April 2014 Update

Brynlee is, 90 percent of the time, a happy baby. Occasionally she gets a little fussy, but for the most part, we got lucky.

Look at this photo I got of her yesterday, while she was playing with a toy. With how often I am taking pictures of her, we know that she won't be afraid of cameras when she is older.

She gets so excited. Especially when she is pulling on your hooded sweatshirt's strings. She just loves that.

I think I am enjoying this stage of her life a little more than when she was first born. She has a personality now, and she recognizes me. She is more fun to interact with. I can play with her and she will respond with sounds, or smiles, or laughs. Kind of like a puppy, but a human version.

She eats puree'd foods now. She really likes mangos. Rice cereal works to fill her up, too. Still loves her bottles though. She knows when it's time, and she will start kicking with joy when she notices the bottle in your hand.

Her Grandma, and her Great Aunt help us babysit when we are at work. Sometimes I think that she is more excited to see them, than she is to see us. She really enjoys her time with them. It's safe to say by the look on her face when she makes eye contact with them both. We are very grateful.

Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood is her very favorite television show. We try to limit her time in front of the TV, because studies show that it isn't great for children under 2. But, how can you keep her completely away? You never will. When the Daniel Tiger theme song comes on, she knows it. She will freeze whatever she is doing, and turn to watch. It's pretty amazing. Her memory is fantastic.

Image from PBS.org

6 Months Photo Update

Can you believe it? I feel like it was yesterday, at 10 weeks pregnant, that I started writing this blog. Brynlee is a few days past 6 months old. Let our family be proof that so much can change in a year's time.

Here are a few recent pictures, because she changes so much, and so quickly.

Sick Parent. Happy Baby. FLABY.

Last Friday, I felt like crap.

The kind of crap that makes you stay in bed all day. You'd do ANYTHING to not have to do anything. DayQuil and NyQuil become your life savers, and you cling to the bottles like an alcoholic does a pint. Vomiting is not voluntary, but necessary.

I'm not positive at what the problem was. I'm leaning towards the flu, but maybe it was food poisoning? I'll never know.

One thing is for sure, I don't wish it upon anyone.

I don't get sick very often. It seems like at some point, in every February, I come down with something. It never fails, my once per year illness shows it's face. This year, near the end of the month.

I thought I made it through. I thought that I had beat out the cold this year. February was almost over and I had no signs of this monster. Im assuming that the flu checked the calendar and noticed that it had not effected me yet. Late, but not forgotten.

Thanks.

Something is different this year. This year it's not just the flu. There is a baby involved. I didn't have "the flu".

I had "the FLABY".

A new term that I just developed. The flu + a baby. I think any parent would agree that symptoms of the flu are amplified with the presence of a child. Kids/Babies don't know what sick means, especially if it doesn't involve them. I'm pretty sure my daughter thought that me being ill, was sort of funny.

She wanted to play more. I wanted to sleep more.
She needed a diaper change more often. I spent more time in the bathroom.
She spit up. I threw up.
She ate. I didn't.

It's funny how when I want to take a nap, she doesn't. These kids are smarter than we realize. I don't think she took any naps all day. Normally, she has at least three.

I tried to avoid touching her as much as I could. I don't know much about sick babies, and I don't want to if I don't have to. Luckily, she has been fine since I was sick. I'm crossing my fingers that it never spread to her, because that's just not fair. Or fun.

Maybe it was food poisoning?

Whatever it was, it's over.

...until next February. (and I will have to call it "floddler")

How To Get Rid Of Poop Stains in 3 Easy Steps

I don't know about any other baby, but Brynlee seems to get poop out of the back of her diaper. We have tried putting them tighter. We have tried different brands. Bigger sizes. Nothing helps. A few times a week, we are cleaning the stains out of her onesies.

Luckily, my wife showed me an easy technique for cleaning all of those stained onesies. As long as you do this while the stain is pretty fresh, it will take it right out.

Step 1.

Get the clothes off of the baby, and bring it over to your sink. Run some warm water over the stain for a few seconds. Just enough to wet.



Step 2.

Put some dishwashing liquid on the stain. We use Dawn dish soap just because it's what we have handy. Any of them work. Add another splash of warm water to the spot, to allow the soap to foam and spread a little better over the stained area.

Step 3.

Fold the stain over into itself like a book. Vigorously rub back and forth, so you are scrubbing cotton against cotton. Add more warm water as needed. You might have to add more dish soap, and scrub again, but eventually it will fade away. Then just add them to your regular laundry with the rest of the baby clothes, and you will never even know it was stained.

Hopefully that helps. No need for expensive stain removers, or to brush it with special tools. I wanted a better photo of the process of rubbing the stain against itself, but I couldn't get a picture and do it at the same time! So if you have any questions, please ask.



A clean baby, is a happy baby!

Four Months Photo Update

I think it's time for some more pictures from the last month. She was four months old on January 15th. She is almost five months old now... I guess I am a little late...

Two Months Old Photos

Well, Bryn is a little over two months old now. If you haven't noticed, the blog hasn't been update for a while. That goes to show you how much work it is to have an infant. She is a lot of fun, though! Here's some pictures from around two months. 

Her favorite burping position - 

Mommy's new "mommy-mobile" - 

And of course, her two-month picture - 

A Little Girl's Smile

A sperm meets an egg. 

They fertilize.

Nine months pass. 

A gift from God arrives. 

This gift doesn't know how welcomed she is to the world. 

Seven weeks later, the gift smiles at her dad, and he happens to catch it on camera. 

And this little girl's smile is worth more than all the money in the world to him. 

Photo Update

She's getting so big already! Stop growing child!

Anyways, here a few new photos from the past week. 

Keeping Up With The KarDADshians

Holy crap. 

Parenting is getting the best of me. I can't even seem to find my way out of bed on my days off. This parenting thing is serious...

...serious-ly demanding. 

Relaxation is non-existent. I hear it only gets better when they start to walk. Which will be in t-minus ten months? Ugh. 

You know what the worst part is?

My wife does 90% of the baby-related chores here. It's true. She feeds her, changes diapers, bathes her, dresses her, and all that other stuff. I don't do much, really. (And no, this is not her writing this, either.)

I just feel so exhausted. What little help I am able to give, is wearing me out quick. It's hard work to take care of a baby. God Bless all those single parents out there who do it every day, by themselves. I don't know how you manage. 

I speak to a lot of other Dad's, through Twitter and other blogs, and they seem to spend a lot of time with their kids. Taking vacations with them, going to parks, helping out Mom at home, etc. When I come home, I'm already ready for bed. I never used to be this tired, but our lives are non-stop. When the baby is sleeping, it's time to get everything else done that couldn't be done while she was awake. That leaves basically zero time for fun. 

We did manage to make it out to a friend's Halloween party last weekend. Brynlee was the star of the show as always. Until she spit up all over one of our friends who was holding her.

But it was good to get out for a while. We haven't seen many of our friends lately, and that seems normal once you start having kids and adult responsibilities. So, the few chances that are available, it's wise to take them up. Who knows when the next times will be. 

Some advice - Real life parenting is not like what you see on television. We are not the Kardashians. I'm sure there is a lot you don't see on tv. Like the crying, late night feedings, projectile poop and vomit. We can't pay someone to watch our kid for the day while we fly to Miami for lunch.

You have to be available every second of every day for the kids. They need you, and at the strangest and most random times. As babies, 3am is a perfectly acceptable example of when to tell Mom/Dad it's time for a snack. Mom/Dad might have to get up in a couple hours to go to work, but baby doesn't care. 

My wife says I complain too much. I don't know what she is talking about. 

image via Celebuzz.com

Day 32 - Changes To PregoForMen Blog

11:14pm

As you might already know, I have blogged every day since the 10th week of pregnancy. But I think that is going to change. I want to focus more on writing quality posts, rather than quantity. They will still include updates on Brynlee, and the family. But I will probably use social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, more often, for updates like that. 

I have decided to slow down, not only because this blog takes up A LOT of time, but also because I don't want to write posts just because I feel that I have to. That isn't quality. And I'm not ok with that. 

So make sure you follow on Facebook to keep up with new blog posts. I always link to them via all of my social media accounts (which you can find at the top of this blog). 

Day 31 - Wait? What's That? It's Looking Like Another Cold Dinner Night...

10:10pm

I want you to think hard about your favorite meal. What is it? Picture it in front of you right now.

It looks delicious, right? Smells good, your mouth is watering, anticipating eating a wonderful dinner.

Sit down, grab your eating utensils, and reach for that first bite.

Wait? What's that?

Your newborn's diaper has leaked? Your baby's legs are dripping grainy, yellowish poop?

I guess that fresh, hot dinner is going to have to wait. You have bigger problems to solve.

Strip the baby's clothes off. Carefully, so that you don't make more of a mess than you are already dealing with.

Try to rinse the majority of the baby mustard(as I like to call it) off in the sink, before a real bath is ready.

Twenty minutes later, baby is all clean. But we still have to get her dressed.

Put on a fresh diaper, get her in some clean pajamas. About 45 minutes have passed since the first sentence.

Now she's hungry. She cries and cries until she is fed.

Prepare a bottle, feed her for ten minutes, until she is content. Can't feed without burping.

Pat her back for five minutes, or so, until a burp or two is released. Let's set her down.

Get her comfortable in her sleeper. Pacifier in. Blanket tucked around her little body. She's finally asleep.

Might as well eat dinner on a plate made of ice. It's cold, and ruined. It cannot be repaired. It's the norm these days.

Take a few bites, it's just OK. At least it's food. And edible.



Wait? What's that?

She's pooping again....

Dinner is going to have to wait. Again.


Welcome to my world.

Day 30 - Why Does A Baby Spit Up And Ways To Prevent It

10:33pm



Freshly squeezed milk, straight from the boob.


Fill up an Anti-Colic Tommee Tippee bottle, with around 5 ounces. Her normal feeding amount.

Sit up, give her the bottle, and wait.

She drinks it quickly at first, but slows down towards the end. A few squirms in between.

A little milk spills down her chin, as she enjoys every second.

Milk is gone. Her eyes closed, and calm. She's at peace now, satisfied.

She needs to be burped. Sit her straight up, and pat her back until she does.

BURRRRRPPPPPP. Stronger than a grown man.

Wait? What's that? SPIT UP! It never fails.

She spits up about 90% of the time. Why is this? I did a little research to find out.



Why does a baby spit up? And how can you prevent it?

Babies naturally spit up because of air that is trapped in their stomach. While they eat, some air will be forced down with their milk. The air can't stay there so eventually it has to come out. Usually, most of it will be with a burp, but if there is food on top of the air, it tends to come out as well. This is pretty normal, more than half of babies spit up regularly.

It seems like the Anti-Colic bottles help a little, but she still will spit up.

Some ways to prevent spit up include sitting the baby upright while you feed. This allows the food to flow in a straighter, less obstructed path, avoiding trapping any air. Also if you are overfeeding, this could cause the excess food to come up. Brynlee is always hungry. She eats, spits some up, and then is hungry again. It gets frustrating, but what can you do? Try feeding them a little less, and see if they are satisfied after a burp. This could help.

Also make sure that the hole in the nipple of the bottle is the correct size. If it is too small, the baby could be getting frustrated, and sucking too hard, causing air to be mixed in. But if the hole is too large, too much milk could be forced into the baby's mouth, which isn't good either.


Most babies stop spitting up around 6 to 7 months old. This is when the muscles fully develop in the stomach, that allow the food to stay controlled. Although, some may go past their first birthday.


Have you found any routines, or practices, that have helped your baby prevent spitting up? I would love to know, and will include the tips in a future blog post! Email, or comment me!

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Day 26 - The World's Catchiest and Stupidest Music Video

8:31pm



I just can't get this stupid song out of my head. With over 100 million views, I think that if you haven't seen this video by now, you are obviously missing something. So here you go....

Ylvis - The Fox

Your welcome.



Tell me what you think of this extremely popular viral video! I can't seem to stop singing "kakakachowkakakachowkakakachow" out loud, every 10 minutes or so.

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*This blog contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. It's like a win-win situation.

Day 25 - Baby Poop Launcher

9:59pm




Coming close to a month old already... Where has time gone? Everyone warned us not to blink, because they grow so quickly. It seems like just yesterday, that I was seeing her coming out of places that I don't think I care to witness again. But it's ok, because every day she is becoming more and more a part of our normal routine. It's like she has always been here.


She has become very talented at launching spit-up, and even poop. She could out-distance me, that's for sure. But we aren't going to compete, because that would just be a mess.

She spit-up all over my wife today, while she was trying to burp her. She seems to burp, and then spit-up, regularly. We basically plan for it now. A couple days ago, she tricked my wife into thinking that she was done pooping, but while the last wipe before a fresh diaper covered up any sort of potential hazard, a forceful stream of recycled breastmilk made it's way through her little body and into an airborne disaster. My wife's face was priceless. Mostly because the poop covered half of her upper body, but also because she couldn't believe it! I found it funny, and impressive.