Postcards from a list maker...

I was just browsing some blogs and came across a guy who mentioned an interesting concept ... 101 in 1001 - I then went on to search it and was surprised how big the idea is. (The idea is you make a list of 101 accomplishments with well defined terms to be completed in 1001 days)...

I’ve never been one for new years resolutions, but this I can see some value in.

I think I’m going to do it.

As quoted from one website:

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (i.e. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (i.e. represent some amount of work on my part).

I think the beauty of it is you have almost 3 years to do them (that’s the procrastinator in me). I could just see myself though 2 years and 8 months down the road and I’m frantically running around attempting 98 remaining things...

The hard part is going to come up with 101 things. That alone may take me 1001 days. Any suggestions?

Yes mom, I will make sure one of them is to take my vitamins for 30 consecutive days... (this is what you have to look forward to Gordie!!)

Postcards from the real insomniac...

Gord has been getting into a habit of not sleeping. Well, more specifically, not sleeping during the day. It has been a couple days now, (and a few days scattered here and there before) but he tends to have incredibly long stretches of alertness - with at most a 15 - 20 minute nap somewhere in the middle. Luckily, which is why this isn’t so much a complaint as it is an observation, he tends to sleep well during the night.

Today, as well as yesterday, he woke up in the morning after a good night (not all night, still 1 feed somewhere between 2 and 5 am) and remained awake almost all day. He had a nap in the baby bjorn carrier for about 15 minutes, and an additional 10 minutes when removed. He of course woke up the moment food hit our forks. This kid has an incredible knack at knowing exactly when food is being served. The army should hire him for their mess hall and get rid of the guy who sounds the trumpet. (I’m not totally sure there is a guy who sounds a trumpet... it just worked as an example here). But seriosly, without fail, Gord wakes up EVERY time we sit down to eat - be it at home, families, or a restaurant.

Anyhow, he stayed awake during breakfast/brunch, ate at 12:30 - we tried putting him down before my sister came over around 1:30, but failed. He sat with us in his high chair while we played some texas hold ’em (after several attempts at putting him down). When she left, we went for a drive, thinking it would put him out - but he was unusually fussy and awake throughout the ride. He slept for about 15 minutes and when we got home around 5 he ate and remained awake until ... well, I think he is still awake. I can hear him stirring in the monitor. (I think i’m about to have to go soothe him or put his soother back in any moment now...). We bathed him at 8 and put him in his crib at 8:30. It’s now five to nine, and he REALLY NEEDS to sleep.

Well, he seems to have settled... and he’s not the only one who needs sleep, which is why I write this from bed...

Cheers.

Ahhh crap... he’s fussing again....

Postcards from Insomnia...

My favourite part of the day is usually mid afternoon, right after Gord's feed. He is full, content, and wide eyed. It's so intoxicating to have him on my lap, or in my hands face to face. He's at the point now where his neck is strong enough to hold his own head up, so we can have some fun with him in various positions. It's absolutely amazing to see him transform from the helpless log he was 8 weeks ago, to the emerging monkey he is.

He has discovered, among other things, his own voice...and not only his voice, but how to use it. He whimpers, he coos, he yells (yes, there is a difference between crying and yelling - every so often, he'll vary himself up from the usual crying whimpering crying whimpering routine and throw in a very obnoxious "AH!" as though to say 'HEY, what the hell are you doing that is more important than looking at me??'). He also will, which is an obvious favourite, but oh so rare, laugh. He has this hearty belly laugh that makes an appearance every so often - and like an eclipse of the sun, it is quite a thing to experience. I can just imagine several weeks from now when the laughs become a regular thing.

Having said that, it is nice to see a 'baby' emerging. For weeks now, he has been (with the very large exception of the crying) very 'vulcan' like. Everything has been about him reasoning and trying to figure out why things are happening - and exhibiting no emotion. For example, you would think the milk out the nose incident would make him cry... no. He just sat there with this look on his face that screamed -"hmm, that was a curious incident... I have yet to experience that sort of thing. I wonder how often this is going to take place...". Not a peep. Same for his massive vomits that he has had. Again, that "Whoa, what the hell was that" face is all he gives us. I've been afraid that Gord was going to go from infant to a brief case carrying, pipe smoking sort of Sherlock Holmes personality type ...
"How was your first day of pre-school Gordie, did you have a good time?
"Most indubitably, but it's elementary my dear father'.
Of course my nightmare has him equipped with the british accent as well.

I just couldn't picture him being a little kid -
"Go to sleep Gordon"
"I just want a glug of milk... A GLUUUGG OOOOF MIII-IIII-IIILK!!!!"

So yeah, it's nice to see that kid personality coming out.

Anyhow, I should sign off and try some sleep... I got up for his feed tonight - as kim let's me sleep during the 'work' week, I figured I could let her sleep and I would get up for his feed on weekends - well, actually, Kim figured that as I get to sleep during the week, I could get up for his feed on the weekends ... and I said 'ok dear'.

Cheers.

Postcards from childhood...Vol 1

One of the great things about having a kid, is reminding myself of what it was like to be one. It is amazing the clarity I suddenly have regarding my own childhood.

So lately I have been having these crazy flashbacks to moments of my youth, and I can't help but laugh at some of the stupid things I did - and what's more amazing, is I distinctly remember thinking it was a good idea at the time.

The one that i've been thinking of lately happened when I was about 3-4 years old. Probably closer to 4 because I remember my cousin Kim being there and she was still a baby, in her car seat - and she is 2 years younger. (I think there had to have been a 'Men At Work' song - "we come from the land down under..." playing because I had not remembered this incident until I put this record on for the first time in years and the event suddenly popped into my head clear as day). Anyhow, I was for whatever reason in the back seat of my aunt's car - and again, the memory is so vivid. I can put myself back in the moment, not being able to see out the car window, having to look up at everything, including my aunt's reflection in the rear view mirror from the back passenger side seat. I remember only being able to see the top of her head in the reflection - this was important and was a factor in my deciding to do what I did next.

My cousin, as I mentioned, less than 2 years old was sitting tight against me in her car seat in the middle of the back seat. I can clearly remember the plasticy vinyl material that covered the seat was old and weathered, and the yellowish foam sponge was easily viewable. Not just viewable though. Obtainable.

There had to have been someone with partially the same idea as me prior to my arrival because there was evidence of the sponge being picked at and ripped. Again, making it irresistibly obtainable. I fooled around with it for a while, sticking my finger in the crack of the sponge, feeling and pushing my way around, all the while keeping one eye looking up at my aunt.

It wasn't long before I began to pick at the sponge. What I did next baffles me completely. I held a small piece in my fingers and rolled it into a little ball half the size of a pea. I know it was half the size of a pea, because it was the perfect size to stick up my nose.

It's amazing the process we go through to learn things as children, because it was this day that I learned about sponge, and it's ability to expand following compression. Once in my nose, it did just that. I remember the panic that fell over me - not just when it got stuck, but as I pushed it further and further up while attempting to unlodge it. I wasn't exactly sure what I was more afraid of - the fact that I got sponge stuck up my nose, or that I destroyed family property obtaining the sponge. It was even that more difficult trying to get it out without being caught. I could just imaging my aunt - who had to have seen me suddenly start squirming in the back seat trying to pull down a winner. Nonetheless, I worked that thing and eventually got it out.

So basically, the long and the short of it is, I'm fortunate to remember some of these stupid things... because when Gord comes to me with some foreign object stuck in his nose, all I can do is relate.

Postcards from the track...

I’m still not sure on exactly what happened, I think I was just chasing Kim though...

4:00am.

Sleepy Silence

4:01am

The kind of scream you do NOT want or expect to hear at 4am.

Kim and I jump out of bed as if our bed was a swimming pool, and we just saw a giant turd float by. I would have loved to see that on instant replay... I’ve never woken up so quickly. Still in a daze, I just remember chasing Kim, because I only saw the back of her head while we dashed to his room. Turned out to be nothing more than a spit up gone bad. He had a milk phlegm hanging out of his mouth and quite a gurgle in his throat. He let out a nice burp and then back to normal. Well, I use that term loosely...

A new ‘Most Explosive Poop Ever’... Double bang for your buck on this postcard.

I was WIDE awake, so I figured I would lie in bed and make note of our early morning sprint while Kim fed Gord in his room. And sure shit, literally, Kim calls me over to help clean the MASSIVE poop that made it’s way north all the way up his back and up Kim’s arm (and pooled nicely on the feeding pillow).

Things have settled down (for now anyhow), and with Kim’s return to bed, I say Cheers... mmm, something smells like Gordo poo...

Postcards from Poopville...

"Most Explosive Poop, EVER!"





It went from a typical feed... to a not so regular poop...


From the bum to the back ....



From the back to the forehead...



...to an unanticipated bath...



mmm... parenthood.

Postcards from Sudbury...

Well, this weekend we introduced the world to Gordie... well, by "Introduced" I mean - "Let him sleep through" and by "World" I mean Sudbury.

More for our benefit of testing out the new car, we decided to venture to the great north. We left at 4am Friday. Gord slept most of the way. We made a feed stop in Cookstown, and arrived in Suds (The Valley more accurately) around 11:30am.

First stop - Gran's.

A diaper change, followed by some "Give me that baby - I need to hold that baby - I deserve to hold that baby - that baby wants to be in MY ARMS" requests. (Don't take this personal, this was a recurring theme everywhere we went - so this isn't a 'gran' specific label).

Observation: Kim and I don't matter anymore. We counted, and the quickest we got some form of acknowledgment was 25 seconds (after Gord's enthusiastic welcome).

I can't really tell you what took place for the majority of the day - I took a nap... and I'm sure you don't want to hear about my afternoon adventures as an astronaut!

When I did come back to earth, I do recall Gord being a tad fussy - with the new environment and all.

That night, after being awake from 11:30 to 9:30 (with a brief 25 minute break sometime while I was in orbit), we tried putting him down in the new crib. Well, he didn't like the strangeness about it, so we moved him to the bassinet.

New Experience Update: I finally feel like a dad. Sure, i've been a father, but now I'm a dad. Crazy moment - He was fussing in his bassinet, with fear in his eyes I might add, however, when I arrived and he looked up and saw my goofy face, his fears literally melted away. I picked him up, put him on my shoulder and he just looked deep into my eyes with a look that screamed "Ah, dad - I love you". He let out a big sigh, conked his head on my shoulder and took deep breaths until he fell asleep. It was the first time I felt not only acknowledged, but appreciated, and a protector of sorts. What a freakin' feeling. I stood there rocking him and making sure to engrave that feeling into my memory. It made my weekend.

So that night, he slept from 9:30 until 3:30 - when I got up to feed him the bottle that Kim so graciously pumped for me earlier. It was an uneventful feed and he went down quite easily from 4:30 until the morning.

Day 2: Great Grandma G's House

He was (in contrast to the pic) quite good, and happy to see his one and only great grandma.

Knowing that the weekend was busy, we arranged for family (and friends) to come by GGG's house. We got there around 1:30 and the company flowed in following.


Gord slept most of the time, but that didn't stop the onlookers or the now too familiar "Give me that baby - I need to hold that baby - I deserve to hold that baby - that baby wants to be in MY ARMS" requests.

We stayed for dinner with Great (and I use the term loosely - ha ha... Burn!) Uncle Rick and Great Aunt Barb. Gord, not being too wound up, had no problems that night and went down easily when we got back to Gran's around 9:30.

Day 3: Grampa and Granny

Knowing we were leaving that night, we packed up the car, and headed to Burnsie's.

We spent the day watching Gord. He was a little fussy so we caved, and decided to pull a Ronald Reagan (and worry about the consequences of our actions later) and introduced... duhn duhn duhn... The Soother.

Wow. That's all I'm going to say. Well, that and thank you Mr. Soother for your brilliant invention.


Once we gave him the sooce, we were able to just sit around with him, let everyone get their 'viewing' and enjoy some chit chat. (And a LOT of pics).

We left around 6ish (after a friggen massive buffet of food) with Tea in hand.

Uneventful ride home with a pit stop in Innisfill to see the basement and drop off a lamp thing. (The brief mention in this entry is exactly proportional to the size of visit).

We got in around 11:30 with Gord making it the entire 6 hours asleep.

Then there was The Dude... that's another story... Friggen cat I tell ya. (Where I cherish the moments being missed and acknowledged by my son - the cat is a different emotion all together.)

Went to bed (after a couple of attempts).

And that's that.

Cheers.

Postcards From Home...

Before there can be Postcards from Sudbury, there must be a Postcard from Home...for anyone who cares.

Postcards from a new experience...

Well, Gord has gone through a sorta right of passage... At 5:30am Thursday, he squirted milk out his nose!

Postcards From Gordon - Vol 3

Postcards from a conversation...

Kim: "Have you made any posts lately?"

Me: "Mmm, no...not since sunday"
______________________________________________

Kim: "Do you wanna go to bed"

Me: "hmm" Looking at clock - 9:13 "No"

Kim: "I just hate not knowing when he is going to get up and feed.

______________________________________________

Me: "I hate people looking over my shoulder when I write"

Kim: "I won't look, I'm going to bed"

Not moving...

Kim: "I'm not looking, I promise"

Me: "Just like the street sign?"

Gord (Via Monitor): "Grhhaghhhooooooaaaaa"

______________________________________________

Me: "This postcards sucks"

Kim: "Ah, Why?"

Me: "I got nothing to write"

Kim: "Talk about ... ... ... how, we, had fish, for dinner..."

Postcards from Date Night...

Well, it's nice to have access to a free baby sitting service (aka - my sister). Surprisingly, it was her idea for us to leave - she was just short of begging us to come over and babysit... and we are NOT complaining.

We are not fools, so we took her up on her offer. I had gift certificates for the movies (ironically enough given for my birthday from my sis), and we tacked on dinner to make an evening out of it.

Kim pumped throughout the day to give Terry something to feed Gord, and we left after his 4:30 feeding. We hit the Keg, then saw Hoodwinked - quite hilarious. It reminded me of the stories my dad use to tell me. He would get bored of the traditional fairy tales and start making up sub plots (i.e - Three Bears using unorthodox tracking methods to hunt down that damned Goldilocks).

We went to the early show, and even though the movie was 80min, we could barely keep our eyes open.

We got back at 8:45, kim fed the milk machine, then went to bed. I took him for a ride (more for my amusement than his), and got back around 11 - he continued to sleep till 1:30. Kim again fed, put him down, and slept until 7ish - TWO NIGHTS IN A ROW - YAY! (Oh, I don't think I posted about that - he slept through the night for the first time Friday - from 11 - 5:30). My good deed of letting kim sleep early on was repaid and I slept in until 10.

So that's that.

We are about to head out for some running around...sorry for the 'boring' update. I'll see if we can make a trip to the hospital today or something.

Cheers

Postcards from the boss...

"Um Yeah... there seems to be a problem with your TPS cover sheet... Did you not get the memo?"

Postcards from the Emergency Room...

"If you're gonna hurl... Hurl into this!"

Well, another opening disclaimer - Gordie is fine!

Yesterday was a normal day, I went to campus to make some calls while kim stayed and did her thing with Gord. I got home around 3:30ish and went downstairs to my 'new' office (which I was going to post about - but this trumps - so you will hear about the all exciting desk assembly adventure later) to do some work. I was listening to some Hip (thanks Dave) thinking to myself, "I can't really hear what's going on upstairs - I hope Kim is smart enough to pound on the floor if she needs me." Well, she isn't.

Ironicly, moments later, faint in the background I hear "Steeeeeeeeeeeeeeeve" which of course sends my heart into my throat. I get upstairs and see the friggen panic look on her face, gord in the burp position crying, and blood on his blanket... "He's spitting up blood" she tells me." Holy F#&K!!!

I honestly didn't think it was anything serious, and had a hunch it was probably coming from Kim. We looked in his mouth for cuts, and kim expressed some milk to see if it was her, but nothing but milk. Nonetheless, she suggests we call the 'Infantline' - which I do. They of course in their infinite wisdom pass us off to the Children's Emerg. So off we go...

I think from now on, anytime I have to go to the Emergency room, I am going to pretend it is a problem with my son, cause there is NO waiting when it comes to babies. Within 5 minutes we had a doctor in our room checking things out. He ruled it was probably nothing, and to try feeding off the other breast only.

Now I'm not the Doctor, but I would think he should have thought about this - We suggested staying there for a feed, seeing what happens. He thought that was a good idea, and states that if there is a spit up, he can collect it and do an analysis on it. Again, not the Doctor here, but "Perhaps you can give us something to 'collect' the spit up in?? Egh Egh?" Another brilliant idea approved by the MD.

So, feeding ensued, he spit up only milk, and we were relatively relieved. We were not entirely relieved until 2am when Kim pumped from the 'affected breast' - and instead of milk - mmm blood. So we have our culprit.

Kim had been complaining of an apparent blocked duct for several days now - so it obviously progressed to something more serious. She has an appointment with Dr. S today, and is feeding only off the one breast for the time being.

So that's that.

Cheers.

Postcards from Gordie...

I guess it's time I get back to the basics ... What's going on with Gord!!!

Well, as mentioned previously, Gord's losing his hair. I really noticed it when I got back. This he gets from his mother. She was bald until she was 3... Seriously - I've seen the pics. I have also noticed that he is looking more like Kim when she was a baby. He is really filling out - especially that forehead of his.

He is feeding around the 4 hour mark, with a few cluster feeds here and there. Sleeping is good. Last night we were all pretty tired and after eating (around 6ish), with 2 hours until his next feeding, we tried moving him to his crib. He was passed out in the swing, and thought it may work. We were wrong. Boy were we wrong. We really wanted to get a nap in, but Gord had different plans - the screaming kind. After I realized the crib wasn't going to work, I let Kim go to bed, and I tried to ease him for the next 2 hours. He must have been hungry, because the only thing that soothed him was sucking on his hands - or my knuckle. Finally 8 came around, I changed the diaper he was working on for over an hour, and passed him (quite joyfully) to Kim. I went to bed, Kim fed him and he went down without a fuss.

Thanks to Terry (and her not knowing we didn't do this), we followed her lead. Last week I guess, she took Gord after a midnight feed, let Kim go to bed, and put him down. We haven't swaddled him since he moved to his crib, but Terry not knowing, did just that. He slept well then, so we thought we would try it. It worked. He went down very easily, and slept until his next feeding. The night progressed just like that, with little incident following feedings. Around his 4:30 feed, we both got up, I sent some emails for work while Kim fed. Gord was fairly awake so we brought him to our bed propped up in the nursing pillow (same as pic above). We stayed like that until his 8am feed.

The morning so far has been good - And for the record, I am just on a break. I am working!. Kim is just strapping him in to the harness, and taking for a walk around the house. I am waiting for the CAR!! I have to head to campus later to pick up a few things.

Oh, and I should mention - Gord got his first piece of mail yesterday... His Health Card. And as the pathetically proud parents we are, we of course had to take pictures of it.

That's that for now.

Cheers.

Postcards from Baldness... Next Generation

Look who's going bald!!!

Postcards from the Greener Grass...

Having returned from my sales conference, I can confidently say that there are companies out there that care about their employees.

This will hopefully be the last time I mention my previous imprisoner, I mean employer, but I can not help but recall a comment given to me by one of my bosses following the 'money stealing' incident that sparked my quest for a better company. I was told that where ever I go, there will be problems. No employer treats their employees with the respect I was looking for. I am somewhat paraphrasing, but I was bluntly informed that "The grass is never greener".

Having said that, I would like to point out that my company was just recently named one of Canada's 50 Best employers, and will be given the award later this month.

Mind you, I am still green and haven't had much 'out there' experience, but I could not find ONE person who had anything negative to say about this company. I asked many people - veterans of 13+ years, and they had only great things to say.

All 'n all, the week was great. Got to meet a lot of people, make some friends, drink and eat for free (one example - the company rented out the "House of Blues" Bar and made it a 'private party' and best yet, made it open bar - holy crap). I also got to lose a lot of money at poker.

I have big goals for this year - for example, one rep (an oddity mind you) is getting a bonus cheque over $100,000.00!!! BONUS cheque! Holy crap eh. It just shows what is obtainable.

Well, it is so nice to be back and see Gordie. I missed him like crazy. It was great to talk about him, and hear other people comment on his Name - "Gord, what a great name - you just want to have a beer with a guy named Gord".

Today is a 'rest day'. Although, I have been working all morning, and have much to do this afternoon. I have to set up my office, which means, I need to make a trip to Staples (or something like it) to stock up - again, courtesy of the company!!

I get my car delivered tomorrow. They couldn't get the base model Impala that I wanted or should have got, so unfortunately (in a very sarcastic tone) I have to get the upgraded fully loaded model - Yay!. Sunroof, spoiler, automatic car started... Normally the employee would pay a monthly premium for any upgrades, but because I was in a crunch for a car, they are picking up the tab.

Anyhow, that's that, and this is now, so I gotta get to it.

Cheers

Postcards from the morning after…

The title comes one day late – but only cause I didn’t get to post it…

Ugh…WHY FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DO I DRINK????

Laugh it up Burnie, and Mom, I don’t want to hear it… but boy do I hate hangovers. And as some of you have heard me say before – I didn’t really drink that much. I had five drinks… from 3 different sources mind you. I blame the CFO. How can I turn down a drink from the 800lb pit bull. The guy controls the budget, and when he’s buying drinks, I didn’t think it was a good idea to turn it down. Anyhow, in retrospect, it was worth the story, but oh my, did I want to die this morning – or kill myself more accurately – I was so pissed at myself.

Backing it up… Tuesday was the first full day of the conference. Things went well. The day went by quickly and was filled with product knowledge session after session. Lunch was really good – swordfish and rice medley and uuugh the best chocolate cheesecake I ever had. Following the day, we had ‘group’ dinners – meaning all the disciplines went out for dinner together. So ‘hardside’ my group went out to New York Max… good food, but better company and conversation. We were there from 6:30 until 11ish.

Following that, we came back to the hotel – there is a bar on the 40th floor that overlooks the ocean and harbour – good view. More conversation etc, and I called it a night around 1ish. Again, I didn’t think I drank that much, came back, ate some food from the mini bar and had a V8 and water. Well, first sign of trouble came 20 minutes later when I tried to fall asleep, and the mini bar snack were revisited – if you know what I’m saying! I quickly fell asleep as that remedied the spins.

I woke up at 7:30, thinking something wasn’t right. I was not terribly ill, but not feeling good. It went downhill from there. There is only so much ‘positive self talk’ one can do before it becomes sarcasm. I went down for breakfast and stuck with fruit. I wasn’t much of a conversationalist as it took all my concentration to stop the spins, and my stomach contents from making an appearance.

Immediately following breakfast, there was a US session hoopla, and again, I did everything I could to keep things down. Especially considering I was sitting RIGHT IN THE FRONT FRIGGEN ROW… with my boss next to me. Ugh. Anyhow, I made it through that – barely. I came up to my room for the 15 minutes between sessions where I tried a Red Bull energy drink… well 1 sip and I lost it… mmmm fruity.

The day progressed something like that with a nice 20 minute nap at lunch, and ending at 5pm. I went out for dinner with 2 other hardside reps, where I was encouraged to sample some of the local brew – but I stuck to my guns and opted for Pepsi.

It’s now 8:44pm and I am about to go to the poker game that starts at 9.

Cheers.

Thursday Morning update... I lost the poker!

Postcard To Gordon - Month 1

Oh Gordon, 1 month old. I’m sorry I can’t be with you.

Having said that, 2 things: First, I can’t believe you are one month old. On one hand, I feel like before I know it you will be 1 year, then 21 years old. But on the other hand, due to the very limited sleep you have allowed your mother and I to have, it seems like an eternity has passed since we’ve had a decent night sleep – aka, before you arrived.

That second thing being that I am not with you… it kills me. At the time of authoring, I’ve only been away 9 hours, and I miss you more than I could have imagined. It bothers me that by the time I return, I will have missed 20% of your life. 20% !!!. That’s like my dad being away for the last 5 years of my life. Ugh. So many changes will take place.

This past Sunday, we had our first real play time. It made me realize how much fun I can have with you – and as I promised I would, I will refrain from anticipating the future – but it gave a glimpse to the fun we will have down the road.

It was limited, but I got you all riled up. It’s amazing what a colourful little butterfly can do. You watched intently as it ‘buzzed’ past your face, and you wiggled and gurgled excitedly when it every-so-often ‘bonked’ you on the nose. At first I thought you had gas, but to my pleasant surprise, you were getting excited. I could see the concentration on your face as you attempted to figure out not only what this strange device was, but how you could interact with it. You are not quite there yet. Your dexterity is still equivalent to a wet noodle in a blender, but boy do you try.

We continued this play time for a good 15 – 20 minutes. I attribute your sleepless afternoon and inability to stay sleeping to your mind being ‘blown’ away by your once caterpillar friend.

There have been so many obvious changes in this last month. You left the comfy confines of the world you knew, to the only world I know. Your birthday is still vivid in my mind, along with the changes that followed. From hospital, to bassinet, to the crib… you are growing up. (On a side note, I need to address the love you have from your mother. She loves you so much. Do you know, she cried the first night you were in your crib because she realized her little guy is growing up.)

On your 1 month birthday, I reflect on the things that have happened, and the things your mother and I have done for you so far. Your mom and I have and will continue to do everything we can to make a better life for you. With no selfishness attached, and obviously no gratitude obtained, we work relentlessly and endlessly for you. Regardless of how it may seem at certain points in your life, please know that we have dedicated our lives for you, and the only thing we can ever hope for, is a fraction of the love returned.

I love you Gordon.

Dad

Postcards from San Diego...

Well, I'm here. What a long friggen day... and it's only 4:30 local time. I still have a 'welcome reception' to go to in an hour and a half...

Anyhow, the flight was late getting in, rough landing, long wait for the bags, and a rainy shuttle ride to the hotel... but other than that, it's great.

Like I said earlier, the people are great, and I feel very comfortable with them.

I got my itinerary for the week, and it shall be an exhausting week. Good first week orientation though.

The hotel is great - the Hyatt. So far, I don't have a room mate, but that could change any moment... I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

The view out my 28th floor window is great... I can't seem to post the pic right now... hmmm weird... check back later...

All I’ve done so far is go for something to eat, and register for the week. Nothing too exciting. There are some people having a drink downstairs, which I will join when I am done posting this.

…which appears to be now.

Cheers.

Postcards from 34,000 feet...

I’m sitting on the plane, it’s 12:43 (EST), I have 2 hours left in my flight and 6 days left in my trip, and I can add another notch to my ‘dad’ experience belt. I really can’t stop thinking about Gord.

It has only been 8 hours and 45 minutes since I left, and this is the longest I have been away. Perhaps it’s also the fact that I know I will be away for another 6 days. It reminds me of my trip to Orlando in grade 11 when I first started going out with Kim, and I complained the whole trip about how much I missed her. Except this time, I can’t complain to anyone I’m with, and I miss the little bugger so much more. (Don’t worry, I miss you too kimmy!)

Ugh, what can I do. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve flipped through the (limited) pictures I have of him on my phone. And there is a baby boy on the flight, and his father is walking up and down the isle with him… yeah, this is what it feels like to be a dad.

Anyhow, I’m really tired. Gord was pretty fussy last night, Didn’t allow us to get to sleep until 12ish, then got hungry at 1:30, and the alarm went off at 3. I had to meet up with the other Reps at 4:30 down at the 401 to be at the airport for 7:30.

We flew out of Detroit a little later than expected. A little disconcerting - they kept telling us that the weather was really bad, so they needed extra fuel, which meant they needed to kick some passengers off, and rearrange the luggage as the plane was ‘front’ heavy prior to take off. So far so good – and if you’re reading this, all was good.

The people I work with seem to be great so far. I’ve heard a lot of great things about the company, and the times to be had – both at the conference and during regular work times. So, that’s good.

Anyhow, this post is going nowhere… sorry.

Cheers.

Postcards from a new year...

So this is what 2006 feels like eh... tired.

Oh were the days of friends, booze, 'misc.', late night parties, hangovers etc...

Our night was no different than any other night, with the exception of us fighting to stay awake until midnight.

We brought in 2006 with Gord... overlooking his crib while he slept. That sleep of his didn't last too long, and before we knew it, we were up again, feeding, changing diapers, burping, changing more diapers, getting milk spit on us, pee'd on, changing yet another diaper, and feeding again. This was our 2-5am - literally.

Today I had to get ready to leave for a week. Laundry, packing, and tearing down the xmas decorations... mmm fun.

Gord was/is unusually fussy tonight. Kim started feeding him at 5:30, and has not really stopped. She is afraid she has ran out of supply for the time being due to the over feeding he demands. We are not sure if it is hunger, or just gas. He does his 'head thrashing get that nipple in my mouth' move whenever his lips touch anything, but he has also been up since 2ish - with about 1/2 hour nap, so it may be he is overtired... hmmm who knows.

But nonetheless, almost 10pm now, I leave at 4am, and still have some things to do.

I had big plans for some posts, but time did not permit. Perhaps from California...

Cheers.