Archives for posts with tag: daddy blog

But, it wasn’t as satisfying as I thought it would be.  In fact, I was crushed too.

Worm has a way of telling us what he wants.  He points (somewhat close to the object he wants) and says “Ah!”  If it’s food, Worm’s mouth cranks wide open to help us translate the babble.  And if we don’t tickle his fancy, the “Ah!” sound gets louder and more shrill.  I’m not saying that we always give him what he wants, but if given a choice between a whining baby and a smiling baby, we seldom choose the former.

So, last night the Worm was eating some cheezy poofs (organic broccoli and cheese, of course) in his high chair.  The poofs were spread around his eating table in orderly baby fashion.  Since I love playing around with Worm, I decided to give him the “sign” that I wanted a cheezy poof.  I pointed at the poof and went “Ah!” and I opened my mouth so he could feed me.  Thinking that he would understand my baby lingo, I waited for my boca grande to enter supreme cheezy poofiness.  Nothing.

I'm Never Wearing This Shirt Again! Where's My "Just Like Mommy" Shirt?

Then I see Worm look at me as he’s never looked at me before, frightened.  He leaned away from me in his chair, turned his head, and was frozen still.  He didn’t move for about 15 seconds and I watched his little brown eyes turn red and well up with tears.  His little mouth turned down and was trembling.  Then he started sobbing.  Not like the “I want that Tickle Me Elmo Doll now!” sobbing.  It was the classic “My best friend in the whole world is moving away to Alaska and he’ll never survive there as a vegetarian!” kind of sobbing.

I spent the rest of the evening trying to make up with him, chasing him around the room, tickling him and looking for some interaction.  But, I got nothing.  I couldn’t explain to him that maybe my “Ah!” didn’t come out right.  I should have said “Ah!” instead of “Ah!”  Even if he could understand, he wouldn’t hear it.

He didn’t make eye contact with me again that evening.

I’ve got to do the adult thing to get back on his good side.  I’ll have to buy him a bike.

I’m good at being pathetic.  No, I’m great at being pathetic.  I have a natural ability to connive persuade others to come rescue me from myself.  (I like to call my gift of persuasion, charisma.)  This time, the victim hero to come to my aid is none other than my mom!

It only took a couple months of daddyblogging here on MVG and a few heartwarming Gavin videos to get mom on a plane to help parent the new parents.  (Isn’t the internet great!)  I sounded desperate enough to get grandma to stay for a jaw-dropping seven weeks.  Hooray for grandmas!

So, I’m thinking with the extra set of hands, Steph and I will get to rejuvenate ourselves both physically and mentally.  I’ll get to dust off my bike and ride again after 2 years hiatus.  I’ll get to exercise by doing something other than crawling around on all fours chasing the baby.  I’ll get to eat my breakfast and lunch like a normal human…you know, by chewing!  Steph and I will rekindle our relationship with long walks on the beach, candlelight dinners for two (not two and a half), and watching romantic movies together while kissing during the mushy parts.  We will go for long, scenic drives in the mountains and through the desert (without having to feed, change, and/or calm a whining baby in the back seat).  In short, we will return to our lives BB, before baby, if only briefly!

Grandma is Here to Save the Day!

It’s not like we’ll leave grandma holding the baby and the diaper bag.  She’s a pro and this is old hat for her.  She raised two unruly boys into semi-functional adults.  I know it was before electricity and light bulbs, but some childrearing tricks don’t change. And if anyone’s got baby tricks, it’s my mom.  In fact, she will probably fix all the mistakes I’ve made with Gavin in one week and have him taking out trash and vacuuming by the end of her stay with us.  (Isn’t that great?  And all we have to do for grandma is feed and water her!)

So, blue skies, romance, and Stephanie, here I come!  My mom is here to give us reprieve and tame the wiggly Worm!

I’m not keen on vaccines for everyone. In America,we should be allowed to choose whether or not we wish to vaccinate ourselves and our children. All too often, and becoming more common, is the requirement for workers in the health care field to get vaccinated. For children, some schools won’t allow attendance until vaccine requirements are met.

I personally believe that vaccine manufacturers are controlling the FDA and the government in forcing us to vaccinate our children.

I’ve got nothing against vaccines. I take issue with the extreme sensationalism behind vaccinations. Lastly, it should be up to the parents to make the decision of vaccinating their own kids, not the government or businesses.

With that said, you now know my personal stance on vaccination.

Make an Informed Vaccine Decision By Mayer Eisenstein

Make an Informed Vaccine Decision By Mayer Eisenstein, is a great read for parents who are concerned about vaccinations and their (ab)use in America. Eisenstein makes some really good points throughout, and follows up with evidence and clinical research data.  The reader can find both the pros and cons of vaccination.  Interestingly, Eisenstein puts forth some research data pertaining to illnesses and side effects possibly caused by vaccines.

The common vaccines are covered in this book: Polio, Influenza, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Chickenpox, Hepatitis A & B, Haemophilus Influenza Type B, Pneumococcal, Meningococcal, Rotavirus, Human Papilloma Virus.

This book also has a few sections pertaining to vaccines that have been heavily discussed: childhood autism, aluminum, other ingredients, and social obligation.

Eisenstein presents his feelings toward childhood vaccines right off the bat. His views and background are contained in the introduction. There is no guessing as to where he stands. The material presented on the various vaccines is concise with much of it seemingly unbiased. For someone like me, I like to be given plenty of information so that I can choose what to believe. The references provided at the end of each chapter allowed me to dig deeper into the material, if desired.

For example, the chapter on tetanus contains a brief history of tetanus, incubation period, and recent statistical data. The history of the tetanus vaccine, various combinations of tetanus drugs, and the safety of the administered drug is discussed. Then, the possible links between tetanus vaccine and diseases such as arthritis, neurological disorder, and immune system related diseases are included. Moreover, the efficacy data and VAERS (vaccine adverse effects reporting system) information is presented. Finally, Dr. Eisenstein leaves the reader with a list of references that assisted him in compilation of the chapter.  As you will see, there is plenty of material in each of the vaccine chapters for one to consider.

Another chapter, autism, talks about a possible correlation between MMR and autistic behavior. As well, there is mention of high levels of mercury being used as preservatives for vaccines. This chapter also lends itself to the idea that if significant correlation was made between autism and vaccines, there would be extreme legal action taken towards the pharmaceutical industry and CDC in America. There is a lot to digest and think about in this chapter, which makes it invaluable as a tool for making an informed decision about vaccination.

The book is well written overall and I can go on describing each chapter’s contents here. But I won’t. If you are looking for a book that gives you multiple perspectives about vaccination and the studies and secrecy behind it, then you will find the book’s information thought-provoking. And that is precisely what Eisenstein wants. He wants you to understand that not everyone is looking out for your baby’s interests. Pharmaceutical companies are powerful, profit-driven entities that control the vaccine industry. An informed consumer can keep safety research and clinical studies on the cutting edge by educating themselves.  It is up to the reader to protect themselves and make an informed vaccine decision for the health of his or her child.  This book is perfect for helping one do so.

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Overall Rating:  8 Worms

Readability:  8 Worms

Usefulness:  8 Worms

Manliness:  9 Worms  (Seems like it’s a man’s job to know about viruses, eh?)

Retail Price:  $14.95

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Pros:

Lots of good information on viruses and vaccines.  Plenty of references at the end of each chapter.

Cons:

The layout of the book could be a little more user friendly.

Things I would modify:

I would like to see more data included in the book rather than the reader being pointed towards the reference section.

Gavin’s two and a half months old in this picture and I guess the flash surprised him!  One day, he’s going to discover this blog about him.  And that will really surprise him!

You Lookin' at Me?

With crawling comes exploration.  Our little Christopher Columbus is curious about everything in the house.  The fact that he can motor his little body towards just about anything he wants is a little unnerving…to us.  To him, it’s freedom.

I understand the saying now about how “curiosity kills the cat”.  Since Gavin’s curiosity has taken control, it has put him in some pretty precarious situations (that my keen agility and deftness, I might add, have rescued him from again and again).  I worry about him falling off of stuff and getting hurt.  I worry about him falling onto stuff and getting hurt.  I worry about stuff falling on him and getting hurt (him, not the stuff).

Now, I have one more worry.  Gavin eating stuff and getting hurt.  It’s a whole other level of harmful stuff.

Worm puts everything in his mouth.  I could show him a pile of dirt with sprinkles on top and he would probably eat it.  (In fact, during a kiddie play date last month, we caught him impressing the ladies with his dirt eating machismo.)  It doesn’t matter how disgusting it is, the object of interest must visit his drool cave and stay a while for Worm to befriend or condemn it.  It’s the gateway to his brain.  (I know I’m dating myself here, but do you remember in the movie Short Circuit where Johnny 5 keeps obsessing about “Input!  Input!  Input!”?  It’s how Johnny 5 learns about his environment.  Worm is doing the same thing, but with his mouth!)

And it’s my job to keep things like rat poison, toilet bowl cleaner, and bleach away from his pie hole.  Recently, I’ve added dead bugs to the list.

We don’t see many bugs in San Diego.  But, I’d venture to guess that most of the bugs in San Diego come to die either inside my house or on my back patio.  (We don’t advertise as an insect mortuary, but we’ll take care of your insect’s funeral humanely and discreetly for a small fee.  White glove service extra.)  The most recent string of obituaries are these lovely millipede looking things.

Does Anyone Know What These Are?

And some of those bugs that didn’t quite die on my property have given their lives to Worm’s stomach.  I don’t know what these bugs are, but one thing is for certain, they’re not gummy worms.  Well, they can’t be LESS healthy than sugar, yellow #5, and gelatin.  Maybe I’ll be proud that my baby loves this fresh, 100% organic and natural low-calorie treat.  (Very Californian, eh?)

You can now say that you are what you eat, right Worm? (Hold on a sec while I go vomit…)

Puberty and hormones attack Gavin’s chin!

I'm So Distraught About My First Zit!

There are age recommendations for toys.  But why bother?  Either you can play with it, or you can’t.  So, I just toss the recommendations out the window…Well, I used to.

The toy that taught me and Worm a valuable life lesson is Jenga.  It’s mainly a game played (while inebriated) at an event where there’s more casual acquaintances and unknowns rather than friends.  It’s a nice ice breaker type of game.  Since Worm is lacking the traditional social skills of humans (verbal communication, nonverbal communication, emotional control, etc.), we decide that playing Jenga is a major socialization tool to increase his collection of friends at future milk and chicken pox parties.

Mattel states that Jenga is a game for “Ages 6 to adult”.  Personally, I didn’t realize that playing with blocks was conceptually advanced for a baby’s brain to wrap around.  But hey, this is America, where no child is left behind and the bar is set really low for educational pursuits so every child feels good about him or herself because that’s what’s really important in the world, not competition nor the drive to try to be the best you can be.  I digress.

I don’t know how many versions of Jenga are out there, but I’m assuming (which only makes an ass out of U and Ming, poor girl) that every Jenga has the same blocks that get stacked up and removed individually, with the reward of forcing a player to chug a beer or take a shot if one can keep the stack from crumbling to the ground.  When the Worm was presented with his new Jenga game, we allowed him to first try to get the container open.  And this is where I started to reevaluate that “Ages 6 to adult” idea.

Jenga is Dangerous For Children Under 6.

I’m impressed with his enthusiasm for the Jenga container.  But, this time enthusiasm gets the better of Worm.

I Was Appalled at the Animosity Jenga Had Towards My Innocent Child.

At Least He Got One Piece Out of the Container...

So, Jenga has set my son back mentally and emotionally.  He now wets himself, spits up, and cries.  Ok, so he was doing that before, but it seems like more liquid comes out of him now.  I blame it on the Jenga.  Worm will carry the scars of Jenga for the rest of his life all because we didn’t read the label.  Just a word of advice for parents.  Adhere to the age guidelines for toys!

Since I have nothing better to do I may have to start an organization that lobbies for pictures on the labels of toy packages showing the gory images of what happens when parents don’t adhere to the age recommendations (kind of like what the government wants to do with cigarettes).  I don’t want something like this to happen to any other child.  EVER!  Join me in my fight against parents having to read labels!

I have to give myself a point here because unlike Worm, I know how to open the Jenga container.  Besides, he’s still reeling from the trauma of the toy…I’m going to take advantage of him while he’s down!

Gavin – 8; Dad – 5