Thursday, April 17, 2008

Lil' Papi

I'm a few days late writing a post this week because I've been busy working on the nursery (painting, cleaning, installing a hot tub, etc.). It's been a bit more difficult to do anything in that room since the shower last weekend. The little one received many gifts from our extremely generous family and friends. We now have a stroller, a playpen, and a "diaper genie" (he's the smelliest of the genie clan, and I've already learned he doesn't grant you 3 wishes... though I'm not sure I'd want him to, anyway). We also received clothes, baby monitors, books, blankets, and... more importantly...


LOTS OF RED SOX STUFF!!!

Red Sox onesies, Red Sox warm-up suit, Red Sox plush ball, Red Sox sippy cups, Red Sox welding kit (we might wait 'til he's older to give him that), Red Sox blanket, Red Sox bibs, Red Sox socks - it may be enough to make him the most hated baby in New York. I get teary-eyed just thinking about it.

On Sunday, our little one got his first true taste of the Sox-Yankees rivalry: we brought him to a game at Fenway, and sat in the bleachers.

Jennifer could feel the little one "boo" Johnny Damon and shout "Yooouk" for Kevin Youkilis (it's actually the same feeling). The little one cheered when the Sox hammered the Yankees' pitching, and then openly questioned whether Dice-K is worth $100 million. All in all, it was a very good night - and we think the little one had a great time. It was especially comforting to know that he can't make out the words slurred by the drunken fans.

I'm looking forward to taking him to a Sox game after he's born. It's a good thing he already has all that team gear, though... we ended up spending all our savings on a couple Fenway Franks and a cup of coffee, so we can't afford to buy any more.

Saturday, March 29, 2008

30 is a magic number

It's been nearly two weeks since my last blog entry, and, wow, what a crazy two weeks it has been. First of all, I must say, moving is as much fun as spending a day at the amusement park - a park with a roller coaster that runs off the tracks, a merry-go-round that eats people, and a PA system that's stuck on a repeat of "Mmm-bop." While Jennifer and I love our new apartment, we're trying to deal with some of its quirks - like our kitchen with no counter space, our bathroom with no towel racks, and our radiators with no heat. Well, the heat does work most times; it just decided to shut off a couple days before St. Patrick's Day, during the coldest part of the month.

For four days, Jennifer and I bundled up and sat still on our couch as I burned the rest of our furniture and most of her shoes in an effort to keep warm. The little one, meanwhile, would kick Jennifer mockingly, as he enjoyed the heated shelter of the womb.

(Above: Our bedroom on St. Patrick's Day)

Our landlord, who lives on New York's tropical Island of Staten, apologized profusely for the lack of heat and called the gas company to come fix the furnace, saying she'd pay anything to get heat back on. She didn't have to pay much; the problem was with the thermostat, which is locked up in the basement. Turns out the temperature was set too low. So, the repair guy turned it up, but way too high, and for the rest of the week I wore nothing but a Speedo.

After the Great Thaw, I spent a lot of time getting the nursery ready for the big arrival. We unpacked many of the boxes still in there, and cleared away enough space so I could start painting the room. We're making it green and white, like a key lime pie with whipped cream, because we want our child to be hungry all the time. Plus, with green walls in his bedroom, the little one will feel at home when he visits Fenway. It's all part of the plan.

Last weekend we went back to Massachusetts for a wonderful Easter family reunion at my Aunt and Uncle's place in Rockport. There was a lot of food, a lot of laughter, and a lot of "thump-thump-thumps" caused by the feet of my one-and-a-half-year-old twin cousins. It was such a good time, I almost forgot that it was the last day of my youth.

Dawn broke the day after Easter, and I felt a crick in my back. Someone, somewhere, was playing music too loud, and I had a sudden desire to start eating dinner at 4pm. And that's when it hit: I had turned 30.

No longer am I a careless twentysomething. I actually have to take responsibility for my actions. I'm going to be a father! Plus, I'm starting to look too old to get the college student discount at the movie theater. So sad. It's a lot for a person to take, and a weaker man would have spent the day drowning himself in beer and cheap tequila shots. Unfortunately, I couldn't even do that, since I had to drive back to New York.

Jennifer, though, knew exactly how to pull me away from those AARP membership applications. She surprised me with a dinner at Peter Luger Steak House. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Peter Luger's, it's perhaps the best steak in the world. Their German fried potatoes aren't so bad, either. As you can see by the picture to the right, I was a very happy man. Things were looking better.

So, maybe turning 30 won't be so bad. I'm looking forward to a lot of great things this decade - the birth of our child, Jennifer's new law career, my first day as a New York City cab driver. And at least I haven't hit 40 yet. Those people are REALLY old.

That's basically all that's been going on. Jennifer was off this past week, and we got a lot more stuff done around here. We even picked out a crib, so the little one won't have to sleep on the floor, as we originally planned.

Also, on Wednesday, Jennifer finally got word from her doctor's office that she PASSED the Glucose test! Now, all she has to do is pass the bar. I'm sure that will be just as easy.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Have gun, will register

On Friday, I got to play with a gun. Jennifer and I went to one of those scary mega-baby stores to register for stuff, and I was able to use the scanner. At first, we thought it would be a fun time, especially after seeing all the little kids' clothing at the doorway. It wasn't long, though, before we realized we were in over our heads.

Up and down the aisles we went, scanner gun in hand, without a clue as to what we needed for the little one. We had so many questions. What do those numbers on the diaper boxes mean? Why are there so many different types of blankets? What are the multi-uses of multi-use pads? As we struggled through the store for nearly three hours, the intercom played a greatest-hits of mind-numbing pop songs. The whole experience started to feel like a trip to the dentist's, except you're not stuck in a chair, and the drill goes directly into your brain.

And that's how we ended up registering for something called "Baby Butt Smooth Ointment." It's made by a company called Boudreaux, which proudly boasts to also be the maker of "Baby Butt Paste." We're not exactly sure what it's for, but at least we know where it goes.

Those people at Boudreaux, they apparently don't like to sugar-coat the type of product they have. They thumbed their noses at the Snoozy's, Boppy's, and Huggies of the world. They don't need a cute name like "Goodbye Itchies" or "Bottom Sunshine." Nope, BUTT PASTE works just fine, thank you very much. In my daze, I was actually impressed with the direct nature of Boudreaux's products, and almost registered for the whole product line.

Instead, though, we decided to not go with the Butt Paste, and register for only the Baby Butt Smooth Ointment. We figure we'll give it a try, and if we like it a lot, maybe we'll ask for a Butt Paste gift basket for Christmas.

Monday, January 21, 2008

Chubby chucked

The little one got a checkup at the doctor's on Friday, and everything is going perfectly so far. We heard a strong heartbeat, and we asked the important questions, such as "Do foot rubs cause premature contractions?" (To Jennifer's relief, the answer was "no.") At the end of the checkup, though, we got some devastating news. As Jennifer twisted herself to get her shoes in back of her, the doctor frowned and said, "you shouldn't do that."

Imagine how crushed we were to hear that! After all, just four short years ago, Jennifer and I were finalists in a twisting contest at Stephanie & Chuck's wedding. But Friday, twisting was added to the long list of things Jennifer cannot do.

So when we got home, we smashed most of our Chubby Checker CD's. No more The Twist, Let's Twist Again, Slow Twistin', Twistin' at the Funeral, or our more recent favorite, Twistin' 'Cause You're Pregnant. We kept Limbo Rock because the doc didn't say anything to stop Jennifer from limboing, thank goodness.

This weekend we also began our search for a new apartment. No luck so far. Either the apartments we like are in bad neighborhoods, or they have knives coming out of the floorboards, and we just don't think that's safe for a newborn. We're optimistic, though, that we'll soon find something we like.

Monday, January 14, 2008

What Baby wants, Baby gets

We're back from our week in North Carolina. We had a great time celebrating Christmas with Jennifer's side of the family, and the little one seemed to enjoy it, too, having kicked Jennifer a few times before the flight home. He or she was apparently showing approval of the trip, or throwing a temper tantrum over leaving the warm south (the latter is highly unlikely, since our child will never throw a fit like that... right?).

Jennifer didn't feel any strong cravings this time around. During our last trip to Carolina, on Thanksgiving night, the little one DEMANDED sour cream and onion potato chips. Jennifer's parents didn't have any, so we trekked out, through the dark streets of Winston-Salem, searching for the snack, which, of course, wasn't easy to find. CVS didn't have any - plenty of barbecue, but no sour cream and onion. Walgreen's was closed because of the holiday, and so was Harris Teeter. At that point, grabbing a crowbar and breaking in seemed like a good idea - I'm sure the cops would have understood the situation. Fortunately I didn't have to, since we eventually found the snack at a gas station.

Now Jennifer's cravings haven't been as unusual as some of my friends have hoped they'd be. No pickles & peanut butter, or sardines & mayo. Nope - Jennifer has craved foods like apple juice, Starburst candy, and chocolate. She often declares "the baby wants..." before revealing her craving- therefore removing herself from all responsibilty while giving me no choice but to provide. For example: "The baby wants creme brulee... and diamond earrings."


(Above: Some of Jennifer's cravings)

Jennifer is still drinking a lot of apple juice, and having chocolate from time to time, but she says her cravings are, for the most part, a thing of the past. However, since she is eating for two, you can't blame her for having food on the mind. That was evident a little more than a week ago, when we were watching an old episode of Family Feud. The host announced topic of the face-off, which was "Name something that's worth the wait."

Jennifer sat up, and with wide eyes shouted "DESSERT!!!"

Meanwhile, on the TV, the contestant's answer was... "a husband."