Austin's Busy Day

Today was a busy day for Austin. With daddy taking some time off from work, there was plenty to do today. Here's a rundown of everything we did today:

-- Went to the Christian Service Center and donated a ton of clothing that mom and dad no longer wore.

-- Went to the post office and mailed some bills and thank you notes.

-- Went to Wal-Mart and bought some formula and a pacifer (dad accidentally left the pacifer at home so the unexpected trip to Wal-Mart was a must!)

-- Went to Dairy Queen for lunch. This was Austin's first fantasy football lunch. He didn't seem too excited that daddy traded for Larry Johnson!

-- Went to West Texas Golf and watched as daddy bought a new Titleist golf towel to go with his new Titleist golf bag.

-- Went to Target and bought a storage container to store all the gift bags we have accululated over the past few weeks.

-- Watched the Texas Rangers beat the Baltimore Orioles 9-4.

-- Got a bath and went to bed!

Here's a picture of him tonight after his busy day. Daddy will look like this very soon!



Here are a few more recent pictures of my little man:


Austin and Domino getting some much needed rest!


Austin with Papa (his great-grandfather)

The Top 10 Things I Have Learned Since Becoming a Father

From the home office in Abilene, Texas, here are the top 10 things I have learned since becoming a father:

10. I can actually function on only 5 hours of sleep.

9. There are a lot of old games shows on the Game Show Network at 3:00 am.

8. Washing machines can run non-stop.

7. It is ok to buy maxipads at the grocery store.

6. Austin burps and toots more than his daddy.

5. Just because his eyes are closed, doesn't mean he is actually asleep.

4. The trash can outside smells awful when it is filled with dirty diapers.

3. Always have a clean diaper ready to be put on immediately after taking the dirty one off because....

2. Little boys can pee really high when laying on their back, and...

1. Little boys, when their legs are lifted in the air for cleaning of the "backside", can shoot a "paintball" across the room.

Austin's Friends and Family

I remember when my nephews were born. Braydon was born in 1997, Drew in 1999 and Kolby in 2001. I loved those kids as if they were my own. Everyone would say, "Just wait until you have your own child and then you'll know what it's like to love your own." Well, they're right. I've made what seems like 1000 trips to his room to just stare at him. Part of me can't wait for him to grow up so we can have so much fun together and part of me wants him to stay just like this forever.

For your enjoyment, here are a few more pictures of Austin with friends and family:

Brek and Jagger Horn with Austin

Braydon, Drew and Austin

Mark, Shawna and Austin

Glammy and Zaydee and Austin (Shawna's mom and step-dad)

Pops and Austin (Shawna's dad)

More Pictures....

Here are a few more pictures that give you a better look at what he looks like.

Austin Ford Lavender

Well, Austin was born this evening at 6:06 pm. He weighed in at 7 lbs. 5 oz. and was 20.5" long. He has blue-green eyes and a head full of DARK hair (Shawna has some explaining to do on that one!) Mom and baby are doing great. Here are some pictures. There will be plenty more in the days to follow: