Shhh ... Baby is Sleeping

... in the Car

When I was little (much closer to Patrick's age and size ... and yes, I realize that was quite a while ago) my parent would to put me in the car and drive around to get me to sleep. It was apparently effective enough for them to mention it to us when we brought Patrick home.

This trick works ... Patrick falls into such a deep peaceful sleep, I really hate to turn the engine off some days.

... in the House

There are times when I wonder if the car wouldn't be a better option. We get him to sleep on our shoulder ... then make any attempt to place him in the crib and he is instantly awake. We get him to sleep between us ... and again, any attempt to lift him to carry him to the crib and he's awake.

This is not "sleepy eyes, smiling at me" awake ... this is I'm irritated and I need as many people to know as I can manage. For an amazingly pleasant child, he can crank out the decibels when he wants to.

We've tried letting him cry himself to sleep (before you comment about this, we've only been trying this for the last few weeks) ... I think it worked once, but I was half asleep so it could have been a pleasant dream. I'll have to ask Jen about it later.

I do have to say at this point that when he wakes during the night, there is actually some reason ... thirsty, need a diaper change, etc. And at times, he does wake up in the morning with a beautiful smile on ... this morning was actually one of those mornings. He started the day with cartoons, pretzels, and fruit juice!

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"Hello?"

We walked into my parents house ... looking for Papap. "Hello," we called. "'Ello," Patrick mimicked. "Hello," we called again, laughing a bit. "'Ello," Patrick mimicked again, delighted that he could get us laughing that easily. Out in the back yard, he went for the shovel (small blue plastic one I got for him a while back). "Maybe he should go shovel in the sand-box," Papap said ... Off he went to the sand-box, lugging the shovel. Later I asked him if he wanted raisins. Shaking his head no, he headed for the fridge. "Eeze," he said ... Cheese, he intended. His comprehension and vocal capacity is growing by leaps and bounds!

Terror or Anger

Jennifer and I woke about twenty minutes ago to Patrick crying ... nothing unusual. I asked her to get him since I have to start getting ready for work in about three hours (yes, I have to work on a Saturday). Where things became unusual was the loud, sustained crash, and Patrick's cries rising to a hefty scream. Being the concerned parent that I am ... with visions of his changing table collapsed on top of him, I rushed to their aid. "What was that?" I cried. Jennifer, weakly replied, "I fell down the stairs." With Patrick screaming at the top of his lungs, I think I actually asked her to repeat what she said. I found my wife sitting, with her legs out and my son in her arms, at the bottom of the stairs. Asking if she and Patrick were OK was mixed into confused questioning about what happened. Somehow, her feet went out from under her (we suspect a couple of the leaves that Patrick likes to play with were on the steps). While my real concern was i

A Simple Evening

We had my parents over for dinner last night ... Patrick and Jen prepared dinner, even going as far as making brownies for desert! It was very cool watching Patrick cuddle with his Grandfather. It is always amazing to me how those two get along. It was also very cool watching Patrick and his Grandmother read a book together ... Before dinner, he got a chance to show off the cast-iron toy stove that Jen had played with as a child. This has become one of his favorite toys ... the parts certainly make a lot of noise when he tosses them across the room. At dinner, I sat next to Patrick, across from his grandparents ... their expressions as they watched him were sheer joy and a joy to watch, as well. At one point, I asked Patrick to show them the Moon and Stars in his room. He has a humidifier that lights up, projecting colored starts and a moon on the ceiling ... he loves them. He immediately headed for the stairs, and turned to his grandparents and signaled come on ... a q

Fatherhood

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