Outsmarted by a 5 week old...

Here we are now past the one month old date, and already my little girl has her parents well trained...I had delusions of grandeur that it would be the other way around!! This past Saturday night she decided she'd get up at 3:00am for a feeding. Being a Saturday night, and she is on formula, I let Vanessa sleep and I got up to feed her. By 4:00 she was fed, and clean diapered...yet nothing could get her to sleep. Unfortunately for me the only thing on TV was Miss. Congeniality, or the infomercial for Magic Bullet. Having seen that infomercial for 32 total hours on my weekend baby patrols, thank heavens for a near maxed Visa card or I'd have 8 of them, I had no other option but the corny beauty pageant schlock starring Sandra Bullock. As we neared closer to 5:00am, and no sign of sleepiness from sweetpea, I tried to play the guilt trip card on her, to which she responded with an ear to ear gummy grin that just melted my heart. It was at that exact moment in time that I realized I didn't care if she kept me up non-stop for the next 1000 hours, I would treasure every second of it. No matter how exhausted I get, I would never trade it for anything else in this world than to see my little baby look at me with that smile.

I promise the posts will be more current, I am done coaching rugby this week, so I will have that extra time to catch up my rest, and have enough mental stamina to post, time to get back to the gym hard again too, because before I know it, (and I'm not rushing it), I'm going to be chasing this little munchking all over the place.

What a week!

What a roller-coaster week it has been!! Last Saturday Vanessa's mom watched 'lil Ava for us so we could go to Costco and Wal-Mart to pick up some necessities. While we were at Wal-Mart we grabbed some new formula (old one was making her constipated), and new "Playtex Drop-ins" bottles, based on positive feedback from friends and other parents. When we got home I went upstairs to sterilize all the new bottles and parts, while Mommy went downstairs to try and do some breast feeding and pumping. Saturday night was a sleepless night with a lot of projectile vomiting, and some very concerned/tired/borderline frustrated parents (Vanessa and I). We woke up Easter Sunday, and packed everything up for the trip out to Grandma & Grandpa Thompson's house in Harrison Hot Springs. Grandma was delighted to watch baby for a couple hours while Mommy and Daddy found a spare room and had a nice nap. We then gathered for a nice Easter dinner with Grandma, Grandpa, and Great Grandma Beaulieu. Baby slept very good once we got home and settled in for the night, 6.5hrs!!! Monday, Vanessa noticed Ava was getting what looked like bad baby acne, or maybe heat rash, and that it was worse around feeding time. We figured it was the new formula and decided to try a different one. Tuesday we were using the new stuff and still the bumps would come on really bad, but the projectile vomiting had stopped. Vanessa had been doing some researching and came across some signs and symptoms of latex allergy...it all made sense because the old bottles had silicone nipples, and the new ones latex. Vanessa made an urgent doctor's appointment (they're all urgent for the first child aren't they?) and our doctor assured us that everything was ok, and that little Ava just has sensitive skin. He put us back on silicone nipples, and said to stick with our formula. Ava is healthy and strong as can be, she was 9lbs 7oz as of Tuesday, and she has been strong since day #1. Her favorite thing to do, besides sleep on Mommy and Daddy, is to sit and watch hockey with Dad.

One last item for all the doubters out there, I have been able to handle the poopy diapers...for the most part...2 have made me gag and relinquish duties.

3 Weeks in...

Hi there, how's it going. Well, I'm a dad for the first time at the tender young age of 30.5 years old. I have wanted to be a father since I was about 23, but luckily for my child, I had some growing up to do so the love of my life never presented herself.

My beautiful baby girl came in the wee hours of the morning on March 20, 2009. I was in love from the moment I saw her sweet little face squeeze through the birth canal. I will be the first to admit I thought I had all the answers based on everything I had read...and I had read a lot. Every situation that has come up in the first 3 weeks of parenthood, seemed to only have been covered in general in all the literature. From my fiance's hormone waves, to every little cough from little Ava, I feel helpless at times. I know I need to roll with everything, and use the wonderful support network we have at our disposal. Luckily we have been blessed with a healthy little girl, and other than our paranoias, and fears, everything has gone well.

So stay tuned as I will post regularly with the ups and downs and many laughs along the way. I will also be using this blog as a means to touch base with other parents and hopefully get some help as well as provide some insight for other new dads, so they know they aren't alone.


Doug