Fatherhood

Jen and I have asked ourselves few questions along the way ... I'm sure there will be more, but here are some of the answers we have found: What if he drinks the bath water? He might feel queasy or get diarrhea if the water is soapy, but he will not have a problem with germs unless he bathes with someone else, says Philip Tierno, Ph.D., director of clinical microbiology at New York University Medical Center, in New York City, and author of The Secret Life of Germs. Wash children one at a time, and try not to let them drink the water. What if he sticks his finger into a socket? Standard household current would give a child a mild shock, similar to that from static electricity, says Liza DeWitt, M.D., a pediatrician at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, in Milwaukee. The child would be startled and probably pull his hand away, but electrical skin burns can still occur. What can be more serious is not pulling away immediately, which can put him at risk of internal o...

I pulled out the bed from the fold-out couch tonight ... for watching the election results. I managed this while Jen was in getting his bath. I got sheets out, put a blanket on and laid out pillows for our general comfort. I even arranged the snacks and juice (drinks for the non-toddlers in the group). Surprise ... Then, we got playing as Mama went to get a clean diaper for him ... All was well ... until ... He wanted off the bed, sliding forward and looking at me for assistance ... nothing unusual, so far. I moved down next to him, getting ready to help him to the floor. Then, I could only watch as he jumped up and sprinted to the other end of the bed where he buried himself in my pillow ... laughing all the way. ... Let the games begin!

Patrick had fun last night ... he was laughing and playing from the time he got home. Jumping around and playing with a spray bottle, he was a bundle of energy unlike I've ever seen. At one point, he tried one of my popsicles and I got the bright idea of placing it into one of his smaller cups. He loved it ... and we loved the fact that there was little mess. Dancing with the Stars was on and he spent almost the entire two hours dancing with his mother. While this was going on, I was remembering the night before when he fell asleep while getting his bath for the night ... simply sitting and playing, then asleep ... so cute! Last night, however, he was moving with a determined energy ... falling all over the place, obviously exhausted, but not willing to give up the fight. Eventually, he crashed and we placed him in his crib. I got a quick shock as he jumped and scrambled ... until his head hit the edge of the crib, then the snoring started up again. I'm not sur...

What a glorious afternoon ... It was a simple day, a Saturday, with nothing to do. Just me ... my son, and my wife. And, we did nothing ... OK, maybe a bit of television and a few diaper changes. Showers and a bath, but nothing more than that. Then, we got to the late afternoon and Patrick kind of went ballistic ... crying, no screaming ... We tried several things and I finally carried him to our bedroom where I started to bounce him ... the tears faded ... and bounce him, some more ... and he simply whimpered ... and bounced him, some more. Eventually, he fell asleep and, minus a quick shift to the center of the bed, he slept soundly for several hours. ... what a glorious afternoon.

This morning was unusual. Patrick woke at three in the morning and was still up and about when I got up for work at five. While there was nothing unusual to this point, having him join me in the bathroom as I got ready for my work day was ... I was closing the door and turning on the lights, when the door opened back up and there stood my son. He joined me. I put him on the counter with his feet in the sink while we brushed our teeth. I left him to his mother as I got into the shower. Patrick quickly opened the door to the shower. "Patrick, Papa's going to get cold in there," his mother intoned. I told her that it was warm enough in the bathroom. No water was splashing out, so I had few concerns. I passed toys to Patrick, only to have them thrown back at me. All fun and games! Then, he wandered off for a few seconds ... and the toilet flushed. So much for a warm shower! All in fun. What an amazing way to start the day ...

My to-do list has been magnified to previously unimaginable proportions ... it used to be "honey-do" list (honey, do this). It has become a to-do list of survival ... but thankfully, only for about twenty-four more hours. Jennifer had to go to a conference. I opted to take care of Patrick ... get him to school, get him from school, dinner, a bath, then put him down to sleep. Repeat. Repeat again ... done. Simple, right? Not so ... School entails getting up, hopefully without waking him up (there is no fall back if he wakes while I am in the shower). Get him ready for school ... not so bad, but try diapering a child that likes to sleep on his stomach. Plus, we have the added constraint that I have to get him to "my" father's because I have to be at work an hour before daycare opens. Picking him up from school ... not so bad, except for the activities after school ... we will avoid those in this article. Let's just say these are life events, n...

I have got my son by myself until Tuesday night ... not truly by myself, but it feels that way. Jen is at a conference from Sunday to Wednesday ... and I get to be a solo Papa! I do have to be at work at six in the morning and daycare opens at seven ... so Papap is pitching in to get Patrick to school. But, other than that, he is all mine. We had a fun time last night ... dinner with Papap, then he got hungry again once we got home (don't forget the pretzels he tried to get into ... all over the floor). We got a bath ... smiles and laughter all around. Toward nine in the evening, he was getting tired and obviously looking for Mama (who usually gets him to sleep). I tried all kinds of things and gave up after about thirty minutes and threw him  in the back of the car and drove around until he dropped off ... then, he slept all night! More fun to come ... one day down and two to go!

In a glass, in a sports bottle ... in a large tub, in a small tub, in a sink ... in a plastic pool, in a regular pool, in the ocean ... Patrick loves water. He'll climb in, have us lift him in, now and then, fall in ... sometimes we hold him over the sink with the water running as he puts his hands in.  We'll cup some water to wash off his face as his tongue comes out to get a drink (very cute by the way).  Patrick loves water. I'm told that at the pool the other day, Jen got into the pool with him on her shoulder then walked Patrick around the pool (he was tired at the time).  He loves the water so much that he fell asleep. A few days ago, I walked into the bathroom to see Patrick sitting in the sink, facing the mirror ... two of him, playing in the water and having an amazing time. If he's put into the sink, he'll stand for a bit, but generally he enjoys sitting there playing in the water.  We showed him the water coming from the hose outside the other d...

OK, it's not just water, but let me have some  delusions.  This article gives a whole new meaning to baby shower  ... no cakes or presents this time.  Although, for all the times when fatherhood seemed challenging, this just makes me laugh. Patrick was less than an hour old ... one of the nurses was changing him when felt something warm on my chest.  He managed to pee on me when I was standing over five feet away! The nurses were kind enough to offer towels (although there was little odor at the time) and I did manage to get cleaned up. Since he's been home, we get the random "fountain" that is more humorous than anything else ... and most often, these fountains are for my benefit. It all started with one of his amazing smiles as I was changing his diaper ... something I'm not totally adverse to anymore.  As soon as the diaper was lifted off ... so, the flow began.  After several soakings, I've learned to watch for that smile ... with the dia...