chris dixons blog
Archive for December, 2004
Dec 30th
New photos of James have been added. I have moved all the photos to the gallery page (click the gallery link on the LHS)
You can now look at all the photos in high quality as well as slideshow them and do all kinds of good stuff.
Dec 29th
The routine is going well. I actually feel a lot better after having breakfast and getting up early! The health visitor has been and seen James and he is doing ok. He has thrush on his bottom which can’t be all that nice (although it’s probabbly my fault for changing his nappy badly) but he has some cream and stuff for it. It’s strange taking in his perscription and ticking the “patient is under16″ box. Thinking about the next 16 years is scary. Anyway, I have also managed to tidy and hoover the house and we have had a walk out in the new harness thing, so all in all it’s going very well. However, the amount of sleeping he has done today, I am thinking he is not going to do so well tonight. Ah well, the one bit of advice that everyone seems to agree on is to get a routine going, so we better carry on.
Dec 29th
Also… website now update to include pic of the day and quote of the day!
If you have any quotes that you wan’t included then send me them (or any pics for that matter!)
Dec 28th
Christmas has been and gone! Now I look forward to new year. What will 2005 bring. I hope a more sleepful baby. Yes, he has still not been sleep all too well, however we are still trying to sort the problem out.
James had a fun shopping day today at mothercare in preston. He slep almost all the way there and back and did’nt cry till he got home. True to form he has been sleeping in the day and waking at night in a kind of strage nocturnal type activity.
Here is a picture to prove it (provided by his gandma)
He looks so peacefull!
However, he has spent lots of his gifts today as this tired child went on a shopping spree. The most boring items were a sleeping bag and lots of bits of bottles and teets, but the most exciting were:
A kick and play piano (which James has already played with!)
A smart baby carrier (for dady to carry him round in)
Tomorrow we are trying a new routine which is supposed to make babies sleep better at night. I suppose that it’s worth a try, so we will give it a blast for a few days and see. The only dissadvantage is that you have to be up and about feeding the baby at 7:00am, which is a challenge, but actually could be good for fat daddy, who despratley needs to loose weight and start running to work again.
The diet book on my Christmas list did not materialize and when I weighed myself I was 14stone 2pounds which is very bad indeed. I really need to take steps to sort myself out.
I also need a new haircut (I have decided) but can’t quite figure out which one to go for, if you have any suggestions… then get in touch!
Finaly, I though I would share the fact that I am reading an excellent book called the De’Vinchi Code (that might not be spelled correctly!) If you have not read it then I really recommend it. It has a lot of very interesting historical and spiritual tones and supprised me. I can’t put it down and will probabbly have finished it by tomorrow (and with a baby to look after, thats good going). You can find out more about it here
Tomorrow we will try our the routine! And perhaps a carry round in the carrier! Ah well, just the 10,000 word essay looming over my head for 18th Jan! I really must start that tomorrow.
Dec 23rd
I guess that it would be fair to say that things are settling down a bit. I sit here as the tea cooks with James asleep downstairs and Emma chatting to her friend (hence the time to do this!)
I am listing to the barenaked ladies concert that I missed whilst waiting for the baby to come (which is the only downside of the preganancy!). Anyway, now I have finished work for Christmas I thought it might be nice to reflect on the whole birth / baby thing. So here goes.
Things that are good
- The wonder that a fully functioning human can develop inside someone and then come out.
- The way that James looks when he is contented / alert / etc.
- Taking him on walks / fun outings
- Showing him off to people
- Experiencing new things that make me laugh eg. wee on the carpet, projectile vomit etc. (I know that doesnt sound fun, but it can be
Things that are not good
- Lack of sleep. I never expected that we would be as tired as we were (getting a bit easier now)
- Emotional up’s and downs. Mainly Emma, but I have also been a bit funny. I think that nothing prepares you for this.
- Screeming
- Crying (both of the above worse when you are tired, or dont know what it’s for)
- Feeling of overwelmment (that might not be a word, but you get the drift!)
I’m sure that there are some more things. Thats the funny thing, no matter how many books you read and things you look at and pictures of how to bath / change etc. It’s always different for you. And everyones expreience is massivley different, so don’t go thinking you can prepare all that well… however there are some things that you can do, so here are my:
Recommendations for Dad
- Don’t have a baby in the first place! (only kidding, just make sure you have some time together first, or it will be much harder!)
- Get lots of sleep beforehand
- Try to stay round the head end (not essential and not always possible, but don’t go thinking it wont be messy, or red, because it will be)
- Don’t look at or think about the placenta (when it’s popped out) it is the most vile bit of medical miricle that there is.
- Get everything ready before baby gets home. Make beds, cots, stock up on supplies (especially cotton wool balls), clean house etc. There will be no time to do any of this when the baby comes.
- Make sure you have a few jobs to do so that you can nip away for some fresh air, such as ringing people etc. You will need a bit of space for a few minutes as hospitals are strange places.
- Sleep at every oppotunity, especially during the day, if the baby is sleeping.
- Arrange someone to take the baby off you for a few hours so you can grab some QT for a bit.
- Don’t expect to have sex for a very long time.
Thats it… although there are probabbly other things.
HAPPY CHRISTMAS (for Sat!)
Dec 15th
My search for the worst joke in the world is off to a good start.
“why does this bus stop on every corner?”
“because it’s a greyhound!”
this was a gem from an excellent christmas meal at the waterwitch.
I have several reasons why this joke is poor.
a) It’s not funny
b) It’s only possibly funny if you know that greyhound is a type of bus in America (which I didn’t)
c) It’s still not funny, even when you know.
In case you are wondering, a greyhound bus looks like this:
In fact the funniest thing to happen was not the joke, or my inability to spell anything correctly, but Tracy’s story about how her dog Bonzo was almost put down when she was small, because they thought he had mauled her. They were about to call the vet to have him put down when Tracy in her cot started crying and the dog gently put his paws up onto the cot side, accidently scratching her face. So the dog was saved. Funny that dogs and cats can get jelous of babies. Ours seem to be doing fine though. In fact I had a cat and baby on my knee yesterday. We had another good night last night, so it looks as if things are getting better, although Emma’s friend says that it takes at least 3 weeks before you start to get back to normality.
Dec 14th
At last. Unless a fluke then we had our first propper night of it! He slept for three hour blissfull periods between his feeds, even a 5 hour one towards the morning. I guess that a combination of giving him a bath at 10:30pm and letting him sleep in his basket inside the cot must have worked….
I am looking for a digital camera at the moment so that I can share his growing moments with the world! Is it me, or are there far to many to choose from!
Dec 13th
Ok Then. Here we go. About to settle down for another night. Sunday night was a nightmare. Awake, screeming and feeding from 11pm till 4am. Not good news, Emma tearfull (understandably) and all in all an experience to forget. He has however (true to form) been an angel during the day and did a 5 1/2 hour sleep in the afternoon. He loves his pram and I took him on a long walk whilst Emma got 2 hours sleep, which could prove lifesaving later. She is still a bit “in shock” I think and it’s starting to sink in that things will never be the same again.
Other plus points today were that James is getting used to nappy changes and doesnt cry as much, and I am getting used to putting on his stuff! Also he didn’t cry till almost the end of his bath, which is another plus.
All I am praying for is a few 2 hour long periods of sleep for us both tonight. The midwife said that babies don’t know when it’s night, but I am not at all sure about that.
He was also good for his visitors (my auntie and uncle) today, but that is usually the case. I think the midwife struggles to believe that he doesnt sleep!
Fingers crossed….
Dec 12th
Doing a little better today. James was sleeping for 2-3 hours at a time last night, at last! So unless it’s a fluke then its much better. Emma is a little up and down with her emotions (although the book I read warned me about this) but doing well. The midwife is still coming every day which is usefull, if only to re-assure us that we are doing the right thing. We are also off to mum and dads for lunch, so we will see how he goes on then. He has had several walks out in his pram, which he seems to find very sleep inducing! I often wonder what the point is if he sleeps all the time, but perhaps that is the point!
He still cries during his nappy and baby stuff changes, but perhaps thats my technique, dunno. We will also try him with a bath today and see if he screems as loudly as last time. The most usefull bit of stuff has been his sling, which he is happy to go in and occaionally stops him crying, although it does hurt my shoulders after a bit. I think I need to revisit the instruction manual and check that all is plugged together correctly.
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