Tick tock tick tock...The countdown marches on...
26 working days left till I am off. I feel pretty good about it now. After I had the day long experience on Saturday with Oscar, I think it’s going to go okay.
Yesterday we went to the Stone Cellar in Perth for lunch (http://www.thestonecellar.com/ ), ours and Oscar's, and the food is fantastic. I highly recommend it if you are ever in Perth and want some place nice for lunch. We will be going back for dinner at some point. It was all delicious and Oscar was a hit with the staff.
We headed home and after a failed attempt at nap time and two feedings, Oscar finally went down for a nap. Once Oscar got up, it was time for his dinner and then off to church. It was the last Sunday 7pm service for the summer; back to 11am Sunday mass starting next week. It’s always good if Oscar can last in his car seat until after the homily without fussing. Sunday night was one of those times; he was really good.
Back home, and then it was time to relax with Oscar before bed; he went down with no extra rocking needed.
Overall, a good day and a nice end to the weekend. I am really looking forward to my time off with Oscar.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Trial By Fire...
Well, yesterday was a trial run of what it would be like on a daily basis, Monday to Friday, come October. It was go time. Yesterday morning I got up at 6:30am and went and got my Aunt's groceries for delivery later in the morning. I got back home by 7:45am and got things arranged for Oscar’s breakfast at 8am. I fed him breakfast at 8am and then relaxed for a bit and then Lauren fed him again and let him doze a little. Then, it was all me and Oscar. Lauren was going out with her friend Jen today shopping and for lunch and wouldn’t be back to the house until at least after Oscar was down for his nap. The pressure was on. Oscar and I headed out and we made a stop at Boomerang Kids on the way to Aunt Vida’s to return a set of 1 oz. Baby Cubes (great for storing pre-made food in the fridge, sucks for transportation and also you want the 2 oz. size, the 1 oz. is too small). We then went to Aunt Vida’s and brought her the groceries I had picked up earlier that morning at Loblaw’s. We had a nice visit and tea with her. We left there and headed for Wal-Mart, looking for a second highchair for Oscar, similar to the one he has at Grandma Ruth’s house. We went to two different Wal-Marts and neither of them had it in stock, although the nice customer service girl at the second one checked the store stock across the city for me and found that the Barrhaven store had 8 in stock. This whole time Oscar is being as good as gold, but I knew my time was ticking down - should I try for the 3rd Wal-Mart or just head for home? We got in the van and he started to fuss, so I started heading in the direction of home and the Wal-Mart, which in theory lay in the same general way. He started to really fuss, so I called off the expedition and headed for home. On the way home, we had one more stop at the Value Mart for milk for Lauren. In and out, and on our way again, and home by about 12:15. I brought Oscar in and changed his diaper; before doing that, I had placed his milk, thawed out (back stock from Lauren) in warm water to warm up. Diaper changed and onto the milk in the bottle; he took it like a champ and then it was play time on the carpet with some reading. Around 12:45 or so, I fed him his lunch of pureed squash and pureed peas. Once that was done, more play time on the carpet (he is loving playing with the empty peanut butter pretzel container, banging on it to make some noise). Never once during this entire day so far had I hesitated and thought I should call and ask Lauren something. I figured if I am going to do it, I just have to DO IT. I waited half an hour to make sure that his lunch was digested and changed him into a fresh diaper and then it was Jolly Jumper time. He just loves playing in that and spent a good 30 minutes bouncing to the beat of the music.
Now comes the hard part - NAP TIME. I have helped in prepping him for nap time before (Jolly Jumper, diaper change, and sleep sacking), but never have I done the whole production myself including the musical piece (he gets some lullabies while getting him ready). So 10 minutes prior to him being done in the Jolly Jumper, I got his milk warming up so that when he was done it was GO TIME. I turned off the radio, grabbed the bottle, and carried Oscar upstairs while singing to him. I changed his diaper, got him into his sleep sack, and we settled in for his pre-nap feeding. He fussed a bit at first and I realized I was feeding him the same way I had earlier, so I turned him around, (like when Lauren switches sides between feeds) and we were off and eating. IT WAS SUCH AN INCREDIBLE FEELING! I had him cradled in my arms and he was drinking from the bottle and as he was nearing just over the half way mark, his little eyes started to slowly close and he was falling asleep. He would wake up just a little and keep drinking right up until he was done. The bottle ran dry and his little mouth released it and he was sound asleep. I carried him to his nursery and laid him down and he gave a little grunt and rolled over onto his side and he was asleep. SUCCESS!!! I felt like high fiving myself that I had done it. I had kept to the schedule, kept to the routine, and it had worked beautifully.
I have to at this point pause, get down on my knees, and thank my loving wife Lauren who took the brunt of the routine training with Oscar for nap time, sitting for the full 1.5 hours sometimes in the beginning, and Oscar doing nothing but crying, and Lauren getting frazzled nerves. But like she said to me when she got home, just after I put him down, “I knew I had to get him into that routine for you for the fall; otherwise it would be so hard.” Well Thank you thank you thank you thank you Lauren 1000 times thank you. If not for your persistence and all the hard work you put in each and every day with Oscar, my time coming up in the fall would be so much harder. For everything you do each and every day and all that will come, I thank you Lauren.
It is now 4:40pm and Oscar has been asleep just over 2 hours. I feel I have passed a big milestone today and some of the fear and uncertainty I had about this fall has melted away. Don’t get me wrong - I only say SOME, not all; God, there is still so much more to come.
Now comes the hard part - NAP TIME. I have helped in prepping him for nap time before (Jolly Jumper, diaper change, and sleep sacking), but never have I done the whole production myself including the musical piece (he gets some lullabies while getting him ready). So 10 minutes prior to him being done in the Jolly Jumper, I got his milk warming up so that when he was done it was GO TIME. I turned off the radio, grabbed the bottle, and carried Oscar upstairs while singing to him. I changed his diaper, got him into his sleep sack, and we settled in for his pre-nap feeding. He fussed a bit at first and I realized I was feeding him the same way I had earlier, so I turned him around, (like when Lauren switches sides between feeds) and we were off and eating. IT WAS SUCH AN INCREDIBLE FEELING! I had him cradled in my arms and he was drinking from the bottle and as he was nearing just over the half way mark, his little eyes started to slowly close and he was falling asleep. He would wake up just a little and keep drinking right up until he was done. The bottle ran dry and his little mouth released it and he was sound asleep. I carried him to his nursery and laid him down and he gave a little grunt and rolled over onto his side and he was asleep. SUCCESS!!! I felt like high fiving myself that I had done it. I had kept to the schedule, kept to the routine, and it had worked beautifully.
I have to at this point pause, get down on my knees, and thank my loving wife Lauren who took the brunt of the routine training with Oscar for nap time, sitting for the full 1.5 hours sometimes in the beginning, and Oscar doing nothing but crying, and Lauren getting frazzled nerves. But like she said to me when she got home, just after I put him down, “I knew I had to get him into that routine for you for the fall; otherwise it would be so hard.” Well Thank you thank you thank you thank you Lauren 1000 times thank you. If not for your persistence and all the hard work you put in each and every day with Oscar, my time coming up in the fall would be so much harder. For everything you do each and every day and all that will come, I thank you Lauren.
It is now 4:40pm and Oscar has been asleep just over 2 hours. I feel I have passed a big milestone today and some of the fear and uncertainty I had about this fall has melted away. Don’t get me wrong - I only say SOME, not all; God, there is still so much more to come.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Fridays Rock in the summer
I love summertime Fridays. Today was a perfect example of a great day. In the morning I got up and took the van in to have the oil changed at 7:30am. Oscar and Lauren were still sleeping. I got home and fed Oscar his breakfast. It was such a nice day; we took a drive up to Carleton Place to do some shopping. On the way home, we stopped in Kanata and had some lunch. Once we got home, Oscar had his lunch and then relaxed for a bit before it was time for the Jolly Jumper. He had a great time in the JJ and then it was time for a nap. While he was napping, I got a chance to cut both lawns. When he woke up, Oscar and I went for a nice walk to the post office to get the mail and then back home the long way. Once home, Oscar had his dinner and relaxed a little before we went for a drive to pick up our car at the dealership. Back home, it was almost bedtime and we had to sort out some of his clothes that were getting too small for him. That done, Lauren fed him and put him down, 5 minutes later he is awake and crying. I went upstairs to rock him, but he would have none of that. and so we decided to try what we did for his naps when he first started those - I rocked him for another 5 or so minutes till he was calm and I laid him in his crib and left, let him cry it out, and give him 30 minutes. If he is still crying, at that point Lauren will feed him again. It's been 10 minutes so far and he is still crying. I know he has to learn to self-sooth but at the same time I just want to run upstairs, wrap him in my arms and tell him it's okay, Daddy is here and it's going to be alright. Well, at the 10 minute mark he won and Lauren has gone up to feed him and hopefully that will settle him. FINGERS CROSSED.
SUCCESS He went to sleep.
SUCCESS He went to sleep.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Thursday is my new Friday.
For most of the summer so far Thursdays have been my Friday. I have been taking the Fridays off so that my weekends are longer and I can spend more time with Oscar and Lauren. It is all of course in lead up to October 7th which will be my last actual Friday at work until September 2012.
Last night was one of those nights where Oscar decided that come bedtime, even after having a nice relaxing bath and a feed, he was not ready for sleep, and thought it better that he had some more to eat before going to sleep. Needless to say, this realization didn’t occur to me until after I had already been rocking him and cooing him and trying to get him to sleep.
This morning I came to another realization; that for nighttime, Oscar is going to need the next size up in diaper as twice now he has peed while sleeping, pretty much filling his diaper to overflowing, and wetting his onesie and Gro-bag. He woke up at 5am, and that is early for him, and when I went to get him for Lauren to feed him, he was wet. I think that’s the reason he woke up rather than being hungry.
The closer it gets, the more I am looking forward to my time off work, but the more scared I am getting. It’s going to be an interesting year.
Last night was one of those nights where Oscar decided that come bedtime, even after having a nice relaxing bath and a feed, he was not ready for sleep, and thought it better that he had some more to eat before going to sleep. Needless to say, this realization didn’t occur to me until after I had already been rocking him and cooing him and trying to get him to sleep.
This morning I came to another realization; that for nighttime, Oscar is going to need the next size up in diaper as twice now he has peed while sleeping, pretty much filling his diaper to overflowing, and wetting his onesie and Gro-bag. He woke up at 5am, and that is early for him, and when I went to get him for Lauren to feed him, he was wet. I think that’s the reason he woke up rather than being hungry.
The closer it gets, the more I am looking forward to my time off work, but the more scared I am getting. It’s going to be an interesting year.
Monday, August 22, 2011
At the moment I dislike Mondays,Tuesday and Weds...
When Monday morning comes, that means my time with Oscar has become limited, and I will only see him again when I get home from work. I wonder all day how he is doing and hoping that he is having a good day and that Lauren is having a good day as well. The days of the week seem to drag on and, at least for the summer, I am only working 4 day weeks so that means at least I get extra time. There is so much I don’t want to miss. I know though, come the Fall, I will get to experience lots of new and exciting things with Oscar. I look forward to a lot of “firsts” with him.
I find myself lying awake at night, worrying about him, and I know it’s just new parent paranoia and that he is fine and I don’t need to creep down the hall and check on him; although I have found myself at times doing that before bed and in the morning when I get up.
I did an online search the other day for other Blogs being done by stay at home Dads and there are some out there but most haven’t been updated since 2010 or earlier. So my question is: how is it that Mommy Blogs are so popular but Daddy Blogs don’t seem to last or get as much attention? A friend of mine's sister does a Blog http://loulousviews.blogspot.com/ and she gets advertising and goes to conventions and it is fairly known and popular, but that doesn’t seem to be the case for any Blogs by Dads.
My time is coming… :)
I find myself lying awake at night, worrying about him, and I know it’s just new parent paranoia and that he is fine and I don’t need to creep down the hall and check on him; although I have found myself at times doing that before bed and in the morning when I get up.
I did an online search the other day for other Blogs being done by stay at home Dads and there are some out there but most haven’t been updated since 2010 or earlier. So my question is: how is it that Mommy Blogs are so popular but Daddy Blogs don’t seem to last or get as much attention? A friend of mine's sister does a Blog http://loulousviews.blogspot.com/ and she gets advertising and goes to conventions and it is fairly known and popular, but that doesn’t seem to be the case for any Blogs by Dads.
My time is coming… :)
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Sunday Sunday....
Sunday is the day that I get up at 6:30am and start making the food for the week. This morning started out with steaming peas, squash, and chicken and then pureeing it all into a fine paste for Oscar to consume. Yesterday, in our travels, we stopped at Boomerang Kids and picked up two sets of baby cubes. They kind of look like an ice cube tray but are 8 little containers for storing food. They come in 3 sizes: 1oz, 2oz, and 4oz. I wasn't sure what size to get so I got 1 one and 1 two. Well, it seems I needed 2 two ounce and not a one ounce, so I will have to go back and exchange it. I tell you though, they are handy, once your food is pureed, you pour it in and you are good to go for the week.
We went and did groceries this morning and a quick trip to Kanata for a couple of things and then back to the house. We realized when we were at Loblaws that for some odd reason they don't carry mango pickle, and we are having rice and curry tonight for dinner, and you need mango pickle to go with it. So back out, Oscar and I headed to Bells Corners to the little Indian store in the mall with the Scottish and Irish shop. Once we got there we bought not only mango pickle, but also my favorite which is garlic pickle, as well as some yummy samosas, tamarind sauce, and some poppers. I can't wait till Oscar is old enough to try Indian food. I am sure he will love it.
Back to the house and had our lunch and fed Oscar his lunch and then some play time while he digested before his Jolly Jumper time. He is really doing well sitting up on his own now and I am sure shortly he will be a lot more steady. In between all this, I did two loads of laundry and then Lauren took Oscar and put him down for his nap. Once he gets up around 4pm or so, it will be some more play and singing time and then dinner for him and then for us and then off to church at 7pm.
Wow, it's been a busy weekend; who said Sundays are for relaxing? :)
We went and did groceries this morning and a quick trip to Kanata for a couple of things and then back to the house. We realized when we were at Loblaws that for some odd reason they don't carry mango pickle, and we are having rice and curry tonight for dinner, and you need mango pickle to go with it. So back out, Oscar and I headed to Bells Corners to the little Indian store in the mall with the Scottish and Irish shop. Once we got there we bought not only mango pickle, but also my favorite which is garlic pickle, as well as some yummy samosas, tamarind sauce, and some poppers. I can't wait till Oscar is old enough to try Indian food. I am sure he will love it.
Back to the house and had our lunch and fed Oscar his lunch and then some play time while he digested before his Jolly Jumper time. He is really doing well sitting up on his own now and I am sure shortly he will be a lot more steady. In between all this, I did two loads of laundry and then Lauren took Oscar and put him down for his nap. Once he gets up around 4pm or so, it will be some more play and singing time and then dinner for him and then for us and then off to church at 7pm.
Wow, it's been a busy weekend; who said Sundays are for relaxing? :)
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Saturdays are my day...for now
Well, until I go on leave, Saturday morning is my time with Oscar when Lauren can do her own thing and just relax or get things done that she wants to do. Oscar and I generally leave the house and head out and do "boy" things. We tend to go to stores and pop into Rona to see Calvin or just putter around or do some cache maintenance on Geocaches. The thing is, pretty soon my Monday to Friday will be my Saturday. The only thing is that Lauren won't be here when we get home as a safety net and I will be on my own. Well here's to 11 months of Saturdays.
Friday, August 19, 2011
32.5 Working days to go....Holy Cow
Oscar is 7 months old today!
Wow. 32.5 working days to go and then the real work starts. I find myself laying awake at night, pondering the upcoming time off and running it over in my head, making sure I am doing the right thing. I luck into the fact that my days with Oscar will be a lot more structured than it was with my wife. I have activities planned with him for 3 days of the week, visiting Grandma another day and then 1 day where we can do our own thing (museums or what not). I remember a time when museums in Ottawa were free on Thursday...well they still are but most start at 4pm till close. What good is that?
The past couple of days Oscar has started to discover his hands and he will sit there and look at his hand turning it back and forth, looking at the fingers, and opening and closing it. It so cute to see.
I was cleaning out the photos in my Blackberry and came across a photo I took the day we were leaving the hospital 2 days after he was born. How things have changed.
Wow. 32.5 working days to go and then the real work starts. I find myself laying awake at night, pondering the upcoming time off and running it over in my head, making sure I am doing the right thing. I luck into the fact that my days with Oscar will be a lot more structured than it was with my wife. I have activities planned with him for 3 days of the week, visiting Grandma another day and then 1 day where we can do our own thing (museums or what not). I remember a time when museums in Ottawa were free on Thursday...well they still are but most start at 4pm till close. What good is that?
The past couple of days Oscar has started to discover his hands and he will sit there and look at his hand turning it back and forth, looking at the fingers, and opening and closing it. It so cute to see.
I was cleaning out the photos in my Blackberry and came across a photo I took the day we were leaving the hospital 2 days after he was born. How things have changed.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
A few more things...
I had the discussion last night with my wife if I should make this a public Blog or just keep it to myself and make it like a personal journal. I am of two minds on this; one is the opportunity to express myself, how I feel, and just use it as a dumping ground for my emotions and thoughts; or two, the same as one, but insure that the whole experience is shared with everyone and that they get the "backstage" view of what it's like to be a Dad who wants to stay home and take care of his son and grow with him. I think I will make it number 2; I want to share this experience with people (family and friends) and let them know what it's like and what I am experiencing.
I joked with Lauren that it would be nice to win the lottery but not that much is needed really. Just enough to pay off the house and a little left over, and that way I could take the full 5 years of care and nurturing leave and be with Oscar for the full experience until he goes to school. Ah pipe dreams how sweet that would be, but how statistically impossible as well.
This afternoon we have to take Oscar to the doctor's as he is having some problems with pooping. There we go, third posting and already talking about baby poop. I thought it would take longer. Anyhow he is pooping, but they are fairly large for such a small guy and pretty hard, so we are going to see the doctor to find out what she recommends. We have started giving him water after every meal to try and help "move" things along and in the mornings he is getting pureed prunes (funny, I thought of this: you start out as a baby eating prunes to get things moving and at the end of your life you need them again to get things moving - vicious cycle).
On a side note for anyone reading this, that has kids or is having kids, I really love and recommend Gro Bag sleep sacks for your baby. It saves you putting a blanket in the crib and allows for ease of movement on their part and peace of mind for you that they are not going to suffocate. Check them out at http://www.gro.co.uk/ Boomerang kids here in Ottawa carries them and they are a little pricey but I think worth it.
I joked with Lauren that it would be nice to win the lottery but not that much is needed really. Just enough to pay off the house and a little left over, and that way I could take the full 5 years of care and nurturing leave and be with Oscar for the full experience until he goes to school. Ah pipe dreams how sweet that would be, but how statistically impossible as well.
This afternoon we have to take Oscar to the doctor's as he is having some problems with pooping. There we go, third posting and already talking about baby poop. I thought it would take longer. Anyhow he is pooping, but they are fairly large for such a small guy and pretty hard, so we are going to see the doctor to find out what she recommends. We have started giving him water after every meal to try and help "move" things along and in the mornings he is getting pureed prunes (funny, I thought of this: you start out as a baby eating prunes to get things moving and at the end of your life you need them again to get things moving - vicious cycle).
On a side note for anyone reading this, that has kids or is having kids, I really love and recommend Gro Bag sleep sacks for your baby. It saves you putting a blanket in the crib and allows for ease of movement on their part and peace of mind for you that they are not going to suffocate. Check them out at http://www.gro.co.uk/ Boomerang kids here in Ottawa carries them and they are a little pricey but I think worth it.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Ticking Down...can I do it
I watch my wife, how she handles her days, and makes it through feeding, reading, and playing with Oscar. She is a super star...like, come on, she carried him for almost 9 months, gave birth to him, and now can produce milk and feed him. Hard act to follow here...I feel like the guy that followed the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show.
I know I can do it. I've learned the lessons, the good and the bad, what to do and what not to do watching my Dad and my brothers with their kids. I feel that I can do the right thing, but it is rather intimidating and I just hope it all works out for the best. I love him with all my heart and want to make sure he grows up to be a happy well adjusted man.
The days are ticking down.....
I know I can do it. I've learned the lessons, the good and the bad, what to do and what not to do watching my Dad and my brothers with their kids. I feel that I can do the right thing, but it is rather intimidating and I just hope it all works out for the best. I love him with all my heart and want to make sure he grows up to be a happy well adjusted man.
The days are ticking down.....
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
The time is coming up fast
So I am going on paternity leave from my work. I will be off for almost a full year with my son. I am really looking forward to the time I will have with him bonding and growing together. I will be off from Oct. 11, 2011 until September 4, 2012. I am actually getting more time off work than my wife did. I am really fortunate that I work somewhere that allows me the freedom to have the chance to spend this time with my son.
Let me back up a stitch and explain life a little. My son Oscar was born on January 19th, 2011 at a healthy 7lb 5oz (3 weeks early). He is a happy little man that is growing nicely and only tends to grumble when there is an issue (poopy diaper, hungry, or tired). He isn't one to just complain to complain and for that I am thankful. I am the youngest of 7 (I am the tender age of 39) and the next closest "child" in the family is almost 10 years older than Oscar, so there is a stretch in the age gap for cousins. My siblings are all in their mid to late forties and some have children that are already in their late teens. My mother is in her early 70s and my mother-in-law is in her late 60s. So needless to say all the people in Oscar's life are older so to speak. My wife is also the youngest in her family of 4 and has been off work since the day Oscar arrived.
Back to now. We have had a number of transitions the last week or so and it has been rather dramatic at the house; Oscar started on real food and it seems to be going well; Oscar has now started sleeping in his crib at night (tonight is night 3 and fingers crossed it seems to be going really good).
Last week I signed us up for activities this fall and winter that Oscar and I can do together on weekday mornings (3 days a week) and we will see how that goes. Some of the things my wife will start and I will finish as they are starting before I go on leave.
My role model for fathering was learned at the knee of a man whose own childhood was not the easiest and with a military background was not always the nicest at times. Don't get me wrong; I loved my father and I wish he was still with us to meet Oscar as I know he would love him very much. I talk to Oscar about my Dad and let him know he is watching him from heaven. As tough at times as my Dad was, I did learn a lot of things from him and I learned how to do a lot of things that come in handy in the real world. Mind you, at the time I was learning them I was sometimes cursing his name in my head, wondering why I needed to be helping some stranger he had just met move wood, but I learned that helping others is a good thing and that someday karma will come back to you.
I am hoping that this time together with Oscar makes me a better father, a better husband, and a better man.
Let me back up a stitch and explain life a little. My son Oscar was born on January 19th, 2011 at a healthy 7lb 5oz (3 weeks early). He is a happy little man that is growing nicely and only tends to grumble when there is an issue (poopy diaper, hungry, or tired). He isn't one to just complain to complain and for that I am thankful. I am the youngest of 7 (I am the tender age of 39) and the next closest "child" in the family is almost 10 years older than Oscar, so there is a stretch in the age gap for cousins. My siblings are all in their mid to late forties and some have children that are already in their late teens. My mother is in her early 70s and my mother-in-law is in her late 60s. So needless to say all the people in Oscar's life are older so to speak. My wife is also the youngest in her family of 4 and has been off work since the day Oscar arrived.
Back to now. We have had a number of transitions the last week or so and it has been rather dramatic at the house; Oscar started on real food and it seems to be going well; Oscar has now started sleeping in his crib at night (tonight is night 3 and fingers crossed it seems to be going really good).
Last week I signed us up for activities this fall and winter that Oscar and I can do together on weekday mornings (3 days a week) and we will see how that goes. Some of the things my wife will start and I will finish as they are starting before I go on leave.
My role model for fathering was learned at the knee of a man whose own childhood was not the easiest and with a military background was not always the nicest at times. Don't get me wrong; I loved my father and I wish he was still with us to meet Oscar as I know he would love him very much. I talk to Oscar about my Dad and let him know he is watching him from heaven. As tough at times as my Dad was, I did learn a lot of things from him and I learned how to do a lot of things that come in handy in the real world. Mind you, at the time I was learning them I was sometimes cursing his name in my head, wondering why I needed to be helping some stranger he had just met move wood, but I learned that helping others is a good thing and that someday karma will come back to you.
I am hoping that this time together with Oscar makes me a better father, a better husband, and a better man.
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