A week of firsts

We had two firsts this week that I would have been happy to avoid altogether. Oh well, they won't be lasts, either.

First, Kiddo got sick.

I felt so bad for him. He felt lousy, lousy, lousy. This was evidenced by the fact that he simply lay on my chest without moving for hours at a time.

Second, Inexperienced Dad and I both got sick, along with a house guest of ours. Somehow we missed the memo that only one of should be allowed to get sick at a time. The only way we are surviving at all is because of a dear friend who came over and cleaned up throw-up for us and another who took kiddo all day today so we could sleep. They were two angels of mercy, who made this so much more do-able.

Tender mercies indeed.

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Waxing Nostalgic (already)

By now you know that kiddo is going to be a big brother. I keep looking in stores for a cute t-shirt or onesie that says "big brother" but I haven't found it yet. Probably because Kiddo is still wearing 12-mo or smaller clothes. Oh well. Maybe when Baby2 comes along and Kiddo is 15 months old we'll be able to find something in his size.

They say that kids grow up fast. You see the commercials about how life comes at you fast. The parents put the baby in the car seat and then when they get in the front seat of the car, the baby in the car seat is now a teenager. I always thought the ads were kind of cute, but mostly hyperbole that I didn't believe or couldn't relate to.

Now I'm looking at Kiddo at 9 months and I'm thinking: "holy cow."

Most of you are parents, so you've long understood the realizations that I'm having as Kiddo hits 3/4 of a year old. Our little boy with the toothless smile is no more. Now he's got two bottom teeth and four ones coming in on the top. (As an aside, I have to say I feel bad for the poor kid. The first tooth ruptured on July 4th. Now, barely two months later, he's about to rupture the sixth tooth. I thought they were supposed to come at a rate of one a month?) Kiddo is crawling vigorously across the floor and pulls himself up on anything he can grab. He stands on two wobbly legs, and turns like he wants to walk away, and I'm afraid that all too soon he will.

My kid is only 9 months old, and I'm waxing nostalgic.

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What secret?

Last night I inadvertently shared a secret with my whole ward (i.e. church congregation). Me and my stinking big mouth.

We had a ward fireside and the speaker asked for a volunteer to help read a scripture. C and I were sitting on the second row, and she raised her hand. The speaker had her come up and stand next to him so she could be heard by the whole congregation. It became apparent that he intended for C to stay up there reading scriptures and writing on the chalk board, so a member of the ward leadership brought up a chair for C to sit on between readings.

The speaker quipped, "Why does she get a chair to sit on and I don't."

Without thinking, I blurted out, "Because she is expecting."

I think only about 3 people in the room knew the information before my little outburst.

What a way to make a public announcement. :) I guess since all my neighbors know now, we might as well tell all of you too!!

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Off to the Big Apple

Yesterday I sent C and Kiddo off to the Big Apple. It was an interesting experience. They have gone places before (most notably twice to see C's parents in California), but this time was different for me.

Maybe Kiddo and I are more alike than I realized: I think I had a bit of separation anxiety.

C needed to go to New York for job training. She got a new job where she will be rating English oral proficiency for ESL learners. It's a great opportunity for her: it is in her field (recently she got her MA in second language acquisition), it pays well, and she will be able to work from home. The work is computer-based, so she can do it whenever she has time; she's not tied to a clock. It really is a great opportunity for her.

So yesterday they left. They flew to Minneapolis where they met C's mom (who had flown in from California), then together the three of them continued on to New York. On the second flight, C took this picture. Grandma is the woman in the picture.

The flight wasn't very full, so Kiddo got to sit in his own seat. Doesn't he look so big? Can you believe he is only just over seven months old?

Man time is flying by.

So I'm a lone man in the wilderness. I'm driving down to St. George this weekend for a relative's baby blessing. I really would love to have gone with them, but somebody has to stay home and earn the Big Bucks.

Plus, in two weeks we get to leave for a two week trip to Palmyra, Toronto, Niagra Falls, Kirkland, and Nauvoo. I've only been at my job for less than a year, so I can't really take the whole month of July off.

On an interesting side note, it is funny how when you read the blogs of people online you start to think of them as your friends, yet these bloggers practically don't even know you exist. I realized this when I told C that she should look up Kage from Tales from the Crib and Glass Posse. Then I realized that might be really weird. What would you do? Leave a comment on her blog... "Hey we're going to be in NYC and wanted to know if you wanted visitors"? That's kind of creepy.

So I guess C and Kiddo and Grandma will have to brave the NY scene on their own. I hear they are having a great time. Time for me to get back to the business of the Big Bucks.

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A new era begins

A new era begins in Kiddo's life today. Okay, that's maybe a bit melodramatic, but I've been saving up <grin>.

Today we discovered that Kiddo's first tooth has broken through the gums.

C noticed it after the barbecue we had at my mom's house. We were standing around getting ready to leave when Kiddo grabbed C's finger and shoved it in his mouth, then bit it.

I tried to take some pictures, but Kiddo wasn't about to have any of that.

After the magic of the moment had passed, I found myself wondering just how much this tooth was going to cost somebody over the coming years.

The tooth will require semi-annual checkups over the course of his life. Then there is the toothpaste and toothbrushes needed to keep it healthy. Occasionally there may be a cavity to fill and braces required to keep it looking pretty. Sometime in about five years he'll probably lose it and the Tooth Fairy will have to fork overt the then-going-rate.

Then I realized that these are just the baby teeth. This particular tooth won't be all that expensive after all.

Well, I guess we'll hold out on judgment until we get the bill from the Tooth Fairy.

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