It’s hard to believe that it’s Leela’s 1^st Birthday today.  The morning of a year ago today, Jody asked if it would be okay if we went to the hospital just as a precaution as we weren’t due for another week.  My response being… “Well, let me see what’s going on today and if I have any meetings and… OF COURSE IT’S OKAY!!!!”  From getting to the hospital to waiting as pregnant couples came in, and left as parents before us, Jody, my amazing wife, was in the best spirits you could ask for.  Dare I say, she made it… fun.  Continued…

I believe we’ve found some order in the chaos.  Leela has started to follow a somewhat  rough schedule for feeding, sleeping and even pooping.  I’m most perplexed at her ability to do all three at once.  I believe these are the early signs of a MENSA candidate. 

At the same time, I’ve adjusted to not freaking out when I hear her make a noise when she’s sleeping and not panicking when I don’t hear her make any noise when she’s sleeping.  This has helped my sleep pattern extend to longer than 2 hours at a time. Continued…

Dear Leela,

You’re home now.  I know that it couldn’t have been that much fun in the hospital for a few days getting poked and prodded by doctors and nurses.  I assure you that it was all to make sure you were doing okay.  You see, you felt a need to arrive two weeks before you were due and they (as well as your mom and I) wanted to make sure you were ready for this crazy world.

For some strange reason, people you’ve never met in your life are really excited to see you.  You’re kind of like a rock star that way.  For months, they’ve all been hearing all about you so when the time actually came, they were very happy to finally meet you.  As you grow up, you’re going to become a little confused at more things like this.  I thought I’d explain a few things to you now, to make it easier.

Continued…

I think all guys know about Huggies and Pampers.  It’s a simple process on our side of going, buying, putting on, removing and then placing in garbage.  Repeat steps as necessary.  However, it’s a whole new world when you decide to buck the system and not wear the label of “The Man”.  Okay, a bit excess, but nonetheless… cloth diapers. Continued…

Out of all items on the list of baby items to buy, there are few more attention-grabbing to a guy than the baby stroller.  One part because we care about the safety of our child and even more part because it has moving parts and tires.  It’s the very small overlap into a world that we kind of understand as it comes partially unassembled and involves tools that aren’t included.  But before we can tackle that part (which is relatively easy), we must have our say in choosing the right stroller.

Continued…

It’s no secret that when it comes to shopping men are from mars and Venus had to have been a mall.

A little into when my wife and I first started dating, she thought it would be a good idea if she accompanied me to buy a new pair of jeans.  We went to a store and I proceeded to spend the next 45 minutes in incarceration or as the store called it… the dressing room.  Every few minutes another pair of jeans would be tossed over for me to try on and only then would I be let out to plead my case that I was ready to be put back in public.  If my wife and the sales lady didn’t agree, I would be put back into the box for the next round of denim rehabilitation.

Continued…