Chip off the ol' block?

Jason's mom was in town this last week and we got to enjoy a few evenings with her over dinner and drinks. She lives out-of-state (always has since I've been with Jason) so I don't often get much time to chit chat with her. Seems that perhaps was a good thing because maybe I never would have married Jason if I had. NOT because I don't like Cathy (I love her!), but because of the stories she's been telling me about him! I'm pretty sure the thought of having children with this man would have had me running.... seems he was quite a handful! From chewing apart his crib (oh wait...), to smashing eggs from the refrigerator when her back was momentarily turned, to running his baby walker down the stairs... and laughing. She has repeated to us numerous times that he was "horrible!". Thankfully, she says, he mellowed out quite a bit. (I agree!)

With all that, I started thinking that my little mischievous pumpkin may have a bit of his dad in him (I think he knows his name as "DwoooOOOoo", with the "did you really just do that!?" tone). But really, he is quite a sweetheart. Here are just a few examples:

When we put up a tiny Christmas tree at our lake house to celebrate an early Christmas with my  parents and sister, Drew, of course, wanted to touch badly. After saying a firm, but quiet, "no" (apparently with a finger wag, according to Jason, which must have done the trick) Drew pouted then burst into tears. But, from then on, he simply looked and pointed at the tree without touching. When we pulled out the big tree at our house he never once tried to touch it. He will point to it and say "wow!" but he stays just out of reach.

A good boy gets to hold his special ornament

One of Drew's favorite phrases is "bessoo!" which means "bless you!". Jason has horrible allergies. Year round. So the phrase is pretty much a constant in our house. A week or so ago I was changing Drew's diaper upstairs when Jason sneezed downstairs. Drew shouted "bessoo!" (and of course Jason shouted back "thank you!")

Drew has also learned to say "san soo" ("thank you", though it can be confused with "bless you"). At first he loved handing me things and saying "san soo" knowing that I was about to say it. The other day, though, Jason handed him his sippy cup and Drew said "san soo!". Awwww!!

He loves bedtime and asks to go "night night". Last night we were late coming home from church and it was past his bedtime. He angrily screamed "nye nye!" the whole way home then laughed when we brought him upstairs to get ready for bed.

Just being a sweetie (and making sure B.A. Laura buys him
anything he wants!)

We stick to a bedtime routine every night- brush teeth, change diaper and put on PJs, get "deedee" (blankie), read a book, then say a prayer. When we get finished with our book I say, "now it's time to say our prayers" and he clasps his hands together. Makes. My. Heart. Melt! (And always makes me say an extra word of thanks to the Big Man).

Because of a cough, the doctor put Drew on an inhaler for a few weeks. The first little bit was rough trying to get him to sit still so we could give him the medicine. He kicked, screamed, thrashed, and cried (and made me feel like an evil monster). Suddenly, the other day, he sat perfectly still the whole time. I have no clue why but I smiled and excitedly said "good boy!". Ever since he sits still and takes it, then when he's finished, before I even get a chance to, he says "boo boy!" (good boy) and, once again, makes my heart melt. "Yes, VERY good boy!"

Re: My Son is Gay

A shocking title, I know (especially since I have a 4 month old baby!). It is actually the title of this this blog post that I came across while doing some random browsing (as I often do while sitting and doing my medicine). I really think you should read it. And no, it is not actually about the fact that her son is gay, just as this post is not about the fact that my son is gay.

I'm pretty sure this little boy rocked Daphne much better than I did on Halloween!

 

I'm about to get preachy, and I'm sorry, but the article got to me. Before I even begin I am not going to try to claim that I am free from gender stereotyping. I'm just as guilty as anyone. Yesterday's post is proof of that. But it does really bother me that little girls can wear blue, green, brown...any color of the rainbow (that is not intended to be a pun), but my boy can't wear pink, and hardly even purple. It bothers me that a girl can dress up as a football player or a transformer and we say "you go girl!" but a boy can't even put a dab of paint on a single nail without shocked expressions. It bothers me that we get all up in arms over "freedom" because a city tries to ban restaurants from giving toys away with unhealthy meals but yet we're stomping those very rights to freedom of speech and expression in our own children's lives.

Drew is wearing pink AND purple in this rainbowy tie dye onesie! (He is also looking VERY tiny!!)

But what bothers me more than anything is that these parents are the bullies that we keep screaming we need to rid our schools of. School bullying leading to children committing suicide has been all over the news recently. In fact one of the first stories came out of the very county I teach in. But what can we do to stop the problem when the problem isn't even the children themselves? It absolutely hurts my heart to imagine this little boy with his creative costume idea (dressing up as Scooby Doo characters with a friend? That sounds like a blast!) standing nervously at the doors of his school worrying what the kids will say, only to be greeted by what the moms have to say. I understand that the moms were "looking out" for the boy and worrying over how he would be teased, but in doing so they became the bullies themselves. I can only imagine that this boy will never even so much as touch anything pink, purple, or sparkly ever again.

I think as adults we need to be more careful about the stereotypes we perpetuate with something as simple as a look on our face and the fact that those simple actions tell our children that it's okay to judge. Like I said above, I cannot claim to be free from guilt at all. This article really brought to my attention the problem we've created though and as a parent and a teacher I am making a promise to myself to be more conscious of my actions. Drew will learn from what I do, not what I say, and while I'm not going to start dressing him in pink and bows, I won't blink an eye if he wants to play with a Barbie doll instead of a GI Joe.

Tick tock...

The time is still passing, slower and slower each day.  I'm trying to keep myself busy to keep my mind off the waiting...

I've been going for lots walks.  Jason has been taking me to various malls in our area because it is just too hot to walk outside unless it's very early or very late.  I did manage to get an early walk in one morning and was laughing at my shadow...

Side profile

 Front profile... I almost don't look pregnant!

And that's my dog Lucy at my side.

My mom, sister and best friend Stacey and I painted pottery at the mall.

Laura's beautiful bamboo saki jug

My mom painted the saki cups

Stacey's beachy mug

And my plate that turned out nothing like I wanted it to :-/

We went to a local baseball game.

My poor swollen feet (and diseased looking toes! :P)

We went to the laser show at Stone Mountain.

What else?  I'm thinking World of Coca-Cola today maybe...? Any other suggestions?

Saturday Substitute

Hello, I'm your substitute today, Señor Flood. Señora Flood has taken the morning off (she's not in labor though!).

I don't read this blog as much as I should, given the fact that Diane is carrying my offspring. But I've read it enough to know that she points out and talks about the differences between reality and perception and the different ways pregnancy is viewed.

These last couple weeks have been interesting for me, the father, as far as reaction from coworkers, family, and friends. I got a part time job a couple of months ago to help offset the future rising cost of living in June and to get me out of the house after working from home so long. This new job is at a golf course. One of the few places where a man can talk without worrying about offending anyone. My two bosses are around my age. One is single and not losing that moniker anytime soon he hopes, while the other is married but content with his two dogs. Pretty much everyone else that works there is single, or at least without children. But the club also has a volunteer program that gives the one-day-a-week volunteers free/cheap golf. Most of the volunteers are older, like my grandparents age, or at least old enough to have kids away at college. The difference between the two groups' ideas of a baby is completely opposite.

My bosses at work comment like "oh, man, I am just not ready to do that," or "glad it is you not me."  On the other hand, many of the volunteers who know are really excited for me. They tell me there is nothing better than having a baby. One of the older guys, Charles, has been asking me daily if Diane's started to go into labor yet (he was a doctor and has been calling for her to go early for like two weeks now). One said that you don't know unconditional love till you have your fist child.

This got me thinking of my friends in general. My friends that have kids see Floodling's birth as the coolest thing ever for me. I will get to experience all the cool things about having a baby. We can do all these great kid's events together. My friends without kids see this as the death of our friendship and getting to hang out. I will never again get to get drunk at their house and hang out till 2 am. I'll never get the opportunity to do the thing related to my Friday night Facebook status. They assume the joy being expressed by those who do have kids is just joy of them not being the only ones in misery.

I don't really think that this is the end of my friendship with my non-kidded friends.  I don't plan on being a homebody and not taking my boy anywhere.  I remember being dragged around with my parents when I was young to their friends' houses.  It will be good for him to get out of the house and be around other people.  I know that I have no idea what to expect though. I don't pretend to know what to expect. I'm sure I'll figure it out though and we'll all do just fine. Just don't go thinking we'll never hang out and that our lives are over. They are just getting started!