Shane's 1st Birthday Week!

Shane turned ONE this week!

On Sunday, we gathered at my parents house for cake and presents! Shane thought chocolate cake tasted horrible, but that it look great smeared all over his face and clothes. Pictures will be posted once I get my hands on them.

Nana (my mom) turned the birthday party into a "birthday week" for Shane whenever he was at Nana daycare. He was sharing the house with three emergency foster care kids, so they got to join in on the festivities. She took the kids to the mall, and who knows where else!

I stole a page from her book today and took Shane down to a play area at the mall before the stores open. Shane was shy for a change. It took him a while to start running and crawling around. I think there was so much to see and look at that it took him a little to take it all in. After 35 minutes or so, we strollered around the mall, got Dad's lunch (that's me!) and I drove Shane home where he took a really long nap. I felt like a million dollar dad. I need to take Shane out to see other kids more often. It's good for my sanity and his development.

More Shane-annigans and updates will be coming.

A Note on Parenting

Yet another thing people told me while Carrie was pregnant has come true. I was warned that parenting would introduce me to new "highs and lows" in my life.

Allow me to explain.

When your child is upset, you're upset. When they are excited, so are you. The difference is that you cannot control your child's emotions, so you get to ride along whatever roller coaster they drag you on!

Parenting is definitely an endurance sport. Once that little one takes his first breath, you're on duty until the day you die. Sounds morbid doesn't it?  (I tend to look at things in a "what's my duty?" sort of way sometimes.)  Even when Shane's asleep, I have a monitor nearby in case he may need me. The whole parenting gig started off with broken and missing sleep, and even though Shane's sleeping well now I've had to redefine what rest and relaxation means to me. Many times, I spend my off time doing tasks and chores that need to be done so that my  on time will be easier to bear. There are some days I feel burnt out and drained of energy by evening. Those are the days I lay on the floor counting down to baby bedtime and supervising Shane by letting him crawl all over me and manhandle my ears and hair. Those are the days I wonder if I'm a good parent or not.

On the other hand, parenting can also be a rush. When my boy smiles, I feel like everything is going to work out fine. Watching Shane learn a new task or get really excited about something is contagious. Things that I find mundane and boring (like opening a door), become entertaining to watch when Shane's the one straining to reach the handle. I'm really looking forward to the discoveries he's going to make in the coming year! Hopefully, I'll get lots of pictures and videos too, because they're a joy to flip back and look through. Secondly, Shane's instilled in me a strong sense of duty and purpose when it comes to his care. I've never worked harder around the house or at work now that everything I do I feel as if I'm not doing it just for me. I'm doing it for my boy who's counting on me. There's some stress associated with that, but I feel like it's "growing" stress instead of the "tear you down" variety. Finally, being a parent has taught me A LOT. I've read and read, and thought about a lot of things in new ways. For one, I have infinitely more empathy for anyone who's a parent now! Plus, I know that being a homemaker is not the racket I once thought it was. I'd rather be working (unless of course the boy were to be in school most of the day and then I'd reconsider!)

The bottom line is: would I do it again knowing what I now know?  Yes. I'd take a second child if the opportunity came along. I feel like being a parent has been a growing experience for me, and I'm looking forward to seeing my son grow more.

On a sadder note: I received an email this week that hurt to read. I further highlighted to me just how blessed and what a privilege it is that I even have a son. I'll copy it in here, but delete the names so you can read it if you wish. It's an announcement from someone I know that they've discovered their unborn child's brain and spine never fully developed and life outside the womb is not viable. Carrie and I didn't announce her pregnancy until we were sure we'd gotten past the most common miscarriage point (because they happen far more often than people think), and I spent most of the pregnancy praying that my son would be born healthy (working with all of the exceptions to the rule in special ed does wonders for the imagination of an expectant father).

Anyway, click if you want to read the email and remember: kids are a blessing if you have them....no matter how tired you are at any given moment! I'm still amazed it's been over a year for me.

My apologies

My apologies to the two people who may read this, all of the Russian ping bots, and myself for not updating in a while.  Shane skipped walking-walking and he's more into a power-walk and opening doors. I've had to focus more on watching him than typing while he plays.

The little tyke just went down for a nap a little over half an hour ago. Instead of taking a break, that was my cue to RUSH and get as many chores in motion as I could, so that I could take the latter part of his nap off. I've hung up laundry, showered, shaved, carted down new laundry, washed dishes, washed bottles, and grabbed clothes to change Shane into when he wakes up. No single task is extraordinarily difficult or time consuming, but it's hard to do while Shane's awake.

I'm going to try and update a bunch this week, but we'll see if I hold true to my word. I need to keep getting things ready right now, because we're going to go celebrate his first birthday at my parent's house!  It's hard to believe it's already been that long since Shane came along.

Adios for now.

Crayfish!

What better way to end a week of dealing with crayfish than going to Popeye's after work to buy a box of fried ones?  The history teacher I work with mentioned it on Wednesday. Then I saw the commercial on Thursday.

I had to have them.

As I was teaching kids how to safely hold crayfish (behind the arms), and how to tell if it's a male or female, I kept thinking "How do you suckers taste anyway?" I couldn't help but find it a little ironic as I gave the kids the "humane treatment" talk at the start of the lesson as well. I'm all for not torturing and terrifying my animals before I eat them.

Another Week Bites the Dust!

Another week successfully passed. Friday marked the end of the 1st Quarter of my school year. It's been one of the busiest quarters of my career!  Instead of my job getting easier the longer I've done it, I keep discovering new and better things I should be doing and I end up working harder and harder. There's been drama aplenty behind the scenes with parents and teachers, and I have a student who I think is getting expelled (rumor mill and unverifiable, but it fits). And it just entered November! Maybe this year will come roaring in like March does and end on a calmer note.

Today marks the 3rd Saturday in a row Shane's decided to wake up at 5 AM. He doesn't do it on the weekdays (thankfully), but he seems to know when it's my day on duty. The stink took a nice long nap around 8ish after being a crabby patty up until that point. I'm really wondering what Daylight Savings is going to look like for us. Will Shane adjust? Will I be waking up at the same time I've been waking up only the clock will read an hour earlier? Only time will tell.

Good news on the job front amongst the family. Ka got a 6-month engineering job ending her unemployment and Patrick got a job working for a movie theater. The job for Ka is the perfect length because of her pregnancy and Patrick working is a blessing in general. If it were for Shane, I'd visit him and get free tickets! Megan and Billy found out this week where they're going to be posted overseas for a year with the state department. They'll start their 'cultural/language' training in January. Great news all around!

I'd post more, but Shane keeps popping up from his nap. I laid him on me for 10 minutes to lull him back to sleep. There's still cleaning and laundry to do and some cat vomit that's on the floor. I got to step in it in the dark. Kids and kittens make for a fair amount of work.

13 Days Later...

I have survived another two weeks. Wednesday was the watershed "field experience." That's teacher code for "we're going on a field trip, but not really because we're going to make the kids work some." I suppose 'experience' makes the trip sound more meaningful and learn-a-riffic. Personally, I'm a-okay with anything that mixes up the daily routine. It was a lot of work, and we got rained on for the last twenty minutes, but breaking the daily grind was priceless. I would've shown up to work sick and vomiting to make the trip and then used sick leave for the day after.

After the trip, as I was cold and wet and supervising kids, I had a craving for a drink Carrie fixed for me yesterday: Irish Coffee. Coffee is the devil, but the Irish make it in a way even I'll drink it! Specifically, when I'm cold, wet, and tired. I would've loved one in that cafeteria...especially because I was out of my true love: tea. Don't worry, tea.  I haven't forsaken you..., but I may be adopting a special coffee for special occasions. Carrie's thrilled she finally got me to admit to liking a coffee. She made homemade cream and she made one for her mom yesterday to show off how she converted me to the 'dark side.'

It's been a while since I updated, so I guess I'm going to do a 'bullet dump.' That's where I throw up a 'click to read more' and drop a bunch of bullets about random crap that's been going on the past 13 days so that no one has to read it unless they click.

The Turning Point

Maybe "veteran" parent wasn't the right word in the last post. As a new parent, it was like I didn't trust my son to survive. I read books; I watched his chest to make sure he was breathing; I counted every ounce he drank. Now, I wonder if I'll survive!

This morning, Shane woke me up at 5 AM. Carrie was still asleep, because she'd fallen into a NyQuil induced coma on the couch downstairs. The tone of Shane's cries weren't hungry or hurt, but he was definitely unhappy. I didn't go into his room at first, because his cry was intermittent and I was worried that opening the door would fully wake him if he was slipping in and out of consciousness. Truthfully, I was also dead tired and praying that he would go back to sleep so that I could follow suit. Eventually, I went in and his room felt colder than I expected. I slipped some socks on him, an extra pair of pants, and then sat rubbing his back until he went back to sleep...sort of. He would doze off and on but he'd make enough noise that I never got back to sleep while listening to him on the intercom. Around 6:15 AM I went downstairs to make a bottle and fully wake the boy up.   His hands were cold, so it must be time to switch my A/C frame of mind from cool to heat.

As a new parent, I would've been panicking. As an at least somewhat experienced parent, I was hoping I could snatch five more z's before the boy needed me. Hence, the "I used to worry he wouldn't make it" to the "and now I wonder if I'll make it." I don't know when the flip happened, but happen it did!

Seriously, the boy is worth it all. Even when I'm exhausted, when he smiles I can't help but be filled with pride and a sense of accomplishment. Hopefully, I'll live long enough to enjoy many more years of it....at least until the teenage years. Then I'll really wonder if I'm going to make it through parenting sanity intact!

You know when you're a veteran parent when...

You know when you're a veteran parent when you hear your son gag on a baby puff and you're first reactions are to pat him on the back and cup your other hand in front of his mouth.  I caught a handful of throw-up.

Hands are much easier and quicker to clean than carpet.

In other news, my son is working out! He likes to climb up the stairs with Daddy shadowing him. He's tackled four stories worth today! Shane is quite the trooper. He just keeps on trucking.

Early Thanksgiving

The whole house smells of sweet potato pie. Carrie's sick so she's using baking as a means of distracting herself. Everyone who eats her cooking will benefit from her illness. Sorry, Love!

Tomorrow is going to be an early Early Thanksgiving for my family. Jama flew up from Texas to visit and meet my son, Shane. Since she won't be able to be here in November, we're having a whole turkey, stuffing, and pie-o-rama tomorrow! I get two Thanksgivings this year!  Good food, and it's greatly convenient, because my mother-in-law wanted to have Thanksgiving down at her house this year because my brother-in-law's family moved nearby. The bash for Jama prevents a schedule conflict for me, so I feel extra blessed.

Shane's got a sore nose at the moment. He was at Nana Day Care, and Nana had to run to another room for a moment. Jama was with Shane, but he's getting faster and faster by the day. Megan just happened to open the front door, arms full of groceries, and step through when Shane was closer to it than Jama. The little tyke raced over there and before Jama could get him had a little spill. His nose is a little scraped up, but he's not much worse for wear, the poor kid. Bumps and bruises are a necessary part of the learning process. He's getting old enough that he's capable of learning these sort of things, but I'm just happy it didn't happen on my watch. I always feel super guilty when he gets hurt around me like I'm a failure as a parent. Well, at least until I see if there's a mark or not and I'll have to fess up to my wife!

My SMART Board came in at work today. It's awesome. I'm looking forward to learning how to fully use it. I just need spare time and energy. Oh wait... That's the rub in my life nowadays. There's a lot of things I want to do or learn more about, but without spare time and the energy to do something in that spare time it's hard to innovate. It's almost counter-intuitive that I could be a better teacher if I did less at work, so that I could have more spare time to think and reflect.

Life has been moving quickly over here. It was a three-day weekend where I got to catch up on a lot of laundry on Columbus Day. I didn't get much done on Sunday, because Carrie had four riding lessons. She was gone for nine hours, and Shane requires more attention nowadays since he can go out and find trouble faster and faster. He's napping less, too. He's down to two naps a day, and sometimes he tries to go for a one nap marathon (he's extra cranky by bedtime on those days).  I'm still working, tutoring, and I'm going to wake up extra early tomorrow to go with the science teachers and tour the watershed field experience site before school starts.

Shane - 10 months

Has it really been this long? My boy is almost a year old? It's hard to believe sometimes.  I remember dealing with Carrie's pregnancy, or sitting upstairs on a January afternoon with a 1.5 month Shane sleeping on my lap, and a laptop playing Zulu, Sanjuro, or some other random flick on Netflix streaming. Now, Shane weighs more than a small barbell, sleeps less, poops more, and is standing up! The days are long, but the months are short. I was frustrated this morning, because the boy woke up crying and then wouldn't take his bottle! I bolted out of bed in boxers, tore downstairs, came back up, and I got no cooperation. He's ate like a trucker after a long haul since then and is napping peacefully behind me (How else do you think I'd get time to type?).

Parenting is a lot of work, but I've learned a lot:
1) No one was kidding when they said "your whole life is about to change."
2) Grandparents are even cooler when they're your child's grandparents than when they were yours.
3) Any time you think you've got the routine down pat, you're already a step behind. It changes that quick.
4) Which is probably why everyone always says "they grow up so fast" and I've always shrugged it off thinking old people like to reminisce.
5) I'm officially one of those old people now.

On to the Shane-annigans: