Happiness Is....

... a new 46" HDTV.

Recently we purchased a new surround sound system and blue ray player in preparation for our entrance into the 21st century. We got an amazing deal from a friend who had an extra one that came with their new TV but didn't need it. Of course no new system would be complete without also replacing the old TV that I bought in college....the search began.

After much searching, asking questions and reading reviews we decided that "go big or go home" was a fitting mantra to use for this occasion. We decided to splurge a little.


Today was the arrival of the newest member of the Browning Family... a Samsung 46" LED LCD HDTV.






We got it from Amazon at a great price and now have a very sweet home theater setup. These new Samsung TVs are about 1.5 inches thick and look very cool. The video performance is amazing and unlike most LCD TVs the LED backlight technology can provide pure black colors and high contrast ratios. The other cool thing about this LCD TV is that there's almost no image degradation from extreme off-angle viewing.

The TV will live in the alcove above the fireplace like the old one.

As a necessary test I proceeded to watch select scenes from various DVDs on the new system. It wasn't Blue Ray quality of course but the player can up-convert standard DVDs to a higher image resolution. Everything looks fantastic and I'm very pleased.

Next step HD Cable?

sweet potatoes

I made mashed sweet potato today, and it was a big hit! I kept the texture a little thicker than my previous purees, and Chris did fine with swallowing it. After he finished his portion, I gave the spoon to him to play with, and he brought it to his mouth. It looked like he was trying to feed himself!

small but healthy

After visiting with Angie and Johnathan (who can now sit unsupported- big boy!), Chris had a followup appointment with Dr. Bunik at Children's. He weighed 13 lb 14 oz today. I was hoping for more weight gain, since he was 13 lb 11 oz two weeks ago. However, he is now tracking on a growth curve- the 1st percentile. Dr. Bunik and Lorry, the lactation nurse, think he's doing great. Dr. B told me again not to worry so much about him. He is a small, active, healthy baby. We don't need to see them any more.

back to work

My return to work is approaching! My first shift at the VA ER is this Saturday night, 7pm to 7 am. I will be the ER attending! This will also be my first time working unsupervised. (Don't tell the vets that.) However, I am qualified- licensed and board eligible. Hopefully I still remember how to take care of sick people. I have located my stethoscope and put my pocket medicine book back into my white coat pocket. I bought a second set of pump parts so I can pump twice at work without having to wash them. Doug is all set on daddy duty. I'm ready to go!

joe

the halfway point

At the end of last month, Chris turned six months. Half a year old! And I am at the halfway point of my year off. Six months from now, July 9, I will be one week into the career/ home juggle as a heme/onc fellow. Chris will be in daycare, and I don't know who will cook dinner. The time has gone by both slowly and quickly. Every day is the same. . . but just a little bit different. At his last weigh in, Chris had doubled his birth weight. I don't notice the changes day to day, but he sure is growing! He should start doing more fun tricks developmentally during the second half of the year. I know it's going to fly by. I'm making an effort to try to enjoy each day.

chicken face