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07/16/2007: "Marking Time"
The week after Dessa was born, my Aunt Ro and Uncle Bill came down to see her. They brought with them some presents, including a really nice baby book and a Baby's First Year calendar. The calendar has little stickers to commemorate things like "First Doctor's Appointment", "First Smile", "Sleeps Through the Night" and "First Tooth". It's a cute and easy way to keep track of what happened when since, even if there's no sticker for the event (such as "First Time Making Sausage" - hey, it's an event. And she was in the Baby Bjorn with me while we did it...) I can simply write the event in the designated day.
I think this idea could be expanded to parents as well, and I could make some extra cash. My "Parent's First Year" calendar would include stickers for events that first time parents might not recognize as celebratory before they became parents, but by God they deserve a toast now. Examples include:
First Uninterrupted Dinner Alone - Dave and I can eat dinner at the same time at my Mom's house because there are generally at least three people there who want to hold Dessa. And even if we were there without a crowd, my sister would probably be there and between her and my Mom I would be hard pressed to get my hands on the baby. But at home? When it's just Dave and I? It's a different story. Dessa has an uncanny sense of timing and likes to have her active, meltdowny time when we're having dinner. We've gotten good at passing her off between us. I'll eat my dinner, bolting it down as though a Turkish prison guard might arrive at any moment to remove it and Dave will hold Dessa. Then we switch. We eat in the same room as each other, just not at the same time. The first time we ate simultaneously I was wearing Dess in the Baby Bjorn, which worked, but was a little awkward for me (and I got crumbs on her no matter how hard I tried). The first time she sat in her swing, happy, for a whole meal I was thrilled. It hasn't happened since, but I have high hopes.
First Successful Distraction of Baby - The first time you pull your baby's attention away from the crying fit they were about to break into by giving them some toy or other stimulation is a powerful moment. It's a milestone for the baby, sure, but even more so for the parent because it allows you some measure of belief that you're in control of the situation. You're totally not, of course, but mild delusion is part of surviving parenthood and if this does it for you, I say mark the date!
First Time Baby Doesn't Interrupt "Intimate" Time with Your Spouse - Halle-freaking-lujah. Need I say more?
First Sleep Where Mom Doesn't Check for Breathing - I haven't hit this milestone yet, but I'm awaiting it eagerly. It's universal, I think, for new moms to check the breathing status regularly when the baby is sleeping. They look so calm and peaceful that you just have to poke them or hold a mirror up to their nose or something. It's compulsive. I know I'm not the only one. Right? RIGHT?
First Blog Entry Completed Before Baby Started Crying - Haven't hit this one yet either. Maybe tomorrow. For now... must run. The battle between Dessa and her sworn enemy, the mobile, has begun.
Replies: 1 Comment - Go read it!
on Monday, July 16th, Jeannie said
Compulsively checking for breathing? Guilty. Dinner trade-off? Hell, yeah. We STILL haven't had a dinner that wasn't interrupted by feeding time. Which I'm convinced is my fault, because I'm obviously not scheduling our dinner correctly. Right?
Notes from a Yarn Hacker
