Hey, I'm back. In
case you've been really concerned, I didn't die. Nope, instead I just came down with a really
nasty case of the flu. Total truth here,
I actually spent twenty-four straight hours in bed one day last week. If I hadn't felt like walking death, then
it'd be a really cool accomplishment.
Given the circumstances though, not cool at all. I actually was feeling better by Wednesday
and considered blogging that day.
However, I had a little discussion with myself first. It went something like this, "Self,
you've been really sick for a few days now.
You could blog today, but keep in mind that you won't be able to blog on
Thursday or Friday because you'll have a Bethany around. Therefore, the blog wouldn't count as a real
day because you had your wife around.
So, rather than have one random day to account for, you should probably
just take it off and have a blogless week." So after that lengthy consideration, I chose
to just take last week off so welcome back to #DaddyWrite!
I noticed something that I find really interesting about
Ellie today. She actually seems really
happy to be home today after a weekend of traveling and being with family. I mean, sure, I always enjoy getting back
home after a time away. There's
something about being back in your own environment and just getting back into a
normal routine that is really nice. That
being said, I didn't really expect that from a five month old. I always kind of figured that she was just
happy wherever as long as Bethany and I were present and accounted for. That being said, she definitely is showing
some characteristics that show her happiness to be home.
Anytime Ellie has to sleep away from home, it definitely
impacts her quality of sleep. Going from
her normal napping place of her swing to her car seat or a pack-and-play or a
bed definitely impacted her attitude over the weekend. We have certainly found that if Ellie doesn't
sleep every two hours, she begins to get really frustrated. In light of that, my goal for this week was
very evident; make sure the baby sleeps.
I feel like I've been able to do just that. Putting her down this morning around 6:30,
Ellie actually stayed put in her swing until 11:00! She was definitely worn completely out after
a long weekend away for the holidays.
Once Ellie woke up, I decided the most humane thing to do
for my five month old who had been away from home all weekend was to stuff her
in her car seat and take her out of her home again. I had a good reason; we really needed milk. Going to the grocery store as a dad alone
with a baby is always one of my favorite experiences. First and foremost, it really bucks social
norms so you definitely get some interesting glances. Even more so, I love to talk to Ellie as
we're walking up and down aisles explaining what we're seeing, telling her
what's tasty and what's not, and cracking dad jokes. I also love how when you pass by another
shopper, a phenomenon not unlike that which you see on the highway after a
wreck occurs. That's right, baby
rubberneckers are alive and well. People
will always slow their rate of speed and turn, hoping to catch a glimpse of the
baby as it passes by. Once our groceries
were purchased, we headed on home so that Ellie could bask in the comfort of
her own home for the remainder of the day.
As I write this, I feel that I would be remiss if I
neglected to even mention Thanksgiving. It was actually an incredibly enjoyable
weekend, outside of a third of Bethany's family suffering from flu-like
symptoms. Of course that could be partly because I discovered the song, 'Beans & Cornbread.' That's neither here nor there
though. On Ellie's first Thanksgiving, I
find myself thankful for two things above all.
Number one is Ellie. I am so
thankful that she is happy and healthy and absolutely love how her little
personality continues to flourish. Not a
day goes by that she doesn't make me laugh and smile at least a little bit
regardless of how bad things might be going.
I'm also thankful for my current lot in life as a stay-at-home dad. Yeah, I like to emasculate myself quite a bit
as a result of this "job" but it's actually really great. I am having the opportunity to not only
recharge and figure out what to do with my life long-term, but I'm able to be
arguably the formative figure in the first year of my daughter's life. Sorry to Bethany if I'm being a little cocky
in saying so. Oh wait, can I also be
thankful for gifs on iOS 10? If so, then
I choose to be thankful for gifs on iOS 10.
The other stuff I said isn't that important... #DaddyWrite
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