a day in the life of david

Following is a series of photographs taken yesterday, an average Friday for David. Enjoy.


Asleep in the morning. Still dozing after a long night of uninterrupted sleep (ha!). Notice that he is face down, against the bumper, with a plush toy in keeping with pediatrician recommendations.



"Good morning world!" Specifically, good morning mommy, who is behind me.



After arising and getting dressed, we are off to Nikki's, the babysitter, who lives across the street.


The babysitter has a two-year-old, Collin, whom David loves and who loves David.


David also loves the cat food, so it has to be put up on the counter when he is around.

Then I leave and spend a long dark morning without him. While at Nikki's, he plays, eats toast with peanut butter, and chases the cat. Then he goes down for a nap, almost voluntarily (hee!).


I usually arrive to pick him up just when he awakes. Collin is excited to get in the crib, which has springs, and jump. Nikki is pictured here.



Home for lunch. Here, he is eating an apple, quite a task with six teeth.


Then, more playing. This is my favorite ball. It is essentially a dodgeball-type that glows in the dark.


His favorite ball is the Vtech Move and Crawl Ball, a self-propelled, talking, dancing, flashing, singing ball. Grandpa Brice bought it for him in a act of bitter spite.

Then, I'm off to the office and Jaime takes over.


"Dadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadadad!"


After much playing and conversations about dada and the ball, it's nap time. Usually, nap time is in the crib, but today, Jaime needed to clip his nails, which can only be done when he is sleeping.


After he awakes, its dinner time. He sometimes tries to feed himself with this big plastic handle with a little nub at the end that we can stick some food on for him to smear all over his face.


After dinner, playtime again, during which David tries to escape.



"What the heck is this Christmas Tree still doing here?"


Finally, he has be confined for his own safety.


At bedtime, he gets medicine. It looks terrible but he actually just gets half a teaspoon of allergy medicine, which he likes.


"Goodnight Moon"

Goodnight David.

supernanny

For two weeks in a row Jaime and I have watched Supernanny. While the excessive production, overly-dramatic editing, and silly attempts at spontaneity are as annoying as any reality show or episode of "60 Minutes," the content is tres interessant. As you would guess, Supernanny focuses much more on the parents' behavior than on the children's. Jaime and I find ourselves oscillating from outright scorn that anyone could really be such clueless parents, to absolute terror that maybe we are clueless parents and this is what awaits us.

Wait and see, superfans.

baby bathing kills local wildlife

The environmental impact from the latest of a series of deadly baths in
the Midwest.

Playin'

Playin'

Playin'

HERE'S DAVID!!

ha ha! shocking!

From Daddy Types: "If your child strays too far, the Angel Alert will deliver a harmless but incapacitating electric shock."

mini me

So I found a new toy. It's a bit of code that allows me to create a blog within a blog. I like this because I see lots of stuff online that I want to tell you about that is not "mission related." I.E. not about David Jaime or Jason.

So, if you look to your right, you will see a new header, "miniblog," at the top of the side bar. Below that, you will see . . .

well, nothing, for most of you.

It seems this special bit of code only works with Mozilla/Netscape browsers.

Here is a graphical representation of the browsers used by last 100 visitors to this blog.


As you can see, that means four of you can view the miniblog.

GET FIREFOX, PEOPLE.

I will continue to work on this project as time allows (read: as much time as my conscience allows me to waste). I bet there are a couple of Web-savvy folks out there (Val, Dn. Matthew, Jason) who can crack this nut for me.

Later, Internet Explorer slaves fans.

David's Godfather reads

Jason just shared with me that he is reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, so I thought I would share it with y'all.

i promise to take good care of my son's teeth

While doing "research" for an article I'm writing, I visited The Kansas Department of Health and Environment, which is pushing oral hygene for kids this month. Apparently oral and dental disease is the most common chronic disease among American children.

The kicker--it can impair their ability to learn. If we have learned anything it is this: if you want me to take action on an issue, demonstrate how it may affect my son's interest in the complete set of Harvard Classics that I'm saving up to buy for his twelfth birthday.

selfishness and parenthood

Just a few more thoughts on selfishness and parenthood. Please note that the following comments only apply to the standard majority of parents throughout human history--not the exceptional crazies.

In my previous entry I referred to a past girlfriend who was a psych major. We will call her "Samantha" because that is her name and I have long gotten over calling her other things.

Samantha and I would often have conversations about why people have kids. Her position was that she had never heard any reason given by someone that was not, ultimately, selfish. We would go over various reasons, and she would deconstruct them and illustrate how any given reason was actually self-serving. I didn't have the information to contradict her.

whether she has had children by now or not, I am confident that Samantha has come across the two fatal flaws in her argument

1. Everyone but the saints are controlled to a degree by a fallen ego so to say that selfishness taints our decisions is about as insightful as saying that green visible light waves are necessary for photosynthesis--duh.
2. The answer to her argument is found in the actual act of having a child. An act which goes a long, painful way towards burning off a great deal of our selfish crust. I mean, I am still a selfish person, but David makes that selfishness frequently painful and glaring. Regardless of what "reasons" one might have for having children, the selfish aspect starts to lose water at about the time the water breaks.

If anyone out there is holding off on having children because the "reasons" seem bad, or because the "reasons" against it seem "reasonable" I would suggest a little experiment: have one and then revisit those reasons from the other side.

the nyt is self absorbed

This New York Times article on mommy blogs kind of chaps me for two reasons.

1) Even though I love Dooce and think Leta is wonderful and even though I don't get 40,000 readers to my blog, David is way cuter.

2) Poorly researched, and dripping with coastal superiority. I have a really hard time believing that of the aprox. 8,000 parenting blogs, a significant number of people aren't blogging for the same reason I am--we have friends and family scattered around the globe with varying levels of interest in what is going on with the family. We have a good education that made decent writers out of us and the blog is a great tool for keeping everyone as up-to-date as they want to be. To quote half-a-dozen psychologists saying that baby blogs are just more indication that today's parents are self-absorbed is, frankly, crap. I dated a psychology major once who would say something like that and honestly, only a PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR COULD CONCEIVE THE IDEA THAT PARENTHOOD IS SELF-ABSORBING.

Thank you for letting me get that off my chest.

David is learning how to say "Tuff," the name of the resident horse dog.

narcissist

(he's been here since last week)

cause, effect

You say "hi" or "'bye," David waves.

expensive latté

After a meeting in Lawrence today, I decide that I need a hazelnut latté.

I head for the closest of several coffee joints within spitting-distance of each other in downtown Lawrence--La Prima Tazza. What luck that just as I drive up, a car parked right in front vacates a parking space. That is a relevant fact later in our story.

As I approach the counter, a guy was having a conversation with the barista who is obviously a friend. I only catch the very last line of the conversation, but I step right in

Guy: "I like the hazelnut flavor."
Barista: [mystified look of disdain]
Me: "Me too! I'd like a hazelnut latté, please"
Barista: "Ok. Would you like a mystified look of disdain as well?"
Me: That's fine, but it may affect your tip
Barista: [perky affectation] "I love hazelnut too!"
Guy: "Hey, I never considered that your negative attitude might actually affect what you get paid. I just assumed is was all part of the package."
Me: "They don't call it "La Pre-ma-tentious for nothing."

The now-chipper barista brews me a lovely hazelnut latté. It costs $3.00. After our conversation, I feel obligated to tip, so I put a dollar in the till. Then, I head for the car. As I mentioned, I pulled in just as someone pulled out. It didn't even occur to me to check the meter--it would still have time left over, right? Besides, I am not going to get a ticket in the five minutes that it takes to froth a latté, right?

Wrong
Wrong

The standard $2.00 ticket with convenient yellow envelope is pinned underneath the windshield wipers.

All-told--a $6.00 latté. Half-way through, I remember that it is Friday and I should not even be drinking lattés.

ball

Yeah, David's new word is "ball." We are pretty sure he knows what it means. The other day, he said "ba" and we offered him both a bottle and a ball, and he chose the ball.

But that is his only word. So it doesn't mean just "ball." It has to mean everything else as well, right? He says it and not only does he get one of a variety of spherical toys, he gets everyone in the room participating in an extended, one-word conversation. So he repeats ball over and over and over again. One time out of ten, he really does actually get something close to an "L" at the end. It's more of a "W" really. "Bahwa"

So, all our conversations lately have been like this:

David: "ba"
Jaime: "ball!"
Me: "ball!"
Mom: "ball!"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Jaime: "ball!"
Alex: "ball!"
Mom: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Alex: "ball!"
Mom: "ball!"
Me: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Mom: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Jaime: "ball!"
Me: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Mom: "ball!"
Me: "ball!"
Jaime: "ball!"
Mom: "ball!"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Me: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Mom: "ball!"
Jaime: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Me: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Mom: "ball!"
Jaime: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Mom: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Jaime: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Me: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
Jaime: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
Me: "ball!"
Mom: "ball!"
Alex: "ball!"
D: "ba"
D: "ba"
D: "dodecahedron"
Me: "ball"

I expect the dog to start saying "ball" any minute.

sick dog

Abigail, the resident Beagle, has been sick. Mom and Alex took her to the vet, who said that she had stones in her bladder that need to come out. She had surgery and is back home and is pathetic:



I imagined that she would be getting some little pebble kinds of things out. This is what they took out of her:



Not the quarter, that came out of my pocket for reference.

Ten and counting

Just thought, with today being David's ten month since birthday day, I would post a quicky.

Funny moment for the week: I put him in the crib to get his bath ready. When I came back I found him sitting down with a bink in his mouth and one in each hand, clapping them together like an organ player's monkey.

Sleeping update: He Slept Through The Night Last Night. Probably won't happen again for another six months. It's really a shame that you miss the nights he sleeps through the night because you slept through it as well. It's like missing Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Words: He has a word folks! Baa(l). Yup, the little one can say Ball. We know its ball and not bottle because when he says the word and you hold up the ball and bottle he goes for the ball. He is also getting really good with da da and it seems to mean daddy, mamama still means "I dislike something and a non-specified someone better change something soon".

He is a pro at crawling and cruising around anything he can pull himself up on. So far this week he has pulled the dinning room chair on top of himself twice and the baby gate once. He would like to report he is in fine condition and was not hurt during any of these dare devil tricks.

For those that deserved a phone call containing this update, I am sorry. School started this week and once again I am super busy. I did receive a nice notice in the mail the other day stating that Jamie Gilbert made the president's honor role. I am looking forward to finding her and giving her the good news.

Good night all and heres hopin' the sleep Santa visits again.

grit

Once again, dooce (pg13) reminds me of something that I forgot to mention about David. Back when he had four teeth to rub together, he began doing so.

Ughgh.

couple of recent shots

he's crawling now

You can breathe a sigh of relief; the boy crawls. I would like to thank you for your prayers and support through these dark hours.

Cue "Jaws" theme:

pixar is incredible

Below, I've excerpted the last two paragraphs of Frederica Mathewes-Green's review of "The Incredibles" and linked to the full article. Read these two paragraphs carefully, please. They lay out a pretty good criteria for the books, videos, and toys that I would like my kids to have.

NRO: The Incredibles: "Most kids' entertainment is about kids. Pixar movies are about adults. They show children what adults are supposed to do - to be brave and self-sacrificing, to defend children even at risk to themselves, to give even in the face of ingratitude. This is wise because, after all, children aren't going to remain children. Just as we encourage them daily to grow in the practical skills of adulthood, they'll need these kind of skills too if they are going to be faithful, responsible spouses and parents.

"Many kids sitting in theater seats don't have a daddy like Nemo's, who would go to the end of the ocean to save their lives. They don't have a daddy like Dash and Violet's, who can be crushed only by the thought that he has lost them, and whose strength rebounds instantly when he learns they need his help. These kids don't have daddy-figures like Woody and Mike and Sullivan, who love and guard the children who enter their care. They don't have a daddy like that, but one day they may be a daddy like that, or have a clear idea of the kind of future daddy they need to marry. If this is all that Pixar has done, it has done a most eminent thing. "

Zoto :: Where You Take Your Photos.

Success. Zoto seems to be a winner. It is a service that provides a way to post images to the blog that is better than "Hello" or "Buzznet." Additionally, I can email the photos to Zoto to be posted on the blog.

I recommend it. Specifically, I recommend it to Skylar.

Additionally, before posting image to the blog, I have to put them in a gallery, where they are stored for all the world to see. Click on the photo in the previous post and you will be taken to that gallery. Bookmark it, and never return here again.

One flaw. Unlike Ofoto, this service doesn't seem to save the original high-res image that you can order as a print.

Sorry, grandma Susie.

IF ANYONE IS LISTENING OUT THERE! PLEASE, SHOW ME A SERVICE THAT PROVIDES THE PRINTING FEATURES OF OFOTO AND THE BLOGGING FEATURES OF ZOTO!

Anyway, learn more about it here.

Later, photo fans.

In fact, the Zoto beta has failed me. I no longer recommend it.

messing with photos again

Once again, I am tinkering with ways to publish photos to this blog. Perhaps this is annoying, but my goal is to provide a way that is so easy that I will be inclined to publish lots of photos. Additionally, I would like to provide a place where you can just look at pictures, if you would like, and not worry about my rambling.

plug

Do you use Internet Explorer or Safari and wish that they were both better?

I did. Then I found Firefox. It has the best features of both of the others and tons of cool stuff that neither of them have. So I am doing my part to spread the word.

Go and get it.



"But I have my bookmarks set up in my current browser." Firefox will automatically transfer your EI or Netscape bookmarks/favorites. Safari users can use a Safari bookmark exporter.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled program.

David is teething again.

Tickle me David

This week I've had a napping breakthrough with "he who will not sleep" (at least, not when I want him too). We told the babysitter last week we'd like her to try to stress a nap in the morning. He has now established a pattern of napping from 11am to noonish. He comes home, eats lunch, plays on the floor with his mommy (that's me!) and then around 2:30 or 3:00 we head for the bed. I snuggle him up next to me and start to eat his little fat fingers. The giggles that pour forth melt my heart. I tickle his tummy and back and munch on his fingers and arms until we drift off to sleep. This special time with him restores my soul and fills me with joy.

Believe it or not he will go to sleep for the night around 7 or 8, even if he wakes up from the last nap at 5:30. No more fussing or fighting at nap time and bed time.

But, if life were a bed of roses I'd be too content to post this blog. The Doctor told us on Tuesday to increase his formula feedings during the day and to stop feeding him at night so as to encourage our wee one to Sleep Through The Night. Yeah, right.

We decided to give him a bottle at bedtime and when he first wakes up, between 11 and midnight. Then nothing but water until morning. Remember how you're not supposed to give Gremlins water or food after midnight. Well David turns into a Gremlin if you only give him water after midnight. The pattern for the last THREE nights is to wake up around 2 or 3 and cry/scream until after 4am.

News Flash son: School starts next week and I hear baby boys bounce. Here's hoping my son gets the hint in the next few nights. Mom may not be as understanding when she is deprived of her soul rejuvenating Tickle me David nap.

mobility update

Crawling, he is doing it
David will now crawl properly for short, but increasing, distances. When he really needs to cover ground, he goes back to the soldier crawl. I am content with that. At least he will be able to read abridged versions of literature.

Walking, yes and no
So, it happened like this. Grandma Susie bought him this:



Jaime put it together, sure that he would hold on to the handle and walk with it. I was sure that he would hold on the the handle as it rolled away from him and keep holding that handle as his face hit the floor.

I was wrong. I can see your look of surprise.

He grabbed the handle, I let go. He was off. Walking. With blocks.

Stopping is not so easy. He moves pretty quickly across the floor with very little control until the Walker hits a wall, stopping him. Then he's mad. He yells and cries and keeps moving his feet to keep walking. It looks like he is stomping them in a tantrum.

On Grandpa Gary's carpet, he has a little more control. I am remember that this is how I learned to roller skate. I would practice on the carpet until I was confident enough to get out on the waxed wood rink of death. I could fall with equal lack of grace on both surfaces.

Flying
Not yet. But let me tell you, when he decides to wake up at three in the morning, he is lucky that our windows are sealed for winter.

Later, mobile fans.

what I want for father's day

I'm going to be the worst father ever T-Shirt

(note, "The Onion" is PG13 content)

Like father, like son

This evening our friend Al took the three of us out to dinner. Afterwards Jason and Al enjoyed a large bowl of ice cream. David was getting fussy as it was 2 hours past his bedtime so I told Jason to give him a bite of ice cream to see how he would like it. The look on his face was classic. It was as if he was saying "how could something so good be so D*** cold". Soon that face was followed by a look of "if you want to live you had better keep the cold stuff coming". He cried when Jason tried to hide the bowl. Finally I had to take David away from the table so dad could finish his dessert in peace. As we walked away the last of the ice cream dribbled down his chin.

Its a good thing Sams sells Bryer's in the five gallon tubs. I think we'll need them in the future.

now he gets eggrolls

New teeth have sprouted on either side of David's upper teeth. This brings the total to six.

movin' on up.

Earlier today at the babysitter's house:

Sitter: "Did you know David can climb stairs?"
Me: " . . . "
Sitter: "He was sitting at the bottom of the stairs when [her two-year-old son] and the cat ran up the stairs. So he started climbing up them. He got to about the third step and they came running back down--"
Me:"And then he was stuck, right?"
Sitter:"yeah."

crawling

I try very hard to discount anonomous research from which reporters draw conclusions intended to make me feel bad about myself. But this one just will not let go of me:

Do babies really need to exercise? The facts and questions about Wee Exercise video's: "Research shows that crawling is not only linked to reading skills but that children who miss the crawling stage may exhibit learning difficulties later on."

I try to be relaxed about it, but it is driving me crazy that David won't "crawl" properly.

holiday images

Sorry for the long silence. I figure that I had better make up for it with images. Following is but a small sample of all of the pictures taken over the holidays.

Thanksgiving with Jaime's family at the Bristol in Kansas City. Pictured here is Samuel, David's second cousin, with his parents Cary and Michelle.

Thanksgiving family picture with Grandpa Steve, Grandma Suzie, Great Grandma Lillian , mom, and dad.

Christmas morning with Grandma Carla. David is sporting fresh new chucks from Aunt Skylar.

"we have seen a star in the East. . ."

With Grandpa Brice

With Uncle Cory

Posing for mom.

Christmas afternoon with Great Grandma Lillian and Great Aunt Marilyn.

Eating a leaf on the sidewalk in Lawrence while Dad buys a loaf of the best bread in the country.

New-Year's Eve with Fr. Joseph.

self-knowledge

David is sitting on my lap while I eat a cranberry-walnut bagel.
Between bites, he holds the bagel and gnaws on it. Jaime looks him
over as I finish.

Jaime: "You are covered in crumbs."
Me: "That's so he can find himself."

bilibo

They have finally marketed the cardboard box. Now I know what to get David for Christmas (next year).

Props to The Morning News for the 411.

kid o : Modern Design for Children: "A simple yet magical piece of plastic that unlocks passion, creativity, and curiosity. Children find endless uses for Bilibos: they lie under them, fill them with things, rock in them, spin around in them, and use them as theater props. Great for hand-eye coordination, motor skills, balance, and imagination. "

david jaime jason

I'm just testing the "blog this!" feature of my blog by blogrolling my own blog. Whether you understand or don't, you can ignore this post.

david jaime jason: "He is still cute as a whip. He smiles and laughs, babbles, plays and shows genuine interest in you. His bright eyes garner a constant stream of compliments when we are in public. As long as his diaper has been changed, he thinks win/win. He seeks first to understand; he synergizes. In short, he is becoming a highly effective baby. "

david's birthday would be on thursday

Reading Metafilter, I saw this article about a proposal for a new calendar.

I think it is intriguing, so I am sharing.

Superman no more

I am sorry to report that it has not been a good week for our hyperactive super baby. While he may have the strength of ten normal babies, his reflexes and abilities to problem solve are still at the eight month old level.

Our week began with a trip to the doc on Monday due to his instant healing super powers failing. He now has three meds to control the over abundant mucus production he likes to maintain. While two of the meds don't seem to have strong side effects the liquid Albutorol sure does rev him up. Shake, shake, shake, ...... shake, shake, shake, .... shake your groove thang.....

A few days later he decided to test out his super baby strength on a wire shelf at the babysitters. Needless to say the shelf was over powered by David but came back in the last round to inflict a nasty knot on top of his round melon. Both contenders suffered a TKO and a repair crew was needed to reinsert the shelf.
Later that same day he lost control while trying to stand in the bathroom and introduced the back of his head to the top of the floor.

Not to be over done, the next day at the sitters he got his first bloody nose from a face first dive onto the floor.

Last night he discovered the true meaning of gravity. Another head first slide off the bed onto the floor. No knot, just a nice sized redspot.

Please pray for Christmas that David discovers the true meaning of gravity or regains his super powers.

wheezie

David has had cold symptoms since Thanksgiving. Recently they have
gotten worse and we slept less Friday, Saturday, and Sunday than when
he was a newborn. Miserable.

Jaime took him to the doctor's yesterday. She diagnosed him with "baby
asthma." She really didn't elaborate. Suffice to say that he has some
allergies and breathing problems that are exacerbated by respiratory
problems like a cold. It is hard for him to shake off colds and the
like.

She prescribed an antihistamine. It is gray, but he loves it. She
also prescribed a nose spray. He doesn't love it so much.

I was pretty distraught by the diagnosis. Visions went through my head
of David sitting by the window looking out on all the other kids in the
neighborhood having snowball fights--a wheezing, sniffling child unable
to enjoy the outdoors because of constant breathing problems.

Then, we gave him his medicine and slept ALL NIGHT.

I felt much better. At this point, he can sit in a plastic bubble if
it would allow us some extra sleep.

Later, wheezers

funny, but trashy, story

David spends his mornings at a baby-sitter's now because we don't love
him enough. She told me this story when I picked him up today:

She lets him hang out in a walker, which he loves. Apparently from
this walker, he can reach the kitchen trashcan--a white, plastic
affair with a pivoting lid. He will reach out and pull it to himself,
but can't really do anything beyond that, so he releases it. As it
falls back into place, it smacks the wall and the lid pops off. Then
he can pull it to himself again, reach in, and dig around. She watched
him do this three times.

The cat is way jealous.

sit-ups, skooches

Yesterday evening David FINALLY moved himself from being on his tummy
to sitting upright on his bottom. He has been struggling for a couple
of weeks. He would get in a reclining position, leaning on one arm,
and push and push, but just couldn't get upright. Now he is all about
sitting up, playing with something, laying down, scooting across the
room to something new, sitting up, and playing with it.

All that is left is crawling (and gainful employment).

I have concluded that our slick floors work against us in two ways:

Firstly, they make it more difficult to keep his knees beneath him.
Secondly, they remove much of the incentive to try. He can get around
pretty good with his little soldier scoot. Actually, "wounded soldier
scoot." I noticed that when he scoots along he only pulls himself
forward with his right arm. Sometimes he will grab his right wrist
with this left hand to assist, but he never puts the left arm out to
pull himself forward with it. I also noticed that he picks up more
Cheerios with his left hand. I should point out that his grandpa Brice
is ambidextrous--he powers with his right hand (batting, pitching) and
details with his left (keeping score).

later, score keepers

clapping to please

Here is something that I have noticed with a couple of different
children: once they have learned something that pleases you, they will
try it out at odd times to see if they can get the positive reactions.
As an example, I'll use . . . David!

I mentioned earlier that he learned to clap, which earns cheers from us
all. So, out of the blue he'll clap and look at me like "are you going
to cheer?" But it gets more interesting. He now claps when upset. He
now hates being on the changing table because it interferes with
sticking every object in the house into his mouth. So when I lay him
down and start to undress him (which he hates) he'll whine, and then
start to clap. I assume that he is trying to turn the situation
around. "Dad is putting clothes on me, he must hate me, I'll clap to
win his favor." I've been doing some work with a learning-disabled
toddler who is struggling to learn speech. Every new word is cause for
celebration. When asked to do something he has not yet learned (or
just doesn't want to do) he will point to something that he knows the
word for and identify it.

Me: "What sound does a dog make?"
Him, pointing to the clock: "clock!"

In grown-up terms it is something like this:

Press: "Why is the economy in the hole?"
President: "I unified this nation after 9/11."

or, to be fair:

Press: "How are you going to get the economy out of this hole?"
Candidate: "three purple hearts!"

yell. . .yell . . . yell . . .

Something Dooce said reminded me of something David does that I didn't
tell you about.

David has discovered that his voice is louder and more powerful in the
large, acoustically superior nave of the church. So he yells. Short,
sharp "uh"s. Over and over.

When I was childless, other people's kids would do this and the parents
would scuttle the offender out of the room so as not to disturb anyone.
This always made me feel bad. I am pro-child in church. A nave full
of squirming, barking toddlers is the sound of worship as far as I am
concerned.

So, when David discovered that he could be just as loud as the guy in
the brocade cape, I knew that I had to just stay put out of principle.
I had to visualize roots growing out of my feet into the ground in
order to make myself stay put, though.

general-purpose update

I haven't blogged in awhile about the boy. He is developing fast, so I have a lot cover.

Mobility
David can get where ever he wants by sckooching on his tummy like that plastic soldier crawling on the ground with the rifle in his hand. If you squint, you can almost see the barbed wire over his head. This mobility means lots of new things to explore, like my books, and he tries to follow the dogs around. It also means a greater understanding of possession. Not only does the thing in his hand belong to him, so does anything he sees that he may be able to get to. When he is prevented, he gets really irate. For instance, while sitting in my lap, he gets ticked off when he can't have my plate or my glass.

Dexterity
His extended index finger is the body part of the day. It is now the first thing that he uses to explore new objects (the second is still his mouth). He can switch the lightswitch off and play with the various knobs and levers on a toy we borrowed from a friend. As mentioned before, he can stand himself up in his crib, but not really anything else yet.

Food
He eats all of the strained vegetables and applesause. We are working on solid foods, but he doesn't quite have the hang of it. Cheerios are the only thing in the world he will NOT put in his mouth. During his meals I give him a small bowl with the Cheerios in it. He grabs handfulls and flings them around as the dogs gather under the highchair. He will get a bunch of them on his tray and slam his hand down to watch them jump around. He will take his index finger and press down on one until it shoots out onto the floor. I will sneak one into his mouth occationally. He keeps up his playing but gets a perturbed look on his face while he moves his jaw around. After several seconds, a mushy Cheerio will work its way through his lips into his lap. Occationally, it goes the other way until he gags and throws up. Sometimes, it stays put until it disolves enough to be swallowed. Bits of teething biscuit, zwieback toast, and communion bread meet the same fate.

Teeth
One upper tooth broke through yesterday.

Talking
He has a word--"Mamamamama," but it doesn't mean the same thing to him that it means to you. It is the sound he makes when he is upset and we don't stop doing whatever is upsetting him, such as changing his clothes. He is very consistant about saying it at these distressed times, and only then. To him, this sound has meaning--the definition of "word." As a word, it is sort of redundant since we can gather that he is upset from the crying and thrashing.

Sleeping
He still is waking twice during the night for a substancial meal. I look forward to an uninterupted night's sleep like the end of a drought.

General charming demeanor
He is still cute as a whip. He smiles and laughs, babbles, plays and shows genuine interest in you. His bright eyes garner a constant stream of compliments when we are in public. As long as his diaper has been changed, he thinks win/win. He seeks first to understand; he synergizes. In short, he is becoming a highly effective baby.

subdeacon tikhon no more

Today, Subeacon Tikhon was ordained to the diaconate. He is now Father Deacon Matthew Thurman.

Congratulations

Axios

God Grant You Many Years.

Few men have the oportunity to become fathers twice in as many weeks. If he can father a major theological movement by the end of the month, he will win the paternity trifecta.

pooh

thankful

Happy Thanksgiving

CONGRATULATIONS!

You should know by now what the all-caps "congrats" means. That's right, a new baby.

Benjamin James Thurman was born today to Subdeacon Tikhon and Rachel Thurman at 3:49 pm eastern. The baby is 8 lbs 8 oz, 20 inches long. Mother, father, and baby are doing well.

May God grant them all many many years.

open letter

Today, David spent the day with Grandma Susie, who is in the state for Thanksgiving. In his bag Jaime included this letter:

For those that are not the Momma,

I would like to start with a disclaimer. I am going through a rough time. Doctors tell me it might be awhile before I get better and this "spell" could last until my early thirties. I ask for your forgiveness and understanding.

Contained in my bag are three containers of baby food, bottles, and formula, and one container each of rice and oatmeal. Please microwave my food for ten seconds, but not the bottles. I'm picky and distacted when I eat. If I fuss a lot, I probably want water or diluted juice. If I start to gag and throw-up, I've either had enough or I don't like the consistancy. I don't eat fast and I like you to talk, sing, or make silly noises. Remember, you are my floor show, make it good.

After you microwave the food, stir it with the spoon. If the food is too hot, then spoon will turn white. If this happens, just test it with your finger and use your judgement.

Keys to success:

Naps! Good luck :-).

Right now, I am a pill and have no nap routine. Some days I sleep 20 minutes two-or-three times. Other days, I sleep for one-to-three hours twice a day.

If I am overly fussy and not hungry and/or rubbing my eyes, try to put me down.

Because my parents love me so much (and are idiots) I still need to be held/rocked/accompanied to sleep. If you don't have a rocking chair, the best thing to do is lie down with me on the bed. I want to hod your hands and occationally grab your face. Usually, you will fall asleep first and then I will follow your lead.

It's a crap-shoot whether I will fall asleep in the car or not. Remember, I don't like lots of car rides in one day.

Mommy says I'm not supposed to grab faces, necks, hair, etc. So please take my hand and gently say, "no."

--David

stand up and be counted

So, it happened like this: when I left him, he was sitting.

I had to use the restroom. Sometimes, I take him to the bathroom with me figuring that someday he is going to have to learn things that I am uniquely qualified to teach. But this time he couldn't come and everyone else was busy, so I set him in his crib facing his toy that hangs on the side with the switches and levers that he loves. He was happy.

When I returned, he was standing at the end of the crib facing me and smiling.

I called to mom in the next room, "mom, did you stand David up?"

No

I yelled downstairs to Jaime, "did you stand David up?"

No

He did it himself and he was darn pleased with himself.

I have been waiting for this. He has been trying hard for a week or so and we have been very careful to raise the gate after we put him down so that he doesn't pull himself up and over and down head-first.

Interestingly, he cannot sit up on his own yet so we are still not at the point where he will be waking up and then standing to let us know about it. But he is on the way.

good quote

. . . an unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction. I call it Joy, . . . and considered only in its quality, it might almost equally well be called a particular kind of unhappiness or grief. But then it is a kind we want. I doubt wether anyone who has tasted it would ever, if both were in his power, exchange it for all the pleasures of the world. But then Joy is never in our power and pleaure often is.

--C.S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life

five cute photos

agonizing

I am agonizing over a decision.

I haven't been blogging about what is going on with my state of employment since the museum closed. Basically, I decided a couple of months ago that I would like to be a freelance writer and have been doing the research to see if it is feasible or not. Freelance writers write all the words that get you through life but that you basically ignore--brochures, marketing stuff, annual reports, newsletters, Web copy, ad, copy, whatever copy (and quite a bit journalism and magazine writing, but that is lower-paying). I've been writing, editing, and producing this kind of stuff (except journalism) for years now in my various jobs. It's something I enjoy, and there is a market for freelancers.

The main reason is this: in about five (less that four-and-a-half!!) years, David will be ready for formal education. I would like to give him that education myself. Chances are, Jaime's Social Work degree is not going to support our family by itself, so I will need part-time income. My goal is to work full-time for five years and then be able to cut to part-time and still earn enough per hour to contribute to the family income. Ideally, Jaime and I would both have part-time-but-good-paying jobs and we would both share the schooling, but those jobs are few and far far between. (Also, I hope that writing regularly will hone my skills and contribute positively to my writing novels someday, when the kids are in school or jail or whatever gets them out of the house.)

As part of my research I took a class on creating a business plan and starting up a business. This 36-hour class is a requirement for someone wanting a small business loan from the Chamber of Commerce. I wasn't intending to get a loan, but took the class because I wanted to start my business right. In the process of taking the class, I have put together a fairly comprehensive cash-flow report, and it has me depressed. With modest expectations for startup income, minus expenses and a very low salary (barely what unemployment insurance pays me), I will have to run a deficit for the first eight or nine months.

That is standard business, I know. But it poses two problems for me: 1) I hate debt; I loath it. Debt is the #1 reason that I haven't really ever been interested in being an entrepreneur. 2) I have an unreasonable amount of unsecured debt--especially for someone who hates debt soooo much. It's mainly wedding and Cambridge debt, and it's way below the national average, but it don't like it. Plus, as soon as Jaime graduates, that will be more school debt. Even though I currently own four cars (more on that later), they are not worth much so I am not sure that I could get a small business loan if I wanted too--even by the liberal standards of the COC.

I have this vision of myself in six months or five years failing in this business and being saddled with so much debt that I have to miss large chunks of my children's lives working to get it paid off.

If you have read this far, bless your little heart. You have to be wondering, "so, what is your point? What are you going to do?"

Funny, I am wondering the same thing.

backlog cont.--congratulations to the Dales

Me, I'm a looser. At the end of September, our friends Jason and Amy Dale had a baby. Not only did I not post in a timely manner, I lost the email with the details (date, weight, length). But I have this picture of me holding the baby a week later:



Yes, the father is named Jason and the baby is named David. We are greatly admired and often imitated in our little community.

later imitator

let's have a big round of applause

I've been paying "Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, bakers man" with David for months--clapping my hands and clapping his hands--because a book told me to and we are pretty much raising David by the book. He enjoys it, but hasn't shown any real aptitude for the manual dexterity needed to participate. He couldn't clap.

I just finished a 36-hour business course and we had a "graduation" ceremony Monday evening. Jaime and David went. You can perfectly imagine the event--men and women in suits giving inspirational speeches about how most of us will fail but we shouldn't feel bad about that because failure is part of success--even though most of us will never succeed unless we change our definition of success to "my wife didn't divorce me for bankrupting us"--and being an entrepreneur is so great. There were about three-dozen of these short speeches followed by applause.

I've mentioned before that I think Topekans like to applaud more than average and this evening was no exception. At one point I looked down at David on my lap and realized "hey, he is a Native Topekan, look at him applaud." Yep, he was clapping his little hands. Now, it's his new trick.

But he is not content just to clap. What he really likes to do is just grasp his hands in front of his face and hold them there. This cracks him up. He grabs them and giggles and laughs about what he has accomplished.

David: "Look! I and hold this thing here with this other thing and that thing with that other thing! Cool!

Me: "Yes, David, very cute, now move them so I can put food in your mouth. Come-on, just lower them a bit"--smack!

David: "Look! I can smack things like that spoon and then go back to holding these things like this!"

I also forgot to mention that he can finally shove his toes into his mouth, but that was weeks ago.

backlog cont.--labor day

We spent Labor Day weekend in Salina with Grandpa Brice. On Monday, we visited Lindsborg, where Uncle Cory goes to school. Lindsborg is a beautiful little town with a great park.


The city mascot is the Dala Horse, shown here with David and Grandpa Brice.




David's first (and second) swing in a park.

We also visited Bethany College, where Cory goes to school. The highlight (after sneaking into Cory's dorm room and rearranging)was the gym, where Grandpa Brice and I played "Stroller Catch." I think this should replace Dwarf Tossing as the international sport of choice.

C is for cookie

Last night I read through the "baby manual" to find the answer to the question:
Why is my son eating soooooo much?!
Never found the answer but what I did find was a shock. At 7 months he could be eating chicken and fish and crackers and porterhouse steaks.......

"W" I bought the wrong kind of greenbeans the other day and he won't eat those unless you blend them up again. It has little pieces of rice in it that he gags on.

So the book says to get the new textures in now because as he gets older it will be more difficult. This morning I tried oatmeal. I cooked it up, put it in the baby food processor and gave him some. Gag, Gag, Gag.

We tried a cracker next. He picked it up, rotated it in his little hands, making sure to hold his pinkie finger out, and then stuck it in his mouth. As he broke off chunks of the cracker he would make a face and let the pieces fall out of his mouth.

It was like watching Cookie Monster eat in slow motion.

Lets hope next time some of it stays in.

backlog 2--balloons

Back in early September, David, Skylar, and I went to the hot-air balloon rally out at the lake. Here are a few images.










We miss you too, Aunt Skylar

Shopping for the 21st century

One day Grandma Suzie called me and said she wanted to get David some Old Navy clothes she had found online on sale. In a matter of moments I jumped online and joined her at the Old Navy site. We spent the next 30 minutes looking at cute outfits and complaining that everything we wanted was not availible in his size. In the end we found some cute things, grandma ordered them and had them shipped to me. A few days later David's new clothes arrived and there was much rejoicing.

And now Skylar is a Victoria's Secret girl. Oh the fun that shall be had. Call me and meet me online. I can't wait.

So, for all you new and soon to be parents with family in far off places. Give 'em a call, catch up on current events and then shop til you drop and have them ship it right to your front door.

PS.
For dinner tonight David ate 6oz of Squash and 4oz of peas with 4oz of diluted apple juice to wash it down.

Grandpa Alex and I have named his tapeworm Bob.

In talking with a coworker I came up with a cheap solution. Remember the little pill thingies you could buy. When you put them in water they would inflate into foam shapes like dino's or barn yard animals. I think tomorrow night I will give David one of those to take up space in his tummy and give Bob something to play with.

PPS
Happy Birthday Grandma Carla & Grandpa Alex! Thank you so much for everything!

non-partisan

I took David to the polling station today. He was content until I got to the booth. I turned my back on him and just as I started marking the ballot, he started to cry.

I turned to comfort him: "It's ok, your mom will come this afternoon and cancel my vote anyway."

step two

I don't remember learning how to crawl, so I am not clear how to help David along.

I posted quite awhile ago that he went from a sitting to a crawling (to a hitting the floor with his face) position and he has kept that up. However, if he doesn't fall on his face, he just lays on his tummy.

Today, he was on his tummy on our bed when pushed himself up onto his hands and knees and rocked back-and-forth several times. Then, when I put him down for a nap, he hit the mattress with his hands and knees and remained that way for a moment. I have previously not been able to get him to do that.

So next is learning to do that contrapostal thing with his shoulders and hips while lifting alternate knees and arms. How does someone who has never used his arms and legs for locomotion, and who has never seen someone crawl, figure that out?

bitten

David has barfed on me, peed on me, drooled on me, coughed on me with a mouth full of strained peas, and he has gummed me--alot.

Today he did something new.

He bit me.

He grabbed my finger, shoved it into his mouth so that the knuckle is right in the middle, and then chomped down.

Actually, he chomped up, two new, little, barely-visible teeth sinking just far enough in to make me yelp.

ouch

keeping pace

In that last email, Jaime was complaining that her post took several days to actually appear on the blog. Sometimes we post by sending an email to blogger. Lately that doesn't seem to be working, so by the time you get the information, it is outdated.

David now eats like a fiend. This morning, he ate a full jar of green beans and half a jar of peas. An hour later, he drank 8 oz. of formula. We are trying to figure out just how much to feed him. The doctor says he won't over eat. If he is eating, he needs the food. But the problem is, when he is hungry, he SCREAMS for food. Then, he will eat enough to satisfy him to the point that he is distracted by the dogs, shadows, curtains, bugs, whatever, but he hasn't necessarily eaten enough to fill him up so that he can go more than a couple hours before he needs to SCREAM again.

This is a particular problem at night.

Again, the doctor said that if he is waking in the night out of habit just to nibble, then he needs to be taught to just sleep through the night. By seven months, a baby should not need to eat at night. Well, maybe 90% of babies don't need to eat at night, but up at the 97th percentile, babies appearantly need to eat at night--six-to-ten ounces every two-to-four hours. The doctor says that if he is eating that much, then he needs it.

So now we are being more persistent during the day. Instead of holding back and stopping just when he seems done, we are being more insistent. Even so, we can't keep pace--at the dinner table or on the blog.

Later, famished fans.

Not always what they seem....

OK, that last post was sent a WEEK ago and FINALLY posted.  Stupid internet.

 

He eats a lot more than a tablespoon.  He is up to almost a half a jar a sitting.  And no matter how much begging and pleading we do he will not eat the cereal.  If we want to see projectile vomiting for old times sake we give him some, but other than that we have given up on it.  Next week is mom's all time fav, green beans.

 

So, the teeth.  Teeth.  Teeth.  Teeth.  Teeth. 

 

The word has lost all meaning to me.   Teeth.

 

I used to love teeth.  Bright shinny teeth.  Grandpa O plays with teeth all day.  Keeps em nice and smooth.  Love the teeth.  Alas, no more.

 

Teeth are evil.  Vile.  Loud.  Screaming.  Pain in the.........

 

And not just evil in a, put your pinkie finger to the corner of your mouth Evil.  I'm talkin' total and complete evil.  The kind that keeps you up ALL NIGHT LONG.  With the screaming and the screaming and the spitting the bink out with the force of a bullet.

 

After a while your finger ventures in and you discover a new feeling.  The top of the tooth. 

Hooray!  It's hear!, you scream.  It broke the skin.  The sun is shinning.  The fuss is over.  Life is back to normal.

 

Until............

 

Your tongue counts the number of teeth you have in your head and you realize you have that many more nights x3 of the screaming and the screaming and the spitting the bink out with the force of a bullet.

 

help

 

discounts

Goodbye financial stability, hello to lots of babies.