Braden has been doing something lately that has really driven home the concept that he is always watching me and Arica. It also shows that he is not only watching, but he is memorizing our moves in his mind. He is going over them again and again until he can mimic us himself.
It reminds me of the old Sting song. I would like to clarify that I don't really like the song. It's just one of those songs that everyone who lives above ground has heard a few times. One part says "Every step you take I'll be watching you. Every single day and every word you say...I'll be watching you." Of course Mr. Sting was not talking about kids, but he might as well have been. This describes exactly what kids are doing every minute of the day.
Every night after his bath either Arica or I put lotion on Braden. Lately you have to give him a lotion bottle to pacify him while he gets greased up. At first I thought nothing of this because we have given Braden something to hold during his diaper changing since he was a newborn. If we didn't he would constantly try and grab anything and everything in site, making changing his diaper quite an adventure.
About a week ago I took notice of what Braden was doing with the lotion bottle after I gave it to him. He held it upside down and shook it up and down several times. Then he put one hand to the outlet. After that he put the lotion back down, and rubbed his hands together. In short he was imitating what he had seen Arica and I do hundreds of times. It is very cute and entertaining for sure.
From another point of view it is very scary. If he is copying the most ordinary things like applying lotion, what else could he be copying? My guess is that he copies everything he sees, and all indications are that he sees everything. He copies things Arica and I do with his toys. He puts things on his head that he has seen us put on our head. This includes the ordinary like hats and the not so ordinary like pots and pans. The list of things Braden copies grows all the time and will keep growing for years to come.
Being the flawed person that I know I am, this is a scary thought. Something as little as playing with a lotion bottle is a serious reminder to me that I need to be the best example I can be for my son. Either that or I need to start praying that he watches his mother.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Friday, January 8, 2010
I Want Global Warming
Last night the forecast low temperature was 11 degrees. I don't know what the actual low was, but it was 12 when I went to work this morning. The forecast lows for the next two nights are 7 and 8.
Before we move on I would like to list a few things that you are more likely to see in Arkansas than a temperature of 7 degrees.
- Haley's comet
- Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny playing Marco Polo in the YMCA pool
- A Razorback fan wearing an I love Texas t-shirt
- A hillbilly with a full set of teeth, wearing shoes, and buying soap
- Bigfoot driving a John Deere lawnmower through the Wal Mart parking lot
- A redneck that thinks Hank Williams Jr. is the antichrist
- A ban on guns
Much like Cousin Eddie the dogs are not normally fit for indoor living. In other words they needed a bath. Since Braden now uses the tub, we decided not to introduce a years worth of dog filth into his little bastion of cleanliness.
Of course I wasn't going to bathe them outside only to watch the water freeze to their coats and worse yet my hands. So I took a shower with my dogs yesterday. Don't worry, I wore my swimming suit. I am not about to leave certain things exposed while in a 3 ft by 3 ft tile and glass cage with either of those turkey killers.
The night went really well. At first Braden kept his distance. When the dogs got in his personal space he would push them away or throw the occasional jab. By his bed time we were all in the floor together playing happily.
The dogs were well behaved. Obviously they were basking in the warmth of indoor living. After Braden went to bed and things slowed down they slept. I guess it has been a long time since they had a nice warm night of sleep.
Now if we could only get Braden to follow their lead.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Braden Insists That You Share
My last post was about Braden eating chocolate. This post is about dining as well, because eating is important. If you don't believe me just ask my son.
I've written here many times that the little man loves to eat. I can't think of anything that he doesn't like. Once at a sandwich shop Arica and I let him try one of our dill pickles. Admittedly we did it to satisfy our own curiosity. We didn't expect him to like it, and we thought it would be funny to see the face he made. Well, the joke was on us. He loved it. Just yesterday Arica bought him his own jar of dill pickle spears for the house.
The kid loves chocolate. He loves dill pickles. He will eat anything that is remotely chewable. So what is his favorite food? His favorite is anything that Mommy and Daddy are eating. If you don't offer to share he will seek you out and ask for a sampling of your cuisine. It doesn't really matter what you are eating. It can be anything from a ham sandwich to beef wellington. Braden insists that you share.
For example, Last night I was sauteing some shrimp and veggies. Braden toddled over to the foot of the stove, extended his little paw, and said "bite". I couldn't give him any of the spicy shrimp so I needed to feed him something else. I didn't have any kid friendly fare ready at the moment so it was either distract him or get beat up by a 14 month old kid. I quickly gave him a spoon so he could pretend to cook with me. Disaster averted.
These types of things make dinner time at our house a carefully planned affair. If we don't want an angry kid on our hands he better have something to munch on while we are eating. Many times he eats the same thing as we do, but not always. On those nights it is absolutely necessary to cook him something too. If not he will make us pay.
It doesn't matter if he just polished off an entire meal 30 minutes earlier, he will want a bite of whatever your are eating. Consider this a warning. If you ever plan on visiting the Life of a New Dad household, do not bring along your lunch unless you plan to share.
I've written here many times that the little man loves to eat. I can't think of anything that he doesn't like. Once at a sandwich shop Arica and I let him try one of our dill pickles. Admittedly we did it to satisfy our own curiosity. We didn't expect him to like it, and we thought it would be funny to see the face he made. Well, the joke was on us. He loved it. Just yesterday Arica bought him his own jar of dill pickle spears for the house.
The kid loves chocolate. He loves dill pickles. He will eat anything that is remotely chewable. So what is his favorite food? His favorite is anything that Mommy and Daddy are eating. If you don't offer to share he will seek you out and ask for a sampling of your cuisine. It doesn't really matter what you are eating. It can be anything from a ham sandwich to beef wellington. Braden insists that you share.
For example, Last night I was sauteing some shrimp and veggies. Braden toddled over to the foot of the stove, extended his little paw, and said "bite". I couldn't give him any of the spicy shrimp so I needed to feed him something else. I didn't have any kid friendly fare ready at the moment so it was either distract him or get beat up by a 14 month old kid. I quickly gave him a spoon so he could pretend to cook with me. Disaster averted.
These types of things make dinner time at our house a carefully planned affair. If we don't want an angry kid on our hands he better have something to munch on while we are eating. Many times he eats the same thing as we do, but not always. On those nights it is absolutely necessary to cook him something too. If not he will make us pay.
It doesn't matter if he just polished off an entire meal 30 minutes earlier, he will want a bite of whatever your are eating. Consider this a warning. If you ever plan on visiting the Life of a New Dad household, do not bring along your lunch unless you plan to share.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Is Chocolate Healthy?
Much like the rest of the human race Braden loves chocolate. We discovered this a while back, but his love hit a fever pitch during the holiday season.
I know this discovery is along the lines of De Soto discovering the Mississippi River. As Jerry Seinfeld once said, "Like they wouldn't have found that anyway." The discovery itself is certainly not blogworthy, but my little man's passion for the cocoa bean is something to share.
We put out a Christmas candy jar for the holiday season. It contained my favorite candy, Reese's, and Hershey's Kisses. We rarely give Braden candy, but on that special occasion when he eats all his food and been a good boy he can have a treat.
The first time we gave him a Kiss he was a happy man. Then he returned to the foot of the bar where the candy jar rested and began to point. Then he began to cry. Then he began to scream. This went on until we finally hid the candy jar. After that he could only get candy from a secretive place. We had to guard the secret location of the candy jar like Colonel Sanders guards his 11 original herbs and spices.
At our Christmas Eve celebration at Arica's mom's house all the kids got candy canes filled with kisses and some Reese's as well. Right from the beginning Braden picked up the candy canes and carried them around beating things. Then we gave him a kiss and he carried them around for a different reason.
Braden would carry the candy to his mom and scream. If he didn't get any he would then turn to me, then to the next person and so on. He just kept crying for chocolate. Of course my brother in law thought this was hilarious.
Somehow amidst the chaos of the evening we made it home with everyone's Kiss filled candy canes. I think we have 4 or 5 canes. The day after, when the house was still a bit in disorder from all the presents and paper, Braden found some kisses and brought them to me. I declined to give him one and he seemed OK and headed for his room.
A few moments later he emerged from his room with another Kiss loaded container. I guess he has a secret stash.
Unless some government funded academic out there can prove that chocolate is indeed healthy when eaten in mass quantities we are going to have to start storing chocolate in a strong box at our house.
I know this discovery is along the lines of De Soto discovering the Mississippi River. As Jerry Seinfeld once said, "Like they wouldn't have found that anyway." The discovery itself is certainly not blogworthy, but my little man's passion for the cocoa bean is something to share.
We put out a Christmas candy jar for the holiday season. It contained my favorite candy, Reese's, and Hershey's Kisses. We rarely give Braden candy, but on that special occasion when he eats all his food and been a good boy he can have a treat.
The first time we gave him a Kiss he was a happy man. Then he returned to the foot of the bar where the candy jar rested and began to point. Then he began to cry. Then he began to scream. This went on until we finally hid the candy jar. After that he could only get candy from a secretive place. We had to guard the secret location of the candy jar like Colonel Sanders guards his 11 original herbs and spices.
At our Christmas Eve celebration at Arica's mom's house all the kids got candy canes filled with kisses and some Reese's as well. Right from the beginning Braden picked up the candy canes and carried them around beating things. Then we gave him a kiss and he carried them around for a different reason.
Braden would carry the candy to his mom and scream. If he didn't get any he would then turn to me, then to the next person and so on. He just kept crying for chocolate. Of course my brother in law thought this was hilarious.
Somehow amidst the chaos of the evening we made it home with everyone's Kiss filled candy canes. I think we have 4 or 5 canes. The day after, when the house was still a bit in disorder from all the presents and paper, Braden found some kisses and brought them to me. I declined to give him one and he seemed OK and headed for his room.
A few moments later he emerged from his room with another Kiss loaded container. I guess he has a secret stash.
Unless some government funded academic out there can prove that chocolate is indeed healthy when eaten in mass quantities we are going to have to start storing chocolate in a strong box at our house.
Monday, January 4, 2010
I Want to Spend 2010 With My Family
I have just returned to work today from my second consecutive 4 day weekend. In other words I have only worked 3 days out of the past 11. I am not too excited about going back to work this morning.
In the past several days I have had a wonderful time staying at home with Arica and Braden. It is a nice way to end what was at times a very difficult 2009. I worked so much this year in the US and abroad that time with my family was sometimes neglected. A four day weekend cannot take away the disappointment of missing Braden's first Halloween while marooned on a rainy island teeming with bagpipes. Nor can it erase a summer filled with dread about travel plans. The days off do, however, provide a great springboard into what I hope is a better life this year.
As I look forward to 2010 I want to spend as much of it as possible with my family. I want to be there when they have bad days. I want to be there for every single holiday no matter how small. I want to take a real vacation this year with my wife, if not several.
To many people travelling to the capital of kilts for business seems like a great job. Maybe a life full of movement and travel is what you crave. Not me. Of course I would like it if I could take my family along, but with a 13 month old kid that is not really feasible. The best thing for us is just being together right in our own hometown.
Many days at home in this parenting journey seem so mundane and difficult. Another load of dishes. Another dirty diaper. Supper time. Bath time. Bed time. Somewhere in between there is grocery shopping or household chores. I used to just get irritated with all of this. Sometimes I wasn't too pleasant.
For this I apologize to my family. The reality is that these little tasks are what makes up life with a small child. If you take them away there is not much left. If I can't enjoy diapers and dishes then I can't enjoy life. So with this realization and a hopefully reformed attitude I venture into what has become a snowy (at least for Arkansas) 2010. I will undertake this adventure with hopes of wonderfully normal days ahead filled with toys and tater tots with my family.
Happy New Year.
In the past several days I have had a wonderful time staying at home with Arica and Braden. It is a nice way to end what was at times a very difficult 2009. I worked so much this year in the US and abroad that time with my family was sometimes neglected. A four day weekend cannot take away the disappointment of missing Braden's first Halloween while marooned on a rainy island teeming with bagpipes. Nor can it erase a summer filled with dread about travel plans. The days off do, however, provide a great springboard into what I hope is a better life this year.
As I look forward to 2010 I want to spend as much of it as possible with my family. I want to be there when they have bad days. I want to be there for every single holiday no matter how small. I want to take a real vacation this year with my wife, if not several.
To many people travelling to the capital of kilts for business seems like a great job. Maybe a life full of movement and travel is what you crave. Not me. Of course I would like it if I could take my family along, but with a 13 month old kid that is not really feasible. The best thing for us is just being together right in our own hometown.
Many days at home in this parenting journey seem so mundane and difficult. Another load of dishes. Another dirty diaper. Supper time. Bath time. Bed time. Somewhere in between there is grocery shopping or household chores. I used to just get irritated with all of this. Sometimes I wasn't too pleasant.
For this I apologize to my family. The reality is that these little tasks are what makes up life with a small child. If you take them away there is not much left. If I can't enjoy diapers and dishes then I can't enjoy life. So with this realization and a hopefully reformed attitude I venture into what has become a snowy (at least for Arkansas) 2010. I will undertake this adventure with hopes of wonderfully normal days ahead filled with toys and tater tots with my family.
Happy New Year.
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