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?
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| 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.
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