August - Mr. Teeth

Teeth. I always knew they were trouble...just sitting there, not really doing a whole lot. You have to clean them constantly, spend loads of dough on them...I'm all about soup.

Grayson almost has two teeth. For month's he has being chewing on his hands and fingers like he was the cause of the recession, but now we know the real reason behind the seemingly nervous behaviour. They are pretty funny looking right now, it looks like he had a bad night at the Inntowner, but they are making their way to freedom and hopefully will give him a break sooner than later.

We have been giving him Tylenol and a great 'natural' product called Camilia, both of which have helped him to sleep. I have been trying out new 'toys' in the hopes of helping him with his struggle, the plastic soup spoons and plastic bag clips are his favorite.


Well, the summer was great. We had a couple of weddings, road tripped out to BC, flew to Toronto, had some great visits from old friends, camp parties, and a ton of new opportunities to show Grayson off. Let's face it, parents like to show their kids around...it's part of the deal. It's like a new club that you can't get into unless you have a certain number of changed diapers under your belt...good times.

All the travelling and visiting is great, but being at home with him during our Terrace Bay days is the real adventure. I'm learning alot about patience and what the 'eye rub' means and the feeling of a little one that whole-heartedly trusts you is like none other. It's a bond/gift for sure...

On a personal note, we wish our new friends the best of luck in their travels in Nepal and the inspiration that it gave me was something I haven't felt for a while. Grayson will follow in your footsteps, sooner and later.

We'll this is shorter than I'd like as it's been too long for an update. I'm on this more...

Big Week

I've been slacking on the blog for a bit as we've been crazy busy with visitors and activities...one thing I've noticed is at the end of the day, I'm done. You don't even notice that it's exhausting because you are having too much fun and almost something new happens every day. Small things become HUGE...in a good way.

So first off, the last two weeks have been pretty long, Linds has been on-call for just about half the time, which isn't too bad, but the long weekend had the Terrace Bay Drags (which is cars...not dudes)...and huge parties to go with it. The call wasn't too bad until later on in the weekend, which was taxing on all of us. We did take Gray to the races and it was pretty cool, SUPER loud, but as you can see from one of the pictures, he's got it covered.

Next, we had my grandmother and dad come for a couple of days to hang-out and chill with the little guy. We forget sometimes how lucky we are to have our families so close to us, it makes a huge difference to us in so many ways...the close proximity comes with tribulations as well, but the postives outweigh the negatives...I think.


On a more personal side, if I'm half the dad my father is/was to me...Grayson has it made. Best person ever. Period.

Finally we had some good friends over to stay for last night, on their long journey back to Flin Flon. Mel is 8 months pregs and she's looking great as always. It's awesome to have our friends check in with us from time to time and really get a good session in...Mike and Mel are going to be great parents, which from a new parent's POV, you can tell right away when a couple is going to be great (like Mel and Mike) and have wonderful children that your kids can chill with and when a child is going to probably be a convict or be really good at hanging upside down on a greased pole.

Well, Linds gave me the green light to head out tonight and have some pints....I think I'll just stay home and watch 'Dancing with the Stars'...F$ck That! If you notice my grandmothers pipes (she's had cancer a couple of times) she stays busy and still has a beer at the end of the day. Living life will either kill you or keep you alive...


One more round...

Speaking his mind...

"Hey Batta, Batta, SWING....Batta..."

Grayson looks like a baseball announcer when he's in his 'spinner', one of the toys in his play-thing that looks like a Tilt-a-Whirl from the movie Explorers starring a young Ethan Hawke and River Phoenix....an attachment for it looks like an old school microphone and Grayson is doing the play-by-play for the division winning Joe Carter home run in '91.... He loves that thing, to a point. He's not really yelling at anymore as he is saying 'good morning' to each of his 'plastic friends'...it makes you feel like he's in Toy Story and can really have a conversation with them. I'm missing out...BIG TIME!

I can only imagine when Gray starts to talk for real. I'm sure we'll be having a conversation not unlike the 'Respect' skit of Sandler's....'Little Grayson had his first day of school today!...'

We have a wedding in Toronto in a couple of weeks and Grayson's first weekend with Grandma McLeod (she's coming down with us) will be a test for all of us. We need to have him cool with people we trust so he feels comfortable...he's been doing great with it so far (as long as he isn't tired).

His first two/three months were really difficult for me and being with him alone was terrifying, but now he is his own corner of our family foundation and I couldn't think of life without him. We still have up's and down's but having children has made me a better person. If anything, I walk WAY more......

We are currently listening to Howard list off the 'IQ' tests and Grayson loved it so much, he passed out on me....Ignoring his lack of interest, this is radio gold...

5 months....

One of the best and worst thing's about having a child is the unpredictability of it all. One second he's doing awesome, playing in the 'jumper thing' having a meaningful conversation with the plastic whale in front of him....and then he pounces on the head of the whale like a cat on a mouse. The time for conversation is over. He's chewing on it, batting it around and then finally, fed up with the lack of response, he just starts yelling at it. Then he cries.

This is the new sequence of events that is starting to become common place during our days together. He goes through his routine with the whale and other 'friends of the circle' and then I take him out, we have a chat and some tummy time...go check out what's going on outside at the Lake and then he sleeps or eats at Lindsay's office. I can only describe the day as a blur. At the end of the day, my leg's are heavy but my mind is weightless, it feels like a great day at work.

He's all about 5:30 am now...which we aren't. The sunshine seems to be less friendly to us sometimes, as soon as he see's a thimble of light coming from the window, it's all over. Let's hope in winter he sleeps in a bit...

Blackout blinds....Blackout blinds...Blackout Blinds....

Better Days

Yesterday was the best day I've had with Grayson. Period.

We went to the land fill, we went to the grocery store, hardware store, and then made risotto for dinner. He slept like a champ and when he wasn't arguing with his toys, we had a great time drinking water from a glass....Small victories, but victories nonetheless.

Everyday something new happens or we get a connection a deeper level. He trusts me. Linds and I are the only ones he truly feels comfortable with...that's pretty heavy.

I'm a pretty impatient person and have a hard time not picking apart life. Grayson has so far helped me to chill out a bit and take a more personal approach to our lives. I worry and think about different things now, like who he'll know, feel comfortable with and how he'll treat others when he's older.

This isn't as hard as I thought it would be....it actually gives a real sense of purpose, fulfillment, and a more narrow view of what is REALLY important in life.

I love being a dad. I always thought I would.

Northern Exposure

When Fleischman first stepped into Cicily, Alaska...he didn't know anything about living in a small town or the benefits that come with it. The feeling of having someone know your name and be actually interested in how your family is doing is something you see in show's like 'Northern Exposure'...but most don't get to experience it on any level. Terrace Bay is like Cicily. Almost everyone we meet is a genuine article, at least on the outset and to have Grayson grow up here for a while is going to be great.

We took him to the Lake Superior day, which is put on by the town and brings out a ton of people from town and surprisingly some who were just passing through or kayaking the bays. Bald eagles, beautiful horizons, islands, surf and fishing spots...he's got it all. The community is so kind and very interested in Grayson and having us integrate into the family...it's a really nice feeling. Grayson is loved from people he doesn't even know, which is rare.

To back up a bit, we had a good friend's birthday on Friday night out at Silver Islet. It's funny when some people ask us to come out now, you normally ask what to bring...Grayson is the only dish they want. It's great for us, as our goal in life is for him to know, really know, the important people in our life. We want our children to really have aunts, uncles, and cousin's that aren't related to him directly. This is the goal and you can't do that staying at home and not participating in life. We did alot before we had him and it will continue to the best of our ability now. The benefits will be huge. We hope. At the very least, we get the opportunity to change the perception of raising children.

We are having a bit of an issue though. We want Grayson to know his family out in the North-West (although I'd love for Grayson to live right beside Ats and the fam, maybe one day brother)...we miss them alot, having kids and parents around a bit more would be great.

Two places at once....cue the Moose.

Superpowers

We have given birth (mainly Linds) to a super hero. Grayson's new ability is beyond any normal human being's ability and could be used for good or evil...however, I'm not sure which way he's leaning at this point. He has the ability to NEVER sleep and be completely happy about it.

Maybe he's training to become a night watchman or 'Dig-Dug'....being underground and all. Whatever it is, I'm afraid I don't know what the kryptonite of the boy is...he only has one chink in the armor. Breast milk. I'm out.

He met a couple of new friends today in Terrace Bay and we had a BBQ, played and picked raspberries. It was great. Winds were blowing, surfers out in the water...awesome day.

On an honest note, it takes a real solid person to be able to do this everyday. I have a 3-4 day alone with him and that is about my limit. It has nothing to do with him, it's more the ability to do something for yourself and come home stoked to see your kids. I think making the time count while you are around them instead of forcing the issue is the way to go....

As I type this, he's in the Bjorn on my chest with a 'holey' blanket over him and The Deep Dark Wood's are playing "The Gallows".....he's sleeping. One more chink in the armor.