Howdy, ghouls…Sorry I’ve been dressed as the “invisible blogger”. If it’s any consolation, I’ve spent the time as the very visible Dad, which is of course what this is all about, so kudos to me, I guess.

Now, on with the horror!

Evil, Evil Books…..BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

Author Neil Gaiman — whom I am becoming a growing fan thereof — has launched the first annual “All Hallows Read”. I’ll let him and his Undead Friends explain:

So in the spirit of the pro-literacy movement, I bequeath you my recommendations for a sleepless night of reading:

1. The Passage by Justin Cronin . Forget your zombie armageddon (sorry, Walking Dead fans). While waiting for the next season of Alien Armageddon , sink your teeth into the Vampriric end-of-days. In Cronin’s vision, a virus found deep in the jungle is brought out into the world to be weaponized by the military, with fang and blood-filled results. This book was considered a hot read in Summer, 2010; yes, Vampdaddy is a bit behind. But catch up with me – you won’t regret it.

2. The Historian by Elizebeth Kostova. Dracula is still dead and loving it in this novel, which borrows from the correspondence-tracking format of the original novel to follow a women on the hunt for the king of the undead. Again, this came out a few years ago, but well worth dusting off the cobwebs.

3. Invasion of the Blue Lights by Ruth Glick. Okay, pretend your in 7th grade and it’s 1983 (mostly because this is a junior novel and was published then — good luck finding a copy). Trust me, this book with have you at the edge of your seat. When a boy sees what looks like two warring UFOs battling over the sky above his town, his quest to find the aliens who are up to no good is quite page turner — at least I thought so at the time. The scene of the boy looking in the closet of an abandoned house for the creature had my heart leaping out of my chest. Enjoy.

4. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. Seems silly to celebrate All Hallows Read without a nod to its creator. Another youth novel, but highly engaging for adults, The Graveyard Book tracks the upbringing of a boy who is raised in a graveyard by ghost parents, and the non-parental-adult-pro-social-mentoring of a vampire.

5. Hellfire by John Saul. Another one from my youth. During my teen years I devoured books by Saul. Loking back the format was always the same – take some teenagers and their unwitting adult supporting cast, expose them to something horrifying, gross or supernatural (just a touch of “Stephen King” sauce for taste). Mix well and enjoy while leaving all of the lights on in your house.

Those are mine — what are yours? Use your comments to share other scary stories with the masses in the spirit of the holiday.

Children of the Night – What Sweet Music they Make, BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

Don’t forget to stop by Music on a Stick for my 2011 Halloween Music Post.

Bonus Trivia….BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

In 2007, self-proclaimed “vampire hunters” broke into the tomb of Slobodan Milosevic and staked his body through the heart.

Let freedom ring.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

I’ve had the pleasure to be invited to serve as a speaker at the event’s kick-off, along with this guy. And Vampboy will be making a special, incredibly cute and thereby tear-jerking appearance.

Blog readers and lurkers are welcome to view the fun! As far as I know, the portion of the event I am speaking at will be recorded and available for viewing at www.pmc.org  after 8pm on Friday (August 5th). You should watch the whole thing, but I’m slated to speak towards the end of the first hour.

And if you haven’t already, go ahead and give some donation love to Papa Bradstein , who is riding in his second PMC. I mean, come ON folks — the guy shaved his head and beard to raise money..Behold!

Watch the twitter feed for updates on Friday, and this here blog for any other posts, updates on viewing opportunities, etc. And, as always, thanks for being part of the journey.

We haven’t met yet, but apparently I’m your dad.

It is said that we choose our parents. If that is the case, you have apparently gone the extra mile to get to us, through a kind women who has agreed to get you here, to us. Apologies for making you take the detour, but not every path in life is a straight line.

Your crib is in place, your brother kindly moving up to a “big boy bed” to make room. Your mom has brought out his former baby clothes, chosen the keepers and gotten rid of the rest. Friends, family and co-workers have ensured you will not rely solely on hand-me-downs, either. In fact, just tonight your mom folded some new jumpers — all organic, of course.

So, just wanted to say hi. See you soon.

It is amazing how far we’ve come. Five years have passed so quickly, and yet that life lived in fear and worry seems so long ago. We come to today amidst incredible normalcy, albeit perhaps with more gratitude than the average person.

VB 13, C 0

VB continues to do well, including a recent MRI and PET scan that confirmed he remains with “No Evidence of Disease”. And if that weren’t enough, he has now completed his first ice skating show (the best dwarf of all — his “hi ho” at the top of his lungs brought the house down), graduated from kindergarten and finished his first round of swimming lessons. Shortly I’m sure he will defeat a great army and slay many dragons all while singing “Mama Mia” at the top of his lungs.

Six

We continue to move forward on adoption. Once you’ve done all of the paperwork and the social worker certifies you as “attractive” (no kidding — the home study actually says that) and lacking in serial-killer qualities, the process is a lot of “hurry up and wait”. Thus far we’ve had our “profile” (that’s the 4-page preamble of who you are and why you might be a good choice for parenthood) shared with about six birth mothers, but no takers yet. So we wait for the next call — possibly the right one.

Two

That’s the number of months that have gone by since I’ve posted anything here. I’ll refrain from the usual apologies, accept to say that life’s been moving, and enjoyably enough so as to put my time and energy elsewhere. There are worse things….

One Thousand, Two Hundred and Fifty

That’s the number – in dollars — that I’m hoping to raise for this years Jimmy Fund Walk. Still a ways to go, but no day like the anniversary of my son’s diagnosis to reach out and ask folks to give, so that others may one day enjoy a day as normal as this one. Honor my son, and perhaps one of your loved one’s, with a donation today.

Happy Father’s Day, everyone!

Sinead O’Connor — singing Jamaican Reggae.

Uh…Okay, enjoy.

It has been a whirlwind few days since you turned the big 6-a-roonie…The family descended upon our home for your favorite food (pizza) and stories of your birth and early life as a baby. Gifts were offered and gladly received. The next day brought a snow day for Daddy, so we got to fly through construction of your new Lego Police Station. Law enforcement everywhere breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that little detachable justice prevailed.

This weekend we had your friends-party, and what a ho-down it was! We hit the sunny, snow-filled outdoors for an afternoon at a local nature center (who knew such a place existed so close to home!). You and your friends wandered through the woods with the environmental instructor, collecting twigs and leaves that would soon become fairy houses. In your never ending quest to be the cutest, kindest kid in the universe, you let your friend K take the fairy house home, since you worked on it together and “I got all the presents, so she should get the fairy house.” Way to keep close to the heart of one of your potential future prom dates, kiddo.

More gifts, and another visit with your cousins ensued. I’ve had to clean your new Little Mermaid dinner set three times now so that it can be used at every meal. Thanks to R, your pre-school wife for that one…Clearly you are still a winner with the ladies.

This morning we talked about all of your friends — how lucky you are to have such love in your life. “I know,” you replied. “Some people don’t have friends like I do.” Truth is everyone should be so lucky…But are luckier still if they have a chance to meet you. Your mom and I are so proud of the person you are becoming; kind, smart, funny, caring — perfect. Our little boy.

We love you.

In continued gratitude for Vampboy’s ability to have this birthday, I am participating in the 2011 Jimmy Fund Walk. Proceeds go directly to ATRT Research and treatment, so other parents and kids don’t have to experience what we did — and so that those who do can see the day their little one enjoys something as monumental as a 6th birthday. My readers are welcomed to honor my son’s birthday, or the birthdays of people you love, by donating now. Thank you.