Help Us Buy Diapers
Visit a Sponsor:

  • 10Feb
    Lainey's First Shower!

    Lainey's First Shower!

    Lainey came down with a pretty rotten sinus infection a few weeks ago. It has been a real battle of the boogers around the house. Every time we lay her down, the congestion starts draining into her throat, making her cough and choke. Sara and I tried multiple snot suckers and even infant nasal sprays to lure the nasty goo out, but regardless of our efforts, the problem persisted.

    Eventually we made the trip to Baby’s R Us, my least favorite store on the planet, and bought a battery powered snot sucker (an electronic nasal respirator! Oooh! Ah!). The battery powered snot sucker is a wonderful gadget. Load it with a few batteries which are conveniently protected by half a dozen, very small screws, push the big blue button, stick the nozzle in the appropriate hole and off you go. I love sticking that thing up Lainey’s nose (and mine too) just to see what comes out.

    Despite the magical powers of the battery powered snot sucker, we eventually had to break down and take Lainey to the doctor. They gave her some antibiotics, which were pink and delicious and the infection started to subside. When I saw that little bottle of pink, liquid medicine I was reminded of my days as a child, drinking spoonfuls of the delicious, sweet medicine. I instantly started to wonder two things. 1. Why does Jell-O not make a children’s amoxicillin flavored pudding and 2. Why did we adults quit taking this stuff? I would never miss a dose of medicine if I considered it a treat. Antibiotic resistance due to people neglecting to take the full regimen of their meds would be nipped in the bud! Anyway… back to the story.

    It turns out that antibiotics, or at least these particular antibiotics gave Lainey terrible diarrhea. Couple the meds with all the snot Lainey has been swallowing as of late and we have a recipe for mustard color, Campbell’s soupy consistency dookie squirts!

    I had heard tales of these dookie bombs from our baby sitter, a seasoned veteran equipped with the experience and skill to handle these types of situations, and though I sincerely apologized for all the mess she was forced to clean up, I secretly prayed that Lainey had gotten it all out of her system. I was hoping for a dookie dumps free weekend.

    It was midday Saturday and Sara had gone to take a shower after a trip to the gym. I fired up some Lifehouse (gay band, I know) and picked up Lainey, ready to start our weekly dance together. We spun around the room, bouncing up and down, smiling at each other when I noticed that the small of Lainey’s back was wet. I turned her around to see it… the mustard colored, Campbell’s soupy diarrhea.

    I laid Lainey down in her crib, stripped off her clothes and began wiping. It was so much worse than I could have ever imagined. I stripped away the diaper, exhausted easily a dozen baby wipes and still poop was everywhere. Somehow it had made its way all up her backside, along her belly, up to the naval and down her legs.

    Finally, I gave in. I picked her up by her armpits, holding her out in front of me like a little bundle of toxic waste and fled to the shower, praying she did not decide to poop or pee any more along the way.

    I rushed into the bathroom, threw open the shower curtain and sat Lainey down into a completely shocked,  Sara’s hands! Sara smiled big and greeted us. Then she realized what was going on. Lainey was completely covered in poo.

    So that was Lainey’s first shower. It was a shower of pure necessity. A shower not unlike many I have taken myself, an emergency poo-control shower. And of course, because it involved poop, I snapped a picture.

  • 25Jan
    rocketship

    I am so tired of playing Rocket Ship!

    Lainey recently passed the two month milestone of her life and has discovered something that has been a long time coming… her smile.

    I have always thought it was a bit sad that babies come out of the womb frowning, but it takes a few months for them to really master that picture perfect smile that every goo goo, gaa gaa crazy adult who tickles a baby’s chin, is looking for. We are born kicking and screaming but it takes a few good months for us to obtain the ability to grin even just a little. Sadly, frowns are natural but smiles are a skill that must be learn.

    Now nearly every moment spent with the baby has turned into an insane quest to create more smiles. Sara and I have suddenly began targeting Lainey with the camera, attempting to immortalize every single chuckle, smirk or grin in a photograph, and I swear it seems that every new grin is different than the last!

    Sara and I have even created new little games to play with Lainey, all aimed at baiting and hooking a smile or laugh. There’s everything from “Super Baby”, where I fly her around the room on her belly to “Daddy pretends to eat baby’s hands and feet time” to even a little game where I make popping and clicking noises with my mouth, which amazes her to no end. But the most successful game is “Rocket ship!”

    Rocket ship is a game where I stand Lainey up in my lap, hands around her waist, and stare her dead in the face. She looks at me, wide eyed and curious, seemingly unaware of what’s coming, then suddenly, “shhhooooooshhhhh!” and up she goes! Lainey comes down nearly every trip, smiling in amazement. Though she does not yet know how to say it, I can practically see her facial expression screaming, “Again! Again!”

    I expect the rocket ship ride could run for hours and hours, me lifting her up in the air over and over and lowering her back down countless times, and she would never tire of it. Every single pretend ride to the moon and back is a wonderful adventure to her. Even better than the smiles we receive after the rocket ship rides are her looks of excitement while waiting for her next ride. There in nothing cuter than holding her in place, watching her anticipate that next liftoff, feeling her ever so slightly push off with her little legs that are not even strong enough to scoot her across the floor yet.

    Now rides on the rocket ship are demanded regularly. Sometimes Lainey squeals and cries, impatient and restless and the only thing that can turn off those squeals is being stood up, standing alert and ready for launch. Right now it is no big deal; she only weighs in at 12 pounds. But I am sure in a few more months; my arms are going to really start feeling the burn from all those pretend trips to the stratosphere and back!

    I predict the next great game I invent to entertain Lainey will involve something mechanical that runs off half a dozen D sized batteries!  No more new games involving actual man power!

    Check out some of those new smiles!

   

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

  • You should try Baby Einstein movies. My kids loved them fro...
  • You want to catch those first steps on camera don't you! I...
  • Nice site. I enjoy your antics and stories!...
  • And I thought my kids got all that joie de vivre from me! :...
  • That is amazing!! HAHA...