Post 13 (10/7/14)

Long time no see, my loyal readers. I know that you haven't heard anything from me for quite a while, and I apologize for that. This last few months has been really crazy around here. I could go into so many different little details, but I'll spare you guys all my bitching and moaning.

Just to serve as a quick overview: my daughter still isn't sleeping well and now camps out on the floor next to our bed just so we can get a decent nights sleep, my son has finally weened off of formula (man that stuff stinks) and is drinking whole milk and being introduced to new foods every day, and the biggest stressor we've been coping with is we're planning on selling our house and buying a new one. This is the biggest underlying reason for my lack of motivation when it came to creating a new post for you guys.

On the plus side, I've completed school and am totally done for the foreseeable future. I've completed the AA program at Heald and will focus on being a stay-at-home dad, podcaster, and blogger from here on.

With that in mind, I've been reading other blogs lately, mostly parenting related blogs as well. I'm just not sure I'm really cut out for parental blogging. All the ones that I've been reading, that seem to be successful and popular, are structured around giving advice or guidance for other parents. I don't see how that's something I could even attempt. Who am I to tell all of you how you should be parenting? I'm still figuring all this out as I go. It would be one thing if my kids were in High School and successful and I was advising you guys on small kids, but that's not the case. In fact, most of the blogs I read have kids close to the same age as mine. I admire the confidence these parents have in the choices they've implemented and any success they've seen, both in parenting and blogging. But I've just come to the conclusion that I'm just a dude trying his best to be a good dad. I'll tell you guys when I figure out something that worked with my kids. I'll share my opinions on parenting, and even sometimes marriage, related subjects. But I will not be the one trying to tell you guys how to get it done. In fact, I'll probably ask for help from time to time.

I hope that's not too disappointing, and I hope that my sharing is more entertaining than anything else and it keeps bringing you guys back for more. I know writing this really does help me when I muster up the motivation, and find the time, to type it out for you guys.

Bodie had to hop up and see what Dad was doing.

Post 12 (7/21/14)

I've recently noticed a somewhat concerning trend in my behavior. I've started to show a trait that up until now I've considered extremely douchee. I am sad to admit I've been referring to myself in the third person, and not just occasionally. Phrasing like, "Daddy said no," or, "Daddy doesn't really want to play princesses right now." It's really a little disturbing. I'm going to have to make an effort to alter this behavior before the little ones pick up on it, or at least come to think its acceptable behavior.

Okay, enough about me and my slippery slope into being a butthead. Let's chat about the kids real quick. 

Cali has started ballet class, this week will be her third week. She absolutely loves it. We always knew she would enjoy dancing, she's been doing her own interpretive dance since she could walk. The first day we took her to class, she had an ear-to-ear grin for the entire 45 minutes. Last week she may have had a slightly harder time listening, but she still loved it. I'm really excited for her. Being able to provide the opportunity for my children to pursue the things they are passionate about is something I've always hoped I could do as a parent. 

Soooooo Happy!

Bodie is still fighting sleep but the last few nights have actually gone a little better. I've been laying him down and just letting him cry it out. The first night I had to go in after 45 minutes to calm him back down a bit. He fell asleep after another 20 minutes of crying and then slept through the night. The next night was almost identical with the exception that he woke once in the middle of the night. Thank goodness my wife was willing to go down and soothe him that time because I didn't have it in me. Last night, he cried for a good 30-45 minutes but then he was down for the count. I tried everything else I could think of before this "tough love" approach. It was starting to look like we were just encouraging the tantrums. This seems to be working a little. Don't worry though, I'll keep you all posted. 

Captain Handsome

Post 4 (3/26/14)

Hey gang. How have you guys been? Things have been pretty great around here. Super busy, which might explain why it's been a couple weeks since I last posted, but otherwise great. 

What's new around here, you ask? Well, not much that would seem big to a lot of people, but to parents, the little things really matter. 

Our son, Bodie, just finished cutting his 4th tooth. It's pretty cute because the first one up top was way over to the side, almost his canine. He already had the two front, bottom teeth and this one on the side was so adorable every time he would give us a huge smile, which is quite often because he is so happy. I couldn't help calling him our little snaggle-tooth baby. So funny. 

Our daughter, Cali, is coming up in her 3rd birthday and it's starting to show. I'm not sure who coined the term, "Terrible Twos" but I'm pretty sure they didn't have kids. I think they were just trying to work on making something that sounded clever, or they just had rotten kids. I've confirmed this with most of the more experienced parents I know and respect, and threes are much more terrible than twos. The closer my daughter gets to three, the more I see what they're talking about. She's developed this ability to completely ignore her mother and me. She also has discovered the joy of screaming and hitting when we have to leave somewhere that she's been having fun. Right after she's pushed us past the point of tolerating it, she likes to look at us and her most dramatic, cheesy Disney live-action TV show style voice, say, "I'm so so so sorry, mommy/daddy." 

The hard part is, she's apologizing, and doing it usually without being prompted anymore which is great, so we feel like forgiving is the right response. She then thinks that means all is past and the world is happy. She's pushed my wife to the point where she just doesn't want to talk to Cali for a few minutes, wanting some peace and quiet for a minute. She then apologizes, my wife forgives her, and then she starts trying to chat up a storm with my wife. At what point do we expect her to understand that an apology, followed by forgiveness, doesn't actually change the mood instantly?

Well, I'm pretty sure that this is one of those things that you just have to be consistent, persistent, and patient. She'll eventually grasp the concepts, as she has with everything else. It's only difficult because she's so smart and grasps other things that we would never expect her to grasp. Stick around for further adventures of Ms. Cali and the lessons of life (for Dad). 

So,etching else I'd like to throw out there, mostly for you parents out there with multiple kids. How do you balance the attention you give each kid? I find, from time to time thoughout the day, that when I'm addressing an issue with the baby (as those are so hard to ignore) my daughter is beginning to act out in an effort to get my attention. I'm just curious what other parents do in these situations.