture the great colors.

Before we started for the park, Dexter started off in a good mood, but like any good actor who wants his privacy, he ended up getting mad at daddy paparazzi.

At the park, Dexter and I jumped into the car. I let Dexter drive cause I was way too tired from working to drive.

The new action hero: DEXTER! Danger is Dexter's middle name. Dexter has taken to getting on the sofa and jumping onto a cushion (actually, a dog bed, but I digress). He LOVES jumping on it.

Talk about progress. A few weeks ago, Dexter found this party favor. He knew that you blew into it, but didn't blow hard enough to make the noise. Fast forward to today. Here's the end result.

Dexter's lip is healing quite nicely. His money-maker will be as good as new.

2007-11-14T18:51:00.000-08:00

Mac's back! That's right, Mac's back and ready for action. The iBook is back after some downtime (nothing a new power cord, battery and disk utility can't fix). So to celebrate, I'm putting up a new post.

But like any good story, there's always a downside. The downside having nothing to do with the computer, but our little Dexter taking a fall at the park. He fell and split his lip. Poor little guy. Rest assured, he's fine, but he's got a nasty looking cut on his lower lip. But he's a trooper and he'll have his beautiful face back to normal in a few days. Just like daddy, his face is his money-maker, so he's got to have his lovely face to earn some money.

Here he is pre-fall. And judging by the look of Dexter's belly, he looks about 5 months pregnant. (Mama here: I just want to add that all of these pix and videos are "pre-fall" by about 5 minutes. That cute shirt he's wearing is now totally stained with blood. My poor little bubba. But rest assured knowing that he is fine, it was just a busted lip.)

Dexter is getting good at throwing a ball. And if you look closely, he's throwing with his left hand. Not sure why I'm excited about this; maybe because Suzie ane I are both right handed, maybe because lefties are more "artistic". At least we can trace the gene to Grandpa John (Suzie's dad) who happens to be left handed.

And here is Dexter thinking that his dad is a dog and is playing "fetch" with daddy.

What a great profile this Dexter person has!

All right, that's it for now. This video made my heart melt when he looked right at me. What a cute little boy!

2007-11-09T22:52:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody. Sorry for the lack of updates to Dexter's blog. We're down a computer; the Mac that I use to download pics and update the blog is out of commission. So we're down to using the newer Mac (I'm more comfortable with the older Mac!). Anyway, no need to worry, we're all fine.

Last weekend we went to Tilden Park to go to the mini train ride. I've decided to let Dexter ride my shoulders and the train. He's big on getting on my shoulders and laughing. Only in this picture, he's not laughing.

And the always lovely mom and son. We were on the train so my hand wasn't that steady.

These types of videos are sooooo cute! Check out the Dexican as he walks down the street with his backpack on. It's a glimpse into the not so distant future when Dexter goes to school.

I like this pic. We took Sharon out for her birthday. I like candid pictures.

Suzie took the Dexican to Play Cafe in Oakland. It's a neat coffeehouse where parents can get a cup of coffee and a pretty large play area. Such a great concept.

Dexter had to show off his shopping cart skills. Smart kid, eh?

Dang it, the flash went off on this picture and it kinda washes out Dexter. Oh well, Dexter has been sitting at the desk (on his own, mind you) pretending that he's working on the computer. Hopefully the next post will be on the fixed computer so I can post more often!

2007-10-28T02:55:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, we went to Children's Fairyland in Oakland. It's a neat little amusement park for kids; reminds me of Disneyland if Disneyland catered to the 5 and under crowd and if it were the 1960's. We went there on a whim since the Bay Area weather was nice and Fall-like.

As you can imagine, there were a lot of kids. A lot of kids in cosutme and Dexter was no exception. Our sweet little Dexter the Lion was a little apprehensive at first, but he warmed up to having some fun at Fairyland.

You know what we haven't done in a while? We haven't posted a video of our little ray of sunshine. And whadaya know? Here we have Dexter running from one of the playhouses he was enjoying to his mom's loving arms. Please note, that loud voice in the background is a magician doing a performance that Dexter had no interest in watching. The magician was literally yelling to be heard; funny cause he already had a microphone but he felt a compulsion to yell anyway.

Suzie put on a puppet show for Dexter. He was unsure of what to make of all the puppets, but after seeing mommy play with them, Dexter was in to it.

New pinoy shirt day! Underneat the lion costume was a pinoy. Or at least half a pinoy.

There was a carousel that Dexter and I rode around in. It was fun because I think he really did enjoy it.

Ok everyone, hope you had a weekend as fun as Dexter!

2007-10-25T20:56:00.000-07:00

Now wait just a minute. You're going to tell me that I'm better looking than this mess of a character named Dexter? Let's clean him up a little up and then we'll talk about it later cause if we're using this picture as a comparing point, then that would make me the Elephant Man.

The Dexican is a pretty smart guy. He likes to play with light switches. He can't reach the light switch, but he can move a box around. Dexter moves box under light switch and VOILA...light switch is being played with.

Jenny came over to have lunch with Suzie and Dexter today. Here's J-Dogg and D-Unit in the booth at Sushi House.

Don't forget, next week is Halloween. 'Nuff said.

2007-10-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

So I'm talking to Lola (my mom, Dexter's grandmother) and hand the phone over to Dexter. Dexter would look lovingly at the phone whenever Lola would talk to him. At one point, he hugged the phone as she spoke to him, even going so far as kissing the phone. What a thoughtful little boy.

Dexatrim is big at sitting at his desk and coloring with his crayons. Here he is beaming with pride as he works on another piece of art. By the way, original Dexter art pieces are for sale.

Action shot time! That and I'm in the picture. We're trying to cross the street, but our bow-legged little friend had to take a moment to pose.

What a busy week. Dexter had his 18 month pediatrician visit. Ourlittle friend is a healthy 23 pounds, 10 ounces.

Vlad has to take some antibiotics due to a little fight-induced infection. Dexter has been diligent to make sure that Vlad took his medicine. He's a great little watchman.

2007-10-13T18:19:00.000-07:00

I'd be fine if I could forget the month of September. It was a rough month for me and my family. I don't know what I'd do without Suzie and Dexter. Dexter has been trying (and succeeding) at cheering me up. His absolute favorite fruit at the moment (and that can change at any moment) is grapes. He's been entertaining us by putting the grapes on his head as if it's funny. Yea, it's funny.

The bib says it all. I'm guessing that later on in life, wearing a bib isn't going to make Dexatrim a "chick magnet".

But for now, it does make him a chick magnet whether he likes it or not.

Dexter loves him some park time. Franklin park is his home park.

Love this picture! And check out his new shoes. Styling!

2007-09-28T15:04:00.000-07:00

This blog, for the most part, is all things Dexter. But not today. Today, this post is for my father, Carlos Topacio. As I said in the previous post, this blog is therapeutic for me, it calms me and sometimes lets me reflect on things.

So strange that now as a father, I sometimes forget that I am also a son. And now I'm a grieving son having lost my father this morning, Friday, September 30. He succumbed to cancer.

I don't want to remember Pop the way he looked the last few weeks. I want to remember him as a healthy guy who took a night job in order to take care of me during the day. I want to remember him taking basketball shots with me in the driveway. I want to remember him putting me on his lap so I could "drive" on our street. I want to remember him itching (not wanting) to go to Las Vegas at every opportunity. I want to remember him beaming with pride on my wedding day. I want to remember him as a father and a grandfather.

I want to remember him as a happy man on his own wedding day with his beautiful young bride.

I like to think that my dad is more handsome than I could ever imagine to be. I believe the Tagolog (and Spanish) term for that is "guapo". I like to think that he looks pretty neat in this old picture. Love the hair!

There's so much to say about him, but it's difficult. I've said my peace to him before he left us. I'll be haunted by some things, but I think that we're both glad we had a chance to say our last goodbyes.

In the background, I can hear Dexter trying to say, "Daddy" and it makes me feel better. When we were pregnant with Dexter, we debated on whether he should call me "dad" or "pop". Funny, I don't think I've ever met another person who referred to their father as "pop".

Well, to me, there is only one Pop, my father.

Pop, I love you. May you rest in peace.

2007-09-25T18:35:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if I've said it before, but this blog is like therapy for me. It helps me feel better by writing about our little Dexter. And with that...

Dexalotapus has a new set of kicks. These were on sale the other day at Doumitt Shoes here in Alameda and had to get them for D-Unit. Cue up "My Adidas" by Run DMC

Sometimes I wish I could get in the stroller and have Dexter push ME around. I'd like to say that the outfit that Dexter has on coupled with the way he's standing (bow-legged) reminds me of my pop.

Dexter is big on pointing out things now. You can't see it on this shot, but he's pointing out a cat crossing the street.

Here's the cat that Dexter was pointing out. At first glance, I thought the cat was missing an eye, but upon closer inspection, one eye was just dialated. Kinda spooky how one eye of the cat is dialated and the other isn't.

Another day, another outfit; but with the same new shoes. This time, he's pointing out a squirrel.

Certain poses, like this one, are difficult to capture, but I was quick on the shutter button!

2007-09-17T20:03:00.000-07:00

Where do I start? The past week has been a roller coaster for my family. My father has been hospitalized. Cancer is an ugly disease that is taking my father away from me. I wish there is something I could do, anything to make things better.

The following was the blog post that was supposed to go up before my dad got sick. I'm hoping he's feeling better and that he knows that I'm respecting his wish of loving and taking care of my own family. I'm praying for you, Pop. I love you, Mom, CJ and Victor very much.

I know my family's very tired. I'm tired too, but that's because I've been to Los Angeles three times in a little over a week.

As I was saying, here's the post that was supposed to published before my dad got sick...

Dexter's FINALLY getting a enough hair to get bed head. He's sort of going for that emo/hipster look that is en vogue nowadays.

This past Saturday, we took the ferry into San Francisco to have lunch and buy some fresh produce at the SF Farmer's market. The Bay Bridge was closed all Labor Day weekend so we ferry'd over to SF. On the ferry ride, you get a clear view of the Port of Oakland. Suzie says that when she was a kid, these cranes at the Port of Oakland remind her of the snow walkers from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. It's actually no surprise since George Lucas supposedly fashioned those snow walkers on these cranes.

Again, not many pictures of me in the blog so please excuse the dorkiness. We were enjoying the view of the SF Bay on the ferry.

We went out to have lunch for Labor Day. It was the last day before Suzie started her job at Bananas!

Before heading off to her first day at work, Suzie dropped the Dexican off at his new mommy, er, new daycare provider, Heather.

And last but not least, Suzie's new home away from home

2007-09-09T21:45:00.000-07:00

I love you, Pop.

2007-08-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

It's a special entry today (mainly because I forgot to give you an update on Dexter's allergies in the last entry). Suzie and I went to Dexatrim's pediatrician, Dr. Parker, last Friday because we were so stressed out about his allergies to not just peanuts, but also dairy, soy, chicken, and eggs. So to alleviate our fears, we met with Dr. Parker and she talked us down from our being so scared. She ended up letting us know that his dairy and soy allergies were so mild and that we could, in fact, give him dairy and soy. Hooray! But peanuts are still a no-no (and will probably be dangerous as long as he lives). Chicken and eggs are off the menu as well, but it won't be life threatening if he inadvertantly eats some). We are just so relived to be able to continue serving him dairy and soy; they are in almost everything!

This picture sums up how happy Dexter is about having his sweet, sweet milk back.

D-licious (thanks for that one, Bexy!) found my cycling helmet and tried it on. Makes him go fast! One day, buddy, one day...

2007-08-28T16:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Third Wedding Anniversary! In other words, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WEDDING ANNIVERSARY! That's right, it's the big 3. *Sigh* Seems like yesterday when it was just the two of us.

How appropriate: there are three of us now! Hurray! Oh, and this is probably the first picture of the three of us together posing. (This photo was taken in January. Thank you, GG!) Not too many of these around which makes it a collector's item. Well, collector's item to us.

2007-08-19T19:56:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since my last post. Wow, what a surprise. Again, no good reasons other thant being busy with Dexter and having work piled up on me during the day. Anyway, we're here and we're all safe. A bit of a shocker though, is that we just found out that our little Dexter is allergic to peanuts. Not just a minor allergy, we're talking full on life and death allergy. We have just become a full "No Peanut Zone". We've also found out that he's got minor allergies with milk (oh no!), chicken (meh, he was only starting to eat it), soy (oh no! no more tofu!), eggs (meh, he didn't like 'em anyway). All the way around we're kind of bummed out by the peanuts (and the other items). This face that Dexter makes pretty much summarizes how we feel right now.

Been a while since we've seen the Dexican in the crib.

I LOVE this picture. Please send accolades to Suzie.

Tita Nini was in town to attend a wedding in San Francisco. She spent some quality time with Dexter at the park.

We were heading over to Stephanie, Matt, Sophia and Aidan's house for lunch. Dexter was about to drive off in a California Highway Patrol car while humming the tune from "CHiPs".

Dexalotapus was apprehended quickly by the patrolman He even busted out the handcuffs on Dexter but gave him a "get out of jail free" card cause he started crying.

Tita Nini took us to brunch on Sunday. Thanks for the visit (and the brunch), Tita Nini!

2007-08-05T17:42:00.000-07:00

Nonstop fun and frolick this weekend. Uncle CJ and his friend Miriam, came by to take Dexter and I to lunch today. We went to Pier 29 Restaurant in Alameda (actually Ballenas Bay, but it's in Alameda not too far from our old house). Anyway, Uncle CJ wanted to take us there and we certainly were happy to oblige.

After lunch we took a walk around the Ballena Bay Yacht Club which is right outside of Pier 29 (the other side of Pier 29 is the San Francisco bay and I contend it's the best view of the Bay). Here's Uncle CJ and Dexter hamming it up.

Thanks again, Uncle CJ for the lunch today! Nice to meet you Miriam!

2007-08-04T17:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Dexter and I went to Franklin park. He was promptly met by a little 20 month old girl who had a propensity for hugging all little boys. She indeed hugged him so Dexter kept a watchful eye on her after that (I wasn't fast enough on the camera to catch the hugging action).

When I told Dexter that mommy would be home, this is the face Dexter made.

A good friend of mine, Craig, from my college days (CSUN Class of '92!) was in San Francisco this weekend. Here's a great picture of Dexter and Craig and his wife, Brenda.

Craig and Brenda are on vacation with their kids. Dexter and I met up with them in Fishermen's Wharf in San Francisco. The Dexican was so happy to be with other hapas! Dexter posed with Matthew, Jared and Kyle for this lovely picture with Alcatraz in the background.

We also met up with Rob, Rodney and little Rocco. We all met up to have lunch at a cafe in San Francisco. Please note that the weather has been gorgeous up here the past few days.

Rocco loved visiting with Dexter. Rocco took it upon himself to sit in Dexter's stroller. Dexter was not pleased.

How cute is this? Uncle Rob and Dexter walking down the street. Such a great day to be out having lunch and strolling around.

Thanks for having lunch with us, Uncle Rob and Uncle Rodney! See you all soon!

2007-08-02T20:32:00.000-07:00

Suzie left me. That's right, she got up and left me. She left me to go visit her little niece, Brooke! Suzie's also catching up with Katie and John (Brooke's mommy and daddy), Libby (Suzie's sister/Brooke's aunt), Grandma Gail and Grandpa John. So it's just Dexter and me for a few days. Couple of guys living the high life.

Before Suzie left, Dexter figured out how to get into his toy chest to get his hard to reach toys. Our little Dexican is quite agile in getting himself in and out of his toy chest. Quite the acrobat.

Today on our first guy's weekend, Dexter and I went to scope out some fun things to do. We went to Tumble and Tea in Oakland. It was definitely fun. Dexter has learned to use a slide on his own. And to add his own flair, he slides down in his own special way. We'll add as many piccs as we can so we can make sure mommy sees how we're doing.

2007-07-29T17:03:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. It's been a great weekend out here in Alameda. The weather's been perfect; lower 70's and not a cloud in the sky. This past weekend was the Alameda Art and Wine Festival so we rode our bicycles down to the other side of the island to check it out.

It was appropriate that Dexter wore his, "Hello, my name is Trouble" shirt. Alameda Police Department had to ask him a few questions before we went on our way to the rest of the street fair.

There was a petting zoo at the festival so the Dexican had to go and check it out to make sure the health and safety standards were being met.

Dexter found a goat that he insisted we take home. He said he wanted to trade Vlad for him and thought it would be an easy exchange. Suzie was not impressed.

We told Dexter we had to go to other parts of the festival and to say goodbye to his goat. He proceeded to put his head down on it like it was time to sleep. I guess now would be a good time to tell everyone that Dexter's way of showing affection is to put his head down on whatever he's in love with; either that or it means it's time for him to go to sleep.

We took a trip out to Oakland Zoo because the weather was perfect to be out and about. Whaddaya know, there's a petting zoo there too!

And since I'm one of Dexter's guardians, I'm gonna go ahead and say that Dexter liked the otters the best.

Before the festival, I happened to capture some video of our friend Dexter walking, talking, and carrying around one of his beloved toys (the curiosity cube).

Oh yeah, Dexter wanted to say, "Happy Birthday, Uncle Rodney!". Hope you had a great birthday weekend. And "Happy 1st Birthday, Cousin Randall!"

2007-07-25T20:42:00.000-07:00

It's been a while. No, it's not because of my laziness. Work has been keeping me busy and well, time just flies by when you're having son. Get it? Meh.

So, the big news is this: Dexter has a new cousin, Brooke! That's right, Brooke Taylor Coleman was born on July 19, 2007 at 9:47 PM Central time.

Friendly wagers were made between some of the family (I lost, however, Suzie won, so in theory, I won). Here is Brooke tipping the scale at 7 lbs, 10 oz.

John is beaming with pride at this tender moment. Welcome John, to the wonderful club of fatherhood!

Now, this blog is aptly named, The Dex Files. If it weren't for this guy, there would be no blog. And no blog means no funny pictures of Dexter. Suzie bought Dexter some new pacifiers and I have to say, this one looks weird only cause you can see Dexter smile through the pacifier.

Dexter had his first trip to the Oakland Zoo.

There was a petting zoo where our little Dexter got to pet some goats. Or A goat.

Dexter the naturalist letting it all hang out. See you next time!

2007-07-10T19:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, maybe it's a matter of perspective or maybe I'm biased but...I think that this picture is one of the best pictures I have ever taken. That's saying a lot since I've taken hundreds of pictures since little Dexter was born. And to top it all off, the Dexican is wearing an LA Dodger cap. We're at Tilden Park where we met up with the Dillworth/Mamane family. That's right, we had a sunny Sunday afternoon of fun with Stephanie and Matt and their twins Sophia and Aidan. We had so much fun that day!

What a weekend for Dexter. It was his first time on a train while we were in Los Angeles, and now, it's his first time on a merry-go-round. Or is it a carousel? Either way, he thoroughly enjoyed himself on it. Mom rode with him to make sure everything was legit.

Stephanie, Sophia, Aidan, Suzie and Dexter all went for a quick spin on one of the oldest merry go rounds in the country.

And we all took a nice long train ride through Tilden Park. It was quite a site to see all the kids on the train. Most of the fun was probably with the twins getting to ride with "Baby Nexter" as they affectionately refer to Dexter. Here's a good picture of Aidan and Sophia.

And a good pic of Sophia and Aidan.

2007-07-08T16:45:00.000-07:00

The whole tribe went down to Los Angeles for the 4th of July. Dexter, Suzie and I decided at the last minute to take a trip to see Lola and Lolo; it was good to see Lolo because the last time we saw him he was in the hospital. Dexter wanted to make sure that Lolo was feeling better and we're happy to report that he is indeed feeling and looking better! Down in LA we also got to see Uncle Victor.

Whenever we go to Los Angeles, I insist on going to Bob's Big Boy in Burbank, not too far where I went to Providence High School and graduated in 1987; go Pioneers! You might recall that we have a picture of Dexatrim back in September here, but here's an updated picture.

Dexter needed to do some office work at my parent's house. After eating some delicious pureed prunes, he sat himself down at their computer and started banging away. I'm quoting Dexter the office temp, "I can listen to my radio at a reasonable volume while I collate and use the computer".

Dexter is banging away with AUTHORITY. You know he's in the middle of taking down some important thoughts when he pounds those keys.

Lola gave Dexter some tips on his typing technique.

And a reward for good typing? A kiss from Lola!

We took the Dexican to an outdoor train museum called Travel Town. It was heaven on earth for the Dexican since he just loves anything with wheels. Here we are outrunning a train barrelling down on us.

We took a little train ride around the museum. First time that Dexatrim has been on a train, albeit a miniature one. Suzie and I are pretty sure he enjoyed it.

And to prove he enjoyed it, we have video of Dexter showing his enthusiasm of the train ride...to be fair, it was very hot and we're sure that our little Dexter appreciated it even though the heat makes him very uncomfortable (it makes his eczema flair up).

2007-07-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

We all went to a BBQ in Alameda. Billie, Jakki and Andy hosted a great BBQ for the weekend before July 4. The weather has been absolutely gorgeous the past few days; lower 70's and not a cloud in the sky. Billie has a lot of toys and Dexter settled down in front of one of his most favorite things; he enjoys opening and closing doors.

Dexter was talking shop to Billie about the trials and tribulations of being a toddler; walking, babbling, playing with toys, etc. Oh, and that's not Dexter's belly; it's his sweater puffing out, but don't worry, he's got himself a bit of belly, only not that big.

The surprised look on Dexter's face is due to Billie taking one of his beloved water sippy cups. I guess in the world of babies, everything's communal.

We rode our bikes to Billie, Jakki and Andy's house. They live a few blocks from our house. I taped Dexter as we rode home. If you listen closely, you can hear Dexter humming to himself as we go home.

Dexter is really enjoying his bath time nowadays. We hope you have as much watching this video as much as Dexter had taking a bath.

2007-06-30T20:56:00.000-07:00

Hello all. Dexter's hair is growing a little bit. It is, shall we say, getting a little thicker, maybe a little longer, but definitely thicker. Here, if you look carefully, you can see the wind blowing through his long and luxurious hair while we walk through the Trader Joe's parking lot.

Mister D loves the girls in uniform. And obviously, the girls in uniform love him too as evidenced by this San Francisco police officer.

Here's a cute video (from mid-May) with our little Dexter playing around a trunk that we have in the living room. You could say that this is up close and personal with the D-Unit.

2007-06-23T19:59:00.000-07:00

Dexter just realized that it's been almost two weeks since the last blog post. Boy was he ever surprised. He wants to wish all the lolos/dads/fathers/pops/grandfathers/grandpas a belated Happy Father's Day!

It doesn't need to be said that being parents nowadays makes us a thousand times busier than before Dexter joined our little family. That said, Dexter is becoming quite handy around the house. He's gotten into the habit of crawling into the freshly washed and dried clothes and to help sort out the laundry. By sorting out, I mean he proceeds to toss the clothes out onto the floor in no particular order.

Oh, and summer has just begun. Dexter LOVES fresh fruit. Mangoes, papayas, oranges, plums, nectarines, pears...you pretty much name it and he'll eat it. Right now he's on a peach kick.

We went for a bicycle ride in the Berkeley marina area and came across this cool little playground. Unfortunately, Dexter was not pleased, but he did poke his head out of this cool looking castle with turret.

As I've mentioned before, it's difficult to capture Dexter smiling in a decent photo. He smiles a lot. And when he smiles, it just makes everything in the world alright. If we had a busy day and we're super tired, seeing him smile makes it all worth while.

2007-06-09T15:08:00.001-07:00

We've decided that we should add at least one picture in a post of Dexter from a year ago. So for your viewing pleasure, here's a picture of Dexter from June 2006.

Dexter has gotten sick of having to listen to his Mom and Dad and so Dexter declared that he wanted his own space. Luckily, Mike and Nelson heard about Dexter's dilemma and promptly gave him his own bachelor pad, or in this case, his own castle. If you look closely, you can see Dexter's lips uttering, "King of the castle, king of the castle" as he shuts the door to any outsiders.

I guess Dexter's door doesn't lock cause his mom made her way in. She promptly told him to clean his room, er, his castle up.

Last weekend, we went to Uncle C.J.'s house. It was a fun day cause we got to swim and just lounge around. Uncle C.J. took us out to brunch. We turn our backs for a second and Dexter gets into a little bit of trouble. Looks like Santa Clara Police Department had their eye on Dexter.

In Alameda, there was a sand castle building contest. It was pretty neat to see all the families building sand castles, but it was even better to see this: