July 27 -- Life With Baby

Thursday, July 27 – Life With Baby

R.E.M., "Green"
A.J. Croce, "Transit"
Three Crosses, "Skinny Flowers"
Ben Folds Five, "Whatever And Ever Amen"

hings have obviously changed for us since the arrival of the Little One. We used to be spontaneous people. Not wild-and-crazy, but at least spontaneous. I can't even tell you the last time I went bowling.
Our idea of a night out now is going to the mall. For exactly one hour. Sometimes my parents and the baby come along and we make it a big family outing, and sometimes we go alone, but either way, we can't stay more than an hour, because if we do, we'll hear the crying. Even if he's at home and we aren't. My wife has this radar.
We've taken Little One to the mall twice now. Each time we went in a grand total of one store (not including stores we entered just because we had to use their elevator. Entire trips are now planned around the use of elevators). He usually sleeps, until we near the aforementioned hour mark. It's kind of fun to watch the other people react to him, because he is adorable, and he's about the size of a football, and they probably think he's too small to be taken out in public. (I read in one of my wife's library of baby material about taking baby out, and it said that unless the hospital and your house are connected by underground tunnel, he's already been out anyway, so it really doesn't matter.) I wonder if most people think we're teenage parents, since neither of us really looks our age. I should wear a shirt that says "We're 27 and he's 3 weeks" just so nobody has to wonder.
Last Sunday, we took the Little One out to church, and for some Chinese food. Well, he didn't actually have any of the Chinese food -- not directly, at least -- and I'm not sure how much we got out of the church service, but he was very good, sleeping most of the time. Even the loud music at church didn't bother him at all.
I think I'm finally getting used to being a dad. It's actually easier than I thought it was going to be; basically all I have to do now is change diapers, pick him up when he cries, and give him lots of snuggles. It's strange to think, though, that in six months or so, he's basically going to be a completely different person. He won't be a little bundle with arms and legs flailing in random directions -- he'll be working on his crawling. He'll actually be able to smile, and make sounds other than crying (and burping).
It's kind of ironic, really -- just when you think you're getting the hang of it, just when you really get to know your kid enough that you can almost predict his actions, he starts to grow up and everything changes.


	hings have obviously changed for us since the arrival of the Little One. We used to be spontaneous people. Not wild-and-crazy, but at least spontaneous. I can't even tell you the last time I went bowling. Our idea of a night out now is going to the mall. For exactly one hour. Sometimes my parents and the baby come along and we make it a big family outing, and sometimes we go alone, but either way, we can't stay more than an hour, because if we do, we'll hear the crying. Even if he's at home and we aren't. My wife has this radar. We've taken Little One to the mall twice now. Each time we went in a grand total of one store (not including stores we entered just because we had to use their elevator. Entire trips are now planned around the use of elevators). He usually sleeps, until we near the aforementioned hour mark. It's kind of fun to watch the other people react to him, because he is adorable, and he's about the size of a football, and they probably think he's too small to be taken out in public. (I read in one of my wife's library of baby material about taking baby out, and it said that unless the hospital and your house are connected by underground tunnel, he's already been out anyway, so it really doesn't matter.) I wonder if most people think we're teenage parents, since neither of us really looks our age. I should wear a shirt that says "We're 27 and he's 3 weeks" just so nobody has to wonder. Last Sunday, we took the Little One out to church, and for some Chinese food. Well, he didn't actually have any of the Chinese food -- not directly, at least -- and I'm not sure how much we got out of the church service, but he was very good, sleeping most of the time. Even the loud music at church didn't bother him at all. I think I'm finally getting used to being a dad. It's actually easier than I thought it was going to be; basically all I have to do now is change diapers, pick him up when he cries, and give him lots of snuggles. It's strange to think, though, that in six months or so, he's basically going to be a completely different person. He won't be a little bundle with arms and legs flailing in random directions -- he'll be working on his crawling. He'll actually be able to smile, and make sounds other than crying (and burping). It's kind of ironic, really -- just when you think you're getting the hang of it, just when you really get to know your kid enough that you can almost predict his actions, he starts to grow up and everything changes.