The World According to Baby
Who or what is that?
I wonder what the world is like for my baby. I wonder how she manages to process all of the new information she receives each day without having a total meltdown. Sometimes, browsing the web for a couple hours and reading the news can make my head hurt, what must it be like for someone who doesn't know language yet? Who hears a few hundred new words every day? Who sees a few hundred new things each hour? Who doesn't know what something will feel like when she touches it, doesn't know how something will smell when it's brought close to her face, doesn't know how a new food will taste, doesn't know what's hot or cold, what's smooth or rough, what's soft or hard?
It's making my head hurt just thinking about it.
D.
Taking Turns with Baby
Oops, looks like I fell asleep during my turn
My wife and I have adopted a simple system of taking turns. One morning, I'll get a little extra sleep, while she gives the baby the bottle. The next morning, I'll let her sleep some more. One night, I'll handle the bath. The next night, she will. If my wife put the baby down for her last nap, then I'll handle getting her down that night.
We found from way back at the beginning that this was the only way we could really handle things. When Baby J. had her nights and days mixed up, we would take turns, staying up all night long with Baby J. We'd give the other 2-3 hours of sleep, before we'd hand the baby over. It was better than one of us having to stay up all night, and it was the only way to deal with a reflux baby, who had a terrible bout of colic (she liked to scream and cry for hours, and the only effective response to this, was to stay up the entire time rocking her).
I bring it up, because I know some people who never get to take turns, some people who are with the baby all day while their spouse is at work. And then, when the spouse gets home, they don't get relief, they're still taking care of the baby, giving the bath, getting him/her down for sleep. I don't know how it's done. I couldn't do it. I know how exhausting Daddy Daughter Days are and those usually don't last more than 8 hrs before my wife comes back into the picture to help out. If I had 24 hr long Daddy Daughter Days 7 days a week, I'm sure I'd be clinically insane by now. So, for those who do it, how do you do it? How do you keep from going insane?
D.
Flu Season
Too many germs outside, you can only look
Maybe it's better if we never go outside at all.
I mean, how careful are you during flu season? My wife have gotten into the habit of wiping anything and everything down with baby wipes, especially anything in public like shopping carts, benches, tables, chairs, etc. It's when everyone is catching the flu that you suddenly realize just how many things your baby licks. You'd think we'd be born with the instinct that sticking things in our mouths leads to germs that can make us extremely ill.
This is the first year where I'm really worried about getting sick myself. Before this year, I hadn't gotten a flu shot in probably ten years. I never really thought about it. If I got the flu, big deal, I'd be sick for a few days, and then I'd be back on my feet. But after already catching a couple of colds in the last 9 months and spreading them to my little one, I'm more worried than ever that I'll catch something serious. I start to worry so much that sometimes I panic a little. You know how you start tracing all the possibilities in your head, and you go from "maybe I'll catch a cold" to "my god, I'm going to give my kid swine flu!"
It's ridiculous. I don't like being a worrier, but I can't help it. I see every sharp corner. I see every staircase as a potential fall. I see every button or quarter or whatever that have fallen out of my pocket as potential choking hazards. Every time someone sneezes in public, I zero in on them. Every time someone coughs, I try and get out of their way as fast as possible. Every time some kid has a snotty, runny nose, I head for the hills.
This is my life now. And the grim reality of it is that it won't get better when Baby J. is older. I'll just have more worries. The worries will only get bigger and worse the older she gets. I really don't know how people do it.
D.
I’m So Tired
I'm so tired, I haven't slept a wink
I'm so tired, my mind is on the blink
I wonder should I get up and fix myself a drink
No, no, no.
I'm exhausted. Baby J. woke me up at 5am this morning by squealing into the baby monitor. She continued sleeping for another hour, while I sat in bed, wide eyed wanting to use the bathroom but afraid that making any noise at all would wake the baby. It didn't help that the night before I tossed and turned for an hour before falling asleep. This morning, I was hoping that after the baby got her bottle, she would want to go back to sleep (as she's sometimes apt to do). No, instead, she wanted to yell at me, slap me in the head, and headbutt me (all things everyone wants to experience first thing in the morning).
Oh well, Baby J. is lucky she's so cute.
Lucky Girl
