Family

Using his weight against him

Posted by ngreene on Mar 27, 2012 in Family

Tonight, we discovered a whole new way of tiring Hudson out before bed.

I’ve mentioned before how relentless he can be when he gets something into his head. The trick to a good night sleep, it seems, is to really tucker him out before bad.

The key, then, is to wait until he gets something stuck in his head and then exploit it. Last night, Sam discovered that Hudson was obsessed with grabbing power cords from behind our couch. It was as easy last night as letting him stand up on the couch then pulling him back down and seating him again on the couch.

Hudson repeated this at least 25 times before becoming absolutely exhausted. Then, it was a simple matter of bringing him upstairs and lying him in his crib.

The result was a full 12 hour sleep that we all enjoyed.

First Word

Posted by ngreene on Mar 26, 2012 in Family

Hudson said his first word over the weekend.

At first, we weren’t sure if we could officially say it said his first word. But, as the weekend went on, he said it again and again.

When he first said it, Susie and I both heard it, and we were sure that we had heard it, but we weren’t sure if he had said it with purpose or not. We decided that we would call that his first word if, and only if, he continued to use that word.

The word was “Hi”, which was great because that meant he didn’t have to choose mom or dad, but instead went with an even “hi”, so that neither of us can be offended.

He has now said “hi “on at least a half-dozen occasions. He won’t do it on demand, like a circus seal, but when he feels it’s right, he throws out a “Hi”.

He is Relentless

Posted by ngreene on Mar 23, 2012 in Family

Hudson has reached a stage where he is starting to be mobile. He is officially crawling and he goes after anything that he can reach.

I’m not sure if all kids are like this, or of its because Susie and I are the people that we are but, when this kid set his mind to something, he is absolutely relentless.

He is obsessed with electronics. I’m trying to figure out if its the fact that it’s electronic, or if it’s just that he sees Mom and Dad focused on those devices and he wants to be part of it.

In any case, it’s now a full time job to play defense against the things he goes after. We can no longer have power cables lying around. Actually, I think I’ll need to go about baby proofing our entire house really soon.

Three Adventures

Posted by ngreene on Mar 22, 2012 in Family

Yesterday was a day with not two adventures, but three.

We had doctors appointments at both 9am and 1pm, then we went for a hike with Uncle Bone in the late afternoon.

The biggest benefit of adding a third adventure, was the added nap that Hudson was inclined to take during the daytime. This translated into one of the best nights of sleep that we’ve had to date.

And the hike adventure was awesome. We went out to Scarborough Bluffs and walked for probably 5km. It was only about 22 minutes from home and it was amazing how it felt like we were in a different city entirely.

Hudson really had no interest in being in the stroller until we got to some of the rougher patches of the trail. When it got bumpy he was thrilled … he was singing constantly to hear the vibration in his own voice.

Hudson was asleep by 8 PM and we got a full 12 hours sleep again last night. Now, we are ready to face the day!

You Know You’re a Dad When

Posted by ngreene on Mar 19, 2012 in Family

Every day or two it’s time for Hudson to have a bath. We have a routine where we jump into the tub together and play with a whole miscellany of toys that he’s been given, then I wash his hair and give him a good rinse before letting him get back to playing.

Some days, I can rely on Mom to help with the drying phase, which allows me to actually clean myself for a few minutes before getting out to dry off.

Last night, not unlike any other day, we played, cleaned, played, and Mom was there to grab the boy and get him ready for bed. It was then that I found myself being more of a Dad than I’ve ever noticed before. Even with Hudson out of the room entirely, I still went through the toy cleanup routine that we usually go through before letting the water out.

Alone in the bathroom, I was singing: “Hello Mr Dolphin, it’s time to go away”; “And you, Mr Turtle, time to spit out that water”; “And where do you think you’re going Mr Crab …” before finally realizing that I was alone.

Strangely, I was a little embarrassed even though I was the only one there. I guess being a Dad gives license to act a little childish at times.

iPad Day

Posted by ngreene on Mar 16, 2012 in Family

It’s amazing what a couple of nights sleep will do for a man. Hudson seems to be back on a solid schedule and we are all so much happier!

The only downside is that the daytime naps have needed to be on my chest, but I really don’t mind. It stops me from getting things done around the house but, as long as I can sleep, I’m more than willing to put up with a messy home.

Today, we have double distractions because the new iPad was delivered first thing I. The morning and I have delusions of cleaning the basement. I would like to turn the basement into a child safe play room until we get a live-in nanny, but it is currently filled with tools and miscellaneous junk.

I have arranged for Hudson to be minded so, after a little procrastination, I will be ready to tackle the big job.

A Great Day

Posted by ngreene on Mar 15, 2012 in Family

I am thrilled to report that last night was the first night back into the perfect sleeping pattern with Hudson. I feel rested for the first time in weeks.

I’m not sure what we did right or wrong, but I’m going to try and duplicate the schedule from yesterday and just hope it sticks.

Our adventures for today will consist of a long walk that will eventually end up at Knife to pick up some freshly sharpened kitchen knives and a visit to Aunt Vicki to go swimming in her pool.

At the end of our day, the plan is to have another big dinner of two different types of solids and a few ounces of milk. Hopefully with the activity and a big dinner we can have a repeat of last night.

Pi Day

Posted by ngreene on Mar 14, 2012 in Family

I awoke this morning after a brutal night’s sleep. We still haven’t gotten our little boy back into the amazing sleep schedule that we had before he got sick a few weeks ago.

He was both miserable and starving all night long. We went from getting a full 12 hours of sleep to no more than 2-3 hours at a time. He also drank a full 4 bottles of formula between bedtime and morning.

Despite the setback, I’m still sticking to the new schedule today. I have the perfect adventures planned for the day. First, I’m making my annual trip to the Toronto Sportsman’s Show and Hudson is making his first appearance. I doubt that he will have any memory of the experience, but I still want him to come along.

After lunch, we are going to hit The Pie Shack in the Beach area of the city. This place is run by a friend and ex-colleague of mine from work and I’ve been looking forward to checking out his pies for the past three years, but haven’t made it that far east. March 14 (3/14) is international Pi day after all.

New System – Day 1

Posted by ngreene on Mar 13, 2012 in Family

Today, we got up early and got our day started. We drove Mom to work and headed out for the rest of the morning. I’m planning to use today as a template to the rest of the week.

Here’s what I’m thinking for a schedule:

- Wake up routine (includes new diaper and eating)
- Adventure #1 (doesn’t really matter what it is as long as it’s out of the house)
- Lunch
- Nap time
- Adventure #2 (out of the house again or play time at home)
- Dinner

This should give Hudson enough stimulation during the day that he will be tired enough to go to bed at a reasonable hour at night.

The tricky part will be getting him to sleep during the day. I’m hoping that I can trick him in to sleeping by filling his belly at lunch and getting him right down.

N

Routine

Posted by ngreene on Mar 12, 2012 in Family

My daily routine is something that I have taken for granted for years. While working, it wasn’t really something that I ever had to think about but now that I’m away from work for a parental leave I’m finding myself completely lost and trying to adapt.

My son is probably frustrated as much as I am because I’m really just reacting to his needs and not laying down the law as to how things should be done. I figured that the first few weeks would be a transitionary period so I guess I shouldn’t be too hard on myself.

I need to make some decisions and set some priorities. And I need to do both soon. Personally, I’ve been gaining weight because I’m not planning out my meals and, instead, am just eating constantly. Financially, I need to remember that I have a reduced income and stop spending. Physically, I’m actually doing fairly well because a side effect of not having a plan has been a fairly sizable increase in exercise.

I really need to take the next few days and formalize a routine for both of us. Starting tomorrow, I am implementing a feeding schedule and a nap time in both the morning and afternoon. I’m anticipating the naps to be the toughest part of the day because Hudson really does not like to sleep during the day. The good news is that I have a work-around … He naps while I walk him around in the stroller.