Day 609 - Ethan's "First" Outing

I think the walls are beginning to close in for Ellie and I. 

What's that? No, you don't need to worry. The walls of our house are still vertical; I promise they are not caving in. Even if they were, we have plenty of friends with construction knowhow we could goad into helping us. 

Instead, I mean the walls are closing in on Ellie and I in a metaphorical sense. Basically between the rainy spring and having an infant, we've spent a decent amount of time stuck in the house. Honestly, Ellie is probably having a more difficult time with it than I am. Not only does she not get to escape the house multiple times a week anymore but she also has to deal with me constantly splitting my attention between her and Ethan. Lucky for Ellie, yesterday actually marked a first for us in the age of Ethan: a shopping excursion.

Thursday night marks the final meeting of our Church life group until fall. Therefore, it's only fitting that we do some kind of fun activity to celebrate. In this instance, the fun was via a "family barbeque". Part of a "family barbeque" is that everyone contributes something to the cause. For our family, that item would be brats. Conveniently enough, Menards was running a sale on brats for Memorial Day week. Yes, a hardware store was running a sale on bratwursts. With that, I loaded both kids up and we headed to Menards to obtain our prize.

First of all, I should be certain to mention that it definitely takes a lot longer for me to get out the door with two kids than it did with just Ellie. We previously had it down to a science where I could get her shoes on and load her up in the car rather quickly. Then, I could make a quick run back inside to get library books, shopping bags, or anything else we might need for an outing. Now, after that first step, I get Ethan in his car seat, toss the diaper bag on my back, and put him in the car before running back inside to get any final necessities.

That takes us to Menards. In the past, parking lot etiquette for us was for me to just pick up Ellie and head inside. On this occasion, with Ethan's car seat in one hand, I really couldn't pick Ellie up easily. Therefore, she had to hold my hand and walk beside as we crossed the lot. It should be added that she asked me at least twice to pick her up and carry her inside.

Once inside, I loaded both kids in the shopping cart, Ethan and his car seat in the bottom and Ellie sitting in the top part. We then found our way back to the grocery section of store (I know; it's weird) only to find an empty cooler where the brats had been. As I knew our mission had not been completed, I knew there was only one choice as to where I could definitively purchase brats at an economical price: Walmart. With that, we exited the store, I loaded both kids up, and headed to Walmart to do the same thing all over again.

Call David Caruso from CSI: Miami! There's been a robbery. We must hurry...before the case goes cold!

Well, not the exact same thing. At Walmart, Ellie was able to get a new container of raisins. She wouldn't have been able to do that at Menards. So I guess it was a good trade-off for her. As for Ethan? Well, he fell asleep in his car seat while walking around Walmart and got a quality nap. Me? I bought an Orange-Vanilla Coke. See, we all got something. #DaddyWrite

Paul Menard dramatically putting on sunglasses like David Caruso brings me joy.

Day 605 - TBT: Day 600

Here's a question for all of the stay-at-home parents out there with multiple kids. Actually, on second thought, any parent can probably answer this as well. How soon did you work up the courage to break out of the house, just you and the kiddos? 

For me, considering Bethany's only been at work for two weeks, it's actually more times than you would think. There's already been park trips and story times. We've also made several car trips with the sole purpose of calming down a screaming Ethan. We've even made a trip to Sam's Club, Target, and the bank. I guess that I should probably mention that those three trips were accomplished using the drive-thru or pick-up lanes. If you haven't taken advantage of those services, you definitely should because they're amazing!

This gif has the gift of foresight.

Of course, none of those times marked the first solo outing with two kids. The first outing was a week ago Thursday as the three of us met my sister-in-law and her two boys at the Deanna Rose Farm. On second thought, I guess that wouldn't technically be a solo outing. Although it should really count for something that I successfully got Ellie, Ethan, and myself all dressed, out the door, in the car, and down to Overland Park by 10:15. 

One thing I learned rather quickly on this little outing is that being a parent to two small children requires a lot more preparation for going out and about. For one thing, it's beneficial to actually know something about where one is going. For some weird reason, I had this misconception that the Deanna Rose Farm was a glorified petting zoo. Therefore, my plan for the day was to strap Ethan on in his carrier and to just have Ellie walk. Well, you can imagine my surprise as I watched Nicole unload her double stroller and plunk both kids inside. At this point, I was definitely afraid my lack of foresight was going to make for a rough day. Lucky for me, Nicole had prepared for my unpreparedness and packed an umbrella stroller as well.

While this kind of outing with Nicole was nothing new, the presence of Ethan certainly changed things a bit. I didn't realize just how much carrying an extra 15(?) pounds on my chest would impact me. For one, I underestimated how much heat the little man would produce while strapped to my chest. By the end of the morning, I had pretty much sweat through my entire t-shirt. For another, Ethan's already longer than Ellie was at that age meaning that I pretty much had to have my chin tilted up or my head cocked to the side to avoid striking him with my face each time we took a step. Never an ideal circumstance.

Don't be scared little man. I promise I won't dent your head...much.

It wasn't all bad though. It's always fun to see Ellie and Elbert get to play and interact with each other since they're the same age. It's also enjoyable to be able to catch up with Nicole and hear about what's happening in their lives. To top it all off, I even got to see a bald eagle in captivity. So what if it had a hurt foot; it was still cool! 

Even if my first solo outing with both kids didn't go entirely according to plan, it taught me a multitude of lessons. Chief among them is look up information about where online if I don't have any advance knowledge of what to expect. Oh, and I should also pack another t-shirt for the ride home on hot days like that. My car still smells like gross dude sweat. #DaddyWrite

Because I can.

Day 604 - Ethan's Impossible Nemesis

Just like approximately 82.7% of the rest of the American population, I really like superhero movies. On the same token, I admit that it's likely a fad that will eventually run its course. However, that doesn't really matter in the context of this hook. 

Of course, something that every hero requires is a villain. Oh wow, I just went from talking about superhero movies to paraphrasing the opening dialogue spoken by the old Russian scientist in Mission: Impossible 2. This is going to be quite the meandering blog post, isn't it?

I didn't notice the whole baggy coat comment until long after posting this gif.

Back to the topic of heroes versus villains. Instead of using the word 'villain', I would instead prefer to use the word 'nemesis'. My main reason for doing so is that villain implies something of human origin whereas nemesis can be more broad in meaning. Even if that's not the case, it will be for the purposes of this blog post. 

Ellie has had many nemesis over the years. It could be sleep, certain foods, bugs. It could even be something as mundane as a toy left in the wrong place. Ellie's intense dislike for certain things, while obnoxious and inconvenient, has become a way of life that we are all now accustomed to. 

In regards to Ethan, I had hopes we would never discover his so-called nemesis. For the first few months of his life, that couldn't have been more true as he was arguably the world's most agreeable baby. However, now that Bethany is clearly back at work, I've seen that status quo change. It started simply with noticeably fewer smiles here and there. Now, it has devolved into full-scale protests over what is possibly the easiest thing in the world for a baby: sleep.

When Bethany first returned to work, getting Ethan to sleep was a relatively easy proposition. Once he showed the slightest sign of tiredness, I would just lay him down in his crib, turn on the sound machine, and close the door behind me. Ethan would then inevitably fall into a deep slumber for the next two to three hours. Now, though, that is a thing of the past.

From the time I lay my son in his crib, I'm lucky if he falls asleep. Instead, he chooses to whine, moan, and complain in the loudest terms he can muster. He'll even sometimes shove his feet through the bars of the crib just to add to his unhappiness. If by some miracle he actually falls asleep, it generally will only last about 30 minutes before his cries echo through the house again.

This afternoon marked a true fight in the quest for Ethan's slumber. After only being in his crib for 20 minutes, Ethan's pitiful cries rang from his room. Knowing full well that would never be enough sleep for my little boy, I began going down the list of things I knew could make him happy. Changing his diaper, bouncing him in the bouncy seat, laying him on his playmat. Nothing except holding him would ease his suffering.

The unfortunate part of holding Ethan is that he generally won't allow someone to sit and hold him. He wants that feeling of constant movement and bouncing. As I wasn't really feeling like spending an hour walking around the house with Ethan, I chose to pursue alternative measures. What were those you might ask? Ellie's rocking chair.

As soon as we sat down in Ellie's rocking chair, Ethan immediately began crying. Unfortunately for him, I wasn't ready to give in. Therefore, I began to softly bounce him in my arms as we rocked back and forth. Despite his misgivings, exhaustion finally overtook poor Ethan after approximately 15 minutes. For yours truly, it only took about another five minutes after that for those same feelings of exhaustion to overtake me.

Before I knew it, we had been asleep in Ellie's rocking chair for twenty minutes. In fact, the only reason I had woken up is because Ellie had come up to check on us. I know, I know; hardly father of the year material. The good thing is that at least I can trust Ellie to stay out of trouble during the occasional bout of succumbing to exhaustion on my part.

Or at least I think I can...#DaddyWrite.

Day 602 - Just Like the Rain

Happy Monday everyone. Hope you're enjoying the backdrop of a torrential downpour happening right outside our windows. 

You know, a torrential downpour is a funny thing. It can really elicit one of two responses. A person can be irritated or ticked off by it. I think I would qualify as slightly irritated because all I can think about is just how tall my back yard is going to be once I finally am able to mow it. In case you're wondering, it's already been four weeks (I think) since I mowed the back lawn.

Of course, the flip side of that coin is that one can choose to look on the bright side. For example, rain can be a beautiful thing. Not to mention, if we're lucky, the rain will wash the dead groundhog in the street further away from our house. I would call that a huge win.

Similar to one's emotions regarding the rain, this day has provided me with the opportunity to look at it in different ways. I could use the lens of anger, frustration, or mental anguish. As an alternative, I could instead choose to enjoy and embrace the really neat parts of my day (I really don't remember the last time I used 'neat' in a sentence). 

Ok, I've decided. I think I want to enjoy and embrace the neat parts of my day. Although, before doing so, I feel the urge to explain just what exactly made this a difficult day for yours truly.

Ethan is very similar to his sister in many ways, chief among them being his unyielding love for his mother. Of course, I didn't realize just how much he loves Bethany until today when he spent four or five hours screaming in epic fashion. In case you don't see where this is going, once Bethany got home this evening, every ounce of Ethan's malcontent flew out the window, leaving only a cooing, happy baby in its place.

Unfortunately for me, Mondays is when Bethany meets up with a girl from our college life group that she is discipling. Even though Bethany offered to take Ethan along, I put my foot down and said I could handle things. Hindsight being 20/20, I probably should have let her take him along.

That's enough time spent reflecting on the difficult part of my day though. I want to talk about the cute and fun parts for a while. 

Like any infant, Ethan's world is pretty much filled with endless amounts of discovery. In fact, once he discovers something, he becomes intrigued by it to the point of obsession. In some instances, the discovery can even negatively impact his sleep. For an example, look no further than Ethan's feet.

Over the past couple of days, it has become very commonplace to see Ethan tightly gripping his feet and/or toes whenever he's in his bed or bouncy seat. In his bouncy seat, it's really not a big issue. When it pertains to his bed though, it is.

For starters, any time we lay Ethan down in his bed, rather than laying prone and sucking on a pacifier like he has become accustomed to, Ethan now will immediately roll to his side and desperately paw at his feet. On occasions, he has even gotten his feet stuck in the bars of his crib. 

You know, now as I write this, I realize there can even be a downside to super-cute situations. However, I feel strongly that the super-cuteness of said super-cute situations will continue to rise above the aforementioned downsides. At least I hope that's the case. #DaddyWrite

Day 595 - Eyes Wide Open

Ok, I have a challenge for all of you, dear readers. Look at the picture of a really cute baby and let me know what the very first thing you notice is. Oh, don't worry, I'll wait.

No, I'm not referring to the fact that Ethan is laying on one of Ellie's pink quilts. Don't judge me; it was downstairs and easily accessible at the time. Try again. Sorry, I am not referring to the epic smile plastered across the little man's face either. It is a pretty epic smile though, right? 

For the interest of time (and word count), I'll go ahead and tell you what the right answer is. It's the eyes. Big, blue, and shining. What's interesting about that picture is the fact that it is physically possible for Ethan to have his eyes open wider than that. For the record, it's possible for both Ethan and Ellie to open their eyes a little too much. I'll explain.

As Ethan is getting older, there is added importance on interacting with him more. Honestly, this is something I'm still trying to figure out. Number one, I struggle with interacting with infants as I somewhat view them as a new decoration or adornment. Don't get me wrong as I definitely love my son (and Ellie at that age). I just struggle with relating.

Lucky for me, my wife is the opposite. She was seemingly born with an innate sense of how to care for our kids. Either that or she is not shy about searching for tips from friends, books, or the internet. That leads us to today's activity with Ethan. 

During a text conversation with Bethany, she informed me that Ethan was at an age where he would absolutely love being flown around like an airplane. Of course, like any veteran father, I needed to ask for exact details of how to do so. Once I had the details in hand, I took Ethan, well, I took him in my hand and proceeded to fly him around the kitchen and living room. With every dip or rise in the flight pattern, I saw my son's eyes widen to the point where the whites covered more visible surface area than the blue.

Of course, none of this could be done without Ellie following along in my every footstep. That brings me to my next point pertaining to eyes widening. In this instance, when one's eyes are larger than one's stomach.

Simply put, Ellie loves to eat. I'm rather hopeful this will lead her down the road to a Bobby Flay-esque career. At bare minimum, I'm hopeful she will take over cooking for holidays in the future. More likely, it just means she's growing and needs the added nutrition.

Lunch today began with Ellie partaking in a hearty helping of Taco Pie. This delicacy has everything a growing girl needs to fill her up: cornbread, taco meat, cheese, and salsa. Once she got about 3/4 of the way through her meal, Ellie stopped, turned to me, and announced, "I would like an apple, please." Now, I'm definitely not going to turn down that level of politeness so therefore, I went to slice her an apple.

Once I brought it to the table, Ellie happily chomped down on the first slice, polishing it off rather quickly. She then started on the second slice. After taking a massive first bite, she swallowed, looked at me and announced, "I'm full." Like Ethan on his plane ride, Ellie too suffered from a case of widened eyes. The only difference was that while Ethan's eyes were wide because of his experience, Ellie's were wide due to the promise of unnecessary food.

There is a positive to take away from this though. At least Ellie's afternoon snack is already sliced up and ready to go. Yay for unintentional snack pre-preparation. #DaddyWrite