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!

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. 

PregoForMen Top Halloween Movies 2013

It's that time of the year again. One of my favorites, actually. 

Spooky costumes, scary movies, and LOTS of candy!

I'm already in trouble for eating half of the trick-or-treat candy that we bought last week. It's so delicious. And available. It's my wife's fault for putting it out in a bowl already. What do you expect?

(Not so much the scary movie part, I'm a wuss when it comes to scary movies, and haunted houses. I once watched "The Ring" on mute.)

This reminds me that I need to start skimming through the movie channels for some of my favorite Halloween movies. Here's my top 5, not necessarily in order. 

1. Hocus Pocus

-After 300 years, three sister witches are resurrected in Salem Massachusetts on Halloween night, and it us up to two teenagers, a young girl, and an immortal cat to put an end to the witches reign of terror once and for all.

2. Scary Movie 2

-Four teens are tricked by their professor into visiting a haunted house for a school project.

3. Friday the 13th

-Camp counselors are stalked and murdered by an unknown assailant while trying to reopen a summer camp that was the site of a child's drowning.

4. Halloween

-A psychotic murderer institutionalized since childhood for the murder of his sister, escapes and stalks a bookish teenage girl and her friends while his doctor chases him through the streets.

5. The Nightmare Before Christmas

-Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn't quite understand the concept.

All images and descriptions via IMDB.com

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 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 28 - Krokodil Hits Close To Home In Chicago

11:02pm



Brynlee went to her first pumpkin patch today. My wife and her sister took her to a local place while I had to work. So, thanks to my job, I missed out. But I think we are going to go to a different one, as a family, on Tuesday. Not like she even understands where she is, or what Halloween is, but it's more of an excuse for us to go. I haven't been to a pumpkin patch in a very long time. I'm sure it will bring back lots of childhood memories. I remember going as a child, and I loved it.


Something else that really shocked me tonight, was about the new "Krokodil" drug that is hitting America. It's been popular in Russia for quite some time, and is made from codeine. It provides a similar effect as herion, but 3x stronger, and 1/10th the price. The scarier part about it is that because amateur "chemists" make it on the street, it is impure, and often still contains gasoline, and hydrochloric acid, which is used in the making. These compounds, when injected, cause the flesh to die, and rot. So these users are noticing there skin basically rotting from the inside out. Also it appears green and scaly, hence the name "Krokodil", which is Russian for crocodile.

Why do I care? I don't really. But it has only been a few weeks since the first reported cases of this drug in America, with two of them being local in the Chicago area. It was on the news tonight, and the two girls are sisters, and I WENT TO SCHOOL WITH THEM. How scary huh? I pray for their families, since, according to the news, they are all addicts. Heroin addicts, which is already bad enough. Apparently, dealers have passed this Krokodil off as heroin, and that's how they "accidentally" used it.


Moral of the story -

Don't use ANY drugs. What is this world coming to when people are doing drugs that literally take off pieces of their bodies?

Also, drug use is not a disease. Addiction is not a disease. It is a CHOICE. And a very stupid one at that.

Day 24 - Why Am I Enjoying This Fried Pig Skin?

8:41pm



 YUM!

Have you ever eaten pork rinds? Fried deliciousness in a bag. You can find them at any grocery store in America. Otherwise known as "Cracklings" or "Chicharrones" if your hispanic tongue overpowers your english tongue. But if it does... You already know what they are. They are a very common snack amongst Mexican/Spanish foods.

Pork rinds are actually fried pig skin. I know it sounds weird/gross/nasty/awesome, but they are very tasty. I am not one to shy away from a new food, because I am not really afraid of anything. Pork rinds are really good. They make a great game day snack.

Why am I talking about pork rinds? Who cares? Well, I do, because I am eating them right now while I watch the Blackhawks game. Rudolph's was kind enough to send me a few bags to enjoy and make me even fatter. Thanks, Rudolph's!

This year, they are having a Pork Rind Appreciation Day where fans can vote for which team they want to be on. One lucky player will have the chance to win $1500 and pork rinds for a year! So make sure you don't miss out on that! While you are doing that, I will be sitting here enjoying my favorite flavor, Hot & Spicy!

I would give away a few bags of these things to a lucky reader, but they are too good. So, sorry. Maybe next time.

Day 23 - Is Your Child Stupid, Too?

9:45pm


Today was a good day.


#1. I was off of work.

#2. I got to spend the whole day with my baby girl and wife.

#3. I had some pretty decent mexican food for dinner.


We went shopping to get Brynlee some warmer clothes. The weather is changing and starting to cool down a little bit. She doesn't have much clothing for that type of weather. Not in Newborn size at least. We have an outlet mall close by, so we decided to check it out.

There was one part of the day however, that wasn't very good. As a matter of fact, we were horrified.

One of the stores that we visited was The Children's Place. We had Little B in her stroller, with the sunshades up. The mall is outdoors and the sun was really shining today. Anyways, we found a few little pants and sweaters for her there. While my wife was shopping I noticed a lady, maybe in her late 30s, or early 40s, waiting by the register, loudly calling her little boy's name. He was sitting on the ground by the front door of the store. There was only us, and a handful of other customers in the entire store.

I could see her impatiently staring at the credit card machine, as if it wasn't working. The store clerk, standing there with her arms crossed. It was an awkward situation, and I didn't understand it. Anyways, we kept shopping, others came in and out, and they stayed in the same position.

We decided on what we were going to purchase, and proceeded to the register. There was only this one open. When we walked up, I think that we were the only ones left in the store, perhaps one other lady browsing. Turns out the lady's credit card wasn't going through, or was declined, not sure, don't really care. Her son was still sitting by the front door, ignoring her demands for him to come over by her. She stepped to the side, so that the girl could ring us up and get us on our way, while she was waiting for the card to magically start working again.

The clerk started to ring us up while she, my wife and I, and anyone else that might have been in the store noticed this mother go over to her child by the front door. She smacked him a few times while he was on the ground, my wife said she kicked him, or booted him with her feet, but I didn't notice that. The real shocker to all of us is that while she was "mildly beating" this child, who was probably two or three years old, she was also belittling him by telling him how STUPID he is. Several times. The child even responded, "I'm not stupid!" With her responding, "Yes, you are!"

We were in awe. My wife and I looked at eachother thinking, do we say something? Is it our place to intervene? I could tell that my wife was really biting her tongue. She is NOT one to turn her head at something like this. But, she did. And so did I. But now I'm starting to think that we should have took action. It's not even so much the smacking, although she went a little overboard with it, but a little discipline is not uncommon, and every parent can make their own decisions about that. But to tell your young child that he is STUPID? What is that going to improve about the situation? Nobody is stupid. At least that is how I feel. I'm pretty sure that 99.9% of other parents would agree with me on that one.

Who knows how she treats this kid behind closed doors. Now that we sit here and think about how we should have confronted this situation, you still can't justify it because of how crazy some people are these days. What if we would have said something and she had a knife, or gun, or some sort of weapon? You can't be too careful. I think that's why we kept our mouths shut. I bet if we wouldn't have had Brynlee with us though, my wife would have said something, if I didn't.

Moral of the story is that NO CHILD IS STUPID. They might be a lot of work, not listen, be a pain, and give you more headaches than you can ever imagine. But they AREN'T stupid. And degrading your kids in that manner is just not acceptable.



I would LOVE to hear your thoughts about what we witnessed today. What would you have done in this situation? Leave your comment on here or on my FACEBOOK PAGE.

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Day 21 - Nap Time!

8:03pm

It's time for a nap! Not for Brynlee, but for Daddy! 

She kept us up, what seemed like, all night. I remember looking at the clock at 2am. Then noticing it again at 3:15am. I even got up with her and sat in the living room for a while, so that my wife could have a break. She was getting frustrated and exhausted, too. She finally went to sleep, which allowed us to. I was right back up at 5:30am to get to work. More overtime today. Supposed to be my day off but when opportunity knocks, you answer. Back again tomorrow. 

So with that said...

Good Night!